The result is a compelling exercise in growth.

Its delicacy and sentimentality may strike a cheesy note on first listen, but Post-Tropical is a definite grower.

It’s a fun record, and as adventurous as we’ve come to expect from Planningtorock.

Little Red should rightly see Katy B cement her ascent to the stratosphere, joining the rest of dance music’s glitterati.

The attraction of this LP is the thought that’s gone into it – every sound that you hear has been meticulously planned and recorded using, possibly, something that the Stasi might have once used.

While this fifth album contains icier, rather Fever Ray inspired electronic soundscapes, frontman Paul Smith’s eccentric tales of nocturnal sports and deceased poets are mostly backed by the angular pop production fans of this band have come to expect.

Young Fathers possess that which makes the best British acts truly special: a singular identity born of multinational mixology.

Essentially, this is a cheaper, condensed version of last year’s ‘Singles Collection’, a deluxe wooden box set that housed nine 7” singles and which contained all the singles from those two albums, in addition to the songs found here.

What could so nearly have been overbearing or desperate to be loved is, in actual fact, sincerely captivating and euphorically playful.

Rarely has an artist’s death been so vivid. R.I.P. Actress; your dystopian electronic visions have widened our nocturnal vision. We now await your reincarnation.

With its sharply defined highs and curiously odd misses, there’s more than enough here for dedicated fans to sift through, to extrapolate new shades of Springsteen from. For the rest of us, though, there isn’t quite enough to hold our attention.

Interestingly, the album itself isn't “too true”--rather, it’s just true enough.

Wallowing, dreary vocals are effectively juxtaposed with electronic twinkles on the likes of ‘You Are’. But other tracks, like ‘The 5%’, seem too chaotic and narrowly miss their targets, resulting in an album just falling short of top marks.

You can’t tell that Bella Union founder Simon Raymonde and Wisconsin-raised vocalist Stephanie Dosen didn’t even make it into the same room for this beautiful collaborative record as Snowbird, such are its dreamy, enlightening and angelic qualities.

Their demons finally overcome, Peggy Sue are now revelling in true resolute defiance.

A richly melodic, welcomingly melancholic debut.

It’s a triumphant comeback.

Despite being the result of creative restlessness, After The Disco never really takes us anywhere new. By playing it safe, however, Mercer and Burton have also made it pretty difficult for fans to feel disappointed by it.

Simple, unaffected songwriting with a direct emotional pull, Falling Faster Than You Can Run is swarming with undercurrents, with nuances that only become more marked over time.

There’s a vision and attention to detail here that’s led to an decidedly individual record that, like a new love, shares a little more with you whenever you spend some time together.

Ed’s voice is at its finest--effortless and addictive. It makes you want to listen to this gem all over again.

These 11 pieces are grand and ambitious.

While Jurado’s music has, on occasion, seemed a little slight, this is an endearingly ambitious, somewhat unexpected folk-rock triumph.

An apt step forward, Rave Tapes finds its makers matching grace and irreverence, noise and beauty with the don’t-give-a-f*ck bravado of people who can only know better.

The LA foursome’s second LP, Warpaint, is as devastatingly brooding as ever.

Beyoncé’ is one of the best damn albums of 2013, basically, however you’re looking at it: as an R&B record, a pop set, an electro collection. Whatever your tastes, you can’t question the quality here.

It’s not a bad record by any stretch, albeit one where the turgid does bump ugly against the terrific.

This is music that’s meticulous and expansive without ever falling into the trap of being boring or self-indulgent.