Running at 16 full-length tracks, Strength of A Woman can seem overindulgent. Songs that are enjoyable in isolation, or as a smaller subset, become either repetitive or forgettable in the context of the whole.

Tthe songwriting is strong without being spectacular, and John Congleton’s production offers clarity but is somewhat lacking in edge.

This is the sound of a questing spirit pushing at the parameters of unlimited freedom, a hand reaching out to grasp infinity and not falling far short.

They have created their most youthful album yet; a vibrant record which paints a picture of the near future so vivid it seems convincingly real.

DAMN. does at times feel contradictory and the ideas he’s transmitting at times don’t feel fully formed, but this is where its genius lies. Kendrick offers a true snapshot of the eternal debates that we host inside our heads, and there is immense bravery and artistry in his depiction.

This record can be the perfect soundtrack to slacking in the sun or it can be deconstructed, stripped of its intricacies and analysed in great depth, allowing for new discoveries even on the 20th listen--and it’s this diversity that proves why Splashh are not a drop in the ocean.

Season High is a pleasant ride--a breezy escapade through dreamlands and ultraviolet meadows. It’s a sometimes sickly-sweet concoction that’ll leave you once or twice with the feeling of overindulgence.

A record that fits neatly in to the Maxïmo Park canon, while seeking to distance itself from it subtly.

This album deserves your attention and is a perfect example of a group accomplishing and exceeding their full potential.

Singers aside, we have those subtle harmonies drenching every song, sparkles of synth, strings and flute, and those sunrise drums lifting everything. It’s utterly gorgeous and the best bits of Midlake still shine through.

The album perhaps sags a little in towards the later stages--weighed down by the claustrophobic washes of sound. But as a whole, it compliments the rest of their back catalogue well.

Booming walls of sound are favoured at the expense of nuance, leaving Belong too regularly thirsting for a banner hit, and ultimately, offering a perfect example of why bigger isn’t always better.

Double Roses takes what worked the first time round, namely Elson’s gentle vocals and passion for the pastoral and forlorn, and amplifies the whole package with greater musicianship and composition.

Longevity is often characterised by reinvention in music, yet The Ride stalls in its attempted inventiveness, instead finding success in its most pared down and familiar moments.

Employing a dense rack of synths, the opening tracks establish a slightly chaotic fug that the record gradually emerges from. And, once its found its feet, the album treads a pretty glorious path.

Although refreshing, visceral and completely understandable--when listening to the whole LP, the political themes are occasionally overwhelming.

Luckily her jaw-dropping vocal capabilities are enough to maintain a consistently thrilling album, and it’s this that makes Careless People worth the wait.

Arca rides a steady stream of minimalist melancholia, juxtaposed against Ghersi’s intense, operatic vocals--the effect is one of ceremonial transcendence.

Though compact, Crawl Space draws the focus in on Tei Shi’s compelling and sultry vocals like never before and includes more elements of guitar.

Throughout, Kirk’s hyper-literate brand of songwriting is fully captivating, thanks in part to his propensity for a real zinger.

Misty keeps this album pretty genuine. There are jaunts and horns and dancing mixed with sorrow and piano and heartache; his lyrics cutting through any joy with wicked humour and his comic persona still second place to his incredible songwriting.

The result is an intense kind of dialogue between man and machine, and draws from the typically organic piano sound a new, otherworldly texture.

On Automaton, the band falters under the weight of its previous singles, leaving any possibility for chart success mired in a sound that comes across as tired and unoriginal, and the album listening experience as a monotonous ordeal.

Despite the two opposing moods of the album, the candid and dark lyricism is the only consistent effort in the album. It’s a massive shame, considering how much headway the band made with ‘Asymmetry’, but Mallory Knox have found themselves half a step behind their peers once again.

Whilst production and rhythms are excellent, the hooks (barring the album’s final lyric: “There’s so much bullshit comin’ out of your mouth”) often fall short.

Its straightforward, no bells and whistles approach is at once its greatest appeal and its most obvious shortcoming. Doris & The Daggers is deliciously satisfying beer rock--nothing more, nothing less.

The Wild offers solid proof that rappers in their middle ages are far from a spent force.

With Eternity, In Your Arms, Creeper have torn up their own sonic rulebook, giving them licence to roam musically wherever they please. It’s a fresh page in a new story for a band who are really just getting started.