‘Someday, Now’ is a departure but a truly successful one, full of sublime vocals and creative confidence.

The record feels more like opening a time capsule than self-congratulation; as if that 2011 statement locked a door we’re only now allowed to peek back into. Also crucially, many of the songs here were never even released as singles. ... The breadth and depth of how much they did while still keeping it (relatively) simple is so evident.

‘WOOF.’ is brilliant, dark, and downright batshit crazy.

A stellar record. ... Which is to say, it’s bangers, bops and top-notch observational lyrics at every turn.

The sheer breadth of sound is astonishing, yet easily pulled together by Lindsey’s distinctive wavering tones and lyrical impact.

On all the evidence here, The Big Moon have succeeded in unearthing the secret to a fire debut.

More than one kitchen sink has been proudly gafer-taped to their musical fun bus; every idea--however half-formed--integrated with complete confidence. Delivered with the swagger of someone who’s just half-inched Joseph’s Technicolor Dreamcoat, it works spectacularly.

Taking stock of the dizzying array of touchstones on this record, this also the sound of an auteur hellbent on short circuiting all convention. ... Dirty Computer might just be the record that finally elevates her to pop’s highest echelons

Sampha’s voice might be the most instantly recognizable piece of magic in his arsenal, but it’s his patience and craft that makes ‘LAHAI’ such a stunning experience.

Taylor’s rapturous explorations of womanhood are torn through the mundanity of growing older, the depressive nature of Groundhog Day-normality and the catharsis of splitting even further as age makes concrete her contradictions. Across this - her most concentrated and burning record - Taylor’s hardened Sheffield-isms float through the tearjerker soul of a thousand women.

This is a debut like few others. In fact, the only way we’ll ever get another record like Sometimes I Sit and Think, And Sometimes I Just Sit is if Barnett hits Groundhog Day. It’s beyond bonzer, mate.

Kendrick Lamar rose to the top with his last album, and on DAMN. he tries to rediscover himself while on this new perch, with spectacular results.

It’s still a work that’s defined by its own dynamism. Anyone following these guys from the start won’t have doubted their capabilities, but that doesn’t stop A Dream Outside from dwarfing expectations.

For those who missed the rabble-rousing of ‘Dogrel’ but liked the darkness of ‘A Hero’s Death’, this record splits the perfect difference, sealing it along the middle with the superglue of a band who now know exactly where they’re going. Truth be told, they’ve never been more at home.

The fact that Hayley Williams is an eloquent, evocative songwriter has never been in doubt, but with ‘EDAABP’ in all its sprawling scale, she proves just how far-reaching and all-encompassing her talents really are.

slowthai’s newest is the work of an artist clearly more excited than ever about what he himself can do now he’s booted his own doors wide open. ‘UGLY’ is a beautiful thing to behold.

Contagious and sarcastic, in-your-face and self-aware yet ultimately all about cutting loose, Wavves have offered up an album that proves themselves as leaders in the punk pack.

It’s clear that ‘Headlights’ is Alex G’s most streamlined body of work yet – the culmination of fifteen years of exploration, refined.

Beyond anything, A Moon Shaped Pool feels like the beginning of a new chapter--the first time these five have merged their own idiosyncrasies without compromising or crossing wires.

It’s the slightly wonky worldview of the band themselves that really elevates ‘Wet Leg’ into the realms of the truly special.

The apology, regret and period of reconnection is brief and pained, and what follows soars. Less irregular than before, Justin’s redemption is soulful, almost spiritual in its delivery. .... It’s a huge leap forward from the introverted brooding of ‘For Emma…’, and a showcase of a man not just 20 years older, but wiser.

For a project that could have held unreasonable expectations, it overdelivers time and time again. Both parts of the duo are on their A-game in equal parts.

Their most complete record by a serious stretch, it's a work that laughs, cries, detests, adores and above anything else inspires.

A journey of self-discovery, confidence abounding like limits simply don’t exist.

Clearly not ones to do things by halves, ‘Sex, Death & The Infinite Void’ may be an album that feels boldly unexpected for a rock band in 2020, and that makes it all the more remarkable: for Creeper, it’s their most astonishing and liberating move yet.

Across its 40-odd minutes, Joy As An Act of Resistance makes you want to laugh and cry and roar into the wind and cradle your nearest and dearest. It is a beautiful slice of humanity delivered by a group of men whose vulnerability and heart has become a guiding light in the fog for an increasing community of fans who don’t just want, but need this.

With resounding beauty, ‘Heterosexuality’ deconstructs social norms through a powerful freedom of self-expression, yet also acknowledges this pain and struggle.

‘Wild God’ aims for transcendence, and finds it.

It’s musical exorcism at its very best, rallying against socially-imposed doubt and anxiety and - in its unique horror - finding welcome moments of inner peace.

In equal parts an unequivocal call to arms and an excitable ode to a wonderful friendship, even in the company it keeps. RTJ3 shines.

Over four songs and just twelve minutes, it packs enough punch to inspire air guitar, desk drumming, shower singing and wanting to start a band just so you can try and shred like these three. Truly fantastic.

Everything Everything have sculpted a masterpiece.

‘Fancy That’ scratches just about every nostalgic itch her listeners might have, all while remaining on the pulse of what’s next.

Punchy, fun and beautifully constructed, ‘Pink Noise’ is the triumphant sound of Laura Mvula finding her feet. A career-defining return that most artists can only dream of; pure synth-pop ecstasy.

Steeped in blissful American nostalgia, Bleachers’ sublime self-titled fourth studio album embodies it all, from the rolling vistas to the warmth of distant city lights, at once watching the world pass by and deeply cemented in a moment. It’s rare for an album to capture a feeling so intensely, promoting a universal recognition through something so intrinsically linked to an individual’s time and place.

It’s huge, expansive, bonkers and brilliant. It’s RAYE at her very core, and it’s fantastic.

Never has an album title been better chosen - the duo are at the centre of a brightly burning, ever-expanding sonic explosion, all of their own making, and just like a supernova, it is utterly stunning to witness. Bow down to the queens.

‘Loud Without Noise’ is flawless. Wildly ambitious, it works to showcase perfectly why the Merseysiders have garnered such a fervent fanbase to date – and just how far they could go.

Much like the process of inner work, ‘TELL DEM IT’S SUNNY’ is gently transformative; it channels patience and expansion, ultimately speaking to the heart as a continuation of the unending path that Greentea has shown listeners thus far.

Breathtaking and heartbreaking in so many different ways, ‘West End Girl’ may have begun by telling the tale of one of her life’s most bitter chapters, but now it’s become one of her most triumphant.

‘Patterns In Repeat’ is both stunningly intimate and endearingly raw.

The picture it paints as a whole is a hugely rich one - not just of the album itself, but of English Teacher as the opposite of a flash-in-the-pan buzz band; as a group really only just getting started.

St. Vincent showcases Annie Clark as a fiercely accomplished musician, a relentlessly original artist, and now, an innovator of pop.

A rare album without a single Achilles heel, The Magic Gang have created a debut that’ll be remembered as a milestone moment in years to come.

After years of the slow build, the release is here. Believe the hype.

Sounding like their most ambitious and handsome release yet.

Cure-y closer ‘24 Hours’ underlines the fact that Heartworms are one to keep a trained eye on, its rumbling outro an omen not for an oncoming rapture so much as the arrival of a Seriously Fucking Cool new artist with vision and formidable talent to her name.

Hurrying urgently down the rushing veins of every song, colliding surreally poetic lyrics with thumping racket in a tense, on-edge mess, Untitled could well’ve put WALL on the same trajectory as their equally absurdist contemporaries Parquet Courts.

It does everything a debut should, dipping into multiple pools but uniting them all with a consistent outlook and a clear voice. Joy Crookes, by rights, should be riding ‘Skin’ into the big leagues.

‘Hideous Bastard’ sees Oliver take on both these past and present realities with a candour that surprises even him.

‘Heaven knows’ pushes PinkPantheress into new realms of utter brilliance.

Melodrama's acceptance of taking what you can get while never failing to reach for the stars makes it one of the smartest pop records of the decade.

That Fontaines DC are accomplished, assured songwriters and musicians is well-established by now, but it’s such a joy to hear they are also (whisper it) quite fun.

‘Happier Than Ever’, then, is not just a triumph in progressing a signature sound into new territories, but a lesson in how to own your reality with confidence and class.

MGMT haven't necessarily re-discovered their mojo, but re-imagined it, and in doing so, may well have given us one of the best albums of the year.

More than anything, ‘Tigers Blood’ is a refinement of the blueprint laid down by ‘Saint Cloud’, and a showcase of Katie at the peak of her powers.

They skillfully marry sonics and subject matter with smart precision to instead offer an evocative, multi-faceted commentary on contemporary culture that exists at the intersection between natural and human, destruction and rebirth.

Both varied and beautifully evocative, Voyageur is the perfect listen for merging wintery wistfulness with ethereal wonder.

It’s as fun and messy as it is timelessly trendy; as silly as it is erotic.

There’s something invigorating about how audibly Porridge Radio stare their demons head on, step up to the plate and turn them into something big and ambitious and beautiful.

Sounds layered upon sounds; the intricacies here may hint towards Mosquito being more of a grower than its older siblings, but it proves that Yeah Yeah Yeahs are a band to cherish.

‘Where’s My Utopia?’ is as much a joy intellectually as it is musically, a leap in the right direction from one of our most promising groups of the day.

Pushing nearly 30 years in the game, JARV IS... still an absolute one-of-a-kind.

The collaborative spirit of producer Fred and long-time friend Haai flows throughout ‘Mid Air’’s eleven-strong homage to an unforgettable era, but it’s Romy’s autobiographical candour that adds a depth beyond the record’s inarguable ecstasy.

‘Here Is Everything’ lands in the sweet spot; it’s creatively ambitious, pushing the quartet into new ground, but it does so with a renewed sense of fun.

Among the signature melancholy, there’s a sense of contentment to ‘All Hell’ – for a band once a byword for angst, that is a triumph in itself.

Vols. 11 & 12 yield nothing but successes. The eight tracks here are scrappy, sure, and have the understandable feel of demos rather than fully formed final products. But the bones of the beast? Well, they’re kind of brilliant.

Avery has, somehow, made his most accessible and most idiosyncratic record to date, all at once.

An affecting - albeit somewhat terrifying - portrait of how life could shift in the not-so-distant future, ‘No On Was…’ is perhaps the stark reminder we all need to hear.

It all goes to confirm that Dave has grown from hot young talent to a true master storyteller.

It adds up to a gorgeous album that overflows with easy-going energy.

‘Classic Objects’ walks the line between art and humanity, between nature and fabrication, between the real and the conceptual. It’s the audible equivalent of a painting affixed with human hair.

Striking a perfect balance between familiarity and unpredictability, immediate choruses coexisting with a relaxed, breezy sound, ‘IRL’ is a delight.

This isn’t britpop recooked, reheated or reserved. Be it 1993 or 2013, In Love stands proud.

It’s testament to their skill and commitment that it all hangs together so well. What could brush off as mere novelty instead thrives as an almost unique ability to mix anything and everything within arms reach. By being almost completely unrestrained and unmoderated ‘The Talkies’ can exist in its rawest and most vital form.

These bold theatrics more than work, and maybe more so than ever, they present Creeper with a clear track to bringing camp, dramatic rock back to the very top of the pile.

Mike’s decision to collaborate more heavily births perhaps his most musically expansive record to date, in itself an exercise in allowing the external in.

A stellar example of an artist pushing their collective boundaries while retaining full control over their artistic identity.

It’s a record that leaves the kind of impression more associated with acts with far lengthier histories; second records are usually places where acts attempt to showcase their breadth, to be seen to expand on or rebel against their past selves, not double-down with quite this much confidence and depth.

In a contemporary pop age of increasingly tired homogeneity, AlunaGeorge are a very welcome breath of fresh air.

The sheer number of curtain-drop moments is remarkable, somehow never overused or superfluous. There’s a mastery in the songwriting, too: simultaneously gut-wrenching and incredibly cathartic, continuing a thread that has underpinned the band’s material this far.

Another truly original triumph.

Goldfrapp's singles collection is a triumph of compellingly brilliant classy pop.

By intention or coincidence, the band's debut boils over with frustration. And all you crave is a piece of it.

His shifts in sound are as delicate as his music, continuing to showcase his ability to blur styles with unparalleled precision.

Monolithic in nature, the world-building on ‘What Happened to the Heart?’ makes a bleeding heart – both for self and the earth – appear rapturous and unfathomably healing.

The project’s peaks tend to dominate the landscape, yet for something that sits somewhere between music’s most illustrious meet-up and a bona fide 2020s Hall of Fame, there truly is something here for everyone.

The result is a dynamic, difficult-to-predict listen that gently but deftly rebuts anyone who thinks they already know what Divorce are all about.

Cinematic storytelling is nothing new for clipping. – and, with a vocalist who’s halfway to an EGOT, that ‘Dead Channel Sky’ is akin to a rollercoaster big-screen thriller is wholly expected - but nevertheless, it really is an epic masterpiece.

‘Beatopia’ shows growth without risking losing the charm that has made Bea a firm favourite.

If there is one fault, it may be that, at times, the production and backing is a little too restrained.... [But] It really is a thing of beauty, and gets better with every listen; one of the surest signs of something that will ultimately be deemed timeless.

Insouciant, effortless cool; shimmering, effervescent melodies that cut through the street-smart danger; the ability to sound vitally alive whilst simultaneously not giving a fuck: all the traits that underpin the band’s best songs are present and correct, from ‘Dancing With Myself’-aping recent single ‘Bad Decisions’, to the twinkling, yearning ‘Selfless’.

An album which is deluged in melancholy of the sweetest kind, 'Threads' undoubtedly deserves your ears.

Their boldest, most exciting switch-flip in years.

Spoken word moments peppered throughout hark back to the ‘80s on an album that pushes musical boundaries well past the present day. In sound, it’s as bold as the personality that runs through it.

A full project that transcends his current reach.

Taken individually these songs are all gorgeous, but as a whole they create an effect of being hemmed in by absence, that inhospitable land overwhelming in its minimalism. No other record today sounds so beautiful and full while being quite so sparse.

There’s a fine line between using a formula and sticking to it, and it’s the smart way in which Sheer Mag do the former that makes ‘Playing Favorites’ so enthralling.