Most of the tracks allow room to breathe before going into a freefall decent of multi-influenced experimentation. Often times it's a rather subtle marriage of jazz and hip-hop ("That Don't Make It So"), gospel and funk ("Time and Place"), soul and folk ("Goodbye Reason, Goodbye Rhyme").

Kelsey Lu's Blood, pumping with movement and what moves us, we tiny wholes, maybe isn't a continent so much as it is a bordered body, graceful in its clunky fullness, jostling with every pothole, the cello its longing pores come to life.

Compared to White's solo albums, Help Us Stranger feels like a low-stakes romp. And for a collaborative side-project, this is the best case scenario. White and Benson aren't trying to reinvent rock'n'roll, they're just bashing out some catchy tunes, and it's a blast to listen in on these old friends reconnecting.

A darker and more complex record, it displays a newfound maturity in Allison's arrangements and a decidedly higher set of stakes.

Cooper seems to have found just the right balance of electronic elements and traditional instrumentation for this album, as well.

An intoxicating mix of celestial soul, sprightly funk and glossy, luxurious rock'n'roll, Apollo XXI is a self-assured and sonically robust exploration of love, lust and identity politics. Lacy scatters pearls of post-adolescent wisdom in the lyrics, and drives the album forward with infectious melodies and an angelic falsetto. But Apollo's chewy production is where Lacy makes his mark.

While the execution has become more precise, more considered, the gigantic, swooping structures of the songs remain as thick and muscular as the Midgard Serpent, undulating around and encircling the world.

Instrumentally, there's a flare and excitement that was lacking on previous work. Each song is unique, rarely applying the same formula twice. Fortunately, she's ensured every musical choice, structural or instrumental, serves a purpose. ... Stella never beats around the bush, and because of that, there is a magnetism to this album.

On Fading Frontier, Deerhunter focus on their ability as a band to hypnotize and confound, which make the explosive moments here stand out that much more.

Horny, outrageous, delicate, queer and poised to rip flesh at any moment, Pirouette is the sound of a band at the height of its powers.

There is a conceptual weight to IRISIRI that accompanies the expert songcraft and meticulously produced arrangements without ever being burdensome. That the music itself stands on its own is testament to Drewchin's maturity as an artist; the presence of a thematic cohesion demonstrates the seductiveness of her universe.

The Next Day is a good latter-day Bowie record, worthy of at least a few listens, but since it's so evocative of his earlier, better work there's little reason not to put on Scary Monsters or Heroes instead.

New Multitudes shows, just as Mermaid Avenue did in 1998, that Woody Guthrie's work remains a living entity with a limitless capacity to inspire.

Rather than sticking with what worked before, Modern Baseball's two songwriters have pushed the band forward here, keeping their music in line with their rapidly maturing outlook.

Credit Conway for cranking out a smartly written collection of street rap and not stretching too far out of his zone just because he's now on Eminem's label.

The result is a catchy, cathartic experience that feels fun, even while wading through themes of loss, shame and eventually acceptance.

This Land is a triumph for Clark and a quantum leap forward for the blues.

Recorded live with no overdubs or loops, Never were the way she was is a perfect blend of Neufeld's violin virtuosity and Stetson's outside-the-box approach to saxophone and clarinet, their styles complementing yet pushing each other to new heights.

Love in Flying Colors is steeped in an honest, vulnerable lyricism bolstered by dreamy, feel-good synth vibes regarding the complex emotion called love and all it represents.

This is music of pure catharsis, making Hardcore Traxx not only an invaluable historical document but a hell of a great time.

At its best (the haunting "Ashes," the provocative "I Ain't The Girl," the killer cover of "To Love Somebody" and the title track), Faded Gloryville is a tour de force. Too bad the two weakest songs ("Run A Muck" and "Rundown Neighborhood") appear back-to-back, temporarily breaking the spell at the midway point.

It's clear this record is intended to be far more relaxing than revolutionary. If hippie-ish comfort is what you seek, take a Swim Inside the Moon.

Without any obligations to an overarching concept this time around, it stands as her most direct effort yet.

Overall, Blank Face LP has enough meat to warrant several satisfying helpings.

With so many of its songs employing fade-outs, Siberia also has this palpably unplanned feeling, which doesn't always pay off.

"The truth is, I'm good at this" she recently told Exclaim!, and Cheap Queen certainly backs that up.

Sullivan is often overlooked as the R&B master she is, but her latest project displays the vocal range of legends before her, demonstrating her ability to capture the qualms of life and love relevant to the realities of dating in the age of the internet.

There are a few clunkers here. ... But these are minor complaints, and there's a masterpiece of a divorce album hidden in here.

Listening to Hiss Spun is a punishing affair, but it's a rewarding one too. It's the sound of an artist not afraid to dig deep emotionally, and that challenges the listener to do so as well.

This is just vintage Crowell, which is to say that Tarpaper Sky is an essential record by one of the best.

John Wizards is a sonic journey both geographically and temporally, without being an exercise in musical channel surfing.

Broken Politics is an expansive and heartfelt collection of songs--a communication from within one of the most singular artists working today, articulating the nuances of where politics start for many: in one's day-to-day existence.

The seemingly strange power that Actress has is to disorient the listener (i.e., the visceral shock accompanying the tonally maximal "Shadow From Tartarus"), though this contrast mostly allows for R.I.P.'s intricate and detailed beauty to thrive just beneath the cracks.

Although Doyle's vocal melodies lack focus at times, Total Strife Forever possesses enough left-turns to satisfy the most adventurous electronic music fans.

Porridge Radio delight in these universal growing pains that ultimately reveal a greater vulnerability, born of not having it all figured out yet. As such, WDBLTTS is a natural next step on the road to nowhere.

Ivy Tripp is not a record about being in love or and it's not a record about getting your heart broken; it's about the foggy, messy tangle of the feelings in between. And they've never sounded so good.

Contradictions and duplicities abound. But Webster is not putting us on. For all of its facades, Atlanta Millionaires Club is a work of arresting candour.

It's a record built less on borrowed nostalgia and genre fetishism and more on earnest, risk-taking creativity and mixing genres in weird sonic chemistry experiments.

If Touch were the first album by a brand new band, it would likely be judged as an unequivocal triumph — but Tortoise suffer from the burden of their iconic back catalogue.

A deep, traversing album.

The production on Somewhere Else is crisp and clean (though they could have pushed Loveless' distinctive voice slightly more out front).

Although When the Wind Forgets Your Name is by no means revolutionary, it's still a refreshing, cool-sounding record, one that finds Built to Spill revelling in the past and looking clear-eyed toward the future, some 30 years on. That's no small feat.

Finnerty returns from these loftier reaches unscathed, allowing Honey to swing big without flying off the handle. Spread this one on your toast immediately.

Bark Your Head Off seem like a gamble, given its broader palette. It only takes a few listens to realize that it is really the fulfillment of the band's potential, though. ... Hop Along are truly a band at the top of their game.

That Richard Thompson has conjured these fascinatingly enigmatic yet clearly deeply personal words and melodies to match such refined, uncompromising music is a testament to his indisputable power as his generation's sturdiest warhorse.

Lest this all start to sound like homework, Rooting for Love has a glossy surface layer that’s as seductive as any dance floor banger — even brainiacs need rapture from time to time.

The Place I Left Behind is another wholly satisfying album that builds upon past successes and carries the band forward as one of the country's finest roots acts.

Oh No's beats run gritty, grainy and hard from start to finish, with tough rhythms and an expansive array of aggressive sonics darting in and out of each cut, adding much expressive flair to the beatsmith's heartbeat-raising, all-business attacks.

There is an earnestness to Habitual Levitations that has been absent on their past recordings, sacrificed in pursuit of the cerebral, which has always been present in their live shows and has finally made it onto record.

It's the fact that Disclosure make bookish, aurally factual electronica sound so carefree that makes Settle such an artistic success.

Lemay has reinvented Gorguts while showcasing their roots, as the immensely anticipated Colored Sands exceeds expectations and proves to be every bit worth the wait.

The ten songs here threaten at times to up and wander off, but Bare manages to hold everything together with some strong songwriting and unusual, borderline retro arrangements.

Music For My Friends is arguably Skyzoo's finest project to date.

You won't hear a more open hearted, impassioned and lyrically rich roots album this year.

Like the other entries in the series, Empire also offers up plenty of B-sides and demo takes for the completists, but laying everything out bare for us still doesn't exactly explain the West coast phenomenon known as Unwound.

The one flaw is that at times Frahm allows the songs to continue for too long, losing the flow of the album--particularly between tracks 9 through 11, but later as well--but that's a small concern. Otherwise, Frahm's Late Night Tales curation is a blissful, satisfying experience.

Jardín serves straight-up soul and funk with a pop sensibility. Garzón-Montano's vocals are solid and serviceable, the album production robust and efficient and the musical mindset supported by a strong level of craft.

For Play What They Want, Colpitts and Brooklyn-based ensemble TIGUE Percussion partner with some legendary guests, and the result is an expansive, writhing body of busy, ego-less playing delivered with a beating, beaming heart.

At times the music meanders a little, especially as the album comes to a close with the title track, but hats off to the band for pushing themselves on Visions of a Life.

Field Music have created a truly immersive record with Open Here, one that is welcoming, conversational and oh-so-necessary for a world experiencing daily fear and paranoia.

The transition between blasting drums and metal riffs on "Blot" from Automata I into "The Proverbial Bellow" is surprisingly smooth without feeling like there is any disconnect between records. Overall, splitting up the release made it much easier to digest a full Between the Buried and Me album, which is never an easy task.

The rockabilly melody and Southern Gothic themes reference an era of simplicity and provocation. The Devil Makes Three's lyrical analogies in Chains Are Broken are thought provoking emotional medicine.

This is thoroughly traumatizing noise horror, and even with Halloween still a month off, it's hard to imagine a more terrifying album to come this year.

The level of craft involved — songwriting, musicality, performative sense — belies his relative anonymity within the greater music continuum. You Will Not Die is both an affirmation and a promise.

What emerges through this permeable landscape is an ecosystem all its own.

The Denzel Curry x Kenny Beats team up is a master-class of hip hop — few artists in today's landscape have the talent and longevity to consistently deliver good music. Thankfully, Denzel Curry is one of those few.

With contributions from over 20 artists, including such musical giants as Tony Allen and Thabang Tabana, Keleketla! is a collaboration of rare magnitude. It is at once a celebration and a call to action.

The vibe is folk, rock, country and kind of homespun and laidback but, like early John Lennon records, there is sharpness to the starkness.

On their sophomore effort, Good Living Is Coming for You, Mondal and Schnug are again looking ahead, but this time around, the scenery feels more sinister and the ambient sense of dread is sharper. Thankfully though, the result is no less dynamic than its predecessor.

PRUDE's half-hour-ish run time packs plenty of punch, mixing old and new strengths well, exemplifying why Drug Church have so much staying power.

Perhaps it's the vulnerability at the core of THE BPM that really makes what Sudan Archives is doing still feel so fresh. Standing out in the club music scene, it sets a new standard for anyone interested in playing with sound while maintaining an accessible heartbeat.

While the earlier LP was harrowing in its soul-searching melancholia, Morning Phase is warm and soothing, its tone coming across as beautifully bittersweet rather than overtly depressing.

Capacity is both a logical successor to Masterpiece as well as a great leap forward for Big Thief. The chemistry that Lenker and her band have established on album number two is extraordinarily strong, but no matter how good they get, her songwriting seems as though it will forever be raw to the core.

Ambitious, experimental and brilliant, The Inheritors is a unique release that confirms James Holden's place not only as a DJ to watch, but also as a producer to pay close attention to.

Having only a few minor setbacks, The Talkies is an exciting new addition to Girl Band's discography with its refinement of their sonorous experimental punk style and its ability to stay intensely enthralling, avoiding repetition. Getting deeper and darker than ever before on The Talkies, it will be interesting to see what Girl Band do next.

Life is Good is a well-crafted entry from a seasoned veteran that displays his vitality and vintage flow 20-plus years into his career in a genre where many MCs don't age gracefully.

It's an album that never repeats itself, offering up a work that plays out more like a multi-chaptered book than some simple '80s homage that's jumped the shark.

The genre is wide, but Stapleton's Room is so narrow and old-fashioned that, despite its quality songwriting, it feels stifling at times.

They Want My Soul is a bold and swaggering declaration that Spoon have undoubtedly still got it--in spades.

Musically, it takes listeners through a dystopian dance-floor dream universe, with the shiny but comforting hand from its cover as our guide.

Everything Everything continue to push their creativity and abilities as a group on A Fever Dream, shifting and adapting their sound while retaining their knack for melody, challenging rhythms and standout lyricism.

Nothing is off the table, influences are blended and bounced off each other, and it's this tension between elements that makes this a very special record.

[Producer John Congleton's] keen ear helps make POWER Tudzin's most sonically complex album, with electric and acoustic guitars, keyboards, strings, crescendos of feedback and other sounds subtly layered just beneath her bright vocals.

Hecker's clever ability to shift and adapt is clearly on display with Konoyo. A dreamlike song cycle, the album is more than an extension of the grandeur of Love Streams. It's a refined, focused exploration of traditions both adhered to and transcended.

All Sadies albums feel like instalments in an ongoing saga of an incredible band who've been playing forever, and Northern Passages is no exception.

It's a logical continuation of 2007's slick Cassadaga (less so 2011's rock-inclined The People's Key) — but given the renaissance Oberst has enjoyed with his side-projects in recent years, it doesn't quite live up to Bright Eyes' lofty name.

Blissfucker is not quite as perfectly crafted as Darker Handcraft, trading control for the broken and the strange, but though the results are less even, the finest work on the record still finds Trap Them at their very best.

Spending time with this dreamscape of a collection--and it's definitely worth spending time with--unveils themes of masculinity and, especially, femininity, all the quiet dangers associated with womanhood, whether it's "Flash Company" or the complex dynamic between rapist and pregnant victim in "Bonnie May."

Musically, Tool have taken the best of Lateralus's dynamism and the heaviness of 10,000 Days to explore the middle ground with great length on Fear Inoculum. Those who stuck it out through the decade-plus wait won't mind hanging around a little longer until the album's close.

MOPN would have landed much better if it abandoned the balancing act between the past and the present in exchange for wholehearted embrace of Lopatin's current realities. Lopatin has proven to us that he can deliver hits; it's time that he believes it himself.

Cola make it all seem effortless to create perfectly catchy post-punk tunes, incorporating their punchy instrumentals with casual social commentary and calming meditative meanings.

With a total of 17 songs and a runtime of over an hour, Salutations is Oberst's most ambitious album since his 2002 Bright Eyes masterpiece Lifted, and the best instalment in his solo discography.

While still entertaining, Kaani sounds like the same moving parts with a cleaner exhaust.

While this is an album with no shortage of ambition, and one that will certainly make demands on its listeners, their patience will certainly be rewarded by the multitudes that Quelle brings forth on Guns.

This record is both a rocket and a time machine, fusing influences so thoroughly that the sum of their parts are barely discernible, and offering both comfort in the familiar and an escape from our current time it hurtles you into orbit.

Fans will find much to love in Blue Smoke, and while nothing here approaches "Jolene" or "Coat of Many Colors" or "Here You Come Again," songs like the title track or "Banks of the Ohio" wouldn't feel out of place on a playlist next to these classics.

It's always drifting, skilfully, from challenging noise to fragmented affection in the most beguiling way possible.

The result is a stunning balancing act between ingenuity and accessibility.