Vile could have chopped most of these songs in half and they would have worked just fine, but the overall effect wouldn't have been so blissfully druggy.

However difficult the album may be, it's a rare pleasure to see artists who know how to make great pop songs eschewing expectations, growing beyond their previous oeuvre and audience to pursue a brave creative path into genuine 21st century music.

As Cyclops Reap shows, Presley still finds time to put a great deal of thought and effort into his solo project, producing tripped-out, acidic '60s jams.

Fans put off by Blake's perceived sentimentalism won't have their minds changed by Overgrown, but that's hardly Blake's worry; he's too busy establishing himself as a consistently rewarding songwriter.

Setting a heavy mood with opening track "My Life's Been Taken," Morlix sticks with it through the majority of the ensuing nine songs, painting bleak portraits of desperate men chasing love and money while on the run from past mistakes.

There's more of the same on Dormarion, the singing drummer's reliably affable third album for Merge, which has a little something for everyone, but stops short of total engagement, like a slightly too tipsy party host.

Cruise Your Illusion sounds like proud, but humble music from a band doing exactly what they want on their terms.

Disarm The Descent is at least twice as good as 2009's uninspired Killswitch Engage. Although it's not quite the masterful return to Alive or Just Breathing that Leach's reappearance had fans hoping for, it's still damn good.

For Now I Am Winter is a record of intimate beauty and Arnór Dan's R&B-inspired vocals, which bear at least a passing resemblance to Ango or How To Dress Well, work surprisingly well in these sparse yet complex and layered compositions.

Although political in nature, the feel of the record is unabashedly joyful and if Jama ko doesn't form part of your summer listening, you are missing out on something very special.

As much as these songs hit upon Mudhoney's winning elements, there's a lack of swing in the band's step.

Victim of Love is meant to be taken literally; it's a rare and continued opportunity for a sexagenarian to finally get his chance in the soulful sun. Something the album proves that he's both appreciative of and not taking lightly.

While Tyler will almost certainly never outgrow life as a weird, hell-raising provocateur, Wolf shows that he's already growing into life as a smart, diverse artist.

Bring Me The Horizon have crafted an album that, while not as post-rock-influenced as hinted at, is definitely post-Bring Me The Horizon, at least as we once knew them.

While Until In Excess lacks a genuine revelatory moment, it's their most overall consistent and accessible album thus far.

The Ash & Clay is an album sure to become increasingly meaningful with time.

As a mystical and cosmic album, No York! sheds light on Blu's inspiring sonic dexterity.

Amygdala manages to feel like a singular labour of love, a 78-minute piece that never feels laborious that is the accomplishment.

The North Borders introduces a host of vocalists to accompany solid arrangements.

Drenched in fuzzy guitars, '60s girl-group melodies and a dash of light punk (closer "When I Was Yours" blends all three), it has plenty of sticky hooks and sing-along choruses.

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.

Green's harder edge and presence as a musician can be heard lyrically, although her soft vocals fall flat, shrouded by a sea of synthesized blips and bleeps from the ubiquitous drum sounds.

Kvelertak feel as though they are right on the verge of something extraordinary, as they explore the limits of their very successful aesthetic with Meir.

While not an absolute mess, I Am Not A Human Being 2 isn't very good.

This is well worth having for fans that have worn out Mare or Terra, despite the fact that the immersive, soothing qualities that balanced the angularity on his previous releases have been ditched in favour of often shrill, jarring timbres.

Unmistakeably, each track encapsulates the old and new in Wire's musical history.

As it stands, it's another tiresome release studded with a few gems.

Love & Devotion is a quality departure from solid musicians that should stand as a stark lesson to the armies of artists out there producing dreamy, '80s-inspired synth-pop of lesser quality.

With Afraid of Heights, Williams has achieved a rare type of punk rock maximalism, crafting a massive, buzzy record on his terms.

Comedown Machine is a more even effort [than Angles], but it lacks any show-stopping moments, allowing the forgettable songs to blend together.

Lapalux has found his home at Brainfeeder, with Nostalchic and its masterful genre crossings a fitting first release.

This is a fine soundtrack to a road movie that's yet to be filmed.

After producing such a powerful, chimeric record, which will unquestionably stand as their masterpiece, there's no question that KEN Mode are currently at the peak of their collective talents.

Team Ghost and Fromageau have a number of good ideas, but the band's biggest downfall stems from the fact that they sometimes condense too many of these ideas into too small a space.

The ten raw and carelessly endearing tracks feel oddly cathartic and refreshing, in an often pitilessly, anxious world more concerned with who tripped up the stairs at the Oscars.

They have made their most consistent release yet, stretching the earworm-y catchiness their album Weeds employed.

Off the Record may be dated in some respects, but it still sounds like it's aimed at the future.

Unique and dynamic, this is what Clutch do--and do best.

It sounds more rigorously composed, but still with the swing that comes from live performers on un-quantized instruments, filtering the rhythms through their singular perspectives.

A raucous centrepiece it is not. A soundtrack for a nightcap alone though? Absolutely.

Invisible Life is a great electronic pop record that sees Lange meld the experimental and pop threads of his music seamlessly.

On her fourth album, inventive and demented singer/songwriter/guitar hero Marnie Stern whips up a potent batch of quirky, invigorating and, at times, beautiful new material.

Though a bit short at 36 minutes, there isn't a weak track to be heard.

Tooth & Nail is mellow, but not un-edgy.

The issue is whether he's done enough to quench our R&B-infused pop sensibilities; he hasn't. The needle may have jumped a bit, but ultimately nothing here turns things over.

The cleaner sound of Water on Mars introduces a newfound confidence to the music of Purling Hiss and it's certainly a welcome direction.

Apparat's foray into ethereal compositions is a powerful, vivid work of art. Krieg und Frieden deserves a standing ovation.

There's no question that The Stand-In is a step-up from her previous effort; her delivery and songwriting show a confidence that previously lacking. However, The Stand-In is no stand out.

The words only hint at the true meaning of the piece; it is an experience that needs to play out in a linear fashion, felt and absorbed through multiple senses.

Old Sock [is] a pleasant, but ultimately uninspired collection that ranges from country and folk standards such as "Born to Lose" and "Goodnight Irene" to the classic jazz of "All Of Me" and "Our Love is Here to Stay."

Crusher shows that Grave Babies know how to get down with some morbid music, all in the name of good, clean fun.

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.

Simply put, Bushcraft is the best Converge worship since the Power and the Glory dropped Call Me Armageddon in 2004.

No matter how enchanting the music gets, nothing quite eclipses her exquisite voice, which elevates the songs on The Deserters to a blissful level that no one can touch.

Welcome To Mikrosector-50 is an album designed for front-to-back listening and, as such, is entertaining in a similar fashion to a movie or TV show, given its detailed plot and narrative style.

While it would be easy to lose oneself behind a wall of genre tropes in a project like this, Smith's easy breezy, man-out-of-time persona stays front and centre on each of these 15 tracks.

With Disrupted Ads, Oh No manages consistency, even when cleaning out the vaults.

Through the Window might finally allow Fernow's critics to move past the "noise" label, because in his mind, he's been beyond that for years.

The record packs familiar Function trademarks--industrial themes, hissing white noise, acid loops and retro rhythms--but the ideas fall short of reinvigorating the legacy established after Sandwell Disctrict's full-length, Feed Forward, landed in 2010.

Lady deliver a definitive bright spot for those who remember when female R&B was great, and believe it can be again.

It's all a tad by the book, but the book is well loved and worth re-reading, so why not?

We are treated to a smorgasbord of pop's finest elements, blended together in a dizzying melting pot of ideas that could've easily failed, but surprisingly and pleasantly succeeds.

An album about religion that's not at all religious, Benoît Pioulard refuses to come off as descriptive or thematic, making Hymnal an example of a mood piece that's designed to be affecting, but never static.

Some may chide Farrar for playing it safe on Honky Tonk, but in nearly every respect this album sounds as if Farrar has finally arrived at an artistic place he's always longed to find.

Images maintains an aura of continually mounting tension that keeps you anxiously captivated throughout its ten nervously haunting tracks.

Untogether does manage to lose its grip on your attention, at times, falling back on a bit of redundancy, but when it takes hold, it grabs you by the ears and fills them with a wistfulness that haunts you for days.

They may no longer be cutting edge (who is these days?), but Autechre's intricately psychedelic pieces are still chock-full of detail, intrigue, wit, intensity and poise.

The production values mean that, even though Powers' reverent anthems aren't a huge departure from what he's done in the past, the results have added gravitas.

There is plenty to enjoy here, though many of his long-time fans will be hoping for a return to the bigger picture next time out.

A distinct effort has been made to play up the sexiness of the project and, thankfully, the music lives up to that imagery.

The ace in the hole should be Maandig, so foreign is a female voice in the macho world of NIN's industrial muscle. But her vocals are too often drowned out, often intentionally, by the music.

It's clear that the members of Golden Grrrls write enjoyable, harmless numbers with great ease. However, since these numbers are given little chance to grow, Golden Grrrls lacks staying power.

Fans of the group may be surprised by the subdued nature of singer Liam Corcoran's usually prominent acoustic strumming and bubble-gum pop harmonies, but Foolish Blood's low-end textures and diverse layers guarantee that the Maritime icons will remain relevant for years to come.

Miracle Temple is still a wonderfully warm and welcoming record, but it never soars.

It's a sweet musical reprieve from radio presenters with beaming suicide smiles gracing subway posters with snappy catchphrases.

Bilal describes creating A Love Surreal as a surrealistic exploration of love and, indeed, he delivers on this end.

Yorke, it goes without saying, is a fine songwriter, so there's nothing particularly wrong with the solid AMOK. The problem is that there's nothing incredible about it, either.

With this album, the Parenthetical Girls position themselves as pop craftsman with depth.

A record this sturdy in composition and delivery has the resilience to stand up to countless plays, and that timeless ache for a good, hard cry.

Even when the pulse ends up becoming more of a question mark than an assertive statement, the music still speaks as directly to the body as to the mind

While Gardner's music isn't exactly anything new or groundbreaking, it serves as an appropriately nostalgic reminder of a time when it would have been.

The entire premise of the album is entirely playful, defined by its because-I-can nature, and while this might not result in a unified feel, it's nonetheless an enjoyable and eclectic experience.

The album's weak spot is Darrow's voice, which, although pleasant, isn't as distinctive as those of his peers. Nonetheless, anyone interested in the L.A. country rock scene will find much to admire in Artist Proof, and an additional five previously unreleased demos are an added bonus.

At its best, Somewhere Else produces a few tracks worthy of putting on and dancing to in the middle of the night. At its worst, it's repetitive material that should've stayed on the cutting room floor.

In effect, McIlwain has succeeded in making not only a great record, but also a thoroughly lovely one.

It's the raw and relentless aggression of Reach Beyond the Sun as a whole that makes it worth the listen.

Excellent production by Erik Rutan (Hate Eternal) at his Mana Recording Studio in St. Petersburg, FL takes Conceived in Sewage to a higher level of eviscerating brutality.

Silver Cloud delves deeper into the internal, headphone experience than even R.I.P. and it's easily Actress's best release since Splazsh.

A good portion of Total Folklore finds Friel treading the same murky path, leaving the listener with brazen, barefaced ideas and shambling, barefoot execution.

Portal are a band that never break character and Vexovoid is their fourth full-length release (along with two demos and two EPs), continuing their well-established theme of creating deep feelings of dread, alienation and confusion in the listener, all through exquisitely made and intelligently deployed aural assaults.

Beach Fossils have found a balance that's better than anyone could have hoped for.

The outwardly fun melodies and rhythms are what define the album.

No World is a heady mix of opaque beats and Romy Madley Croft guitar lines that reverberate throughout the band's 41-minutes of modest club bangers.

Jamie Lidell is a stunningly entertaining album and an exemplary ode to the good ol' days.

Amidst a sonic atmosphere of clenched-fist roughness, one can find stark beauty and honest emotional value in the lyrics of lead singer Elias Bender Rønnenfelt

Off/On is an all-around more palatable effort would be overselling the band's sophomore release, but once the listener ventures into mid-album territory, it's easy to point out Forma's mounting melodic maturity.

Much of it is too unremarkable for it to be anything but a decent starting point for Quarrell to build upon.

Budden's raw energy and experience enriche otherwise throwaway pop, even when saccharine hooks (Kirko Bangz) and amphibian croaks (Lil Wayne) threaten to cheapen it.