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.

[A] perceived lack of personality can't change the fact that Dalliance is one of the catchiest and most energetic guitar records of the year.

DS4EVER is certainly a good mainstream rap record, and fans of Gunna and the community of high-profile Atlanta artists he's aligned with will find plenty to enjoy across the album's 19 tracks. Still, the question of where he goes from here is left for listeners to wonder.

Though their unwavering embrace of pop on this record might seem antagonistic in and of itself, they still manage to sound convincingly earnest and (for the first time) fun.

They're sure to become mainstays on many a summer playlist. Although it feels like the group still have more to explore, this album is a remarkable effort by Little Dragon as they begin to finally reach their full potential.

It's not a complete return to form, but it's a reminder that even later in the journeys, all-time greats' talent and dedication to their craft can still yield impressive results.

The instrumentals on ye capture the essence of its marquee artist--the contradictions, the abrasive sudden shifts in tone, the blistering flaws and the bounty of positive potential. If West had better delved into his emotional and psychological turmoil in ye's lyrics, instead of getting bogged down with click-baity asides, then this LP would've been a classic.

History admittedly feels a bit forced in spots, working too hard to set the mood, instead of letting things happen organically.

While this album isn't likely to draw in a lot of new listeners, it's a well-crafted record that provides a fresh soundtrack of ultra heavy, doom-based brutality.

It's a heartening LP, both because of the top-notch, life-affirming beats throughout, along with the renewed vigour in the voice of a man who clearly takes nothing for granted now that he's on the mend.

The once nitty-gritty production that better helped listeners live in Sheer Mag's retro world has been tidied up. Having polished up so much that the line between self-awareness and cliché is stretched thin, it's hard to tell whether a concept has been burrowed or held hostage all together. In many ways, the charm is gone. Thankfully, a song like "Hardly to Blame," finds ways to make the best of less-than-ideal situations.

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.

It's a bold start to another chapter in TesseracT's existence, who will only benefit from having all the pieces back in their rightful place.

Overall, Uncovered stands up as much as you could want a cover album to; Colvin puts her own folk spin on things and keeps that sound strong throughout.

Calling Gigaton a return to form is a matter of expectations: diehards will claim they never faltered, while fans who checked out 20 years ago, when things got weird, will find lots to like but little to love. Perhaps the most notable group likely to be inspired are Pearl Jam themselves; too long in the rock hinterlands, the band finally seem reacquainted with their creative powers.

The rest of Soft Connections floats along very pleasantly with some pretty songs, all featuring shimmering guitar and nice melodies, but ultimately not a ton of hooks.

What this album does extremely well, though, is convey the emotional reality of the protagonist using these moody electronics and tempo changes.

Sure, some of the performances aren't perfect, at times sounding downright ragged and sloppy, but that's the glory of a loud, fast and sweaty live punk rock show, here captured in all its glory as the band plough through songs from all eras of their history, finding the common thread between the old basement-punk anthems and the slick arena-punk rockers of later years in a shockingly profound manner.

There is certainly plenty here to explore and enjoy on Carry Fire, but a sparser and more melodic approach next time out would be welcome.

A Written Testimony is a solid effort that makes good on promises set by Electronica's earlier work: thumping, vintage beats; dense rhymes that shimmer with vivid imagery; clever references to the Nation of Islam.

There are definitely kinks: certain moments on this EP are disjointed and muddled, as the band throw loose riffs out into the ether and hope they'll stick, but the hooks and verve that made the band successful in the first place are still potent.

Paracosm floats by like a wonderful dream, from which only the most jaded music fan would wish to awaken.

Though it still flirts with the blues, soul and R&B that he's built his name on, the record has a country-fried warmth, coloured by slide guitar and Southern rhythms. That those Southern rhythms are played mostly by chintzy drum machine, that they're undermined by hip-hop-biting guitar samples or artificial horns, is the record's vaguely outlandish appeal.

There are moments here where she falls into a nice pocket that the listener might wish she'd remain in for a little while longer.

Though without some of the magic of his debut, Hakim's sophomore full-length shows that he is still full of genre-bending potential.

Shadow of the Sun is an intriguing journey; hopefully, given more time, Moon Duo will embark on some new adventures with even wilder results.

Where Darlings shows growth and change is in Drew's fine-tuning of his illustrious sound.

Eva Moolchan reaches new heights in her career on Happy Birthday, but not without encountering a few bumps in the road. Even at its questionable points, though, there is something beautifully refreshing about a new Sneaks album — Moolchan is having fun, and she doesn't care what you think about it.