Whether Nicki Minaj is the rightful queen of rap is up for debate, but the album, despite having several songs that were more filler than functional ("Sir," "Majesty," "Chun Swae"), highlights her ability to adapt to an ever-changing sonic landscape.

Even Islomania's bleaker moments kinda bounce, refracting their darker sentiments in compelling ways. And in that, Islomania proves a lively, welcome return.

Suitably cinematic, percussion-heavy and mostly instrumental, it's enjoyable as a standalone album, but it will be interesting to see how it works alongside the film.

It may not be quite as consistent as its predecessor, but Interiors showcases the continued development of a vital emerging voice in popular music and features frequent moments of shiver-inducing beauty.

Myths 002 certainly delivers in terms of a successful, collaborative and twisted effort between two rather different artists, and may they find themselves recording together again in the future.

As a whole, the 16-track project is reverent, and pays respect to the musical icon. Whether this is an essential album is up for debate, but it's worth checking out for the heavy hitters that are on board.

The album is fun and enjoyable, but it never really reaches what they are capable of as a dynamic group. Every song bleeds into the next, almost sounding the same. It's not the worst feature ever, but as a collection, it doesn't stick out as anything exceptional.

At times, the blend is less than palatable and, frankly, too busy, as on the title track. However, this franticness is occasionally contrasted by a song that manages to draw you in.

Not only is Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin' loaded with hits, but it also draws attention to Cudi's renewed sense of self. Cudi has finally slayed his demons, and he sounds all the better for it.

Dream Police take an expert background in far noisier music and strip it down to its bones, offering something that is simultaneously intense and easy on the ears.

Shallow Bed is refreshingly free of archaic, "old timey" references; it feels both relevant and familiar.

World Wide Funk doesn't break any new ground, but it showcases Bootsy Collins blissfully stretching out.

Thankfully The Silver Cord's hits overpower its misses, and disco battle epic "Set" strikes with a punch, adding another track to the short yet mighty list of King Gizzard songs to play in the club.

Strangely familiar, yet still a major leap forward, there's a nice pop sheen that sells the record without losing the idiosyncratic production that drew listeners to the duo in the first place.

Freed from the confines of their regular gigs, Morby and Ramone go for broke, creating a record with hooks that just won't quit.

Undoubtedly this album will get a cursory listen by fans of hardcore, while gaining a special place amongst those whom embrace and follow its tenets.

Unfortunately, there are a few too many moments with a "more is more" approach, and they hold the record back.

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.

Nicki is more personal, more timeless and more connected to her own artistry here, serving some of the most superlative work of her established career on The Pinkprint.

The Air Conditioned Nightmare feels like another uncompromising work from the intriguing Woodhead, and in its wide-spanning sound, offers something to both long-time fans and new ones.

At times emotive and playful, Broderick has created a cohesive album of delicate, Russell-esque melodies with enough wonkiness, experimentation and spoken word to make a unique, personal and engaging release of happy accidents.

On their debut, they don't seek to out-pummel other contemporary hashers with speed or heaviness; rather it's on the golden fields of mood and groove where they excel.

Toronto deep-funk messengers the Soul Motivators deepen their groove and expand both their sonic palette and social consciousness on their sophomore full-length, Do the Damn Thing.

At a tight nine tracks, any fat that needs trimming from Motorheart is easily digested. This one runs smooth.

The Last Shadow Puppets excel when they craft attention-grabbing pop with lush arrangements and unique lyrics, and they mostly do just that on Everything You've Come to Expect.

Even though there's a dramatic shift thematically, Collett maintains his signature sound of acoustic slow jams and the occasional up-tempo number.

There are some missteps along the way, namely the plodding electronic misadventure “Time Cloud”, but Bleeker still manages to pack a nifty little story arc within How Far Away’s 10 short tracks.

These 10 dark soundtracks fail to chart new territory. They're not bad; they're just not challenging or frankly all that interesting.