Welcome return to form from nineties stalwarts, not much has changed with this tenth studio album but if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Howling good fun from Lupine superstar.

Thrillingly experimental hip-hop.

Mournful folkie not quite as desolate as usual.

A thin line between revelation and revivalism, Adams and the Cardinals make an album worthy of high praises.

A surprising afro-beat, trance-pop return from Penate.

Jazz maestro takes a turn towards the electro.

It’s as warm and forgiving and generously tender a collection of songs as you’ll hear all year.

After thirty years, Souxise's still twice as interesting as three people half her age.

No Line On The Horizon is a mature, tender, reflective record of great musical variety, depth and beauty that could only have been made by four people who've experienced just about everything that life can throw at you.

Stereolab learn to stop being boring and love the pop.

Chris Martin and co. return with another album guaranteed to rock arenas across the world.

80s clubland legend Grace Jones returns with Hurricane, a patchy but fascinating comeback record.

Earthbound offering from hyped to the heavens duo.

Strokes frontman ditches leather jacket, reinvents self as DIY Gary Numan.

Brendan Benson expertly assembles pop music using the manual.

Truly, this is music for the ringtone generation.

It’s the closing triptych of quasi-classical numbers--the aforementioned ‘Exogenesis’ sequence--that transports Muse to a place beyond parody.

Perfectly natural indie music from Scottish band.

Already dated, The Raveonettes 3-D thrills are temporarily diverting, but ultimately provide only the illusion of depth.

Washington Square Serenade is another substantial chapter in what looks like becoming an epic songbook.

The various elements are spun like syrup round a spoon; creating a deliciously moreish concoction, the sort you’ll want to dip into time and again.

It's like he'd never been away after an absence of five years.

The Swedish fivesome’s trademark sound is so ridiculously simple that you’ll be humming it all day, and with their quirky humour, probably with a grin on your face.

Lucinda Williams provides instruction for those who feel fucked around and fobbed off at 40-something.

Food-obsessed lyrics tinged with medieval mischief.

Former Be Good Tanya delivers modern americana nugget.

Ho & bling free rap of the highest thought provoking order.

Raw, beguiling psychedelia from Californian newcomers.

Uber-producer makes sublime soundtrack to documentary film.

Strange House is actually an intriguingly intelligent debut.

Despite initial misgivings, our reviewer found that Little Joy's album delivers an old fashioned pop feel with a little DIY indie sound.

Michael Angelakos, aka Passion Pit, brings us a temporary electro pop classic.

Lovely promiscuous electronica.

Great songs played well, but...

Foo Fighters’ sixth studio album is a transitional rather than definitive piece of work, but one that sees them growing older with 'patience and grace'.

Bragg is taking stock. He’s now doing it for himself, at his own pace. Those in search of revelation from an old punk with a new perspective will be left hanging

Men out of time, The Verve were a neo-psychedelic jam-rock outfit who got fortuitously swept up in the Britpop boom and stumbled upon a timely form of Big Music.

A game of two halves as Brooklyn world music troop go synth pop on split disc.

At times, Why Bother? is an unlistenable racket.

Snoozy delights from the polyphonic twee whose outright nerdiness is charming.

American slacker act back on track.

Unusually for a Teenager, this album has taken a long time to come.

Ego Trippin' is a subdued comeback from this once hot rapper.

Ahead of their Electric Picnic date, the LA rockers ditch their mainstream sheen on their fourth album.

The Canadian supergroup return with super new LP.

It’s about time. Electronica merchants Fujiya & Miyagi, formed in 2000, have finally come up with a winning formula eight years into their career.

Probably a track or two short of being a stone-cold classic, Our Love To Admire nonetheless makes for hugely rewarding listening.

To paraphrase Jarvis, you’ve got to wonder what exactly Hard-Fi are going to do for an encore--cos this is hardcore.

Perennial underachievers once again fall short of the mark.

Twilight Of The Innocents re-announces the group's commitment to melody and proves they have successfully re-ignited their creative spark.

Sci-fi hi-jinks from ‘the nerdy Kraftwerk.’

Umpteenth Jack White side-project finally comes good.

Hallelujah! Grunge legends stand the test of time.

Surprisingly agreeable return from the High Priestess of country kitsch.

The second in command of the good ship Broken Social Scene, for quite some time he’s been in the shadows of the band’s co-founder Kevin Drew.

Woodly prog rock for weird beards.

Twee-sy tiger! Omaha act mix up their newest record with more attitude but still stay true to their original style.

Sensuous showcases a more playful Cornelius than we’ve seen before.

Dance duo up their game on multi-packed, multi-contributor return.

Four middle-aged men discover a dance element to their music... and it’s good!

Widow City is wordy, nerdy, and throws in everything but the hurdy-gurdy.

Although combining an assortment of sounds may seem risky, they’ve managed to produce a solid album, fusing jazz, soul, ‘60s rock ‘n’ roll and playful lyrics into a tight 10 tracks.

Emo heroes reveal their inner Brian May.

Melody takes precedence on Roots And Echoes, and this makes it stronger and tighter than The Coral’s previous releases.

A million miles from thrash and punk, the twelve tracks here are an unusual mix of indie rock and country, with top class musicianship adding lots of depth and colour.

This album leaves no doubt that the former Beach Boy is now fully recovered from the 1967 nervous breakdown that effectively stalled his career for decades.

Aging punks flog a rapidly expiring horse.

Sgt Emo’s Lonely Hearts Club Band delivers a less than thrilling album.

Not as good as Beyonce.

The Belfast cowboy keeps on making quality records

A few decent songs can't outshine this record's over-produced stadium rock. The Las Vegas rockers' latest just doesn't have the same sparkle.

A spirited return from Beth Ditto and company--but where are the new ideas?

Released on the web fully two months before it hits record stores, Bloc Party’s third album is as gleaming and hermetically sealed as one of Kubrick’s monoliths.

South Carolina rockers make big music.

New mexican drone rock duds. Tune free zone.

Return To Form from last electro band standing.

New York dreampop combo meander a bit.

Cyndi’s lost touch with the zeitgeist a bit, and parts of this sound like she’s trying to keep up but this is generally a really good record.

If you take a chance on just one record then make sure it’s Take Me To The Sea as it’s possibly the underground triumph of the year.

Hobo Journeyman enlists the help of Nick Cave, KT Tunstall and Ruby Turner to deliver winning album.

Missing, thankfully, are the twee Paulie-isms that often insult our intelligence, making Memory Almost Full that rare thing, a modern-day Paul McCartney you can listen to without wincing.

Chill out maestros prove they have some different tricks in their locker.

If it ain’t broke you may smear it with red lipstick and back-comb its hair. But do NOT fix it.

With big choruses, pristine production values, sing-alongs, and much lovelorn balladry could it be that Devendra Banhart is about to cross over?

Their sunniest record yet, Campbell and Lanegan continue to impress with this short, but sweet, mini album.

After an eight-year hiatus, these hard rock legends return to the music scene with a banging album that has just a little less bite than others past.

Jack the volume up and let Fields suck the air from your lungs.

There’s still something oddly admirable about Alice In Chains’ stubborn refusal to change.

If you pardon our French, Clinic’s fifth album is pretty fucked up--and yet it's also their best effort to date.

West works because it juxtaposes a sense of vulnerability with a desire not to stay down for long, and is tinged with a sense of realism not always present in her rivals.

Stop me if you think you've heard this one before.

Mockney songbird grows up--but is she any wiser?

Sounding, for the most part, like a Stars In Their Eyes version of Cat Stevens, the album lacks variety, imagination and charisma.

Imagine an amalgam of The White Album, The Kick Inside and Professor Longhair, all conceived as an off-Broadway extravaganza directed by Julie Taymor.

This is a surprisingly enjoyable outing as these things go.

Velvet Revolver are a formidable collection of important figures from 80’s and 90’s hard rock, and this strong mixture of personalities lends their music a certain charisma, even when it isn’t particularly accomplished.

While their peers pander to the mainstream, the masked musicians continue to honour their scene by staying true to their roots while broadening their sound.