It's a pleasure to listen to, over and again.

There’s no denying this is a heavy record, not at all easy going mood music you’d lightly slap on whilst performing menial tasks. But the mix of gentle moments of reflection amongst muscular foreboding sounds save it from being overly doom-laden. And the fact remains, it is a genuinely exciting listen.

It all confirms Believer to be a suite of disaggregated, miniature sonic tapestries from a pair of young Scandinavian polymaths that delivers a welcome reminder of music’s endless capacity to surprise and delight.

It's a deserved retrospective, and serves a reminder of how, in the mid 1990s, the band had album buyers eating out of the palms of their hands.

Victory Shorts is the perfect addition to their oeuvre, building on 2006's Schmotime with the same irreverence and deep-seated emotion that turns a good record into a great one.

Nothing new, then, but Manhattan is the indie equivalent of a guilty pleasure.

The ambition of Home? is admirable, and Wretch 32 delivers his best album yet by centring the music around these weighty themes.

Their debut is never a dull listen, and boasts enough creativity and considered intelligence about it to set Grammatics apart from their indie contemporaries who are young pretenders by comparison.

Scott hasn’t quite broken out of cult stardom like Mitski has, but there’s no reason to think What An Enormous Room couldn’t be the album that introduces her to a whole new audience.

+ – might be a tad more restrained and less obviously ambitious than its two predecessors, but it’s still a meticulously crafted, consistently melodic and frequently beautiful work from an excellent band.

Despite the prevalence of rootsy Americana throughout the album, there are a pleasing variety of styles on display.

In spite of its impassioned politics and firebrand title, Statement Of Intent for the most part pursued a more mature writing style with greater depth and subtlety. Everything We Hold continues this trend, whilst also offering strong, affecting songs that might increase this band’s commercial potential.

An album of considerable depths, beauties and terrifying contrasts.

Lorelle Meets The Obsolete offer a heady mixture of psychedelia and grooves that, over time, becomes completely compelling.

Overall, Touché Amoré’s shift to the emotional and the subtle at times, without sacrificing the exhilarating annihilation that characterizes their music, renders Is Survived By dynamic and of higher quality than anything they’ve done before.

The band’s third album has a raw power which has the ability, at times, to stop you in your tracks. It’s also their best work to date.

Sullivan's intelligent use of layers and loops create a phenomenally dense but remarkably accessible soundscape as the band constantly ebb and flow between bombast and introspection.

Big Echo won't change the direction of modern music but it's such an easy, pleasurable listen that it can't fail to enrich whatever environment it's played in. Unreservedly recommended.

Don't be put off by these four tracks being hard work, because the other six are fantastic and consign Broderick as the lo-fi bedroom auteur to his past.

On Head Of Roses Wasner still manages to deliver an album that feels both highly individual and effective in what it tries to do. It also subtly extends the sense of musical reinvention which has been ongoing since the direction-pivoting Shriek.

Not quite buoyant but still enthusiastic, Via should encourage listeners to start paying attention.

The liberated, enlivened music on You Have Already Gone To The Other World proves they are still one of the genre’s indispensable players.

Impressively, then, Nathan Fake has shown he is very much more than a one trick pony, with a bold second album statement that gets more impressive with every listen. We should watch his every move closely.

Into Forever is not the first record to attempt to contemporize the generations-old kosmische sound, but it’s certainly amongst the finest in recent memory.=

Vek finishes the album by challenging whoever will listen. It’s a challenge worth taking on.

The Nearer The Fountain, More Pure The Stream Flows is a lovely album, and a big step forward from Albarn’s previous solo effort, Everyday Robots.

Sleep Well Beast is as sad a record as The National have ever made, and yet it also feels like their most hopeful.

Pig Lib Part Two? Maybe so, but there are enough subtle evolutions here to keep any SM follower listening intently until the cows come home.

If John Grant never feels the need to write his memoirs, it’ll be because they’ve been played out for us over the course of these three brutally frank, flawed but ultimately human albums. Never less than enjoyable, the next chapter is bound to be worth the wait.

If you loved Tindersticks then you will adore this.

The Academy Award is a rather too languid ballad that seems to slow down the flow of the album, and closing track Slow Don’t Kill Me Now makes for a weirdly unremarkable and flat end to the record. Overall though, it’s a joy to hear the band sound inspired again, and it’s good to see that, after all these years, Franz Ferdinand are still a force to be reckoned with.

JT has again done a fine job here. The 20/20 Experience shows the pop album isn’t dead.

In parts, it’s just as absorbing as anything they’ve released.

At only nine tracks long, Everything Is New never outstays its welcome, and is the perfect riposte for anyone who had previously dismissed Penate as a scenester who'd got lucky.

Bing & Ruth have always provided poignant and moving listening experiences, but Species takes a different turn, and fully reaps the benefits.

While her 10th album doesn’t make instant classic status like 1989, and Evermore and Folklore remain her masterpieces, it is still an understated, beguiling look into the mind of one of the biggest pop stars of our age.

In Ponytail, that long-ago art project seems to have spawned the real thing – a band with an imprint and sound all of its own, with much of joy to share around.

There are some mis-steps--California English employs Auto-Tune about two years too late--but overall this is a fine follow-up to their successful debut.

It’s a wonderful and slightly surreal pop album, fascinating for its charming concept, yes, but also pretty damn enjoyable.

W is the work of a restlessly experimental yet surprisingly accessible maverick at the top of her game, and may well herald the breakthrough to a wider audience that its creator richly deserves.

Hooded Fang reference stalwart genres of old Americana without ever falling into parody--Gravez feels nostalgic but never dated.

Cancer For Cure is a dependably bold, powerful statement, perhaps not quite as masterful as its predecessors, but still overflowing with ideas and innovation.

Whilst there are still examples of the kind of dexterous acoustic guitar playing now closely associated with Walker’s music, there is also a greater sense of space and time here, enabling Walker to place greater emphasis on his lyrics.

While 2013’s effort saw some incredible peaks, Vile’s new album has managed to forge a more consistent collection of songs built around simplicity and a shrugged shoulder approach to lyrics.

Joan Of All isn’t an immediate album, and it’s probably not one to reach for a sugary pick-me-up either. Yet if you dedicate enough time to it, what emerges is a work of rare depth, craftsmanship and beauty.

While there may not be as many instant hooks as in her earlier days, there’s a case to be made that Creature Of Habit may well be Courtney Barnett’s best album since her debut.

Pop music needed saving and in Lily Allen we've found just the woman to do it.

Last Summer pulls off the impressive feat of being luxuriantly listenable while retaining Friedberger's avant-garde roots.

In amongst the filler of the album's latter half, he still manages to hold his own with Jay-Z on the pounding Light Up, and sit back and admire 'Lil Wayne's oddly compelling flow on Miss Me. Self-obsessed, paranoid, fleetingly spectacular and always interesting, Thank Me Later does indeed mark the arrival of rap's newest superstar.

Towards the end, it does seem to run out of steam a little bit (although only really Sunshine Song seems to be filler) but overall this is a remarkably accomplished debut that, excitingly, hints at even better to come.

Crooked Wing is another accomplished, thought-provoking instalment from a duo operating from a highly distinctive position.

Vocals on The Vacant Lots’ albums are always an acquired taste, much like those of Newcombe’s in fact, yet this trait never seemed to hold back bands like Kraftwerk. It might prevent them from reaching heights that otherwise could be achieved with synthy brilliance such as this. ... So look past the vocals and enjoy.

While their vision may to many appear decidedly singular, the music itself is highly accessible and polished, and comes with a sense of being a carefully considered, fully fledged complete package.

So a collection like this is a timely reminder of what they've achieved; from the cold, hard sounds of 604 to the futuristic disco of Witching Hour, Best of 00-10 is a comprehensive over view of endlessly interesting band.

Her combination of interior logic and the immediacy of improvisation is also captivating. This is deceptive, singular and highly creative music.

Amazones Power is a frequently thrilling call for change, a demand for action. It’s also a successful album on multiple levels that hopefully will help bring improvements to the lives of those in need.

What she does best is create that sense of urgent euphoria, and that is all still present and correct on The Comeback Kid.

In its own way, the album is as tied to a central concept as his last few recordings, but here that concept is presented in a more expansive, more enquiring way.

Love From London is by no means an Earth-shaking or life-changing record, but its virtues are plentiful, and so well balanced that its title is by equal measures sarcastic and sincere.

An album ram-packed full of top-notch melodic synth-pop--a triumph from start to finish.

Minor criticisms aside, however, Outer South is an enjoyable, relaxed album that contains some of Oberst's best work.

Long Black Cars retains a common sense of cohesive purpose throughout.

It sufficiently moves their sound on from Zaba, while also successfully capturing the multifaceted nature of man.

There’s a serious attention to detail here, and that’s kept up for the considerable length of the album.

What Regan has unquestionably created is a landscape of wide-eyed, sincere beauty that is very much his own, delivered with a poise that few of his contemporaries can match.

With barely a weak track to be heard, it all adds up to an album that sees Waxahatchee move up to another level. It’s the sound of a woman at peace with herself, and Crutchfield’s newfound serenity makes for a wonderful listen.

It is the work of a group of musicians finally comfortable in their own skin, with all the elements coming together in perfect harmony.

On this one, they’ve become a great band. It’s harder to take them seriously here, but perhaps that’s something they’ve never wanted. They’re more than content with being the class clowns, and we’re more than happy to have them.

This album will, at least in theory, open a new chapter in the band's story, but the songs--as well as being significantly more streamlined--manage to stir and move like never before.

It is certainly worth investing raw, unprocessed time in exploring.

To ears trained on western classical harmony, rock and roll, or even much of the jazz tradition, this will sound fearsomely complex. What is truly impressive about these three players is how confident and effortless they make it all sound.

When Megan moves away from her standard lyrical fare, perpetuating her beef with Tory Lanez on opening track Shots Fired or penning the poppy tune Don’t Rock Me To Sleep, the results are some of the best moments on the album, and if these aspects of her style had been explored some more it could have made for a more diverse LP, but Good News is still chock-full of catchy hooks, stellar verses and feisty attitude.

Like all of Wainwright’s music, Haven’t Got the Blues (Yet) will divide opinion, depending on whether the listener enjoys his style; but whether the listener agrees with him or not, they cannot surely be unaffected by his rich outpouring of love, amusement, scorn, wit, and above all, spirit.

Unmistakeably the best of Ryder-Jones’ albums to date, West Kirby County Primary is cathartic, sometimes desolate, but always raggedly enjoyable.

Although this isn't a flawless album, it will undoubtedly be a huge hit and keep many people company through the long hot summer months ahead.

All things considered, this is an impressive debut album from Rizzle Kicks.

There may not be a track that grabs you by the scruff of the neck like 7/4 (Shoreline), but Remember The Humans reminds us that on the rare occasions that Broken Social Scene release a record, it remains a moment to be treasured.

Whereas his debut self-titled album was a perfectly serviceable slice of alt-country, it wasn’t really distinctive enough to stand ahead of the pack. That’s all changed with Make Way For Love which, at times, contains some of the heartbreakingly beautiful songs you’ll hear all year.

His continually entertaining and tuneful approach should pick up many more fans over the summer, and those that found their way in through tracks such as 'Eany Meany' won't be in a hurry to up sticks either.

Marr offers a vision of a more humane, liberal future. While one Smith seems to have lost the plot, another has found his voice.

There is a fascination in listening to Mark Everett, the kind of fascination that goes with picking scabs or blisters, or the strange inspiration from feeling someone somewhere is going through a worse time than you.

The album does seem to tail off a bit towards the end – as nice as Light It Up and Tough are, they both seem disappointingly sedate ways to bring the album to a close compared to the succession of instantly engaging anthems that preceded them. Other than that, though, there’s enough evidence on Real Love that the fire that inspired Gossip is still burning as bright as ever.

This album will prove to be as addictive listening come the end of the year as it is right now.

Minor grumbles aside, however, Two Thousand And Ten Injuries is a deliriously fun listen, one that manages to suck you into its own little world for half an hour.

It won't be to everyone's tastes and it's clear with a name like theirs they won't be appearing on Fearne Cotton's playlist anytime soon, but there's an energy and vitality to Latin that's impossible to deny.

The King Blues are much better when they're angry and making music to riot to.


With Animals might be a predominantly bleak work, but within its crumbling walls of decay, there’s considerable beauty to be found.

Even though this is her ninth album, she still sounds fresh.

Like much of his best work, it’s a slow-burner of an album: at first listen, it sounds a pretty decent radio-friendly record, but it’s only on repeated plays that the full emotional scale which Adams is displaying becomes clear.

Undaunted by the pressures they continue to face, Virginia Wing present a disarming form of resistance to life’s troubles.

A masterfully constructed – and sequenced – collection of songs to get lost in over the coming months.

An album of murky depth, of seductive charms and no end of style.

It's a blistering, at times thoughtful, scattergun grab-bag of magpie musical styles and broken beat rhymes that somehow hangs together with irrepressible energy and invention.

This is some of the most welcoming music Gang Gang Dance have ever pieced together – less diffuse but still rewardingly complex, without any of the clutter that could occasionally overwhelm less patient parties.

Making a value judgement on Amelia is a tricky business, it being as immediate as undiluted Ribena. However, the album knows what it wants to do and pursues this with relentless efficiency.

Filled with the classic Molko goth-nihilism it’s twinged with as much Nirvana as it is Depeche Mode. Familiar yet fresh, a grower indeed, catchier with each listen.

It could be argued that Soul Time! itself is nothing new within the Dap-Kings catalogue, made up as it is of old tunes (Longer And Stronger, for instance, was written to celebrate Jones's 50th birthday in 2006), but these favourite oldies are collected here for the first time, and that's really something.

This is a quietly powerful, and intensely beautiful, record whose contemplations will bed themselves in your mind and hopefully move you towards caring about the issues raised as deeply as she clearly does.