Although the departure of Weiss is sad, it hasn’t diminished any of Brownstein and Tucker’s power: The Centre Won’t Hold sees them as vital, compelling and as searingly relevant as ever.

Their creative fires are clearly burning again, even though it feels like this album had to be exorcised for them to fully ignite in the future.

Forevher is the sound of a woman happy, in love, and going from strength to strength as a songwriter.

Justin Vernon has succumbed to his most inane impulses – and released a selection of unseasoned, lightly scented pleasantries that neither hit or miss. They just are.

It may not be there with their best work, and it might be seen by some as a bit of a stopgap, but there are still times on Thrashing Thru The Passion that The Hold Steady can effortlessly remind us that they remain the ‘best bar band in the world’.

There is a notable step forward, turning more towards a traditional soul style at the album’s core. There is a more natural groove, and the piano steps in more to complement the voice, even if this does sometimes lead to congestion on the instrumental side.

Blanck Mass’ style approaches speedcore in places, but Power ultimately creates music more nuanced and vivid than that genre label ever facilitated, and as such this album is highly recommended for all fans of experimental electronic music, as well as the noise and industrial side of things.

It probably won’t lead to any sort of career revival, but you get the impression that Lloyd Cole’s perfectly happy just following his path and seeing where it leads at this stage.

It might not be an easy listen at times, but make no mistake, this is a vital an important record and one that needs to be heard in order to make sense of it. A definite contender for album of the year and one whose impact will stand alongside Lou Reed‘s Berlin for years to come.

As a debut album it goes over well, with a convincing display of versatility and quality songwriting that firmly establishes Mabel as a force to be reckoned with in UK pop.

There may not quite be enough highlights to keep you clicking repeat indefinitely but, for a first glimpse of a new band that’s certainly got plenty of tongues wagging, Until The Tide Creeps In isn’t a bad outing at all.

This is a brisk, bright and joyful album from a band who have been anything but those things in recent years. It’s recommendable for those attributes alone, but even more so when you start to get the feeling that this could herald a return to form.

For Drab Majesty to take the next step, with an album that resonates with a larger audience, you feel that more depth is required along with more of the melodic excellence provided a handful of times here. If that happens it could even rival some of the best albums your dusty collection from the 80s boasts, such is the potential here.

It is when the album starts to sound like a Saint Sinner record produced by Tycho that the problems arise, but it remains worth a listen for those who appreciate immaculate soundscapes.

As far as compilations and rarities sets go, this is no cynical cash-in, but neither is it absolutely essential, even for fans of the band. There’s a lot of cool material here that is definitely worth exploring, but nothing that will demand a second listen for anyone other than the most hardcore of fans.

Given the number and variety of artists appearing on EGOLI it could have been easy for it to feel uneven, but it flows brilliantly and should be hailed as a significant achievement.

This is a tremendous album that provides a new favourite each time you listen.

The rousing music shows The Black Keys have plenty of rock’n’roll fire left in their bellies. ‘Let’s Rock’ certainly proves the electricity’s still there.

There are far more high points than low, all of which indicates that Pixx’s third album could well be something very special.

Leading The Raconteurs, the restlessly inventive maverick White and the sunnier, more straightforward tunesmith Benson really do complement each other well, mixing thrilling aggression with focused sweetness. White may have a much higher profile, but Benson brings a positive, restraining influence to some of his partner’s self-indulgent tendencies.

Mostly this is just a bit Bastille by numbers. If you’re looking for a photocopy of their previous albums, faded and off-colour, Doom Days will satisfy.

It’s an intriguing album with few dips (only Kanye’s verse on Puppet sounds rather phoned in and lacklustre), and it adds up to Tyler, The Creator’s best work to date. He may not be threatening Western civilization anymore, but he is creating something far more interesting.

Most of these tracks would probably count as mid-tempo throbbers, and this aesthetic cloys a bit by the end of the record. In the same interview he also joked that this release exists because he “owes the label an album”, and this is evident in the filler that pads out an EP’s worth of good tracks.

Another six-minute effort closes the album, Ducter, and like all the album’s best tracks it manages to navigate all the band’s best checkpoints of note, showcasing those spellbinding vocals and extraordinary percussion as they tread a truly staggering path. Schlagenheim will open up a whole new bottle of weird, if you let it in. It’s Troutmask Replica for a new generation, or perhaps it’s Can attempting to recreate the madness that Captain Beefheart’s enigmatic classic contained.

Whilst Psychedelic Porn Crumpets remain an attractive proposition, this outing would perhaps suggest that they’re starting to cool off a little after the hot, toasting stage they enjoyed with their first two releases.

A Bath Full Of Ecstasy might be a somewhat eccentric name, but it ultimately does sum the album up rather well (assuming it means the abstract emotion rather than literal pills stacked up in a bathtub): a lush, adventurous experience, immersive and refreshing.

More restless than Solan Goose, Sule Skerry is always on the move, constantly changing but all the more exciting and compelling for it.

There could be an argument that a couple of edits to make the track listing shorter would have resulted in an even more effective album. However, this is easily one of the best pop albums of the year as it is: one that’s unlikely to be bettered unless a certain Ms Swift really pulls it out of the bag.

At over an hour long, this isn’t an album to dip in and out of--it’s that rare album that you have to commit to, and let it wash over you.

Western Stars is, annoyingly, another fantastic album to add to your rotation. But then it is a Bruce Springsteen album. Of course it’s superb.

This new, untitled beast is another step to Rammstein finally being acknowledged as being the best heavy metal band in the world, and one of the best hard rock acts of all time.

Overall The Book Of Traps And Lessons is best with a healthy dose of thoughtfulness and nuance, and while it falters on the occasions when these are disregarded, this album is another example of why Tempest’s spoken-word works now routinely amplify well beyond her poetic beginnings.

Bold, bizarre, brazen and beguiling, Madame X is Madonna living her Latin American Life. Brilliant.

Fans of either Calexico or Iron And Wine should be pleased with this full-length collaboration, which feels very much like a joining of two halves to make a larger, rather special whole.

The songs effortlessly speak to all classes, to all walks of life, from a songwriter who never sings down to his audience. As always, Richard Hawley is one of us.

It is pop music for the future – unpredictable, forceful, winsome and primal in equal measure. As long as Aurora is allowed to keep her eyes wide open, the sky really is the limit for this powerful creative force.

Renegade is lots of fun, even if it’sa few tracks short of its true potential.

Office Politics is, as with most Divine Comedy releases, a record with its finger firmly on the pulse of this zeitgeist.

While the aesthetic of Lust For Youth’s music may be dated on a surface level, good pop songcraft tends to become timeless once people have got used to it. And this self-titled album of theirs is full of this, tunes that work their way into the listener’s head and successfully strike a balance of being nostalgic without being derivative.

Plaid’s contemporaries from the early ’90s are in very different places now, with Aphex Twin incorporating styles footwork in his new releases and Autechre progressing further and further into uncharted terrain. This album, however, is from a duo mostly content to amble down memory lane.

An artist at the top of his game, with the newfound artistic freedom that Konnichiwa granted him but the energy of still having something to prove. It also confirms the 2010s grime revival as being more than a passing trend, and on this basis it’s stronger than ever.

This is a very carefully thought out new page to Hayden Thorpe’s career, yet the page has freshly written calligraphy on it. There is much to admire and much to relate to, in what is surely just the start of this particular Wild Beast’s solo migration.

The album sags in a way that his previous work never did (much like Michael Jackson’s Dangerous, which inspires its artwork). He remains an inventive and interesting producer, however, and there are significant patches of brilliance on Flamagra that make it a worthwhile listen.

This album, though not what anybody on the face of the Earth would call ‘fun’, is an absolute classic of modernist architecture. It’s certainly the best thing she’s ever done.

While The Mountain Goats will always remain an acquired taste, there’s a case to put that In League With Dragons is possibly one of their most accessible albums. The collaboration with Pallett is a smart one for sure, and Darnielle has refused to let age dull his edge or mischievous eye for lyrical detail.

Northampton’s Child has a brilliant trap-style beat which comes with one of Slowthai’s better performances, as if being more autobiographical implicitly encouraged him to find his own voice. But these moments are too few and far between to save a record that reveals the whirlwind of hype around Slowthai to be not much more than invisible garments on an arrogant emperor.

As ever with Diamandis, there’s some decent pop music here, but it seems like we’re still waiting for her to produce that genuine killer album, Diamonds or no Diamonds.

Reflect. Time. Loss. achieves its aim handsomely, with many a moment to stop the heart of its listener, in doing so adding another dimension to Maps as a musical outfit.

This sort of music is not intended for close listening, relying as it does on repetition and vibe. It does, however, deliver the sound that Com Truise is known for in abundance, and delivers it with a nuance that’s a cut above the other YouTube wannabes.

Proto is a very distinctive record, and its sound design is as astounding as we’ve come to expect from Herndon. It’s also deeply powerful, as its crystalline tones call to mind the ghost in the machine, and leaves the listener wondering what further symbiosis can be achieved.

The last few records have seen them experimenting successfully with dashes of vivid colour, spinning bass lines towards the dubby area of the spectrum and enjoying a laugh at theirs and others’ expense. Wheeltappers & Shunters continues the trend, with music of colour, mixing its cold shivers with moments of unexpected charm.

Some more cynical types may find this heart-on-sleeve approach too cloying, but the delivery and writing is so honest and heartfelt, it’s impossible not to be charmed. Carner is a genuine talent, and this second album demonstrates just why he’s so highly rated.

With its 16 tracks clocking in at 63 minutes, it’s the band’s longest album to date and, despite a smattering of classy highlights, it feels laboured and cumbersome. With that in mind, the album as a whole falls short of The National’s best work. Yet it is, in places, an admirable detour.

This all may be too intense and striking for some people (the last 70 seconds of closing track Magic Dealer are simply ambient noise), and those who were pulled in by the warm sound of Saddle Creek on the band’s first two albums may find this switch to 4AD to be too jarring. Yet, for most Big Thief fans, UFOF is a natural, welcome progression, and one that you likely won’t want to tear yourself away from.

The less charitable may call this record a collection of leftovers, in the manner of Radiohead‘s Amnesiac to Kid A. But Anoyo succeeds on its own terms too: the combination of sounds is still captivating, especially recommended for anyone who feels to this day that new age music was underrated.

There certainly seems a lot to unpack in Father Of The Bride, and at times there almost seems too much crammed into the album.

To date, Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes have blended buzzing Stooges punk, thick Queens Of The Stone Age riffs and winking alternative rock into something resembling Arctic Monkeys circa Humbug, as seen through a funhouse mirror. All of these sounds are here on End Of Suffering, and more besides.

Social Cues is Cage The Elephant’s darkest and most personal album yet.

Seeing Other People initially appears slick and self-obsessed, very nearly to a fault. But scratch below the surface and there’s tongue-in-cheek humour.

Big Wows is highly polished and lacks the intimacy and fragility that made Into Their Diamond Sun such a compelling listen. The pay-off is a more distant but fascinating record that charts their evolution as a band.

Life Metal resonates in the surrounding air particles long after the last track concludes, and will reverberate in the minds of listeners longer still. A truly magnificent, very real, and ultimately restorative record.

Every track is dripping with smooth chords, funk-influenced rhythms and a retro quality to the production, and is all the better for it.

Fontaines DC wear their influences close to their sleeve, with nods to The Pogues, The Strokes and Joy Division, but these influences are absorbed into their identity, to create something that instantly familiar and accessible, but also thrillingly compelling. ... They’re going to be big, and one listen to Dogrel will convince you of that fact.

There are moments of brilliance and experimentation, but these are too often outweighed by pedestrian tunes and indistinct vocals.

A fairly straight-up radio friendly rock album.

No Geography is a great Chemicals album, for it balances the hedonistic big numbers with sentiments of real substance, fighting its corner with vigour in the face of chaos. ... It ranks as one of the Chemical Brothers’ finest achievements.

Loops, beats and synths unite to create a beautiful and serene experience on Ambitions, one worth returning to again and again for fans of instrumental electronica.

Free Spirit is a patchy album from an artist who is perfectly capable of delivering nifty falsetto lines and smooth come-ons, but who is also far too predisposed to sloppy downtempo numbers.

Badbea, then, is a spirited and triumphant addition to the discography. It puts a smile on the listener’s face, will make their feet twitch and will on occasion bring an affectionate tear to the eye.

Gibbons and Penderecki deserve enormous credit for their approach, which is at once determinedly studied but also gloriously instinctive, Gibbons getting to the very heart of the music and the way it is made with her whole heart.

It’s another fine addition to a canon of work that has, over the last 20 years, been consistently excellent.

This is an absolute delight for a fan, but hard to recommend for anyone else. Of the entire back catalogue, Side Effects seems like the slightest of their albums, but at least its hottest moments go some way to countering how underdone the whole thing seems.

My Finest Work Yet an album that will immediately appeal to Andrew Bird’s long-term fans, and may well attract a few new ones as well.

The State Between Us has some brilliant moments, but those moments are too stretched out: many of the tracks could have been half their length and been equally effective, and some could have been cut altogether for not holding together as pieces of music. However, even at its lowest ebbs it retains some intrigue from its novelty, and the sheer ambition of the album is not to be faulted.

It is a very human experience, and if you can work past the occasional awkwardness of the vocal by spending more time with it then listening treasures await.

For now, this is an album that establishes Foals as one of the most exciting and driven bands of the generation.

It’s rare to hear a debut album so confident and accomplished, especially when the artist himself has just turned 20 years old. Yet Psychodrama is pretty close to a masterpiece and raises the bar for a new standard in British rap.

She [Louise Wener] sounds more at ease in her delivery, and the knowhow is natural. On occasion with their less successful single releases you felt Sleeper were trying a bit too hard, but here it is refreshingly instinctive. The addition of more power to the lower end is very welcome too.

You will have gathered from this that Happy In The Hollow makes a positive impact, its occasional loss of focus an asset rather than a fault as the music runs free. TOY make music notable for its mood, groove and texture, if not always finding a killer melody.

They’re looking forward, stepping outside of their comfort zone and creating some of the most interesting, ambitious music of their long career.

Gathered is very much an album that needs time and attention to allow its strengths be isolated and to surface. Long term Gelb fans will appreciate his continued work rate, the extension of musical themes and hints at his past but overall it may be too slight and unprepossessing for the casual, passing listener.

For a debut it’s a remarkably confident and assured album, while hinting at even greater things to come in future years.

A beautiful, dramatic, idiosyncratic album from a beautiful, dramatic, idiosyncratic band.

What this record does, yet again, is show that Danger Mouse has bulletproof, unassailable taste in music and collaborators. Karen is exactly the right fit for these songs, and she is absolutely the star of the set, thanks in no small part to the incredible production. This isn’t the best record that either of these mercurial artists have made, but it’s undoubtedly the finest collaboration you’ll hear this year. Guaranteed.

Plastic Anniversary is yet another masterwork by a duo that have been on the top of their game for longer than some producers have been alive, and long may their reign over sample-driven electronica continue.

Even though there are moments that skirt close to self-indulgence--there’s an entire song dedicated to celebrated author Judy Blume which still somehow works, while Bigger On The Inside stops being a heartfelt defence after a while and just turns into a bit of a whine--and you’re left with the impression that a sympathetic editor would do wonders for Palmer, there are still some heart-stopping moments of beauty on this third album.

The Brian Jonestown Massacre is exactly what you expect, and selfishly want, The Brian Jonestown Massacre to sound like.

This is an album to sit with, to take in, and to fully appreciate its subtle and quiet beauty. It may not be her commercial breakthrough--someone as esoteric as Pratt could be waiting a while for that--but it’s certainly her best album to date.

This is punk music delivered with a righteous feminine fury.

To Believe is a worthy return for The Cinematic Orchestra, developing their sound while keeping the trademark fusion between electronic and orchestral that Swinscoe and co. do so well.

Despite some excellent high points, Tasmania appears jumbled as a whole and there are too many tracks that just don’t hit the bullseye for it to be upheld as the best Pond have recorded.

These songs are stamped full of her personality and they mark a major evolution as a songwriter. As the final chords of the heartrending Comfort ring out, it’s impossible not to think that yet another major Antipodean talent has put a new marker down.

The introspective narrative may not be uncharted territory, but Dido chose these waters. She is unrivalled in navigating them with her disarming and melodic harmonies. If we’re going to hell after this, let’s enjoy this atmospheric goddess while we can. Beautiful.

The narrative may be light and oft charted, but what an impressive and impassioned debut album from Sigrid Sucker Punch is. She and a world of adulation are unlikely to be Strangers for much longer.

Even at 16 tracks (including the little spoken word interludes that scatter the album), it never seems too long or self-indulgent.

This is a ‘supergroup’ refreshingly free of ego and filled with supremely listenable songs.

Taking field recordings from various locations, Tiersen has created an album that works on a number of levels, and listening to ALL completely devoid of context is a rewarding listen.

All in all, an accomplished return, and a welcome and relatable one for these dismal times.