The Weightless Hour feels a natural successor to the sadness and grief of Snapshot, but with an added sense of hope and rebirth. It also has all the elements that made Howling Bells such a satisfying listen, while being a sufficiently different experience.

It may not have the single-minded focus of All Of Us Flames, or the striking ambition of Transangelic Exodus, but it’s another startling record from one of the most exciting songwriters around right now.

For in spite of the occasional loss of focus this is a sonic melting pot, welcoming all styles and colours that interact with the legendary producer’s instincts. If only life itself were so inclusive.

It doesn’t quite compete with their very best albums (Ignore The Ignorant and Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever) but it’s at least as good as the next tier (The New Fellas and For All My Sisters). More than anything else, Selling A Vibe is a fantastic entry point for new fans to get on board.

The overall feeling is of a Drake record weirded out to its absolute extreme.

Overall, while II is a success, it’s just not quite the great record it should have been.

Open Door Policy is quite possibly the best Hold Steady album since 2008’s Stay Positive.

It takes you on something of a journey, veering from country to garage rock to something almost literally out-of-this-world.

There may not be a big crossover hit on the album, but that doesn’t stop Moonshine Freeze sounding like the best record of Kate Stables’ career so far.

It means Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds end the year as they began it: demonstrating they are a band in very fine health.

Some may say it doesn't move Depeche Mode forward a great deal; I say I don't give a damn, it's a real treat and I'll have some more, please.

It may not always work, but when it does, M.I.A. can still sound like the most exciting pop star on the planet.

It's good to see this album released, but whether the meeting between Costello and Toussaint has produced anything of greater note that their individual achievements, I'm not convinced.

This is the most consistently impressive Beirut record yet, proving its creator is now able to harness his occasional excesses and directly engage with his audience without losing the invention and flair that make him such a rare talent.

It’s true that General Dome won’t be for everyone, but Dyer and Sanchez have certainly assembled an interesting creation.

Better Dreaming feels not so much like a reset, but as if they’ve rediscovered what made them such an exciting prospect in the first place. It’s resulted in the best Tune-Yards album for some time.

Anyone enthralled by the previous album may feel there is something missing here. Instead, what we have is the true expression of the artist finding salvation in musical release and forging new paths using established forms.

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.

The Rat Road does indeed become an accurate reflection of modern life, but it lifts far above the routine, providing an insightful and emotive soundtrack for many who cross its path.

Cassadaga is everything his fans would expect from him - mournful, moody and full of lovely melodies.

It’s been one hell of a journey for Sleater-Kinney, but Little Rope is a fierce demonstration of a band back on track.

There are no earth-shattering changes to Linkous' studio-warped rock 'n' roll pastoralism. As there was nothing broken on previous Sparklehorse outings, there is little in need of fixing.

Lookout Sea paradoxically Silver Jews' most complex and most accessible work to date. Better yet, it improves with each listen, as more and more nuances and links are revealed.

The Psychedelic Furs needn’t have made anything this good. Many of these songs will grow in potency in a live setting (if we ever get back to that).

Listeners with open minds are strongly recommended to give Pageant Material a try. It’s brimming with wit and wisdom, and it really should have featured on more end-of-year lists.

For the main part, The Life Of The World To Come is so familiar as The Mountain Goats that it seems rather lazy.

World Painted Blood may not be Reign In Blood, but it finds Slayer close to their best.

Simplistic yet perfectly arranged, these songs are quite wonderful and open the way into a dreamworld that is familiar, strange, welcoming and every so often, quite terrifying.

That, however, is before you take into account various Eastern influences that lace themselves around the guitar lines, not to mention some unexpected interludes of funk, hip hop and even swing. As a result, taking the whole record on board in one sitting is an intoxicating experience.

This is at once an enjoyable effort and an opportunity missed.

+ – 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.

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

Processed vocals are a huge presence on Nurture, and the record is infused with a songwriting sensibility that’s cutesy but massively endearing.

These might not be the original performances, but the reworking of them has made them a little brighter and most importantly, they’ve lost none of their original power.

Overall, this is just another Ozzy Osbourne solo album, for better and worse. It succeeds in its rawness, its slapdash cobbling together of predictable riffs and lunatic poetry.

Back to basics and back on form.

Those for whom Enya remains a musical taboo are unlikely to be tempted by Dark Sky Island. More open-minded listeners might, however, find themselves surprisingly captivated.

Compared to Big Conspiracy 3 years prior, Beautiful And Brutal Yard displays more ambition and an admirable desire to experiment, resulting in both career-defining moments and unfortunate missteps.

Ewan Pearson (who’s also produced Thorn’s recent solo works) adds a lovely, warm sheen to many of the songs, giving a classy final touch to an album that has more hidden depths than its MOR surface may suggest.

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

Chaotic, energised and thrilling, this is Demi Lovato at her very best.

Which brings us to the nub of what makes Death Magnetic such a resounding success. Death Magnetic could have dropped 15 years ago and been a logical conclusion to the "Black" album. Today, it emphatically brings Metallica full circle to an intriguing afterthought: what next?

Genuine Negro Jig is a stunner in every sense. Its music is as fresh and innovative as it is deeply rooted in its time and place.

The result is a staggeringly impressive and confident third album from an artist who has reached the very peak of his powers.

While there are no surprises to be found on A Bit Of Previous – it’s pretty much a textbook example of how a Belle and Sebastian album should sound after 20 years – it’s a warm, comforting return for a band who do what they do extremely well.

Interplay is a consistently fine piece of work, and even though it is a shade too long it has a strong claim to being Ride’s best album since they reformed. Given the quality of the music since that second coming, we can go all out and say they are one of the finest guitar bands in the country right now.

A Different Ship might be the sound of a band often cast adrift, but in Godrich there's now a firm hand on the tiller, his steadying influence streamlining their sound and taking them to the next level.

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.

So the debut album is done, and it’s a good one.

Overall, New Build's debut is one of subtlety and finesse.

Odd Blood peaks in the middle, with two marvelous extended tracks which take the raw materials of '80s soul and funk and somehow manage to inject the mesmeric, insistent rhythms of Krautrock without making a terrible mess of things.

Alexander Tucker muscles up to his psych-folk antecedents to posit himself as an artist of singular merit, as comfortable within the realms of conventional song as well as the abstract sound world.

This might not be it [a landmark record], but by god does it sound like it wants to be at points towards the end. Night Life is very, very good.

The fact that it’s not doing anything particularly new doesn’t really matter because it’s hitting all the right notes and pushing all the right buttons. Most of all, just like their debut, it’s a lot fun.

The jury will be out for a long time while they argue whether this is dance, classical or jazz but they're sure to deliver a thumbs-up for this far from amateurish collection of tracks.

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.

Cutting a path somewhere between the sonic worlds of New Order and !!! (Chk Chk Chk), Omnion runs determinedly in Butler’s own unique direction, mixing decadence and daring and making for something rather special.

Much of Edge Of The Sun is as comfortable as an old pair of slippers.

Sure there are obvious bands they can be liked to--The Band, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding--but its pace and passion make it a record to enjoy for itself, rather than its influences.

It's tempting to deride the album as too similar at times, but the truth is that each of these songs is a perfectly sculpted and realised work of wonder revolving around a couple of central themes, which appears to be based primarily in the sounds of the Orient and the South American rainforest.

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.

Fanfare is the sort of album Jonathan Wilson was bound to make, immaculately crafted and perfectly defined.

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.

Beatopia is an album which shows Beabadoobee still experimenting to find her voice – that doesn’t make it a bad album, rather a slightly uneven one. There are enough moments, such as the gently soaring See You Soon, which hint that she’s due to break out of her cult status and become a major star sooner rather than later.

There are some bumps along the way, though, with Art Deco and Religion sounding almost too lackadaisical for their own good.... That said, when she gets the formula right, the results speak for themselves.

This is a band working at the very top of their game, and this album is a beautiful, brilliant beast.

Beautiful, sad, uplifting, and thoughtful, American Football’s return is definitely something to get excited about, but in a subdued way.

Night Music is the sort of album that demands an active listener, that brings all those lurkers in the lobby of the mind into full view.

Like [Beck's] Morning Phase, even Supernova’s failures prove an interesting listen, and when LaMontagne hits his stride, it’s an album that contains some of his best material in years.

I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life doesn’t quite hit the immense heights of her first two albums, but this is still Merrill Garbus doing her own thing--which is something that’s always worth paying attention to.

The consistency and linear aspect of Bloom ensures it is, as the band recommend, best experienced as an whole.

While it lacks the initial rush of Hunting My Dress, The House That Jack Built throws in surprises and twists and turns that are evidence of a satisfying progression.

It all amounts to Hersh’s harshest offering in sometime, but it’s also the sound of an artist rejuvenated and inspired.

It may be nearly 35 years since The Charlatans signed to Beggars Banquet, but for sheer scope and invention, Tim Burgess knows no bounds.

While existing fans are catered to generously, the band have brought their sound on in leaps and bounds; an achievement that is testament to Mount's evolving songwriting prowess. They don't come much better than this.

Hold My Baby emphasises King Princess’ position as one of pop’s most singular talents, but doesn’t drive home the point quite in the way you feel it should. Perhaps that makes it an even more interesting listen.

Never judge a book by its cover, they say, but with Cymbals Eat Guitars it's fine to do just that--the lush green grass and dense vegetation of their own artwork accurately reflected in their own music.

Some may write it off as one-paced (and they’d have a point), but there are moments of heartache and beauty here that will be hard to touch in 2016.

Given that it follows a possible career-best Dinosaur Jr album - 2009's superb Farm - long-term Dino fans will hope that Several Shades Of Why isn't the start of a permanent solo career. But Mascis followers will find plenty to enjoy here.

Seeds is destined to grow and grow. Exhilarating stuff.

It's a rootsy album that is delivered faithfully and respectfully, but one where the strong, clear voice of its author cuts through powerfully.

It may be occasionally unnerving, but there is pure balm to be found here, music to speak to even the most troubled of souls.

Lanegan has infused much of this material with the sounds of his influences successfully. Admittedly it is a little tinny in places, and sometimes the warmth of that voice makes for an awkward fit with the detachment of the music, but for the most part, it works rather well.

Iit feels like there’s so much more music and ideas for them to explore, so many other potential directions for them to head in. For now however, this remarkably mature and accomplished album will do just fine.

Elytral may not be an easy record, but it is strangely affirmative and rewarding.

This is a fitting debut for a man who to many needs no introduction.

If there were any criticism to be leveled at this album, it's that it is a little bland around the edges.

As uneven as Hey Clockface can become, there are still enough reminders of Costello’s genius scattered across the album. After all these years, his aim is still mostly true.

This album shows that simple can indeed be effective. Regan simultaneously covers a lot of topical ground whilst using a finite number of musical resources.

This is the most consistent album to date by a band whose flashes of brilliance hitherto seemed often dissolved in their encumbering desire to set down a surfeit of ideas on each record. Here, their creative energies are reconciled just as the salt doll is reconciled with the sea.

His versatility serves him incredibly well once again, and ultimately prevents the demons from bringing him down. By laying bare his troubles, Ben Watt has made his finest album yet.

They’ve had their day doing one thing, they now need to do another, and while further albums are even less likely than this one, Happiness Not Included feels like something of a missed opportunity.

So, all things considered, it’s another solid entry in McClure’s catalogue.

While debuts can often be bold and brash, Vondelpark’s alternative, understated approach is to be commended.

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.

It’s both expressive and inventive while still retaining that alluring degree of mystery.

Whereas Walker seemed to grasp something on that album [The Drift], here he seems restless and inconsistent, but his continuing artistic quest remains peerless and fascinating.

Treefight For Sunlight have a genuine ability to create instantly arresting melodies.