It’s an album that’s easy to feel intimidated by at first listen, due to its sheer scale and ambition. However, after a few listens you’ll be in no doubt that Genesis Owusu is one of the most exciting names of the year.

Displacing the emotional in favour of engagingly tenuous perspectives, this precariously magnetic album, much like the contents of Dourofs, will absolutely floor you.

The Underside Of Power is righteous, vicious and vital. If the world is a stage, then at the moment it’s hard to think of a better house band than Algiers.

Another album imbued with wisdom and sharpness of mind, undoubtedly music for the slow lane. As a writer of quasi-autobiographical songs that offer uniquely considered observations on human relationships and general life detail, Gold Record proves he’s moving into a realm of his own.

An album that consolidates and enhances Billie Eilish’s reputation as one of the stellar figures of her generation.

A definite case of still waters running deep, Nerissimo is a quiet work of craft by two musicians entirely happy to follow their own instincts. Like Spinal Tap.

There may not be too many surprises on Get Up Sequences Part 2 (and it works perfectly well as a double album with its predecessor), but there doesn’t really need to be with The Go! Team. It’s the usual shot of audio adrenaline, and they still sound as life-affirming as they did nearly 20 years ago.

If your taste leans towards slightly sugary and celebration of all things romantic, then you’ll find a lot to love here.

There’s just not enough of that unhinged brilliance across the board unfortunately; a little more weirdness might have led to something wonderful. As it is, this is a assured debut, but lacking any real surprises.

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.

Poison Season is another excellent Destroyer album, packed with songs that are graceful, beautiful and, yes, hummable.

This album is a joy, with a cast iron guarantee that you’ll be smiling by the end of minute one.

If you admire The Knife’s music for its incredible unpredictability and off-the-scale inventiveness, you are likely to consider this to be at least amongst their best work yet.

When the album comes to a close--with pulsing bass and swirling vocal layers slowly fading out--it feels like the end of some strange Odyssean journey, one that you may want to embark on again before long.

Rooks is a hugely self-assured and often compelling album, which looks outside of the world of modern man for inspiration, and in most cases, finds it in spades.

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.

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.

At other times these arrangements can feel a little staid, but that doesn’t keep Weather Alive from being an engrossing listen especially as Orton dominates the proceedings so expertly.

It's absorbing and enchanting without having to resort to formulaic song structures, pop thrills or radio-friendly catchiness.

Nothing is overstated or overplayed and individual parts are delivered with a care and delicacy which sustains a sense of empathy and warmth. The arrangements are deft and adventurous, but never at the expense of a sense of space and a grounded quality in the music.

Fires Within Fires once again proves Neurosis to be a strong and inventive creative force.

The success of the album lies partly in the production, which allows the teenagers close to the limits of acceptable disorder, but reins them in and lays on the quality when needed.

So much of the delight of listening to music comes from the lyrical, our tacit affiliation with the rage, wit or pathos an artist wishes to project. This record goes some way to appropriate the perception of being wordless, hushed by the beauty of the world we inhabit.

This compilation may primarily be valuable for illustrating the full length and breadth of Sylvian's musical progression.

Kendrick’s lyrics are as erudite as ever, and he has thankfully backed away from the excessive voiceplay of DAMN., though a few tracks could have been cut to create a more consistent listening experience. That being said, Mr Morale & The Big Steppers should be applauded for its intimacy, a remarkably detailed self-portrait of his unique, troubled mind.

Yet far from being miserable, this is a record substantially more alive than its eponymous predecessor.

It’s undoubtedly a confounding and unorthodox piece of work, but its artistic integrity and single-mindedness still manages to ensure PJ Harvey somehow comes out of it with her reputation enhanced.

Daddy’s Home may lack the more exhilarating, guitar-shredding moments of some of Clark’s earlier work, but it’s possibly her best, most considered album to date. Six albums into her career, St Vincent is arguably becoming the defining artist of her generation.