These slight niggles [Failure never fully reveals itself and feels a little like an idea that never really developed. Similarly, K Street is short, sweet, and fun, but doesn’t really anywhere] aside, Volume X finds Trans Am in rude health and still delivering fresh exciting music. As an introduction to the band this is a good starter for 10.

No Time is a huge step forward since the 2012 debut and yet another essential psych-heavy 2014 collection, this time from a more unexpected source.

Hutchison may seem down on himself on this record, but the music is full of creative energy.

Altogether a belter of an album, then, as their reputation for consistency prevails once more.

For those late to the party, the album offers an opportunity to catch up and at least not miss out on a fine batch of Beck songs which might have otherwise evaded the mainstream. For those with more time and the urge to explore, though, just get yourself down to songreader.net where the real spirit of the project still awaits you.

There’s something almost mathematical and architectural about Brooks’ guitar aggregations but these qualities are conveyed humbly and unobtrusively throughout.

McGuinness is having a fantastic time on this album, but the try-too-hard attempts at shock value and relatively derivative riffs occasionally detract from what is an otherwise fantastic recontextualization of British alternative rock into older trends.

Pe’ahi may well have arrived softly, but you can’t criticise the size of its stick, nor its ability to do different and interesting things with that stick.

A priceless archival exercise: these eight sides of vinyl represent both the holy grail of New Zealand indie rock and proof of its insidious journey to a wide world. [Aug 2014, p.100]

Elly Jackson firmly takes control of her career and delivers a tremendously confident second album, one that repositions La Roux and has a whole lot of fun while doing so.

Though his aims of presenting this as a robust, high-concept album aren’t necessarily met, this is still wonderful pop.

Deceptively expansive, Fink’s tricksy Hard Believer is essential listening.

The promise is unquestionable but the songs and melodies aren’t memorable; this is hopefully all part of the transformation and something that will develop as they enter the next stage of their intriguing growth.

It’s a glorious anthology of affective, brutally precise top notch electronic pop.

At almost 55 minutes, some of the 12 tracks could have done with a bit of trimming, while some songs work better than others. But overall World Peace Is None Of Your Business is a distinctive contribution to Morrissey’s oeuvre.

This is deeply satisfying and enjoyable--perfect for those who prefer their summer soundtrack to have a bit of firepower.

By the time the spine-tingling hidden track after the closing Wanderer Wandering has faded out, you’ll be convinced you’ve heard one of the best albums of the year.

Gulp suffers from the side-project lack of focus, but they have the capabilities to push their music to the edge on which they obviously live.

Whilst it doesn’t always work, and the shorter tracks do little to add value, the atmosphere they generate is often spine tingling.

All that said, there’s a lot to love still, and if you carefully trim around the dross, you’re left with a stunning product and some phantasmagorical slivers of sonic mastery.

That an album that sounds this vibrant and thrilling came out of such dark circumstance is a testament to the songwriting skills of Showalter. Pain never sounded so good.

In 1000 Forms Of Fear, we have what is probably Sia’s finest body of work.

The duo have set themselves up nicely in a burgeoning genre and whilst their likeness for monochrome isn’t exactly bright, their future surely is.

For all its ’80s and ’90s pop influence, nothing here sounds dated.

Every track is quite full of life and holds no lack of energy that characterizes good, classic British rock ‘n’ roll.

His dance credentials already assured, this feels like Cutler reasserting his artistry; an exercise in expressive revivalism, where myriad influences are sketched from memory; an album whose headline proposition is new, despite the ageing origins of its component parts.

It’s stupid fun, but In My World is also a surprisingly intelligent release with quite a few surprises.

There may come a time where repeated fine-tuning becomes progressively more difficult, but in the meantime Remember Remember have released an album that consolidates their position and shows off their abilities in impressive style.