They seamlessly move from straight-up hardcore or punk to more traditional rock all over this record, and there's no shortage of fist-pumping anthems.

Everything is worth hearing, but frenetic waltz-meets-hora dance track Comrade Z is a definite standout. This isn’t quite as fun as Gogol’s music, but it’s more thoughtful than DeVotchKa’s Gypsy punk brethren.

On this one, there are wonky backup vocals, trashy-sounding drums, disgustingly distorted guitar solos, vaguely off-key horns. You get the sense that Lewis, also a talented comic-book maker, does whatever the hell he wants, and it totally works.

Made is at once more adventurous and more accessible, with a greater respect for straightforward(ish) pop.

The Alabama-born Houck knows his way around this music well enough to walk the fine line between respect and reverence as he delivers impassioned readings of 'Can I Sleep In Your Arms' and 'Too Sick To Pray' and kicks out a freewheeling rip through 'I Gotta Get Drunk' with the appropriate tinge of self-loathing.

Hearing 2003’s Frank the first time around, I can’t say I was knocked out by Amy Winehouse’s supper club jazz singing, and the album hasn’t improved with age.

Isbell shows us his sensitive side in a collection of lightly strummed breakup ballads and weepy slow-dancers you'd expect to get from Ryan Adams. That's not an endorsement.

Listening to the fiercely adrenalized sophomore disc by Sweden’s Love Is All is like being at the fair for an entire weekend, stuffing your face with cotton candy and taking one too many spins on the Gravitron.

He's turned the clock back to the Fun Trick Noisemaker era of playful psychedelic indulgence that was the Apples' stock in trade before the unsavoury aspirations of indie-rock stardom took hold.

There’s good understated playing throughout, strong songwriting and a casual, immediate feel that comes from recording an entire album in six days.

Though he used songs from the same recording sessions for both, Humor Risk is quite a different collection, accessible and verbose by McCombs's standards.

Many other songs retread themes of self-doubt and disillusionment, reaching previous levels of intimacy but without taking us anywhere new. Musically, Green does take C&C into somewhat unfamiliar, heavier territory.

There's nothing terribly innovative going on here, but their unguarded passion is irresistible.

She benefits from solid production by Saddle Creek staple Mike Mogis, who tweaks her retro sound with synths and electronic blips, but it's the stark M. Ward-produced tracks that, while more traditional, showcase the Dolly Parton potential in Lewis's voice.

His latest--entirely produced by long-time collaborator No I.D.--reveals an enlivened emcee, the same forceful voice who gave us classic albums such as Be and Like Water For Chocolate.

Together, they sound kind of Bowie glam, kind of ELO, but never dated.

Ultimately, this is the same Radio Dept. we know, love and hardly ever hear from. We’ll take what we can get.

As always, the main appeal lies in how honest and real it all feels.

She succeeds on a level that was always just out of reach; the whole thing feels organic and natural.

With a band made up of old friends, Love has made a seemingly effortless record that reveals more with every listen.

The lyrics are bizarre ("I'm DJ Khaled / I'm a daikon radish") and confrontational ("RapGenius.com is white devil sophistry / Urban Dictionary is for demons with college degrees") but also cohesive and purposeful.

The lo-fi/hi-fi production values keep slickness at bay, resulting in something as warm, intimate and super-casual as an East Coast kitchen party.

Hit Reset, the Julie Ruin’s second album, is super-spunky.

This brutally honest record is in many ways more powerful than anything from his agitprop days.

The singalong choruses are brilliant, but some of the sillier material might be best experienced live.

The new textures suit singer Mark Sasso's gravelly voice and Days Into Years' historical themes, inspired in part by a visit to a World War I cemetery in France.

Burial and the late DJ Rashad’s contributions are predictably strong, and Jessy Lanza’s two appearances stand out for successfully combining traditional songcraft with forward-thinking sonic exploration.

Despite Rae Sremmurd's rep for hyped-up celebration songs, the album's best moment comes when Lee and Jimmy eschew cranking up for something closer to cutesy romance.