While Dillinger might have become more melodic over their years, they have categorically never softened. There are songs on here that will strip paint at 500 yards, curdle fresh milk and happily go toe-to-toe with the best of their back catalogue. That’s no small accolade.

Stunning.

By the time the closing brass-driven sequences of the 3D-fronted ‘Almost Air’ ebb away, Massive Attack feel like a living, breathing vital force once again.

Frantic opener ‘Praise Poison’ feels like the heaviest song they’ve penned in years, while elsewhere the slow, heavy-hitting riff of ‘Lock & Load’ and the desperate, raking soar of ‘Flyover States’ make this a versatile, and interesting album that manages to combine everything that’s great about this band’s rich back catalogue.

As soulful and finely crafted as their debut of sorts, II is a glorious record.

Nobody does dreamy indie patter quite like this.

It’s the stellar-sounding closer ‘This Place Is Death’ that perfectly demonstrates the striking yet violent contrasts that make album number six a masterpiece.

The beauty of their sound is its unpredictability: fragments of rock, metal, folk, punk and pop collide and smash, creating Frankenstein monsters that spark into life and chase you down. And they've never sounded more convincing than this.

[A] mightily ambitious, versatile record.

his is polished, assured pop-rock custom built for massive stages and even bigger singalongs, and both are no doubt in the pipeline.

Occupying a middle-ground between the thrashy, riff-a-minute assault of ’95 and the Gothenburg band’s earlier, darkly atmospheric releases, these 13 tracks form a cohesive and consistently evocative whole.

Commercially-driven producers or not, though, the band have a knack for keeping their sound current and contemporary –- while still being reminiscent of their early material.

Stripped down to a three-piece since Tyondai Braxton's surprise departure, Battles' sophomore effort may not have a nailed-on stand-out like their debut's Atlas but their dizzying electro-prog has a great deal more focus this time around.

Free from the shadows of their past, it seems Young Widows have found an infinitely darker place to dwell.

The Australian punks tone down the fury on album two, and manage to achieve so much without it.

A compelling, intricate album in which to lose yourself.

Mr Wylde is onto another grininducing winner here and long may it continue.

It's still apparent that Mogwai have, once again, produced a record of astonishing subtlety.

It's far from easy listening but it's an approach that's won them legions of devoted fans in the process and comes close to reducing many of their peers to nothing more than musical footnotes in the larger scheme of things.

Noticeably less refined than the aforementioned masterpiece, ‘Pendulum In A Peasant Dress’, ‘Tilting At The Univendor’ and ‘Torrentially Cutshaw’ are part of a breathlessly jagged, abrasive, unruly and punk as fuck whole.

This album seamlessly flits from one brilliantly bold idea to another with no dips in quality.

Earth's continued trudge into beatific wilderness sees Dylan Carlson return to territory traversed by the desolate windswept tundras.

Overall, If Not Now, When? is the sound of Incubus coming of age. It's not particularly experimental nor is it completely straightforward but it is concise and a risk that's paid off.

Twin Forks is an album of freedom and exploration, the sound of people taking risks for the sake of song. We like that.

The likes of 'The Resist Stance' and 'Someone To Believe' burn with righteous anger and the energy of a band half their age. Only the closer, the toothless 'I Won't Say Anything', isn't up to scratch. A fine addition to their cannon.

It all combines to make Citizen’s gloomiest, most atmospheric record yet--and also one of the most disturbing of the year so far. It’s a memorable journey.

Heritage is an infinitely more audacious beast, full of jazzy noodling, serpentine guitar leads, folky introspection and general acid-drenched freakiness.

Whether opting for the sledgehammer (check out the riffs on ‘The New Reality’) or an icy scalpel (the warped post-punk of ‘Ugly’), the Pittsburgh four-piece rain down a hail of killer blows. Welcome to Hell.

The Baltimore hardcore crew follow up their beloved 2015 debut full-length 'Nonstop Feeling' with an equally intense 13 tracks, dragging the best elements of 20th Century punk into the modern world.

It's probably about time more people started caring about this band, especially since they deal in the sort of sounds that demand to be taken to heart.

The Husker Du-lionising and strategic swearing of earlier releases might be absent, but Let's Wrestle's copious charms are otherwise very much in force on their full-length debut.

Few bands out there twist metal into such bewildering, bewitching shapes, and--somehow--there’s little sign of their well running dry.

Hope is the soundtrack to the summer you've not yet had, and from here it sounds like it might be the best one yet.

It sounds ferocious and is going to have you feeling filthy and dealing with tinnitus afterwards, but nothing's going to stop you from rocking.

Five Serpent's Teeth is 100 per cent square in the Evile MO: twisted kinetic riffs from the Brothers Drake push the needle into the red before resolving themselves in anthemic choruses.

In short To Be Everywhere... is another triumphant step for a band whose two-decade growth from able but impetuous riff merchants to purveyors of truly ambitious art has been nothing short of inspiring.

They're back in irresistibly anthemic form, with just the right blend of punk attitude and pop genius.

Beloved is both a reincarnation of old and a lesson in modern metalcore that makes IKTPQ the oldest newcomers to stake their claim for 2014.

While A Nation Sleeps is typically impassioned, excellent stuff that marries wretched, raw aggression and political indignation with massive melodies that are just on the right side of cheesy.

Revel in the gloom.

Gareth’s vocal is less shrill these days, his lyrics are less desperate (though just as despairing), and the band’s soundscapes are increasingly diverse....A big step forward.

Stoke Extinguisher offers both food for thought and fuel for the pit; cheap gags jostle for space with anti-establishment rhetoric and a wry sense of self-depreciation.

We also love to party and this third effort from Cobra Starship screams ‘party’ right from blast off.

Baffling yet hum-able at the same time, this is the work of a band without a clue where they're going, and it's all the stronger for it.

Clouded is possibly the most beautiful record about heartbreak you’ll hear all year.

As fans of the group will attest, there's nothing quite like experiencing Mogwai in a live setting and while Special Moves might never fully capture that sheer weight of sound, it nevertheless represents a hugely impressive live document (even without Burning, the accompanying DVD).

It's challenging (but not a challenging listen), pushing boundaries and smashing down your very notions of what metal--or metalcore--is.

This is a grower not a shower but persevere because White Silence has been worth the wait.

With no outside influences to force these leek-lovin’ lads’ song-writing hand, they’ve delivered an album that, although not as polished as previous efforts (but that’s part of the charm), is purely Lostprophets; and the real sound of progress, for sure.

Every Where Is Some Where is in turns intimate, expansive, confessional and inviting--thoroughly addictive on the dark, pulsing and urgent ‘Blood In The Cut’, woozily euphoric on ‘High Enough’, playfully political on ‘The President Has A Sex Tape’ and swirling and sultry on ‘You Felt Right’.

Front-loaded with jagged riffs and the squalls of Matt Shultz, this is storming.

Stunning.

It’s the driving energy and urgency of hook-filled bangers like ‘Flies’ and ‘Not For You’ that makes this memorable.

There may be fewer hooks and a lack of a real fist-in-the-air anthem, but on The Home Inside My Head, these sad boys become men. Gracefully.

Said record does exactly what it says on the tin, veering between fuzzed-up garage rock stomp and mesmeric psychedelic sprawl in a manner that's sure to delight fans of 09's Smile.

It's a brilliant, timeless debut and a must-listen.

Crowbar were always more reflective. And that's kind of what Sever The Wicked Hand is all about, corpulent down-tuned riffs and a sense of grizzled resignation articulated through Windstein's taut songwriting and sorrowful croon.

Intimate, impressive, and ultimately cathartic, Stage Four is well worth your time.

Dragging their new wave and post-punk influences to the fore, the Sacramento crew have produced their most dynamic, adventurous and downright strange album in years.

Mechanize is without doubt their heaviest and most powerful, and considering the stark, foreboding lyrical subject matter it seems totally relevant that it should be. A truly emphatic return.

Ruthlessly combining technical brutality and pure fucking class, DevilDriver have finally come of age.

Korn’s follow up to ’11’s dubstep-infused ‘The Path Of Totality’ is a completely different monster to its predecessor, and for all the right reasons.

Rave Tapes is a diverse and supremely confident record.

The Wilderness is the perfect title, too; the album’s nine songs exploring an expansive, evocative range of sounds, grooves, peaks and valleys. Which is to say, this is something really quite special.

Youth Authority is a sun-drenched delight that sees the quintet firmly reconnecting with their roots.

Crammed with skyscraping melodies and moments of spine-tingling poignancy, it stands them in the best possible stead for packing out stadiums and headlining festivals in the near future. They’ve fulfilled their side of the bargain with these 10 songs.

Of The Blue Colour Of The Sky displays that Damian Kulash and co are perfectly capable of writing more grown-up, experimental material.

While the 12 tracks here are built around conventional nu metal structures, what unexpectedly rolls out is a stubbornness and increasing force never present with Evanescence.

This is brave, baffling, bonkers and most importantly, absolutely brilliant. Strap yourselves in, it’s a hell of a ride.

The post-hiatus band are still angry and have something to say.... Welcome back, gang.

Bearing the smart but dark pop hallmarks of bands like The Cure and Echo And The Bunnymen, it’s astonishing how the L.A. foursome’s fusion of disco, funk and hot gothic takes sounds so fresh in 2017, 30-odd years after that stuff’s heyday.

Fusing hardcore with metal and occasionally veering off on deranged, druggy tangents, this is an ambitious blend of sounds.

The Human Romance is how metalcore should be: layered, dynamic, passionate. Easily the best Darkest Hour have been since "Undoing Ruin."

The songs soar in unison with the band’s grand vision. Those songs are a riot, too.

It sees the band sounding tighter and more confident than ever on the likes of ‘Reading Youtube Comments’ and probable live favourite-to-be ‘Donny’s Woods’.

Philly troubadour Dave Hause’s sophomore platter manages to stand proud while casually dipping into drive-time radio (‘Same Disease’) and blue collar balladry (‘Before’).

Possessing a grandeur that never descends into pomposity and a restraint that could never be mistaken for bland aural wallpaper, this is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful releases you’re likely to hear over the coming months.

With barely a weak song in sight, the Brighton duo have delivered a collection of tracks of taut, visceral quality.

Though it’s still very early doors, Seaway could have just put in a strong claim as the first pop-punk breakthrough of 2015.

Possessing more jagged edges than a shed full of rusty chainsaws, You Will Never Be One Of Us is 21 minutes of frenzied, guttural hardcore of the highest calibre.

As ever, their songs are structured, paced and technically advanced in a way that's leagues above much of this genre.

Their jangly indie-rock explores the journey of two twin brothers separated at birth through a procession of the schizophrenic ('Drunken Birds') and the more accessible ('Warmer Warmer') with largely satisfying results.

Even after 20 years in the game, there are still few better. Welcome back, sirs.

While hardly what you’d call commercial, ‘Oversteps’ contains some of the pair’s most approachable material for aeons, with their usual alien and sometimes hostile soundscapes peppered with vibrant melodies, particularly on the swirling brooding ambience of ‘Ilandrers’ and bright, fizzing ‘Treale’.

Like every true outlaw before them, The Icarus Line haven't mellowed with age; they've gotten gnarlier.

Throw in the stunning power and clarity of Alan Moulder's mix and you have the sound of a band revitalised, re-inspired and highly evolved.

A relentlessly insistent, unexpectedly danceable record which manages to be as engaging as it is wilfully bizarre.

This preposterously technical mish-mash of progressive metal, full-throated hardcore, operatic female vocals and lounge jazz interludes triumphantly evidences a band taking an absurd amount of joy in kicking against the pricks.

Overall, it’s an impressive progression on all counts.

This is a worthy follow-up. Its 12 sultry, sumptuous songs see Brennan Greaves and Britty Drake swap turns singing over a wash of fuzzy, forlorn guitars.

Even at its most meandering points (‘Nowhere Lullaby’), the tangents on ‘There Is No Enemy’ feel purposeful. Martsch’s lyrics remain wry and erudite, but he’s back to expressing himself in a more whimsical fashion and, more importantly, writing actual melodies.

Kieran Hebden’s first album as Four Tet in almost five years is perhaps his best yet, sealing his reputation for blending jazz, electronica and classical influences into seamless, shimmering soundscapes with an ever-mutating style.

The result is a beautifully fragile acoustic record that positions him as the missing link between Kurt Cobain and Johnny Cash.

11 tracks with all the anguish that melodic hardcore thrives on, but with enough testosterone to keep it on the right side of whiney.

It works. It all makes an album full of awesome, genuine pop-rock music. Time will tell if this album and the next couple of years propel this band to the huge rooms these songs were made for, but for now? A great band just got even better.

While it's not a groundbreaking redefinition of what metal should be, it's a firm statement of intent from the London-based quintet.

In Our Bones is a versatile, ballsy take on modern pop-rock, and it’s impossible not to sit back and admire as Chrissy, Dan and Will take another step on the way to superstardom.

11 blistering, confrontational, and breathtakingly intense tracks.