Unlike previous releases, there is not a dire need to shuffle back a few tracks to listen repetitively, but more of a, 'when I'm in the mood' feeling. No Age are certainly living in the moment, and Everything In Between has a similar retention factor.

They’re all good, all memorable.

It is meant to be fun, catchy, sexy, and danceable, and while it isn't groundbreaking by any means, it succeeds in reaching all of its goals.

Invented reins in Jimmy Eat World after Chase This Light. It still possesses the same inviting, feel-good sentiment, but it's expressed more personably, and in this regard it makes for a very rewarding listen.

Nowhere Generation is merely a good album that offers us a worthwhile batch of late-career songs.

While this record's predecessor was the definition of a mixed bag, Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night is markedly reliable - a product that you're likely to either take or leave in its entirety.

They're not really revolutionary because there's nothing that ambitious in them. Rather they're content being a light Dinosaur Jr., making pleasant, noisy indie rock with tambourines and static that's more an aural treat than a mental stimulant.

Even when certain songs weren’t quite working, I still found myself able to nod along and get lost in their rhythms. Even when another guest verse cropped up and it threatened to kill the album’s momentum, I found myself rewarded by another dynamite verse from Denzel thanks to the album’s breakneck pace.

The great thing about this album is the same as was great about the last full length LCD Soundsystem album, and that is its effortless blend and execution of mix.

It's a shame that the sequencing and the overall flow isn't quite right, because in all other regards, this is a beautiful album to stick on and just drift away to--this is music of impressive texture and depth.

United Crushers can come across as a draining listen, perhaps even an uncomfortable one to those accustomed to their earlier work. It takes a few listens to discern the resolve in Leaneagh’s lyrics, but it’s there.

While pacing proves to be the record’s ultimate strength, Sagarmatha simply doesn’t say enough to be a real force.

For all the criticisms Nelson may endure for not branching out or over relying on minimalism, White Bird Release does provide a certain thrill.

Corey Taylor has crafted a no-frills, carefree collection of party rock tunes that, at worst, offer nothing inventive or deep but at best will give you an adrenaline rush at 2 a.m. when you’re out with your buddies getting trashed and forgetting that 2020 ever happened.

Every Open Eye proves Chvrches to be a band that hones in on its strengths, develops them, and uses those strengths to consistently release quality material.

They sound fresher and more relevant than they have done in years, even eclipsing the latter records of Bergsman's time with the band.

In the end, iTRÉ! is unexpectedly the strongest record overall of the three. Although it has its own issues, these don't drag that much the whole affair down and there aren't any horrible missteps such as "Nightlife".

Although the softer moments here are only soft in comparison to the dazzling cacophony that usually accompanies her songs, Welch does seem more confident here letting her pipes do the heavy lifting.

Pleasant, often phenomenal. And then afterwards, most of it is gone minus those times when it got real.

Some experiments don’t add much to the listening experience, but don’t detract either. The story telling is very up front, yet the confidence and attitude never passes into obnoxious, parody of oneself territory. As a result, Welfare Jazz remains a tight effort that hopefully acts as a transition to a richer sonic canvas.

What results is another quality release that cannot help but make music fans excited for what this gifted outfit are to bestow upon us on their next offering.

AFI’s latest offering is a good one, but also one that seems to hint at a promise that it never quite fulfills.

What's right here is awesome, and I for one have got a lot of joy out of listening to it.

The most important takeaway when listening to The Pariah, the Parrot, the Delusion is that however centaurian the album as a whole may be, Dredg are a truly special group.

Wasting Light isn't a masterpiece, nor does it see Grohl really reinventing the wheel as far as the band's sound goes, but it's clearly painted from a broader pallette of colours and it's clearly their first consistently good set of songs.

Despite being a solid, sometimes gorgeous album of songs from a very well-matched collaboration of artists, Unmap’s ultimate effect will be whetting appetites everywhere for the next Bon Iver record.

My Method Actor is very likely an aimless sandbox, one which leads to some very cool songs, and others there's no chance we'll remember once we're eight albums deep into Nilüfer Yanya's career.

The record’s most profound and memorable experiences arrive at the hands of the tracks that are not afraid of crossing timelines, the ones that are unafraid of integration and understand there is no returning to the past.

There's a give and take at work on Mine Is Yours, one that fans of their earlier work will either love or hate.

Overall, Days Go By ends up as a solid record only because there are traces of The Offspring again and not a band that tries to copy others.

One of the more intriguing albums of the year, because emotion isn't really a quantifiable trait. In this case, it's best to simply listen and find out which side of the fence you're on.

For what it is, When Machines is a reasonably entertaining collection of spare beats, courtesy of a long-hibernating maestro that’s just trying to get back in the game.

Wreck, their seventh full-length effort, is pretty much everything you would come to expect from an Unsane record.

Positive Songs for Negative People lives up to its name and is an enjoyably straight forward record. Unfortunately, the album’s biggest strength also holds it back from ranking among his finest, as the overarching optimism makes the record feel slightly thin and superficial compared to his previous offerings.

What does set this apart from Actress' earlier pieces is the incredibly organic feel that this album seems to thrive on.

Sulphur English is both a career spanning bow on an admirable decade and a determined look toward the future.

Yes, they still have a few kinks that need to be worked out--for instance, they need to address the game of musical chairs at lead guitarist--but a whole, The Afghan Whigs look just as unstoppable as they did in their prime.

Occasionally, it becomes exhausting, making it hard to finish listening V in one go. Nevertheless, when it clicks, it definitely sparks joy.

Laborintus II is a strange and unique creation that despite being far from the days of Mr. Bungle and Faith No More, feels completely and totally Mike Patton.

At fifty minutes long, and without a single climax, Arrivals becomes exhausting in its maturity, composure and homogeneity. And while it is a great album to chill, think and lose yourself in, it doesn’t seem to shed much warmth, much emotion.

The often minimalistic approach requires time to settle in, still the duo clearly had in mind the bigger picture. It definitely has a charm of its own, despite being hard to digest and most importantly, enjoy. In a way, it shouldn’t become a pleasant listen due to the nature of the stories it depicts. Even so, it’s a really moody one, the way every other Xiu Xiu album turns out to be these days. Taking risks is appreciated though.

Human the Death Dance may not be perfect and perhaps not even an improvement for fans, but regardless, it's full of wonderful moments that should satisfy fans and serve as a great introduction for newcomers.

Its faults are minimal, though its highs are somewhat indistinguishable. In the end, you're left with a wash of mid-paced, hook-laden and relatively solid post-post-hardcore.

Chesnutt has created something earthy and beautiful with North Star Deserter and at this point, its difficult to imagine another singer/songwriter bettering it this year.

This is a great record but is very often hit or miss.

Eremita has the makings of something excellent, especially given the quality of the guest performances and the sheer creative vision that Tveitan holds within himself.

For the die-hard Four Tet fan who jumps over every release the man has put out, Pink isn't really going to offer much outside of a rather flash piece of packaging that coincidentally happens to store all of his recent tunes in one convenient place. For others though, it's simply going to be another Four Tet release, which is a lot better than a whole lot from everyone else.

It’s hard not to enjoy it. With Muse, they have [un]intentionally touched on this form of art. For (mostly) all the wrong reasons, Will of the People is the best, most engaging record to come from the band in sixteen years, and it’s quite possibly the most fun I’ll have with an album all year as well.

Tyla's 35-minute runtime does feel a bit like a brief spin on an exercycle that refuses to leave low gear, and net dopamine levels are limited. .... Nevertheless, there is plenty of playlist fodder to be plucked from Tyla's trim confines.

The Great American Bar Scene sees Bryan once again settle into something of a familiar groove. He tries throwing John Mayer and Bruce Springsteen features into the mix, but the results are ultimately the same: more slow-to-mid tempo country crooners with results-may-vary emotional resonance. The album is unsurprisingly at its best when Bryan injects fresh ideas and more energy into his formulaic approach.

Definitely a leap into the right direction, the album is the product of a clear mindset and less ego tripping.

Liars successfully created a stimulating, challenging, and disturbing record and while it may click immediately for some, don’t get frustrated if you find yourself lost in the woods.

The World Is Yours won't set the world alight with insightful lyrics or experimentation, but that isn't what we've signed up for. This is an LP that just does not let up from the get go.

The witty anti-gangster taunts of A Little Bit Cooler and pretty much everything else on the album, makes for a fun, but still quality, Hip-Hop record.

Timewave Zero isn’t going to fuel everyone’s jet, and those looking for another slab of progressive death metal madness are sure to be miffed. Comparatively speaking, this little group from Denver set the bar dizzyingly high with their death metal albums one and two, but regardless of preference, Blood Incantation continues to impress—resetting the timeline as they go.

Despite the minor grievances and sore-thumb songs, and the fact that it's unreasonable to compare this record to its near-flawless predecessor, I Liked It Better When You Have No Heart is a sterling addition to Butch Walker's celebrated discography.

Although it might not be his most cohesive or strongest collection, the man manages to cater to every fan. He sticks what he knows best and that's how we want hi

Dom's sound has enough edge to satisfy the critics and enough energy to satisfy everyone else, but for what it's worth, this is the kind of album you don't have to think about for even a moment; sit back, sing a long, play it in the background, it doesn't matter. Just enjoy.

The room for improvement only makes this consistent, catchy and accessible album all the more successful.

The Fame isn’t a defining moment in pop culture, but it is a promising sign for Lady GaGa, with plenty to dance to.

Neck of the Woods marks interesting territory in their development; it both stands its ground and stretches its legs without actually feeling like it's desperate to do either.

It's easy to enjoy on a superficial level, because the music is well written and enjoyable, and lyrically it's more than I could have expected.

Essentially, Still Night, Still Life is a fun, carefree listen and doesn't pretend to be anything more. As an added bonus, it's also a clear improvement over the band's past works as well.

This feels like a halfway point between a true Flaming Lips full-length and one of their many novelty side-ventures. This is undoubtedly a worthwhile pursuit for fans of the band that also marks a welcome return to accessibility; maybe with a bit of a stronger backbone, it could have been more.

More than ever before, these songs spin on their own axes: and that fact alone makes this record as positive a step forward for Tycho as anything.

Weapon is the sound of a band that still has something to say, but delivered with a comfort level commensurate with their thirty years of existence.

Vampire Weekend banks on showering its tribal pop with lyrics poised for literary analysis, skimping pretentious by appearing completely natural.

The essence is there, and it’s a force, to be sure. If it doesn’t feel as raw, as dangerous, or as alive as it did in the past, well, once a wildfire’s burned through a place, it’s going to be hard for it to relight itself. But those embers are still glowing with that evil heat, and Rack still carries more than enough weight to rest among all but the best of the Lizard’s material.

The maturity and class displayed here is a pleasant surprise (which has nothing to do with Musgraves, and everything to do with divorce/breakup album stereotypes), and the experience is unexpectedly serene given the music's content and overarching themes, but otherwise star-crossed is merely nice: a lukewarm batch of songs eager to saturate backgrounds rather than absorb your full attention.

It has all the enjoyable little quirks of New Found Glory's earliest material, and most of the songs have the potential to stay lodged in your brain for days.

Pearl Jam's ninth album sounds a lot more optimistic and positive than the band ever has. More importantly, Backspacer sees Pearl Jam finally escape the slump they fell into with "Binaural" nine years ago.

What can be viewed as a weakness can also be seen as a strength, and for the most part one can conclude that The Chair in the Doorway is a successful return to form.

Except for the last two somewhat average songs, this is an accomplished work that defies canons without ever truly dazzling.

This is a mainstream metal band that probably puts just as much emphasis into their marketing as they do their music, but, like it or not, they’ve also released their best album so far and it’s actually pretty entertaining.

Adams occasionally steps into a puddle of shallow adult-contemporary tripe that even his incisive personality and increasingly tamed voice cannot save. Those basic imitations of past great Adams tunes are few and far between on Ryan Adams, particularly when weighed against some of his other recent albums.

Though it never explodes, No One Can Ever Know comes to its unnerving climaxes at just the right points and feels in its own right like a totally cohesive recording of something dark and unforgivable.

While it fails to better its predecessor, Anxiety is a mature, personal and vulnerable release that is both a brave and natural evolution for an undoubtedly talented artist.

In terms of overall quality though, it has to be said that things noticeably pick up in the album's second half, as any traditional indie rock sensibilities that Gibbard may have initially had start to recede and are replaced by a grittier, slightly more abstract edge.

Ultimately, Killing Time is another solid collection of songs from Bayside... Yet another base hit, but still no game-winning home run.

Though there are several issues that inevitably drag it down, this is a good record that finally proves the band is willing to move upward.

A Different Kind Of Truth is ultimately an accomplished, hard-rocking record that somehow manages to not sound too dated.

Doomsdayer's Holiday is certainly a step in the right direction in terms of balancing the eclecticism that marred "Burning Off Impurities," and it has some amazing moments, but the album as a whole is too nebulous to be complete nirvana.

There’s a light to guide Ólafur Arnalds’ music now, and it's allowing him to escape the darkness in a way he'd never quite imagined.

Overall, Come Ahead turned out one of the most encompassing affairs in the group’s discography. The attention to detail paid off and there’s enough cohesiveness too. Nevertheless, Gillespie’s redundant voice and lyrics are often too angular, but that’s the hit and miss element all Primal Scream’s full lengths share.

It is far from perfect yet could never possibly get there.

It's by no means the work of art that it accompanies, but it's almost as endearing and charming as that begrudging look of acceptance on the countenance of the moon at the sight of its unwelcome guests.

I’m intrigued but not enamored. Twenty-one years in, it’s certainly understandable how it’d be challenging to continually create that spark. In the meanwhile, Tenterhooks’ embers will keep fans warm.

All in all, Fate and Alcohol makes for a solid final act for a band which beat the actuarial tables by a wide margin.

Where he goes from here remains to be seen, but if this is just a first step in his rebellion against the conventions of the rabble of the garage scene, then his next move might be the game changer this was supposed to be.

For much of Paralytic Stalk's first half and even for most of the more unhinged second act, Kevin Barnes strikes a near-perfect balance between pop mastery and a delightful sort of weird.

The focus should be that after everything that's happened with her career, I can still listen to a record as uneven as Speak Now and feel like Taylor Swift is somebody I could fall in love with given the chance.

Norah Jones has the potential to be one of the defining singers of the decade, but her songwriting needs to take on more styles and more voices.

The Big Pink’s A Brief History of Love will elicit a response of some kind. It’s just that kind of album.

There are some nods to years past, and most longtime acolytes will be satisfied with what is mostly testament Converge; but the band's causal nexus doesn’t exist in a vacuum, or in the grips of GodCity Studio, but out there, rooted in the mundane and then amplified to hysteria. Much of The Dusk in Us seems to obsess over the everyday, or maybe more accurately, our demons lurking on the cusp of day and night.

There’s a worrying air of desperation running through the band’s lyrical choices that thankfully doesn’t spill over into the music, but it is nonetheless a frequent distraction on an otherwise fine album from a heavy metal juggernaut that might just be kicking back into gear.

Mondo Cane is a summer-time staple and a faithful reminder that Mike Patton can sing but sadly little else.

This is a remarkably solid album that stands as one of the best album made by a pop-punk band this decade, although this music can hardly be considered 'pop-punk' anymore.

Her hit rate is a tad more consistent here than it was on Perfect Shapes. It won’t be the most memorable outing you hear this year, but if you’re reading this in anything approaching a wistful funk, there’s a decent chance Sucker’s Lunch might be exactly what your mood calls for.