Despite its hyperactive tendencies and its scale there hasn't been another record released this year as gorgeous and completely owned by a band as Everything.

The range of emotions and material on display make The Best Damn Thing a much easier listen than the monotonous angst of Under My Skin.

Permalight was an unacceptable rocking of the boat. Nightingale Floors is an all too predictable response, then, safely ensconced as it is in the warm, reverb-heavy sound of beloved predecessors like 2005’s Descended Like Vultures and an atmosphere far more organic in tone and mood than Permalight.

Endless Flowers is an album of summer anthems for those who like their beach days mixed in with a good dose of torrential summer downpours.

Despite being Simple Plan's poppiest release yet, it is also their least catchy, indistinct and forgettable.

The album's relatively narrow focus does it few favours here; its reluctance to experiment outside of sparkly, quickfire bangers inadvertently spotlights how the appeal of its weaker cuts is directly interchangeable with that of the highlights.

Most of the album is still enjoyable, however, and certainly provides some new ideas for instrumental rock music.

Familial plays its cards remarkably close to the chest, much like Selway's work in Radiohead. Selway never asks for attention, but still receives it through his remarkable consistency and precision.

Many listeners will hear Emery's heaviest album to date, while others will find it their catchiest. Some may enjoy the gradual come down after the initial blast, while the rest will believe it lacks cohesion.

Despite pulling out all the stops towards the end, The Cost is everything The Frames usually eschew: it’s bland, it’s monotonous and it barely achieves a tempo shift across forty-four minutes.

Overcome is but a grain in the sand on an oversaturated desert; a metal album you'll enjoy while you play it but won't ever be something you‘ll yearn to hear.

The biggest problem with Oh My My is that OneRepublic forsakes the few characteristics that once made them relatively unique in favor of bland, done-to-death radio pop.

Angel Face deserves some credit for possessing a small handful of excellent singles, but outside of those, this album falters almost uniformly. I can see what Stephen Sanchez was going for conceptually and aesthetically – and admittedly, I even fell for it based off the strength of the singles. However, the additional eight songs add no value at best and more often than not kill whatever buzz that was generated by the likes of "Only Girl", "Evangeline", "Be More", and "Until I Found You".

As a writer of the English language, Kozelek gets perfect marks; as a writer of songs, the jury is still out.

Yusuf hasn't missed a beat, as this is still the same sound he made famous on 70s staple "Tea for the Tillerman" and later perfected on "Teaser and the Firecat", and while it's certainly not as impactful, I'm comfortable saying that "An Other Cup" comes pretty close.

Whatever Funk’s motivation in pumping out yet another breakcore grenade in his long line of breakcore grenades, My Love is a Bulldozer is at the very least an engaging listen--make of that what you will.

It offers a collection of solid tunes that were unlikely to ever be conceived. The excitement behind them is noticeable, yet overall they could have been trimmed for the standard release.

The social media taint/ industry plant vibes radiate from this project as if it’s been sprayed by a skunk, with very little to recommend it other than as a soundtrack to some upcoming TikTok trend. There’s doubtless an audience for Ice Spice amongst the army of impressionable youths who may find this kind of rap wonderfully diverting, but it’s hard to deny just how artistically barren this release in particular is.

As a soundtrack, it works. Moody music fills the background, and in that respect it is largely a success. Yet as a standalone listen, the record is a weak and almost slap-dash display, with Arnalds feeling regrettably uninspired.

There is nothing radical or daring about the faithfully rendered tunes we find on Twelve.

A solid, if formulaic, LP which clearly adheres to the K.I.S.S (Keep It Simple Stupid) formula.

Distinguishing themselves from the shadow of Fall Out Boy, My Chemical Romance and the like without sacrificing too many of the essential elements of their debut album, The Academy Is… have emerged as a band with ambition and the songwriting skill to match.

Mylo Xyloto proves that Coldplay are quite simply the best pop band in the world, bar none.

Music For Robots functions as the first embarrassingly terrible album of 2014, and should be avoided by all except those with an extremely morbid sense of curiosity.

While not as ambitious as it could have been, Your Wilderness serves as a needed push in a new direction for Soord and co. Whether Harrison remains in the band or not, this will hopefully stand in their impressive discography as a stepping stone to even more lofty explorations for the future.

While it may not be a classic record and won’t be the new soundtrack to the revolution, Appeal to Reason is filled with faux-punk rock anthems and memorable lyrics and basslines that will satiate anybodies need for Rise Against.

What Silversun Pickups have done is settle into a sweet spot. It might not sit well with everyone involved, but it takes nothing away from what this is: a gorgeous if slightly safe album that proves this band hasn’t lost their edge when it comes to making captivating music.

The Golden Age of Knowhere is the perfect party album since it has something for everyone. And while it will most likely work better in a live setting, it still makes for one hell of an excellent record.