Where Brat and it’s completely different but also still brat, may be hindered by its questionable collaboration choices, it more than makes up for it when it comes to displaying Charli XCX’s relentless pursuit of pop debauchery.

This record is a lot of fun and show great song writing promise.

Panorama proves that Kiyoko isn’t limited to any 2018 zeitgeist. There are nods to her older sound, sure, but the matured production and continued experiments show that she’s not out to recreate Expectations – she’s growing from it.

Overall, on their third record, The Big Moon stay true to their title and lay bare all that they have. They’ve shown us their rawest moments and the deepest parts of their psyche and said, simply, “Here is everything”.

What makes this album stand out from other synth pop albums is how they can switch from being overtly synthetic.

Though it’s clearly crafted with a visual accompaniment in mind, it does just about work as its own album; albeit one of their strangest, and most inventive.

Like so much of their previous output, it’s an incredibly bittersweet listen, but this time it’s less about Lewis’ wistful reflections and more to do with rueing what might have been if they’d continued; those first four cuts hint at a genuinely superb record having been in the works pre-split.

It’s an unsettling, incomparable racket of The Fall at their wonderful, frightening best.

Yes, it’s an unashamedly ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ record – but who really cares when the results are so enjoyably convincing?

It is crisply clear and gritty, with a lovely bout of emo-tinged lyricism. It is surely to be considered the strongest body of work of their career, only to be outdone with whatever may come next. Smitten is the sound of a band infatuated with their art, ready for the future, and excited to be a part of it.

Bleached don’t really break away from the tried-and-true pop-rock template here. When it’s done quite this energetically, though, it’s hard to care--especially when the sense of catharsis is so palpable.

Crying the Neck finds him getting into his stride again. If he reins in his excesses, he may be in full flight on its follow-up.

Less sprawling than its immediate predecessor, at its best it highlights the band’s creativity and tautness, echoing some of the vigour of Born on Flag Day.

If you persevere, it’s an LP that will reveal it’s creamy goodness in due time. You’ve got to wine’n'dine it, not just expect to jump into bed.

Jaga Jazzist's music has never been shy on the intellectual front, and for those willing to take the plunge, Starfire's innate intricacies leave as much to be discovered as the skies themselves.

By maneuvering their psychedelia to one side, the band has crafted their most clearly defined record to date. For those in love with bar italia for their uncanny qualities, there’s still something here, but the verdict on intention is up.

The Ooz is a meandering, disorientating trip through punk, ska, jazz and hip hop--held together by Marshall’s menacing vocal sneer.

Musically, it is not quite extraordinary, yet this could all change in a live setting, and it remains a more than worthy return for a group who are experts in their craft.

With her new album, Saputjiji, Tagaq continues to mine hardcore proclivities, stepping fully into the role of devoted subversive and guerilla artiste.

Preferring to be a bit more refined, The Silver Gymnasium mixes maturity and depth with rare awkward moments which are more typical of a band that is musically in their late adolescence.

This is an often-beautiful, fully professional work from an artist that clearly knows the toys his listeners will allow him to play with outside of his own sandbox.

This is a band still keen to experiment – a flourishing ensemble ahead of the alternative music curve.

Her flow can often be propulsive and deadly, and every so often, she strikes gold (“All Mine” and “AAAHH MEN!”). Even something like “Jealous Type”, one of Vie’s least cohesive mash of rap and pop, gets the job done.

Futurology just happens to be their most daring folly yet.

White Roses, My God is an often compelling experiment, but it’s hard not to suspect that its bold, often inscrutable excursions into alien territory ultimately undersell Sparhawk’s immense gifts as a musical communicator.

Once more, Nightmares On Wax provide the backing music to the party; once more, your enjoyment is only limited by your own imagination.

It’s a record that’s full of interesting ideas that needs a few listens to appreciate its subtleties, which are ultimately very rewarding.

You, Whom I Have Always Hated is a remarkably coherent and singular piece of work, which, due to its economy and pacing, never stumbles across an ill-fitting moment in which you can hear the seam that joins two different creative forces.

Pirouette is an intriguing segue album. Even if it falls short of the cogency displayed on Dogsbody, Model/Actriz should be applauded for their creative restlessness, the risks they wholeheartedly take.

Like with their lyrics, The Goon Sax are still working things out on the fly. Getting caught up in the feeling and riding the wave until they find some sort of conclusion. For the Brisbane trio, truly embracing that feeling, however messy, is what makes them so special.

On Abomination there’s a more cohesive sense of vulnerability even contemplation that the attention-seeking initial EP songs clamoured for so brazenly.

Overall though, this still feels like a missed opportunity; a more inspired roll call of contributors could have pushed Song Reader into essential listening territory. As it is, fans might well get more out of playing these songs than listening to them. Then again, that was always the point.

Deep In The Iris feels like something of a sidestep for the band, a digression that toys with candour while still being dominated by a carefully calculated instrumental palette. Overall, their song structures are more concise than they’ve ever been, and they demonstrate an increasing willingness to draw from popular paradigms.

YOU’LL HAVE TO LOSE SOMETHING is by far the band’s most straightforward record. This isn’t to say however they have lost what makes them one of the most progressive bands around; sonic textures still overlay collages of obscure samples, whilst the method of individual members writing separate streams of consciousness verses before coming together to record still creates enviable levels of lyrical surrealism.

The Murder Capital’s first record is a despairingly indulgent listen, but a powerful beginning from a band that promise to bring the passion of emotion to a genre.

Pale Horses stands as a testament that it will be a good while before brothers Weiss and co. are long gone.

Super is a grower--a brave rejection of pipe and slippers, embracing the mythical dance floor with admirably vacuous experimentation, even if it mines the mid-nineties, when dance music grew least interesting.

I quit shows that HAIM will always make good music, and while this record doesn’t radically shift the formula, it reinforces their strengths: thoughtful songwriting, tight production, and seamless cohesion as a trio.

If The Baby is the audacious younger sibling, then Scout is the more modest elder. ... It is indie rock that is at one moment huge and soaring, the next breathtakingly intimate. Delivering remarkably visceral songs, she is opening the window into a clear view of what will surely be a great and long-lasting career.

Promising and full of potential, the boys have delivered and exceeded expectations, it’s safe to say that their intoxicating indie rock cuts are here to stay.

In the end, few of the songs here approach the heights promised by his debut. But Scott, still just twenty-two, deserves the time and the encouragement to develop what is very clearly a unique voice.

On this Deluxe Edition, remixes fill out the majority of the extra material.... Yet in a way, it points to the downside of the album, and the fact that sometimes the Compass Point All Stars can steer away from Jones’ dynamic connection between an audience and herself.

The album is full of high-energy, highly-infectious dance numbers--in a way that demands frequently radio play, big-budget festival spots, distasteful Kesha collaborations, and another five year break between this and album #3.

Lookout Low is brought to a mellow ending with slow rock song “Sunken II”. The album as a whole has to be Twin Peaks’ most diverse, musically explorative and mature album yet, leaving fans with curiosity and excitement about where the band will go from here.

If Half-Light feels a touch scattershot, it’s likely because it’s the result of years of his creative energy being pent-up on the road with the band when he’d have much rather been at home in the studio, and it doesn’t dilute the emotional resonance of his best lyrics here, which are a world away from the coy collegiate that Koenig presents as.

The simple moments are offset by grander, more exciting ones.

Dove is an album of texture--there is nothing as immediate as “Feed The Tree” or any of Star’s off-kilter, head-rush singles and there is nothing as hooky and bright as King’s “Superconnected”--there are layers and copious amounts of digging involved here.

It's all a bit too safe. Nothing feels unexpected. Nothing feels like a step forward. Everything Else Has Gone Wrong is lodged sonically somewhere between the sound of the last two albums, but lacking the freshness both possessed at the time.

Even though everything that Ultimate Painting have to offer has been heard before, the richness of their chosen source material- so utterly packed with hooks- puts them onto a winner.

Uniform Distortion may be the most straightforward sounding a set of Jim James songs has ever released, but they’ve somehow absorbed the distortion of today’s world and turned it into something we can all make sense of, and in which we can seek some solace.

It retains a surprising amount of individuality for an album almost certainly destined for the top of the charts. And, though it might well feel a little samey in it's early stages, the final half more than makes up for it.

Remember The Humans only hints at past glories, but it's a welcome reminder of why Broken Social Scene endeared themselves to us in the first place.

Ed Harcourt too seems to be dealing with a few demons of his own on Back Into The Woods, but this collection of world-weary songs also beats with a poetic heart of longing.

Short though this may be, it’s nothing if not meticulous.

This third full-length is enjoyable as a standalone too, but probably more so with the added context.

If you like your summer pop to keep you on your toes then this is definitely for you. Otherwise this is an impressively ambitious if somewhat misguided debut from a band well worth keeping tabs on.

With how much groundwork they’ve already laid, Friko can afford to conduct themselves more lightly this time, but there are promises from their introduction that we’re still waiting for.

Doused in the kind of mysticism that drenched the original psych scene, oblique lyrics about being the sun and a cascading approach to influences, Levitation still manages to retain a lot of the expansive wonder that so much modern psych has neglected.

The constant zigzag between tempos and moods is tiring. The album is a true testament to her strengths as a lyricist and melodic writer but should have been allowed to be as chaotic as it first seemed to promise.

With Afraid of Heights, a record that, for the most part, is the sound of a band treading water. It’s perfectly lovely water, all the same; there’s a slew of songs more than worthy of the record’s predecessor.

Rewind the Film seems immediately poised for lost-classic status-- for all its clumsiness and flaws, it’s the kind of album that wants you to let it sink in, or even gather dust, until you remember it’s there.

By the tenth track of verdant metaphors and leafy imagery, it's hard not to wish for the return of some of the angst which characterised The Antlers' earlier works, just to add a bit of bite. Still, with spring just around the corner, it's hard to be churlish. Green to Gold is a befitting album for lazy summer mornings.

Wiry but not without weight, The Nothing They Need conveys an increasingly efficient model of Dead Meadow, saying its piece in eight unhurried, hash-hued visions.

Perfect Version rivals no Chastity Belt album and its nebulous delivery causes its songs to often slip through the listener’s hands. However, none of that is really the point of the album. ... A clearinghouse and a reset button, Julia Shapiro needed Perfect Version and we need the album precisely for that reason as well.

Death Grips are at their best when they’re just being plain weird. Some of the attempts to fully reproduce various types of dance music fall a little flat – it’s a passable imitation, but the kind of people who like psytrance might not have much time for most of Government Plates.

Equal parts Nuggets era-psych as it is The Cure and The Smiths, it is certainly an interesting avenue of songwriting they’ve chosen to explore. As with most exploration, however, there are missteps and wrong directions.

GOLDEN comes out guns blazing, full of personality, and as a result feels very front-loaded. Jung Kook’s desire to do his best work is obvious, but a little bit of pacing of the tracklist wouldn't have gone amiss, as energy levels (and featured artists) peter out all too quickly.

Overall, Modern Dread is an insightful, authentic record delivered with understated panache, and Denai Moore’s captivates despite minor imperfections.

From Talking Heads onward, Byrne’s songwriting style hasn’t been so much light and shade as light or shade, and the album sags a bit when he indulges in his more twee instincts.

The unreleased cuts provide many of the highlights. Two takes on obscure vintage rhythm & blues cuts hit a raw energy that the more heavily polished arrangements lack.

Of course, though there are moments when UK Grim feels more three-dimensional than previous records. It’s still very much a Sleaford Mods record, and as such will do little to sway anyone who isn’t already a fan of the band.

With most tracks comprising largely of delicate vocals and the mellow strumming of guitar, the album does not stray far from Paul’s distinct, dulcet sound. However, despite the sound not differing largely from her debut, each track on At The Party... presents a distinct purpose, yet when considered as an album as a whole each track seamlessly melts into one.

An elephant in the room – the overproduction of his tracks. While they do not completely ruin the album, it neuters the vulnerability that is expressed. Otherwise, fans will be pleased to find that Keaton Henson reigns well as a solid singer-songwriter in today’s climate.

Worship The Sun definitely won’t disappoint fans of their self-titled debut, and the extra production values only adds to their refreshingly carefree style. A perfect album to hang onto the last remnants of long, hazy summer days.

It’s still a difficult record to parse – Smith’s complex collaging lends itself to attentive admiration – but on this release, she wants you to hear the concept. She wants you to see what she can hear.

For all its faults, the heart and maturity at the centre of Soft Will feels more vital and important than their showy genre tourism ever did.

On LOVE + FEAR, Marina shoots for stripped-bare big pop, and for the most part, she achieves it, but various clichéd lyrics occasionally stop her sincerity in its tracks.

Overall, Heyoon is an impressive effort, broad in its scope and ambitious in its reach. Landshapes possess passion in excess, and this is made evident in the unbridled rhythmic ruptures and psychedelic pulses that define the record.

Even if the album largely sets aside the impeccable hook-craft of previous work, the sequence is indeed sonically and thematically compelling.

Ma, to an extent, substitutes freeform elements with a more bankable linear path, orienting between breezy accessibility and flashes of lateral sprawl; a pattern that serves to engage adequate interest. Honeyed highlights compensate for less tight moments, paralleled with a ponderous, but temperate pace; translating into an elegant offering from Banhart, despite gratifying a teasing fondness for excess.

The sonic palette wanders into romantic and mythical laments and as a result the actual relationship loss is portrayed as cosmic. This could be seen as melodramatic or overblown at times but given the notion of the all encompassing love at its heart is also, perhaps unavoidable. .... Vocally, she continues to be a force.

Complete with contributions from a star-studded cohort of guests including Stormzy, Aitch and Popcaan, the LP serves as Loski’s most accessible project to date, but he takes care to spotlight his less well-known Harlem Spartans colleagues Blanco and MizOrMac.

Beautiful Thing shows the other end of Alexis Taylors talents as both a songwriter and a musician, and it’s time that more discovered them.

Whilst there are fragmented glimpses of influence peppered throughout, the record remains very true to And So I Watch You From Afar’s sound; too much at the beginning, but brilliantly later on.

This is neither an essential nor an endlessly replayable record - but what it is, thankfully, is a delightful entry point to the works of Tony Bennett. Nothing else much matters.

With Five Dice, All Threes, Bright Eyes prove they can still evoke both intimacy and grandiosity without sacrificing the imperfect edges that made their early work so compelling.

It’s difficult not to wish that the entire album was full of the same ingenuity as its first half, because there's so much potential and talent evident in those first tracks. It’s still early days, though, and the huge themes and inspirations Georgia plays with in Seeking Thrills showcase a true rising star of British pop.

The atmosphere is very light and airy, in sound if not in subject, which means it requires a few listens to dial in on the lyrics and find the extra levels of depth that are certainly available.

Dense and immaculately detailed, nothing about Act II is accidental, and no one could begrudge Beyoncé her moment in the centre of the rodeo ring. There’s no question that Cowboy Carter is a landmark record. Arguably, an inevitable one. But once the dust of its audacity settles, it misses the mark of a classic.

It’s not all perfect - “Czech Locomotive” and “Toast” drag - but this is a refreshing and genuinely engaging album.

At 14 tracks long, Gate Of Grief is a long listen and, in truth, a lot of it sounds the same. But after a while those icy beats and warped vocals begin to sound more like a bony, deathlike finger tapping into our instinctive fears. If White Ring are hoping they can exorcise the past and begin a revived new chapter, this is a decent effort.

Kingdoms In Colour is an album that lingers with you even once it has finished; leaving an afterglow of warmth on everyone it touches.

Something We All Got is the third album from the Toronto group and the recipe of buzzing, breathless quite often vulnerable sound has been matured and given new life.

In the end, Sleater-Kinney’s ongoing evolution may divide opinion, but there’s no doubt that this is a band that still has important stories to tell.

It’s clear that Morning/Evening has been inspired by, and tailored for, its respective times of day and this works well. But it feels like the majority of Hebden’s attention has gone into the first side resulting in an enjoyable, if front-loaded album.

It’s a treat to hear all these iconic and sometimes underrated themes again, even going so far as to cover Ennio Morricone’s ominous theme for The Thing and Jack Nitzsche’s grand, celestial Starman theme.

The album as a whole is a sure-fire sonic adventure. Allowing creativity to take the reins, Howard has reinvented himself with his latest installment through a blend of storytelling and evocative sonic fillers. Now, he is one of the UK’s most naturally talented songwriters, with an added sense of style.

Luckily, on a 19-track album, there are more gems than duds. Lovato is more willing to experiment than on previous releases, both through her music and her voice, which is more versatile than ever.