At 25, Hartzman’s old enough to romanticize her youth but world-weary enough not to try recapturing it. The space between the two – reckless childhood and cynical maturity – is where Wednesday resides, but they manage to find beauty in it all.

Of course half the fun is in hearing how the band have transformed oh-so-familiar songs into something quite different, and transform them they truly have.

By harnessing their roots that made their debut LP, We Are NOTS, so celebrated, 3 finds the group adhering to a similar framework with its ten tracks. Nots underpin their hook-driven racket with themes of decaying existence and what it means to reemerge on the other side, liberated and ready for a fight.

Visions of Bodies Being Burned, like its predecessor, is macabre and monstrous in all of the ways that your leering curiousity would have it. It’s a taut exploration of hatred and hostility, one which stands shoulder-to-shoulder with its demonic older brother.

Baio’s third and latest doesn’t drastically divert from type as such but presents his songwriting at its most concrete in pace, malleability and variety.

It’s complex, witty, and--crucially--taps into a side of each man’s creativity in a manner hitherto unseen.

The angular flexes in style and wordplay tied together with Russell’s high wire deployment prove as duly consistent a formula as any of the standout entries in the duo’s crowded discography.

Living Fields achieves that rare feat of giving electronic music a beating heart, and is without a doubt one of the best records of its class this year.... And although Portico as musicians are still pushing themselves to new places, they’re not quite pushing the listener as far as they used to.

The result isn’t just Moore’s finest solo album: this is some of the most remarkable music he’s ever been involved in.

With this album, Palace have offered a spiritual voyage through the fluctuations of life, and the uncertainty that holds its hand. If Shoals is anything to go by, Palace will be filling stadiums before too long.

A collection that future-proofs Kavinsky’s curation of high-end production, addictive earworms and cinematic scope.

Migos never try to recreate anything they’ve already done, but simply deliver more music that reflects their contagious, unadulterated flow. Culture is an album where they seize a moment of much-deserved success.

Brimming with eclecticism and highlighting Bock’s emotional range, Giant Palm is a stellar debut and one of 2022’s more distinct releases.

Whilst there are echoes of the bluster of Florence and the Machine and the minimalist soul of Jessie Ware here, Soft Control is a distinctive take on modern pop and an album with crossover appeal.

JAGUAR is another step forward for a career that’s been toiling and honing. Monét's moment won't be soon before long.

The Magic proves surreal until the very end, just as promised.

Fish is his fortieth release where the folksy fingerpicking comes lightly southern fried and, lyricless, It’s virtuoso playing which tells Michael’s story

Through Water is an album that was made to move you – physically and emotionally – and most importantly, to make you feel. Water as a substance is intrinsic to our very being, and through Låpsley’s intention, is complex enough to touch us all.

The intensely moving track ["Don’t Be Afraid"]--and the entire album itself--perfectly illustrates the idea that we all have a magnificent universe within ourselves just waiting to be discovered, and that we should never be fearful of uncovering exactly who and where we are.

The presence of a full band in the studio and the proverbial writer’s room gives Raspberry Moon the dynamic presence previous records swapped for a consistent, syrupy atmosphere. While plenty of radiated sunbeam ragers populate the tracklist, acoustic ballads and delicacy are the real calling cards of this album.

Johnston has made and most importantly shared a very good record here, one that stands as a reminder of his immense talent, of his longevity, of his kindness in spreading the benefit of his skill among younger, adoring fan-bands and yes, if you must, his power to overcome those much discussed mental problems.

For listeners who have a penchant for darker, glossier rock in the vein of Portishead, Jane Weaver or even Radiohead, this is an essential listen. For everyone else, it might prove to be an acquired taste, but one that lingers long after the dessert has been served.

Profound Mysteries doesn’t quite have the timelessness of Melody AM, but it certainly lives up to Röyksopp’s reputation as a duo that has perfected the art of dishing out electronic hugs.

With keen ears for melody, turbo-paced beats perspire, and episodic SFX rouses either pure revelry or contemplation. She’s on to a marvellous start.

Thumbtacks and Glue is no less nuanced or nourishing, and every song is satisfying. Undulating orchestration, the lift and swell, matches Mark Andrew Hamilton’s eccentric lyrical slant and seraphic singing to produce immaculate and endearing music.

A superb debut.

Here is your soundtrack to that world, perhaps unsurprisingly it rocks righteously.

Songs that feel tantalisingly and really quite brilliantly caught between the factual lived reality and some sort of a distorted imaginary twist of it: is the latter song about the literal devil, or a more mundane personification of a devil fond of lies, empty promises and manipulation? Who knows, and it’s in these tantalising grey areas that Utopia really shines.