In the past decade or so, countless bands have been brought up from the same well of tightly-wound, expressionistic rock (Protomartyr, Preoccupations, Shame, IDLES, Shame, Fontaines DC), but none hold the same uniquely fascinating appeal that Dry Cleaning have. Play New Long Leg loud, and play it often.

With Always Ascending’s sharp menace and mad genius, Franz have rescaled the mountain and made it back to the top.

Amidst the sanded-corner tunes and taut, buffed percussion, the five-piece have a lot of valuable ruminations on being young and hopeless and helpless in modern Britain.

Letter To Self feels like the kind of showpiece debut release that could put them over the edge. It’s a thumping statement that can challenge and charm in equal measure.

Emerging out of a fractious period, Buckingham is at his unapologetically unfiltered best on an album that teeters between yearning reflection and fast-paced kinetics, ranking as one of the tightest records released in his own right

Despite its purpose, The General is a warm, intricate experience that can soundtrack whatever you need it to on each listen.

It's a moody, hazy, gloomy take on modern jazz. It’s also a return of Iggy Pop the elder statesman, the icon, the legend in his own lifetime. But, more than that, it provides a fitting end to a career, on his own terms, if that’s what he wants it to be.

If David Gordon Green can get performances this good out of Prince Avalanche stars Paul Rudd and Emile Hirsch then he’s on to an absolute winner--Explosions In The Sky and David Wingo are already there.

Florence is another excellent addition to Darren Hayman’s sterling oeuvre.

The immense variety on this record does not come at the expense of cohesiveness nor its ability to progress the themes of the ensemble’s previous work.

Gone are the peak-time weapons that peppered Drone Logic; instead Avery teases us with tension and texture, ebbing and flowing his way to something truly hypnotic.

There’ll be plenty of albums this year that grab you by the throat more vigorously than Atlas does, but very few of them will be quite as lovingly nuanced--and none will make the guitar sound anything like as appealing.

As music made for the “Ah! I knew I’d heard that before” crowd, it’s successful. As a synthesis of old and new, it’s successful. As an album of dance music, it’s incredibly successful, and leaves no room for any cynical raised eyebrows as soon as it gets going.

The moments when the singers get braver with stamping their own personality on the material prove much more memorable.

Capturing the sound of a fearsome live reputation on record can be daunting for band making their debut record, but here the Madrid trio sound truly fearless.

Coldplay are a band who explore. Be it the origins of their emotional landscape, or the shallow depths of the mainstream world or even the actual vibrancy; every effort has been made to create an audible spectacle. And gaze on as a band who've evolved into an unstoppable entity carry on their organic exploration.

Samson’s nasal, quietly reflective voice, exposed and unadorned, paints a deeply sympathetic picture of one Winnipegian’s contemplative mid-life, and its supporting cast. The world depicted may be his and his alone, but plenty of it will appear familiar to the rest of us.

Judging by the often mesmerising, genuinely timeless and deeply resonant Evergreen In Your Mind (which ultimately adds up to far more than the sum of its highly commendable parts, especially if ingested in one uninterrupted, focused sitting), Habel’s own steps are inching ever closer to a comprehensive mastery of the folk song format.

Romantically confused, Wasser has drawn strength, inspiration and guidance from people through music to better understand relationships on this album. Damned Devotion is a brilliant self-help resource.

“Free In The Knowledge” is a truly heavenly ballad in the mold of “True Love Waits” or even “Fake Plastic Trees”, with a call of togetherness (‘’but if we’re together/well then, who knows?’’) that offers an unexpectedly moving breather from the angst in abundance elsewhere, as well as proving that Yorke can out-emote the legions of lesser songwriters watering down the formative Radiohead formula when it comes to warily optimistic heartache-meets-hope.

It’s Real displays the same exuberance and professionalism--not to be taken as a dirty word here, but as testament to the band’s seemingly effortless knack for arrangement and execution--as its predecessor but adds a handful of different moods and textures.

On With Light and With Love, Woods once again prove that they can casually strike the perfect balance between imaginative pop confections and untethered psychedelic jams.

It’s ultimately futile to fight the album’s considerable charms, culminating in “When It Rains”, a low-lit, minimalist beauty that eventually curdles into a storm of fiercely shrieking guitar feedback and electronic dissonance.

World’s Gone Wrong manages to turn the Tennessee-based songwriter’s urgent dismay and anger at the socio-political chaos that is tearing America apart into genuinely impactful and affecting art that is likely to endure long after the final splinters of the current mess have been swept away.

The album often also throws song structures open to unexpected twists and diversions: more than half the tracks on The Neon Gate unfurl at their own sweet pace over six minutes or more. The results can be revelatory

This is a collection both provocative and vigorous, covered in a sleek wrapper that hides the introspective side lurking beneath. So Close To What is hit after hit – it’s her most convincing argument of superstardom yet.

Deceptively simple, yet holding a world of complexity within it, Yeo-Neun is airy abandon in parts and heavy sensitivity in others. Remarkably honest and creatively challenging, the album projects into a constant companion, whether with its unflinchingly beautiful musicality or its daring noisiness.

These eight tracks will reward familiar fans but Cohen’s music is worthy of a much wider audience.