There’s an underlying recognition here, particularly on the part of Miller: parties end. The most opulent train can go off the rails. It’s this juxtaposition – brashness and vulnerability, abandon and a recognition of impermanence – that makes No Hard Feelings an arresting sequence.

This is an album that lacks the fun and hooks of their earlier outings.

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.

It’s a throwback to 90s aesthetics, but it’s equally a modern dance pop record, almost a reclamation moment like New Order’s late-career return to form, Music Complete. Saint Etienne similarly tap into everything they do best, but it’s by no means groundbreaking.

A tenth studio album that feels less like a late-career coda and far more like a daring new beginning.

With each record, Wolf Alice return with more bite, a new story to tell, and new fans to invite into their world, The Clearing is no exception to the rule.

Some will see it as cathartic and welcome, whereas others may just be disconnected by the process. This seemingly brutal separation of the wheat from the chaff won't necessarily sit comfortably with all listeners, but I guess that’s exactly the point.

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.

To a certain extent, Euro-Country distances itself from her previous releases, however, the material still remains distinctly, unmistakably CMAT. It possesses the same piercing humour and ambitious craft while offering her most personal collection of songs thus far.

Ultimately, with Guitar, DeMarco is working against the friction of his inescapable audience expectations to declare where he stands now: wiser and more intent, although still victim to tedium.

Ultimately, Interior Live Oak hits the richly rewarding territory of classic double albums by making the listener wonder whether its impact would be even stronger were it slimmed down to a single album whilst making it impossible to identify which tracks could be justifiably ditched to downsize the proceedings down to a more conventional 40 minute running order.

Duffy has sculpted an album that vibrates with courage, tenderness, and a sheer insistence to feel. Blue Reminder is not just another indie-folk sojourn; it’s a declaration of presence.

Laufey colours both inside and outside her established lines to create a joyful tension on A Matter of Time. It makes for the boldest chapter in her artistic story yet.

On their tenth record, they’re back once again to thwack their guitars really hard while also putting together some of the lushest soundscapes and most rousing choruses you’ll hear all year. The band’s greatest strength is an ability to cover multiple bases while always sounding unmistakably Deftones.

It’s an album of such focus and dedication to its oddness and brilliance that you can tell just how much work has been put in.

What’s so beautiful about The Passionate Ones is the simmering afterglow in every song, enhancing his mixture of chillwave, Arthur Russell, and SWV. Brown’s more spacious arrangements have helped him eloquently articulate his compelling words, catching your unsuspecting attention whenever the music lulls.

The messaging does feel appreciative yet it feels too familiar between its use of commonplace metaphors and lack of clear thematic thread.

What immediately clicks on his newest record here, is that he’s just cracked the code on how to write a great track, as one would hope over a decade in. Choruses catch, he has natural chemistry with every feature, and he changes his flow so much he almost has chemistry simply by himself.

It rocks the boat a little too much, but by keeping their bearings, Pool Kids continue to lead from the front.

Making mischief of one kind and another in a world gone wrong is what Osees do, and Abomination Revealed at Last is a solid rumpus.

Whether conjuring aurora borealis through music, “Sound & Light", or crafting pop bangers from vulnerability, she proves that reinvention, when it’s honest, doesn’t need spectacle to dazzle. Think of Flux as an elegant evolution. She’s still dancing, but this time with her heart closer to the surface.

when i paint is an intimate record full of poetic and melodic turns, giving you the impression that sometimes Levy herself is surprised by where it takes her.

Ethel Cain’s debut was a feat of artistry. This is a feat of musicianship.

You do have to dig at times though, to forage and find your own touchstones. Without that effort you may be left wandering around the realm she inhabits admiring the craft without feeling its warm embrace.

A curious, engrossing listen.

All in all, BITE ME is a lot of fun, like watching the drama unfold when you’re comfortably not involved. Reneé Rapp has solidified her place in today’s pop scene, and here’s hoping with a third record she’ll rock the boat.

THE FUTURE IS HERE AND EVERYTHING NEEDS TO BE DESTROYED's unrelenting refusal to quit, like The Armed, makes it a sonic treat and proves the Detroit gang remain unstoppable.

The narrative of Five Leaves Left is long and complex. Now that it has been told, in words and music, the record’s greatness is surely only enhanced. This release is the culmination of a remarkable project for which we should all be grateful to Gabrielle Drake and the archival team.