Whilst Illegals In Heaven may not propel Blank Realm into dramatic new terrain, it does re-fortify existing ramparts with a scrupulous conviction.

Whilst The Jean-Paul Sartre Experience canon is far from consistent and most of us might not regularly play much beyond the sublime first CD/LP of this compendium, there is much to be (re)discovered here that vintage Flying Nun label fans can certainly not afford to live without. A heartily-fulfilling curate’s egg, in short.

Whilst it won’t necessarily win Yo La Tengo many new fans, the aromatic potpourri of Stuff Like That There should happily intoxicate existing ones.

Whilst a few more Bert Jansch classics like “Needle Of Death” and his own rendition of Davy Graham’s “Angie” might have defined Live At The 12 Bar as a more complete go-to on-stage snapshot, its intimacy and strength still marks it out as an essential fan-friendly re-addition to his labyrinthine catalogue, which is due for further exploration via Earth Recordings in the near-future.

Those expecting an ultra-stripped-back affair will be in for a surprise too, for although the album sustains and refines Sheppard’s core penchant for pointillist minimalism, Vertical Land is also arguably his most ambitious and elaborate statement to date.

Works For Tomorrow just gets better and better with every successive--and necessarily louder--airing, to the point where it does indeed feel like another genuinely great Eleventh Dream Day long-player.

He may like his disguises and perhaps enjoys provoking his audiences but underneath the image and the keen ear for wordplay a really quite serious songwriting talent is very determinedly making himself heard.

Whilst Still could certainly have benefitted from a greater cache of stronger songs (a couple of which could have been swapped-in from the largely electric self-produced Variations EP that comes with early CD editions), as a combined entity it holds together convincingly as an amiable summary of what latter-day Richard Thompson is all about.

The music is bold, intelligent, and quirky--maybe a little too quirky, but that’s up for debate. If Peanut Butter has a fault, it’s too much consistency.

For the most part Remembering Mountains is a success, with the source material being affectionately honoured yet imbued with the distinctive traits of the invited artists.

Like the band’s 2012’s Tucson LP, Heartbreak Pass is perhaps a tad too long to digest easily in one sitting. Yet its warmth, scope and consistency makes for an album that defiantly and enjoyably belies the age of Howe Gelb and his most-loved brand.

As a whole, To Where The Wild Things Are is very much a headphones-record, as its richest details can only be absorbed with closer-than-close listening.

Whilst it might miss its prequel’s sublime rootedness, the album’s alluring and questing life-force confirms that Cécile Schott is a thoughtful artisan to keep closely watching over a long-haul creative journey.

The Wave Pictures are a band sufficiently self-confident to take enough risks to keep themselves interested but without distancing themselves from their extant character, which Great Big Flamingo Burning Moon reveals is a durable and entertaining combination for the most part, even if a tad more lubrication would have helped to soften-up some of its drier corners.

Spaces Everywhere is a deliriously upbeat 40 or so minutes of quality indie guitar music and The Monochrome Set continue to await your recognition.

Although Volume 2: 1987-1989 may have its fair share of misfires, its overall hit-rate is remarkably high for an exhaustive anthology drawn from the ‘80s DIY netherworld. Whilst it’s hard to say if it fully represents the best of the Half Japanese oeuvre, it’s certainly an unquestionable strong entry-point into the band’s uncompromising catalogue of charming invention.

Rather than having rushed to capture and over-stretch the first flushes of studio exploration with a premature first album, the much-awaited Dying logically extends upon the Spectres’ story so far whilst standing-up as a more mature and ambitious statement in its own right.

There are so many female singer songwriters making their presences known but Emmy The Great has a niche entirely of her own today, and that is all down to her songwriting and an elusive personality that avoids overlaying her actual charm.

Ultimately, Fantastic Planet is not an easy listen yet it rewards persistent immersive airing by gradually offering-up its manifold charms.

Taken altogether, this two-disc reissue (or three if you’re after the full-fat triple-vinyl version), is a fine and thorough history lesson from The Afghan Whigs curriculum.

Overall, The BBC Sessions is another tantalising insight into song world of The Chills, that acts as another generous interim step towards a hopefully fully-fledged wave of new and/or properly reissued material in 2015.

At this stage in his career, Loudon Wainwright III could forgivably have lost some of his mojo, but on the life-affirming evidence of Haven’t Got The Blues (Yet), there’s still plenty of great songwriting left in the tank.

The results are pretty rewarding overall, even if the strictly unadorned arrangements might have occasionally benefitted from some counterbalancing extra instrumental layers.

Putting analytical angst aside though, in short this is another tranquil and refreshing oasis on the compelling Land Observations journey.

While they undoubtedly keep their snarl and sneer (just look at that album cover), this is the cleanest and most melodic they have ever sounded. While those looking for cohesion may find this frustrating, it certainly makes Under Color of Official Right a dynamic and enthralling crossroad.

And Then You Shoot Your Cousin is as brilliantly strong as Undun, with a multi-faceted story that slowly unravels.

The Baltimore-based band’s fourth album is layered with songs that are faultlessly executed from top to bottom. Although the lyrics are somewhat simplistic, their direct marriage is welcomed.

As the Stars is an album that can be appreciated on a purely musical level and a meditative level.