Component System With The Auto Reverse has OME at his best, whether he is diving into his personal life or simply crafting clever rap verses, the seasoned artist hits it out of the park every chance he gets.

As an album from a constantly evolving musician, one who is often as confounding as he is exploratory, Foreverandevermore is approachable in its bleak outlook. Eno captures the sound most definitive to himself, evokes his best work in the process, and manages to weave something of a concept album into the mix, which makes it one of his most fulfilling albums of the new millennium.

The real joy in this album is found in the shared musical language that’s exhibited across its seven tracks. Instruments fold into each other and each player seems to relish the chance to explore these sonic spaces with true abandon together. These might not be King Gizzard’s tightest, or most immediately memorable pieces of songcraft, but their creativity and kinship is on full display here, which is ultimately what this band has always been all about (that and reminding us of impending heat death).

The perfect backyard, sunset watching summer folk album, Rolling Holy Golden faces west as Bonny Light Horseman enjoy those tender fleeting moments while they float through our collective consciousnesses, smiling the whole time.

The consistently heart-wrenching lyrics of Mercer combined with Danger Mouse’s ability to craft luxurious instrumentals give Into The Blue its colorful personality. Within the 40-minute run-time of the album, the duo explores new territory while Mercer’s poetic songwriting keeps Danger Mouse’s spaced-out instrumentals grounded.

Like most of Stickles’ efforts, some editing would help tighten the flow of the record, but as it stands, The Will to Live is a success with Titus Andronicus channeling their punk core straight into the arena rock rafters.

Yes, it takes some getting used to, but Andrews has another winner, just a different-sounding one.

Every Jarrett solo performance holds its own magical appeal and Bordeaux certainly holds its own with any of the others in his storied catalog.

The new The Bad Plus will take some getting used to but the harmonic ranges and explorative soloing from Speed and Monder are often intriguing. Suggest you take to the headphones for this one.

Expressive solos from trumpet, violin, guitar, and keys keep the tune choogling along, with ever-active percussion as well. “Coney Bear,” from guitarist Bob Lanzetti begins with his funky strumming before blossoming into a mix of soaring synths and horns interspersed by frenetic funk passages from the rhythm section. The closer, “Trinity” from fellow guitarist Mark Lettieri takes its name from Trinity River that connects Dallas, Fort Worth, and Denton, the band’s hometown. It features searing guitar lines in a rather angular take with strong horn lines navigating several rhythmic changes, far less direct than many of the others in the set.

Wagner is not constrained by locale, genre, or topic, and at 64 he continues to forge forward with Lambchop, delivering his music with restrained tempo and majestic tonality on The Bible.

Cool It Down is a masterwork of lush production and catchy melodies that work off of one another to create a colorful and textured album that makes the 13-year wait worthwhile.

Lloyd, as he typically does, enters gently but increases his intensity to the highest levels in the four pieces, his trio mates in restrained accompaniment until Wilson first blossoms with a jagged, inspired solo followed by Clayton’s cascading, shimmering turn which builds to a crescendo. At the diminuendo, Lloyd reenters with a simple six notes, the piece fading quietly. Enough said.

On God Save The Animals, Alex G creates his best music to date. The textures are as complex as its lyrical content and it’s all strung together beautifully through intricate piano sections. Throughout this album, we see calculated risks pay off in a major way to create a colorful yet challenging album and one that requires multiple listens to fully understand Alex G’s end goal.

There was no coasting on any front in the formulation of Long Gone. “Disco Ears” is decidedly peppier all around, though hardly redolent of the environs its title suggests or the beat-laden leanings of Redman’s Elastic Band in the mid-2000s. Instead, it is, like “Statuesque,” an unpredictable progression rendered with utter fluency all around, no less in McBride’s basswork or Blade’s drum activity than the lead instruments of their long-standing comrades.

Ali is filled with amazing moments but ultimately leaves more to be desired. With two instrumental juggernauts working together the expectations of these songs were high and the ambiance that flows through the album is going to shock fans of either artist. Regardless of the lows, the collaborative album allows Touré to experiment more with his vocals and his slick guitar sections became the star of the show. Overall, Ali is an album that adds to an ambiance instead of creating one, leaving the listener expecting more.

She closes, rather surprisingly with the flamenco guitar-driven acoustic tune, “Chimayo,” revealing the nuances of her vocals, which can go almost instantly from sultry seductive tones to window-rattling power. It’s a surprisingly great touch, and at least for this writer, is the kind of tune we’d like to have heard more of on this eclectic effort.

With all its content, music, and otherwise, permeated with purposeful attention to detail and focused depth, Legacy Recordings’ Volume 7 matches the previous releases in this archive series, such as Volume 2 Live in Europe 1969.

Sunrise on Slaughter Beach by Clutch is both a celebration of what has made this such a great band and a venture into new territories. It is unmistakably a Clutch album that will have you pumping your fist and singing along. And yeah, it probably does sound better in a slightly rusty 70s muscle car, but that’s not necessary to enjoy the album.

Clearly, the group put time and effort into production (the dance/electro “Flutter Freer” and vibrating “Andy Helping Andy” both sound alive) but made an artistic choice to neuter their more rock efforts. Had the instrumentals been more invigorating this may have been an interesting choice, but as People Helping People wraps, the feeling of No Age just going through the disenchanted motions sets in.

It is adventurous and (importantly) without sacrificing the strength of the tracks themselves. Even more impressive, is that with all the risks the band takes here, the album is undeniably a Whitney record.

It’s hard not to make a comparison to a couple of acoustic gems like “Torn and Frayed” or “Moonlight Mile” by Rolling Stones. In this case, the comparison is simply a compliment. Starcrawler does not shy from exploring different sounds and genres, ultimately showcasing its talents.

An album that rebrands its creator in a genuinely bold new way, something that is attempted often but is rarely this effective. It may not be his strongest outing, but it’s easily his most rousing.

Aside from the opening track, How Do You Burn? lacks the raw intensity frequently found on early Afghan Whigs releases. But what it lacks in power, the album makes up for in intricate arrangements, dense compositions drawing upon the band’s unique alchemy of influences, and infectious beats.

She created a very enjoyable album filled with so much personality and emotion that it’s hard to deny the beauty of it. While the length does make you question what could have been, the 10-tracks presented are so masterfully done and built to be put on repeat.

There is a certain struggle to be found in these songs but it is hidden underneath her self-assured cadence. Her storytelling on this album is direct and authentic and introduces us to a new side of Archives’ creative personality.

Fans of retro soul need to get onboard Thee Sacred Souls train immediately as the group has tapped directly into that classic sound with precision and grace on their debut self-titled offering.

On the band’s first album of original songs since 2015, Martsch is back, on top of his game throughout When the Wind Forgets Your Name. Whether it was the Brazilian inspiration, Covid isolation, or just plain time for another solid BtS record, Martsch and company deliver.