What is most startling... is the amount of emotional depth that Turner's injected into his songs here.

This is something we've been waiting a long time for - a truly great Manics album.

It's eccentric, it's exhilarating, it is, in parts, absolutely insane. Yet it's never less than absolutely compelling, which is what makes The White Stripes one of the greatest bands of modern times.

There's absolutely nothing indecisive (or indeed shit) about this album. It's swaggering, full-throttle, full-throated genius.

Here she is doing what she does best--weaving the sounds and statements of the people she's writing about into the song itself.

Constantly brilliant. White Chalk is an amazing album, racked with beauty, stricken with fragility and haunted with something otherworldly.

For a 21st century rock band, there isn't a single moment here that threatens to turn into an 'anthem' to be balled out at the Nestle-Monsanto Rock Festival at a mud-pit near you next summer.

By turns danceable, blissed out romantic, familiar and new, it's technologically and musically fascinating. Its juxtaposition of orga and mecha is one of its many well executed contradictions. Packed but sparse, thrilling, complex, innovative, simple. Without even a dud bar never mind a filler track, In Rainbows is more than any fan could hope for.

This is an incredibly well fused and structured album that taps into a wide range of emotions.

These songs show him in a newly redemptive prime, and will satisfy both short and long term devotees.

Efterklang have managed to locate the sweet spot where the organic meets the electronic, and have carefully stuffed each track full to bursting point with a gorgeous mix that at times seems to require a new musical format, just to deal with the sheer bandwidth of sonic invention on display here.

It may not be music for the ringtone generation, but for anyone who appreciates the understated power and drama that Sigur Rós can do so well, this is an essential purchase

You can almost feel the wind and rain outside, and this adds to the mixture of melancholia and euphoria throughout, the latter realised most obviously on 'Waving Flags.' And that's the spirit that runs through this fine album, staying with the listener long after the final stanzas of 'We Close Our Eyes' bring it full circle.

Disjointed maybe, obtuse certainly, but listening to this album is continuously rewarding, new images, new storylines, and new moments of disbelief at Darnielle's lyricism on every listen.

The Seldom Seen Kid keeps the band on this upward trajectory.

Eloquent, glamorous, spirited and now more sonically innovative than ever, the quintet have affirmed their place as one of Britain's most exciting bands with this release.

Robyn has assured her contemporaries that pop life does not end as a tweenie, that pop music can be for adults, and that adults can be Do It Yourself indie artists, so long as one thing is in place: talent.

With songs that face the pain and torment of neurotic fears, John & Jehn have crafted an absolutely stunning album of beautiful and noisy sounds placed atop slow, steady tempos and invigorating dance beats alike.

More than anything else, there's a sense of contentment and pleasure that purveys the Things Of The Past that could have been lifted from the Summer of Love itself.

Yet by the time the final notes of the acoustic closer I Wish I Were Here have faded away, then you're more than convinced that this is yet another triumph for the Wainwright family.

Some may listen to Songs From A&E and dub Jason Pierce a one-trick pony. Which may be true, but what a trick he's managed to perfect.

The Red Album brings forward everything they do best, with hooks aplenty, emotive and funny lyrics, all washed down with the odd frisson of self doubt. It's a potent mix, and keeps them a step ahead once again.

Lie Down In The Light is the sound of a musician at ease, quietly and calming experimenting with his sound and subsequently coming up with his finest work to date.

Overall though, this is another wondrous album from a band at the height of their considerable powers.

Write off Jaguar Love at your peril; this is one of the best albums of the year so far.

Lindstrøm manages to achieve a palatable yet ambitious record without ever resorting to indulgence, not forgetting in his view of large forms to look closer and focus on the minutiae.

The album's not for everyone, but if her sound is to your taste, then it will prove a rewarding, delectable, necessary thing: one of this year's most consistently interesting albums.