It may be titled From Kinshasa, but this record could easily be from the future.

Sonically, it was staggering.

Undoubtedly the one Sleater-Kinney album that everyone should have. [21 May 2005, p.66]

[A] brilliant album.

With ‘King’s Disease III’, the New York rapper has put the seal on a strong album trilogy that proves that, three decades in, he’s still a force to be reckoned with.

Despite having elite lyricists such as Pusha-T, Killer Mike, Yesin Bey and Black Thought among the guests, Gibbs never sounds second-best. Bandana should mark the moment the Indiana emcee starts to truly be considered as an elite rapper.

It’s a well-crafted debut from a worthy new artist, but it’s competent rather than compelling.

By trading nonsensical time signatures and atonal bursts for fluidity and stadium rock, they've subtracted from their former wretchedness.

Through her boundless ‘Orquídeas’ albums, Uchis blossoms into a fearless pop ambassador at the forefront of breaking down the divide between music in English and Spanish.

Everything about Joy As An Act Of Resistance is just so perfectly realised.

By embracing the pop orthodoxy, you might argue that Boucher has sacrificed some of what made her seem so alien when 4AD debut 'Visions' emerged from the ether back in 2012, but rest assured: she's still laughing and not being normal, only this time, it's all the way to the bank.

Dawn FM feels like the first steps on a journey for The Weeknd to find peace with himself; perhaps next time we hear from him, he’ll be fully embracing the light of day.

This is murderously good stuff. [25 Sep 2004, p.64]

Guaranteed to leave you speechless, one way or another. [12 Mar 2005, p.58]

Those in search of a tightly cohesive album knitted around a single concept have probably come to the wrong place entirely – but for a sprawling answer to the band’s two huge 2019 breakthrough records ‘Two Hands’ and ‘U.F.F.O’, then look no further.

A harmonious hardcore Dispute.

There is a fatal flaw with 'Arular' which means it never makes the step up from 'solid debut' to all-time classic. MIA clears her throat, grabs your attention: and then has nothing to say. [16 Apr 2005, p.49]

You’re Dead is a madly inventive record, one that takes hip-hop and jazz as starting points, beats them both to death and then brings them back to life in an almost unrecognisable form.

'Remedy' is probably as good a dance album as anyone from these Isles has produced this decade.

Seven have never been released before, including heartfelt opener ‘Separate Ways’. Over Levon Helm’s solid but minimal drum line comes a chorus up there with Young’s best, as melodic as it is thoughtful, as pensive as it is powerful. ... The freewheeling ‘Vacancy’ is the last ‘new’ song here, an instant classic (if you can call 46 years trapped in the vaults ‘instant’).

He leads the listener on an amazing journey, making use of cosmic, symbolic, mythological and religious images in perfect conjunction with his explorations of blunt everyday reality.

It’s a record that’ll please newcomers and existing fans alike, but, given the backstory and heart poured into ‘Wait Til I Get Over’, the record existing for Jones feels like a triumph. Whether or not he brings these sounds or elements back to the group is yet to be seen, but this record will shake the walls of Hillaryville and beyond.

A career-best statement of Shah’s songwriting prowess, where inner struggles are rendered with maturity and relatability, supercharged by a fearless, expansive sonic palette.

There are blasts of harshness (‘Go Ahead’’s fuzzed-out polemic, or ‘Scapegoat’’s bombastic crescendo) but ‘My Back Was A Bridge…’ is still, by some distance, the most accessible thing she’s ever made. Though much of its palette is drawn from ‘classic’ music of the past, however, the record’s brilliance lies in the way it doesn’t retreat from the present.

It’s too early to tell if the record will help the BTS leader achieve his goal of creating something truly timeless but, in this moment, ‘Indigo’ feels like a masterpiece with the potential to be remembered as a classic.

‘Everything Harmony’ plays like the next progression from their promising debut, and what stood out about them then is what stands out about them now. With their fourth album, The Lemon Twigs have honed in on their ability to not just lift from the past but transmute what inspires them into something imaginative and new.

An intense, emotional record.

You have to wade through a lot of plaid-shirted, porch-rocking psychedelia before you get there. The patient pilgrim, though, can look forward to unearthing the widescreen Laurel Canyon-birthed wonder of 'Your Protectors' after one or two plays.