Lines are drawn, parts are separated out. And yet, despite the breaks we get here, the whole feels stronger, more together, when its parts are identified.

Mitski frequently mixes the pre-COVID love song trope about the danger of opening one’s heart to a stranger with the more contemporary fear of just going out into the world. She keeps the details vague.

The Octopus Project seem dedicated to staying catchy and strange in equal measure, and Fever Forms actively shows off both of those qualities.

The quality of the material on this album shows she's got a lot on her mind -- maybe more than she realizes.

Scandalous is the soundtrack to your next party. In fact, after giving it a spin or two, you might just throw a party in its honor. Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears, no doubt, would approve.

With one foot in the 1990s and one in the 1960s and both eyes looking forward, it's hard to imagine the album's title will hold true, but the smart lyrics reveal complicated insights that might keep all prognosticators guessing.

While it may require more leaning-in on the part of the listener, what you find when you do will make it well worth your while.

In weird ways, softscars works as a satisfying slice of artful pop for the Anthropocene that oozes catastrophe.

Shining is a rare case these days, a progressive-minded band with the desire to push boundaries with each record yet with enough discipline to know just how much is too much, and with Blackjazz, this band is starting to peak.

Even if it comes out of the gate a little slowly, Wild Flag covers any lost ground by the end, even getting ahead of the game when you consider how new to each other the bandmates are, supergroup or no.

The excess of high quality B-sides released between past albums suggests that this concision is purposeful choice, but it also allows less room for error the course of a disc. As per usual though, Caribou carries through pretty deftly, striking far more often than he misses.

This is exactly 40 minutes of transcendent music by someone who we always knew was one of the best singers and songwriters on the scene, but someone who we were afraid was never going to make the music she should be making. Well, she's done it.

This is the kind of indie rock record you wait all year for.

Tank isn't simply a departure. It's also a collage of the best Blur have done.

Earle brings the realization that we all live in the same interconnected world and share matching roots as Americans no matter where we are from. That he does this so eloquently and with such zest; well, that's just like putting red eye gravy on a New York strip steak-mighty tasty!

Bang Bang Rock and Roll is still the most welcome, here's-mud-in-yer-eye debut since The Libertines' Up the Bracket.

<A HREF="http://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/31993/grinderman-grinderman1/" TARGET="_blank">Review #1</A> (score=80): Grinderman makes a freer, looser racket than the Bad Seeds, and at times sound like their hairier, rougher alter-ego.; <A HREF="http://www.popmatters.com/pm/music/reviews/31681/grinderman-grinderman/" TARGET="_blank">Review #2</A> (score=70): Grinderman is fresh and invigorating, possibly Nick Cave’s funniest, and unusually for a side project, one of his least self-indulgent.

After two great albums, Choral sees the duo consolidating all the gains made into its first real classic, an album that ought to delight hardened-ambient fanatics and neophytes alike.

It’s clear Anohni did not reinvent the wheel with her music. What she did do was get the wheel to start spinning in another direction. With any luck, maybe she can convince society to follow her lead.

A highly enjoyable album that provides both the buzz of nostalgia and the genius of an artist whose creativity still packs a heavy punch.

This album stands with Williams’ strongest work and represents that rare thing in American popular music and its culture of celebrity.

A brilliant album.

The Balladeer will only help cement her reputation as one of America's finest musical artists.

Clockdust is the sort of record whose myriad soothing charms and subtle depths will continue to resonate far beyond the click-bait.

Gaye Su Akyol's artistic sensibilities lend themselves to a unique take on her perceptions of Turkey's immediate present, reinterpreting her environment in a way that scintillates and smolders on İstikrarlı Hayal Hakikattir.

Authenticity -- along with dynamite production chops and musicianship, of course -- is irreplaceable, and makes Regresa a truly soulful synthwave release.

By melting away the distinctions between one sound and the next, Weber pronounces that he’s far more interested in affect than effect. Here he also notes that he shares perhaps more in common with the shoegazers than the beat architects. Yet, this mush of sound, sweet as it may sometimes be, may be the album’s only major impediment, as it can at times dull the impact of certain songs or passages.

By bringing more variety to the table, You Could Have It So Much Better is more of a grower than the much more instantly engaging debut, but like that great first album, the easygoing charisma of this band wins us over.

No matter how dark and overcast the basic mood of the album is, Under Color of Official Right never feels claustrophobic or overbearing, the production opening up just enough to make things expansive, almost majestic in their own way.

The Universe Inside is not some Metal Machine Music style, highbrow exercise in sarcasm and disrespect, it's a powerful piece of contemporary music which still manages to sit logically in the band's oeuvre.

The faster, moonshined rock epics border on the kind of indulgent radio classics that leave you banging your head in the car, singing out of your range, and drinking with more swagger than your body can actually handle.

School of Seven Bells can rest assured that this final project will resonate for years to come.

Even though more generic High on Fire jams such as "The Pallid Mask" or "The Witch and the Christ" smoke most metal bands, it has to be said that there is a bit of invention missing during the latter half of the record despite the relentless thrashing sludge of the Sir Francis Drake-inspired "Freebooter". Thankfully, though, Kensel's ever-shifting drumming once again prevents the less-inspired tracks from becoming too monotonous.

They use showmanship more than manufactured sincerity to do so, but they do it well.

Live at Barrowlands is a marvelous document of the Jesus and Mary Chain at the height of their influential power thirty years later.

There is a lot going on, but it never feels overstuffed or claustrophobic. Overall, it is a distinctive and enjoyable addition to the Fabric series.

Woodland Echoes is Heyward's first solo album in 18 years, not to mention one of the more pleasant musical surprises of 2017.

For the casual listener, it is simple a set of fresh and invigorating techno tracks that provide a further reason to engage with an exceptional talent. Nevertheless, for those who have followed his work through the years, it is a delight to hear him so energized by this fresh approach to making music.

Miri is not their most immediately attention-grabbing work. Instead, it is an ornate display of timeless beauty, intricate, colorful, and technical, evoking older West African traditions and a global network of sound along with pristine, modern-day production quality and a brilliant sense of composition and ingenuity.

Perhaps the tracks throughout Temporal have a strikingly different impact when paired with the theatrical and dance performances that inspired them. Taken solely as a musical product, however, they still shine, works with nuance and deep understanding of their source elements.

In the end, the few weaknesses of A Bathfull of Ecstasy--particularly the decision by the band to frontload all the strongest tracks--prove to be minor hitches in what is otherwise a characteristically superb song collection.

Don Bryant's third full-length LP You Make Me Feel is one that does just that. Feel the opening salvo of horns and salvation on "Your Love Is to Blame", soul-fired straight-right to the frontal lobe, the first of a one-two opening combination. The Octogenarian is laying down some of the hottest soul and blues on the planet.

Yes picks up where Heat left off and borrows some of the same presets, like a distant, faintly echoing house piano and an insistent little tick that functions in lieu of a hi-hat. But it's shorter and more evasive.

This is the Congotronics series at its most invigorating and collaborative, and it’s just plain phenomenal.

Calling God's Favorite Customer Father John Misty's "break-up album" is probably not off the mark, but it shouldn't discourage anyone who was swept up in the epic grandeur of Pure Comedy. This is the same Josh Tillman you've known all these years, albeit one who's shifting gears while retaining both his characteristic wit and his unique way with a melody.

For the First Time maintains a well-tempered intensity refined in its delivery but honest in its angst. Black Country, New Road show us what a "rock band" or "rock outfit" can achieve on their debut. For those bands labeled as experimental, we now have an expectation and a new benchmark.

Ultimately, We're New Here succeeds because it manages to seamlessly reconcile the different traditions from which it draws-not just Gil Scott Heron's uttering utterances, but UK Garage, the fibrous gloss of Seventeen Seconds-era The Cure, and R&B futurism.

The emotions on The Sunset Tree are raw. It's a testament to Darnielle's abilities that he reins in those emotions enough to create such a powerful and coherent exhibit of his internal life.

Arpo is a rich and rewarding album. Each glitchy sound and fragmented beat has been meticulously pieced together, almost as if to demonstrate how opposites attract. Moreover, Super understands perfectly the post-party environment the album is written for.

Garbus’ approach to her lyrics is indicative of tUne-yArDs’ artistic mindset as a whole, as she lets her creative energies run free while never losing sight of a sense of purpose and meaning to Nikki Nack.

Quite simply, Nashville is a necessary addition to the collection of anyone who respects the tradition of great singing and storytelling.

Produced by Tassa and Greenwood and mixed by Nigel Godrich, Jarak Qaribak (translating from Arabic as “Your Neighbor Is Your Friend”) constantly and refreshingly brings together a variety of styles – not just in terms of country of origin but also eras and genres.

Their sunny melodies and sincerity go a long way to making their music compelling, and that is the case whether they are playing in their comfort zone or expanding their craft incrementally. Poetry is another stellar effort in Dehd’s development; one can envision greater things for them yet to come.

There are a number of high points on this record, many of which consist of Steen repeating a line over and over, on the verge of strangling you for attention. There's also something refreshing about this level of antagonism to a dated idea of a rock star.

The new Idiology takes the acoustic experiments of Niun Niggung even further, and it's this combination of electronic and "traditional" music -- melding keyboards and synthesizers with french horns and guitars and trumpets into a seamless whole -- that points the way through the dead-ends of most electronica.

¡Ay! tugs the music and language of Colombia out of its natural space, allowing Dalt to beckon traditions across oceans and, along the way, provide established melodies and rhythms new spaces to inhabit.

Age Of reflects the odd, toxic, backward-looking culture we've created online back at us, encapsulating both the fleeting serenity and unrelenting terror contained within.

Farm to Table is a record to dwell within, not one to merely be impressed by, making it a fitting and remarkable sophomore effort for an artist whose debut turned so many heads.

Wall of Eyes comes across as a more cohesive project than its older, wilder sibling. Its pace is unhurried, and its songs favor compositional restraint over sheer energy.

The Cohen here is not all that different than on the excellent two-CD set Live in London. In fact both live shows feature several of the same songs in similar order.... Despite the three hour length of the complete box set, the time moves briskly due to the variety of the songs and musical configurations.

Skillful, rootsy, and laying bare the group's strong interpretations of environs and emotions, this is an album that lends itself well to sensitive audiences of all sorts and is well worth listening to, feeling, and loving.

Forevher is a highly refined album of surprising variety. Catchy hooks abound on its dance tracks, playful instrumentation more in line with psychedelic pop soak through its summer jams, and starkly sincere lyricism uphold its mellow ballads. Its more vibrant tracks are certainly the album's strong point, but even its more languid songs have an enjoyable authenticity.

Miracle-Level by Deerhoof is as vitalizing as it is soft-hearted. The studio sound has fully revealed accomplished players interested in exploring the humanitarian capabilities of music, expressing, however vaguely or explicitly, a longing for the miraculous and a rejection of the mundane.

Loom is an outstanding collection of sharp, smart pop-rock songs that also sweep over us in an involving way that can in the process wash away the feeling that I need to analyze or concretely pin down everything that’s going on.

Even if King isn’t destined to become the next Destiny’s Child, they still offer a response worth considering. “Whatever happened to R&B groups?” This record reminds us that they were always with us.

Futurology can just about stand toe-to-toe with any of their past albums. Even if it doesn’t surpass any of their “classics” (pick one), it’s comes close enough that you won’t really care.

It's immediate. It's powerful. It's political. This time the giant has bared its teeth.

Spare Ribs is perhaps the band's high watermark, a searing masterpiece of social commentary, childhood memories and recovered trauma, scathing wit, punk energy, funk, and hip-hop influences, and much more. This is a record with no fat and no filler.

This is an accomplished and valiant album, a more-than-worthy heir to its sensational predecessor.

M displays gift for balancing atmosphere and songcraft that will reward numerous listens.

Carpenter has been so consistent that calling Between the Dirt and the Stars her best album in however many years isn't particularly meaningful. Let's call it her best album since her last one.

"Bittersweet" sets the theme of the album. The lyrics are matched by the music: sophisticated, stylish, and intimate. Even when La Havas raises her voice, she restrains herself from taking things to extremes. There is something smooth, soft, and refined about the material. It's tasteful without being slick.

It looks effortless, and possibly insignificant in comparison to the much more obvious greatness of his closest peer... until you check the stat sheet and realize it adds up to something pretty amazing in its own right.

Many of the best records manage the trick of making the listener feel like they are hearing nothing less than a satisfyingly total and complete sound-world, that for its length no other music could or need exist. The stoned-lava flows and driving inertia of Circumambulation make that trick seem like the easiest one in the world.

Love Behind the Melody may not get the commercial love that those artists get (DeVaughn’s image isn’t as flashy), but this is an album that certainly deserves to be mentioned alongside the best work of those artists.

Soulful. Just fine. Tight. Smooth. You know, what you'd expect from these soul-soaked funksters.

Wrongtom has created a fitting soundtrack, celebrating both the city and the Jamaican music culture that has done so much for black music in England.

Wild! Wild! Wild! offers an inspired pairing of two creative individuals whose lives may have followed different paths but whose Southern hearts and souls are bound together in music. Their strong love for their shared culture comes through loud and clear.

A lively record that snaps like a pair of hipster’s digits. The arrangements are tight. The main players (guitarist Danny Caron, bassist Ruth Davies, and drummer Leon Joyce) capture the cool vibe of the originals.

What Lana Del Rey did last year for the 1970s singer-songwriter genre on Norman Fucking Rockwell, Boniface has managed to do for 1980s pop on this stunning, multifaceted debut album: embrace a genre while effortlessly elevating it.

Just as Carpenter does on her best material, Jarosz imbues this music with assured confidence, the kind of confidence that's easy for an artist to summon when she is in command of her voice. World on the Ground is a portrait of one such artist.

By stripping away their sound and for the most part, getting in and out of a song in about three minutes, Wilco has embraced their punkier roots.

Goths is full of surprises, places where the music shifts direction in a way that changes a song’s emotional trajectory in a stunning way.

The more you listen to it, the more powerful it becomes.

Do Make Say Think is an excellent band, and they’ve returned with a very good album that not only reestablishes the work they’ve done in the past, but, in its looser and more frenzied moments, also points to places that they might still go.

She continues to be nothing short of magnificent as a performer, and her generosity in bringing newer artists with her into the spotlight is wholly gratifying. And, while the sentiments here may not be wholly novel, they are well-timed, and they soar when Kidjo sings them.

An eminently powerful work of rock ‘n’ roll from start to finish, Slave Vows hasn’t saved the soul of rock music, but it sure as hell has revitalized it.

Something in the Room She Moves as a whole seems safe, like coffee table art. One can admire the contents yet not be absorbed by the material.

Whilst his voice is nothing spectacular, its cracked but caring harmonics match the song material to a T, and when he strains for some of the notes, you feel the intensity of his need to convey the emotion in his lyrics rather than any irritation at his limitations.

As amazing as Florine is, an entire LP or even another EP of exactly the same thing would probably become tiresome. The fact that she has carved out a rather unique niche is a rare feat, but expanding her sound will only make her more formidable.

One of the best releases of 2013, so far.

Perhaps an elitist view is that Cole is too high-brow for the masses, but six hundred pre-purchasers say differently, and fifty million Elvis fans can’t be wrong. Oh yes, oh no, Standards is one for the ages.

The result is an album filled to the brim with barely contained, charging pop-punk songs replete with fizzing melodies that snake their way under your skin.

Their sophisticated arrangements don’t waste a note or make a false step.

Despite the craft in this music--no, because of the craft in this music--most younger fans will run from Morph like it carried the very plague. No question, this album sounds uniform and rather overpleasant--engineered to a sheen of perfection.

We Iowans may not be family farmers anymore, but we'd still like to think we share their values and that these are true American ideals. Whitmore connects us to that in an inspiring and stimulating way.

23 is one of Blonde Redhead’s strongest efforts to date, containing far more in the way of memorable melodies and songwriting subtleties than the band has previously exhibited.

A headphone trip for the ages, Primrose Green is a diaphanous tapestry that envelopes our collective musical history.