Their unique perspectives on racial and class identities are perspectives that hip-hop needs to remain vital, to remain that genre that united so many other groups throughout the genre's dominating decades. And the best part is that they fulfill that role while still joking.

Sremmlife is as good as it is because of how sonically pleasing it is.

Flowers at the Scene features influences from various decades of pop, classic/art rock, jazz and successfully experiments to offer an eclectic and rewarding collection of stand-alone tracks.

Italian Ice is the product of a talented pool of contributors who simultaneously lift Atkins up while still allowing her tremendous vocals to remain the focal point. It’s the strongest album that Nicole has put forth – a gem that hopefully will not go overlooked.

This is unsettled music for an unsettled era, the kind of songs which can sometimes make you feel euphoric and sometimes make you feel down-hearted (sometimes even both at the same time). Through it all, though, these tunes are the sonic equivalent of living, breathing, human warmth.

As assured as they are here, one still gets the nagging suspicion that Braids are yet to genuinely find their true sound. And, in a sense, this is what makes them such a fascinating proposition to continue to listen to.

At once highly inventive and unabashedly fun, the album showcases the trailblazing pop star at her most expansive thus far. M.I.A. adroitly capitalizes on her established style, embellishing it with moments of genuine intimacy.

Though it may not capture our hearts as instantly as the ideas of nostalgia and romance, The Rip Tide ushers in different dimensions of emotion and that is a progression to be admired.

These two seemingly disparate parts combine in an off-putting but refreshingly rough-and-tumble way.

The album's congruence in theme, tempo, and tone is both consistent and coherent. Together with Butch Walker, Catherine Popper, and long-time running mates Ian Perkins and Alex Rosamilia (among others), Painkillers is a carefully-cultivated record that Fallon categorically needed to write.

Fantastic lyrical concepts, an improved musicianship and the addition of an orchestra make Cassadaga easily the most enjoyable Bright Eyes album as a whole.

A better title might have been Thriving, because this record continues their remarkably consistent run and proves that they are still very much at, or at least near, the top of their game.

Despite all of these positives, and no real negatives to be found, Set ‘Em Wild, Set ‘Em Free isn’t quite a perfect work--it’s much too clunky, much too unorganized to be considered as such--but it’s a considerable record, one that’s sure to remain a highlight of this decade’s final chapter and afterwards.

Be it the furious pounding bass of the dubstep angle she toys with, or the amorphous dark ambient she seems to wallow in, whatever led you to Emika's debut LP will also leave you breathless.

Despite being frustratingly inconsistent though, Andrew McMahon In The Wilderness is still a step in the right direction.

There’s a lot of guests on this album and it brings a heterogeneous quality to Ordinary Man, but for the most part this aspect turns detrimental to the overall vision. Ozzy should have banded together a small fixture of musicians for the album and ran with a consistent tone that would see his mantra through to the end.

The Golden Casket reveals itself to not only be the group’s most colorful release in quite some time, but also one of their most consistent.

While this album similarly holds nothing back, it’s not an artifice either. It’s Demi Lovato ditching their indoctrinated pop formula in favor of the music they truly want to be making, all while going for the jugular in terms of scale. Holy Fvck is massive and over-the-top in just about every way, yet anchored by very real pain that lends substance to each grandiose moment.

There’s a worrying air of desperation running through the band’s lyrical choices that thankfully doesn’t spill over into the music, but it is nonetheless a frequent distraction on an otherwise fine album from a heavy metal juggernaut that might just be kicking back into gear.

What we end up with here is Angelo De Augustine’s most brazen step forward to date. Tomb sees him not buried, but bursting forth with flourishing atmospheres.

All told, this is an album which will almost certainly be enjoyable if you like kinda hazy, kinda ethereal, kinda catchy indie/alt thingamajigs, but it’s also an album desperately lacking the hint of an edge which would give the total product further potency. Even so, it’s a solid comeback from another crew of aging shoegazers, just don’t set your expectations too high.

Sometimes captivating, always soothingly pleasant, The Land, The Water, The Sky is an accessible effort which should appeal to a wide audience.

There is familiarity here, but nothing feels routine. This is an album as cohesive and thunderous as it would have been if it had come out in 2014.

Never Let Me Go is a fantastic album, and it could even be argued that it’s the most consistent and engaging album of their career – certainly, it’s their most ambitious to date.

Musically, we get a wider array of genres, reminiscing their eclectic classic Feast Of Wire, released in 2003. Nevertheless, Edge Of The Sun flows smoothly from start to finish.

Ring is an album that puts Cameron Mesirow on par with any of the emerging group of experimental female vocalists and if we didn't notice it before, there's a Glasser-shaped hole somewhere between Bat For Lashes' conceptual pop schizophrenia and Fever Ray's icy soundscapes and Cameron Mesirow is the missing puzzle piece. Debut albums rarely come more accomplished.

Endless Rooms has the feel of a transition album, with the group throwing some new ideas at the wall and seeing what sticks. There’s several new sounds and influences present on Endless Rooms which present intriguing and viable routes for RBCF to pursue on their eventual fourth record. The future is uncertain, but hope springs eternal.

Despite a few individual disappointments, Alive 2007 is as exciting a collection of music as any released this year.