You would think that all this grandiose genre-juggling would play out like a collection of songs, but it all works well together and plays like a cohesive album.

Unlike the first record, which relied on Temple alone to fill out the layers of the songs, Pigeons utilizes the full band, and improves because of it. The songs are better composed, and more interesting: the experimental bits, which were a bit of a distraction, are more focused and purposeful.

A track like "Grape Juice City" indeed showcases the duo's tendency to prance upon unique wavelengths and make them their own but, a little extemporaneous head-butting between the sounds would keep Ratatat atop the sonic badlands they created.

Regardless of how the totality of Splazsh sounds to you--whether it's five tracks and 15 minutes too long, or a perfect hour-or-so long piece of programmed paradise, there's a lot to respect about Actress' confidence as a producer.

Their second-full length record is an earthy, brazen affair simultaneously speaking to the romantic idealist and weary traveler.

In it’s complete scope, the album contains all the master works we’re usually too scared to expect from a full-length these days.

Everything fits in place to up the game of something else, and no part of these finely made blues and soul creations gets a pass on pulling its weight. That’s just how it works for Brothers.

Although Compass is certainly different from his other albums, it’s also just as certainly distinctly Jamie Lidell, and just the latest step in an ever-growingly impressive career.

Either allow this the dignity of being played through a quality sound system or go invest in a pair of Beats by Dres. This is far less an album than a cinematic experience.

There are no absolute standouts as on past albums, but that is okay. Where Did The Night Falls is less concerned with purity of individual songs, and more focused on the audible aesthetics produced by its eerie experiments in sound. And for that, UNKLE has another winner on its hands.

The sisters Sierra and Bianca Casady plus a few guests (jazz pianist Gael Rakotondrabe, Argentine drummer Bolsa) improvise another trek through their active imaginations, doing whatever makes sense (or not) to them that day.

While his past two Anti-/Epitaph releases showed a heavy punk influence, Li(f)e is a groundbreaking amalgamation of folk, indie rock and hip hop.

Omni doesn't reach the same dizzying heights that some of their past releases have attained, but it's a solid piece of work. Definitely something to keep blasting in the car for the upcoming summer months.

More! is filled with playful, soft and dynamic production, but instead of having a fluid album format, it feels a little inconsistent. And an unnecessary and dated vocal feature from Yello on "Divine," weakens the whole flow and picture.

With Swim Snaith finds success focusing his most complex notions and freeing his most straightforward ideas.

By the time things conclude with mannerly closer "The Great Estates" it's been made perfectly clear that this is a band ready and able to create visions with enveloping scope and delightful articulation.

The whole album is a spacey trip, and it acquires several listenings to be on their side. They're definitely not stagnant, but it's still a step back from their debut--not in time, but in appeal.

Tommy excels because there is no one correct way to describe the music. Using everything from Afrobeat to IDM, Dosh does it all; yet, he manages to find a way to make the entire project cohesive.

While filled with warm analog electronics and is borderline ambient, Thomas manages to execute it in a tasteful way.

This is an album loosely forged in all those places where pop, rock, funk and soul congregate and it's hard to imagine it all coming together much better.

Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings are back with their fourth album I Learned the Hard Way. It’s another authentic, heart-felt album filled with heartache and daily struggles.

After five full-length albums, Shame, Shame finds Dr. Dog far from having exhausted their creativity, sounding more passionate and frenzied than ever on what is a lasting testament to their showmanship and remarkably consistent songwriting.

Javelin know what they're good at, where they stand, and they aren't trying to shove their knowledge and musical interests in their listeners faces. Instead, they let them find it for themselves by picking up on bits and pieces and carrying them forward, focusing on what interests them without having to worry about what they don't.

Whereas past Wu albums have been scorned for their filler, Meth, Ghost and Rae leave plenty on the chopping block this time around, only allowing the best of the best to make the cut on Wu-Massacre.

It doesn’t always make for a relaxed listen, although it is certainly capable of settling in as a moody background or standing in the forefront captivating rapt ears. The swarms of noise can be both comforting and disconcerting, but each finds a place of its own as this duo continues their run of impressively novel music making.

Simon Green stands with a select group of musicians who have been consistent in both quantity/quality output of this type of introspective music. Bonobo's Black Sands is an album that should not be missed and is undoubtedly one of the most superior releases of this year.

Standing on Top of Utopia is a strong album, but utopia also means “an illusion”–a non-existent place–and sometimes it sounds like too many moods under one cover.

Wolf’s elastic compositions straddle the line between a multitude of genres without making it sound forced. Widely respected as one of the best drummers on the indie scene for years, Josiah Wolf has deftly proven he has the chops to stand on his own.