The industrial and atmospheric elements of the album all convey a sense of searching and often of rushing away from one thing and toward another. Even the blurred cover image of Hatchie suggests a feeling of constantly being in motion. It is through this searching and continual movement that Hatchie etches her own lines to define her persona through her music, constantly propelling herself and her ideas in new directions and trusting that we’ll keep up.

The central conceit of the album is one of growing up. This comes through on a track-by-track basis, like on “All Blacked Out”, an older, folksy demo expanded in its new form into something much richer. But it’s also a sweeping feeling that the arc of the album as a whole supports, as it travels from gritty early tracks like “Lucy’s” and “Pretty”--a lovely, economical introduction to the band’s style--toward more exploratory ventures, like “What Chaos Is Imaginary” and the adventurous development of “Swamp and Bay”.

This is undoubtedly the band’s fiercest record.

It’s the Big Joyous Celebration is remarkable for its scope and its granularity.

As a debut release, Cool Dry Place is remarkable. Katy Kirby has crafted a series of captivating indie rock-pop tracks, all centered around a voice with clarity reminiscent of Sylvan Esso or Haley Heynderickx, but swift and whimsical movements that feel all Kirby’s own.

Paradise is White Lung pushing their limits and coming out bloodied, hungry for more. It’s a record full of disease, doubt, dumpsters, and death, with the band rising above it all and reveling in their filth.

Parquet Courts may have just released their most realized, independent, and articulate album yet.

Though House of Sugar can be a difficult record, those who take the time to delve into its layers will be treated to a piece that captures the modern psyche in a way few other pieces of art manage to do.

An unprecedented two-and-a-half-hour journey into the typically guarded Merritt’s life, the album is as revealing as it is resonant.

Saint Cecilia feels like a new turn, or rather, a much-needed step back. It’s simple, back-to-basics rock ‘n’ roll that reaches for the heart and not the last fan in the back of the crowd.

Heartless continues the successes of Sorrow and Extinction and Foundations of Burden, while also incorporating familiar but tasteful sonic flourishes from adjacent genres.

By further broadening their scope of sound, HAIM create a wide window for listeners to find something of resonance within Women in Music Pt. III.

The Psychedelic Furs don’t skip a beat bringing back everything that devotees adore amidst tapping into enough current techniques and mindsets to feel fresh. As such, they prove that a vintage band can still produce something so praiseworthy and pertinent that it surpasses the output of many newer stylistic siblings.

All that’s left to do is to approach the album the way you would modern art at a museum: with open ears, curious eyes, and a desire to exit with a newfound ability to find beauty in most everything around you.

There’s an indelible charm to these songs, and they’ll trigger a smile if you open your heart and dismiss your preconceptions.

Morning Phase makes for an interesting return to form.

Father of the Bride may not have the initial excitement and glistening energy of the band’s now-classic first three albums, but it offers a rewarding and audacious achievement of its own.

It’s apparent she’s among her generation’s most deserving superstars, maintaining a stunning balance of technical mastery and sensitive lyricism.

With Ctrl, SZA proves that the cult following that ballooned with the release of her 2014 mixtape, Z, was not some flash in the pan, but a deserved wellspring of attention from an adoring fan base whose faith in what she had yet to produce helped to produce the project that could eventually stand as the best thing she has ever done.

Saturation III is the shortest, hookiest, and best, though, for no better reason than they are cooking by now, pithily commenting on police brutality, drug addiction, and receiving head.

Piñata comes with just enough to reduce the daunting 17-track length to a non-factor, although it drags a bit with overt nostalgia toward the fourth quarter.

On Pop 2, her second mixtape of 2017, she digs even deeper into her music’s rough edges, exploiting its paradoxes, peeling back its layers, and having more fun while she’s at it than she’s ever had before.

From start to finish, Patient Number 9 is an inspired and consistent Ozzy studio offering. It certainly appears that team Ozzy has found a producer who gets the best out of the veteran singer and his all-star cast of backing musicians.

Despite the similar aesthetic to what’s come before, mundanity refuses to set in. This is another great Aesop Rock album to add to the pile--another TKO to further solidify his underground king status.

Before the Dawn is living, breathing proof that Bush still has the creative prowess and unique sensibilities that made her a superstar in the first place.

Their cultural impact is undeniable, and their work continues to push forward conversations about genre, language, and much more. There’s no telling what BTS will do next, but that’s what’s so compelling.

Dupuis and Speedy Ortiz walk along intersections effortlessly: now and then, power and fragility, intricate poetry and direct prose, pain and pleasure. Foil Deer does this as well as their excellent debut, but also takes some risks in its growth.

The album proves the singer’s will to catapult into greatness, standing as a testament to just how far a great front-person can push a tried-and-true formula.

By Rap or Go to the League, 2 Chainz is a veteran rapper of a certain age who posits himself to be at the top of his game. Unlike the outsized projections rap stars routinely make to seem more powerful, 2 Chainz assessment of himself is actually correct.

Voices this vast require production just as epic and Shawn Everett (Weezer, Alabama Shakes, Julian Casablancas) brings the wattage of a Celine Dion Las Vegas spectacle without it feeling shallow or cheesy.

Before putting it on, make sure you have an hour to yourself to just let it wash over you. Callahan’s ambition and essence haven’t been diminished by him being in a good headspace. He’s a man born to tell stories, and he’s no less of a storyteller than he was in his early 30s.

Shamir’s music makes the listener want to wake up. Listening to it is like being shaken awake, blinds thrown open. And it’s not like learning that anything sad or dull or particular was a dream all along.

It’s Album Time finds Todd Terje shattering dance music stereotypes.

Hushed and Grim could have used a trim, but overall, it was worth the wait.

The album spins best when Misty is picking a fight with God or observing human nature as a screwball play, all while honoring the fact that people were given a raw deal in concept, not just execution.

The music carries the listener throughout each track, making for a meditative experience. With Birth of Violence, Chelsea Wolfe offers a compelling work brimming with emotion and dreamy wonder.

At a mere 35 minutes, Kannon is a fleeting journey. But in that allotted time, Sunn do what they do best, crafting an inescapable atmosphere of flowing drone metal, and as a whole, it’s arguably their best composition to date.

4:44 is a breathtaking cycle about a man wrestling with his moral failings in real time, not always winning, trying to live his Mondays closer to what he preaches Sunday as he prepares for 50.

Empath is another fine addition to the ever-growing / never-ending Devin Townsend discography, and shows that Townsend should one day also be enshrined into this elite “musical chameleon” category, as well.

So the blessing and the curse of Run the Jewels 3 is that it’s still a Run the Jewels album, a promise that every song is good, nothing is bad, and depending on your mood you’ll either bask in the lack of tempo changes, pulchritudinous song structures, and surprising hooks, or you’ll seek out a more colorful record.

There’s only a certain level of cute that some listeners can tolerate in their guitar rock cocktail, but for those willing to embrace a style of music that’s immediately satisfying and goes out of its way to relate to the people who need it most, it’s hard to do better than four Brits who, by their own admission, “stumble over words from time to time.”

This is an album that’s strictly for vinyl completists who can’t stomach the idea of owning their favorite band’s recordings in a digital format. There’s nothing inherently wrong with this.

Throughout the journey of the Man on the Moon trilogy, which is imbued with many twists and turns, The Chosen captures Cudi as victorious, finally reaching his long-awaited destination.

FM! features the rapper in his raw form and representing his love for the west coast. Whether you decide to hit play in chronological order or skip around, this album will have you bobbing your head at any point. FM! is a sunny day that not even being stuck in LA traffic can ruin.

Woods’ brilliance, a voice (both literal and figurative) whose strength is compounded by her many facets. On her debut full-length, HEAVN, Woods lets each of those facets shine, without letting any of them get lost in the glow.

Williams sounds here like she’s singing about something else, something more her own. The assorted focuses of these songs sound like they’re being relayed less as rallying cries and more as personal thoughts and confessions to a close friend or a lover. The result is a fitting solo debut, a solid album full of friction and honesty.

Twelve Nudes makes all the moves some of us have wanted from Furman: faster, brisker music, clearer politics, bigger riffs, and impossible-to-ignore shouting. It feels a couple highlights short of a punk classic, but it’s the follow-up that last year’s excellent Transangelic Exodus probably deserves.

Present and post-lockdown, how i’m feeling now will be a definitive album of its time. Aitchison has captured this space we now all exist in and all its facets.

Few bands can return after a 13-year absence and sound vital and fresh, transforming an old-school approach into a process that sounds original. That’s precisely what Desaparecidos have done, making Payola a welcome comeback surprise.

First Two Pages of Frankenstein is by no means subversive – but it’s worth at least keeping on the bookshelf for whenever you, too, feel lost.

While much of contemporary folk lacks the political bite of Woody Guthrie or Pete Seeger, Segarra, who identifies as queer and listened to Bikini Kill growing up, brings a progressive and empathetic mindset.

Whether or not you’re willing to put in the time, Lese Majesty holds attention as soon as opener “Dawn in Luxor” kicks in. That’s plenty to like.

This record transports listeners through an intensely vivid journey, presenting a different side to PJ Harvey’s creative genius, one that proves profound art cannot be forced.

The chords and arrangements on Atlas are the densest Real Estate have ever attempted, shading their sunshine into something palpably more mysterious, like a sunset in inclement weather.

Each voice is allowed to shine here, and through them, the voices of so many women who continually find themselves stifled in the country music format.

Challenging throughout and at times jarring and inscrutable, Crack-Up searches for a resolution just out of reach.

Chock-full of mature songwriting, sometimes hard-hitting and sometimes sweeping from low-lit nadirs to explosive zeniths, Midnight is a brawny performance from a young artist.

The band’s growth as a cohesive unit results in their most accomplished album yet. Painted Ruins is a wondrously complex adventure that rewards attention and patience yet is never inscrutable.

2 stands as yet another superb showcase of songwriting and musicianship from a beloved icon.

While the no-bullshit lyrics and get-in, get-out nature of American Band work to make the band’s politics perfectly clear (at 47 minutes, it’s a contender for DBT’s shortest LP), it still has unique lyrical details that separate it from other protest music, even protest music of the loud and pissed-off variety.

The album proves to be worth the five-year wait, doubling as an obvious entry point to the band’s catalog. By forming a smooth mix rather than a bumpy exchange of influences, Envy prove they can paint with any color.

His new album and second with Chicago’s Bloodshot Records, The No-Hit Wonder, is brimming with vivid and infectious songwriting.

By introducing what could arguably be described as some of their most introspective lyrics to date into their rock and roll alchemy, Cloud Nothings delivered an album that totes an intriguing combination of coolness and comfort.

While the arrangements show collaboration, the lyrics sound like the work of the lonely mind. Powerplant is full of the solo enterprise of watching.

If Berry leaves the world with any last thoughts on Chuck, it’s that his vitality and relevance will continue to endure.

The Melvins’ winning combination of riffs and black humor is in full force on Working with God, making the album recommended listening for longtime fans and newcomers alike.

On Show Me How You Disappear, IAN SWEET reveals herself as an innovative artist unafraid to shine the light on deep, difficult complication and to create bright, interesting pop music that answers only to itself.

Flamagra isn’t the first Flying Lotus album that can be enjoyed from beginning to end, but it still feels special. There’s a unity among these songs that exude emotion, like the warm comfort provided by a flame.

Turn Blue, though, is the sound of Auerbach and Carney eagerly and grandiosely taking things into their own (and, if you want, Burton’s) hands.

The production ranges from icy to neon. And yet these tracks all clearly feel cut from a single cloth. The Healing Component evolves Jenkins’ worldview boldly, keeping his messages easy to digest but bursting with meaning.

A self-assured sound married to self-analytical songwriting makes Jinx the masterful soundtrack to those seemingly endless, restless nights. If only my anxious thoughts were as lovely a listen.

On TYRON, slowthai doesn’t make grand statements or platitudes like a politician. He simply offers his own story of perseverance, hand extended and Mona Lisa smile brimming.

From beginning to end, even in its moments of resentment and self-doubt, Pageant is shot through with empathy, kindness, and sincerity.

There’s a level of introspection present on the record that’s hard to duplicate, and when coupled with a stunning exploration of queer relationships, it creates something truly extraordinary. And frankly, triteness is solvable, and there’s beauty in the simplicity.

Each of the nine songs and poems that comprise Thanks for the Dance is a self-contained, coherent piece of art that perfectly fits in the Cohen canon, making it a worthwhile listening experience and a poignant farewell from one of music’s greatest and most eloquent writers.

On Honeymoon, Trifilio finally invites someone into her bubble, into her dream. With a ceaseless, buoyant energy that swims across a candid narrative, Trifilio flexes her masterful songwriting on an album bound to win the hearts of emo-punks and TikTok girls alike.

For the first time in a long time, the future feels uncertain and unformed. This is the music that will help us charge forward into the unknown.

The massive Rot Forever gives Sioux Falls the capacity to be both: both sensitive and aggressive, messy and precise, cloyingly retro and fiercely modern. They can, for the most part, be everything all at once.

It’s not perfect, but the album is remarkably cohesive, the right length, and filled to the brim with songs that already feel like inevitable summer smashes.

Described by Stevens and Brams as a New Age-inspired album, Aporia accomplishes exactly that, functioning as a recovered soundtrack to a long-lost, fictitious sci-fi film.

Overall, IMPERA keeps Ghost’s winning streak going and proves once again that Mr. Forge surely knows what he’s doing as the group’s leader.

Whereas LCD’s previous album, This Is Happening, felt coherent as the project displayed a love of disco, American Dream feels happy sampling from many of the band’s established recording styles.

The actual flow of the record may feel a bit all over the place, but that’s kind of the point. Rammstein thoroughly enjoy keeping their fans on their toes, if not attempting to purposefully irritate them even slightly.

While wearing their influences on their sleeve, they deliver a lush and compact package of fleeting ballads to get lost in.

Bloom is a fun record, dreamy and vulnerable and urgently horny. Sivan has a fresh perspective, and his force of personality enlivens tracks that otherwise might sound conventional. His best songs perform a kind of magic, with sentiments that feel universal to all of us and as personal as a fingerprint.

Funk Wav Bounces isn’t the kind of album that’s going to change the conversation in pop music, but it doesn’t want to. All it wants to do is sit by the pool, release, let go, and have a good time.

Weirdo Shrine is a fog to get lost in, to put on repeat and let the tangled guitar melodies take root. They’re a light in their own darkness, guiding themselves to newer and more intricate spaces.

Fake It Flowers is a true evolution, a record that’s stronger and fuller than beabadoobee’s earlier EPs and exemplifies the ongoing growth of her artistry.

It’s not as ambitious as it could have been, but it works due to its sheer expressiveness, one man going through the motions and chronicling every movement, a tirade in the purest sense.

She doesn’t convey specific messages or exhaustively detail narratives, but to listen to each song on Have You in My Wilderness is to inhabit a feeling in all of its pain and all of its glory.

Rodrigo certainly has the capacity for the kinds of nuanced choices that match her vulnerability with active, novel sonics, and GUTS proves that she’s willing and able to embrace the grey areas that these big emotions inhabit. But her fearlessness with a pen in her hand deserves to be matched by the overall presentation of these songs, making it all the more satisfying when she lets these songs bubble up and burst.

Fresh ideas abound nearly everywhere on Gigaton.

The eleven tracks often sound like mini film scores, featuring arrangements by Drew Erickson and plenty of strings, brass and woodwinds. Tillman still deals in clever, allusive vignettes, but the tone is ultimately gentler this time around, hazier and less incisive than God’s or 2017’s Trump-era Pure Comedy.

While his most definitive project remains 2015’s Dirty Sprite 2 for its balance of Future’s innate melodic sense and especially effective trap records, HNDRXX comes in as a close second.

Recorded live in the studio rather than piecemeal, Savages’ debut album Silence Yourself sees the band completely locked in with each other.

Pujol takes the advice of their own lyrics, though, and finds opportunities within this set framework to be creative.

On their Thrill Jockey debut, The Marriage of True Minds, the oddities are stomached for a healthy dose of chaos.

As a whole, Wrecking Ball displays Springsteen's refusal to coast.