Varshons II canters along as a casual grab-bag of songs plucked from largely obscure locations. Whilst the results are mixed, there’s no doubt that Dando hasn’t fully lost the reinterpretative knack that previously served him so well on likes of Suzanne Vega’s “Luka” or Mike Nesmith’s “Different Drum”.

Whilst some hooks aren’t quite high enough in the mix and the gauziness is almost as thickly-spread as on its immediate predecessor, De Facto pushes Lorelle Meets The Obsolete’s world into subtly groovier and wider-screen realms with admirable ambition. It captures a band reaching out whilst remaining true to its belief systems, with very convincing results.

Whilst ultimately Possible Dust Clouds may fall short of being another truly seminal Kristin Hersh long-player--which will always be hard given the stiff self-competition of her own bounteous back catalogue--the renewed sense of dynamism, diversity and drive within confirms that there is still plenty of propulsive creative fuel left in the tank.

Taken as a whole, this strangely captivating cowboy-themed album is certainly not all hat and no cattle. Whilst ultimately it will probably not reach much beyond the shared bubble of Dean Wareham and Cheval Sombre’s respective fanbases, it’s certainly a curious and welcoming bubble to get stuck in.

At times of course, as with other Zedek Band releases, a little more space would have let the recordings feel a little less austere and more melodically-open. On the whole though, Fighting Season is a rousing call for gritty humanity.

There is a noticeable but not calamitous chunk of Siesta that doesn’t go enough distance to really justify the extended running time of its fourteen tracks, with ponderous cuts such as “Your Head Your Mind”, “Why It Works Out Fine” and “Closer” being too reliant on meandering jangling. Consequently, this is a clear case where a little less could arguably have meant something more. That said, fans of amorphous Scandi art-pop will still find much to enjoy here.

Packed with a convincing fusion of craftmanship, camaraderie and charm, We’re Not Talking certainly never comes close to a sophomore slump.

For a de facto second bite of the comeback cherry, Snow Bound has plenty to warrant continued active-veteran status for The Chills.

The album is a tight yet tensile affair, that shows the old dog still knows how to learn a few tricks with scholarly shrewdness.

Whilst the reference points are sometimes more discernible than the strength of the melodic hooks, there is still something inscrutably summoning and stirring about Pink Noise that suggests there is more to Echo Ladies than just picking-up batons from a time just before the Britpop steamroller flattened out the sense of artistic adventure for some.

For something put together with a supposed casualness, Bird Dog Dante is actually a remarkably industrious--albeit satisfyingly low-key--affair that stands-up as Parish’s most consistent and accessible solo album to date.

So, reliable business as usual then for The Sea And Cake but with enough under-familiarity to neuter any contempt. Long-time loyalists will have few complaints.

Whilst the cynical might ponder whether Wooden Shjips may only really have one song, at least on V they prove how well it can it be stretched and squashed into many alluring, energising and enveloping shapes with charming self-confidence.

For an album that is only 36 minutes in length, Preoccupations manage to cram in a large amount of ideas, inspirations and ambitions.

Layering blankets of synths and keyboards as well as underlays of programmed drums and effects around his evocative guitar lines, makes Innerland an immersive experience, rich with flowing gauzy grooves and elemental ambient balm.

Somewhat predictably there are a few misfires--like the distracting “A Swamp Dog’s Tale” (featuring spoken word rambling from guest Lincoln Barrett) and the detuned-skanking instrumental “Dance Of Dirty Leftovers”--but overall the quality control is commendably high for a band still so young. The potential for something even more finessed--though no less barbed--next time around is clearly apparent. Until then though, this eponymous entrée is a stealthily impressive long-form introduction.

Although a couple of things don’t quite go the distance--namely the slightly meandering “See High The Hemlock Grows” and the murky slogging “Slow Down”--Quiet And Peace holds together remarkably well for a late-career collection.

The album magnifies both Meloy’s core songwriting and the group’s gifts for bold ambitious arrangements. This brings out some dynamic juxtapositions between simplicity and elaboration that serve proceedings in a refreshing fashion.

All Nerve is still a solid enough and welcome addition to The Breeders’ still slender yet always evolving canon.

Whilst again, as with its immediate aforementioned predecessors, there is a nagging feeling across One For The Ghost that Pete Astor could be still digging deeper into his cupboard of less conventional musical arrangements, there remains a good helping of charming and curious songs that invite return visits and slack-cutting forgiveness.

Whilst Volume 8 isn’t necessarily for Bardo Pond neophytes, long-term loyalists should happily squeeze it into their swollen shelves.

Gratifyingly, despite Four Stones ostensibly being an oddments compendium, it hangs together with remarkable cohesion. In fact, its five wordless pieces segue into one another as if they’d always belonged in one place.

Keeping it loud and with some wry northern humour around the edges, Autobahn’s second album is a tour de force of resonant, power-driven, electronic alt. rock played as it should be.

Whilst certainly disjointed and disorientating in its execution, this first full Moon Diagrams showcase is an oddly gripping sonic ride that suggests that there is plenty of artistic life beyond the drum stool for Moses Archuleta.

The net result is a strong suite of compositions that canter and curl with commanding calmness.

Taken as whole though, The Singles is a strangely satisfyingly testament to the belief that most great musical ideas--even those delivered with such wilfully uncommercial and unconventional intent--can still be boiled-down to fit on one side of a 7” slice of plastic.

Taken as a whole though, whilst Jane Weaver may not have delivered quite the revelation hoped for, this is a solid enough self-consolidating affair, that should both keep the faithful happy and ensnare more latecomers.

A memorable display from a band we need to acknowledge as true greats and it’s a thrill ride from beginning to end.

The remarkably focused and eclectic The Possum In The Driveway.

With the absence of anything quite as moreish as say “Tweet Tweet Tweet” or “No One’s Bothered” it may go for less instant satisfaction but it’s undoubtedly still worth tucking into as part of the steady Sleaford Mods diet.

The expansively visceral Condition does arguably need to be swallowed whole to make sense of its engrossing immersive scope, although a half-time breather is perhaps advisable for those with more delicate dispositions.

A bravely uncompromising yet often richly rewarding affair all told.

Like Serge Gainsbourg’s contrarian career as a whole, there are lot of hidden profundities and canny pleasures to decipher and uncover here. This makes Intoxicated Women a dense yet rewarding affair, which should satisfy and intrigue hardcore Mick Harvey fans and Sergeologists alike for some time.

Closure is undoubtedly a reliably contrarian, brutally honest and uncompromisingly human album for a great band to--at least try--calling it quits on.

Overall, this is sophisticated pop with a folky twist crowned by a heaven-sent voice.

Bamboo Diner In The Rain won’t necessarily catapult The Wave Pictures much further forwards in terms of commercial appeal, but as a self-proclaimed attempt “to grow inwards” it’s a strangely satisfying go-to collection for those already convinced of the group’s lateral charms.

On the whole this is a richly inventive and enthralling eponymous long-player from a side-project with legs of its own.

Wyatt At The Coyote Palace shows us a performer whose energies are intact and whose music and lyrics retain their ability to provoke, charm and occasionally disturb us.

Not a record for the faint-hearted then but one which certainly casts a commanding spell.

It’s all dense and heady stuff that takes several immersive listens to assimilate, but once you’ve found the hooks they don’t let go easily.

The importance of telling the tale far exceeds the risk for Moddi and so he should be praised for bringing these songs and their stories back into mainstream attention across a captivating musical and historical record.

Whilst it has a few unconcealed flaws here and there, that a tighter trimmer tracklist might have edited-out, Say Yes! is a robust, well-rounded and re-signposting listen; which should reward completionists looking for choice off-cuts from their favourite featured artists, remind us to revisit the original source material and hold-up to plenty of standalone spinning.

Whilst Craig Dermody still has some way to go in proving himself as a near-equal to his unconcealed influences, Mid Thirties Single Scene does attest that Scott & Charlene’s Wedding are about far more than a jokey band name, with some increasingly impressive staying-power. Moreover, it’s unquestionably the group’s first keeper collection.

Overall, this is a strong and durable suite of material that holds-up satisfyingly well to repeated and loud airings.

The trademark stridency of “Red Right Hand” or even “Mr Clarinet” is replaced with an altogether more measured and restrained vocal style, and the overall tone of Skeleton Tree is less abrasively didactic one than that of its fifteen predecessors.

It is the product of a septuagenarian survivor ceaselessly exploring a self-made world without conceding to compromise; which is sometimes frustrating yet frequently still compelling in execution.

Not a career-changing collection as such but a quietly redemptive revelation that satisfyingly sustains its author’s veteran status.

The result is a fantastic album, almost cinematic in its scope, which sweeps the listener along and leaves them enthralled.

Delirium Tremens holds many enjoyably solid, if occasionally thorny, rewards.

Whilst occasionally the wistful gossamer elegance of Luck Or Magic comes close to being a touch too understated, its sophistication and warmth--much like Britta Phillips’s latter-day career as a whole--is revealed gradually and invitingly with repeated encounters. A fragrantly intoxicating and slow-burning new beginning all told.

Twenty five and more years ago, an album made by Teardo and Bargeld would have been a much more experimental and chaotic experience than Nerissimo, which is both a work of highly adept modern composition and a sometimes conniving but always listenable performance by a vocalist who knows that even the most eclectic of audiences require entertainment.

Ultimately, for a more cohesive and less exhausting listen, the most accessible parts of Dead could have been crunched-down into a more easily-digestible mini-album.

Perhaps the best thing about Up To Anything is that The Goon Sax seem so fully formed already whilst remaining open to the durable possibilities of longevity. One of this year’s most promising and addictive debut albums all told.

On occasions L’Aurore can feel a little overwhelming but given time its full immersion scope becomes more and more hypnotic and impressive. A bold and brave return to the fray all told.

Whilst long-time fans may still understandably prefer the more complex and organic ilk of 2007’s The Rook or 2010’s The Golden Archipelago, Jet Plane And Oxbow enjoyably expands Shearwater’s widescreen reach without losing what can make the band so special.

Whilst as a whole The Catastrophist doesn’t surpass the high-watermarks of the band’s almost unimpeachable early-years pioneering, it does stand-up well as a solid and consistent collection to add to the post-millennial phase of the Tortoise canon, with just enough refreshed moves to keep the rust and cobwebs at bay.

Whilst sonic variety isn’t perhaps the strongest card pulled out on Split Milk, it does play out with some charming Astor songcraft and insistent hooks.

Overall, as bass-players solo missions go, Right On! fares well in both connecting to and standing apart from the mothership. Admittedly, the record’s best moments could perhaps have been cherry-picked to fold into the next Warpaint album or compressed into a just EP-length statement.

Although amERICa perhaps lacks a few more songs that could standalone from its conceptual connectivity, as a combined entity it captures Eric Goulden catching an inventive and much-deserved third wind for his charmingly contrary career.

Whilst Jeffrey Lewis’s self-knowing musings and musical personas will still remain an acquired peripheral taste for some, it’s pleasing that Manhattan finds him in such rude health, as arguably his most compelling and charismatic collection since 2007’s 12 Crass Songs.

Minor niggles aside though, Silver Bullets is a solid and rewarding return to the fray for The Chills which patient followers will wrap their ears around gratefully.

Whilst Illegals In Heaven may not propel Blank Realm into dramatic new terrain, it does re-fortify existing ramparts with a scrupulous conviction.

Whilst The Jean-Paul Sartre Experience canon is far from consistent and most of us might not regularly play much beyond the sublime first CD/LP of this compendium, there is much to be (re)discovered here that vintage Flying Nun label fans can certainly not afford to live without. A heartily-fulfilling curate’s egg, in short.

Whilst it won’t necessarily win Yo La Tengo many new fans, the aromatic potpourri of Stuff Like That There should happily intoxicate existing ones.

Whilst a few more Bert Jansch classics like “Needle Of Death” and his own rendition of Davy Graham’s “Angie” might have defined Live At The 12 Bar as a more complete go-to on-stage snapshot, its intimacy and strength still marks it out as an essential fan-friendly re-addition to his labyrinthine catalogue, which is due for further exploration via Earth Recordings in the near-future.

Those expecting an ultra-stripped-back affair will be in for a surprise too, for although the album sustains and refines Sheppard’s core penchant for pointillist minimalism, Vertical Land is also arguably his most ambitious and elaborate statement to date.

Works For Tomorrow just gets better and better with every successive--and necessarily louder--airing, to the point where it does indeed feel like another genuinely great Eleventh Dream Day long-player.

He may like his disguises and perhaps enjoys provoking his audiences but underneath the image and the keen ear for wordplay a really quite serious songwriting talent is very determinedly making himself heard.

Whilst Still could certainly have benefitted from a greater cache of stronger songs (a couple of which could have been swapped-in from the largely electric self-produced Variations EP that comes with early CD editions), as a combined entity it holds together convincingly as an amiable summary of what latter-day Richard Thompson is all about.

The music is bold, intelligent, and quirky--maybe a little too quirky, but that’s up for debate. If Peanut Butter has a fault, it’s too much consistency.

For the most part Remembering Mountains is a success, with the source material being affectionately honoured yet imbued with the distinctive traits of the invited artists.

Like the band’s 2012’s Tucson LP, Heartbreak Pass is perhaps a tad too long to digest easily in one sitting. Yet its warmth, scope and consistency makes for an album that defiantly and enjoyably belies the age of Howe Gelb and his most-loved brand.

As a whole, To Where The Wild Things Are is very much a headphones-record, as its richest details can only be absorbed with closer-than-close listening.

Whilst it might miss its prequel’s sublime rootedness, the album’s alluring and questing life-force confirms that Cécile Schott is a thoughtful artisan to keep closely watching over a long-haul creative journey.

The Wave Pictures are a band sufficiently self-confident to take enough risks to keep themselves interested but without distancing themselves from their extant character, which Great Big Flamingo Burning Moon reveals is a durable and entertaining combination for the most part, even if a tad more lubrication would have helped to soften-up some of its drier corners.

Spaces Everywhere is a deliriously upbeat 40 or so minutes of quality indie guitar music and The Monochrome Set continue to await your recognition.

Although Volume 2: 1987-1989 may have its fair share of misfires, its overall hit-rate is remarkably high for an exhaustive anthology drawn from the ‘80s DIY netherworld. Whilst it’s hard to say if it fully represents the best of the Half Japanese oeuvre, it’s certainly an unquestionable strong entry-point into the band’s uncompromising catalogue of charming invention.

Overall then, Whatever, My Love is a mixed affair. Die-hard lovers of Become What You Are will have few real complaints but might perhaps overdose a touch on déjà vu. For the less pre-devoted, a cherry-picked yet economically-unviable EP selection from the album might have served this reunion better artistically.

Rather than having rushed to capture and over-stretch the first flushes of studio exploration with a premature first album, the much-awaited Dying logically extends upon the Spectres’ story so far whilst standing-up as a more mature and ambitious statement in its own right.

There are so many female singer songwriters making their presences known but Emmy The Great has a niche entirely of her own today, and that is all down to her songwriting and an elusive personality that avoids overlaying her actual charm.

Ultimately, Fantastic Planet is not an easy listen yet it rewards persistent immersive airing by gradually offering-up its manifold charms.

Taken altogether, this two-disc reissue (or three if you’re after the full-fat triple-vinyl version), is a fine and thorough history lesson from The Afghan Whigs curriculum.

Overall, The BBC Sessions is another tantalising insight into song world of The Chills, that acts as another generous interim step towards a hopefully fully-fledged wave of new and/or properly reissued material in 2015.

Aside from its title track, most of Kings and Queens of the Underground sounds a lot like primetime 80s Idol, untouched by the ravages of time, lifestyle, changes in musical fashions or anything else.

At this stage in his career, Loudon Wainwright III could forgivably have lost some of his mojo, but on the life-affirming evidence of Haven’t Got The Blues (Yet), there’s still plenty of great songwriting left in the tank.

The results are pretty rewarding overall, even if the strictly unadorned arrangements might have occasionally benefitted from some counterbalancing extra instrumental layers.

Putting analytical angst aside though, in short this is another tranquil and refreshing oasis on the compelling Land Observations journey.

While they undoubtedly keep their snarl and sneer (just look at that album cover), this is the cleanest and most melodic they have ever sounded. While those looking for cohesion may find this frustrating, it certainly makes Under Color of Official Right a dynamic and enthralling crossroad.

And Then You Shoot Your Cousin is as brilliantly strong as Undun, with a multi-faceted story that slowly unravels.

The Baltimore-based band’s fourth album is layered with songs that are faultlessly executed from top to bottom. Although the lyrics are somewhat simplistic, their direct marriage is welcomed.

There are a number of ear-worthy gems on the album but it’s difficult to muster up enthusiasm for a band that doesn’t seemingly have much enthusiasm themselves.

As the Stars is an album that can be appreciated on a purely musical level and a meditative level.

For the most part the music on Infinity is a skilfully crafted mixture of ambient soundscapes that are transformed into cohesive songs as Tiersen layers percussion and other elements across the initially sometimes formless tone generations that will inevitably have some listeners confused and others enraptured.

Whilst at times Cool Planet could have benefitted from more of the cohesiveness that marked out Motivational Jumpsuit, its detours and greater collaborative ethos also give Pollard, Sprout and co. greater room for ongoing creativity.

An entrancing, accomplished, and often uplifting record that will be heralded by the time the semi-tropics of a British summer arrive. A triumphant return.

Lithium Burns is a far too well crafted and assuredly performed record for a debut album.

Although as a whole Farmer’s Corner might lack a little of the respective earthiness and girth of more strictly acoustic and more amplified Wooden Wand releases, it achieves the clever feat of traversing a wide range of territory whilst sustaining the feeling of reclining comfortably in one location.

Ultimately, although Into Forever might not quite hit the same consistent heights as the meticulously-crafted Modular Living, it’s still a respectable and forward moving addition to the Eat Light Become Lights canon in own right.