When it catches fire, as on Unholy, it sounds terrific but those moments are too few.

The friends have created something memorable here – not just to bring attention to serious causes, but to captivate and delight all those who stop to listen.

Furling is a collection that rewards repeat listens to allow it to fully embed into the consciousness but once it does its soft, rarefied treasure has much to offer.

It is arguably one or two songs too long, but otherwise AudioLust & HigherLove is a strong pop music record – disposable, yes, but with a songwriting sensibility and deep house production that means it works on several levels.

The band have fully reasserted themselves, taking equal parts past and future to make a record that fits the present day like a glove. Twenty years in and the fires are still burning brightly.

Having done so with great assurance, he has made an album of lasting appeal which responds well to repeated listening.

If you need a soundtrack to your 90 in 90, this is it. The pitfalls, the purity, the piousness of recovery. Just promise you’ll listen to it at least three times. It’s worth it.

Mercy may have a few forgettable tracks, but an artist with John Cale’s long and varied history will always find a way to intrigue the listener.

It is the finest achievement of Coombes’ solo career so far, a magnificent record – and the feeling still persists that there is more to come.

As usual the positives far outweigh the negatives. As a surprise shot in the arm to get the year off to a good start, this is a very welcome New Year present.

By the time we reach final track A Hollow Skeleton Lifts A Heavy Wing it’s noticeable how familiar the songs already seem to feel, a special quality that confirms the album to be significantly greater than the sum of its individual parts.

At just 36 minutes, Every Loser never outstays its welcome – instead, it’s a short, sharp blast of energy that sounds impossibly refreshing.

No Thank You could be forgiven for resembling a victory lap, but it is a triumph in its own right, cementing Little Simz’s position as one of rap’s essential voices.

If SZA needed to prove that she’s still at the top of R&B, she has succeeded with emotional heft, piercingly astute lyrics and a versatile delivery: with more than a few similarities to Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, SOS is perhaps the best break-up record since TDE’s last one.

An envelope-pushing record, admirable in its ambition even when the thread gets a bit lost.

Hadestown may have gained her success through her successful harnessing of external inspiration but by turning attention inwards on this occasion she’s delivered one of the quietly outstanding albums of the year.

The Hospot may be a fictional place, but Warmduscher have created the kind of soundtrack that makes it feel like the kind of place we’d all want to hang out in.

It’s a beautiful record to immerse yourself in and just lose track of time for a while – once its myriad charms have become apparent, you won’t want to listen to anything else.

Though the magic isn’t always present on This Is What We Do, there is still a creative drive that makes the case for Barnes’ continuing relevance into the 2020s.

If the album spent more time doing what it’s good at we would have a classic on the level that Stormzy seems to be aiming for.

Like much of Richard Dawson’s material, it’s an album that has to be immersed in and savoured – and although it may be a struggle sometimes, there’s nobody else out there making music quite like this.

Nas is not a perfect rapper in 2022 but the chemistry on King’s Disease III works well enough to paper over the shortcomings, leaving a focused, well-executed release.

A startlingly confident and welcome comeback for Rose.

In many ways, it’s the perfect soundtrack to a world struggling to emerge from a pandemic. ... If there’s a criticism to be had, it’s that it all sometimes seems a bit cold.

His first solo album in six years, The Work is a comfortable record, accomplished and at times even gleeful in its kitchen-sink approach to sound design.

It brings its fair share of frustration, but Christine And The Queens’ third record is undoubtedly interesting, a lateral progression if ever there was one.

Alpha Zulu is certainly a top-tier Phoenix record, bringing back that effortless French cool in a way that only they can.

This is another very good, solid album from the Swedish siblings with a fair bit of typical brilliance scattered throughout.