Jeff Rosenstock follows up his widely acclaimed album "Worry" with a less sprawling, more concise effort. It's just as potent, just as head bopping and just as energetic as Worry. He's honestly become one of my favorite pop punk musicians out right now with his insanely catchy hooks and pure loudness!

Fave tracks: USA, 9/10, All This Useless Energy

A sprawling and beautiful album. Instrumentals that flourish and lyrics that are poetic and thoughtful. Not his best work, but this is a definitely a worthwhile listen.

A little repetitive and a little long.

Fave tracks: Flint, For the Widows In Paradise, for the Fatherless In Ypsilanti, Romulus, Redford, Vito's Ordination Song

Wonderful R&B album from a very promising new artist. This thing actually grew on me a lot, some of the songs were just on loop in my head. She reaches great heights with tracks like Drew Barrymore, Supermodel and Prom but there's also some filler in here that didn't really do much for me like Anything.

I think SZA could knock out an ever better release a couple of years down the line!

Fave tracks: Drew Barrymore, Supermodel and Prom

Odd and alienating but ultimately it ended up being a very enjoyable listening experience. It's very dense and layered and a lot of these tracks won't jump out at you on first listen. But if you're in a weird mood, this is a weird album you can throw on and scratch your head over. The atmosphere Laurel Halo creates on this thing is probably it's biggest strength.

Standout tracks: Moontalk, Sun to Solar, Syzygy

The National are back with that trademark sound, plus a few electronic tweaks. As with all National albums, I find myself warming to it more and more with every listen. There's a lot of nuances and subtle instrumental flourishes scattered throughout which makes me want to explore every nook and cranny of each track.

The drum, guitar and piano playing are beautiful as we've come to expect. But this doesn't feel like a classic National album. There's familiarity here, but it feels like they're ... read more

This is actually a fantastic release and one that I find myself returning to all the time this year - a weird, experimental, musically varied record from Alex G

There's beautiful moments on this thing like Proud, Bobby, Powerful Man and Sportstar. Then there's weirder cuts like Witch, Horse and Brick all of which work for the most part. The hooks are really sticky throughout and Alex G has definitely proven himself to be one of the better singer-songwriters to watch out for!

Fave tracks: ... read more

An achingly beautiful return for the band. Slowdive serve up another album of shoegaze perfection reminding us that they are one of the rightful kings of the genre.

I love the vocals and melodies all throughout the record, songs like No Longer Making Time, Sugar for the Pill and Everyone Knows come to mind. It's Slowdive doing what the do best. Building atmospheric walls of dream pop bliss.

Really no complaints with the album, it's pretty fantastic and a definite highlight of 2017.

Fave ... read more

Archy Marshall takes us on a bleak, moody journey through jazzy, rock and post punk instrumentation. The sounds here are very intricate and subdued and often don't open themselves up on first listen. This is definitely an album that would perfectly soundtrack walk through the city on a dark and dreary night.

Marshall sticks to his trademark vocals, giving us a lot of range and experimentation. The instrumentals on this album are enough to make it stand out from the crowd, but the vocals just ... read more

A beautiful album with lots of highlights. I love the female vocals led by Adrianne Lenker, she just has a very unique and soft delivery. The overall sound of the album is warm, lively and raw. I find myself coming back to it often for the blissful acoustic instrumentation.

The second half of the album is very strong with tracks 6 through 12 being absolute gems! Haley is one of my favourite tracks of the year.

Fave tracks: Shark Smile, Mythological Beauty, Haley, Black Diamonds

A fine return for the band. I admit I probably had unrealistic expectations in the lead up to the release, as well as following up their last two efforts. I thought Murphy and the gang were sitting on 24 karate gold gems and this album would be a flawless come back, but it has its flaws.

Some serious highlights on this thing including I Used To, which is this laid back, synth heavy jam and I'm really loving the theme and Murphy's delivery. How Do You Sleep is another favorite of mine and ... read more

This is a stunning, vast and open album that I'll be returning to for years to come. Fleet Foxes return with their most varied album yet, filled with gorgerous harmonies and ambitious song structures.

I'd consider Helpessness Blues their masterpiece, but this is a masterful piece of work all on its own. Having listened to it about a dozen times, you start to notice the intricacies and detail on every track. There's not a wasted moment on this thing.

Favourite tracks: I Am All That I Need / ... read more

An otherworldly debut. Hard to believe a band can be this confident on their first release!

A really beautiful listen.

Flawless.

One of my favourite albums of the last decade.

CLASSIC.

Kenny just keeps dropping them. He's on a god damn roll and nobody can stop him. Try stop him.

So many highlights on this thing. His flow is pure fire, it has genuinely beautiful melodies and the production is on point. Almost every track here delivers for me. Loyalty and XXX I just liked.

Fave tracks: DNA, HUMBLE, LOVE, PRIDE, LUST

I really liked "I Love You, Honeybear" for it's charm and whip-smart lyrics, but FJM comes through with a blinding album here. It's so painfully honest, hilarious and immaculately produced.

Josh Tillman has something interesting to say around every corner - he touches on religion, technology and our very species itself, but in a very self aware way. Highly recommend if you're looking for an album that dissects our times.

Fave tracks: Pure Comedy, Total Entertainment Forever, Ballad ... read more

I'm surprised at how often I come back to this thing. Some of the catchiest hooks in indie pop, delivered with such sweetness.

Full of energy and catchy lyrics. Hard not to kinda fall in love with it. Some of my favorite refrains:

"IN A WASTED SUMMER, WITH NO DRUMMER, WE'RE GONNA STAY IN!"

"DON'T CHECK ME OUT, DON'T CHECK ME OUT, DON'T CHECK ME OUT!"

In one ear, out the other kinda music. Pleasant but not special like previous efforts. They've been steadily declining since Days. Darling is one of the best tracks of the year though. Love the back end of Two Arrows.

Faves: Darling, Two Arrows, Stained Glass

This is actually fantastic! Took a few listens, thought some of the tracks were throw away but they really grow on you. Baybee is one of the best tracks of the year and I have a soft spot for The Bus Song too, "BUT I LIKE THE BUS!".

Overall check this out if you want some tasty vibes with catchy songwriting.

Faves: Baybee, The Bus Song, For Light, Everybody Works

The first great album of 2017! Julia Byrne creates an understated, soft and beautiful album filled with heavenly vocals and fantastic instrumentation.

There's a lot of nuances and subtleties going on here but it's very immediate too. On surface level you can enjoy these tracks on first listen just because it's so easy going and beautiful, but multiple listens will reveal a lot more and you can to appreciate these tracks on a whole new level.

I'm loving the more experimental sounds such as ... read more

Noisy, chaotic, catchy and relentless. Some great psychedelic garage rock tunes here. Love the way every track seamlessly transitions into one another, including the last and first songs so you can literally loop this thing til it melts your face off. Can't wait for their next release in 2017.

Faves: Robot Stop, Gamma Knife, Mr. Beat