This is the cool breezy indie rock record I was looking for during the summer. There is nothing really ambitious about this album but it doesn't need to be. This album is practically therapy. The melodies throughout are nothing but gorgeous. Altogether this album goes down smooth and will leave you with a smile on your face.

Teens of Denial sounds like an album made by a veteran band, who has proven what it takes to make a great album. This is a great indie rock record that is needed in a year devoid with great indie rock projects. It is full of slow-rock anthems, memorable lines, and powerful tunes. It is lengthy but it does not bore you. That is the ultimate sign, that this band has the potential to do more great things in the future.

What we have here is a very solid alternative R&B record that takes together many different music styles to make one cohesive project. Lanza displays that she can blend into an array of pop and R&B styles without neccesarily sounding like she is knocking off some of her contemporaries.

This album is an amazing work of art, with only a couple of duds. It is the gospel album that TLOP should have been. Its best moments are heaven high, and its worst are dirt poor. Overall, the album feels like a bowl of sunshine; and it will simply make you smile. Chance has shown that it is possible to be successful in rap music by glorifying the positive things in life. Coming from a city like Chicago, Chance is much needed.

Death Grips fakes their retirement from music, and comes back with another mind-bending, throttling album. This album is one of their most abrasive, however, it does have its moments of being catchy. I'm not head over heels with this album, but I appreciate that this band is relentless in pursuing new avenues to push their music forward.

Radiohead are definitely back with this album. It is an incredibly crafted and rewarding album both emotionally and musically. Thom Yorke sounds more refreshed than ever. It is painful album that is easy on the ears. New sounds and new feelings emerge from this record. It's just a superb album, and I'm excited that this happened.

What works about this album is its energy and the fact that it is a short enjoyable album. However, it does lack the punch of White Lung's previous album. It is a solid punk record, but there isn't something that holds a lot of weight from the album.

This was an album that I had my problems with. There were times when listening to this album that I felt sheer beauty. However, there were songs that just completely went nowhere. This really could have benefitted from a reduction in the length of the album.

Overall this album is not the greatest art pop album ever made. However, I do feel that it is an innovative art pop album with some powerful messages. With the exception of two lackluster tracks, HOPELESSNESS serves to be a great pop album with superb production.

This turned out to be one of the more disappointing albums this year. Views is monotonous and very slow-paced. The album drags on too long, and Drake's sound is starting to reveal its flaws. Despite a few good tracks, it doesn't help in making the album listenable.

Beyonce comes through with an album that is mostly brilliant from beginning to end. The fact that it is a visual album makes it even better. Beyonce comes through with another pop album that is just on another level to all other mainstream pop artists. The lyrics are personal and heartfelt. The production on this record is top-notch. It is ambitious and bold.

I was honestly surprised that I really found myself enjoying this album. Simpson has a knack for writing and producing straightforward and fluid country songs. These songs are far different from mainstream country, and they come together to make a project that is as majestic as the album cover.

It is defintely not the strongest PJ Harvey record. Some songs just aren't as well drawn out or don't have that poignancy as previous Harvey records. However, it is still one solid record with a strong core message. At the end of it all, it makes for a fulfilling listen.

It feels similar to Virgins in terms of how Hecker combines elements of synthetic sounds within organic spaces. It is beautiful at times, but seems to lack the suspense of his previous album. Still Hecker continues to prove that is an elite artist in ambient music.

Overall this album was pretty enjoyable. I really enjoy most of the brief tracks which are like detours from some of main concepts displayed in the album. But honestly, I feel this album pales in comparison to their previous two albums. Nonetheless, I feel they are becoming one of the more creative and consistent indie rock bands.

The title says it all.

The Wilderness is a album that you can listen to with no difficulties and you appreciate the moments it gives you. However, I feel underwhelmed when I compare it to other instrumental post-rock records I have heard in the last few years. It is a solid record but it lacks ambition.

Open Mike Eagle tries to change the feel of this record to a more subdued affair, and it doesn't always work. It lacks the punch of his previous record. It is listenable but besides a few songs not much is memorable

It's an album that at first I was a little unimpressed by. However, with multiple listens the grooves and moods reveal themselves more, and overall you get a pretty decent house record.

This is sample-heavy electronic music. But its intricacies in the music make it build up into a sometimes powerful feeling. Overall it is an album that can surprise and uplift, although it has some hurdles.