GOOD. Folly Group's Down There! spends its run largely playing in the shadow of other Dance and Post-Punk legends, but there are enough interesting ideas and clear talents for the artform within to earn its keep as part of the Post-Punk Revival.

ABOMINABLE. This is a great representation of the kind of record that deserves a 0. Not only is it awful in its own right, but Acidgvrl brazenly parades around sewerslvt's aesthetic corpse like some kind of zoomer brainrot Kylo Ren. A true blight on the artform.

BAD. Dutchmasters' substation, my home. melancholy, my bride. is a potentially interesting idea that was released half, or even quarter-baked. This record needed more time in the oven, but as it stands, it's two decent Screamotronica tracks sandwiching a bunch of underdeveloped demos.

VERY GOOD. Infant Island's Obsidian Wreath is a great Blackgaze record from start to finish. The shorter length of some of the tracks and the album as a whole avoids the pitfalls of a lot of Metal records that meander and pontificate for far too long on a single idea. While it does feel like Infant Island could have covered more ground, Obsidian Wreath is a solid effort in the right direction.

FINE. Gumshoes' Cacophony is a more creative, charming, and inspired Interpol record than Interpol has managed to put out in over a decade, but that isn't saying much.

FINE. While very much so another Cloud Rap record riding the Rage bandwagon, NIKOWOODYEAR's PROJECT NEON* does contain a few interesting ideas interspersed throughout the record, enough to make it a tolerable listen.

POOR. Despite not being grating at any point, 18 DAYS presents an incredibly generic, uninspired ambient record, and sleep feeling adds nothing to a genre already so full of bland filler. You'd have a better sonic experience playing singing bowls in your basement.

POOR. A bit of a dated record for this point in the game, (not to be confused with:) The Game and Big Hit's collab record. Paisley Dreams is a drab West Coast Hip-Hop record that fails to do anything that would make it worth a re-listen, be it spitting interesting bars or spinning impressive beats.

GOOD. Fun, catchy, and charming, Eric Doa's first effort since internet memedom, DOA is a nice breath of youthful energy into the stale Hip-Pop / Alt-Pop sphere.

FINE. Lord Dying's Clandestine Transcendence is a decent Progressive Metal record, but it's nothing to write home about.

FINE. Brown Horse's debut record, Reservoir establishes a nice Alt-Country sound, reminiscent of Phil Molina. At the beginning of the album, I was impressed by their great use of multiple vocalists and gorgeous guitars. However, they don't expand or explore too deep in any direction after that, and it leaves the record feeling stale by the end.

FINE. A truly solid Jazz effort with a splash of Noise. Desiderata is a real highlight, but other than that it's very standard fare.

VERY GOOD. For an Atmospheric Black Metal record, sonically, Vemod's The Deepening explores a lot of ground. All of which fit the concept of the record, listening to The Deepening feels like being transported from medieval Norway to Valhalla.

POOR. My Zoomer receptors left me wholly unable to enjoy this record. I almost fell asleep twice, and while that may be seen as somewhat of an endorsement given the genre, I couldn't help but feel like I've heard it all before. I could see this as being a "fine" album to some, but it isn't anything special.

BAD. Clichéd, dated, uncharismatic. CONNIE'S Hi_TEK MZK, VOL. 1 is impressive only in how many terrible vocal performances are on the record. Every track on this record sounds like an extremely amateurish version of a better song elsewhere in the hip-hop or electronic spheres.

GOOD. SENTRIES' sophomore record, Snow as a Metaphor for Death was a solid Industrial / Noise Rock album. Each track, except Ding Ding Ding is given time to breathe and develop, and the band showcases a surprisingly wide sonic range across only 8 tracks. That being said, there isn't anything novel or cutting-edge here, just a really solid effort in an already well-explored arena.

FINE. As if they were frozen in ice, blind to the passage of time, The Fauns have released a shoegaze record that would have been impressive 30 years ago. Despite being very sterile and risk-free, the record does a fine job of being just another shoegaze record (the final track is actually quite good).

BAD. Not only is this record full of the most manufactured, by-the-numbers production I've heard in a while, but Fredo Bang joins the long list of rappers with the emotional intelligence of a 6th grader trying to make a "deep" record and simultaneously showing almost no introspection. Bad for the culture, bad for your ears.

FINE. Besides the amusing couple of tracks that sound like a song your "hip" history teacher would play in class, this is power metal by the numbers.

POOR. Expecting Black people and getting a bunch of British people instead is probably the worst surprise of the new year so far. Jokes aside, while the instrumentals are genuinely listenable, the lyricism and vocal delivery sounds straight out of the shittiest pub in Manchester. I don't think I'll ever get the word "Dirtch" scrubbed from my mind completely.