  | | James Reyne | | Thirteen | | Thirty years ago, James Reyne’s old band Australian Crawl ranked alongside Cold Chisel as the biggest act in the land. Craig Mathieson reflected on Crawl’s legacy in his book Playlisted,... more |
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|  | | Brian Jonestown Massacre | | Aufheben | | | Deciphering the contradictory meanings of the German album title (abolish, transcend, stay the same!?) may bring us closer to the beautiful mess that is Anton Newcombe’s cerebral cortex. With... more |
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 | | Squarepusher | | Ufabulum | | | Tom ‘Squarepusher’ Jenkinson returns to the spotlight with another intense record, this time fusing hyperactive glitch with blurted breakbeats and generous synths. Much of Ufabulum is... more |
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|  | | Santigold | | Master of My Make-Believe | | | Santi White’s debut as Santigold in 2008 was an exceptional exploration of the possibilities of modern pop. Skilled songwriting matched with playful and experimental production meant that the... more |
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 | | Lee Fields | | Faithful Man | | | The Lee Fields story isn’t unique. Highly respected and collected by ’70s funk aficionados, the North Carolina-born singer has spent most of his 43-year career as a kind of perpetual understudy,... more |
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|  | | Carolina Chocolate Drops | | Leaving Eden | | | The Carolina Chocolate Drops are an old time string band with a difference. The founders met at the first Black Banjo Gathering in 2005, and were thus inspired to research and revitalise the... more |
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 | | Iron Maiden | | En Vivo | | | A new live offering from Iron Maiden is of little surprise nowadays: it’s common knowledge that every world tour gets documented for prosperity. But what’s great is that Australia has become... more |
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|  | | Tommy Bolin | | Great Gypsy Soul | | | Guitarist Tommy Bolin’s brief career included stints in the James Gang (‘73-‘74), Deep Purple (‘75-‘76), and as a sideman for fusion musicians Billy Cobham and Alphonse Mouzon. He also recorded... more |
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 | | Buckley Ward | | So Pretend | | | Buckley Ward’s second album features a song called Status Quo, but this Melbourne band has little in common with the UK rockers. Instead, they’re mining similar territory to The Temper... more |
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|  | | Liz Stringer | | Warm in the Darkness | | | “You get what you all deserve,” Liz Stringer declares in the opener album four. I’m not sure about that, because if there was any justice in the music world, Stringer would already be a star.... more |
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 | | Butterfly Boucher | | Butterfly Boucher | | | “So you think you can dance, do you?” Butterfly Boucher challenges. “Watch me dance!” Post-major label limbo, Boucher is embracing independence, singing, “I want to feel the way I did when I... more |
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|  | | Charlie Horse | | I Hope I'm Not a Monster | | | Where’s Crystal Rose been hiding? Charlie Horse’s debut shows she’s done some living. And, she’s a woman you shouldn’t cross. “I’ll bring you dead roses,”she sings,“to show I still care/ I’ll... more |
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 | | Alabama Shakes | | Boys and Girls | | | Remember hearing Al Green, Zeppelin, Stones, Black Crowes (the early, cool shiz) or even Buffalo Killers? If it was pure release of endorphins, memory, excitement, hope and triumphant self abandon... more |
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 | | Silversun Pickups | | Neck of the Woods | | | A slow-burn epic is the call for today – a sound conjuring Smashing Pumpkins meets a lighter Mars Volta (sans jerking about). Still, the light and shade evokes some of the angst and energy of... more |
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|  | | The Men | | Open Your Heart | | | An innovative collective of dudes who know exactly what to do with a guitar. Punkish spirit, with a dash of country and melodic experimentation. At times they’re Foo Fighters, others they’re... more |
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 | | Simian Mobile Disco | | Unpatterns | | | While not purely instrumental like 2010’s Delicacies or guest-stacked like 2009’s Temporary Pleasure, Simian Mobile Disco’s new album reintroduces vocals without overdoing them.... more |
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|  | | Various Artists | | Harmony, Melody & Style | | | Harmony, Melody & Style: Lovers Rock & Rare Groove in the UK — you may not know many songs or artists on this two-disc compilation, but the sentiment rings out loud and clear: love,... more |
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 | | Orbital | | Wonky | | | On their first new album in eight years, English brothers Paul and Phil Hartnoll don’t exactly depart from their comfort zone. Dancefloor imperatives still get washed in a euphoric glow, right... more |
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|  | | Max Crumbs | | Maidenhair | | | At once lush and fractured, prolific Melbourne experimenter Max Kohane packs surprises on every track of his latest outing. It’s a sample-delic séance of ambience and glitch spiked with hip... more |
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 | | Damon Albarn | | Dr Dee | | | Once located at the centre of English chart pop with Blur, Damon Albarn has since undertaken a series of remarkable high profile projects, distinguished by diversity and ambition. It’s testament... more |
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|  | | Graham Coxon | | A+E | | | Following the eventful days of Blur’s Britpop peak, Graham Coxon has kept the musical flame alive with a steady output. Understated and often endearingly lo-fi, his traditional punk guitar aesthetic... more |
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 | | Smoke Fairies | | Blood Speaks | | | Blood Speaks is both a meditation on London life and the mental liberation offered by time spent travelling away from home. Previous album Through Low Light and Trees used a stark... more |
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|  | | Spiritualized | | Sweet Heart Sweet Light | | | Troubled pop songs dealing with broad themes of survival form the foundation of Sweet Heart Sweet Light, an album written under difficult circumstances as singer Jason Pierce was treated... more |
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 | | Jonwayne | | Oodles of Doodles | | | Another youngster to rise out of LA’s burgeoning beat scene, MC/producer Jonwayne strikes gold on the aptly titled Oodles of Doodles. This extended, 44-track beat tape is as wonderfully... more |
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|  | | Kwes | | Meantime | | | Young Londoner Kwes has made huge strides in a ridiculously short time. The producer/songwriter/vocalist has lent his production hand to records by Speech Debelle, Dels and last year’s fantastic... more |
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 | | Obie Trice | | Bottoms Up | | | You’d suspect nothing had changed, spending time with the glossy, hookridden beats and agile gangsterisms that populate Obie Trice’s new joint. There was chatter a-plenty surrounding the Detroit... more |
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|  | | Slugabed | | Time Team | | | Brighton, UK-based producer Slugabed (aka Greg Feldwick) traverses some distant sonic terrains for an artist of such a young age. His full-length debut feels as much rooted in lateral house... more |
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 | | Simone Felice | | Simone Felice | | | Simone Felice is one of those special people who come along rarely. There’s just something outstanding about his craft, the songs, the voice and the arrangements. From The Catskill Mountains... more |
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|  | | Lucero | | Women and Work | | | When you’re a band that comes from a city like Memphis, Tennessee, you can’t help but be affected by the strong musical history of the city. Lucero (said band) have been together for 14 years... more |
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 | | Stoney Joe | | Brown Bread and Rice | | | Stoney Joe are a bunch of easy rollin’ cowboys from Perth. Hold on to your hats and settle into your saddle as they take you on a spaghetti western journey through the prairies (of Western Australia)... more |
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|  | | Shooter Jennings | | Family Man | | | Waylon Albright Jennings is the only son of the legendary Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter (also a country singer). When ‘Shooter’ started playing music, it was hard and heavy rock – but over... more |
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 | | High On Fire | | De Vermis Mysteriis | | | ‘Sludge’, ‘stoner’, ‘doom’: these are a few of the labels attached to High on Fire. What I hear is a heavy metal band with strong connections to Black Sabbath: this is brought home on their... more |
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|  | | Jeff Loomis | | Plains of Oblivion | | | With Nevermore’s unexpected 2011 demise, guitarist/main songwriter Jeff Loomis has resurfaced with solo album two, Plains of Oblivion. As with Zero Order Phase, Plains of Oblivion... more |
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 | | Overkill | | The Electric Age | | | Overkill is one resilient band. Their back catalogue isn’t perfect, but unlike many of their peers they never disbanded, or strayed too far from their core sound. The band found acclaim with... more |
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|  | | Meshuggah | | Koloss | | | For many, Meshuggah are more than a band. These leaders of the math metal genre define it more then any other. So why do I feel Meshuggah have stagnated with Koloss? A handful of tracks... more |
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 | | Loudon Wainwright III | | Older Than My Old Man Now | | | The title (Loudon III is now older than his father, who died in 1988 aged 63) hints at the reflective mood that prevails on this album. No less than five generations of Wainwrights make contributions,... more |
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|  | | Bonnie Raitt | | Slipstream | | | Bonnie Raitt’s first new album in seven years is a welcome return for the great singer/slide guitarist. As usual, her song selection is impeccable, as she moves seamlessly from funky up-tempo... more |
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 | | Trombone Shorty | | For True | | | How many bands can you name in which a trombone is the lead instrument? Let me introduce you to Troy Andrews (aka Trombone Shorty), his band Orleans Avenue and their irresistible new album.... more |
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|  | | Michael Kiwanuka | | Home Again | | | It’s the warm, soulful voice of this 25 year-old London singer/songwriter that makes an instant impression. Inspired by the soul/folk/jazz cross pollination of Bill Withers’ music, the former... more |
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 | | Cold Chisel | | No Plans | | | Jimmy Barnes comes out swinging on the title-track of No Plans “Yeah, f**k you” he barks,“shut the f**k up.” The test of a comeback record? How many songs qualify for a ‘best-of’: perhaps... more |
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|  | | Dr John | | Locked Down | | | Since the ‘50s he’s been a renegade, a cross between the Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ ethos of esoteric ecstasy meets a Tom Waits disregard for conformity; the good Doctor is an anomaly of modern... more |
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 | | Leftfield | | Tourism | | | Leftfield breathe new life into selections from their two studio albums, 1992’s Leftism and 1995’s Rhythm and Stealth, on this marathon two-disc live album. It was recorded at none other... more |
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|  | | Thee Satisfaction | | Awe Naturale | | | As indicated by this record’s title, Thee Satisfaction offer an unadorned, but strikingly original style on their full-length debut. Hailing from Seattle, rapper/producer Stasia Irons and singer... more |
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 | | Quakers | | Quakers | | | Projects like Quakers can turn awry fast. The notion of bringing together three witheringly brilliant production minds sounds fun – Portishead’s Geoff Barrow, Portishead engineer Stuart Matthews... more |
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