Machina/The Machines of God brings heavier guitars back into the Smashing Pumpkins' music without leaving their more detailed, electronic arrangements behind. The sound is sub…
The Extremist gives Joe Satriani's instrumental rock a strong sense of variety. The heavier pieces have clear riffs and substantial rhythm playing, while acoustic passages and…
The Human Contradiction gives Delain a darker setting without losing their strong sense of a memorable song. Guitars are forceful, keyboards broaden the atmosphere and Charlot…
Chris Stapleton’s voice gives Traveller its immediate appeal, but the songs provide good reasons to stay. His solo debut moves between country, blues, Southern rock and soul w…
When a Shadow Is Forced into the Light finds strength in small differences. Swallow the Sun give heavy riffs company through acoustic guitar, strings and vulnerable singing. T…
From Silence to Somewhere makes a strong case for older progressive rock sounds in a modern recording. Wobbler use vintage keyboards, active bass and detailed guitar arrangeme…
Godbluff gives Van der Graaf Generator a tense, direct sound without removing the complexity of their progressive rock. Organ and saxophone carry much of the instrumental weig…
Is the Is Are needs considerable space for small changes. DIIV retain layered guitars, quiet singing and rhythms that can keep moving for a long time. Within that recognisable…
What's Left Unsaid gives Foreign Hands a convincing full-length statement after years of shorter releases. Their metalcore draws clearly on the early 2000s, with harsh verses,…
Iridescent gives Silent Planet's heavy music a strong sense of atmosphere without making it feel distant. Complex guitar rhythms, electronic details and several vocal approach…
Unorthodox Behaviour gives Brand X a clear balance between intricate playing and a relaxed group sound. The music moves through jazz-rock, funk and quieter acoustic settings, …
U.K. brings four distinctive musicians into a progressive rock record that sounds surprisingly connected. John Wetton's voice and bass, Bill Bruford's drums, Eddie Jobson's ke…
Providence Canyon gives Brent Cobb's relaxed country singing a stronger rhythmic push. There is still plenty of room for a plain melody, but the band often moves towards south…
Fire by the Silos uses a mostly instrumental sound to tell a dark story. Toska combine large guitar riffs, quieter atmosphere and spoken passages around a character who has lo…
The Ash & Clay keeps the Milk Carton Kids' music close to its simplest parts. Two acoustic guitars and tightly connected voices carry the songs, with little between the writin…
Mutilator Defeated at Last puts the guitar firmly at the front. Thee Oh Sees play heavily and fiercely, but the riffs have enough melody to survive without that volume. John D…
Theli places its choirs so firmly at the front that they become part of the band. Therion use them for more than making a chorus larger. They carry melodies, respond to the gu…
Lykaia puts Soen's strength in the way the musicians work together. The Swedish band combine firm progressive rock riffs with quieter, more spacious passages, leaving Joel Eke…
Frances the Mute makes little effort to ease anyone in. The Mars Volta’s second album builds five long compositions into a sprawling mix of rock, jazz and Latin rhythms. It ha…
Beyond the Veil makes Tristania's dark world even fuller. Alongside heavy guitars and growls, choir, clean male voices, piano and violin receive considerable space. The band u…
New Lords puts Mindforce's heavy guitar music into a particularly compact form. The songs move quickly, with thrash-influenced riffs, sharp leads and slower rhythmic passages …
Testify places P.O.D.'s different influences clearly alongside each other again. Heavy guitars, rapping, reggae and melodic rock all receive room. Glen Ballard's production gi…
Écailles De Lune finds much of its strength in the distance between its gentlest and most forceful music. Alcest use soft singing and flowing guitar lines to create a sense of…
A Deeper Kind of Slumber makes Tiamat's quieter side its starting point. Heavy guitars are much less central. Keyboards, electronic rhythms and Johan Edlund's clean voice dete…