Fleetwood Mac’s 1977 album Rumours has sold over 40 million albums to date. To this day, Rumours is inextricable from the story of its creation, a process that took over the band members’ lives at the exact time four of its members were severing romantic ties and a fifth was dealing with a breakup of his own.

You could say Matthew Mondanile’s idea of a “solo” project has become a little skewed. The Real Estate guitarist’s fourth outing as Ducktails includes support from New Jersey outfit Big Troubles and contributions from Cults, Oneohtrix Point Never, and Outer Limitz (to name a few).

The sophomore full-length from this Southern California band is awash in jumpy melodies and general Cali-pop exuberance. Supported by falsetto vocals, the songs’ arrangements range from the slightly synthesized (“Little Souls”) to the ultra twee (about every other song on the album).

Crafted with meticulous detail and restraint, The Kid With a Bike captures an intrinsic understanding of what it feels like when young people find themselves in that crucial moment of life when growing up isn’t a choice, but rather an impreative.

A swirling, centripetal force guides Veronica Falls’ sophomore effort Waiting for Something to Happen. The album’s 13 wistful numbers have a billowing jangle reminiscent of Felt, Talulah Gosh, The Aislers Set—really, name any C86 touchstone or one of their acolytes.

Steven Soderbergh’s Side Effects is a frenetic propulsion of changing dynamics and plot twists, in the vein of some of the classiest Hollywood classics, without deigning to undercooked pastiche.

Frightened Rabbit’s major label full-length debut is a triumphant album. It expertly expands on their previous work with a big, muscular series of anthems that investigate faith, masculinity, and Scottish identity while sharpening their increasingly identifiable brand of wry, thoughtful songwriting.

Singular in its scope as a Nazi/Holocaust narrative, Lore approaches a complicated subject in an uncompromising way, building upon Arendt’s “Banality of Evil” thesis to show ordinary characters in a complex world.

When Radiohead put out The King of Limbs online with just five days’ notice, Al Horner wrote an excellent blog post on how the immediacy of the release spelled impending doom for music journalism. Now, with m b v, My Bloody Valentine may have perfected the art of the unreviewable album.