The first masterpiece of what was only termed trip-hop much later, Blue Lines filtered American hip-hop through the lens of British club culture, a stylish, nocturnal sense of scene that encompassed music from rare groove to dub to dance. The album balances dark, diva-led club jams along the lines of Soul II Soul with some of the best British rap (vocals and production) heard up to that point, occasionally on the same track. The opener "Safe from Harm" is the best example, with diva vocalist Shara Nelson trading off lines with the group's own monotone (yet effective) rapping. Even more than hip-hop or dance, however, dub is the big touchstone on Blue Lines. Most of the productions aren't quite as earthy as you'd expect, but the influence is palpable in the atmospherics of the songs, like the faraway electric piano on "One Love" (with beautiful vocals from the near-legendary Horace Andy). One track, "Five Man Army," makes the dub inspiration explicit, with a clattering percussion line, moderate reverb on the guitar and drums, and Andy's exquisite falsetto flitting over the chorus. Blue Lines isn't all darkness, either -- "Be Thankful for What You've Got" is quite close to the smooth soul tune conjured by its title, and "Unfinished Sympathy" -- the group's first classic production -- is a tremendously moving fusion of up-tempo hip-hop and dancefloor jam with slow-moving, syrupy strings. Flaunting both their range and their tremendously evocative productions, Massive Attack recorded one of the best dance albums of all time. © John Bush /TiVo

At the close of experimental solo careers for both Thom Yorke and Phil Selway, and the film soundtracks of Jonny Greenwood, Radiohead has finally come back to the fold with their ninth studio album. It's proof that talent never leaves you, more than thirty years after the band got together. Talent yes, surprises no. In fact, the biggest surprise on A Moon Shaped Pool is that there is no surprise. The Oxford grown quintet has undoubtedly just released their most "classic" album, almost with their eyes closed. Yorke is omni-present in the sound, and you can hear his influence throughout. As such, it's like listening to an old Radiohead record, without having heard it before. Radiohead have set aside their experimental tendencies in favour of sometimes minimalist, sometimes luxurious arrangements. Even in the most impressive arrangements for strings, Jonny Greenwood seems to be aiming for purity, (see Daydreaming). His diverse works on the 7th Art and, most notably, for the director Paul Thomas Anderson (Greenwood penned the soundtracks to There will be Blood, The Master, and Inherent Vice) have clearly given him a new vision that makes its presence felt. Even on the most intimate tracks (Desert Island Discs), Radiohead maintains a certain majesty, and when they get to post-rock (Full Stop and Present Tense), their musique becomes grandiose. With such an album, Radiohead pushes the legend slightly further, preserves its distinct style, and adds to its already legendary discography.© CM/Qobuz

Easily the band's most adventurous, experimental, and accomplished release to date, Paramore's fourth studio album, 2013's eponymously titled Paramore, is a landmark, a genre-breaking masterwork that, like Madonna's Like a Prayer or U2's Achtung Baby, finds Paramore crystallized into the seminal, cogent rock band we always knew they'd grow up to be. For this release, Paramore worked with producer Justin Meldal-Johnsen, whose previous production credits include artists like Neon Trees and M83. Perhaps not the most obvious choice for a band that developed alongside labelmates like Fall Out Boy, but the first-time pairing explodes with chemistry, coalescing the group's grand emotionality and ridiculously tight hooks with ever new and genius musical avenues, like electronica and even orchestral flourishes. The idea that your songs should only include instrumentation that you can pack into your tour van is a practical limitation that for plenty of bands, especially those of the punk ethos, can become a downright philosophical limitation. But when original guitarist and drummer Zac and Josh Farro left the band in 2010, Paramore were forced to allow vital roles in their sound to be filled with hired professionals rather than actual bandmembers -- after all, they needed somebody to play drums. This clearly opened the band up to exploring all other manner of possibilities in the studio that they could not reasonably fit into a van or reproduce in a garage, like a board full of subtly perfect synth intonations or, in the case of one song (the immediate classic "Ain't It Fun"), a gospel choir. The change represents more than just growth; it's transcendence. Paramore have made the album of their career.The record's collaborative foundation crackles on every track, but Hayley Williams, a ballsy, extroverted frontwoman with a voice big enough to stop time, proves unequivocally to be the cunning talent of the band, no matter how vital York and Davis may be. Whether she is belting out a do-or-die alt-rock anthem like "Now" or cooing coyly on three ukulele-backed "Interludes," Williams imbues each song with a robust charisma and relentlessly positive attitude. While longtime Paramore fans will recognize the driving, no-holds-barred attack of cuts like "Daydreaming," "Anklebiters," and "Part II," the album also soars on the band's newfound use of keyboards, programming, and York's often thickly layered, heavily effected guitar. Without a doubt, even a newcomer to Paramore's music is in rapturous danger of being up all night after listening to this disc, possessed by each track's driving, perfect hook. But knowing about the drama that precipitated the album only adds further dimension, not to mention a sense of vicarious satisfaction for Paramore's glorious triumph over inter-band adversity. After all, the Farros didn't just leave, they also caused a big stink the day after announcing their departure, posting a mean-spirited diatribe about their former bandmates on the Internet. The fact that Paramore went on to not just put themselves back together, but create the best work of their entire musical tenure -- a work lyrically inspired by the Farros leaving, and unimaginable as having been stylistically possible with them still in the band -- is a revenge fantasy that would seem too sweet to be true if it weren't laid out for us all to hear. Paramore is a veritable pop opera about a band reborn, phoenix-like from the ashes of a broken lineup, better and stronger than any previous incarnation.© Matt Collar /TiVo

Easily the band's most adventurous, experimental, and accomplished release to date, Paramore's fourth studio album, 2013's eponymously titled Paramore, is a landmark, a genre-breaking masterwork that, like Madonna's Like a Prayer or U2's Achtung Baby, finds Paramore crystallized into the seminal, cogent rock band we always knew they'd grow up to be. For this release, Paramore worked with producer Justin Meldal-Johnsen, whose previous production credits include artists like Neon Trees and M83. Perhaps not the most obvious choice for a band that developed alongside labelmates like Fall Out Boy, but the first-time pairing explodes with chemistry, coalescing the group's grand emotionality and ridiculously tight hooks with ever new and genius musical avenues, like electronica and even orchestral flourishes. The idea that your songs should only include instrumentation that you can pack into your tour van is a practical limitation that for plenty of bands, especially those of the punk ethos, can become a downright philosophical limitation. But when original guitarist and drummer Zac and Josh Farro left the band in 2010, Paramore were forced to allow vital roles in their sound to be filled with hired professionals rather than actual bandmembers -- after all, they needed somebody to play drums. This clearly opened the band up to exploring all other manner of possibilities in the studio that they could not reasonably fit into a van or reproduce in a garage, like a board full of subtly perfect synth intonations or, in the case of one song (the immediate classic "Ain't It Fun"), a gospel choir. The change represents more than just growth; it's transcendence. Paramore have made the album of their career.The record's collaborative foundation crackles on every track, but Hayley Williams, a ballsy, extroverted frontwoman with a voice big enough to stop time, proves unequivocally to be the cunning talent of the band, no matter how vital York and Davis may be. Whether she is belting out a do-or-die alt-rock anthem like "Now" or cooing coyly on three ukulele-backed "Interludes," Williams imbues each song with a robust charisma and relentlessly positive attitude. While longtime Paramore fans will recognize the driving, no-holds-barred attack of cuts like "Daydreaming," "Anklebiters," and "Part II," the album also soars on the band's newfound use of keyboards, programming, and York's often thickly layered, heavily effected guitar. Without a doubt, even a newcomer to Paramore's music is in rapturous danger of being up all night after listening to this disc, possessed by each track's driving, perfect hook. But knowing about the drama that precipitated the album only adds further dimension, not to mention a sense of vicarious satisfaction for Paramore's glorious triumph over inter-band adversity. After all, the Farros didn't just leave, they also caused a big stink the day after announcing their departure, posting a mean-spirited diatribe about their former bandmates on the Internet. The fact that Paramore went on to not just put themselves back together, but create the best work of their entire musical tenure -- a work lyrically inspired by the Farros leaving, and unimaginable as having been stylistically possible with them still in the band -- is a revenge fantasy that would seem too sweet to be true if it weren't laid out for us all to hear. Paramore is a veritable pop opera about a band reborn, phoenix-like from the ashes of a broken lineup, better and stronger than any previous incarnation.© Matt Collar /TiVo

A Grand Love Story is an irresistible romp through the lighthearted, pastoral side of trip-hop by way of orchestral pop paragons like Bacharach, Gainsbourg, and Love. Songs like the single "Relaxin' With Cherry" and "She's My Lover" are beautiful pop songs, constructed mostly from sampled material with a few live guitar and basslines plus vocals by Prieur and the Pastels' Katrina Mitchell. If the '70s fixations of Air were shifted back a decade, the results would be quite close to A Grand Love Story.© John Bush /TiVo

4 stars out of 5 -- "‘Magic’ is motivational whilst showing off The Big Moon’s flawless harmonies. And then ‘Daydreaming’ hosts their lofty sound again as jubilant tambourines and grandiose piano chords conjure up moments of simplicity and free-spiritedness."© TiVo

Mick Hucknall and Simply Red are rightly inseparable in the minds of most listeners -- he is the frontman and the star, the one constant in the band's history -- but the singer's short-lived solo career of 2008-2012 proved there was a difference between Hucknall and the group. Big Love, the album the reunited Simply Red recorded to celebrate their 30th anniversary in 2015, isn't as in thrall to the past as the vocalist's two albums of covers, nor is it as comfortable with rock as 2007's Stay. It is, as the title suggests, a record that is romantic to its very core, an album whose bones are as exquisitely smooth as its surfaces (the loungey tongue-in-cheek saloon song "The Old Man and the Beer" is the exception that proves the rule). Even when the tempo picks up a notch on Big Love -- and it doesn't happen all that often -- the speedier songs come in the form of a slow-burning disco tune, an aesthetic that isn't all that far removed from Simply Red's enduring allegiance to the smoothest sounds of the '70s, specifically Philly soul. At times, the overall veneer is a shade too clean, suggesting nothing so much as cocktail hour at a classy conference, but the fact that Hucknall and Simply Red choose to celebrate the softer, soulful sounds of the '70s by doubling down on the smoothness does separate them from the legions of neo-soul divas in the new millennium. Let those singers scale operatic towers: this lot prefers to take it easy and is charming for it.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

Has chillwave stood the test of time? For answers, let’s look at one of the genre’s pioneers: Ernest Greene a.k.a. Washed Out. Within five seconds, Mister Mellow, released by Stones Throw, a Californian label usually associated with underground hip hop, reminds us the rules of the game haven’t changed one bit. Here’s a third album cleverly flirting with mixed effects, synths, loops, samples and filtered vocals and simply accompanied by pure melody lines. Much like his counterparts Neon Indian and Toro y Moi, Greene orchestrates a kind of easy-listening hype of the third millennium, an utterly hedonistic soundtrack. In this field, Mister Mellow carries out its mission perfectly, Washed Out’s brain never omitting to give a radiant and summery tone to his music. © CM/Qobuz

At the close of experimental solo careers for both Thom Yorke and Phil Selway, and the film soundtracks of Jonny Greenwood, Radiohead has finally come back to the fold with their ninth studio album. It's proof that talent never leaves you, more than thirty years after the band got together. Talent yes, surprises no. In fact, the biggest surprise on A Moon Shaped Pool is that there is no surprise. The Oxford grown quintet has undoubtedly just released their most "classic" album, almost with their eyes closed. Yorke is omni-present in the sound, and you can hear his influence throughout. As such, it's like listening to an old Radiohead record, without having heard it before. Radiohead have set aside their experimental tendencies in favour of sometimes minimalist, sometimes luxurious arrangements. Even in the most impressive arrangements for strings, Jonny Greenwood seems to be aiming for purity, (see Daydreaming). His diverse works on the 7th Art and, most notably, for the director Paul Thomas Anderson (Greenwood penned the soundtracks to There will be Blood, The Master, and Inherent Vice) have clearly given him a new vision that makes its presence felt. Even on the most intimate tracks (Desert Island Discs), Radiohead maintains a certain majesty, and when they get to post-rock (Full Stop and Present Tense), their musique becomes grandiose. With such an album, Radiohead pushes the legend slightly further, preserves its distinct style, and adds to its already legendary discography.© CM/Qobuz

To the untrained eye, silken-voiced Will Downing may seem merely an R&B journeyman, making solid, soulful records year after year, just on the edge of stardom. However, there has to be more to an artist whose first hit single is an update of John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme." And, indeed, EMOTIONS, the singer's tenth album, features a jazz undercurrent (no, not Kenny G "jazz"), sincerely channeling the spirit of Bill Withers and Al Green records past.EMOTIONS opens with a tender jam (gutsily "for the fellas"), "A Million Ways," which asserts "making love ain't just in the bed." In this chronicle of the simple ways to please a woman, Downing creates such a smooth groove that the complexities of love seem rather basic. Later in the album, he manages to discover a new angle to the oft-covered "Hey There Lonely Girl," his baritone contrasting with the falsetto of the most famous version. Will Downing's been at it for decades, but he shows on EMOTIONS that after all this time, he can still summon up the most sensual recesses of the soul.© TiVo

On The Secret Value of Daydreaming, the follow-up to his successful debut, Julian Lennon emphasizes his mainstream pop leanings by adding a tighter, more polished production which brings out the best in his songs. That is, it does when the songwriting is up to par. Lennon had some difficulty producing a consistent set of songs for his second album, with only a handful of tracks -- including the hit "Stick Around" -- standing out amidst the slick, immaculately produced material.© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo

The Time went down in history as one of the most exciting and influential funk bands of the 1980s, although the Minneapolis outfit was only around for about half the decade. In 1984, the Time broke up, and by 1985 Morris Day and Jesse Johnson were officially full-time solo artists. Released in late 1987, Day's second solo album, Daydreaming, generally falls short of the excellence of his work with the Time -- and, for that matter, it isn't as consistent as his first solo effort, The Color of Success. Nonetheless, it's generally enjoyable, if mildly uneven; even at his second best, Day could easily smoke the competition in the 1980s. Many people tend to think of Daydreaming as a Jimmy Jam/Terry Lewis project but, in fact, Day's former bandmates only produced two tracks: the ballad "Love Is a Game" and the sexy gem "Fishnet" (a major hit). Everything else on this album was produced by Day himself, and that includes Minneapolis funk-pop smokers like "Are You Ready" and "Moonlight (Passionlite)" as well as the melancholy ballad "A Man's Pride." Much of the time, Day's mischievous sense of humor is a definite asset -- and the fact that he is usually so humorous and playful makes the melancholia of "A Man's Pride" really stand out. Generally decent and occasionally excellent, Daydreaming falls short of essential but is still worth acquiring for fans of the Minneapolis sound.© Alex Henderson /TiVo