Great Albums (Lovers EP Part II/Timecop1983)

Year: 2017

If you're in the mood for some serious synthwave, this EP will hook you from start to end. Each of the seven songs strikes with deadly consistency, simultaneously lifting you up and pulling you down, like breaking up with someone while eating your favorite ice cream. I don't know what the deal is with this genre, except that I can't get enough of it. Whatever you're doing Timecop1983, it's working.

Personal Picks: "Girl" and "Falling Apart"

Great Albums (Side Pony/Lake Street Dive)

Year: 2016

There's something quite approachable about their music. It's almost familiar, and definitely not in a bad way. Side Pony is to this decade what I imagine The Byrds' Sweetheart Of The Rodeo was to the psychedelic '60s - an honest and unreserved tribute to the power of a clean melody.

Personal Picks: "How Good It Feels" stands out for me. Other favorites include "Call Off Your Dogs" and "Mistakes".

Great Albums (Thinking In Textures/Chet Faker)

Year: 2012

The debut EP by Australian electronica artist Chet Faker, Thinking In Textures combines R&B inspired vocals with downtempo backing tracks to deliver thirty minutes of sheer groove-laden bliss. The melodies are catchy but not intrusive, and you can probably play the album on loop while going about your work.

Personal Picks: "No Diggity (cover)" and "Cigarettes And Chocolate"

Great Albums (Illinois/Sufjan Stevens)

Year: 2005

Delightfully quirky and sombre at the same time, Illinois typifies what I have come to love about Stevens' songwriting. Many of the songs on the album have been given the (almost trademark) "baroque" treatment, with lush musical arrangements reminiscent of the '70s Canterbury scene, albeit with simpler melodic and lyrical structures. However, venture beyond this grandiose landscape, and you can't help being disarmed by the melancholic undertones prevalent throughout the album. It is this subtlety that makes Illinois stand apart in the ocean of contemporary indie pop music.

Personal Picks: "Chicago", "The Predatory Wasp Of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us!" and "The Tallest Man, The Broadest Shoulders"

Great Albums (Dive/Tycho)

Year: 2011

I've been listening to this album regularly for the past few months. Unlike most offerings in the ambient music genre, Dive incorporates deep bass grooves, synthesized beats, and other elements that one usually associates with EDM. However, the music won't urge you to tear it up on the dance floor. Instead, you'll find yourself softly bobbing along to one of its tracks as you go about your work. Highly recommended for people who like to listen to music at work.

Personal Picks: "Daydream", "Coastal Brake", "Adrift", and "Epigram"

Great Albums (Tubular Beats/Mike Oldfield)

Year: 2013

A remix album, Tubular Beats is a collaboration between legendary multi-instrumentalist Mike Oldfield and electronica artist Torsten Stenzel (York). Fans of the original Tubular Bells album (like me) will particularly love the downtempo treatment. A beautifully crafted synth masterpiece, Tubular Beats contains plenty of goodies for fans of techno and new age music alike.

Personal Picks: "Ommadawn", "Guilty" and "Never Too Far (featuring Tarja Turunen)"

Great Albums (The Blackening/Machine Head)

Year: 2007

I've been listening to The Blackening quite excessively these past few weeks. While songs like "Aesthetics Of Hate" and "Beautiful Mourning" provide plenty of thrashy goodness, "Clenching The Fists Of Dissent" and "Wolves" are considerably more complex, and demonstrate the band's high level of skill and maturity. There really isn't a single weak moment on the entire album. Highly recommended for any metal fan.

Personal Picks: "Beautiful Mourning", "Halo" and "Wolves"

Great Albums (Among The Leaves/Sun Kil Moon)

Year: 2012

Mark Kozelek's voice disarms you in the opening track itself. Kozelek keeps it simple, playing a nylon string guitar and singing, occasionally accompanied on the drums and bass guitar.

Personal Picks: "Sunshine In Chicago" is an uplifting ode to the windy city. "Red Poison" and "That Bird Has A Broken Wing" have a classic Californian sound. "Among The Leaves" is probably the most approachable song on the album. "Elaine" is a suite-style masterpiece. 

Great Albums (Taking Up Your Precious Time/Pretty Lights)

Year: 2006

The first full length release by electronic artist and DJ Pretty Lights. Each track is rich in melody and uniquely introspective. The album is almost completely instrumental, with only patches of vocals scattered here and there. Etta James' voice has been sampled in "Finally Moving", and the soul influence is also apparent on songs like "Down The Line", "Switch Up" and "Happiness". TUYPT is available as a free mp3 download on the official website.

Personal Picks:  "Stay", "Empty Station", "Samso" and "Try To Remember" give the album its richly dark sound.

Great Albums (Space Is Only Noise/Nicolas Jaar)

Year : 2011

In Space Is Only Noise what debutant Nicolas Jaar focuses on is the space between beats. It is for this reason that his compositions are noticeably slow-tempo. Many extraneous sounds have been added to the listening experience, sounds which almost seem commonplace, like the soft 'plop' of a water droplet. In his own words, "More unintentional things happen within the beats." All in all, a thrilling work of art, to be enjoyed in complete silence, preferably with head/earphones.

Personal Picks : "Colomb", "Too Many Kids Finding Rain In The Dust" and "I Got A Woman".

Great Albums (undun/Roots)

Year : 2011

This is one whopper of a concept album by the hip-hop group. Released less than a month ago, it features non-traditional lush arrangements that focus as much on the melody as on the groove. The guitar hooks are some of the slickest I've ever heard, reaffirming my belief that guitarist 'Captain' Kirk Douglas is one of the coolest people on the planet. One of the most refreshing sounds of the year, "undun" concludes 2011 in style.

Personal Picks : "Kool On" and "Lighthouse" are my current favourites.

Great Albums (Portraits/Vangelis)

Year : 1996

When recommending a small portion from a body of work as varied as that of Greek composer Vangelis, one runs the risk of sounding biased. That being said, "Portraits" - a collection of some of his 'greatest hits' including a few of his best co-written songs with Yes frontman Jon Anderson - is an excellent introductory album for the new listener while also containing enough rarities to please the devoted fan. A must-have for any new age/synthesizer aficionado.

Personal Picks : "To The Unknown Man", "Italian Song", "Conquest Of Paradise" and "Antarctica".

Great Albums (Ricochet/Tangerine Dream)

Year : 1975

Krautrock at its finest. This German electronica outfit was notorious for its live shows, which were excessively loud and sometimes performed in complete darkness. "Ricochet" is the first of their many live recordings. Interestingly, most of their live music was never released as studio material. The album consists of two compositions, "Ricochet Part 1" and "Ricochet Part 2", each over 15 minutes long. The substantial use of synthesisers, electric guitars and percussion marked a significant shift in the band's sound, from psychedelia to electronic rock, paving the way for modern trance music.

Personal Picks : I'm slightly partial towards Part 2. Do what I do and play the album when you're going to sleep. You'll really listen to it then.

Great Albums (Hejira/Joni Mitchell)

Year : 1976

Almost entirely written during a road trip across the US, "Hejira" is easily Mitchell's most experimental album, with songs that touch upon a range of subjects and emotions. It is also her most cohesive album, with song after song merging effortlessly. Her soft guitar hooks and Pastorius' bass coalesce beautifully in songs like "Coyote", "Hejira" and "Black Crow". Fellow folkster Neil Young pitches in with a harmonica cameo in "Furry Sings The Blues".

Personal Picks : It's a short album. I recommend listening to it in its entirety. 

Great Albums (Purpendicular/Deep Purple)

Year : 1996

There isn't a subgenre of rock music that Deep Purple haven't contributed to. In a career spanning over three decades (barring an 8-year hiatus somewhere along the way) they've dabbled in rock n' roll, heavy metal, progressive rock, funk and even soul. "Purpendicular" summarises this diversity brilliantly, with twelve powerful songs featuring stellar performances by (then) newly recruited guitarist Steve Morse and of course, organist John Lord (who, together with Rick Wakeman of Yes and Rick Wright of Pink Floyd, form the holy trinity of British rock keyboardists).

Personal Picks : The guitar-laden "Vavoom: Ted The Mechanic", Roger Glover's great bass playing and Ian Gillan's vocals in "Loosen My Strings", the keyboards in "A Touch Away" and drummer Ian Paice's cowbell-ridden grooves in "Somebody Stole My Guitar".

Great Albums (Within My Walls/The Idan Raichel Project)

Year : 2008

If the previous, eponymously titled album by the Israeli singer/songwriter has most of the hits, this one has a much more balanced and well-rounded collection of songs. The tone of the album is definitely mellower than the earlier material. Most of the songs have been recorded in collaboration with fellow artists, and feature some excellent guest performances.

Personal picks : "She'eriot Shel Ha'Chaim" (Scraps Of Life), "Mai Nahar" (River Waters) and "Min Nhar Li Mshiti" (From The Day You Left)

Great Albums (System Of A Down/System Of A Down)

Year : 1998

If you've heard some of the songs off their later, more prominent albums like Toxicity and Mesmerize/Hypnotize you've probably made up your mind about them already - an explosive, politically motivated bunch of nutcases who sound really low-key one moment and wreak havoc on your eardrums the next. Now if I tell you that their debut album makes the latter stuff seem almost tame in comparison, you can imagine the aural onslaught in store. Don't dismiss it as some kind of fancy noise, though. Malakian (guitar) comes through with a few riffs that would give many metal guitarists (I shall refrain from taking names here) a run for their money. And of course, this is one of the tightest bands around.

Personal picks : "Suggestions", "Spiders", "Peephole" and "Darts"

Great Albums (Move Like This/Cars)

Year : 2011

2011 is turning into the year of the veterans. Tom Petty, Foo Fighters, Stevie Nicks and Ray Davies have all released albums this year, but "Move Like This" by The Cars takes the cake. Their first album in 24 years, it sounds so awesome I've been listening to little else the past week. Synth-rock at its finest.

Personal Picks : The poignant "Soon", The club anthem "Sad Song" and the soulful "Take Another Look".

Great Albums (The Unforgettable Fire/U2)

Year: 1984

Having received commercial success with their first three albums, U2 sought a more art-rock sound in their next. For this, they roped in Brian Eno (Talking Heads) as producer. And boy, did he deliver. The album is filled to the brim with ambient textures and guitar-driven atmospheres and marks a major shift in the band's playing. Clayton's straight basslines and Mullen's no-nonsense drumming thankfully step in, however, and keep the listener from going into orbit. The collaboration with Brian Eno, of course, went on to become a hugely successful one.

Personal Picks: Trust me, play this album from the beginning and don't bother about the tracklist. Oh, and it'll help if you're in space.

Great Albums (Ballads/Richard Marx)

Year:  1994

Few people who've lived the nineties can say that they haven't heard of Richard Marx. His piano serenade "Right Here Waiting" has been included in every Valentine's Day compilation since its release. "Ballads" is a collection of some of his most powerful love songs. Yes, the mush quotient is high, but that doesn't change the fact that these are some fantastic songs.

Personal Picks: The punchy "Keep Coming Back", the breezy "Endless Summer Nights" and the arena rocker "Heaven Only Knows"