Even though Helado Negro's music is always unmistakable, Roberto Carlos Lange has never repeated himself. On PHASOR, his ability to change, grow, and roll with life's highs and lows is at a peak. Lange recorded the album after trading Brooklyn's bustle for the considerably more easygoing creative mecca of Asheville, North Carolina, and the feeling of a fresh start is evident following the lockdown outpourings of 2021's acclaimed Far In. In the best possible way, PHASOR doesn't seem like as much of an effort as its predecessor. Everything on Helado Negro's eighth album feels serendipitous, from its sunny electronics to its mingling of psych-rock, jazz, and kosmische to the understated yet undeniable grooves that give Lange's musings a flowing foundation.

Nearly unrecognizable as the work of the one-time punk rock outfit, Night Drive is effectively Chromatics' third debut album in a row, following a wholesale transformation in sound and style and yet another lineup change: Adam Miller is again the sole constant member; vocalist Ruth Radelet is a new addition even since the 2006 teaser Nite, replacing Lena Okazaki, while Glass Candy's Johnny Jewel, who produced that single, is now a full-fledged member. Actually, this seems to be Jewel's record more than anyone's – in the silver-screen conceit of the liner notes he's listed as director to Miller's screenwriter, though he also has a writing credit on all the record's originals, only four of which (the vocal songs) Miller co-wrote – indeed, Jewel is emerging as the primary musical force behind much of the Italians Do It Better label. Among that camp of synthesizer-disco revivalists, Chromatics stand out as the most lush and cinematic, drawing on the more languorous, atmospheric aspects of '80s electronica to fashion a hazy imaginary soundtrack to a stylish, decadent noir film (as the album's visual presentation suggests) or just a lonely late-night drive (as per the opening "Telephone Call").

Of all the dance-punk revivalists, !!! has been the most consistently interesting and challenging, not to mention the group most likely to fill the dancefloor on indie rock night. While their previous album, the political and righteous Louden Up Now, was good enough to vault them to the level of the bands that inspired them (Gang of Four, the Pop Group, Liquid Liquid), Myth Takes firmly establishes them there. It's a different fire that burns here for !!!, mostly setting aside political concerns for fiery dancefloor rave-ups. The band sounds inspired, like they are plugged directly into a wall socket. The first three tracks are like opening a door and being blasted backward by a wall of flame and heat. Nic Offer's vocal chants, asides, and strung-together proclamations are more frantic than ever, and when he turns it down a notch, he sounds nearly sexy (as on "Must Be the Moon," a desperate story of sex and lust in the city)…

!!! could be lumped in with the other new wave dance-punk revivalists like the Rapture or Radio 4. That would be easy enough, as they all share an allegiance to the punky funk sounds of the '80s as pioneered by groups like Gang of Four, the Pop Group, Talking Heads, and others. Rather than merely lumping them in, maybe one could say they are leading the pack. Louden Up Now is easily the best record to come out of the movement; its ten tracks are filled with fervor, hooks, passion, and power. And unlike many of their peers, !!! have politics. Angry, righteous politics. Antiwar, anti-Giuliani, anti-Bush and Blair, and proud of it. It is like a blast of fresh retro air to have a band not just updating the sound but carrying over similar ideals as well…

Her first album in eight years and her Warp debut, Leila's Blood, Looms and Blooms almost didn't happen: after the release of 2000's moody, murky The Courtesy of Choice, she lost both of her parents and, for a long time, her interest in making music. With the encouragement of her friends and family, Leila returned to the studio and recorded these songs, often with her family and friends - who include Terry Hall and Martina Topley-Bird - in there with her. While Blood, Looms and Blooms' very existence is somewhat surprising, it's even more remarkable that this is Leila's most uplifting work, given the loss that preceded it. Far from wallowing in grief (though that would certainly be understandable), Leila crafts vivid tracks that cast as much light as they do shadow…

Since forming in 2012, Seattle-based duo Odesza quickly became one of the most popular, influential indie electronic acts in America. By the time they made their Counter Records debut in 2014, with their second album In Return, they had already become a staple at music festivals, and their headlining gigs were selling out left and right. Their music typically consists of warm, glitchy chillwave beats and choppy, pitch-shifted vocals, as well as an intriguing usage of exotic-sounding acoustic instruments, all fine-tuned for maximum emotional impact. Odesza may not have invented any of the ingredients of their sound, but their glossy, dreamy brand has become one of the most distinctive of its kind, and their presence on the scene looms large - it's hard to browse SoundCloud without hitting a bedroom producer imitating them, or remixing one of their tunes…

Halifax-native Ryan Hemsworth has thrived in the disbanding of genre divides, enabled by the digital era, from producing songs for Southern hip-hop artists, and pushing ‘90s-style R&B back on trend, to experimenting with downtempo bedroom electronica, and remixing chart-topping pop songs. His sophomore solo album, Alone For The First Time, however, marks a step toward honing a completely idiosyncratic sound. Despite its name, Alone For The First Time, is replete with collaborations cultivated from a community of bedroom producers including little cloud, Lontalius and Dawn Golden. The album combines Hemsworth’s manifold sonic influences with his fascination with early video game soundtracks to make a unique aesthetic statement…

As Darkside, electronic composer Nicolas Jaar and multi-instrumentalist Dave Harrington unite their individual strengths, but also take their combined powers to new places neither could travel to on their own. The band's 2013 debut full-length Psychic was a sprawling exploration of contrasts, moving through winding paths of genre experiments and production twists that should have clashed but instead gelled into a massive, undulating entity somewhere between sci-fi soundtrack and a full-tilt experimental rock record. Second album Spiral was made after the duo took a lengthy break to pursue their solo outlets, much of it coming together during a week-long marathon writing session. It's every bit as shapeshifting and epic as Psychic was, but less reliant on moments of softer ambience or drawn-out atmospherics…