Primal Scream have never rested on their laurels and the chronological running order of Dirty Hits highlights the innovative progression their music made on every album. Beginning with the acid-fuelled dub of their breakthrough Screamadelica, the declaration of hedonism that heralds the horns of "Loaded" couldn't be a more appropriate way to start the album. Moving the tempo up a notch, the band ditched the trippy nuances for Give Out But Don't Give Up-unabashed rock & roll in the spirit of the Stones, demonstrated superbly by "Jailbird" and "Rocks". Just when they had been written off as hopeless nostalgics, along came the mind-bending Vanishing Point which retained the rock & roll ethic but twisted it into a dark oppressive form summed up perfectly by "Kowalski" and "Burning Wheel". Unrelenting, they released Xtrmntr, a harsh wall of noise underpinned by searing synth melodies and bitter lyrics which produced the hits "Swastika Eyes" and "Kill All Hippies". Finally, taking them to the modern day, Dirty Hits includes a few songs from the even more extreme, structured noise that was Evil Heat plus "Some Velvet Morning", a song featuring Kate Moss that never made the album. Many thought that Primal Scream were an album band and a best-of collection wouldn't do them justice but Dirty Hits is a great listen and a great reminder of exactly how much good music they've made over the years. -David Trueman.

Seven albums in, and if Groove Armada show no sign of handing in their chill-out crowns, Soundboy Rock suggests London's popular downbeat alchemists are more eager than ever to branch out. As the title suggests, this is an album that plays down Groove Armada's cocktail-supping Balearic side in favour of a more robust sound inspired by hip-hop, house and dub reggae. Immediate highlights are "Song 4 Mutya (Out Of Control)", which could almost be a long-lost Madonna single of the '80s, but for the fact it features ex-Sugarbabe Mutya Buena on vocals; and the title track, a simmering reggae skank that sees Groove Armada joined by their MC, MAD, and Hard-Fi's Richard Archer on melodica. It's a surprisingly guest heavy record - also on board is Alan Donohue of The Rakes, soul queen Angie Stone, Tony Allen of The Good, The Bad, And The Queen, and Simon Lord of Simian Mobile Disco. Being old hands now, however, Groove Armada are wise not to let this celebrity cavalcade distract them from the matter at hand - that is, making bouncy, unpretentious dance music that balances a crate-digger's taste with maximum mainstream appeal. -Louis Pattison.

Re-working a selection of tracks from both Dummy and the eponymous follow up, PNYC demonstrates how the recorded can translate equally well into the live, given a little inspiration and creativity. Drawing on full string and horn sections and turntablist intervention from Andy Smith, they explore live soundtrack angles, lacing the original versions with measures of Lalo Schifrin, Barry Mancini et al. Although some may be sceptical at the lack of new material, they shouldn't be put off. As the neo-classical sounds of "Glory Box", post rock of "Sour Times", brazen brass jazz of "All Mine" and theremin-led hip hop of "Mysterons" all comfortably cohabit the same place, managing to re-work and re-charm their way into your sub conscious. PNYC is a class delivery from Portishead, from the arrangement and production to the performance and orchestration. -Found Sounds.

Björk originally intended to call Vespertine Domestika. The title would have been entirely appropriate (as, indeed, is Vespertine, meaning "pertaining to the evening"). Ever since 1993's vital, effusive Debut, Björk's music has been increasingly intimate, gently private and concerned with seclusion. It's typical then that Vespertine's first single was called "Hidden Place". The studious solitude is rewarding, though. Vespertine is a lush, gorgeous swell of mid-pace electronica, symphonic strings and Björk's uniquely alien, spectral vocal. There are fantastical wonders here. "Cocoon" (another eulogy to withdrawal from the world) is delicate as a breath, Björk sounding too fragile to be flesh as she lauds "a beauty this immense". "Pagan Poetry" and "Aurora", likewise, are adrift in an enchanted reverie. When she chooses, she crafts killer tunes: "It's Not up to You" is as lovely as anything on Post. [+]

Born Eithne Ni Bhraonain, this classically-trained pianist was kid sister in the musical family that became Clannad, joining the Irish band in 1979 but dropping out amicably three years later to pursue her own muse. This music, produced in the mid-'80s as the soundtrack to a BBC series, was released as her debut in 1987 and promptly ignored-yet its mix of atmospheric soundscapes and Enya's lush, layered vocals, sung in both English and Gaelic, is the template for her subsequent global hits, beginning with Watermark the following year. -Sam Sutherland.

Not to be confused with his equally eponymous but rather less fine second album. Seal towered briefly over the scene in the early nineties-latecomer to pop, he co-wrote and sang on Adamski's sublime "Killer", bringing a rare touch of Marvin Gaye-style gravitas to the otherwise E-driven and perishable techno scene. His debut album was equally stately, benefiting from producer Trevor Horn's trademark epic flourishes and funky bombast, with Seal's hoarse vocals and impassioned lyrics taking on the entire, broken world. "Deep Water", for instance, was a spiritual/eco-lament inspired by the fate of some dolphins who found themselves washed up in the Thames where the water pollution killed them. This conscientious cri de coeur was echoed in "The Beginning" and "Crazy", pop music that dared to shed a serious tear. After this, unfortunately, Seal went all MOR-shaped. -David Stubbs.

Orville Richard Burrell aka Shaggy has bounded back to the top with Hot Shot, 15 eclectic songs in the field somewhere between Reggae, Dancehall, Pop and R&B. Shaggy is energetically supported by producers such as Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis and backs the usual melodies with his trademark irresistible rhythms. Songs such as the hit single "It Wasn't Me" and the groovy "Freaky Girl " are high points on the album and exemplify the wonderfully sung harmonies with his guest vocalists. In conclusion Shaggy has made a pop-reggae success which is very easy on the ear - Norbert Schiegl.

45. 33 might well confuse some of the music purists convinced that great art and commerce must never mix. This 45-minute suite of music, you see, is the result of a commission from sportswear company Nike, who hired LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy to write music to accompany the perfect exercise workout. Murphy, perhaps aware that the gradual, building tempo and euphoric highs of a great run could be seen to closely mirror the dancefloor dynamic of a great DJ set, agreed, and the result is perhaps the most synthetic, funky, altogether club-like records to appear under the LCD name to date. Commencing with rising analogue synth notes, the piece shuffles into life on a sultry Studio 54 tip, a mid-tempo disco beat decorated with handclaps, euphoric piano, and soulful vocals. Before long, though, it's shifting and mixing, first through an alternate instrumental cut of "Something Great" (which would later appear in full on LCD's 2007 album Sound of Silver) then through phases of kosmiche electronica, velvety soul, and brass freak-outs-all intent on keeping the tempo pumping. Also included on this CD issue of 45. 33 is three bonus tracks, the conga-tapping "Freak Out/Starry Eyes", a bleepy, dubbed-out mix of "North American Scum", and the bouncy bass grooves of "Hippie Priest Bum-Out". -Louis Pattison.

Silencing any suggestions that he is any less capable than his more high-profile Black Star partner Mos Def, Talib Kweli, along with DJ Hi-Tek, crafts a masterful debut with Reflection Eternal. Like Mos, Kweli displays an impressive range of styles and sensibilities-whether popping party lyrics on "Move Something", reflecting on the mysteries of the heart for "Love", or musing on hip-hop's death and rebirth for "Good Mourning". In comparison to Mos Def's status as a new funk soul brother, Kweli's more of a b-boy bookworm-erudite and articulate, but he can also let fly with fire and spark on the mic anytime. DJ Hi-Tek finally gets to show off his full range of production ability with a blend of hot, aggressive tracks ("Blast") and relaxed groovers ("Memories"). As good a debut as you could ask for. -Oliver Wang.

During one of the "interludes" on My Life, Keith Murray is rapping about "Grab your cranium for my ultimatum", when someone in the studio control booth asks producer Chucky Thompson, "Hey, Chuck, put on some of that smooth [stuff]". Murray disappears; the dreamy synth chords of Blige's title track emerge, and her sultry voice moans with a combination of weary loneliness and unslaked desire. The ballad which follows is "smooth" but never slick, for the singer's sinuous, extended notes confess the blues even as they yearn for something better. It's tempting to see this little scenario-the rapper being turned off in favour of the soul diva-as a repudiation of hip-hop in favour of old-fashioned R&B. An honest listen-to-this album, however, makes such an interpretation impossible. Blige does no actual rapping herself on her long-awaited second outing, but the sound of "My Life" would have been impossible without hip-hop. The results confirm the promise of Blige's '92 debut; she is the premier soul diva of the hip-hop generation. -Geoffrey Himes.