NINE INCH NAILS / Ghosts I – IV (2008)

The sixth NIN studio album is almost entirely instrumental. It's a work that needs abstract analogies to define it. I'm not going to attempt to provide any such thing because they'll likely be different for everyone who hears it. The music is like a soundtrack to whatever fleeting thought your mind conjures when it's given free rein to do so, so as you listen you'll create the meaning yourself.
It's split into four parts with nine tracks apiece. There's a specific mood to each of the four parts but they're malleable and can be made to fit the listener's own ideals and anxieties. With thirty-six tracks on offer (or thirty-eight if you get the expensive edition and reconstruct the extra two from the multi-track files provided) it's hard to pick just two as examples, but try these on for size:

Songs of Note: 08 Ghosts I; 13 Ghosts II

4 macro lenses out of 5

PALE SKETCHER / Just Won't Sing (2013)

The second E.P. from PS this year is a little strange at first, but if you haven't come to except the unexpected from Justin K. Broadrick by now then you've not been paying attention. It's firmly rooted in an electronic ambient style, but it's not limited to it. The loops are hypnotically buoyant. The bass is immense if your speakers are equipped to deal with it, and strangely isn't at odds with the overall feeling of peace and calm that the synth provides.
Like the previous release, Warm Sunday | Mogadon (2013), it's available as a digital DL only, from the official bandcamp page, where you can also hear all tracks for free before deciding whether or not to pony-up and support the artist.

Songs of Note: Silver Clouds; Air Tight

3 yellow woods out of 5

ULVER / Messe I.X-VI.X (2013)

The small print under Ulver's name reads: With Tromsø Chamber Orchestra. That's important to note because it was Norway's Tromsø Kulturhus who commissioned it, in cooperation with the Arctic Opera and Philharmonic Orchestra. It's not just experimental Metal with occasional strings, it's a more organic blend of film-style orchestral work and dark ambient introspection that needs a quiet environment to be fully appreciated. Garm adds vocals to only two of the six tracks, but the others aren't lessened by the absence.

Songs of Note: Glamour box (ostinati); Son of Man

4 dark nights of the soul out of 5

THE MEADS OF ASPHODEL / The Murder of Jesus the Jew (2010)

The Meads out-Meaded themselves on TMoJtJ. It’s a concept piece about the resurrected one with an accompanying 6000 word 'codex' written by Metatron explaining what each song is about and its place in the order of things (HERE).
Musically, it's experimental Black Metal that isn't afraid to embrace bat-shit crazy if it's what's needed to get the job done. The scope of what they attempted is immense. If they'd allowed a more commercially acceptable production, the album could've appealed to more people, but that would've compromised the vision.

Songs of Note: Apocalypse of Lazarus; Addicted to God

4 shits on the shoe of Lucifer out of 5

TAKING BACK SUNDAY / Louder Now (2006)

Look at that shameless promotion for the lead single. Right there on the cover. I’d be upset if it wasn’t one of the best songs they’ve ever done. Once upon a time, Taking Back Sunday banked on the violent intersection of two vocalists. When utilized correctly this emulated the breakneck back and forth of the superego and id, should they have the honor of performing in the Large Hadron Collider. The rest of the time it was simply a cacophonous mess. Here, the scale tips pleasantly in favor of the former.

A chewy balance of caustic and thoughtful emo-rock funneled through the above gimmick is all you will find here. That’s more than enough for me.

Songs of Note: MakeDamnSure; My Blue Heaven

3 Benevolent Animals of Prey out of 5

BILLIE JOE + NORAH / foreverly [2013]

Most folks wouldn't think the idea of Green Day's Billie Joe Armstrong and jazz-popster Norah Jones would sound good covering harmonizing country rockers The Everly Brothers' 2nd album Songs Our Daddy Taught Us, which in turn is already a collection of cover songs.
Yet, 2013's duet album foreverly works in every way you wouldn't think it would seeing as it's ever so faithful to the original record by never steering off into a rough pop-rockiness or Starbuck's friendly soft jazz.  The duo's voices work so very well together as one gives the other edge whereas that other gives the first one a graceful smoothness creating a vocal sound not normally heard from either.
It's not particularly clever, inventive or astonishingly good but simply delightful for a ride down a country road on a rainy day and sometimes that's exactly what one needs.

4 girls named Rose Connelly out of 5

Songs Of Note: Silver Haird Daddy Of Mine; Put My Little Shoes Away

KATE BUSH / The Whole Story (1986)

All of Kate's original studio albums to date can already be found on Nut Suite. I skipped over The Whole Story because it's a Greatest Hits collection, but there's a reason it deserves inclusion: it has one previously unreleased song and one track from her first album with a new vocal. That's not a lot of new content for your money, but you can pick it up for the price of a pint, so it's easily worth it.

Songs of Note: Experiment IV; Wuthering Heights (New Vocal)

5 meters in the red out of 5

DIAMANDA GALÁS / You Must Be Certain of the Devil (1988)

If you value your hearing, do yourself a favour and don't sit too close to your speakers when the album starts or Galás' version of Swing Low, Sweet Chariot may take it from you. It flows sharply into the second track, which begins the transformation into a more traditional album with actual music! She still howls like a banshee when necessary, to get the point across, but its gospel influenced weirdness is more accessible than the two accompanying albums that preceded YMBCotD. Although, she sounds like she’s dying on the closing track, which is somewhat unsettling.

Songs of Note: Double-Barrel Prayer; Let's Not Chat About Despair

4 winged fatalities out of 5

GODFLESH / Merciless EP (1994)

Three of the four tracks on Merciless are new, and the other is a remix of 'Don't Bring Me Flowers' from Pure (1992). Of the new tracks, two are beefed-up versions of older songs that were never before released, whilst the third (Merciless) was recorded specifically for the E.P. and is without a doubt the highlight.
It fits between Pure and Selfless (1994) and, just like the previous E.P. did, it forms a bridge between two very different sounding albums. It won't win any awards, but it should keep Godflesh super-fans (like me) very happy.

Songs of Note: Merciless; Flowers

3½ Meshes of the Afternoon out of 5

VARIOUS ARTISTS / Gyakuten Meets Orchestra (2006)

The Ace Attorney orchestrated album serves as a stellar companion piece to its sister album, Jazz Soul. Replacing the staccato keys and resounding basslines are swelling strings, clashing brass, and even some traditional Japanese instrumentation. Oo-edo Soldier Tonosaman goes from a watered down ghost of itself to its most gloriously fleshed-out, final form. The story at the heart of the Phoenix Arc is conveyed beautifully through justified, yet still somewhat understated pageantry. When the central refrain of the Turnabout Sisters Theme triumphantly emerges from the complexity of Kurain’s Geneology, I’m brought to tears even now.

Songs of Note: Oo-edo Soldier Tonosaman; Kurain’s Geneology

4½ Resilient Souls out of 5

BJÖRK / Homogenic (1997)

Homogenic is difficult to describe in words. It's composed of many typically opposing elements but somehow manages to exude a lot of warmth; but not in the traditional sense, because it's an often frightening and chaotic fervour. Then, like the seasons, it'll change, becoming chilly and distant. There are parts of it I despise, but I can't deduct points for that because the sheer power of the electronic beats, the soaring intensity of the strings from the Icelandic String Octet, and the unique vocals that drill through your ears are so radically different from anything else I've ever heard that I'm in awe of the end result.

Songs of Note: Jóga; Bachelorette

4 states of emergency out of 5

JESU / Silver E.P. (2006)

With each subsequent Jesu release the sound changes but stays the same. If that makes any kind of rational sense to you, then you're probably already a fan of the project and know exactly what I mean. If so, then you'll be right at home with the Silver E.P. For everyone else, it's as good a place to start as any.
There's synth; real and programmed drums; a distorted bass that buzzes like some kind of blunt, vibrating knife edge; and subtle vocal treatments that elevate everything to cloud level. So do yourself a favour: hit the play button, turn the volume up, sit back and be submerged in Broadrick's radiant candour.

Songs of Note: Silver; Star

4 kinds of gold out of 5

S.J. TUCKER / Witchy Ways: An October Mix-tape (2013)

Just in time for Xmas, it's an October Mix-tape. It was actually released in time for Hallowe'en, but I'm slow like that. Oh, well. It's a collection of songs from Miss Tucker's back catalogue (and two new songs) chosen by the artist herself. She has a beautiful and strong voice, able to channel the oral tradition of storytelling into complementary music that ranges from whimsical to enchanting.
Witchy Ways celebrates the Wiccian/Pagan side of Samhain, not the commercial and church-friendly version that's used to 'educate' the kids.

Songs of Note: Kashkash; Firebird's Child

4 hymns in the glade out of 5

METAMORPHOSIS JAZZ BAND / Gyakuten Meets Jazz Soul (2007)

Character themes and trial suites (mostly) from the Phoenix Arc of the Ace Attorney series are given the swinging nightclub treatment on this release. Nothing here becomes too languid or self-indulgent, save the Steel Samurai theme which is slowed and stretched to the point of unrecognizability. Tigre and Godot’s, however, already existed well into the genre’s wheelhouse and excel for it. Unlike with The Futurist, I have very specific emotional connections to each piece and the majority of the album moves with a purpose.

Songs of Note: Swingin’ Zenitora; The Aroma of Black Coffee

4 Face Wreckin' Express Trains out of 5

COUNTING CROWS / Recovering the Satellites (1996)

While trying to find his way home, Adam serendipitously veers inside a seedy back-alley bar where Dan Vickrey is shredding his wicked little heart out. The Duritz is entranced and invites him to score his increasingly complex laments, forever more. Voice and abused steel caterwaul in imperfect harmony, completely unafraid to tread into the night August hesitated so quaintly at the edges of. Is it possible to be this forceful and almost mean at times and yet ready to fall into shambles, all simultaneously?

Yes.

This is gloriously rough around the center and takes a measure of patience few probably have. Don’t even begin to think this is anything like A Long December would indicate out of context.

Songs of Note: Angels of the Silences; Recovering the Satellites

5 Beautifully Ragged Pairs of Coke-Can Wings out of 5