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May 2011 has been another fantastic month for new album releases. It was tough, indeed, to narrow my favourites down to the 10 you see below. Enjoy them, for each is a little slice of genius to get entirely wrapped up in.

Editor's Album of the Month

Wild Beasts - Smother
(Domino, released 9 May)
Recommended by: 6 Music Album of the Day, Marc Riley, Bethan Elfyn

"Anyone who has seen the video to lead single Albatross will have an idea of what to expect here: an uncommon beauty, distilled through disquiet, presented at what appears to be high-definition half-speed. This is a world away from the boisterousness of the band's debut, Limbo, Panto - a world of self-discovery, unexpected achievements and focused development. Wild Beasts are the most inspirational, intriguing, effortlessly enrapturing band at work on these shores."

Read the full review and listen to previews
Read our Album Reviews Q&A with Wild Beasts
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The Best of the Rest

The Beastie Boys - Hot Sauce Committee Part 2
(EMI, released 2 May)
Recommended by: Lauren Laverne, Zane Lowe, 6 Music Album of the Day

"The Beasties' seventh full-length-proper, Hot Sauce Committee Part Two, is scads of fun, its first half especially so. Their wizard blend of goofy creativity and deft discipline ensures that the best tracks here are simultaneously scattershot and focused. To cook up such joyful nonsense probably takes a helluva lot of effort, but it's the Beasties' gift to make this seem easier than falling off a mountain bike, and an infinite amount more fun."

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Gang Gang Dance - Eye Contact
(4AD, released 9 May)
Recommended by: Rob da Bank, Bethan Elfyn, Gideon Coe

"They weave a soundtrack to future parties, held on space stations spinning around the outer rings of Saturn. Little here seems to be connected with terrestrial movements; and when there is a flash of something comfortably graspable, like the oriental clinks of Adult Goth and the fairground pulsations of MindKilla, they're surrounded by the otherworldly presence of frontwoman Liz Bougatsos."

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Austra - Feel It Break
(Domino, released 16 May)
Recommended by: The Late Show with Stuart Bailie, Don Letts

"Katie Stelmanis, bassist Dorian Wolf and drummer Maya Postepski have created something that plays as a carefully balanced, organic whole, like an inadvertent concept album. That's more a testament to the skill with which it's been put together than because it lacks standout moments; in fact, half the songs here could be released as singles, as Austra are as melodic as they are melodramatic."

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Dels - Gob
(Big Dada, released 2 May)
Recommended by: Huw Stephens, Lauren Laverne, 6 Music Album of the Day

"The most successful British MCs stay true to what they do and know, and Dels is in this mould. Honest lyrics backed by off-kilter and unexpected production from Kwes, Micachu and Joe Goddard of Hot Chip give this album this album a rough, unique edge. An impressive statement of a debut, Gob is just as good as the moment we first witnessed the fitness."

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True Widow - As High as the Highest Heavens and from the Center to the Circumference of the Earth
(Kemado, released 2 May)

"Despite myriad reference points to be heard across this set, at no point do True Widow come across like a blatant sound-alike of any single act. Which is, really, why this record is such a certifiable success: it has one recalling great stoner-friendly LPs from the past, while presenting a fresh take on music which, courtesy of its common reluctance to shift from second gear, has frequently been at risk of turning stale."

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Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat - Everything's Getting Older
(Chemikal Underground, released 9 May)
Recommended by: Jarvis Cocker, Late Junction

"It's easy to revel in Moffat's bleak wordplay and his everyman observations, but behind the black clouds and bitterness there are reminders of love and tempered optimism. Breathless and romantic, lovelorn and lusting, his characteristic honesty and intensity regales us with stories of debauched, primal rutting, guiltless affairs and the apathetic aftermath."

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Planningtorock - W
(DFA, released 23 May)
Recommended by: Ö÷²¥´óÐã Introducing in Wales

"Though it's frequently disconcerting, W is also thoroughly engrossing, creating an alternative musical universe in much the same way as The Knife, the Swedish act with whom she collaborated on 2010's opera Tomorrow, In a Year. Evidently at home in the studio, Rostron imagines a darkly melodramatic world of shadows and sleek metallic edges, her electronic setting industrial and semi-gothic in a similar fashion to current critical faves EMA and Zola Jesus."

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Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts
(Matador, released 23 May)
Recommended by: Tom Ravenscroft, 6 Music Album of the Day, Lauren Laverne

"There are only subtle shifts between Moore's songs and producer Beck's airy arrangements, but that's hardly a criticism since this mood piece sucks you in. In a career of benchmark highs, he's made yet another; and by doing the unexpected, it shows that whatever the sound of his records, the punk inside Moore still lives."

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SebastiAn - Total
(Because, released 30 May)
Recommended by: Annie Mac

"Total is a breathlessly brilliant set that whips the listener this way and that, skipping between styles with confidence. There's house and techno, silken funk and futuristic soul, and even skull-shuddering drum'n'bass. There's plenty enough of Sebastian's own character on show to make this one of the most enjoyable dance albums of 2011 so far. Justice, your move..."

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