Sweetener

Imagine Dragons came back from a year off with five outside producers and a set of singles that ran through ads, trailers, games and the rock chart for a year.

Timberlake's fifth album brought back the Neptunes, Timbaland and Danja under a Memphis mood board and one tagline: Americana with 808s.

With two new co-producers and Sheryl Crow's studio, Kacey Musgraves put her wordplay aside for space, vocoders and a disco song. The bet paid off, with limits.

Kanye West and Kid Cudi spent a year and a half on seven songs, finished them in Wyoming and borrowed from Louis Prima, Kurt Cobain and a 1966 novelty single.

Migos made much of their 24-track sequel on a world tour, often in under an hour a song. The odd touches are the fun, and the length suits a full room.

After a year on the road in America, Oxford's A Silent Film moved to Arizona and produced their second album themselves: earnest, anthemic and built for a crowd.