14. Third / Portishead

Portishead’s ten-year absence came to an end with the aptly-named Third. The group moves their legendary trip-hop into some potent, cinematic soundscapes, each song carried by Beth Gibbons’s world-weary vocals. On the ominous “Machine Gun,” Gibbons strains over stuttering industrial keyboards. On “The Rip,” Gibbons sings over acoustic strums, her voice eventually falling into a bed of electronica, haunted but hopeful. Third is a challenging, but rewarding piece of recording artistry.