TLC: "Fan Mail" (Arista)

The Timbaland revolution in R&B continues - he may not have anything to do with Fan Mail, but the shiny, eerie, streamlined electro sound which dominates this album owes more than a nod and a wink to his vision. But that's slightly unfair to TLC, one of the few R&B groups who have always come through in the past with sublime moments like Waterfall and Creep.

Fan Mail is urban soul with a sharp edge and a menacing mood. Tracks like Silly Ho and No Scrubs are bite-backs where the trio take timely swipes at the sisters and brothers they feel deserve them. The beats are crisp throughout, the harmonies on point and the album delivers like no other R&B album has for quite some time. Proper order.

By Jim Carroll

Armand Van Helden: "2 Future 4 U" (ffrr)

If 1999 is set to be the year of house music's glorious return, you can thank Armand Van Helden. The New York B-boy may have delivered one of the year's finest number one singles with You Don't Know Me, but this album takes the very notion of house music higher and further than ever before. 2 Future 4 U is astonishing; a collection of rough, tough and mesmerising visions of what house music can be about. You have the soulful, sensuous and emotional garage of Flowers, you have the sleazy hard-edged boogie of Psycho Bounty Killaz and you have the paranoid deep trance of Aliens; and that's just in the first three cuts. 2 Future 4 U is groundbreaking, not just for its fast-forward outlook or for the sheer spread of delightful sounds on board, but also for its cocksure attitude. The sound of New York City in full effect.

By Jim Carroll

Presence: "All Systems Gone" (Pagan)

All Systems Gone is the work of long-time underground house maestro Charles Webster with Massive Attack collaborators Shara Nelson and Sarah-Jay and singer Steve Edwards. A deep house album which may very well act as the blueprint for others to follow and match, All Systems Gone is more about songs than grooves. Despite an occasional tendency to turn slightly M People-ish in places with muzak-moods, Presence's debut is an album which will be as welcome in your front room as it will on the dance floor. The recent single, Sense Of Danger, has Nelson shimmering to new heights and allowing us to forget her last solo album, while Far Far Away From My Heart allows Sarah-Jay the space to push her voice and emotions to the fore. Beautifully ethereal and perfectly pitched, All Systems Gone is not the sound of the crowd and is all the better for that.

By Jim Carroll