FINAL LIGHT: post-metal duo cruise into dark synthwave for futuristic debut
File under ‘F’ for future metal, and rock out with your neon battle jacket and shades out while listening to Final Light's post-metal debut.
Albums
STEALING SHEEP: Liverpudlian feminists mix video game sounds & psychedelia
Liverpool’s Stealing Sheep have retained their psychedelic sound but taken it to another level on their latest album, WOW Machine.
Never-before-released live album is ELLA FITZGERALD at her most charming & honest
Towards the end of Puttin’ On The Ritz, too, Ella can be heard saying “I screwed that one up, ha ha!” referring to a melody she had changed: her unique charm, honesty and energy are palpable throughout At The Hollywood Bowl.
REAL ESTATE’s MARTIN COURTNEY gives summery BEATLES-vibes on second solo album
The frontman of Real Estate has downsized to a bungalow with another solo album as Martin Courtney, with tunes bathing in the ‘here comes the sun’ golden glow.
ZOLA JESUS captivates with seventh album – thanks to seasoned collaborators
Arkhon, the seventh Zola Jesus album, from track to track, has a varied and expansive sound that lies somewhere between dark electronica and minimal cinematic soundscapes.
FIRST FLIGHT OF THE WHITE RAVEN fails to take flight on new WARDRUNA offering
Norwegian band Wardruna’s latest offering reshapes their early 2021 studio album Kvitravn, and the results fall between two stools, neither relaxing nor rousing.
Elven-voiced ELIZABETH FRASER back on top ethereal form with SUN’S SIGNATURE
To describe Elizabeth Fraser’s voice as ‘ethereal’ doesn’t do it justice when many others labelled as such pale into earthly comparison.
BARTEES STRANGE takes a reflective, emotional journey on luscious second album
In a time when ‘genre-less’ music seems to be thriving Bartees Strange is a shapeshifter with genuine grit, girth and emotionality.
FOALS kick festival season off with their most joyous album yet
An intensely summery, optimistic return for Foals, Life Is Yours encourages listeners to grab hold of life and keep dancing through festival season and beyond.
THE UTOPIA STRONG: snooker legend Steve Davis flexes his (surprising) prog muscles
Steve Davis – a six-time world champion snooker player who earned a reputation for being boring – is an enormous prog fan who, at the age of 64, is now composing his own out-there music.
NICK MULVEY seeps under the skin with sweet summer mantras on NEW MYTHOLOGY
On this third album, Nick Mulvey gets further under the skin, coming across as the thinking person’s George Ezra (no bad thing) or a more energetic Mac DeMarco.
Grime pioneer LETHAL BIZZLE’s back-to-basics return is short but sweet
Lethal B vs. Lethal Bizzle, comprising seven mostly short tracks and an interlude, might end up making you hungry for more because it’s a lot of fun.
ANGEL OLSEN’s sixth LP is stacked with instant timeless classics
As with its predecessors, the cover of Angel Olsen’s new LP Big Time is a photo of its creator, instantly establishing it as the third in a trilogy of epic personal dramas.
Indie-pop golden boy GEORGE EZRA returns with melancholy summer album
Fun and playful as Gold Rush Kid is, there don't seem to be any further bangers with summer mega-repeat potential from George Ezra here.
Metal “scumdogs” GWAR usher in THE NEW DARK AGE on genre-mashing concept album
GWAR frontman The Berserker Blóthar tells us: “This is the greatest rock record of all time. These are the songs for a new age, a New Dark Age, when men live by the dimming light of technology destined to betray them.”
Louisiana legend URAL THOMAS crafts a soul masterclass on DANCING DIMENSIONS
Ural Thomas has graced the same stages as James Brown and Otis Redding, and on Dancing Dimensions, still has a voice to match those two icons.
HORSEGIRL pays homage to the sound of the underground on atmospheric debut
Horsegirl have managed to encapsulate their overlapping, likeminded styles and friendship into a carefully crafted postpunk debut, Versions of Modern Performance.
NICK CAVE & WARREN ELLIS produce an instant classic with latest film score
Cave and Ellis' La Panthère Des Neiges soundtrack deserves to resonate for many years to come, the same way as Ry Cooder’s music for Paris, Texas or even Vangelis’ Blade Runner.
700 BLISS: musically & politically radical – and beyond everyone’s comfort zones
With Nothing To Declare, 700 Bliss have made something musically and politically radical, and some fine craic to boot.
SUICIDE collaborator LIZ LAMERE channels dark, industrial electro on first album
The wife and creative partner of Suicide's Alan Vega, Keep It Alive, Liz Lamere’s debut, has a dark, infectious electro/industrial groove running through it.
Sci-fi prog metal epic VAXIS continues on COHEED & CAMBRIA’s latest album
Claudio Sanchez, the frontman of Coheed & Cambria, has a knack for shrouding personal stories behind ambitious science fiction concepts. New album Vaxis II is no different.
C’MON YOU KNOW proves LIAM GALLAGHER only gets better with time
Liam Gallagher returns with his third solo album, and he’s getting better and better as time goes on. His first two solo albums combined don’t come close to C’mon You Know.
SUBJECTIVE: electronica duo GOLDIE & DAVIDSON travel through genres and time on second collab
Production duo Subjective, made up of Goldie and James Davidson, weaves in various soulful musicians on their second collaborative album.
MALICIOUS INTENT continues Sheffield metallers MALEVOLENCE’s upward swing
Malicious Intent is a giant of an album and represents a massive step on the upward curve that Malevolence find themselves on.