Round-up Tracks: (Gorillaz, Blaenavon, Kendrick Lamar & More)

Perhaps the most trad. Gorillaz offering of the four, ‘Saturnz Barz’ features the kind of skulking, back alley wheeze that would fit happily alongside ‘Demon Days” more gnarly cuts. Jamaican dancehall singer Popcaan (last seen on Jamie xx banger ‘I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times)’ is autotuned to robotic levels on the track’s main chorus, before main man Damon Albarn comes in with a classic melancholy bridge. There’s haunting opera singers, there’s the deepest of grooves and the general atmosphere of an apocalyptic wasteland scene: aka it’s Gorillaz at their finest. (Lisa Wright)

A gentler, more Damon-centric offering this time. With Albarn’s gravelly intonations to “take it in your heart” repeating over softly bouncing beats and twinkling, spacey synth lines, it’s a lighter side to the project on show here. In all honesty, US rapper D.R.A.M’s contribution is minimal; his wavering falsetto mid-way through could easily be mistaken for Albarn taking things up a register. But in terms of keeping things collaborative, as is the Gorillaz way, then it shows a project where guest stars and stalwarts are all happy to add to the whole and, pleasingly, no one is wrestling to be the star. (Lisa Wright)

‘Ascension’ wastes no time in thrusting its centrepiece to the fore, however. Kicking in with a bold and confident Vince Staples vocal missive, it’s all scattershot rhythms and twitchy samples with the California rapper firmly steering the ship. Things get a bit wavy in the middle when Damon pops up for a woozy, undulating interlude, but for the most part ‘Ascension’ is a reasonably straight forward banger: over and out in two and a half minutes, you can imagine Staples’ virtual mic drop as it ends. (Lisa Wright)

Perhaps the least predictable of the four, ‘We Got The Power’ has the potential to blossom into ‘Humanz” biggest anthem. Featuring Savages frontwoman Jehnny Beth intoning emotive, rallying clarion calls to action, it feels like a huge, timely blast of hope for the modern world, destined to soundtrack political protests and big, Glasto-style communal love ins at the same time. “We’ve got the power to be loving each other no matter what happens/ We’ve got the power to do that,” sing Jehn’n’Damo. You tell ‘em, guys. (Lisa Wright)

‘Orthodox Man’ and ‘Let’s Pray’, two of the singles that previewed Blaenavon’s debut album ‘That’s Your Lot’, saw the band cramming in bundles of melody into three-minute indie pop songs that fully and unashamedly showcased the band’s ability to write a cracking pop song. ‘Alice Come Home’, the latest track to preview the record, trades this immediacy for a crushing six-minute trip which shows the band as being equally capable of crafting devastating, sprawling journeys. Ben Gregory sounds as crazed and passionate as he ever has on the new single, and in showing a different side of themselves in the process, Blaenavon have become even more fascinating. (Will Richards)

After ‘untitled unmastered’, a series of demos from his last album’s sessions, was released a year ago, Kendrick Lamar found himself at the end of his ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’, an album that hurtled him forward to being the most important rapper in the world. Since then he’s guested on all manner of tracks - both good and bad - and his return on ‘The Heart Part 4’ is an extremely composed one, the return of an artist in complete control. Predictably taking a swipe at President Trump, Lamar raps: Donald Trump is a chump, know how we feel, punk / Tell ‘em that God comin’ / And Russia need a replay button, y’all up to somethin’ / Electorial votes look like memorial votes / But America’s truth ain’t ignorin’ the votes,” and Kendrick’s continuing to show himself to be a mouthpiece for marginalised America. (Will Richards)

Aside from creating a new charity zine called ‘Do What You Want’ with her partner Ruby Tandoh, Leah Pritchard is one half of Alimony Hustle (joined by drummer Matt Mndolo), a Bristol-via-Sheffield duo who take aim at all manner of social ills. On newest cut ‘Miss GB’, it’s the unjust, heartbreaking de-crowning of Zara Holland as Miss Great Britain last year. “Alimony Hustle don’t think that writing about the state of the world needs to mean turning a blind eye to all of the trashy, fun pop culture that keeps us entertained every day,” the band say, and whatever the pair choose to sing about - their debut EP has subject matter ranging from eating disorders to misogyny - it’s done with sincerity, heart and awareness, via hugely catchy emo pop. (Will Richards)

Tags: Blaenavon, Gorillaz, Kendrick Lamar, Listen, Features