Album Reviews

Beaty Heart - Till the Tomb

3 Stars

Peckham electro-poppers Beaty Heart’s second album fizzes more than a can of shaken lemonade.

29th July 2016

Owen - The King Of Whys

3 Stars

The eighth solo album by American Football’s Mike Kinsella is a confident — if slightly unadventurous — addition.

29th July 2016

DM Stith - Pigeonheart

4 Stars

Anything goes on David Michael Stith’s new album, his sweet falsetto timbre holding everything together.

28th July 2016

Nao - For All We Know

4 Stars

Impossibly coherent; the product of earned wisdom welded to raw talent.

26th July 2016

MSTRKRFT - Operator

3 Stars

Canadian electronic music agitators MSTRKRFT’s first album five years is a chaotic and hard-hitting return.

22nd July 2016

Honne – Warm On A Cold Night

2 Stars

Smooth-as-it-gets duo Honne’s debut could be a triumph, but finds itself prone to mumbling and shallowness.

22nd July 2016

Show Me The Body - Body War

4 Stars

Like musical scarification.

21st July 2016

Beyond the Wizards Sleeve - The Soft Bounce

2 Stars

Erol Alkan and Richard Norris’ alternate world doesn’t reap the same rewards for listeners as it does for its creators.

21st July 2016

Michael Kiwanuka - Love & Hate

4 Stars

Did somebody say Mercury? This is a landmark album for a previously forgotten musician.

21st July 2016

Clams Casino - 32 Levels

4 Stars

Emerging from the shadows, ingenious producer Michael Vope puts his own agenda forward on an impressive debut.

21st July 2016

Biffy Clyro - Ellipsis

4 Stars

A new, playful kind of Biffy Clyro.

8th July 2016

Roisin Murphy - Take Her Up to Monto

3 Stars

Irish electro-pop star follows up last year’s Mercury Prize nomination with another dose of wild invention.

8th July 2016

The Avalanches - Wildflower

4 Stars

The Avalanches have gone beyond their calling.

8th July 2016

The Julie Ruin - Hit Reset

4 Stars

A racing sense fun propels much of The Julie Ruin’s latest.

8th July 2016

BADBADNOTGOOD - IV

3 Stars

In a pursuit of the new, jazz-via-hip-hop group BADBADNOTGOOD sometimes struggle to piece together their grand-scoped adventures.

4th July 2016

Shura - Nothing’s Real

4 Stars

On her long-awaited first work, Shura packs her debut full of potential and pop #bangers.

4th July 2016

Martha - Blisters In The Pit Of My Heart

4 Stars

Martha prevail over adversity, making an album worth falling head-over-heels in love with.

1st July 2016

Globelamp - The Orange Glow

4 Stars

Elizabeth le Fey lives within a vast landscape of her own creation, on her fantastic debut album.

1st July 2016

Stephen Steinbrink - Anagrams

4 Stars

Putting upbeat instrumentation ever at odds with stories of addiction and mental illness, the Phoenix, Arizona-born songwriter’s latest is a low-key triumph.

1st July 2016

Blood Orange - Freetown Sound

3 Stars

‘Freetown Sound’ is the full documentation of Dev Hynes’ transition from scrappy post-punk wonder-kid to slinky New York vintage store aficionado. It’s capable of dazzling results.

1st July 2016

Bat For Lashes - The Bride

4 Stars

Both achingly sad and strangely uplifting, Bat For Lashes’ tragic honeymoon concept album arrives fully-formed.

1st July 2016

Red Hot Chili Peppers - The Getaway

2 Stars

Red Hot Chili Peppers have become something of a self-parody, as rearward-facing as they come. The perennial whipping boys could be getting a harsh treatment, but ‘The Getaway’ gets them nowhere.

1st July 2016