Wolf Alice – My Love Is Cool (Dirty Hit)
Why you should listen: The London four-piece have been pulling together material for this 90s alt-rock-referencing debut since they first appeared in early 2013. Its shoegazey riffs, enduring vocal melodies and restless energy make it worth the wait.
It might not be for you if… You stopped listening to “90s-influenced” new bands in about 2010.
What we said: “While the foundations of My Love Is Cool are 90s/00s shoegaze and grunge, the London quartet defibrillate their influences with the ambition of youth,” wrote Harriet Gibsone, in the Guardian. Emily Mackay gave the album three stars in the Observer.
Score: 4/5
Son Lux – Bones (Glassnote)
Why you should listen: Ryan Lott has expanded his experimental electronic solo project into a trio, and explores issues of protest and personal growth with his ever-present eclecticism on this powerful and challenging fourth studio album.
It might not be for you if… You easily feel overwhelmed listening to albums that pack in so many types of rhythms and textures.
What we said: “Voices are used as instruments, rhythms hustle for space, tracks peak and trough more times than an Andrew Lloyd Weber finale, and there’s so much bone-crunching texture that it claws your ears like a gnarled kitten,” wrote Kate Hutchinson in the Guardian.
Score: 3/5
Everything Everything – Get to Heaven (RCA)
Why you should listen: This third album sees Everything Everything careening back and forth between wielding singer Jonathan Higgs’s signature falsetto, twitchy time signatures and choruses that pack a pop punch amid all the frenetic synths and drums.
It might not be for you if… You find this band more exhausting to listen to than anything else.
What we said: “Odd musical juxtapositions that work spectacularly well – Regret’s curiously captivating melange of Be My Baby drums, massed vocals and frantic guitar – jostle for space with stuff that’s genuinely baffling,” wrote Alexis Petridis in his lead review for the Guardian. Phil Mongredien was more generous, giving the album four stars in the Observer.
Score: 3/5
Blick Bassy – Akö (No Format!)
Why you should listen: Bassy uses a host of unexpected instrument combinations – cello, trombone, guitar, banjo and his husky voice – to bridge Brazilian bossa nova, his Cameroonian roots and delta blues.
It might not be for you if… You don’t often opt for albums of the genre-blending variety, pretty though they may sound.
What we said: “A short but beautifully realised gem from an innovative Paris label,” wrote Neil Spencer in the Observer. Robin Denselow dished out a three-star review for the Guardian.
Score: 4/5
The Orb – Moonbuilding 2703 AD (Kompakt)
Why you should listen: The ambient house duo, now 27 years into their career, keeps the late-night party bobbing along with warmly buzzing synths, languorous dynamic builds and songs rarely below the 13-minute mark.
It might not be for you if… You don’t tend to make time for slow-burning house music any more.
What we said: “Those sprawling [song] lengths allow beatless passages and harder grooves to come and go, moods to subtly shift and change”, wrote Jon Dennis in the Guardian.
Score: 4/5
This week also sees new music from country-pop singer-songwriter Kacey Musgraves and classic soul revivalist Leon Bridges. Which albums and artists are you looking forward to hearing?
