Editors' Picks

English singer-songwriter Ben Howard’s three previous albums all have a different feel to them. The folk artist made his debut in 2011 with Every Kingdom, his most instantly gratifying album, and followed it up with I Forget Where We Were, a more complex record that rewarded listeners’ efforts and remains to many his best collection. 2018’s Noonday Dream was darker in feel, and marked a change in tone for Howard, but was no less excellent. 

Lana Del Rey is an intriguing star. In so many ways, she’s one of the biggest singers and musicians around, a performer at the absolute peak of her creative powers. And in other ways, she seems to very deliberately eschew exactly the sort of fame and status this would otherwise bring her.

Discounting 2017’s Synthesis, which was a collection of existing tracks reworked to add orchestral and electronic elements and featured just two new songs, The Bitter Truth marks Evanescence’s first proper studio album in a decade. That’s a long time for fans to have waited to hear more from lead singer Amy Lee and co.

Two years ago, Taylor Swift’s very public battle with Scooter Braun over the rights to her back catalogue was huge news. “This was my worst case scenario” Swift wrote at the time in an emotional Tumblr post that blew up, and while the legal wrangling left Swift and her fans in an unfortunate position, many would argue she had the last laugh when she announced her decision to re-record her old music.

There comes a point, about half way through Justin Bieber’s sixth studio album Justice, where you might wonder what’s happening here. And strangely, it comes on the song that isn’t a song, MLK Interlude, which is instead an excerpt from a 1967 sermon given by Martin Luter King. “You died when you refused to stand up for right. You died when you refused to stand up for truth. You died when you refused to stand up for justice.” It’s incredibly powerful, but what’s it doing here, on an album from a pop star whose last album Changes was preceded by the single Yummy? A song so shallow it’s chorus went “Yeah, you got that yummy-yum / That yummy-yum, that yummy-yummy.”

In what might be one of the most driving and epic song of the year so far, Delta Goodrem delivers a fantastic western-infused showtune folk song that’s filled with excitement and eccentricity with her new single, Billionaire.

Brighton outfit Black Honey’s self-titled debut album was a glorious mixture of attitude and swagger, a indie punk whirlwind that evoked the likes of Elastica and Garbage and crashed into the top 40 UK albums chart. It teed them up for a frenzy of tour dates, an NME front cover appearance, and festival slots right the way across Europe. The departure of founding band member and drummer Tom Dewhurst at the end of 2019 might have derailed lesser bands, but Black Honey focused on completing their new record, Written & Directed, which landed this week.

Ringo Starr needs no preamble. As one quarter of the biggest band of all time, the man has seen it all and done it all and has nothing left to prove. Nor would he even want to – part of Starr’s enduring charm has always been his everydayness, content with his reputation as the definitive nice man of music. Now at the ripe old age of eighty and with the country still in lockdown, you’d imagine Starr was happy just to put his feet up. Not a bit of it. 

Amy Shark’s new single is a blend of what makes both alternative and indie so great in one fine package that drives a beat forward from the moment it starts to when it ends.

In a very odd blend of folk and EDM, Lost Frequencies have managed to make an unusual gem that will both make you raise your brow, and nod your head all the same.

Welsh-born multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer and author Catherine Anne Davies – otherwise known as the Anchoress – isn’t your normal pop star. A published writer with a PhD in literature and queer theory from University College London, she creates terrifyingly intense songs that often document heartbreaking pain. Tragically, much of this pain is told from personal experience, the last few years having brought the death of her father, a cancer diagnosis and treatment, and the loss of several pregnancies.

The multi-talented Jacob Banks moved to the UK from his native Nigeria when he was just thirteen years old, and with a creative streak that took in singing and playing guitar, he started writing songs of his own at the age of twenty. He plied his trade on the open mic night circuit around his hometown of Birmingham, where he quickly attracted attention for his powerful vocals and intimate songwriting, which fuses elements of soul, African music and synths to create a rich and unique sound.

Arguably one of the greatest album openers, and in consequence one of the greatest singles of all time, has been remixed in 2021 mixed in with whole new elements, as well as speeches from the civil rights icon MLK in what makes one of the most electrifying remixes of all time.

In one of the uncanniest collaborations of ideas and artists, Sting has returned with a new single, My Funny Valentine, embracing music of old along with one of the greatest forces in jazz and music as a whole.

Nearly forty-three years after the original release of the disco single I’m Every Woman, Chaka Khan, the original signer for the track, alongside Idina Menzel got together to re-record the classic hit, bringing modern life into one of the greatest tracks of the seventies.

Bedford-born singer-songwriter Tom Grennan took the name of his second album Evering Road from a street he used to live on with his ex-girlfriend. And his origin story is an interesting one too – Grennan trained to become a professional footballer but was released, finding work instead at a Costa Coffee. At the age of 18, he was attacked in the street leaving him with metal plates and screws in his jaw. He got into music, apparently, after friends were impressed by his impromptu singing at a party, and pushed him into pursuing it further.

When it comes to feel-good music, there is very few songs that come quite as good as Japanese Breakfast’s newest single, Be Sweet. 

Nick Jonas found fame as one third of the Jonas Brothers, the American pop rockers who emerged from their Disney Channel beginnings into one of the biggest boy bands of the late 2000s. Unlike many of his contemporaries though, Jonas managed to carve out a successful solo career once his group had split, with the singles Chains, Jealous, Close and Bacon in particular showing that he was capable of varied, contemporary pop classics with his distinctive high-pitched vocals.

BRIT-award-winning singer and songwriter Tom Odell’s new single Monster v.1 drops this week, complete with a video directed by George Somverville and Odell himself. The track is taken from Odell’s upcoming new album Monsters, his fourth studio LP which is due for release this summer. 

The dynamic duo is out and about again, just a week after their debut single, with another offering. This time, weirdly enough, they decided to release what is most likely the intro to their upcoming album, and despite only being a minute in length, there’s still plenty to unpack in this tune.

When lockdown first started a year or so ago, many of us made our peace with it by turning to that lengthy to-do list. ‘What a great opportunity to catch up on some jobs’, we thought. ‘Or perhaps I’ll learn a new skill’, we kidded ourselves. ‘I know, I’ll learn Japanese, and the piano’, we outright lied, as we locked the front door, kicked back on the sofa, and lined up yet another box set marathon. 

It's been sixteen years since Glasgow duo Arab Strap last released an album, and with it announced their split after a decade of subverting the airwaves with their gritty and sometimes absurd tales. In many ways, they paved the way for acts like Sleaford Mods to take their work to the mainstream, and in this post-truth, pandemic-ridden time, it feels like a new Arab Strap album would land perfectly.

Irish singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Imelda May has teamed up with none other than Ronnie Wood for her new track Made To Love, a joyous song about love in all its guises taken from her upcoming new album 11 Past The Hour, which is due for release via Decca Records on 16 April, a week earlier than originally scheduled. 

Guillemots frontman Fyfe Dangerfield released his first (and so far, only) solo album Fly Yellow Moon back in 2010, while his band were still in their heyday. It’s easy to forget how big Guillemots were for a while, their debut album Through The Windowpane was nominated for the 2006 Mercury Music Prize (though it was beaten by the Arctic Monkeys’ Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not), and their dreamy hits like Get Over It and Made-Up Love Song #43 resonated within the indie scene at the time.

If you were to pick four or so genres of music and jumble all of them in some musical blender and pour yourself a song from the blend, you’d come close to something akin to Serotonin by Girl in Red, and you bet that you’ll do your best remembering that recipe.

As part of their newest EP release, Evanescence is back with one of their heaviest singles, Better Without You.

The unexpected supergroup delivered the first single on Friday March 5th, and to say they blew us all away is a massive understatement.

When the Followills (brother Caleb, Nathan, and Jared and their cousin Matthew) burst onto the scene in the early 2000s, few could have predicted that two decades on they’d become the sort of global super band that sell out arenas in minutes and can stake a legitimate claim to the title of biggest act in the world. But here we are in 2021, and Kings Of Leon are basically there.

Australian singer, songwriter, actor and author Dan Sultan dropped his debut solo album Homemade Biscuits in 2006 at the age of twenty-two, the album which introduced the world to his rich voice, story-filled lyrics and ear for a hook. His second album, Get Out While You Can followed in 2009, and saw him win Best Male Artist and Best Blues And Roots Album at the 2010 ARIA Music Awards. In 2014, he followed that success by claiming Best Rock Album for his third studio album Blackbird, while his 2017 album Killer was nominated for three ARIA awards: Best Male Artist, Best Rock Album, and Best Independent Release. 

Little Oblivions is the third album from indie folk rock singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Julien Baker, and it’s a record that continues her journey, building on the simple, heartfelt majesty of her debut, Sprained Ankle, which laid bare stories of self destruction and drug abuse over sparse acoustic guitar and piano, and its follow up Turn Out The Lights, which expanded on its predecessor, sonically and emotionally.

When it comes to old-timey, nostalgic songs, there are very few that can match CMAT’s level of quality. Her soulful voice, all coupled with beautifully intricate production, make songs like her newest single, I Don’t Really Care for You, all the more special.

Amsterdam native singer and songwriter Celine Cairo made her debut with 2013’s self-released Follow EP, produced by Ninja Tune’s Fink. It led to support slots in her homeland with artists including Asgeir, Dodie and Haevn, and to her first international tour in 2014.

When it comes to soul, the genre has been shaped into its modern form by artists such as Sam Smith and Daniel Caesar. However, it’s grown incredibly distant from its roots to an almost indistinguishable degree, but that doesn’t mean that old soul like our grandparents used to enjoy is dead and gone. In fact, Leon Bridges might be the largest force in keeping that energy alive to this day, and he does a better job than ever in his newest single with Keite Young, Like a Ship.

The Melvins played a big part in the development of grunge and sludge metal in the 1980s and early 1990s, and now in their fifth decade together, the veteran rockers are still going strong. Working With God is their 24th album (not including split records) and, though they’ve been through all sorts of personnel changes over the years, this new release finds them back in their original 1983 lineup of Buzz Osborne (vocals / guitars), Dale Crover (bass), and Mike Dillard (drums).

Zara Larsson is emphatically fierce in her latest single, ‘Look What You’ve Done.’ The infectious melody will immediately grasp you and immerse you within its celebratory but slightly wistful atmosphere. Zara has had a lot of success in embedding eighties-themed disco-pop sounds into her tracks, where she usually pairs a modern verve with an intoxicating, devil-may-care attitude.

Geordie rockers Maximo Park threw caution to the wind with their last album Risk To Exist, an angry, acerbic record that took aim at Brexit and Trumpism and marked a significant lyrical shift from frontman Paul Smith. The album was accompanied by a zine that included a contribution from political commentator Owen Jones, and essays from Smith. For fans and critics alike, it was a dramatic transformation from the band that burst onto the scene in the mid-2000s with the swaggering, indie dance pomp of Graffiti and their debut album A Certain Trigger.

American singer and songwriter Madison Beer got her break aged just thirteen when Justin Bieber tweeted a link to Beer’s YouTube cover of Etta James’s At Last, then signed her to Island Records. Her first single Melodies was then released in 2013 (the video featured a cameo from Bieber himself), and Beer began work on her debut album, reported at the time to have pop and R&B influences.

Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III – known by his stage name Aloe Blacc – is a man of many talents. As a musician, singer, songwriter and record producer, he’s worked on a wide variety of projects. He topped the UK charts with his singles I Need A Dollar and The Man, and wrote and performed vocals on Avicii’s Wake Me Up, which topped the charts in 22 countries, and has amassed almost 1,250,000,000 streams on Spotify. Alongside fellow US record producer Exile, Blacc also forms the hip hop duo Emanon.

Fans of NOFX might be a little bit confused by the opening notes of their fourteenth studio record Single Album. Not only did the edgy, palm muted guitar that opens the album take five years to arrive (for such a prolific band, the long wait since their last album First Ditch Effort dropped in 2016 seems cavernous) but yes, no matter how many times you listen to it, there’s no escaping the fact that that’s the riff from Bryan Adams’ Summer Of 69…

Davy has always found ways to push the envelope when it comes to musical innovations. He has always refused to stick to one genre, or rather to let himself be boxed in to labels. With each new track, it seems to get harder and harder to describe his music other than to simply say “It’s Davy”. It’ll be Okay, his newest single, is by far the most ambitious of his recent releases.

The Hold Steady are one of those bands that seem to have been around forever, a bonafide part of the fabric of American music. But despite their reliable, dependable name, and penchant for telling Springsteen-esque tales of life in the USA, they’re also not afraid of mixing things up. From the concept album debut of Almost Killed Me right up to their latest and eighth studio album Open Door Policy, which they’re sprinkled with a healthy dose of brass.

When you think of charity, you think positive, right? The feeling of hope and grace are undoubtedly positive, and the group Midlife did a wonderful job capturing pure joy in its most wholesome form with their newest charity-single Rude Girl #doingitforlaura. 

Jessy Rose takes us on a captivating journey of rebirth and reflection in his debut solo single “Set Free.” The single is pop perfection, with a crisp and warm production that sets the stage for the artist to express his most piercing vulnerabilities all while remaining emotionally accessible and personable. 

Glasgow post-rock outfit Mogwai carved out a name for themselves in the 1990s and early 2000s with their expansive, idiosyncratic soundscapes and intense live performances. Their early collections, including the likes of Mogwai Young Team and Happy Songs For Happy People, remain immensely well loved by a loyal following who have grown with the band over the years.

In what might be the most interesting blend of genres, Jealous by Mahalia, featuring Rico Nasty, is an interesting tune through and through, and both plays into what works in modern music and what’s so beautiful about Mahalia’s musicality.

London-based four-piece Django Django have long been a difficult band to label. Mixing electro and rock elements, with an art house aesthetic and an indie foundation, they’ve consistently turned out big, melodic tunes across their three albums to date, even if the edges have blurred between genres throughout their back catalogue.

Hailing from the Armagh-Monaghan border, Dani Larkin is an emerging singer-songwriter and folk musician with a reputation as one of Ireland’s brightest new folk talents. Taking inspiration from the folktales she was raised with and fusing elements of traditional melodies and rhythms from around the world in a seamless and timeless tradition, she was awarded the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival Artist in Residence in 2019.

With the sudden rise of pop punk, it’s no wonder artists finally embrace their inner emo in the midst of this resurgence. The Eulogy of You and Me is just about as pop-punk as it gets, with a more modern edge, but using all the same tropes and sounds that make the genre so beloved.

More than twenty years on from the release of White Ladder, David Gray’s fourth studio album which spawned the hit singles Babylon, Please Forgive Me, Sail Away, and This Year’s Love, songs that made their creator a superstar, it remains one of the biggest UK albums of the 21st century. Incredibly, it stayed in the UK top 100 for close to three years, has sold in excess of seven million copies, and is the UK’s 26th best-selling album of all time. 

Fresh from being unmasked as the Robin on Saturday night TV sensation The Masked Singer, Aston Merrygold has dropped his new solo single Overboard, a smooth and sultry R&B meets pop affair with a little bit of a seafaring feel, and not just when it comes to the name of the track. 

Musicians making the transition to the big screen has always been a tricky path to walk. For every Lady Gaga dazzling in A Star Is Born, there’s a Vanilla Ice doing… well, whatever it was that he did in Cool As Ice (which if you haven’t seen, you’re in for a treat). 

R&B as a whole has been ever so lenient on hip-hop, and that’s not a bad thing. There’s something about the mystifying and accessibility found within it that blends ever-so beautifully with the genre that gave birth to so many, hip-hop included. Relapse, the newest song by singer Gallant is a contradiction to that, by bringing in the beauty of mid-90s R&B blended with the soul of modern neo-soul all together in a crystal-clear composition.

Manchester goth pop outfit Pale Waves formed in 2014 and were signed by Dirty Hit in 2017, releasing their debut single There’s A Honey to critical acclaim. The following year they placed fifth in the BBC Sound of 2018 poll, and claimed the NME Under the Radar Award at the NME Awards. Their debut album My Mind Makes Noises charted in the UK Albums Chart top ten, and everything seemed to be falling into place for the band. 

It's very rare for metalcore acts from the golden age of the genre to stay bound within their boxes. Groups either stray off in completely different directions, or suffer a bit more tragic fate. Architects have managed to both progress their sound over the years, while keeping the energy and aggression they exuded when they first start thrashing in the mid 2000s. Their newest single, Meteor, is very much proof of that.

After years spent carving out a name for themselves in the underground dance scene, Northern Irish electronic duo Bicep came crashing into the mainstream with their 2017 self-titled debut album, an unexpected top 20 hit in the UK albums chart. It was a long way to come from their origins with the FeelMyBicep blog which was a staple of the house scene in the late 2000s, but it was no less than the pair deserved.

Hailing from a small village in Somerset, Finn Askew is an eclectic and experimental young songwriter and performer. Having discovered his love for music as a youngster when he stumbled upon his parent’s CD collection, which included some giants such as Nirvana and The Smiths, Askew started writing and recording his own songs, fusing influences that span pop, rock, R&B, hip-hop, and indie.

On June 25th 2009, the world lost the greatest entertainer of all time, the king of pop Michael Jackson. His legacy, especially that of which he built in the 80s, still resonates in modern pop to this day. 

Hailing from the quiet Sydney suburb of Lindfield in the land down under, psychedelic indie rock troubadours The Lazy Eyes have been turning heads in their homeland, and winning over fans and critics alike with their spacey live shows and their intricate, layered tracks, despite the fact that all four of them are still in their teenage years.

It takes a lot of guts to blend the old and the new when it comes to producing a song – on one end, you’re limited by used ideas, and on the other you’re seeking innovation. But every now and then, you have artists like Chet Faker that come around with a song such as Get High, that perfectly blends the two ideologies together in one sweet musical smoothie.

Demi Lovato and Sam Fischer’s latest collaboration ‘What Other People Say’ treads through familiar territory in classic pop fashion. Lovato has built a reputation of powering each and every song with her dramatic, euphoric, and oft over-the-top vocals, and she does so again to great effect.

Raveena is the perfect mix of pop, jazz, and hip hop, and always has been. Tweety, her newest single, is a wonderful continuation of that sound, heading in all those directions more so than ever before. The song opens in a beautiful major-sounding progression, filled with other jazz treasures and classic chord progressions, all finished with the lustrous sounds of a Fender Rhodes.

There’s no disputing that Foo Fighters are one of, if not, the biggest bands in the world these days. From their beginnings as a side project of the former Nirvana drummer, Dave Grohl has steered the good ship Foo Fighters into the rich and deep waters of astounding commercial success. And their new offering – Medicine At Midnight – is certainly an economical record, coming in at a very streamlined nine tracks.

Norii’s single ‘Exocoetidae’ is a dreamy, starry-eyed adventure through time and space that fully captures the wonder of a curious artist. The San Diego-based singer and songwriter thoughtfully leans into her mythical interests and has crafted an intricate and impassioned melody, complete with electrifying production and stellar vocal work. At first listen, Norii’s soft, stirring vocal stylings would immediately draw comparisons to Ariana Grande, but upon further exploration, you’d realize that Norii has carved out her own spectacular niche with her fairytale-woven themes, a far cry from the hits populating the top 40 in contemporary music. 

Tones and I’s collaboration with Jonas Blue on a remix of ‘Fly Away’ is an infectious, impassioned track headed straight for the dance floor. The Australian singer-songwriter has been flying high for the past two years or so since her international hit ‘Dance For Me.’ She’s been following up on her breakout success by delving inwards and crafting pieces that represent the full range of vocal and songwriting talents. ‘Fly Away’ was one such ballad that touched upon the electronic dance pulse but also incorporated some lovely gospel magic. 

We’ve been big fans of Arlo Parks and her delicate, soft-pop sound for some time now, and we’re not alone: the Londoner has already appeared on the front cover of NME and been named BBC Introducing Artist Of The Year. Oh, and did we mention Michelle Obama is a fan? Not bad support for a singer and songwriter who, until last week, was yet to drop her first album.

Canadian folk outfit The Weather Station have evolved over the years from the solo recordings of frontwoman Tamara Lindeman to the full band outfit they are today, a lineup that now includes two drummers and a saxophonist, as well a string section, synths and clarinet. However, one constant since their debut album The Line was released back in 2009 has been the quality of Lindeman’s songwriting, and on Ignorance, their fifth full-length studio offering, it’s that that remains central to all they do well.

London post-punk four-piece Goat Girl were regulars at Brixton’s The Windmill in their early days, gigging alongside acts like Fat White Family and Shame and carving out a name for themselves as proponents of edgy, enticing and dangerous music that didn’t pull any punches. Two days after the UK’s Brexit referendum, they signed a deal with Rough Trade, unleashed a flurry of singles, and the hype began to grow.

Let me set a scene for you: it’s a lazy, rainy Sunday afternoon, and you’re on your fourth coffee of the day, yet you just can’t feel energized.

Rising UK R&B star James Vickery has turned his attention to a deeply relatable subject with his new single Somewhere, Out There. Vickery, who is set to release his debut album later this year, has just dropped his new track, and it’s a sweet and tender take on the pain lockdown has caused, particularly for lovers forced to seperate.

There are very few voices in folk and jazz that sound quite as soulful as MARO’s. Her breathy tone will smooth the roughest stones, and calm the anxious with a simple melody. When her voice introduced itself amidst a low four-count bass drum coupled with small, low-maintenance guitar strums, my lips curled gently in a smile. The band and MARO make beautiful harmonies, even when those are just an octave apart. Every moment of this song feels right.