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Above: Kanye West Finally! After a long 10-month period, Kanye first announced that he is dropping his ninth studio album‘JESUS IS KING’ on September 27th but after some delay, it is finally here! This year has been a rollercoaster for Kanye, from his political interest aligning with that of Trump’s, to his controversial statement […]
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At long last, Rex Orange County’s new album Pony has graced our Spotify playlists, our well-loved stack of CDs, our vinyl collections and finally, our hearts. Tender lyricism conjoined with a smug, wry cynicism characterise his indie pop, where equally mournful, self-deprecating lamentations can be (somehow) also quite the uplifting modern-day love songs. Within his […]
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We’re all living in it. Or some did. Here. Eton Alive, the newest album from Sleaford Mods, is a fearful listen. Not least because in it we hear the lacerations that constitute a musical evolution. This is the least ‘Sleaford Mods’ album yet, and for exactly that reason it succeeds in demonstrating a band autonomously undermining […]
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James Blake’s mainstream popularity has always seemed odd. His naturally melancholic vocals, bleak and abstract lyrics, grating synths, jerky beats and overwhelming bass lines intertwine to create somber soundscapes that are often difficult to listen to. Assume Form doesn’t deviate too much from this surprisingly successful – if well-worn – rubric. But what is noticeably […]
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Image credit:Canvasback. Description: album cover of REDUXER. Hmmmmm. It’s like drugged-up sex with a condom on. This isn’t to say that your drug of choice won’t add to the experience, only the high isn’t a compensation for the loss of sensation your £1 insurance policy provides. This is how I feel about alt-J’s Reduxer, the […]
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I couldn’t tell you that I was turned-on by the idea of Pale Waves when I first heard them on their All The Things I Never Said EP in the winter. What can I say? Call me a fool. I just didn’t hear a way in. But then I thumbed through their cover feature in […]
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‘Combat Sports’, the fourth album from indie rockers the Vaccines, showcases a promising future for the band after a somewhat troubling couple of years. Following the departure of drummer Pete Robinson in 2015, ‘Combat Sports’ is an exciting step in the right musical direction after a rocky few years. The 11 tracks on the […]
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The title of Kylie Minogue’s latest album ‘Golden’ undoubtedly reflects the sentiments of the majority of its tracks: warm, wholesome and positive. Everyone is familiar with her distinctive pop/electronic sound from songs such as ‘Can’t get you out of my head’ and ‘Spinning around’, with her 30-year music career making her a household name across […]
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“Is an old memory / just another way of saying goodbye?” Adam Granduciel of asks us over the top of a quintessential descending bassline doubled on tinkling keys. Cynics would say that the War on Drugs’ revitalisation of classic rock is merely another way of bidding farewell to an imagined past where music by men […]
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Sylvan Esso’s newest album “What Now,” released 28 April, continues the relaxed pop vibes of their 2014 self-titled debut album. The music undeniably and knowingly fits into the manufactured pop category but seems to resist this generic placement. Most of the tracks feature peppy beats so rhythmic that it is easy to be distracted from […]
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In the music video for Pure Comedy’s lead single, ‘Total Entertainment Forever’, Father John Misty trots out what seems like a checklist of the beginner’s guide to post-irony: George Washington stuck in a virtual reality simulation, Ronald MacDonald ripping open Josh’s chest as Ridley Scott’s Alien, Macaulay Culkin from Home Alone as Kurt Cobain playing […]
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Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours has just celebrated its 40th birthday and, even though there are probably thousands of articles dedicated to how special this album is already, I think it deserves at least one more. It’s an album that is strangely omnipresent even today, and has managed to become so universally loved that it’s almost uncool […]
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There is an incredible amount of crazy energy brewing in a lesser-known corner of the local LA garage rock music scene – and it’s being led by girls. Being an LA-native myself, I’ve had the fortunate opportunity to witness first hand the impressive female empowerment fests exploding out of those sweaty pockets of clubs and […]
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‘’Cause I couldn’t care less / If they call us reckless’. Accompanied by blasts of garish horns and a skittering electro-pop beat, this chorus from album opener ‘Dangerous’ rings out like a manifesto for The xx’s latest album, ‘I See You’. It’s a surprising shift for the notoriously shy trio. Back in 2009 when they […]
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Wilfully, earnestly, and with great conviction, Polly Jean Harvey continues to follow her own star. However much she is placed on a pedestal, the veteran English singer-songwriter remains the real thing: a musician of major talent, capable of striking originality, and sincerely concerned with using music to make important statements, both personal and political. Her […]
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After an accidental leak last week, Rihanna’s long-awaited eighth studio album ANTI dropped on music streaming service Tidal, going platinum within just 24 hours. It’s been more than three years since the release of Unapologetic, her seventh album in eight years, and perhaps that is why this newest offering is uncharacteristically thoughtful and considered. Rihanna’s […]
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Edward Saïd once remarked ‘the late works of artists are in but oddly apart from the present’. Something about a great artist’s work changes when they die. In an instant, they and their creations are plucked from the world of temporality and committed to a domain that is, for all intents and purposes, timeless. In […]
Continue ReadingAlong with the tumultuous excitement that came with news of Sleater-Kinney’s reunion after a nearly ten year long break from making music, there was small but undying part of me that didn’t want the band to reform. Ultimately, there was a sense of fear, a fear of listening to any new material that might tarnish […]
Continue ReadingExperimental jazz trio Troyka’s latest album (its name inspired by guitarist Chris Montague’s real fear of birds, and gesturing perhaps towards Charlie Parker’s similarly named ‘Ornithology’ with which it shares melodic intricacy and frenetic pace) seems in many ways a logical progression from their 2012 album Moxxy. With contorted time signatures and fast, almost brusque […]
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