Largely derided upon release, ‘Pinkerton’ has enjoyed a massive critical resurgence in the 20 years since it came out.
‘Preoccupations’ crackles with nervous energy and tension, and serves to buttress the impressive and innovative post-punk of the band’s debut last year.
One of the very few dance records that isn’t tied to its era, ‘Screamadelica’s timelessness was cemented by how it doubled back on rock history, rearranging the past so it pointed to the future, and is arguably the most far-reaching piece of musical exploration in pop’s vast canon.
If ‘AIM’ really is Maya Arulpragasam signing off, it’s the sound of her doing so in solid, unspectacular style rather than with a bang.
A work of extreme beauty whose emotional power often borders on the physical, ‘Skeleton Tree’ will richly reward those who are willing to give it repeated listens.
‘Trick’ reconciles the soulful street poetry of his first two records with his new-found sense of maturity, and it’s Jamie T’s most consistently enjoyable album so far.
by Ed Biggs This weekend sees Yorkshire’s own Embrace return with the third annual edition of The Secret Festival, staying at last year’s site of Lotherton Hall just west of Leeds once again on the weekend of the 3rd-4th September 2016. Though still in its infancy, the idea behind The Secret Festival went down extremely well right from its first edition back in 2014, when it was held at Hertfordshire’s Knebworth
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by Ed Biggs August has been a terrific month for music: not least because of the headline-grabbing return of Frank Ocean with not one, but two new albums in the shape of visual project Endless, following two days later on August 20th by Blonde, currently sitting atop the charts on both sides of the Atlantic and many markets around the world.
by Ed Biggs Since their dense and detailed 2014 debut album ZABA, Oxford’s folktronica four-piece Glass Animals have made impressive commercial strides into key markets across the world. America seems to be falling in love with them, and Britain isn’t far behind, with recent single ‘Life Itself’ getting serious radio rotation.
by Ed Biggs Having recorded some of the most resolutely imposing and challenging music of the last two decades, Scott Walker has gone from poster boy pin-up from his days in The Walker Brothers at the end of the ‘60s to one of the most respected experimental artists in the business in an impressive and unlikely career arc that’s lasted over half a century.
