wed 14/05/2025

New releases on CD & DVD

Album: MØ - Plæygirl

Thomas H Green

Danish singer MØ is a paradox. Initially she appeared to be another Scandi electro-pop princess of the bangers. The monster 2015 hit “Lean On” with Major Lazer jacked her profile, briefly, through the roof, but, while she’s worked with everyone from Iggy Azalea to DJ Benny Benassi, she seemed to step sideways from pure pop, tempering it with something more Nordic and melancholy. Her fourth album persuasively continues in this direction.

DVD/Blu-ray: Slade in Flame

Tim Cumming

Over the years Slade in Flame has been hailed as one of the greatest rock movies (albeit rarely seen or screened), up there with Perfomance and That’ll Be The Day.

Album: Peter Doherty - Felt Better Alive

Tim Cumming

Following on from an impressive set with the Libertines – last year’s No 1 album All Quiet On The Eastern Esplanade – Peter Doherty returns to the...

Album: Sleep Token - Even In Arcadia

Tom Carr

It has never been an exact science understanding when something will capture lightning in a bottle and go viral. Even less expected is for an...

Album: Mark Pritchard & Thom Yorke - Tall...

Joe Muggs

I’ve got an admission: I never really got Radiohead, in no small part because of Thom Yorke’s singing. I appreciate his technical abilities and...

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Album: PinkPantheress - Fancy That

Thomas H Green

Hot rising pop star's new mixtape lacks tunes and dynamism

Blu-ray: Laurel & Hardy - The Silent Years (1928)

Graham Rickson

Ten more early shorts, handsomely restored and annotated

Album: Arcade Fire - Pink Elephant

Thomas H Green

Seventh from Canadian stadium-slayers contains enough juice to convince

Album: PUP - Who Will Look After The Dogs?

Ellie Roberts

A compelling balance between absurdity and sincerity

Album: Suzanne Vega - Flying With Angels

Liz Thomson

A diverse album that's still uniquely Vega

Album: Lael Neale - Altogether Stranger

Kieron Tyler

Arresting art pop with a touch of creepiness

Album: Car Seat Headrest - The Scholars

Mark Kidel

A rock opera too scholarly?

Album: Dr Robert & Matt Deighton - The Instant Garden

Thomas H Green

A couple of old mods waft into delightfully Seventies hippy territory

Album: Self Esteem - A Complicated Woman

Kathryn Reilly

Dissecting the utter tripe 21st-century western women navigate every day. In song!

Album: Billy Idol - Dream Into It

Joe Muggs

Immense charm and uniqueness shine through, but too much leaning into the generic

Album: Viagra Boys - Viagr Aboys

Ibi Keita

Louder, weirder and all the way in

Album: Maria Somerville - Luster

Kieron Tyler

Irish musical impressionist embraces shoegazing

Album: Ronny Graupe's Szelest - Newfoundland Tristesse

Sebastian Scotney

A deep, subtle and constantly engaging album

Album: Gigspanner Big Band - Turnstone

Tim Cumming

Third album from British folk’s biggest big band

Album: Mark Morton - Without the Pain

Thomas H Green

Second solo album from Lamb of God guitarist lays down hefty southern boogie

DVD/Blu-ray: In a Year of 13 Moons

Nick Hasted

UK disc debut for Fassbinder's neglected, tragic, tender trans tale

Album: Rhiannon Giddens & Justin Robinson - What Did the Blackbird Say to the Crow

Liz Thomson

Finger-picking good

Album: Joe Lovano - Homage

Sebastian Scotney

Free-flowing spontaneity

Album: Bon Iver - SABLE ƒABLE

Mark Kidel

An album of exquisite wonder

Album: Black Country, New Road - Forever Howlong

Ibi Keita

A left turn that trades chaos for charm, with mixed results

Album: Sofia Härdig - Lighthouse of Glass

Kieron Tyler

Swedish singer-songwriter takes control of her music

Blu-ray: Yojimbo / Sanjuro

Graham Rickson

A pair of Kurosawa classics, beautifully restored

Album: The Waterboys - Life, Death and Dennis Hopper

Thomas H Green

An alternately involving then naff tribute to a countercultural film figurehead

Album: Miki Berenyi Trio - Tripla

Tim Cumming

Debut set from Lush singer-songwriter’s new trio

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