Everything Is Recorded: Everything Is Recorded By Richard Russell review – mogul music with a stellar cast
As head of XL, Richard Russell shaped UK music for three decades. His own debut release finds its voice in many singers
Fischerspooner: Sir review – not worth the nine-year wait
Fischerspooner were key to the electroclash movement that briefly twinned Europe’s gay capitals and New York almost 20 years ago. The American duo have finally resurfaced with their first album in nine years, produced by REM’s Michael Stipe. In an … Continue reading
The Chainsmokers review – pyrotechnic rallying slogans and theatrical self-loathing
Gimmicks, grand entrances and pop-cultural gags inhabit the DJ duo’s universe, where vague grievances attain epic proportions
James Blake review – cyborg pop warmed by human touch
Blake tests new material for his forthcoming album with each freshly unveiled song sounding totally different from the last
Porches: The House review – jaded, romantic, intricate synthpop
Porches started out making bedroom-rock in 2010, but frontman Aaron Maine has since steered his project into sheeny synth territory. Their third album, The House, retains the polished introspection and cleansing water imagery of previous record Pool, but goes deeper … Continue reading
Moor Mother review – howl of apocalyptic fury is kept to a whisper
A weedy sound system prevents the Philadelphian poet, musician and activist from tapping into true dread
Brona McVittie: We Are the Wildlife review – beautifully embroidered folk
Electronic music, used judiciously, can serve the folk song well, particularly when it’s teasing out subtler textures in the tradition, noticing the smaller stitches in its seams. This is certainly true of the work of Brona McVittie, an Irish singer … Continue reading
Powerdance: The Lost Art of Getting Down review – love is the message
The collective celebrate disco and post-punk from an age before tedious dancefloor Instagrams – but their bass-heavy toughness means they never become retro
Myra Davies: Sirens review – witty spoken-word skewering of violence, patriarchy and modern music
Backed by smart techno-pop production by Beate Bartel and Gudrun Gut, Canadian spoken-word artist Myra Davies delivers a supremely droll series of observations. Some are close portraits with the vibrancy of a Manet or Degas – on Golddress, she frets … Continue reading
The Prodigy review – teeth rattled in dystopian breakbeat pantomime
Twenty years on from their multimillion-selling album The Fat of the Land, the Prodigy refuse to get nostalgic, nor reduce the energy levels below total pandemonium
Kitty Empire’s best pop of 2017
From Jay-Z to Taylor Swift, it’s been a year of high political and personal drama in the worlds of rap, pop and rock
Nabihah Iqbal: Weighing of the Heart review – nostalgic, sweet pop and pristine beats
For the last few years, Nabihah Iqbal has been confecting bright and airy electronica as producer Throwing Shade. For her debut album, she bursts out from between the synths with a warm and fuzzy vocal-led collection of tracks that nod … Continue reading
Pauset: Canons CD review – cool precision and dense virtuosity
Canons have been a feature of western music since at least the 13th century, and it seems that composers are still fascinated by their possibilities. Brice Pauset, the French-born, German-resident former pupil of Gérard Grisey has taken that fascination further … Continue reading