26 May 2026
Here's how it works: The Recent Releases chart brings together critical reaction to new albums from more than 50 sources worldwide. It's updated daily. Albums qualify with 5 reviews, and drop out after 6 weeks into the longer timespan charts.
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The Baltimore art rock / noise pop outfit, back after a brief break-up with their third album
6.5
[A] Beefheart-like tendency to avoid consistent rhythm and keep the audience guessing is partly what makes this music feel so alive Read Review
Paradoxical as it may seem, the more structured version of the band that Do Whatever You Want All the Time presents just may be more exciting, and offer more potential, than what Ponytail were doing before Read Review
A band with an imprint and sound all of its own, with much of joy to share around Read Review
An intense and imaginative celebration of noise, pop and noise-pop. Print edition only
The seven tracks that make up this impressive swansong are more composed, more painstakingly structured than either of its predecessors Read Review
A sound you can drink and a quick sharp hit to pep up your week Read Review
Sees them moving into more sophisticated territory with plenty of layering of sound Read Review
Ponytail fans will surely enjoy this relatively formed incarnation of the band’s energy. Non-fans can appreciate the pure joys of a band making noise free of the grip of self-doubt or other inhibitors Read Review
A candy-colored descent into madness, one which tames the wildness of the group's previous efforts in the interest of a far more mature style Read Review
The cracks are starting to show in the band’s previously impervious candy shell Read Review
A more refined take on their jerk-punk lyricism Read Review
“Experimental” and “sophisticated” are often code words for “lackluster” when they come directly from the label, and while that isn’t quite the case for Do Whatever You Want All the Time, it’s close Read Review
I doubt it will stay with any of us for very long, but with some luck these growing pains will yield a new and even more arresting Ponytail Read Review
Without Ponytail’s flair for life-affirming, Beefheart-style cut-ups, there’s little sonic intrigue here Read Review
To truly grasp the vigour of Do Whatever You Want All The Time, do it yourself. Grab four mates, pick up some instruments and go nuts. Just don’t cut an album from the sessions Read Review
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Ponytail: Do Whatever You Want All the Time
Ed O’Brien Blue Morpho
‘Blue Morpho’ offers a reminder that, as he and his other bandmates have repeatedly proved, O’Brien boasts a wholly-uninhibited approach to how rock and pop music is arranged, resulting in works that move and grow like the building blocks of life itself Clash
Kevin Morby Little Wide Open
Represents a musical homecoming for Morby to the Americana that is central to much of his work No Ripcord
Lykke Li The Afterparty
On a purportedly final album, the Swedish electro-pop singer’s disenchantment takes shape around sparkling synth and light-touch disco beats Pitchfork
Paul McCartney The Boys of Dungeon Lane
A richly nostalgic trip that proves this legend is still as creative as ever Rolling Stone
Tori Amos In Times Of Dragons
Her vocals have rarely sounded better. A husky tone has slowly emerged, giving her a Patti Smith croon to her words of scorn. Anyone who has followed Amos’ career to date will relish this addition to her cannon. It might, hopefully, attract new fans too Under The Radar
Full of wonder, full of creativity, and possibility, fully realized and here for our delight. Like the album as a whole this is a truly excellent piece. It features lyrics full of thankfulness as we “feel the grace in all of life, thank you for this time.” What a great note to end a special album on Under The Radar
The Coral 388
By the time the rocksteady sway of “Spirit Catcher” and the effortless pop beauty of “Crossing The Sands” close the album, The Coral seem firmly back in the swing of creating music again. Hiatus done and dusted XS Noize
Every choppy guitar line and snaking Hammond or Farfisa lick form hooks in their own right The Arts Desk
By reconnecting with their past, The Coral have found the essence of who they are now - and it's pretty magical Mojo
It's an utter delight, an album that touches on all those influences [rocksteady, doo wop, soul, ska and 2-Tone] but still sounds like nothing but The Coral. Print edition only Record Collector
It’s a lucky number thirteen for fans – The Coral remain a band to cherish Clash
Despite an unorthodox release pattern that harks back to an era before streaming, the Wirral outfit's 13th album is one of their most accessibl musicOMH
Broken Social Scene Remember The Humans
While Remember the Humans aims to recapture something of vintage Broken Social Scene, the key aspects of their old sound simply can’t be reproduced by this version of the band Spectrum Culture
The singer/songwriter makes a valiant pivot into rock, though he lacks the backbone, grit and conviction to make it work Spectrum Culture
The guitarist’s second solo outing – but first under his actual name – offers mindfulness via a widescreen prog-folk trip NME
Since we've been around, that is. So, the highest-rated albums from the past twelve years or so. Rankings are calculated to two decimal places.
Kendrick Lamar To Pimp A Butterfly
Fiona Apple Fetch The Bolt Cutters
Rosalía Lux
Kendrick Lamar Damn.
D'Angelo And The Vanguard Black Messiah
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds Ghosteen
Spiritbox Tsunami Sea
Self Esteem Prioritise Pleasure
Hayley Williams Ego Death At A Bachelorette Party
Bob Dylan Rough and Rowdy Ways