9 July 2025
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.
Browse specific styles
The Grammy award winning folk and blues stalwart returns with his latest collection of songs
7.4
An album of Americana for grown-ups. You don't have to be dead, or even on the slippery slope, to appreciate that it's a rather beautiful thing Read Review
An exquisitely bittersweet meander through Wainwright’s cobweb-strewn psyche liable to leave listeners laughing through tears and crying through laughter Read Review
It’s his voice that shines through most clearly on these songs. Slightly deeper and more expressive in his sixties than it was in his twenties or thirties Read Review
This could well be the most entertaining autobiography you'll listen to all year Read Review
Veteran raconteur celebrates early-late-life crisis in good company. Print edition only
It works, thanks to his bleak wit, his ability to match thoughtful lyrics against varied, mostly blues-based settings Read Review
Darkly amusing multigenerational affair ponders sex, death, taxing relationships Read Review
Tackles serious topics with empathy and laughter Read Review
Mortality weighs heavily on his mind even in the album’s lighter moments Read Review
There is no denying that Wainwright has a true gift for turning heartbreak into brilliant folk rock Read Review
It's riveting stuff; here's hoping the story doesn’t end for a long time Read Review
A fine addition to the man's legacy Read Review
Aging made engaging with help from guests. Print edition only
Despite moments of brilliance, at 15 songs long the self-obsession sometimes grates. Print edition only
A sober yet wry meditation on impending death and testy relationships with his adult children, all four of whom guest Read Review
Family has always been a significant theme in Loudon Wainwright's work, and never more so than here Read Review
Roll over video for more options
Loudon Wainwright III: Older Than My Old Man Now
Wet Leg moisturizer
Moisturizer is a bold, confident blast fuelled by the security and invincibility of a deep love. Print edition only Uncut
Moisturizer shows, decisively, that while the metal gauntlets might be very much on, creatively, Wet leg's gloves are off. Print edition only Mojo
Gwenno Utopia
A reflective journey through memory and identity from an artist who proves that her music knows no boundaries, linguistic or otherwise musicOMH
Tinged with a sense of growth and resilience, Utopia is a work that spans 25 years. That surely deserves a celebration The Quietus
Gwenno roams the cities of her youth on her vivid fourth album, Utopia The Skinny
'Utopia' might be a result of employing a form of astral projection The Arts Desk
The band’s propensity for catchy, danceable garage-punk remains intact Slant Magazine
Kesha . [Period]
Following years of tumult, the newly-independent Kesha is ready for Top 40 glory. Her new album excels when she’s doing it on her own terms PopMatters
Kesha fills her first fully independent album with accordion disco, stadium-sized twang, and too many hooks to handle. It’s… confusing Pitchfork
Spikier, sleazier and sexier, the Isle of Wight duo defy second album syndrome musicOMH
U.S. Girls Scratch It
Though Scratch It is more low-key than one has come to expect of U.S. Girls as of late, it is undeniably a commanding statement that feels like a musical victory lap Beats Per Minute
Period is an album of lukewarm nostalgic bops, where the few moments of truly interesting artistry are left to languish alone in their respective corners Sputnik Music (staff)
A disappointing missed opportunityMaybe after this spell of touring, they need to go off and live their lives instead of rushing back to album number three. A disappointing missed opportunity God Is In The TV
There’s no sniff of second album syndrome here. moisturizer oozes confidence and Wet Leg continue to play to their strengths in style The Skinny
Lorde Virgin
The New Zealander sings dramatically about new selves, the body and gender fluidity on her fourth release The FT
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
Spiritbox Tsunami Sea
Kendrick Lamar Damn.
D'Angelo And The Vanguard Black Messiah
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds Ghosteen
Self Esteem Prioritise Pleasure
Bob Dylan Rough and Rowdy Ways
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds Skeleton Tree
Frank Ocean Channel Orange