12 September 2024
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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Multi-instrumentalist Shara Worden's fifth LP, released on Sufjan Stevens' Asthmatic Kitty label
6.9
Shara Worden makes a bid to join the US experimental pop pantheon Read Review
Bold and idiosyncratic art-rock. Print edition only
The subtle yet commanding arrangement of This Is My Hand has certainly announced My Brightest Diamond’s arrival as a genuine force to be reckoned with Read Review
For anyone who's been dying to sand down the edges of St Vincent's angular alt-rock exercises, or wishing that Bat For Lashes might hire a brass section Read Review
A good example of how sometimes less can be more Read Review
She employs marching band drums and horns one minute and then her solo voice the next without ever changing the intensity of the music. The range of volume may change, but the passion never does Read Review
Works on a visceral level, conjuring Worden’s intended image of tribal, fireside collaboration through a rich diversity of texture, detail, and tone Read Review
Worden’s fifth release recalls its predecessor’s lush arrangements but is a much more immediate affair Read Review
These intense songs, sung with a crystalline elasticity, have located the mojo previously absent from My Brightest Diamond’s art Read Review
Quite interesting at times, but rarely compelling Read Review
While This Is My Hand carries the celestial torch held high by My Brightest Diamonds’ previous works, and does so with a discerning eye to continuity, it also doesn’t break any ground Read Review
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My Brightest Diamond: This Is My Hand
David Gilmour Luck And Strange
Overall, while Gilmour is not entirely breaking new ground or re-inventing himself, Luck And Strange is an album that still has a lot of surprises and lots for fans to enjoy Spill Magazine
Hinds Viva Hinds
Sensual and honest, Viva Hinds feels close to the chest, with throbbing pianos, soaring synthesizers, and drum machines accompanying profound reflections on staying true to oneself in love Exclaim
MJ Lenderman Manning Fireworks
Completely unpretentious, a self-effacing observer of himself, all slacker tendencies belying an actual, deep talent and sense of craftsmanship, a simplicity that’s far from simplistic Sputnik Music (staff)
Sabrina Carpenter Short n' Sweet
Pop music has never shied away from sexuality, but Carpenter’s Short n’ Sweet feels like a glamorous representation of the current era of pop music, one where artists feel confident and empowered to be thirsty on main Spectrum Culture
Fat Dog WOOF.
Prolific producer James Ford bringing his fondness for strings and these on occasion give listeners a calm breather among the frantic ear-splitting God Is In The TV
A debut that serves its main purposes, establishing Fat Dog as a band to watch and making some music for folks to lose their minds to Under The Radar
Jon Hopkins Ritual
With this album, Jon Hopkins continues to push the boundaries of what electronic composition can be Under The Radar
Mercury Rev Born Horses
On their first album of original material in nine years, the veteran New York rockers reinvent themselves once again. That’s where the problems begin Pitchfork
With the enigmatic and wonderful ‘Born Horses,’ Mercury Rev have fashioned their own cosmos The Arts Desk
It’s another artistic leap from a band who have made evolution a calling card Record Collector
More grounded and yet more transporting than many of their later albums, Born Horses is ample proof that Mercury Rev are still making moving, thoughtful, exciting music - and like most of their best albums, there's nothing else quite like it All Music
Outlandish musical choices from oompah to sleaze should make the Londoners’ debut feel fresh, but they’re the latest interlopers in a crowded experimental field The Guardian
Sometimes it is so dreamy that it floats right by without a whiff of grounded reality, and you’re put off by a few wayward production choices, but for the most part it lusciously sweeps you up and spoon-feeds you bliss like a much needed vacation Far Out
With a half-new lineup, the US rock band’s first album of new material since 2015 finds them in dreamy, reflective mode The Observer
On this ninth album of originals, Rev frontman Jonathan Donahue elects to vocalise in a soft whisper rather than his characteristic starry-eyed warble. It works best when their chamber-pop soundbaths are punctuated by rhythmic hooks and ear-catching lines. Print edition only Uncut
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
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
Dave We’re All Alone In This Together