9 November 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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Debut indie pop collaboration between James Hoare (Veronica Falls) and Jack Cooper (Mazes)
7.3
Both Mazes and Veronica Falls have made outstanding albums before, but this is surely the best record either Hoare or Cooper have been involved with Read Review
An unexpected pleasure. Print edition only
Ultimate Painting may not reach the commercial heights of either guy's main band, but it is fully the equal and in some ways more interesting Read Review
This is not a wild departure from either of the duo’s bands, but it is a pleasingly fruitful one Read Review
This is the work of two guys simply expressing their love of music for the rest of us to enjoy - swooping from ‘60s pop to ‘00s rock while appreciating everything in between - and what a loveable collection of work it is Read Review
Violently catchy and laden with warmth, Ultimate Painting is one of this year’s standout collaborative efforts Read Review
A charming start point for a band who show enough charm to suggest they can turn out any number of superior follow-ups Read Review
They embrace the era they mine for inspiration: the late ‘60s, early ‘70s American scene with most obvious comparisons being to The Velvet Underground, and that’s where their strength lies Read Review
Professionally executed, but at times underwhelming. Still, Cooper and Hoare have undeniable chemistry, and the album seems to be the start of a promising partnership Read Review
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Ultimate Painting: Ultimate Painting
Django Django Doveland
Django Django would appear to have refreshed their approach and challenged themselves to try out previously unconsidered melodic avenues The Arts Desk
Print edition only Uncut
Gilla Band Pugnello
Somewhere amidst the anarchy of Pugnello, there are gems waiting to be found. Unearthing them is well worth your time Still Listening
Greg Freeman All Set The Bone
Existentialism has a sound (and it’s hard to ignore) with Greg Freeman’s introspective All Set The Bone Still Listening
U2 Carnaval de Luz
Carnaval De Luz finds U2 50 years after their formation with the same four members and the same desire to shake things up. The album provides a convincing answer to the question of why they keep doing what they do XS Noize
Fontaines D.C. Dopamine Chamber
Fontaines D.C. push deeper into synthetic territory on Dopamine Chamber, balancing stadium-sized melodies with restless experimentation and darker texture Record Collector
They sound ambitious and engaged in their 50th year, swinging for the fences and hitting more targets than not. There’s still some gas in the tank Record Collector
La Roux Old Flames
Print edition only Record Collector
Back with her first new music in six years, La Roux's new sound explores facets of R'n'B and Europop to varying degrees of success The Skinny
La Roux turns to 90s R&B on a fourth album shaped by the end of a 17-year relationship, finding room for new beginnings beneath its layered production Still Listening
Print edition only Rolling Stone UK
Devastating moments are dressed up with warm production and kinetic 00s R&B in the now quiff-less singer’s grownup fourth album The Guardian
Elly Jackson returns with heartfelt pop songs about breaking up, resentment, vulnerability and all that entails musicOMH
Ditching erratic experimentation for an ambient concept, the indie shapeshifters' sixth album is their most coherent in years musicOMH
Doveland sounds less like a reduction of Django Django’s musical vocabulary than a more relaxed demonstration of how much they possess PopMatters
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