Róisín Murphy – Róisín Machine
Ireland's queen of dress-up disguises and funky dance grooves since the Moloko days returns with a fabulous new LP that captures 70s disco with more from the 90s and 00s with her own eccentric mischievous twist, and extra infusion through a collaboration with Sheffield producer Richard Barratt. Lead single Narcissus, as previously highlighted back in January on our Song of the Day section, is a tribute, not merely musically, but also visually to the glamorous 1970s Italian TV star Raffaella Carrà. But there's much more to this album with many brilliant dance numbers with bleeps, squiggles, and grandiose sounds underpinned by a passionate frustration behind the phrase at the beginning of Simulation "I feel my story is still untold". Key tracks include the flamboyant, otherworldly sounds and speeding up downward spirals of Kingdom Of Ends, the walking pace Something More, the fabulous syncopations of We Got Together, the humorous Murphy's Law, and belting disco classic Jealousy. Murphy is full of dark, fatalistic humour, but shining hope. Impossible not to love or dance to. Out on Skint/BMG.
Róisín Murphy – We Got Together
BLACKPINK – The Album
Punchy, slick, clever fluff from the hugely popular K-pop group with a short, sharp release of eight songs in 24 minutes, dazzlingly cliched, but hard not to enjoy as they mix up Korean with English in a cavalcade of R&B song and hip hop. Pick of the bunch is Crazy Of You with the inclusion of tradition instruments, the brash opener How Do You Like That, the sugar power pop of Lovesick Girls. This mini album also features guests Cardi B and Selena Gomez. Saccharine, silly but savvy. Out YG Entertainment.
BLACKPINK – Lovesick Girls
Melanie C – Melanie C
The Spice Girl most regarded as the talented one returns with a solo album of catchy pop and put out as the "real her". While this is just marketing speak, to be fair this seems genuine on the whole, and musically it's a decent punt at and deep house (Blame It On Me) and disco (In And Out Of Love) and sounds the mid 80s a la Bronski Beat and Pet Shop Boys. Opener in particular Who I Am sets out this stall ("I was building my armour so I could fit in …") openly looking to shrug off but also recognise her past, and between the beats, on Escape her vocals blossom to a sense of vulnerability. Nothing very original here, but Mel C remains the most likable out the big behemoth of her pop past. Out on Red Girl Media.
Melanie C – Who I Am
Working Men's Club – Working Men's Club
With opening track Valleys previously highlighted on Song of the Day, The band from Todmorden, West Yorkshire's wonderful debut is the finest traditions of northern England electropop, from early Human League to 808 State, as well as dipping into Detroit techno and Italian house. They are spearheading a revival of such styles and sounds. There are also powerful guitars tangling with the Korgs and drum machines, topped by the strident talking/singing delivery of 18-year-old Sydney Minsky-Sargeant, channelling influences from The Fall to Suicide. Standout tracks include the tribute John Cooper Clarke, facing up to how even the luckiest guy alive might someday pass on, the Orange Juicy White Rooms and People, the potently angry Cook A Coffee and the driving bass and screams of A.A.A.A. Out on Heavenly Recordings.
Working Men's Club – A.A.A.A.
Hello Forever – Whatever It Is
Refreshingly upbeat and clever debut by the Californian band of Samuel Joseph and co channels a 60s West Coast sound of crisp vocal harmonies as well as psychedelia and an eccentric DIY feel that also make it feel contemporary. Standout tracks include the devilishly catchy Some Faith, the sweet singing of Anywhere Is Everywhere, the soaring, trumpeting Farm On A Mountaintop, the proggy Natural, and the eccentric, acoustic Happening. Out on Rough Trade.
Hello Forever – Anywhere Is Everywhere
The Nude Party – Midnight Manor
Bluesy, rocky, catchy, this sexy sounding sophomore album by the New York band has echoes of The Modern Lovers, southern rock, 70s Rolling Stones and The Velvet Underground, interspersing quieter piano moments with 60s guitar and fuzzier sounds. They are also a very tight group, this bunch of old school friends, and after two years of non-stop touring in support of their eponymous debut release, the band returned to their farmhouse in New York’s Catskill Mountains to record the follow-up. There's not a weak link in the 12, but standout tracks include the Let's Spend The Night Together inspired Lonely Heather, Pardon Me Satan, Easier Said Than Done, What's The Deal and Judith. Out on North West Records.
The Nude Party – Lonely Heather
Ailbhe Reddy – Personal History
Three years in the making, Dublin alt-folk artist Ailbhe Reddy's lovely debut album finds her ruminating on the rites of passage in life as a young, emerging, queer artist from Ireland. On Personal History, Ailbhe’s ability to write songs of earnest and honest self-appraisal see her autobiographically navigate through break-ups in the age of social media (or the bouncily miserable, indie-style Looking Happy), reflect on the duality of loneliness and independence while touring (Time Difference), and open-up about coming out as explained in her newest effort (Between Your Teeth). Profound, wistful, upbeat-downbeat melancholy songwriting. Out on Friends of the Family.
Ailbhe Reddy – Time Difference
Diana Krall – This Dream Of You
Slow, beautiful jazz numbers by singer who describes herself as a pianist who sings, in terms of her close-mic breath control, is much more than that. There's also the delicate guitar soloing of Anthony Wilson, and the profoundly understated influence of her longtime producer, Tommy LiPuma, who died in 2017 aged 80. Sophisticated, understated, with low-key orchestra helping to make each moment hover wonderfully, capturing eras that stretch back the the 1920s, with standout classic tracks that include Just You, Just Me, as well as That’s All, How Deep Is The Ocean, and Almost Like Being in Love. Out on Verve.
Diana Krall – How Deep Is The Ocean
Peter Broderick – Blackberry
With a song recently highlighted on Song of the Day, it's also well worth checking out the full album by the American folk singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Blackberry is Peter’s first vocal album in five years, since 2015’s Colours of the Night, and was recorded in his bedroom in London, playing all the instruments, with some backing vocals by wife, singer Brigid Mae Power, and his stepson, Seán Power. On these delicately beautiful, healthy, gently humorous compositions the themes vary from family (the owl hooting The Niece), with the gorgeous, grief-infused What Happened To Your Heart, to technology and whether it will save or doom us, and he also returns to nature, particularly about foraging (Ode To Blackberry and Wild Food) about the importance of engaging with the outside world (Stop And Listen) in cities and of course the countryside, as Peter and his family recently returned to their beloved County Galway. What's Wrong With A Straight Up Love Song is another beauty. Out on Erased Tapes.
Peter Broderick – Wild Food
This week's selection is by The Landlord.
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