New album: Meaty, strong new LP by the legendary Black Francis and co, a mischievous, punchy ode to absurdism, with a sound that harks to earlier material than the more polished more recent LPs, with some tracks sitting more in line with their classic 1987-91 era
Read moreNew albums: Pixies, Gruff Rhys, Sampa The Great, Sam Fender, Metronomy, Charli XCX, Jenny Hval, Jerkcurb, Efterklang
Our latest new album selection includes the US grunge pioneers taking a spooky goth turn, another eclectic piece of brilliance from the Welsh wizard, and some African funk from rapper and singer Sampa The Great
Read moreNew albums: The Cribs, Randy Newman, Girl Ray, Dead Cross, Frankie Rose, 5 Billion In Diamonds
Our latest selection of recent releases includes cutting satire with the return of Randy Newman, The Cribs going back to their roots, plus a hardcore punk supergroup, plus melancholy pop and psychedelia
Read moreBlonder, stranger, lighter, darker: favourite and fitting albums of 2016 – part 2
From Frank Ocean's Blonde to a fitting sign-off by Leonard Cohen, we complete our two-part list of a total of 50 album releases suggested by readers that reflected the mood and events of the past 12 months
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