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Obongjayar’s debut album
Soft Cell with their first album in 21 years
New album: Fabulous and rather surprising return for the British duo, their first for 20 years, and 41 since their debut, with a wry, witty, catchy electro-pop album about how the sci-fi future dream has not quite turned out how it promised
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Profound Mysteries
New album: Not presented as an album, but an art piece sequence with visuals, these 10 numbers, variously ambient to dance electronica, are still very much in the LP form, half with guest singers Alison Goldfrapp, Beki Mari, Pixx, Susanne Sundfør and Alison S
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Melody Prochet
New album: A beautiful, uplifting third album of life-affirming tranquility by French psych-pop artist Melody Prochet, reflecting her move from Paris to the Alps, and the birth of her daughter, with a host of shimmering, dreamlike sounds
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Kae Tempest: The Line Is A Curve
New album: An emotionally candid, tender, vulnerable and quietly declamatory fourth album by the writer-all-rounder, mixing hip-hop and spoken word with electronica and pop, with some nicely chosen guest appearances
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Barrie’s sophomore album, Barbara
New album: Strong second album by the Brooklyn-based songwriter and producer Barrie Lindsay, filled with musical invention but also fuelled contrasting emotions – the loss of her father, but also falling in love with and marrying fellow musician Gabby Smith
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Electrifying: Ibibio Sound Machine’s latest LP
New album: Superbly energised fourth LP by the afro-funk London band fronted by vocalist Eno Williams, who utilises her Nigerian heritage and the Ibibio language, fused with guitars, electronica, Brazilian rhythms and influences from Fela Kuti to Kraftwerk and Giorgio Moroder
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Acres of dreamy sky: Jenny Hval’s Classic Objects
New album: An ethereal journey of personal stories through the prism of art and philosophy by the Norwegian avant-garde pop experimentalist with music that evokes wide, sky-filled landscapes and strangely matter-of-fact lyrics
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Charlotte Adigéry and Bolis Pupul: Topical Dancer
New album: Super-sharp electro-pop by the Ghent-based duo, packed with crisp, inventive sounds created in Soulwax’s Deewee studio and clever lyrics about race issues, political correctness and cultural identity
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Binker Golding and Moses Boyd’s fourth album as a duo
New album: The fourth studio album by saxophonist Binker Golding and drummer Moses Boyd are embellished by modular synths of Max Luthert in six inspiring, atmospheric freeform jazz numbers of expert flutters, breakbeats and evoked birdsong.
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Once Twice Melody is the eighth Beach House album
New album: A fabulous double LP 18-track return by the Baltimore duo of Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally of dreamy, serene electro-pop, with a suddenly broadened scope of psychedelia and folk rock, gradually and now fully released across four chapters
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Alynda Segarra
New album: Wonderfully engaging eighth LP by New Orleans’ Alynda Segarra of “nature punk” electronica and lo-fi indie, with songs variously intimate, grand, sensual, and emotionally powerful, taking a hands-on, eco-aware vivid walk through our planet
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Shamir’s ironically titled new album, Heterosexuality
New album: The latest from Las Vegas-born artist 27-year-old Shamir Bailey is perhaps his most powerful LP to date – tumultuous emotions, huge production range from synth pop to metal, and explorations of queer gender issues via uncompromising lyrics and his expressive, rangy countertenor voice
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A Place To Bury Strangers - See Through You
New album: Electro noise rock, progressive gothic post-punk? Whatever the genre label, a striking blast of a new LP by the New York band fronted by Oliver Ackermann now with newer members frenetic drummer Sandra Fedowitz and thrumming bass from John Fedowitz
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Cult Leader Tactics
New album: An entertaining novelty release mixing rock, electro-pop and classical by the Former Mansun frontman, in the form of a satirical self-help manual on how to become a complete cult in the music industry or employ Machiavellian tactics in the entertainment industry and beyond
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The multiplicity of Aurora
New album: An impressive range of pop stylings and vocals that cascade like a fresh, breathy mountain stream mark this third LP by the dynamic Norwegian pop artist and TikTok star, who follows up previous more political material with songs more more focused on relationships
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FKA twigs’ CAPRISONGS
New album: Cheltenham’s innovative Tahliah Debrett Barnett returns with a fourth LP that’s more a mixtape of sensual, sexual musical sketches, her distinctive voice and style also very much reaching out to a more R&B mainstream
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Bonobo: Fragments
New album: The moniker of Simon Green returns with an eclectic mix of electronica, dance, ambient and clever sampling, with guest appearances from Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Kadhja Bonet, Joji, O’Flynn, Jamila Woods and Jordan Rakei
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aya’s album - im hole
Album: Quite unlike any other LP of the last 12 months or longer, this highly experimental work by Huddersfield-raised artist is avant-garde electronica splattered with wittily odd disembodied vocals resulting in psychedelic states of poetic “transient psychosis”
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Favourite selection part 2.
Favourite albums of 2021 – Part 2: Welcome the second instalment, following Part 1, which can be found here. A huge number of excellent releases, of which again this is just a selection many of which were written during, and about lockdown, but also saw many outstanding voices emerge as well as innovative sounds developed
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