Editors' Picks

Burrows, the long-awaited debut for Leeds-based trio Caro, is a beguiling beast. They’re a gloriously diverse band, skipping merrily from psychedelic electro to introspective folk and back again with a seemingly reckless abandon, and that makes Burrows a fantastically rewarding listen. For the uninitiated though, it’s a record that might take a while to settle into. But when you do, it’s an absolute delight, like passing through the wardrobe door into a musical Narnia, albeit a very troubled one.

Singer, songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist, global superstar – there’s plenty of labels you could attach to James Blake. But throughout his glittering career, which has so far featured a Mercury Prize win (and a further nomination), a Grammy Award (and five further nominations) and three Brit Award nominations, as well as projects working with everyone from Bon Iver to Beyonce, he’s never shied away from changing things up.

One Cure for Man has just dropped another gorgeous new single, following on from his May 2020 release, “Haunted.” Also known as James Parkinson, One Cure for Man is once again showing his amazing ability to take inspiration from the most heartbreaking losses, to teach and encourage us, through his apt and eloquent lyrics and catchy musical style.

After founding as a four-piece in 2009, indie hip-hop outfit Twenty One Pilots were reduced to the duo of vocalist Tyler Joseph and drummer Josh Dun when fellow founding members Nick Thomas and Chris Salih departed in 2011. That might have derailed lesser bands, but Twenty One Pilots refocused, and have enjoyed a huge amount of success over the last decade or so in this guise.

A Belle And Sebastian live album has been a long time coming. The Scottish indie outfit have been bombarded by fan requests for just such a release for years, and it’s easy to see why: they’re a fantastic live band who excel in connecting with their audiences. This 23-song collection contains the pick of tracks from their 2019 tour, and from their appearances at their own Boaty Weekender festival, making it a sort of ‘best of’ live album, though there are one or two of the band’s most famous works missing, which might irk some. But there’s also plenty of big hitters, chief among them The Boy With The Arab Strap.

Ska-punk scamps Less Than Jake have been recording, touring, and starting drunken teenage parties around the world for closing in on three decades now. But, just like their legions of fans, they’re growing up and growing older. It's been seven years since their last studio album See The Light was released, and there must have been some out there among us that were wondering in the intervening years if we’d ever get them back.

It seems like in the jazz and folk scene, just about everyone’s heard of Dodie, and for a while, too, but it’s only now that she’s finally dedicated herself to an album. Part of that upcoming album is this newest single, titled “Rainbow”. Truthfully, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a song so appropriately titled for a track. It begins with a beautiful guitar progression, plucked one note, one string, at a time, and soon accompanied by the soothing, delicate voice of Dodie.

Sheffield sensations the Arctic Monkeys were widely heralded as the saviours of authentic indie rock when they burst onto the scene with breakthrough hit I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor, and the album from which it was taken, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not, which became the fastest selling debut album in British music history when it sold a staggering 360,000 copies in its first week of release.

Black Eyed Peas’ recent comeback scores a rush of excitement in the form of Shakira in their latest single ‘A Girl Like Me’. This beloved group has reassembled in the past year but most would notice that their latest work has been missing a certain feminine flavor. Though Fergie and her captivating vocals are still nowhere to be found, Shakira’s wild and over-the-top charisma shines through and makes an impact regardlessly. It helps that there’s a strong chorus to match Shakira’s spirit, one that distorts her voice at the end and layers it up a couple of pitches. The end-product is a fun, exaggerated, high-pitched refrain that echoes through the silence and builds up the mood for a rambunctious adventure. 

Texas-born singer and songwriter Alaina Castillo came to fame through YouTube after uploading videos of her singing to the platform in 2017. Her hushed, gentle tones saw her amassing thousand of views, before she dropped her debut EP, Antisocial Butterly, last year, and embarked on her first tour, with dates around the USA.

Mariah Carey recruits a coterie of phenomenal singers for her 2020 rendition of ‘Oh Santa!’ featuring Ariana Grande and Jennifer Hudson. The Queen of Christmas may very well glide through every holiday season through her most famous number but she chooses to update a more recent tune of hers. The original version of ‘Oh Santa!’ was released in 2010 but this tune featuring Ariana and Jennifer is set to be a leading single for Mariah’s Apple TV+ Christmas special titled “Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special.” 

Folk rocker Lissie burst onto the scene a decade ago with her debut album Catching A Tiger, which was recorded in Nashville and spawned the hit single When I’m Alone, chosen by iTunes as their ‘Song of the Year’ for 2010. Three further albums have followed over the last ten years – 2013’s Back To Forever, My Wild West three years later, and Castles in 2018 – releases which solidified her reputation as a singer-songwriter with a real talent for crafting country-tinged modern folk songs.

David Guetta’s take on Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Dreams’ is scintillating enough without losing any of the charms of the original number. Guetta works his usual bit of magic and ends up transforming what was a gentle, whimsical composition into a glamorous, exhilarating affair. ‘Dreams’, as many would know, achieved widespread attention this year after Nathan Apodaca of Idaho Falls posted a TikTok in which he was seen riding on his longboard, drinking Ocean Spray, and lip-syncing to the iconic Fleetwood Mac tune. The video went viral, launched a number of recreations, created a trend, and spawned a couple of thousand memes. Both Stevie Nicks and Mick Fleetwood of the band also joined in on the trend. 

Jennifer Lopez’s new single ‘In The Morning’ makes use of a familiar chord to take us through a touch-starved, ecstasy-filled ride through the artist’s deepest desires. The piece will immediately remind you of the early 2000s. The sharp acoustic guitar chords, the hypnotizing percussion arrangement, and J-Lo’s affective vocals come together to set up a moody, romantic atmosphere that’s brimming with a vulnerable sensuality. A sensuality that J-Lo has cultivated and mastered to perfection over the years. What really bolsters the composition is the central melody — it’s passionate, it’s infectious, and it perfectly encapsulates J-Lo’s strengths. She doesn’t dabble in vocal runs or wild soaring notes; however, she is adept at infusing each and every word with her sass, with her feminine energy, with the glamour and glitz that have made her a household name. 

Will Joseph Cook – the mutli-instrumentalist who earned legions of fans for his debut LP Sweet Dreamer back in 2017 – has long specialised in crafting dreamy, carefree summer-fuelled indie pop numbers. He started writing his own songs when he was in his early teens, with Sweet Dreamer being completed before he hit the age of twenty. Now firmly in his twenties and with his new album Something To Feel Good About, has the now all grown up Cook turned his back on his youthful optimistic self? Not a bit of it.

Lockdown has now become some much a part of our lives that it’s not just inspiring new music, it’s outright facilitating it. Take Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong; way back in March the punk-pop crooner, backed by his sons, jumped online to share his cover of the Tommy James and the Shondells track (made famous by Tiffany) I Think We’re Alone Now. He promised he’d carry on dropping a new cover song every week, dubbing the series ‘No Fun Mondays’.

The post-Busted careers of the trio that formed one of the early noughties biggest acts couldn’t have been much more different. After the runaway success that was the outfit’s first two albums (their self-titled debut in 2002 and A Present For Everyone the following year), the band parted ways at the peak of their powers in 2005 after Charlie Simpson quit the band to focus on his other outfit, the rock band Fightstar. That left Matt Willis to pursue a solo career, while James Bourne reemerged with the very Busted-like Son Of Dork. None of them achieved anything like the kind of success they had together, and in 2015 they reformed, recording two more albums together since.

Sam Fender is a man of many talents. After being spotted performing in a pub in his home town in the northeast when he was just a teenager, he went on to appear in ITV drama series Vera, and in the CBBC show Wolfblood. Music was his passion though and after signing a record contract he dropped his debut EP Dead Boys in 2018 and followed it up last year with his first full-length album Hypersonic Missiles, which received some excellent reviews. Along the way, he was named as one of BBC’s Sounds of 2018, and picked up the Critics’ Choice Award at the 2019 Brit Awards.

As prolific as they are entertaining, Cats In Space have won over plenty of earthlings with their 70s-inspired, riff-heavy classic rock sound since forming back in 2015. Now comprised of Greg Hart (guitars / vocals/ keyboards), Dean Howard (guitars / vocals), Steevi Bacon (drums / vocals), Jeff Brown (bass / vocals), Andy Stewart (piano / synths) and Damien Edwards (lead vocals) after some pretty significant lineup changes recently, the six-piece from Horsham still have a particularly strong reputation for putting on a hell of a live show, and have played alongside rock royalty such as Deep Purple, Status Quo and Bonnie Tyler.

You might not yet have heard of Australian singer-songwriter Kian Maxwell Bytyci Brownfield – known professionally just as Kian – unless your Down Under, where the teenager has already built a loyal following after dropping a string of alt-pop sensations over the last couple of years. Chief among them was Waiting, a delightfully low key and spacey indie-pop song that has amassed well over sixty million streams in Spotify, bagged an ARIA Awards nomination for Song of the Year and secured twentieth place in Triple J Hottest 100 for 2018.

Katie Melua’s latest single ‘Joy’ is a tender ode to the people that make each and every day worth living. The British singer-songwriter has spent over seventeen years building a decorated, beloved career, and her latest feature contains as much heart and complexity as her first pieces.

For anyone else that grew up in the noughties, a warning: this next sentence will make you feel really old. American rockers We Are Scientists have been around now for TWENTY years. OK, they’ve been through plenty of lineup changes and even experimented with lots of different genres over that time, but the band that gave us the fun and frolics of 2006’s breakthrough hit album With Love and Squalor are now entering their third decade together.

There’s no way around it, 2020 has been a bit of a stinker, so it’s no surprise to see Christmas celebrations underway spectacularly early this year. It seems we’re all just looking for a little way to forget all the pain and suffering this year has brought, and that’s absolutely understandable. In any normal year, a Christmas release in mid-November might cause a few grumbles among certain people, but given the storm of unpleasantness that 2020 has been, I think we can all just welcome it with open arms.

Justin Bieber and Shawn Mendes reflect on the overwhelming pressures of their soaring careers in their collaboration ‘Monster.’ The two artists have a number of nearly-identical similarities that unite them in this profound contemplation. Both are from Ontario, Canada; they were both plucked from the ever-competitive platform of YouTube, they were thrust into the spotlight while they were mere teenagers, and they both went on to have unprecedented levels of female fan following. Currently, both Shawn and Justin are in high-profile relationships, which attract both scrutiny and adoration from the public on a daily basis. It’s no surprise that they were able to mine from their shared experiences and create something meaningful. 

Anne-Marie’s latest single ‘Problems’ reveals the self-destructive forces of love through sweet, serendipitous melodies that are just charming enough to make it work.

Miley Cyrus harks back to the rock ‘n roll era in her latest single ‘Prisoner,’ featuring pop sensation Dua Lipa. Miley’s raspy, soaring vocals have been begging for a glam-rock piece for a while now, whereas Dua Lipa’s disco-pop dynamism is just the perfect little piece for this rambunctious, mischievous cocktail. The two ladies are bursting with angst and recklessness, romping through the desert in their big, rowdy bus, complete with a cherry juice splatter display, seductive dance moves, and wayward energy that hasn’t been seen since the likes of Joan Jett and Metallica. 

London born singer-songwriter Rachel Keen – otherwise known as Raye – has forged a hugely successful career writing for the likes of Beyonce, Ellie Goulding and Little Mix, and provided vocals for hit records from the likes of Jonas Blue and David Guetta. However, her own solo career in front of the microphone has been a bit of a stop-start affair, with four EPs released over the last six years and a wide collection of singles to boot.

With a name like Tim Montana – yes, it’s his real name – the Nashville based singer-songwriter was perhaps always destined for a career in country music. But it’s safe to say Montana isn’t trading on his name alone. After being convinced to move from LA to Nashville by producer Johnny Hiland, he dropped his debut album Iron Horse – which Hiland played guitar on and provided backing vocals for, and produced – in 2007 to positive reviews.

Wakefield’s finest indie rockers The Cribs have had a turbulent few years. After rising to the top of the then-dominant indie scene in the mid-noughties with hits like Mens Needs, the Jarman brothers fell somewhat out of the limelight. Their last album, 2017’s 24-7 Rock Star Shit was a perfectly serviceable but slightly uninspired offering, but it was what came after the release of that record that threatened the outfit’s very existence.

Brighton-born Gracey is clearly enjoying her breakout year. After the runaway success of her collaboration with 220 Kid on the single Don’t Need Love, which reached a peak of number nine for two weeks in the UK singles chart, as well as songwriting credits for the likes of Sub Focus, Lorde, and Kylie Minogue and another smash collaboration with Alexander 23, the young singer-songwriter is back with her new seven-track EP The Art Of Closure.

Let’s cut to the chase, bshp (pronounced ‘bishop’) is a name that, based on this evidence, you’re going to be hearing a lot for more of.

Yorkshire-based indie psychedelia outfit Van Houten formed in 2017 out of Leeds College of Music and describe themselves in their Spotify bio (where they’ve already amassed well over 1,000 monthly listeners) as “slacker pop with a cherry on top”. They dropped their self-titled debut album through Clue Records last year and turned a lot of heads with their single Better Than This, an intoxicating and spacey affair that had something of a Pavement vibe to it.

Brooklyn-based indie outfit The Antlers continued their triumphant return this week with new song It Is What It Is. It’s their second new release in just a few weeks too, following hot on the heels of Wheels Roll Home, the first new material the band had put out since 2014’s Familiars, their fifth studio album.

It’s been a heck of a year for American country singer-songwriter Thomas Rhett. In February, Rhett and his wife welcomed their third daughter into the world, and then in September, he shared the prestigious ‘Entertainer of the Year’ award with Carrie Underwood at the 55th Academy of Country Music Awards. While I’m sure Rhett hasn’t been immune to the pain and difficulties caused by the Coronavirus pandemic, he’s still had plenty to celebrate in both his personal and professional life over the last twelve months, and good for him.

American singer-songwriter Chris Stapleton seemingly came out of nowhere with his smash hit debut album Traveller, which was nominated for the Grammy for Album of the Year and won the Grammy for Best Country Album at the 58th Grammy Awards in 2016. It was also named Album of the Year at the 2015 Country Music Association Awards and has been certified quadruple platinum, shifting well over 2.5 million copies since its release. Not bad for a debut from a previously unknown performer, eh?