Panic Shack - Panic Shack (Album Review)

Photo: Ren Faulkner Panic Shack are instinctively, unapologetically themselves, creating an authentic collective voice that their self-titled debut uses to Trojan horse topics such as sexism, body image, elitism and friendship into punk ragers that will soundtrack many a gig pre-gaming session this summer. The vibe here is very much double voddies all round.

Written by: Laura Johnson | Date: Wednesday, 23 July 2025

Alex G - Headlights (Album Review)

Photo: Chris Maggio Alex G’s ‘Headlights’ is a sombre, reflective album, the singer-songwriter exploring themes of loneliness and escapism while delivering a collection of songs almost perfectly suited for your next late-night drive to nowhere in particular. It’s almost there, with real ambience butting heads with lyrics that are too open-ended to dig much deeper than surface level.

Written by: James Palaczky | Date: Wednesday, 23 July 2025

Lord Huron - The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1 (Album Review)

Photo: Cole Silberman While Lord Huron might not be household names they are a streaming behemoth thanks to The Night We Met, a track that’s done Taylor Swift numbers after being used in the show 13 Reasons Why. It has generated renewed interest in the indie-Americana group’s other work, and the sturdy ‘The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1’ duly does a nice job of introducing their sound, delivering more of what fans have come to expect since their 2012 debut.

Written by: Chris Connor | Date: Wednesday, 23 July 2025

Clipse - Let God Sort Em Out (Album Review)

‘Let God Sort Em Out’ is a lot of things — the first Clipse record since 2009, a reunion of brothers, even side quest in the Kendrick Lamar-Drake saga — but chiefly it is a thunderous reaffirmation of their signature sound: coke rap.

Written by: Jacob Brookman | Date: Tuesday, 22 July 2025

Wet Leg - Moisturizer (Album Review)

Photo: Alice Backham Wet Leg’s self-titled debut set Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers on the road to stardom and success in 2022, scooping a couple of Brits while making the sardonic Chaise Longue into a breakout hit of note. Not many bands make such a splash so early on, making their return with ‘Moisturizer’ somewhat daunting, especially given its revamped aesthetic, fresh style and updated sound. This is a swerve in a new direction, then, but it’s an exciting one.

Written by: Laura Mills | Date: Tuesday, 22 July 2025

Gwenno - Utopia (Album Review)

Photo: Clare Marie Bailey During The Devil, Gwenno softly warns, “You’ll meet the devil in Brighton.” It’s a line freighted with personal history, feeling like a reference to her tenure with The Pipettes, a polka-dotted girl group that burned bright but left bruises. Their retro-pop sheen may have charmed the mid-2000s, but Gwenno’s own account of that period on ‘Utopia’ is one of fragmentation rather than fondness.

Written by: Jacob Brookman | Date: Monday, 21 July 2025

Justin Bieber - Swag (Album Review)

When a 15-year-old Justin Bieber released Baby in 2010, he became a global superstar overnight. Now aged 31, he seems hellbent on distancing himself from the teeny bopper image that catapulted him to the top of the world half a lifetime ago and his new album ‘Swag’, released as a surprise, suffers as a result. It is little more than an identity crisis set to tape.

Written by: Jack Butler-Terry | Date: Monday, 21 July 2025

Laura Jane Grace in The Trauma Tropes - Adventure Club (Album Review)

Photo: Pinelopi Gerasimou By now, Laura Jane Grace has proven she can write vital, visceral punk songs anywhere, but even might not have expected a whole  record to emerge from a delayed flight and a deep dive into the Greek scene. But that’s exactly what happened to spur ‘Adventure Club’ into being.

Written by: Maddy Howell | Date: Friday, 18 July 2025

Noah Cyrus - I Want My Loved Ones To Go With Me (Album Review)

Photo: Hannah Khymych Three years after ‘The Hardest Part’ established artistic credentials to match her famous name, Noah Cyrus returns with ‘I Want My Loved Ones To Go With Me’, which feels less like a difficult second album and more like a modern classic.

Written by: Jack Press | Date: Wednesday, 16 July 2025

Kesha - . (Period) (Album Review)

Photo: Brendan Walter It’s been a full year since Kesha’s Joyride first teased an album that revives the glitter and neon fun of her breakout hits, but ‘. (Period)’ isn’t really it — it has flashes of the energy fans know and love her for but as a whole this is a lacklustre version of her blueprints.

Written by: Laura Mills | Date: Tuesday, 15 July 2025

Big Special - National Average (Album Review)

Photo: Isaac Watson / Whammoth To release a new album as a surprise remains a bold strategy; to tease one by projecting its egg and chips cover onto London Bridge and Buckingham Palace ups the ante further. But, then, Big Special are a bold band. 

Written by: Jack Butler-Terry | Date: Monday, 14 July 2025

Kokoroko - Tuff Times Never Last (Album Review)

Photo: Delali Ayivi Kokoroko’s 2022 debut ‘Could We Be More’ marked them out as an act to watch, viewing an infectious blend of Afrobeat and jazz through the lens of the vibrant London scene. Its follow up ‘Tuff Times Never Last’ is another statement from the group, venturing even further afield in its search for sounds that feel like a perfect tonic for the summer months.

Written by: Chris Connor | Date: Friday, 11 July 2025

We Lost The Sea - A Single Flower (Album Review)

It can feel like We Lost The Sea move at the same glacial pace as their music. It’s been six years since the Australian post-rockers’ excellent ‘Triumph & Disaster’ last paired exquisite crescendos with emotional turmoil but on their fifth album ‘A Single Flower’, we’re treated to a slow-burning, beautiful exploration of the emotional spectrum. 

Written by: Will Marshall | Date: Tuesday, 08 July 2025

Aitch - 4 (Album Review)

Photo: Jahnay Tennai  Give Aitch credit where it’s due. In an oversaturated pop-rap scene, the Mancunian has been able to cut through the noise and establish himself as one of the UK’s most instantly-recognisable talents. On his second album, he leans into his stature on the scene while penning a love letter to his native Manchester.

Written by: Jack Butler-Terry | Date: Monday, 07 July 2025

Lorde - Virgin (Album Review)

Photo: Talia Chetrit Lorde’s ‘Virgin’ is about hitting reset. Four years on from the little-loved ‘Solar Power’, home to a sunny disposition that didn’t strike much of a chord with critics or fans, Ella Yelich-O’Connor has veered back towards the minimalist synth-pop that made her name. 

Written by: Will Marshall | Date: Wednesday, 02 July 2025

BC Camplight - A Sober Conversation (Album Review)

Having walked a tightrope between tragedy and comedy throughout his seven studio albums, Brian Christinzio has established a reputation as someone unafraid to navigate the dark. His songwriting is wrought with turmoil but tinged with light-hearted quirks, and BC Camplight has become a vessel to wrestle with his mental health struggles amid life’s turbulence. 

Written by: Maddy Howell | Date: Monday, 30 June 2025

Yungblud - Idols (Album Review)

Photo: Tom Pallant After three albums of carefully cultivated chaos, Dominic Harrison finally lets the mask slip on ‘Idols’, moving away from manufactured provocation and into something that looks like genuine artistry. Here, he appears to be who he always wanted to be, rather than trying to be the person he thought the world demanded. 

Written by: Jack Press | Date: Friday, 27 June 2025

U.S. Girls - Scratch It (Album Review)

Photo: Colin Medley Over the course of almost two decades, Meg Remy has turned U.S. Girls into one of the most critically-acclaimed and intriguing indie projects of recent times. Her enigmatic, experimental pop style and vivid songwriting have won many admirers, but ‘Scratch It’ represents something of a curveball.

Written by: Matthew McLister | Date: Friday, 27 June 2025

Loyle Carner - Hopefully! (Album Review)

On ‘Hopefully!’ Loyle Carner embarks on a journey of self-discovery, with his soulful voice serving as a guide for listeners to follow. Here he leans on an established sound, without getting too precocious or experimental, and it works for him — this is a powerful record that takes Carner to the next level.

Written by: Laura Mills | Date: Thursday, 26 June 2025

Hotline TNT - Raspberry Moon (Album Review)

Photo: Graham Tolbert Shoegaze never dies. Decades on from a crop of British bands adding layers of droning heaviness to the palette of neo-psych acts like Spacemen 3 and The Jesus & Mary Chain, the genre has, in its purest form, barely moved a dial on its many pedals, finding fresh pockets of interest with reliable regularity.

Written by: Tom Morgan | Date: Wednesday, 25 June 2025