30
Heems & Lapgan LAFANDAR
Top track: Obi Topping (Darling)
On his first (kind of) solo outing in almost a decade, the former Das Racist rapper brings along a choice selection of underground names, from Saul Williams to UK veteran, Lee Scott. Lapgan’s production is subtly psychedelic, incorporating South-Asian sounds to complement Heems’ erudite wordplay, which can see him offering thoughtful reflections on Indian-American experiences or just basking in the glory of having a song with the legendary, Kool Keith. A casually witty and insightful record.
29
Magana Teeth
Top track: Beside You
LA’s Jeni Magaña describes her sound as Witchy Rock. But that feels wrong. This isn’t mythic fantasy, this is raw and very much real; and that’s where the magic lies. Across Teeth, Magana confronts everything about herself. It’s deeply introspective, yet detached; as if you’re witnessing her have an out-of-body experience. Dark folk bleeds into hazy dream pop sequences, but there’s glimmers of distant euphoria, where hope seems to emerge at the darkest hour. Her voice embodies the duality of the album; light and fragile, yet always deeply consequential, like it carries the weight of each and every experience and realisation.
28
Joey Valence & Brae NO HANDS
Top Track: PACKAPUNCH
Joey Valence & Brae make brazenly goofy hip-hop. Yet it feels completely authentic. Authenticity doesn’t lie in imagined street cred, but in being true to yourself. And Joey Valence & Brae are unashamedly themselves. There’s no pretence of affected cool; true confidence lies in references to dorky shit like Roblox, or dropping lines like “Watched Marley & Me just for a good cry”. With their energetic tag-team combos, they deliver Beastie Boys-style punk-rap updated for the 2020’s; sounding like the Beasties if they’d been brought up on a diet of EDM, crunk, and JPEGMAFIA. Effortlessly fun and effortlessly authentic. (Read more)
27
Adrianne Lenker Bright Future
Top track: Sadness As A Gift
The sixth solo LP from the Big Thief songwriter is a heartfelt and deeply melancholic reflection on the past, that finds quiet ecstasy in the possibilities of the future. Backed by some outstanding rootsy folk; from the ramshackle saloon singalong of Vampire Empire to the gentle piano notes of Ruined. The try-hard mawkishness of the opening track, and the clumsy teenage poetry of Evol mean it falls short of a classic. But it’s not far off, with phenomenally beautiful standouts in No Machine, Donut Seam, and Sadness As A Gift.
26
Charli xcx BRAT
Top track: Girl, so confusing
I mean, you don’t need me to tell you about BRAT do you? Brat summer and all that shit. Brat as an endless meme/marketing machine quickly became insufferable, but even a hater like myself has to admit that this is a pretty undeniable collection of electro-pop club hits.
25
Kendrick Lamar GNX
Top Track: squabble up
Instant classic? Post-beef victory lap? Reinvention of rap in his own image? It doesn’t quite live up to what the more sensationalistic, early proclamations would have you believe. In some ways it’s a celebration of his roots; a return to a hard-edged West-Coast hip-hop sound. But with the production sheen of popstar-whisperer, Jack Antonoff, and some of his sweetest R&B moments, it also has an eye on mainstream appeal. It’s Kendrick in attack mode, addressing a litany of perceived slights. But we also get Kendrick as a protective lover and nostalgic navel-gazer. It’s Kendrick preaching authenticity, but also celebrating his most materialistic excesses.
While it doesn’t have the overt soul-searching theme of Mr.Morale, it’s a prime example of all his contradictions and hypocrisies. It’s what makes him rap’s most intriguing star, but it also means the album feels slightly scattershot. It runs out of steam late on and the corny concept of reincarnated is a notable miss. But when Kendrick is in free flow, there’s still nobody on his level, and he provides plenty of evidence for that on GNX.
24
Vince Staples Dark Times
Top track: Étouffée
Dark Times follows in the more reflective vein of Staples’ recent work. A slow-burning introspective exploration where he seems to be simultaneously attempting to escape and embrace the past. The mood spans dejection to triumph, without ever committing too hard to either. Staples is restless; in constant pursuit of something more. But there’s a certain contentment underneath it all; a realisation that the desire for more never disappears. The Long Beach rapper continues to prove himself as one of modern hip-hop’s most engaging voices.
23
American Culture Hey Brother, It’s Been a While
Top track: Let It Go
A very personal exploration of addiction that mirrors the chaos and confusion of its subject matter with an eclectic mix of hazy and hard-hitting rock. From ethereal shoegaze epics, to Stone Roses-esque neo-psychedelia, to Hold Steady-style heartland-rock. The album is a blur of contrasting emotions; mired in moments of despair and a creeping sense of despondency. But it also managers to capture the beauty rescued from the struggle; a tale of enduring love, humanity, and hope. (Read more)
22
Johnny Blue Skies Passage Du Desir
Top track: One For The Road
A debut (of sorts) from the alter-ego of Kentucky country star Sturgill Simpson. From the swamps to the stars; he expertly blends rootsy, soulful blues and touches of light psychedelia on an album that’s emotional depth is balanced by its gentle, easy-going charm. Cosmic, country rock that elevates heartfelt tales into spiritual epics.
21
Revival Season Golden Age Of Self Snitching
Top track: Chop
The debut from the Atlanta duo of rapper, Brandon “BEZ” Evans, and producer, Jonah Swilley, is an intense trip through genres. Taking in the heavy-hitting urgency of Run The Jewels to stuttering boom bap throwbacks, with hints of reggae, trippy funk, and scuzzy psych-blues along the way. Evans is the wise old-head overseeing proceedings; providing somber insights or disappointedly critiquing our modern trappings. But the shape-shifting stylistic fluidity provides a light contrast to the heavier themes on a pummelling, but playfully inventive album.
20
MJ Lenderman Manning Fireworks
Top track: She’s Leaving You
On the North Carolina native’s fourth solo album, he stakes his claim as a burgeoning guitar great. Ably-assisted by a great band, delivering restrained, slow-burning country rockers; the gentle beauty within these initially subdued songs gradually unfurling with each repeated listen. He’s not yet at the level that the effusive critical praise suggests, but the much-hyped Lenderman partly delivers with his flair for vivid lyrical detail and the occasional devastating one-liner, as he documents snapshots of sad-but-sympathetic everyday losers. (Read more)
19
Waxahatchee Tigers Blood
Top track: Right Back to It
The aforementioned Lenderman also has his fingerprints throughout the sixth album from Katie Crutchfield aka Waxahatchee. He’s part of the backing band who provide a consistently excellent collection of breezily anthemic country-rock gems. Crutchfield’s songwriting blends broad relatability, poetic symbolism, and highly personalised reference points. And her voice is strong as ever; the sweetness of her high register perfectly complemented by the down-home edge of her Southern drawl. Simply put, these are great pop songs.
18
E L U C I D REVELATOR
Top track: THE WORLD IS DOG
The latest solo offering from the Queens underground veteran and 1/2 of acclaimed duo, Armand Hammer, is a typically abrasive blend of abstract hip-hop; taking in electro, jazz, and industrial elements. The pulsating drum attack of the opening track carries a punk rock energy in an early show of angry defiance, but that quickly gives way to eerie paranoia. It’s a reflection of a weary disgust for the world around him.
This style can tend toward impenetrably abstruse, and this is certainly an album that demands deeper exploration to fully appreciate. But key moments cut through the noise and command attention. Like flashes of evocative imagery – “I squeeze my children’s hand and walk hard against the wind”. Or the blunt repetition of “My landlord’s a Zionist” – a reminder of how political ideology bleeds into everyday mundanity, and the constant moral compromises required to get by. A bleakly urgent, eye-opener of an album that tries to reignite a spirit of rebellion from a sense of resignation.
17
Bashy Being Poor is Expensive
Top track: Earthstrong
Bashy aka Ashley Thomas is a veteran of the grime scene, albeit this is only his second studio album, 15 years since his first. In the meantime his star has been on the rise in the acting world. This musical return also acts as somewhat of a return to his roots; juxtaposing his success with his humble beginnings in an exploration of mortality, race, and structural oppression in Britain. Bashy offers up arresting storytelling and deft wordplay backed by soul-infused grime and Caribbean grooves. The sense of contrast, contradiction, and melancholia in the title is what lies at the heart of this album and at the heart of the world that Bashy explores here; a nod to the fine line between being broken by, or breaking out of, that world. (Read more)
16
Brown Horse Reservoir
Top track: Everlasting
On their debut, the Norwich Alt-country six-piece deliver roots rock heartbreakers and foot-stompers reminiscent of Ryan Adams’ best work and even Harvest-era Neil Young. Slow-burning ballads sit alongside the occasional rousing rocker evoking classic imagery of the American West, with tales of heartache and grief delivered in a quivering croon by Patrick Turner. There’s some mesmerising harmonies and the earthy, melancholic, instrumental twangs are hauntingly beautiful.
15
The Last Dinner Party Prelude to Ecstasy
Top track: Caesar on a TV Screen
The London group have become the proverbial punching bag of inauthenticity amongst indie circles following their sudden, major-label-assisted ascent. But the thing is, they really are pretty fucking good. Combining orchestral baroque pop, with prog influences as mini rock operas emerge from slow-burning would-be Bond themes. Occasionally breaking out into joyous explosions that could have come straight from some of pop’s great maximalists like ABBA, Kate Bush and Madonna. I don’t care how posh you are if you can make flamboyant pop tunes with hooks as big as this.
14
Fontaines D.C. Romance
Top track: Starburster
A real levelling up moment for the Dublin post-punks. Following up on two solid but slightly unloveable albums, they reignite the spark of their debut, taking a leap forward with unexpected left-field turns along the way. There’s still a grounding in post-punk gloom, but it’s all bigger and bolder; stadium-sized proportions. They deliver three of the year’s best songs in the hip-hop influenced, Starburster, the string-assisted epic, In The Modern World, and a new indie-kid’s wedding song of choice, Favourite.
13
The Dream Machine Small Time Monsters
Top track: Posters Of You
The second album from the Merseyside psych-pop eccentrics continues to perfect the sound of last year’s excellent debut as they balance freaky psych-rock tendencies with classic pop sensibilities. They display sneaky eclecticism and experimentation, from the Western-disco of Holding On, to the dreamy jangle-pop throwback, Posters Of You. That provides the backdrop for yearning tales of heartache and desire masked beneath dark Gothic imagery. Frontman, Zak McDonnell, marks himself as a young songwriter to watch with his mix of the classical and the modern elevating lovesick ballads to grandiose epics. (Read More)
12
KNEECAP Fine Art
Top track: I’m Flush
Punk spirit and Irish roots fuel a unique new strand of gritty regional rap; coke rap set on the streets of Belfast. From run-ins with ruthless dealers, coke-fuelled paranoia, or the futile pursuit of the next buzz; to moments of clarity, community, and euphoria. Helmed by Toddla T’s production, the influence of the UK’s hip-hop and club scenes is evident; as indebted to grime as it is rave, as it is garage. But it’s also rooted in Ireland; the nods to traditional folk music, the accents, and the rapping itself as they alternate between their native tongue and English. For all their newfound fame and headline-making controversies, the West-Belfast trio are firmly down to earth on an album that’s unapologetically Irish, steeped in history, but unmistakably modern. (Read more)
11
Angry Blackmen The Legend of ABM
Top track: Dead Men Tell No Lies
Rapping amidst a soundtrack of disaster; distant explosions, machine-gun firing lines, and glitching electronics; Angry Blackmen deliver noisy, industrial rap, transporting you to a post-apocalyptic dystopia. This is the sound of creeping dread; of systems creaking under the pressure, and a world being torn apart slowly but violently. As bleak as it may sound, it’s kind of banging though. And the Chicago duo are captivating rappers, capable of seamlessly blending the fantastic with the matter-of-fact; bringing humanity to the hellscape. (Read more)
No Frills Reviews 
Leave a comment