Releases from September–October 2021

Great albums from around the world

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Find releases from 2022 | 2020.

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Releases for 29 October 2021

We kick off our pick of 29 October’s releases with two recent albums out on vinyl this week: The Lockdown Sessions from Elton John and The The’s Comeback Special, now available as a triple LP on limited-edition clear vinyl. The War On Drugs are one of this century’s great rock-and-roll synthesists, and they do this better than ever on their fifth studio album, I Don’t Live Here Anymore – an uncommon rock album about resilience in the face of despair. Award-winning blues-rock titan Joe Bonamassa is at his most ambitious and diverse yet on Time Clocks as he continues to redefine and push the barriers of blues-rock, mixing in a new prog-rock flavour on the ten tracks here. The Path Of The Clouds is the most stylistically adventurous, lyrically transfixing and melodically sophisticated album yet from Marissa Nadler, blurring the line between reality and fantasy and moving freely between past and present over 11 deeply personal self-produced songs.

Our release of the week is The Million Things That Never Happened from Billy Bragg – who, like a fine wine, just keeps getting better with age and whose songs at their best present “the perfect Venn diagram between the political and the personal”, according to the Guardian.

- Billy Bragg The Million Things That Never Happened
The last four decades have been marked for Billy Bragg by a number one hit single, having a street named after him, being the subject of a South Bank Show, appearing onstage at Wembley Stadium, curating Left Field at Glastonbury, sharing spotted dick with a Cabinet minister in the House of Commons cafeteria, being mentioned in Bob Dylan’s memoir and meeting the Queen. At their best, Billy’s songs present “the perfect Venn diagram between the political and the personal” (the Guardian), a claim well supported by his latest album, The Million Things That Never Happened.

- Elton John The Lockdown Sessions
In March 2020 Elton John was forced to pause his record-breaking Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour due to the unfolding pandemic. As the world began to shut down, however, opportunities for projects with artists Elton had enjoyed getting to know through his Apple Music show Rocket Hour began to present themselves. This was the beginning of one of Elton’s boldest and most interesting records to date, The Lockdown Sessions, which saw Elton coming full circle and returning to his roots as a session musician. While recording during a pandemic was no easy feat and a completely new way of working for Elton, he leaned into the challenge with some magnificent results.

- The The The Comeback Special
The The celebrated their comeback in 2018 after 20 years of absence with a glorious UK and US tour, topped by a sold-out performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the so-called Comeback Special. What started as an unforgettable live experience now turns into something even bigger as The The announce their new live album and make the whole comeback experience available to fans worldwide.

- The War On Drugs I Don’t Live Here Anymore
Over the past 15 years, The War On Drugs have steadily emerged as one of this century’s great rock-and-roll synthesists, removing the gaps between the underground and the mainstream, between the obtuse and the anthemic, making records that wrestle a fractured past into a unified and engrossing present. The band have never done that as well as they do with their fifth studio album, I Don’t Live Here Anymore, an uncommon rock album about one of our most common but daunting processes – resilience in the face of despair.

- Joe Bonamassa Time Clocks
Two-time Grammy-nominated guitarist and blues-rock titan Joe Bonamassa returns with a brand-new studio album. Time Clocks is his 15th solo studio album and his fifth consecutive album of all-original material, and it sees him at his most ambitious and diverse yet as he continues to redefine and push the barriers of blues-rock. Over the ten songs on Time Clocks, Joe mixes in a new progressive rock flavour.

- Marissa Nadler The Path Of The Clouds
The Path Of The Clouds, the ninth solo album from Marissa Nadler, is the most stylistically adventurous, lyrically transfixing and melodically sophisticated collection of songs in her already rich discography. Gripped by wanderlust while suddenly housebound at the start of the pandemic in 2020, Nadler escaped into writing, and came back with a stunning set of songs about metamorphosis, love, mysticism, and murder. Blurring the line between reality and fantasy and moving freely between past and present, these 11 deeply personal self-produced songs find Nadler exploring new landscapes, both sonic and emotional.

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Releases for 22 October 2021

We begin our best of 22 October’s releases with Sympathy For Life, which finds thought-provoking Brooklyn band Parquet Courts at their most instinctive and electronic, spinning their bewitching, psychedelic storytelling into fresh territory. Biffy Clyro’s surprise new project, The Myth Of The Happily Ever After, is a rapid emotional response to the turmoil of the past year – a before-and-after comparison, their optimism of early 2020 having been brought back to earth with a resounding thud but ultimately reinvigorating the band. My Morning Jacket’s first new music since 2015’s The Waterfall reaffirms the rarefied magic that has made this band so beloved, embedding every groove with moments of discovery, revelation, and ecstatic catharsis to make a thrillingly expansive release. Honest disclosure and being unapologetically herself has always been Self Esteem’s forte, and each track on Prioritise Pleasure handles difficult themes from a nuanced perspective, comforted and counter-balanced with an array of rhythmic flourishes that speak to the eclecticism of her experience and influence. Elton John had to pause his farewell tour due to the unfolding pandemic, but as the world began to shut down, opportunities for projects with artists Elton had met through his online show Rocket Hour appeared, and this was the beginning of one of Elton’s boldest and most interesting records to date, The Lockdown Sessions.

Our release of the week is Blue Banisters, the highly anticipated eighth studio album from Grammy-nominated American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. Blue Banisters follows the success of her previous album, Chemtrails Over The Country Club, released earlier this year, and features the songs ‘Blue Banisters’, ‘Wildflower Wildfire’ and ‘Text Book’.

- Lana Del Rey Blue Banisters
Blue Banisters is the highly anticipated eighth studio album from Grammy-nominated American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. The album follows the success of Chemtrails Over The Country Club, released earlier this year, and features the songs ‘Blue Banisters’, ‘Wildflower Wildfire’ and ‘Text Book’.

- Parquet Courts Sympathy For Life
Parquet Courts’ thought-provoking rock is dancing to a new tune. Sympathy For Life finds the Brooklyn band at both their most instinctive and electronic, spinning their bewitching, psychedelic storytelling into fresh territory, yet maintaining their unique identity.

- Biffy Clyro The Myth Of The Happily Ever After
Biffy Clyro’s surprise new project, The Myth Of The Happily Ever After, is a homegrown project that represents a reaction to their #1 album A Celebration Of Endings and a rapid emotional response to the turmoil of the past year. It is the ying to A Celebration’s yang: a before-and-after comparison, their optimism of early 2020 having been brought back to earth with a resounding thud. It’s the product of a strange and cruel time in our lives, but one that ultimately has reinvigorated Biffy Clyro.

- My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket
My Morning Jacket’s first new music since 2015’s Grammy-nominated The Waterfall reaffirms the rarefied magic that has made this band so beloved, embedding every groove with moments of discovery, revelation, and ecstatic catharsis.
It had looked as though the band was moving into a permanent hiatus, but after performing four shows in summer 2019 – beginning with two mind-blowing nights at Red Rocks Amphitheatre – My Morning Jacket was overcome with the urge to carry on. That sense of purpose can be heard throughout the thrillingly expansive release, which was produced and engineered by Jim James over two multi-week sessions at 64 Sound in Los Angeles.

- Self Esteem Prioritise Pleasure
Prioritise Pleasure, the follow-up to Self Esteem’s acclaimed 2019 debut album, Compliments Please, is a record that reminds us all of the importance of being our unapologetic selves, putting our insecurities out there in the hope that it can be the first step towards healing them. Honest disclosure has always been Self Esteem’s forte, and so each track on Prioritise Pleasure handles difficult themes from a nuanced perspective, comforted and counter-balanced with an array of rhythmic flourishes that speak to the eclecticism of her experience and influence.

- Elton John The Lockdown Sessions
In March 2020 Elton John was forced to pause his record-breaking Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour due to the unfolding pandemic. As the world began to shut down, however, opportunities for projects with artists Elton had enjoyed getting to know through his Apple Music show Rocket Hour began to present themselves. This was the beginning of one of Elton’s boldest and most interesting records to date, The Lockdown Sessions, which saw Elton coming full circle and returning to his roots as a session musician. While recording during a pandemic was no easy feat and a completely new way of working for Elton, he leaned into the challenge with some magnificent results.

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Releases for 15 October 2021

15 October’s picks start with a classic: The Beatles’ iconic final studio album, Let It Be, is being reissued in a new stereo mix by Giles Martin, with bonus goodies, to coincide with the worldwide release of Peter Jackson’s 3-part documentary ‘The Beatles: Get Back’. Coldplay’s ninth studio album, Music Of The Spheres, features 12 new tracks including recent single ‘Higher Power’, and is accompanied by a spectacular audio-visual journey through the album’s planetary artwork. Icons Duran Duran have consistently fused art, technology, fashion and a signature sense of style with their unique and infectious brand of music, and Future Past shows them still innovating and reinventing to remain ahead of the curve. Sticky, the new album from Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, is the sonic eruption of more than a year’s suppressed energy: it’s an escapist experience, but still informed by recent reality. The songs on the Fever Dreams Pt 1 EP reflect Johnny Marr’s multifaceted past while taking his music somewhere startlingly new, using the language of soul music with his roots as a ‘Mancunian glam rocker’, with a fantastically expansive sound. And this 12" EP can only be got from your local independent record shop!

Our release of the week is Another Place, the radically surprising new solo album from Danny George Wilson (Bennett Wilson Poole, Danny & The Champions Of The World, Grand Drive), who unveils it to a world coming up for air. Danny celebrates the future returning with a vibrant and diverse collection of startling, impressionistic songs.

- Danny George Wilson Another Place
Danny George Wilson (Bennett Wilson Poole, Danny & The Champions Of The World, Grand Drive) unveils a radically surprising new solo album, Another Place, to a world coming up for air. Danny celebrates the future returning with a vibrant and diverse collection of startling, impressionistic songs produced in tandem with Sussex-based studio wizard Hamish Benjamin and his frequent collaborator Henry Garratt.

- The Beatles Let It Be
The Beatles’ iconic final studio album, Let It Be, is being reissued in a new stereo mix by Giles Martin to coincide with the worldwide release of Peter Jackson’s 3-part documentary ‘The Beatles: Get Back’.

In January 1969, The Beatles planned to return to live performance, setting up in Twickenham Film Studios for 21 days of rehearsals. They then decamped to the new studio in their Apple office building in Savile Row and on 30 January performed their last ever live group performance, on the rooftop of the building. During the rehearsal process, they asked Glyn Johns, who had been hired to help with the live sound, to attempt to create an album from the rehearsal recordings. This rough-n-rocky mix, entitled Get Back, was never released, becoming known as one of the great ‘lost’ albums in rock history. A year later, Phil Spector was asked to work on the recordings, and this eventually produced Let It Be, released on 8 May 1970, after Abbey Road.

- Coldplay Music Of The Spheres
Coldplay’s ninth studio album, Music Of The Spheres, features 12 new tracks including recent single ‘Higher Power’. Launched alongside the album announcement is Overtura (Music Of The Spheres Album Trailer), a spectacular audio-visual journey through the album’s planetary artwork with short clips of the album’s twelve tracks.

- Duran Duran Future Past
British music icons Duran Duran have sold over 100 million records, had 21 UK Top 20 singles and 18 American hits, and have continued to perform to huge concert audiences around the world since the band first formed in 1980. Consistently fusing art, technology, fashion and a signature sense of style with their unique and infectious brand of music, singer Simon Le Bon, keyboardist Nick Rhodes, bassist John Taylor and drummer Roger Taylor have proven themselves timeless, always innovating and reinventing to remain ahead of the curve.

- Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes Sticky
Sticky, the new album from Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, is the sonic eruption of more than a year’s suppressed energy. While it’s an escapist experience, recent reality is never too far away. It’s there in ‘Go Get A Tattoo’, which was inspired by Carter’s experience of having to shut his first London-based tattoo parlour, Rose of Mercy, almost immediately after it opened.

- Johnny Marr Fever Dreams Pt 1
Informed by the kind of powerful, anthemic and direct approach to words instantly present in the recent single ‘Spirit, Power And Soul’, the songs on the Fever Dreams Pt 1 EP carry an emotional potency. The new EP reflects Johnny Marr’s multifaceted past but takes his music somewhere startlingly new, using the language of soul music with his roots as a ‘Mancunian glam rocker’, lyrics that could be simultaneously personal, universal, and subtly political, with a fantastically expansive sound.

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Releases for 8 October 2021

We kick off 8 October’s goodies with the intoxicating Huffy, which ushers in a bold new chapter for beloved indie heroes We Are Scientists, who hold nothing back to deliver a welcome shot in the arm for deprived indie disco dancers everywhere. Behave Myself is the follow-up to She Drew The Gun’s critically acclaimed Revolution Of Mind, and its fuzzy psych-pop is infused by songwriter Louisa Roach’s spirit of rebellion in songs that rally against injustice and celebrate outsiderdom. Natalie Hemby, recently of supergroup The Highwomen, is one of the most successful and sought-after songwriters, and Pins And Needles – inspired by Tom Petty, Sheryl Crow and the early ’90s rock and roots she was raised on – features songs co-written with Miranda Lambert, Maren Morris, Brothers Osborne, Jeff Trott and Rose Cousins, among others. Long-term fans of Thrice won’t be surprised that they have emerged from a global pandemic with a renewed sense of situational awareness and hard-won insight, and on Horizons/East they address, with candour and courage, the fragile, awkward arrangements that pass for civilization, while inviting us to dwell more knowingly within our own lives. By their own design, Oh Wonder have always flown a little below the public radar, getting to a good place at the start of 2020; then, of course, a 120-date world tour (and much more besides) came crashing to the ground, and this tumultuous and deeply personal time in their lives is the subject of 22 Break.

Our release of the week is Seventeen Going Under, released two years after Sam Fender’s critically acclaimed debut album, Hypersonic Missiles, went straight in at number 1 in the UK album chart. This new album finds Sam turning the mirror from the state of the world to himself: his adolescence and the trials and tribulations of growing up. It’s a relatable journey that careers through an often misspent youth, navigating tumultuous relationships with both friends and family, and trying to figure out what comes next and how to get there.

- Sam Fender Seventeen Going Under
Two years since the release of Sam Fender’s critically acclaimed debut album, Hypersonic Missiles, went straight in at number 1 in the UK album chart, Seventeen Going Under finds Sam turning the mirror from the state of the world to himself: his adolescence and the trials and tribulations of growing up. It’s a relatable journey that careers through an often misspent youth, navigating tumultuous relationships with both friends and family, and trying to figure out what comes next and how to get there.

- We Are Scientists Huffy
The intoxicating Huffy ushers in a bold new chapter for beloved indie heroes We Are Scientists, who are holding nothing back and deliver a welcome shot in the arm for deprived indie disco dancers everywhere.
The fresh music on the band’s first album in 3 years is accompanied by an oh-so-fresh presentation: multi-panelled vinyl and CD packaging offer a blank wall on which listeners can unfold their own unreasonable vision for the Huffy universe. Each includes sticker sheets with over 20 full-colour graffiti designed by Keith, Chris and friends, deployable according to the user’s whim.

- She Drew The Gun Behave Myself
Behave Myself is the follow-up to She Drew The Gun’s critically acclaimed Revolution Of Mind, which was named among BBC 6 Music’s Albums Of The Year for 2018. Songwriter Louisa Roach began by playing solo gigs around Liverpool under the moniker She Drew The Gun and quickly caught the attention of The Coral’s James Skelly. The two began working together at Skeleton Key Records, recruiting band members along the way. At first glance Roach’s fuzzy psych-pop may suggest that the Wirral born songwriter is another ‘cosmic Scouser’ but then you’re drawn into her spirit of rebellion finding its outlet in songs that rally against injustice and celebrate outsiderdom.

- Natalie Hemby Pins And Needles
Natalie Hemby is one of the most successful and sought-after songwriters in music. Her numerous credits include hit songs recorded by artists such as Kacey Musgraves, Yola, Rag’n’Bone Man, Maren Morris, Sheryl Crow, Miranda Lambert, Lady Gaga, Dierks Bentley, Lady A, Kelly Clarkson, Chris Isaak, Blake Shelton, Little Big Town and Labrinth, to name a few. In 2019, Hemby joined Brandi Carlile, Maren Morris and Amanda Shires to form The Highwomen; their self-titled debut album was widely hailed as one of the year’s best.
Inspired by Tom Petty, Sheryl Crow and the early ’90s rock and roots she was raised on, Pins And Needles features songs Natalie co-wrote with Miranda Lambert, Maren Morris, Brothers Osborne, Jeff Trott and Rose Cousins, among others.

- Thrice Horizons/East
Emerging from a global pandemic with a renewed sense of situational awareness, hard-won insight and a new album is the kind of move we’ve come to expect from Thrice over the last twenty years. With Horizons/East, Dustin Kensrue and his bandmates address, with candour and courage, the fragile and awkward arrangements that pass for civilization, while inviting us to dwell more knowingly within our own lives. Without surrendering any of the energy and hard edge of their previous albums, they’ve given us a profoundly meditative work which serves as a musical summons to everyday attentiveness.

- Oh Wonder 22 Break
By their own design, Oh Wonder have always flown a little below the public radar. Josephine Vander Gucht and Anthony West have played music together since 2014 and (on the down-low) been romantically involved since 2013. By the time they confirmed their engagement on No One Else Can Wear Your Crown in 2020, life was good; then, of course, the pandemic hit, and a 120-date world tour (plus, it transpired, much more besides) came crashing to the ground. This tumultuous and deeply personal time in their private lives is the subject of Oh Wonder’s fifth studio album, 22 Break.

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Releases for 1 October 2021

Our super six for 1 October kicks off with The The, who celebrated their comeback after 20 years of absence with a glorious UK and US tour, topped by a sold-out performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the so-called Comeback Special. Explosions In The Sky release an inspired, melodic and meaningful soundtrack to a new documentary about Big Bend National Park, and their blend of acoustic guitar, slide guitar, strings, piano, bells and drums feels as alive and diverse – and vast and lonely – as the place it depicts. Neil Young launches his Official Bootleg series with the solo concert he played at New York’s Carnegie Hall on 4 December 1970, which rounded off a seminal year for him and has never been heard before. Daptone celebrates its 20th anniversary with The Daptone Super Soul Revue, recorded and filmed live over three nights at the world-famous Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York, in December 2014, brings the electrifying performances that helped put Daptone on the map directly to your living room! And finally, on their stunning new album The Quest, which features sleeve artwork from long-time collaborator Roger Dean, legendary progressive rock band Yes demonstrate why they are still such a revered group of musicians.

Our release of the week is In These Silent Days from six-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, performer and producer Brandi Carlile. Conceived while she was quarantined at home and inspired by the mining of her own history while writing the best-selling memoir Broken Horses, the ten songs chronicle acceptance, faith, loss and love, and channel icons like David Bowie, Freddie Mercury, Elton John and Joni Mitchell.

- Brandi Carlile In These Silent Days
In These Silent Days, the highly anticipated new studio album from six-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, performer and producer Brandi Carlile, is inspired by the mining of her own history while writing the best-selling memoir Broken Horses. The album was conceived with longtime collaborators and bandmates Tim and Phil Hanseroth while Carlile was quarantined at home. The ten songs chronicle acceptance, faith, loss and love, and channel icons like David Bowie, Freddie Mercury, Elton John and Joni Mitchell – the latter two who, by some sort of cosmic alignment of the stars, have become close friends of Brandi in addition to being her biggest heroes and inspirations.

- The The The Comeback Special
The The celebrated their comeback in 2018 after 20 years of absence with a glorious UK and US tour, topped by a sold-out performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London, the so-called Comeback Special. What started as an unforgettable live experience now turns into something even bigger as The The announce their new live album and make the whole comeback experience available to fans worldwide.

- Explosions In The Sky Big Bend
Explosions In The Sky was approached to craft the score to a new documentary about a place with which, as native Texans, they were very familiar: Big Bend National Park. The hour-long film intimately follows the lives of native animals amid expansive aerial views of the iconic desert landscape that makes up one of the grandest natural wonders in the world. The band set these sights to an inspired, melodic and meaningful blend of acoustic guitar, slide guitar, strings, piano, bells and drums that feels as alive and diverse – and vast and lonely – as the place it depicts.

- Neil Young Carnegie Hall 1970
Neil Young has selected the concert he played at New York’s Carnegie Hall on 4 December 1970 as the inaugural release in his Official Bootleg series. The show rounded off a seminal year for Young, who had released After The Gold Rush just 3 months earlier, following the release in March of Crosby, Still, Nash & Young’s Déjà Vu.
The recording of this show, which features Young playing solo on vocals, acoustic guitar, piano and harmonica, has never been heard before.

- Various Artists The Daptone Super Soul Revue: Live! At The Apollo
Daptone celebrates its 20th anniversary with The Daptone Super Soul Revue, recorded and filmed live at the world-famous Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York, in December 2014. Performed and recorded over three nights in front of a sold-out crowd, this album brings the electrifying performances that helped put Daptone on the map directly to your living room!

- Yes The Quest
The Quest is the latest studio album from legendary progressive rock band Yes, and their first for new label home InsideOutMusic. Produced by Steve Howe and featuring the line-up of Howe, Alan White, Geoff Downes, Jon Davison and Billy Sherwood, the band demonstrate on this stunning new record why they are still such a revered group of musicians. The sleeve features artwork from long-time collaborator Roger Dean.

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Releases for 24 September 2021

24 September’s ear-ticklers start with Bright Magic, the most ambitious undertaking yet from Public Service Broadcasting, an album in three parts that brings you into the heart of the cultural and political metropolis that is Berlin: it’s an impressionistic portrait of a city from the ground up. As the 70s lurched into the 80s, The Specials – multiracial flagship of the 2 Tone movement – sang of racism, war, unemployment and the rough edges of urban life; now, on the 40th anniversary of their greatest protest song, ‘Ghost Town’, Protest Songs 1924–2012 shows that The Specials still care, are still protesting and are still pissed off! How Beautiful Life Can Be is the debut album from Wigan’s The Lathums, who were kick-started by growing pains and life’s unlucky twists, fuelled by the simple salvation of six guitar strings and supercharged by their growing legion of fans; their story may turn out to be the perfect not-all-nice-guys-finish-last tale. Last but certainly not least, the legendary Blancmange release a new album, Commercial Break – their fourteenth – which explores acoustic textures and field recordings within their synthesiser exoskeleton.

Our release of the week is Sad And Beautiful World, the full-length follow up to Jesse Malin’s 2019 album Sunset Kids, which was co-produced by long-time lead guitarist Derek Cruz and Grammy-winning engineer Geoff Sanoff (Bruce Springsteen, Dion, Darlene Love), with contributions from Lucinda Williams, Tom Overby, Ryan Adams, Dave ‘Immy’ Immergluck of Counting Crows, Tommy Stinson of The Replacements, and more.

- Jesse Malin Sad and Beautiful World
Sad And Beautiful World is the full-length follow up to Jesse Malin’s 2019 album Sunset Kids, and was co-produced by long-time lead guitarist Derek Cruz and Grammy-winning engineer Geoff Sanoff (Bruce Springsteen, Dion, Darlene Love). The album contains two songs produced by Lucinda Williams and Tom Overby, and features Ryan Adams, Dave ‘Immy’ Immergluck of Counting Crows, Tommy Stinson of The Replacements, and more.

- Public Service Broadcasting Bright Magic
Public Service Broadcasting’s fourth album, Bright Magic, is an album in three parts (Building A City / Building A Myth / Bright Magic) that is their most ambitious undertaking yet, bringing you to Europe’s heart and de facto capital, the cultural and political metropolis that is the ‘Haupstadt’ of the Federal Republic of Germany.
“Doing this felt inevitable, somehow,” muses J. Willgoose, Esq. “In my head, it was whirring and pulsing away for a long time, even before Every Valley – this fascinating, contrary, seductive place. I knew the album was going to be about the city, and its history and myths, and I was going to move there. So it’s quite a personal story. It’s become an album about moving to Berlin to write an album about people who move to Berlin to write an album…”
Though PSB’s use of electronics and surging guitar rock remain familiar, Bright Magic uses samples, and the English language, sparingly. It differs from their previous albums in other ways: less linear and narrative, instead it’s an impressionistic portrait of a city from the ground up. A Eureka moment of sorts came in November 2018 when Willgoose heard Walter Ruttman’s radical Berlin tape-artwork Wochenende (or Weekend), which is sampled on three of Bright Magic’s tracks. Created in 1928, the piece collaged speech, field recordings and music into a sonic evocation of the city. Resolving to integrate these long-gone fragments with new manipulated sound sources, he set about making his own Wochenende, a narrative drama for the ears which decodes and realises the dreams of Berlin he’d constructed in his mind.

- The Specials Protest Songs 1924–2012
What makes a protest song? The Specials should know. First time around, back when the 70s were lurching into the 80s, they sang of racism, war, unemployment and the rough edges of urban life, and never in the same way twice. As the multiracial flagship of the 2 Tone movement, they made a political statement every time they stepped on stage.
June 2021 saw the 40th anniversary of their greatest protest song, ‘Ghost Town’, a record that will retain its eerie power as long as there are concrete jungles, empty dancehalls and desperate spasms of violence. Protest Songs 1924–2012 features twelve singular takes on protest songs specially chosen across an almost 100-year span and shows that The Specials still care, are still protesting and are still pissed off!

- The Lathums How Beautiful Life Can Be
How Beautiful Life Can Be is the debut album from Wigan’s The Lathums. Kick-started by growing pains and life’s unlucky twists, fuelled by the simple salvation of six guitar strings and supercharged by the fans that found them slogging their gear into pubs and small venues across the north of England, The Lathums’ story may turn out to be the perfect not-all-nice-guys-finish-last tale.

- Blancmange Commercial Break
Blancmange release a new album, Commercial Break – their fourteenth – which explores acoustic textures and field recordings within their synthesiser exoskeleton.

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Releases for 17 September 2021

17 September’s super six opens with the latest chapter in Bob Dylan’s highly acclaimed Bootleg Series: Springtime In New York (Vol. 16) revisits an often-forgotten, rich vein in Dylan’s vast and complex catalogue, shining fresh light on the provocative new musical directions he was taking as a songwriter and a recording artist between 1980–85, creating an essential new chapter in his legacy. Live From Lafayette contains 15 tracks that Rumer performed with a full band at the Lafayette in London, and features tracks spanning her career, including ‘Slow’, ‘Take Me as I Am’ and ‘Hard Time For Lovers’. Innovative hybrid orchestra Nu Deco Ensemble brought their genre-bending music to fans around the world through their 2020–21 virtual performance season, including a collaborative concert with roots-rock duo Larkin Poe, streamed live from the Miami Beach Bandshell and presented here as Paint The Roses: Live In Concert. Few people have managed to become quite so celebrated worldwide quite as quietly as José González has, and Local Valley, his long-awaited fourth album, serves as a relieving reminder that you don’t have to be loud to be heard. The anticipation is there in Elizabeth Stokes’ solo guitar riff under the opening lines of ‘I’m Not Getting Excited’: a frenetic, driving force daring a packed Auckland Town Hall to ignore the song’s title and get excited! As the opener of Auckland, New Zealand, 2020 expands to include The Beths’ full band, the crowd screeches and bellows: a collective exhalation, in one of the few countries where the live concert experience is currently possible.

Our release of the week comes from one of the greatest guitarists of all time, Lindsey Buckingham. As well as being the lead guitarist and one of three singers in Fleetwood Mac, he has released six solo albums and three live albums to date. Now Lindsey is releasing his brand new – self-titled – solo album, featuring all-new material.

- Lindsey Buckingham Lindsey Buckingham
Lindsey Buckingham is one of the greatest guitarists of all time. As well as being the lead guitarist and one of three singers in Fleetwood Mac, he has released six solo albums and three live albums to date.
Now Lindsey is releasing his brand new – self-titled – solo album, featuring all-new material.

- Bob Dylan Springtime In New York: The Bootleg Series Vol. 16 (1980-1985)
Springtime In New York, the latest chapter in Columbia/Legacy’s highly acclaimed Bob Dylan Bootleg Series, revisits an often-forgotten, rich vein in Dylan’s vast and complex catalogue, shining fresh light on the provocative new musical directions Dylan was taking as a songwriter and a recording artist between 1980 and 1985.
In the early 1980s, while the music industry was grappling with the arrival of new trends and technology, from MTV to compact discs to digital recording, Bob Dylan was writing and recording new songs for a new decade, creating an essential new chapter in his studio catalogue.

- Rumer Live From Lafayette
Live From Lafayette contains 15 tracks that Rumer performed with a full band at the Lafayette in London, and features tracks spanning her career, including ‘Slow’, ‘Take Me as I Am’ and ‘Hard Time For Lovers’.

- Larkin Poe & Nu Deco Ensemble Paint The Roses: Live In Concert
Innovative hybrid orchestra Nu Deco Ensemble brought their genre-bending music to fans around the world through their 2020–21 virtual performance season. On 12 December 2020 they performed a collaborative concert with roots-rock duo Larkin Poe, streamed live from the Miami Beach Bandshell and resulting in Paint The Roses: Live In Concert.

- José González Local Valley
Few people have managed to become quite so celebrated worldwide quite as quietly as José González has. Local Valley, his long-awaited fourth album, serves as a relieving reminder that you don’t have to be loud to be heard.

- The Beths Auckland, New Zealand 2020
The anticipation is there in Elizabeth Stokes’ solo guitar riff under the opening lines of ‘I’m Not Getting Excited’: a frenetic, driving force daring a packed Auckland Town Hall to ignore the song’s title and get excited!
As the opener of Auckland, New Zealand, 2020 expands to include The Beths’ full band, the crowd screeches and bellows. It’s a collective exhalation, in one of the few countries where the live concert experience is currently possible.

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Releases for 10 September 2021

Our six of the best for 10 September opens with Hey What, in which Low find new ways to express the discord and delight of being alive, with layers of distorted sound building, breaking, colossal then restrained, a solemn vow only whispered. I’ve Been Trying To Tell You, an album about the unreliability of memory from Saint Etienne, is made largely from samples and sounds drawn from the turn of the new century, a period topped and tailed by Labour’s election victory and the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers. Back In Love City finds The Vaccines both perfecting their winning formula and pushing their sound forward, evolving from their previous foundations with an album that reflects on escapism as a necessary part of modern living. Surviving Stranglers band members JJ Burnel, Baz Warne and Jim Macaulay completed Dark Matters, their first album since 2012, remotely during lockdowns, and it includes a moving tribute to keyboard player Dave Greenfield. Hawkwind’s brand-new studio album Somnia – their 34th – makes many allusions to sleep; through the Roman god of sleep Somnus, the lyrics tell the tale of sleepless paranoia, strange encounters, fever dreams and meditation through thirteen blistering tracks.

Our release of the week is The Ultra Vivid Lament, the 14th studio album from one of the UK’s most consistently brilliant rock’n’roll bands, Manic Street Preachers. It is both reflection and reaction: a record that gazes in isolation across a cluttered room, fogged by often painful memories, to focus on an open window framing a gleaming vista of land melting into sea and endless sky.

- Manic Street Preachers The Ultra Vivid Lament
The Ultra Vivid Lament is the 14th studio album from Manic Street Preachers. It is both reflection and reaction: a record that gazes in isolation across a cluttered room, fogged by often painful memories, to focus on an open window framing a gleaming vista of land melting into sea and endless sky. Musically, The Ultra Vivid Lament is inspired by a formative years record box (ABBA, post-Eno Roxy, The Bunnymen, Fables-era REM, Lodger), though the end result could only be the unique union of James Dean Bradfield, Nicky Wire and Sean Moore, collectively one of the UK’s most consistently brilliant rock’n’roll bands for over three decades.
Track listing: 1. Still Snowing In Sapporo / 2. Orwellian / 3. The Secret He Had Missed / 4. Quest For Ancient Colour / 5. Don’t Let the Night Divide Us / 6. Diapause / 7. Complicated Illusions / 8. Into The Waves of Love / 9. Blank Diary Entry / 10. Happy Bored Alone / 11. Afterending

- Low Hey What
Hey What is Low’s thirteenth full-length release in twenty-seven years, and their third with producer BJ Burton. The new album finds the group focusing on their craft, staying out of the fray, and holding fast their faith to find new ways to express the discord and delight of being alive, to turn the duality of existence into hymns we can share. These ten pieces – each built around their own instantaneous, undeniable hook – are turbocharged by the vivid textures that surround them. The ineffable, familiar harmonies of Alan Sparhawk and Mimi Parker break through the chaos like a life raft. Layers of distorted sound accrete with each new verse – building, breaking, colossal then restrained, a solemn vow only whispered.

- Saint Etienne I’ve Been Trying To Tell You
I’ve Been Trying To Tell You, the new album from Saint Etienne, is made largely from samples and sounds drawn from the turn of the new century, a period topped and tailed by Labour’s election victory and the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers. “Its about memory,” Bob explains, “and how it can fog and play tricks on you. Specifically, its about the late Nineties, and current nostalgia for that time.” The album is accompanied by a specially made film directed by acclaimed fashion photographer Alasdair McLellan and sleeve notes from socialist writer Owen Hatherley.

- The Vaccines Back In Love City
Back In Love City finds The Vaccines both perfecting their winning formula and pushing their sound forward, evolving from their previous foundations with an album that reflects on escapism as a necessary part of modern living.

- The Stranglers Dark Matters
Surviving Stranglers band members JJ Burnel, Baz Warne and newest member Jim Macaulay completed Dark Matters, their first album since 2012, remotely during lockdowns. The album features the single ‘And If You Should See Dave…’, an honest tribute to their much-missed keyboard player Dave Greenfield, who tragically passed away a year ago from Covid-19.

- Hawkwind Somnia
Hawkwind release brand-new studio album Somnia, which follows their critically acclaimed 2020 Hawkwind Light Orchestra album Carnivorous and live album 50th Anniversary Live.
The band’s 34th album is a superb addition to the space-rock genre they created. The concept of Somnia makes many allusions to sleep; through Roman mythology and the god of sleep Somnus, the lyrics tell the tale of sleepless paranoia, strange encounters, fever dreams and meditation through thirteen blistering tracks.

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Releases for 3 September 2021

Our six back-to-school belters for 3 September kick off with 21st Century Love Songs, the brand new album from The Wildhearts and the spiritual heir to 1994’s P.H.U.Q., with a new-found subtlety and a sense of adventure in the unorthodox arrangements of the songs – The Wildhearts are in control. Over the course of her lush, expansive, defiantly sprawling new album, Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, the award-winning, Mercury-nominated Little Simz delivers an undeniable modern classic that thrillingly bridges the gap between urgent modern treatise and hip-hop. While Bob Marley And The Wailers gave an intimate performance at Capitol Studios in Hollywood in October 1973, producer Denny Cordell captured the event on camera, and the painstakingly restored and edited Capitol Session ’73 is arguably the finest audio-visual recording of this legendary band in existence. The 50th anniversary of Rory Gallagher’s eponymous 1971 debut solo album brings a brand-new mix plus a bonus disc full of previously unheard out-take and alternate-take bonus tracks, and a 40-minute film of Rory’s first ever solo concert with the super-deluxe version. And special guests Bobby Womack, Mick Hucknall and Paul Weller join Ronnie Wood and Mick Taylor for the second instalment of Ronnie’s live album trilogy, Mr Luck: A Tribute To Jimmy Reed, recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall on 1 November 2013.

The release of the week can only be Senjutsu, the 17th studio album from Iron Maiden and their first in 6 years. The title loosely translates as ‘tactics and strategy’, and the 82-minute album was recorded in Paris with longstanding producer Kevin Shirley and co-producer Steve Harris, with the spectacular Samurai-themed cover artwork created by Mark Wilkinson, based on an idea by Harris.

- Iron Maiden Senjutsu
Iron Maiden’s epic 17th studio album, Senjutsu – their first in 6 years – was recorded in Paris with longstanding producer Kevin Shirley and co-producer Steve Harris. For Senjutsu, loosely translated as ‘tactics and strategy’, the band once again enlisted the services of Mark Wilkinson to create the spectacular Samurai-themed cover artwork, based on an idea by Steve Harris.

- The Wildhearts 21st Century Love Songs
The Wildhearts are proud to announce the release of 21st Century Love Songs, their brand new full-length studio album. 21st Century Love Songs is the follow-up to Renaissance Men, their highest charting album since 1994’s P.H.U.Q., which debuted at number 11. As front-man Ginger explains: “This time we let the songs simmer until absolutely ready. We let the theme of the album present itself. There’s a subtlety to this album, something that people don’t often associate with The Wildhearts, and a sense of adventure in the unorthodox arrangements of the songs. This time we’re in control.”

- Little Simz Sometimes I Might Be An Introvert
Over the course of her lush, expansive, defiantly sprawling new album, Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, the award-winning, Mercury-nominated Little Simz delivers an undeniable modern classic, effortlessly condensing any number of disparate styles and genres into music that thrillingly bridges the gap between urgent modern treatise and hip-hop.

- Bob Marley And The Wailers The Capitol Session ’73
In October 1973 Bob Marley And The Wailers gave an intimate performance at Capitol Studios in Hollywood. While they were performing and recording twelve classic songs, producer Denny Cordell captured the event on camera from the sidelines. Now painstakingly restored and edited, The Capitol Session ’73 is ready for release and arguably the finest audio-visual recording of this legendary band in existence.

- Rory Gallagher Rory Gallagher (50th Anniversary)
Rory Gallagher’s eponymous 1971 debut solo album celebrates its 50th anniversary with a brand-new mix of the original album plus a bonus disc full of previously unheard out-take and alternate-take bonus tracks.
The super-deluxe box set of the album includes an additional 12 alternate takes, a six-song 1971 BBC Radio John Peel Sunday Concert, and four BBC radio session tracks. Also included is a 40-minute DVD of Rory’s first ever solo concert which was filmed in Paris, France for the ‘Pop Deux’ TV show.

- The Ronnie Wood Band Mr Luck: A Tribute To Jimmy Reed
Ronnie Wood, along with Mick Taylor, are joined by special guests Bobby Womack, Mick Hucknall and Paul Weller for the second instalment of Ronnie’s live album trilogy, Mr Luck: A Tribute To Jimmy Reed, recorded live at the Royal Albert Hall on 1 November 2013.

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Other releases for 2021

Find releases from 2022 | 2020.