On sixth album – the ‘pop one' ... they give it their best shot while sticking firmly within their screamy garage punk parameters.
It’s Bellamy’s job to prise open deeper socio-political dimensions as much as it is to comment on the times, and Muse’s music once more matches his adventurous intrigue.
Overflowing with stately songwriting and lyrical craftsmanship, ‘How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful’ makes for a restrained but joyful return, and a collection that will last long after Welch’s broken bones are mended.
The 29-year-old Canadian has regrouped and made a surprisingly sophisticated ’80s-influenced pop album.
While the music may not always match up, the lyrics reaffirm The Libertines’ place as one of the most vital British bands ever and should usher a fresh generation of believers on board the good ship Albion.
‘Another One’ neither sounds particularly different to his last album, 2014’s ‘Salad Days’, nor does it give much indication of where he’ll go next; rather it does for ‘Salad Days’ what ‘Salad Days’ did for his previous album, ‘2’ – offers added richness and refinement to his very songbook style of writing.
It’s not an easy listen, but a brave, beautiful and affecting album – an attempt to find order in chaos that, as she wishes for it, offers a “crutch” to the heartbroken.
No matter how desperate Sufjan gets ...he’s resolutely serene, his emotion swathed in glistening guitar tones and angelic harmonies, spooling out his genius as casually as breathing.
This is the unmistakeable sound of a star being born: this is an album with something to say, in a voice all of its own.
He may have softened his edge, upped the production and pulled in the stars, but The Weeknd remains an outsider.
The songs on ‘No Cities To Love’ are short, taut and lethal, harking back, if anything, to their earliest albums. But they’re more complete songwriters now, and there isn’t a track on ‘No Cities To Love’ that doesn’t have a killer chorus.
They’ve mastered math rock, destroyed disco and flattened funk, now they measure hard rock in their hands like a medicine ball, and find it a comfortable weight.
An intoxicating listen, ‘Honeymoon’ is designed for the red neon glow of a smoky cabaret bar, a Californian answer to the chanson tradition.
Has Lamar followed a classic with another classic? Not quite, but in laying his demons and his contradictions bare, he has stayed true to his formidable talent.
It would be reductive to call this record Boucher's ‘Grimes goes Pop’ moment, but it certainly feels like an attempt to bridge the gap between her fervent online cult and tangible, real-world success.