Not knowing anything about Hex Poseur going into this EP, it surprised me to find out they are fairly local to where I grew up. It's also very comforting to know I am in the proximity of such a capable and effortlessly listenable punk-rock band who can produce such incredible bangers with emotion and social commentary in abundance.

I am a huge fan of beabadoobee, and have been for some time, so I've pretty obviously been pretty hype for Beatopia to drop. As it turns out, it was not to be what I was expecting. I expected this to be yet more indie-rock bedroom pop, but it shows a real development into being a diverse artist who can deal with a massive range of sounds. Really good album, excited for the next one.

The Carol City native has, I am pleased to inform, done it again. This album is packed start to finish with gorgeous, creamy soundscapes, incredible choices of collaboration from slowthai to Rico Nasty, and with Denzel Curry's own incredible flows and lyricism. Make no mistake about it, this dude is a poet.

1 - Melt Session #1 - 82

The album opener is always important to set the scene. And here, Denzel sets it really well. The synth-packed instrumentation is rich and layered and just full of ... read more

The debut album from young producer quinn, also known as osquinn, is my winner of 2022's musical pizza cutter award. That is to say, it has a lot of edge and absolutely zero point. The highs on this album are very high, with some great production on display. But the lows are exceptionally low, which results in what can't be considered more than a very mid album.

Dublin's up-and-coming country starlet CMAT puts out her first LP, and it is definitely refreshing in Nashville's sea of sappy boyfriend country and the trap-bastardising likes of "Fancy Like" by Walker Hayes. Twelve tracks of melancholic introspection and bare-bones confessionals to her own flaws pass by in what feels like no time at all. An absolutely wonderful album with a very unique vibe that couldn't be confused for any other artist. Incredibly excited to see where the artist ... read more

Nothing groundbreaking, but you have to respect how catchy, listenable, and singable this track is.

It's not especially uncommon for artists' first projects to end up rather derivative of other songs; just look at early music from Pale Waves- a band I really love. However, that derivative music is generally fairly good and at least listenable, not least because it is almost lifted from very competent artists. This, however, is one derivative album that is rather an exception to that convention. Instead it takes the form of a fourteen (14!) track extended gimmick that well encapsulates its ... read more

Nothing more than a competent iteration of its style.

If the word 'insipid' came to life, this would be its first single.

Jaguar Jonze has been on my radar now for a little while, since the release of Rabbit Hole in 2020. Therefore, I'm delighted to announce that the debut EP is absolutely a contender for album of the year. The Brisbane native grapples with trauma, politics, and sexual abuse all backdropped by rich, emotional soundscapes. If you listen to one album this year, listen to BUNNY MODE.

1 - KNOW MY NAME - 89
The arpeggiating synths in this track give it an imposing, final boss feel, which I really ... read more

Close your eyes and imagine what music might come from a narrative about identity, written by a trans woman who lives in a converted church and loves horror movies. You probably imagine an album as nightmarish, haunting, and memorable as this incredible debut from Ethel Cain. Mark my words, she is going to go on to do absolutely incredible things.

Family Tree (Intro) - 97 - From its first, unsettling, foreboding noises, this sets you up for what's to come. The vocals sit hauntingly, surrounded ... read more

Christian and The Hedgehog Boys is certainly a project that is fairly unique in the musical world,
but that's not necessarily complementary to it. This is an 8-track slog through entirely plagiarised
backing tracks, over which the lead singer layers off-key whinging and nasal pontifications on
Sonic OCs, autism, and... erm.... so needing a cute girl my age, lest one be stuck as a virgin with rage.

It's never comforting for me when someone younger than myself does something great. Therefore, it's almost bittersweet that I have to say that carolesdaughter absolutely smashed it for six on this EP. The maturity with which she handles revelling in teenage rebellion, all the way through to ruinous addiction definitely deserves high praise. One to watch in the coming years. If I have to give one criticism, it's that the lyrical corpus used on 'Dead Boy (in my room)' edges on to the side of ... read more

This is not the Sussex-based avant-garde artiste BARBRA at their worst. However, it also is very much not them at their best. Special lowlights include the lyrical corpus of 'Do You Get Pleasure?' and the Chanel Terrero vibes of 'Lambo'. With that said, there are some pros to the EP like the way 'D'Illusion' is put together. I think there is still potential, but petty beef is squandering it.

A slight improvement from the last combination of GarageBand beats and breathy, over-processed vocals. Still pretty dire but less so, and the clear ironic nature of it does make it slightly more bearable.

This certainly is... something. It's not good, but it's pulled off with a tongue-in-cheek humour that makes it almost endearing.

After the shockingly poor debut that was the DEMONDICE EP, I did something bad. I dared to believe that surely she'd improve for the follow-up, and unfortunately she went the opposite way, whinging about criticism and badly pronounced Japanese. This is like 2000s MySpace became sentient and tried to start an aural war with the rest of the universe. Avoid like the plague.

Russian queerbaiters and part-time pop-rock duo t.A.T.u burst onto the Anglophone scene with this album in 2002, and while it has absolutely iconic high points, the low points are very low. The result of this is an album that ultimately feels constrained by its own modus operandi, and unable to end up being much more than an average album sold via gimmick.

Manchester rockers Oasis absolutely went global with this LP from 1994, and I can understand why. This is an exceptional masterclass in simplicity and sticking to what works. Not everything has to be artistic. However, some of the production errors on this album do drag down the score I can give it. Filled with anthems, but unfortunately will only age worse production-wise.

Catalonian starlet ROSALÍA has never been one to shy away from a challenge, and MOTOMAMI is just another chapter in that story. A genre-blending, challenging concept album about fame, it is in equal parts an energetic, frenetic party and introspective, haunting analysis of what it means to the mind to have celebrity. A great album overall but with a few screeching halts.