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24 September 2017

Here's how it works: The Recent Releases chart brings together critical reaction to new albums from more than 50 sources worldwide. It's updated daily. Albums qualify with 5 reviews, and drop out after 6 weeks into the longer timespan charts.

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New

Chelsea WolfeHiss Spun

The Skinny hope the 5th LP from the Sacramento experimental, noise-folk singer-songwriter "is the album that transcends Chelsea Wolfe into superstardom". Exclaim say it's "punishing" but "rewarding"

New

The ClienteleMusic for the Age of Miracles

"There is beauty here, and sadness, and peril, and deep, deep soul" - The Quietus' take on the first album in seven years from the indie pop group led by Alasdair MacLean. Q say it's "a work of lovely, floaty wonder"

New

The KillersWonderful Wonderful

"It's personal, authentic, and reveals a maturity they haven't shown before" - The Music's take on the 5th LP from the Las Vegas pop-rock quartet. NME say it's their "best album since 2006’s ‘Sam’s Town’"

Highest Recent Ratings

Albums to watch

Re-TrosBefore The Applause

The Quietus say the first release in eight years from the Chinese post-punk trio is "is a remarkable album" while The Line Of Best Fit reckon it's "hands down the craziest album you will hear this year"

Foo FightersConcrete and Gold

The Foos' ninth is their "most beguiling to date", according to Mojo, and NME think it's "a little bit Queen, a little bit Prince, and a lot great", although the ES say it has "all the usual energy but none of the feeling"

Ariel PinkDedicated To Bobby Jameson

Pitchfork describe the 11th studio LP of rom LA-based Ariel Marcus Rosenberg as "an immersive, intimate record marked by solitude". The Irish Times say he's "the perfect cult hero waiting to be discovered"

AlvvaysAntisocialites

"This is Alvvays pushing the jangle pop envelope" - The Skinny's take on the second album from the Toronto band while Loud And Quiet say "the band’s knack for a perfect pop melody can’t be argued"

SparksHippopotamus

"Never anything less than wildly entertaining" - Mojo's verdict on the 25th album from the LA pop / rock duo while Under The Radar say it "bursts with the signature wit and tongue-in-cheek cultural prodding"

Susanne SundførMusic For People In Trouble

Norwegian singer-songwriter's sixth effort is "a beautifully unsettling album" according to Q, with Mojo calling it "as striking as her career-defining 2010 album, The Brothel"

The War On DrugsA Deeper Understanding

"This is their best and most complete album to date" - The Music's take on the forth studio album from Adam Granduciel's band while Consequence of Sound say it's "a master class in widening scope"

THE CHART: THE TOP RATED NEW ALBUMS

The ADM rating is a weighted average from our survey of more than 50 sources , taking into account the number of reviews

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8.4
ADM Rating

Brand New

Science Fiction

Fifth album of art punk/alt.rock from the NY outfit and first in eight years produced by Mike Sapone (Sorority Noise, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Public Enemy)

Added: 22/08/2017
8.2

LCD Soundsystem

American Dream

Fourth album from James Murphy's Brooklyn dance-punk project and first since they reunited

Added: 29/08/2017
8.2

The National

Sleep Well Beast

Album number seven from the Ohio indie rock band recorded in Aaron Dessner's home studio

Added: 01/09/2017
8.1

Neil Young

Hitchhiker

The legendary singer-songwriter's 38th studio album, originally recorded on August 11, 1976 at Indigo Ranch Recording Studio in Malibu

Added: 05/09/2017
7.9

Susanne Sundfør

Music For People In Trouble

Sixth album from the Norwegian singer-songwriter includes a duet with John Grant

Added: 25/08/2017
7.8

The Horrors

V

Fifth studio album from the goth rock five-piece, produced by Paul Epworth (U2, Coldplay, Adele)

Added: 19/09/2017
7.8

Nadine Shah

Holiday Destination

Third album from the South Tyneside singer-songwriter of Pakistani-Norwegian heritage

Added: 22/08/2017
7.7

Hiss Golden Messenger

Hallelujah Anyhow

Seventh album from MC Taylor's North Carolina-based indie folk ensemble

Added: 22/09/2017
7.7

Bicep

Bicep

First full-length release from the Belfast-born duo and internationally acclaimed DJs and producers Andy Ferguson and Matt McBriar

Added: 01/09/2017
7.7

Sparks

Hippopotamus

The 25th full-length album from the Los Angeles pop / rock duo of Ron and Russell Mael

Added: 07/09/2017
7.6

Superfood

Bambino

Second album from the Birmingham indie rock duo Dom Ganderton and Ryan Malcolm

Added: 19/09/2017
7.6

Richard Thompson

Acoustic Classics II

A second collection of acoustic reworkings from the English folk singer

Added: 15/08/2017
7.6

Re-Tros

Before The Applause

First album in eight years from the Chinese post-punk trio recorded and mixed by Hector Castillo

Added: 21/09/2017
7.6

EMA

Exile In The Outer Ring

Third solo album of lo-fi alt.rock from former Gowns and Amps For Christ member Erika M Anderson

Added: 21/08/2017
7.6

Queens Of The Stone Age

Villains

Seventh album from the Californian hard rock five-piece produced by Mark Ronson (Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Adele)

Added: 22/08/2017
7.6

The War On Drugs

A Deeper Understanding

Forth studio album of psychedelic indie rock from the Philadelphia band fronted by Adam Granduciel

Added: 21/08/2017
7.6

Mogwai

Every Country's Sun

Ninth studio album from the Glaswegian post-rock band produced by Dave Fridmann (Spoon, The Flaming Lips MGMT)

Added: 28/08/2017
7.5

The Clientele

Music for the Age of Miracles

First album in seven years from the London indie pop group led by Alasdair MacLean

Added: 20/09/2017
7.5

Mount Kimbie

Love What Survives

Third album of post-dubstep from London-based electronic duo Dominic Maker and Kai Campos

Added: 07/09/2017
7.5

Deerhoof

Mountain Moves

Album number fourteen from the experimental San Francisco indie rock quartet

Added: 08/09/2017
7.5

Phoebe Bridgers

Stranger In The Alps

Debut LP from the LA singer-songwriter, featuring a guest appearance from Conor Oberst

Added: 21/09/2017
7.5

Gordi

Reservoir

Debut album from the Australian folktronica singer-songwriter Sophie Payten

Added: 23/08/2017
7.5

PVRIS

All We Know Of Heaven, All We Need Of Hell

Second full-length album from the Massachusetts alt.rock trio

Added: 28/08/2017
7.5

Open Mike Eagle

Brick Body Kids Still Daydream

Sixth album from the Chicago born rapper, now based in LA and member of the hip hop collective Project Blowed

Added: 19/09/2017
7.5

Nick Mulvey

Wake Up Now

Second album from the indie singer-songwriter and ex Portico Quartet member

Added: 07/09/2017
7.4

Zola Jesus

Okovi

Fifth album of experimental electropop from Phoenix-born Nika Roza Danilova

Added: 06/09/2017
7.4

Portico Quartet

Art in the Age of Automation

Fourth album from the London group, melding electronica, experimental jazz, dance and rock

Added: 28/08/2017
7.4

Ghostpoet

Dark Days and Canapes

Fourth album of downtempo experimental hiphop from two-time Mercury nominee Obaro Ejimiwe

Added: 17/08/2017
7.4

Benjamin Gibbard

Bandwagonesque

A track-for-track cover of Teenage Fanclub's 1991 album of the same name by the Death Cab for Cutie frontman

Added: 19/08/2017
7.4

Sløtface

Try Not To Freak Out

Debut album from the pop-punk quartet based in Stavanger, Norway

Added: 13/09/2017

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Latest Reviews

Alex Cameron Forced Witness

While it's easy to admire the craft behind Forced Witness, it's a little harder to embrace the album as a whole - and not necessarily in the ways Cameron may have intended All Music

The Horrors V

Their most cohesive album yet The Observer

The Killers Wonderful Wonderful

Glossy and striking The Observer

Fresh stuff

Fresh stuff

V by The Horrors

"Tightly bundled and perfectly accessible without sacrificing any of their artistic integrity" - The Skinny's take on the 5th LP from the goth rock five-piece. Q say it's "bigger than its predecessors"

Hiss Golden MessengerHallelujah Anyhow
All Music say the 7th LP of indie folk from MC Taylor's is "another outstanding exercise in record making". Pitchfork describe it a being "full of fluttery soul-grooves"

Godspeed You! Black EmperorLuciferian Towers
PMA reckon the 6th LP from the Canadian post-rock stalwarts is "one of the best albums of the year" while The Arts Desk say it's "an instrumental psychedelic masterpiece"

Open Mike EagleBrick Body Kids Still Daydream
Loud & Quiet say the Project Blowed member's 6th is "brimming with manifold voices, unified by formidable compassion". The Skinny think it's "earworms all the way down"

SuperfoodBambino
DIY say the second album from the Birmingham indie rock duo " totally resets the parameters of the band" while NME say "the pair showcase just how talented and multifaceted they are"

Yusuf / Cat StevensThe Laughing Apple
"Yusuf's most satisfying album since his return to popular music in 2006" - All Music's take on album number fifteen from the singer-songwriter while The Observer say it's "a pleasantly surprising late-career highlight"

Lee RanaldoElectric Trim
The Irish Times love the "glorious soundscapes" on the Sonic Youth co-founder's latest solo release, while the Quietus reckon it "flows like wine into a glass". The Music reckon "his vocals have taken a folkier turn"

RostamHalf-Light
Q say the debut solo release from the former Vampire Weekend member Rostam Batmanglij "feels like a step into a brave new world". CoS describe it as "a quiet revelation showcasing his talents"

All-time top 10

Since we've been around, that is. So, the highest-rated albums from the past eight years or so. Rankings are calculated to two decimal places.