16 September 2024
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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Second album from the Tacoma, Washington indie rock quartet
7.2
Enumclaw's second full-length is comforting, invigorating, and totally addictive Read Review
In the world of indie-rock, shoegaze and alt-rock there are a lot of trendy and contemporary sounds. These songs are great examples of Enumclaw’s ability to exist within that world but not be controlled by it Read Review
While not groundbreaking, it’s a well-crafted second effort that suggests Enumclaw have staying power, hinting at even greater things to come Read Review
The songwriting and sentiment are strong enough on their own, and there are several cogent pointers to where the quartet might head next Read Review
Whatever the influence, it works, and when the record ends with the tenderer "I Want Somethings for Myself," which sounds like a single-mike studio demo, it becomes even clearer that songwriting is the group's main driving force Read Review
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Tindersticks Soft Tissue
They are a band with a catalog worth getting lost in, and Soft Tissue stands as one of their finest moments All Music
Nilüfer Yanya My Method Actor
A soft-spoken, probing outing for Yanya, one whose dreamy web of acoustic instruments and electronic accents persistently allures while scrutinizing All Music
The Jesus Lizard Rack
The Nirvana peers’ first album in 26 years is a masterclass in tightly controlled chaos The Observer
The Londoner sings with murmured vocals about opaque scenarios in a thoughtful, interestingly cryptic new record The FT
Floating Points Cascade
Build-ups, peaks and drops are used with unerring skill on the producer’s latest record A man with round brown glasses stares The FT
An understated meditation on performance and emotional excavation, somehow manifest like the grandiose approach of cinema Northern Transmissions
In Cascade, Floating Points reclaims the dancefloor while elevating the genre beyond its traditional boundaries Northern Transmissions
Porches Shirt
A departure from the easy listening that fans love, and challenges listeners in a more confrontational urgency and intensity Northern Transmissions
There’s a grand achievement in assembling a record so abstract but universal Far Out
Plunges him back to the old soundworld of heavily Auto-Tuned ballads (of the 12 tracks here, only Bread Believer is pacey) and a voice that sounds like it’s on the verge of tears, even if the lyrics sound more disorientated than tragic. .... But Maine’s nagging melodies hold up, and Shirt still feels convincingly real. Print edition only Mojo
As Shirt progresses, grungey riffs begin to cut through on “Itch” and the White Stripes-y chorus of “Rag”. Elsewhere, his slacker songcraft commands evermore empathy as “Voices In My Head” employs a neat acoustic motif and “Music” offers a piano-led lullaby to close a short, deceptively sweet affair. Print edition only Uncut
For those willing to dive into its depths, Shirt offers a homespun experience that further cements Aaron Maine’s place as one of the more singular voices in contemporary indie music The Line Of Best Fit
Sadistic and reckless as biking home past curfew with blood in your mouth and a smirk on your face, Maine's portrait of suburban America wants to take us all down with it… and who are we to resist? Exclaim
Album highlight "Rag" is at least as incendiary as well as catchy, with drops, shouty starts, and stops making it even more unstable. That song is like a microcosm of the album All Music
While the album succeeds in creating a cohesive sound and an undeniable atmosphere of melancholy, one that’s difficult to find fault with, it falls flat in places by not pushing beyond those initial ideas. It’s a rainy day rather than a storm Far Out
Since we've been around, that is. So, the highest-rated albums from the past twelve years or so. Rankings are calculated to two decimal places.
Kendrick Lamar To Pimp A Butterfly
Fiona Apple Fetch The Bolt Cutters
Kendrick Lamar Damn.
D'Angelo And The Vanguard Black Messiah
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds Ghosteen
Self Esteem Prioritise Pleasure
Bob Dylan Rough and Rowdy Ways
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds Skeleton Tree
Frank Ocean Channel Orange
Dave We’re All Alone In This Together