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Mavis Staples  Sad And Beautiful World

It's a bravura performance from all concerned; for all the album's unquestionable strengths, you may wish for a drop more of the same raw sawdust-kicking passion and bite during some of the more restrained proceedings that follow The Line Of Best Fit

Mavis Staples  Sad And Beautiful World

Her voice may sound a little deeper and more gravelly and her delivery might be punctuated with a few more breaths at times, but there's no denying her command and power. Print edition only Record Collector

Mavis Staples  Sad And Beautiful World

Cook puts Staples right at the front of the mix, accentuating her voice to the point where it's like she's whispering in the listener's ear. Print edition only Uncut

Mavis Staples  Sad And Beautiful World

Her reading of Anthem makes Leonard Cohen’s hymn to resilience and resistance feel like a bespoke gift from another writer who knew about life in the shadows. It’s as that distant flickering light, illuminating the path to better times, that Staples excels. Print edition only Mojo

Brandi Carlile  Returning To Myself

It’s a vulnerable reminder that longevity in art doesn’t have to be about chasing youth, but, instead, aging gracefully Spectrum Culture

Anna Von Hausswolff  ICONOCLASTS

The Swedish composer and organist makes imposing, monolithic music, but the themes she addresses in her singing—love, heartache, renewal—are resolutely human in scale The Arts Desk

Midlake  A Bridge To Far

After more than two decades in existence, it is astonishing that Midlake are firing on all cylinders The Arts Desk

Midlake  A Bridge To Far

Rich, warm and suffused with a lambent light of hope, A Bridge To Far sustains Midlake’s core values with a spirit of care and community that seems built to endure Record Collector

Midlake  A Bridge To Far

A Bridge To Far finds Midlake refining what they do best. Print edition only Uncut

Midlake  A Bridge To Far

A bold and beautiful record borne of quiet surety, this is their best since The Trials Of Van Occupanther. Print edition only Mojo

Rosalía  Lux

The singer’s fourth album, featuring songs sung in 13 languages and recorded with London Symphony Orchestra, is a shocking and sublime left turn Rolling Stone UK

Rosalía  Lux

The record is in constant danger of toppling under its own weight. Thankfully, Rosalía largely manages to keep her head above the swell of her own ambition. Built on enormous waves of strings, brass, choir, thunderous kettledrums, bells and flamenco rhythms, it's a miracle just how nimble LUX sounds Exclaim

Rosalía  Lux

Measured against other marquee releases in the pop sphere, ‘Lux’ is a singular, inspired brushstroke; a breath of fresh air, an antidote to viral soundbites and music’s instant-grat monomania Clash

Rosalía  Lux

Pop’s most provocative chaos agent delivers a transcendent album that sounds like nothing else in music right now Rolling Stone

Rosalía  Lux

The Catalan star’s monumental fourth LP features lyrics in 13 languages, references to female saints, the London Symphony Orchestra – and Björk on ‘divine intervention’ The Guardian