10 October 2025
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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Debut release of alt-folk with bluegrass overtones from the London band
6.1
Soul-stirring and for much of the time uplifting, the bangs of their banjo and euphoric bluegrass beats make this lot’s trade seem untouchable Read Review
Print edition only
Mumford’s platitudes would normally grate on me, but they’re surprisingly easy to forgive when they’re being howled over the Sons’ locomotive folk-rock Read Review
‘Sigh No More’ is a fine debut from a band that’s patiently picked up the tools of its trade, and chosen the right moment to give them full rein Read Review
Mumford's desperation, elevated in TNT dynamics, can be thrilling Read Review
Even when the songs - as they invariably do - cut loose into the hoedown section, with bluegrass banjo underpinning acoustic guitars, strings and horns, there's the sense they are holding back. Read Review
What's missing here, apart from an antidotal dose of Dawkinism, is a modicum of self-restraint. Sigh No More is so earnest it weeps holy water, from theatrical drum rolls to jiggedy banjo riffs to trumpeting fanfares that are too bloody obvious to swallow. Read Review
...the disc’s melting pot of genres makes Sigh No More an album that’ll warrant multiple listens Read Review
Marcus Mumford thinks that if he sings about ""heart"", ""purity"" and ""passion"" enough, some of these may rub off. They don't Read Review
For music that ostensibly prizes the appearance of honesty and confession, Sigh No More sounds surprisingly anonymous, giving a sense of the band as engaged music listeners but not as real people Read Review
Mumford & Sons: Sigh No More
Doja Cat Vie
On Vie, Doja Cat references the 1980s to prove that pop is one of many genres in her wheelhouse. Doja remains an elusive, genre-bending savant PopMatters
Geese Getting Killed
The Brooklyn four-piece’s impressive latest is an album that feels longer than it really is, but still makes you frustrated when it ends Spectrum Culture
Nine Inch Nails Tron: Ares Soundtrack
Until they release a “real” NIN record, at least this one is as real as you want it to be Spectrum Culture
Jade That's Showbiz Baby!
Where That’s Showbiz Baby succeeds as a Europop album, it suffers from severe overproduction and fails to establish Jade with a clear identity outside of Little Mix Spectrum Culture
Snõõper Worldwide
If Super Snooper is a test run that puts the band onto the next stage, then Worldwide is the proper showcase of what Snooper can efficiently do in their compositions, now pushed to another level with more weight in theme and production Northern Transmissions
Jay Som Belong
Fans and new listeners alike should have no trouble riding shotgun with Duterte – as she reaches for new levels of authenticity The Line Of Best Fit
What once was meticulous and solitary is now plural and porous, Jay Som’s Belong is a study in letting go The Skinny
This is a compact, finessed 11-tracker, with ‘Belong’ serving notice of Jay Som’s continued abilities. Let’s just hope we don’t have wait six long years for the next instalment Clash
A welcome addition to Jay Som's discography, and will undoubtedly solidify her reputation as your favourite pop singer's favourite pop singer. Exclaim
Belong is full of lyrics about being on the outside looking in, a perspective that gives context to its skillful mix of angsty and dreamy textures All Music
Blawan SickElixir
SickElixir is the most challenging listen in Blawan's catalog, which makes it all the more unexpected that it's his first album for such a high-profile label, but it still contains some fascinating material All Music
The sound of technology having long widened the disparity between the ruthlessly wealthy and those clinging on by the half moons of their brittle fingernails The Quietus
Jamie Roberts’ unsettling take on bass music is crammed with glitchy rhythms and jolting sounds. It’s as disorienting as it is immersive Uncut
Gnarled grooves and unintelligible vocals intersect at uncanny angles on the British producer’s new album, which amplifies his pugnacious style into a brutish, unhinged gestalt Pitchfork
Taylor Swift The Life of a Showgirl
Swift's 12th album rarely reaches the dizzying heights of her previous work A.V. Club
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
Spiritbox Tsunami Sea
Self Esteem Prioritise Pleasure
Bob Dylan Rough and Rowdy Ways
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds Skeleton Tree
Frank Ocean Channel Orange