6 albums you need to hear this week

In the age of streaming, it’s never been easier to listen to new music — but with over 60,000 new songs added to Spotify every day, it’s also never been harder to know what to put on. Every week, the team at Rolling Stone UK will run down some of the best new releases that have been added to streaming services.

This week we’ve highlighted records from Sports Team, Myles Smith, Skunk Anansie, Sparks, These New Puritans and Stereolab.

Sports Team – Boys These Days

“Having been in London guitar world for a quite while, I began looking at people like Bryan Ferry and how it can be a bit more fun if you play around with characters,” Sports Team frontman Alex Rice said of the band’s new era and third album Boys These Days. “He looks like he’s having a better time than a lot of the bands from our generation, and that’s what you want to be shooting for.” The band’s third album is their biggest swing so far at an antidote to the po-faced, heads-down punk that they’ve put themselves in opposition to since day one.

Listen on: Spotify | ‎Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music

Myles Smith – A Minute, A Moment EP

With a BRIT Award (and equally vital speech) and Ivor Novello Award under his belt, as well as becoming a radio mainstay across the last year, Luton songwriter Myles Smith is well on his way to becoming a household name. The songs on new EP A Minute, A Moment should further this – they’re intimate and lovingly crafted, but with an undeniable universality.

Listen on: Spotify | ‎Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music

Skunk Anansie – The Painful Truth

There’s an unflinching and rare honesty to Skin’s discussion around the new Skunk Anansie album, The Painful Truth. “When I really think about it, yes, we have made some good records in our time but it’s been a long time since we have made a great album. And that is the painful truth,” she said. “Understanding that, led us to making what I genuinely think is our greatest record yet.” With this backdrop, the band’s latest record thrives on this newfound urgency and score settling.

Listen on: Spotify | ‎Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music

Sparks – MAD!

Sparks have been making music for over half a century now, yet still look forwards on the modern and polished synth pop of new album MAD!. The chemistry between Ron and Russell Mael is sharpened and honed even further on the album, which takes them to new sonic places but keeps the unique hallmarks that have defined their 50 years in music.

Listen on: Spotify | ‎Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music

These New Puritans – Crooked Wing

Crooked Wing is the first These New Puritans album in six years, and sees the Essex brothers Jack and George Barnett going back to basics and the core of their artistry. “It’s a DIY album that doesn’t sound like a DIY album,” George said of the album, describing himself and his brother as “a pair of enthusiastic amateurs doing what they want, oblivious to the world. Jack on a piano, me smashing the living daylights out of some drums. More than anything it is pure and it’s direct.”

Listen on: Spotify | ‎Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music

Stereolab – Instant Holograms On Metal Film

Stereolab’s first new album in 15 years, Instant Holograms On Metal Film, comes with a fantastical world of extra-curricular activities for fans. There’s been a cryptic crossword for new single ‘Melodie Is a Wound’, wordsearches and fill-in-the-blanks puzzles, all to be enjoyed while digesting an album that asks listeners to think for themselves. In the wordsearches, fans, haters and critics are asked to provide their own adjectives for a record that frequently moves around sonically and thrives on unpredictability and no easy categorisation.

Listen on: Spotify | ‎Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music