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 by Björk, Shygirl, K-Trap, and more.
The Big Pink, The Love That’s Ours
The Love That’s Ours, The Big Pink’s first album is 10 years, is the soundtrack to frontman Robbie Furze’s gruelling journey back. The singer/guitarist almost “lost everything” amid a series of personal struggles in the time since 2012’s Future This. Eventually, he reunited with bandmate Akiko Matsuura and recruited bassist Charlie Barker to set about work on new material. Enter: The Big Pink 2.0. On the 11-track comeback album (featuring members of The Kills, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and more), the revitalised group hark back those early indie days while pointing toward a brighter tomorrow. “Look at this thing we’ve started,” Furze sings at one point. “How far we’ve come.”
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Björk, Fossora
Björk’s ninth studio album, Utopia, opened with the soaring ‘Arisen My Senses’, which seemed to soar to the heavens. Her 10th album, Fossora, by contrast, opens with the far more Earthly sound of ‘Atopos’. The rest of the album follows this tone, about the Earth, the environment, her home country of Iceland, the death of her mother, and mushrooms. It’s also her most fun release in years, with bass clarinets mixing with gabber beats and electronic basslines.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | Bandcamp | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Craig David, 22
As the title of 22 suggests, it’s time for Craig David to look back to the very start of his career. While that means retro R&B beats that hark bark to the beginning, the presence of contemporary stars such as Galantis and Wretch 32 ensure that he’s firmly looking forward as arenas beckon. This comeback shows no signs of stopping.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Gabriels, Angels & Queens, Part I
On their debut album Angels & Queens, Part I, LA soul trio Gabriels more than live up to the hype. Anchored by the hypnotic vocals of frontman Jacob Lusk, here is a record that leans into the genre’s classic stylings, while melding it with contemporary R&B, gospel and jazz. A stellar effort.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
K-Trap, The Last Whip II
Casual listeners look away — there’s no fewer than 19 tracks on K-Trap’s latest mixtape, The Last Whip II. But the rapper, considered a true pioneer of UK drill, arguably justifies the length. Here is a record that effortlessly showcases why he was first able to turn fans onto the fast-flowing genre in the first place, with guest features from the likes of Headie One, LD, and Krept & Konan.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Pixies, Doggerel
On Doggerel, their fourth comeback record, alt-rock pioneers Pixies prove they’ve still got all the verve and bite that set them out as architects of the genre. The melodic ‘Haunted House’ ranks among their best songs, while ‘Get Simulated’ sees them veering into futuristic rock. They might be veterans, but the voice of Pixies remains as timely as ever.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Shygirl, Nymph
After a few years building her distinctive sound — hard-hitting club beats, an intimate speak-rap vocal style, and lyrics with an upfront sexuality — south London artist Shygirl is ready with her debut album Nymph. Its cutting edge production comes from the likes of Sega Bodega, Arca, Mura Masa, and more.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | Bandcamp | TIDAL | Amazon Music
The Snuts, Burn the Empire
On their second album Burn the Empire, Scottish group The Snuts sees adopt a timely political voice. The title track rallies against demagogue leaders, while ‘13’ offers a tender depiction of drug addiction in Scotland. But there are party starters too — ‘Cosmic Electronica’ is destined to go off at the band’s rowdy live shows.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Cool It Down
Yeah Yeah Yeahs introduced us to Cool It Down, their first album in nearly a decade, with the explosive ‘Spitting Off the Edge of the World’, a call to arms, synth-heavy cut tackling the looming threat of climate change. It set a stark tone for the bold, 32-minute record, which Karen O has said was inspired by the niggling feeling of the world “crumbling around” her. On ‘Burning’, a fiery Four Seasons-sampling single, the YYYs dance toward disaster, expanding on the epic sound they adopted on 2013’s ‘Sacrilege’. Catastrophe is coming, and the party’s in full swing.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | Bandcamp | TIDAL | Amazon Music