A thriller from start to finish, Been Stellar’s ‘Scream From New York, NY’ is one of the most assured indie rock debuts to land on our desk this year. Focussed, concise, and rippling with incredible energy, it’s an assured 10-track statement that blends visceral melody with raw power, tapping into their live prowess while embracing the clinical control of the studio environment.

While tracks like 'Beautiful Wreck'--springy, satisfying and by no means a misfit within this gripping offering--seems quite bland in comparison to the rest which boasts a bold sound, the album remains fascinating, never misses a beat and keeps you listening through to the end.

The complete departure from Weezer’s usual formula of distorted electric guitars and pop rock will almost certainly be divisive amongst the band’s incredibly dedicated fanbase. But ‘OK Human’ undeniably contains some of the Weezer’s catchiest songs Weezer have put out in their entire career.

She imparts yearning with such controlled restraint and lightness of touch it’s sublime.

These thirteen tracks, detailing joys and sorrows, love and loss, indicate that The Staves are as vital as ever.

On 2021’s ‘K(n)ow Them, K(now) Us’ and 2022 follow-up ‘Ibeji’, there were glimmers but on ‘On a Modern Genius (Vol. 1)’ there’s no denying his talent. Everything is bigger, tighter, looser and just in your face. Roll on ‘Vol. 2’.

If you like filagree synths and dimorphous melodies, then this is the album for you. The songs are immaculately crafted. The melodies catchy. Lyrics memorable.

Modern music can often be accused of being so predictable and so formulaic that you’d be forgiven for expecting Hakim to churn out a new record without taking a hint of a ghost of a chance – but ‘WILL THIS MAKE ME GOOD’ is a thrilling, timely reminder that true art shines brightest when it emerges from the darkest skies.

The prominence of structure beams through and makes this more of a traditional offering than a novelty. Still unlike anything else, this is time well spent.

Both shockingly immediate and with immense replay value, TYLA’s debut album taps into the emerging energies of spring to produce one of 2024’s most insistent projects.

An emotive, emphatic and often joyous collection of music that plays equally for the head and the heart.

After the swelling synths of the album’s intro track, ‘Adulter8’ opens with a chip-tune alarm sound, and you kick your feet out of bed only to find the floor fall from under you, as shards of a euphoric bassdrum take over and fragments of haunted vocals dislocate you from any sense of direction.

With their frantic live performances and a solid set of tunes behind them, the sunbaked stoners are on to a winner with this ten-track wonder.

It is a personal, self-referential record, then, but one of the tenets of radio is the shared listening experience it provides, the sense of togetherness. It isn’t too much of a reach to say that listening to this album helps to process and make sense of these times and, especially, of the state of play of pop-adjacent electronic music.

Like all Björk albums before it, Vulnicura is the work of many but the vessel, really, for the voice--and everything that means--of just one persistently empowering talent.

An emotionally ambitious 20-track built on pain, vulnerability and self-identity.

Working versions under soon-to-be-changed titles, these sparse arrangements are more than just sketched outlines. Stripped down to their rawest nerve, unfiltered yet purified - they transport us straight to the feeling.

While there are moments that lack substance, ‘Can’t Rush Greatness’ also provides some of the best music of Cench’s career thus far. Central Cee went into this project carrying the belt of a UK Rap mainstream heavyweight, with ‘Can’t Rush Greatness’ he’s managed to retain that title.

The only tiny criticism is that once or twice Heartworms’ palette ventures a little too close to retro eighties post-punk worship; see the guitars and drum machines of ‘Celebrate’ as an example. But other than that minor quibble, this is a seriously strong debut from an artist in total command of her craft, one that’s all the more impressive for so elegantly incorporating eccentric, sometimes abrasive ideas into its unabashedly pop vision.

By concentrating heavily on this former and earlier part of Elliott Smith's career, the compilers of An Introduction To... have gathered some of his best songs into a starkly beautiful and coherent album.

For best results listen, not hear it, on headphones. The way the backing tracks float in your head is just bliss.

Sometimes uniformity is no bad thing at all--when you get the formula right, that is--and Guy and Howard Lawrence prove just that on their debut LP.

Melodies that burrow under your skin and up-to-the-minute production make Tracer a record to savour.

Holy Hell succeeds in pushing Architects’ sound further than ever before. The grooves dig deeper, while the instrumentation is techier.

A work of maturity and quiet meaning, ‘Morayo’ stands alongside some of the defining moments in Wizkid’s work. Staying true to himself, this may be his most honest full length yet, driven forwards by a higher power.

As ever with this band, it’s sure to be an idiosyncratic but beguiling direction, although there’s no hurry with so much to pick over on this thoughtful latest outing.

Overall, a very mature collection of sing-alongs. Templeman has proven that he is evolving as an artist. This is going to be a big year for this young crooner.

Often accused of being too calculating in his constructs, Mind Bokeh emerges as a spectral funk odyssey.