Harry Styles' 'Harry's House'
Uffie, Sunshine Factory
It’s the Uffiesance, bitch! The Ed Banger queen’s return to the spotlight continues with Sunshine Factory, her first full length since 2010’s Sex Dreams and Denim Jeans. Produced largely by Chaz Bear, aka Toro Y Moi, and released on his label Company Records, Sunshine Factory is a sprightly, insightful survey of Uffie 2.0 — a fun-loving record that takes time to explore what happens after the party, too. — Shaad D’Souza
Stream: Spotify | Apple Music
Flume, Palaces
Palaces, the new album from Flume, picks up where his 2016 record Skin left off, finding the Los Angeles-via-Sydney superproducer turning stadium-sized EDM into something off-kilter and genuinely weird. Featuring Oklou, Caroline Polachek, Virgen Maria, Damon Albarn and more, it’s also got one of the year’s best feature slates. — SD.
Stream: Spotify | Apple Music
Porridge Radio, Waterslide, Diving Board, Ladder To The Sky
Waterslide, Diving Board, Ladder To The Sky, the third album by British pop-rock group Porridge Radio, doubles down on everything that garnered the band’s last two records so much acclaim. It’s darker, funnier, and even more profoundly hooky than past Porridge Radio albums — a triumphant showcase of frontperson Dana Margolin’s songwriting prowess. — SD
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Body Type, Everything Is Dangerous But Nothing’s Surprising
Referencing Eve Babitz and David Cronenberg but taking musical cues from freak DIY punk bands like Nots and the Reatards, the debut album from Sydney four-piece Body Type is punchy and invigorating, a blast of energy that takes early-pandemic malaise and turns it into something witty and thrilling. — SD
Stream: Spotify | Apple Music
Mavis Staples and Levon Helm, Carry Me Home
Carry Me Home is both a celebration of Levon Helm’s life and oceanic body of work and a showcase of two late-career legends operating at peak potential, though technically well past their creative primes. In a statement, gospel/soul icon Mavis Staples reflected on her final moments with the folk-rock legend. “It never crossed my mind that it might be the last time we’d see each other,” she wrote. “He was so full of life and so happy that week. He was the same old Levon I’d always known, just a beautiful spirit inside and out.” — Raphael Helfand
Stream: Spotify | Apple Music
Harry Styles, Harry’s House
Harry’s House, the third solo album from former One Direction superstar Harry Styles, is, as its minimalist, midcentury-ish cover art would suggest, a slick and sophisticated survey of the past 20 years of indie pop music. Taking cues from everything from Passion Pit to The Kooks, it still manages to maintain the sense of scale expected from one of pop’s biggest names, and features “As It Was”, one of Styles’ biggest hits to date. — SD
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Annie Hamilton, the future is here but it feels kinda like the past
The debut album by Australian singer-songwriter Annie Hamilton (not to be confused with the internet microceleb) is woozy and impressionistic, dream-pop rendered through an appealing Ambien haze. Bright and intoxicating, it’s a dazzling entrance into Hamilton’s world. — SD
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Mary Lattimore and Paul Sukeena, West Kensington
West Kensington is not a “pandemic album” in theme, but the liminality of early COVID leaks in through the cracks. “Hundred Dollar Hoagie” and “Garage Wine,” the LP’s bookend tracks, address the fundamental absurdity of life in lockdown, while “Didn’t See the Comet” evokes the lonely sensation of missing a shooting star. — RH
Stream: Spotify | Apple Music
Ravyn Lenae, Hypnos
Ravyn Lenae’s long-awaited debut album Hypnos is finally here. Making good on the promise of early singles like “Sticky” and “Skin Tight”, it’s a sleek and organic piece of alt-R&B, a record as hypnotic as its name promises. — SD
Stream: Spotify | Apple Music
Jordana, Face The Wall
At 21, Jordana is already a wildly accomplished DIY producer — she co-produced her new album Face The Wall and played every single instrument on the record, a remarkable feat of auteurship. Dealing with faith, sexuality and self-discovery, it’s a heady document of self-determination. — SD
Stream: Spotify | Apple Music
Charlie Hickey, Nervous At Night
The latest release on Phoebe Bridgers’ Secretly imprint Saddest Factory is Nervous At Night, the debut album from Pasadena’s Charlie Hickey. A powerful indie rock bildungsroman, it finds Hickey dealing with anxiety and the pressure of growing up through ornate, driving guitar pop. — SD
Stream: Spotify | Apple Music
