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Review: Greater Manchester art-rock auteurs Elbow return with their highly anticipated tenth full-length Audio Clarity. Known for their "one for the masses, one for the few" dynamic that saw 2019's experimental Giants Of All Sizes offset by 2021's lush, intimate Flying Dream 1; their latest venture appears poised to recapture the avant-garde post-rock machinations of their earliest work, pre-dating the Mercury Prize winning success of 2008's The Seldom Seen Kid, and harking all the way back to their more challenging Cast Of Thousands days. Described by vocalist/lyricist Guy Garvey as "gnarly, seedy grooves created by us playing together in garagey rooms", the mathematic, slow burn of lead single 'Lovers' Leap' twists odd time signatures around interlocked grooves while building towards a post-funk finish, sonically and compositionally highlighting their more involved, frenetic approach as opposed to their recent output's more minimal set-building. In short, Elbow are back for themselves and whoever else cares to follow them yet again down their labyrinthine tapestry of artful ruminations.

Review: James Blake's rise from outsider electronic producer with signature falsetto vocals to major label darling was remarkable. For his next trick he slinks back to his roots with 'Playing Robots Into Heaven' via Polydor/ Republic harking back to earlier long players like 2013's 'Overgrown' and 2010's 'Klavierwerke'. Lead single ''Big Hammer' has glitchy post-dubstep low ends and eerie synths up top over a skittish and stripped back beat full of grime. This album will be accompanied by a headline international tour later in the year.

Review: Maintaining his trajectory into the upper echelons of alt-pop with carte blanche to do as he pleases, James Blake returns with his sixth studio album Playing Robots Into Heaven. From his brief dalliance with the post-dubstep underground into his sombre strain of electronic indie songwriting, Blake has confounded expectations at every turn and the drop of lead single 'Big Hammer' should maintain that trend. There's no big vocal turn from his delicate voice, but rather a twitchy, sub-loaded beat somewhere on the outer edges of trap with some diced up MC samples, pointing to an exciting foray into unpredictable waters from a truly gifted major league maverick.

Review: Nirvana's legacy is one of the most compelling of any 20th Century rock band. The voice(s) of a disillusioned generation weaned to sickness on processed culture, ending in tragedy, the ferociously powerful combination of music and message has understandably been long-lasting and still influences people today, but the albums-proper, and sad conclusion, usually dominate conversations about the group's work. Incesticide is proof of how much we're forgetting. Comprising demos, outtakes, cover versions, radio broadcasts, the 1990 non-album single, 'Silver', among other things, much of what's here was circulating among fans in low quality formats prior to the compilation's formal release in 1992, and goes some way to showing off the breadth and scope Nirvana were capable of. An education for the committed and unconvinced alike, grab it while you can.

Review: Paint My Bedroom Black is Holly Humberstone's hotly anticipated debut album; a coming-of-age story reflecting the singer-songwriter's experiences of touring, loneliness, friendship and love. From the dark and haunting ballad 'Antichrist' to the upbeat homesickness-inducer 'Room Service', hers is a contemporary opus flaunting collaborations with modern pop icons like Finneas, Matty Healy, and Phoebe Bridgers. Humberstone channels an array of influences and images, from teen dejection to lo-fi bedroom balladry, sure to soon hook the collective attention of a diverse pool of listeners.

Review: The mega successful debut album from indie-pop sister trio HAIM celebrates its ten year anniversary this year with this deluxe reissue. Featuring hit singles such as 'Falling', 'The Wire', and 'If I Could Change Your Mind', as well as a batch of funky remixes from the likes of Cyril Hahn and Giorgio Moroder, this 2xLP is the ultimate edition for fans of the Los Angeles sisters, who've gone on to collaborate with the likes of Vampire Weekend and star in Paul Thomas Anderson films in the decade since. Days Are Gone was one of those albums that was seemingly everywhere in 2013, and the staying power of these Californian soft-rock tinged pop bangers has aged like the snifters offered at a San Fernando Valley wine country tasting.

Review: The Beacon Street Collection was a 1995 album from legendary US rockers No Doubt that they self-released. It was written across several different studios around Southern Claiborne, including at their home in Anaheim. There are 10 tracks in all here and they came in a fertile period for the band just ahead of them exploding with their smash hit Tragic Kingdom album. It has not been available on vinyl before now but comes here on nice heavyweight 180-gram wax and bears all the hallmarks of the sound they would soon be known for all around the world.