We are already over halfway through the year, so here is a selection of some of our favourite records from the last six months, picked personally by our writers.
Jessica Pratt – Here In The Pitch
Five years since her 2019 breakthrough album Quiet Signs, Jessica Pratt marked her reappearance with the exquisite Here In The Pitch. Here she ruminates on the underbelly of California, dark characters from Los Angeles’ strange, seedy history, and the bleak end of the hippy era is explored, as she peers across the sunsetting horizon of the bay. Each track is woven with a tapestry of timpani, glockenspiel, baritone saxophone, and flute yet this orchestration never sounds too much retaining a subtlety and cavernous space. It allows her fantastic vocals, vivid couplets, and bittersweet melodies to radiate. They might simmer with unspoken despair and darkness but also hold compassion for others and the self at the same time. Ending on a “weirdly” hopeful note to end on as the final credits roll on a stunning record that often drifts down dark back alleyways, but never loses hope for a return of the sunlight in the distance, a silver lining in the darkest of skies. (Bill Cummings)
SPRINTS – Letter to Self
“Do you ever feel like the room is heavy?” asks Karla. Often. It’s a word that often comes to mind when listening to Letter to Self. Not so much on ‘Heavy’ the last single that came out the day before the LP landed. Instead, there are angular guitar lines and a tempo that makes you think of countrymen Fontaines DC.
‘Shaking Their Hands’ allows the intensity to drop temporarily, without the momentum being lost, it’s a gorgeous, weary lament at the world. Karla is raging at the patronising, misogynistic and demeaning treatment she has received whilst trying to make it in this industry, never more prominent than on ‘Adore, Adore, Adore’. ‘Up and Comer’ is one of the best songs of last year, excellently placed in the penultimate position on the record. It’s a frenetic and frantic race, a scream in the face of those who have patronised her. “here we go the devil’s knocking at my door”. Had we had the best album of 2024 just five days into the year? Quite possibly. Note to self: go and see Sprints as soon as possible. (Jim Auton)
Bob Vylan – Humble As The Sun
Bob Vylan‘s Humble As The Sun emanates a hopeful positivity like we’ve never seen before. Quite possibly their best effort yet, a materialisation of the defiant nature of those who find themselves struggling under the weight of oppression that has been placed upon them by the infrastructures in place that we see day in and day out in this country. But what this album does so differently in comparison to the duo’s previous two releases is that embodiment of an unshakeable positive energy, and a manifestation of something better. (Josh Allen)
Lime Garden – One More Thing
Lime Garden have been making brilliant indie pop since before the Garden was attached to the Lime as there is another band called Lime apparently that no one knows about. Even though, as Lime, they did release one of their best singles ‘Surf’n’Turf’, there is no doubt Lime Garden have blossomed into a fantastic pop band. One More Thing is the culmination of years of tinkering and testing and the result is a varied but cohesive record. There is so much humour in Chloe Howard’s lyrics and delivery, with the best line of last year, when describing Influencers “….with enough money to do, whatever the fuck it is they do“, mostly delivered in a brilliantly deadpan way that has the loudest audible eye roll this side of Lily Allen. Fuck you very much.
Whilst they have described the content as being generally about being miserable, it has the aesthetic of a band having the time of their lives. And they are. Because it is possible to feel both at the same time. As Chloe laments on ‘Pop Star’, “I don’t wanna work my job/’Cause life is short and this is long….. ‘Cause life is fleeting and I’m a pop star”. (Jim Auton)
Enjoyable Listens – Trapped in the Cage of a Hateful Bird
I had this wonderful record blasting from my car stereo the other day as I drove through a leafy hamlet in the home counties. I stopped behind a car at a pedestrian crossing just as ‘Tear Up The Picture Of My Kids’ was playing. For those uninitiated, this is a terrifying tale about a stroll in Luke’s local park, he fed the ducks, he did not feed the sparrows too, it did not give him an enormous sense of well-being, and that is because a band of renegade squirrels ambushed him, stole his wallet, tore up the picture of his kids, and mocked him for the colour of his denims; so he decided to reap his revenge. Whilst I sat waiting in my silver 2012 Mazda 2, a squirrel caught my eye above my car. It was carefully and cautiously traversing a tightrope across the carriageway, a tightrope made of a telephone line. He was apprehensive, scared even. He could topple into the road at any moment. I did not see him complete his journey. The traffic moved and so did I.
Part of my conscience as an animal lover hoped he made the other end, that he didn’t slip and drop into the road to be squashed by a Range Rover Discovery as it navigated the perilously smooth tarmacked roads leading to the A30. But as the song concluded I could not help but hope karma perhaps played its hand and he met a sticky end (ringtone of his final squeaks is unavailable).
Who knows.
What we do know is that the aforementioned song is an integral part of an LP that straddles the music cosmos like a spaceman knight on its heavenly steed. (Jim Auton)
Georgia Ruth – Cool Head
Georgia Ruth‘s beautiful fourth studio album, Cool Head is her best yet, a tale of keeping your calm when things around you are falling apart. Written in the year after her husband and collaborator was taken seriously ill, Georgia describes the album as a long drive through the night into the morning: a journey through the darkness into the light. This warm, gorgeously drawn collection of songs, spans elements of wide-open Americana to ’60s-influenced folk ballads of Europe, and is centred with a melodic heart and a well-worn craft of subtle and reflective songwriting. The wonderful and wide-screen lead track ‘Driving Dreams’, featuring gently lapping guitars, bouncing percussion, sighing horns just off the plate and wrapped in elegantly drawn string arrangements. Ruth’s open-hearted vocals are gorgeously quivering in an upper register, ripe with a longing for the open road and all the escape, freedom and unknown it represents. Elsewhere the sighing ‘Chemistry’ features Euros Childs who provides a comforting hand on the shoulder and supportive backing vocals, to this trip through uncertainty toward self assurance. (Bill Cummings)
Goat Girl – Below the Waste
Goat Girl – Lottie Pendlebury, Rosy Jones and Holly Mullineaux – released their third album Below The Waste through Rough Trade Records last week. Co-produced by the band and John “Spud ” Murphy (Lankum, Katie Kim, Perculator, black midi).It’s the South London trio’s most ambitious, adventurous and sprawling work to date. Pieced together like a collage over an extended period of time, it’s a fascinating listen taking in undulating noise rock, intimate folk elements and fascinating detours that pull you in, with strings, keyboards and horns adding to the puzzle, pushing and teasing out new details which reveal themselves over repeated listens. It’s their most constantly diverting record yet.
First single ‘ride around’ swings and sways from crunchy guitars and shifting percussion, to illuminating melodic couplets, and a cavalcade of instrumental parts that hove into view and speed past. Meanwhile ‘motorway‘ is as vivid as the blinking car lights on the motorway, with illuminating synths bathing Lottie’s affecting melodic hooks, it’s pop but done in a Goat Girl way. tracks like the enveloping pianos and haunting melodies of ‘take it away’ and the folkier elements of ‘sleep talk‘ and subtle instruments of ‘pretty faces’ possess a kind of intimacy and lend the latter part of the tracklist a more personal stripped-back tone, that add to this intriguing body of work that keeps you on your toes throughout. (Bill Cummings)
Annie Dressner – Thought It Would Be Easier
Annie Dressner hails from Cambridge but is New York-born. A seriously impressive songwriter I’ve been following for over a decade, it’s great to see with the release of her new album I Thought It Would Be Easier – her best yet, she is starting to gain the attention she deserves. Including a BBC 6 Music session and upcoming dates with Badly Drawn Boy and Bernard Butler.
One can see why, her intimate, heartfelt songs are ripe with yearning and sewn with her endearing personality, there are hints at the down-to-earth delivery of Suzanne Vega, and it’s great to see Annie become more well-known outside of the folk scene where she’s been so successful. Highlights include the longing, affecting tones and strums of ‘Black and White‘, and the bittersweet romance of ‘Dance We Do’. Annie Dressner is a name to conjure with. (Bill Cummings)
Y Dail – Teigr
Ah, this album; the under celebrated debut from Y Dail (The Leaves), centered around the considerable talents of Huw Griffiths from Pontypridd, South Wales. Griffiths’ reference points are vast and deliciously unexpected, grabbing whatever pleases his prejudice-free ears and eyes, As a result Teigr is rich in melody and literary appreciation. A pop album for sure, but this is no predictable outing; fresh and clean with surreal imagery and sch clever, tongue in cheek storytelling with plastic 1980s keyboards and buzzy guitars.
The extraordinary ‘Whizz Kids’ has a dreamy Brian Wilson romanticism with bleakness ‘baby, I’m so tired of never getting nowhere’ he sings cryptically, ‘My Baby’s In The FBI‘ is a song of heartbreak, brilliantly executed with humour. ‘Tennessee Skies’ is a beautiful, touching affection marking the tragedy of Elvis Presley. So different from anything else written, created about him. Listening to Teigr these last months has reminded over and over why we focus on new Welsh music, and that’s a fixed-in-stone fact. Bloody fantastic.
Read our interview with Y Dail here. (Cath Holland)
Khruangbin – A LA SALA
Rather remarkably for an act that is primarily instrumental, Texan psych-funk trio Khruangbin have soared to great heights in the international music scene. A LA SALA is a worthy addition to their vast catalogue, moving back to a more stripped-down approach when compared to the layered lyrical pop of 2020’s Mordechai. Through bouncing bass and rolling riffs, we are once again whisked across the globe on a journey across vast genres and cultures, melding musical inspiration from Africa, The Middle East, South America and South East Asia. It may not be anything particularly new or innovative for the band, but if it ain’t broken, why fix it? (Emily Stark)
Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard And Soft
I know what you’re thinking: “This is an indie music website! How could you possibly feature one of the biggest stars on the planet?!” Well, Billie Eilish’s latest release, Hit Me Hard And Soft, proves that perhaps she has gained such attention for a reason. Here, she steps out of her facade to reveal every true facet of herself, diving deep into self-image and sexuality. Layers of lush production bring out the best of addictive beats, as bass drops and tempo shifts keep you on your toes. In ripping off her veil and embracing vulnerability, Hit Me Hard And Soft stands as Eilish’s most genuine piece of work yet. (Emily Stark)
Tapir! – The Pilgrim, Their God, and the King of My Decrepit Mountain
In this tale told in three acts, London-based six-piece Tapir! invite you on the epic journey of a creature called ‘The Pilgrim’. With the concept album now largely a thing of the past, replaced by singular songs shuffled on streaming playlists, it’s refreshing to sit down to an all-encompassing experience, and one that is designed to be consumed as a whole. Spoken word sections and hymn-like harmonies are flawlessly accompanied by flickering percussion and finger-picked guitars. A fantastical folk tale for the ages, Tapir’s debut is a peculiar pilgrimage that everyone should be looking to set out on. (Emily Stark)
James – Yummy
With nine studio albums under their belt since they reunited in 2007, James are more prolific than ever and Yummy has cemented their place as one of the most commercially and artistically – and most loved – alternative bands of their era. Its predecessor embraced Mark Hunter’s genius with an influx of synth-fuelled tracks. However, James are a band that refuse to rest on past successes and while Yummy does feature high-energy tracks including ‘Life’s a Fucking Miracle’ and ‘Rogue’, they’re interspersed with more introspective pieces like the beautiful ‘Butterfly’ and ‘Way Over Your Head’. Unafraid of the unknown, Yummy sees them continue soaring to new heights of beauty and inspiration and their refusal to conform to society’s expectations as to what a band of their longitude should be doing is commendable. (Laura Dean)
Frank Turner – Undefeated
Throughout his career, Frank Turner has explored multiple genres and Undefeated showcases his ability to effortlessly appeal to a wide spectrum of listeners. In stark contrast to its predecessor, the album revisits Frank’s acoustic-tinged roots and showcases a raw vulnerability that resonates deeply – ‘Ceasefire’ for example sees him converse with his fifteen-year-old self, while ‘Pandemic PTSD’ tackles the complexities of living through unprecedented times. Now on his tenth solo album, Frank continues to forge music that profoundly connects with audiences, with Undefeated standing out as one of his best pieces of work to date. (Laura Dean)
Manga Saint Hilaire – Everything Is Under Control
2024 has already been a great year for rap albums. Personal favourites include: Cappo, Little Simz, Heems, Luke RV, Joe Dirt, Cakes Da Killa, Dabbla, Kneecap, Real Bad Man, Cadence Weapon and Bee Asha. But top prize has to go to this one. With his complex nasal flows plus open, honest and heartfelt lyrics he is one of the most endearing grime artists to have stood the test of time, and is absolutely blossoming in his maturity. His beats manage to sound both classic and up to date at the same time, and whilst he’s unlikely to crossover like many of his Roll Deep collaborators, he’s certainly a favourite here in Wales thanks to his collaborations with Astroid Boys, Mace The Great, Lemfreck and Luke RV who appears here also.(Kaptin Barrett)
Punchlove – Channels
This Brooklyn collective craft some of the most fearsomely beautiful sonic gut punches(pun intentional) we have felt in some years. Abrasive yet bittersweet, crunchy and exultant, capturing the distortion peddle nirvana of acts like early My Bloody Valentine and sewing it with elements of intricate and shifting post-rock dynamics, and underpinned by an appreciation of the lineage of New York art sound of Sonic Youth, yet retaining an explorative imagination and spirit all of their own. ‘Screwdriver’ assualts the senses with a barrage of addictive melody, sinewy guitars and a bracing percussive section that rushes past like the wind from a passing subway train. The thundering drums and tidal wave of static and fuzz peddle distortion inflused with communcal vocal hollers on the awesome ‘Breeze’ deliver a thumping sonics of a iron fist in a velvet glove. ‘Guilt‘ is another standout; serrated guitars scale sky scrapers whilst melodic peaks and valleys are shattered and intoxicating, this is arresting and fantastic! We are definitely punch drunk and in love with them! (Bill Cummings)
St. Vincent – All Born Screaming
The value of All Born Screaming is quite easy to understand just by relistening to Masseduction, which in comparison sounds too plastic, overly polished, and melodically indistinct — it represents highly thoughtful production with a thought-provoking concept but lacks spontaneity, rawness, and sonic diversity. Here, St. Vincent connected the playfulness of Daddy’s Home with the eclecticism of her early works, finally achieving one of her most unpredictable, disobedient, and wicked works to date. A work that can only be done by a broken man in violent times. And if you overthink about that, she might ask you in ‘Broken Man’, “Hey, what are you looking at?”, adding in ‘Big Time Nothing’, “Don’t trip, sashay”, which can be answered only this way: “You talkin’ to me, huh?” (Igor Bannikov)
Pet Shop Boys – nonetheless
Written in lockdown, it’s billed as less of a hands-in-the-air pure bangers album, more of a sombre affair, similar to their earlier work such as Behaviour and Elysium, reflection rather than rave.
And the nostalgic feel to it starts with the Please/Actually invoking artwork, continuing with the fact that as you listen, you could place so many of these tracks on previous albums, not that they are ever a band renowned for looking back (it took them 30-odd years for them to do a greatest hits tour). It may not gain them any new fans, but may bring a few lost sheep back to the fold, if you’ve ever bought a PSB album previously, now is the time to welcome them back into your collection, with this well rounded record, with not a duffer amongst the tracks.
It oozes class and confidence with a knowing nod or two what’s gone on before, they are as vital as ever and the pop world would be lost without them. They are the Pet Shop Boys, just being the Pet Shop Boys and they’ll be the Pet Shop Boys forever. Thankfully. (Steven Doherty)
IDLES – TANGK
“I needed love. So I made it. I gave love out to the world and it feels like magic. This is our album of gratitude and power. All love songs. All is love.”
The above quote from lead singer Joe Talbot would lead us to believe that TANGK is their romantic ballads album.
It’s anything but. The sheer scope both lyrically and musically is a sight and sound to behold. If it’s a love album then it’s not straightforward, there’s a darkness at it’s heartbeat. Not only are there no big loud chest-beaters, Talbot barely raises his voice above a whisper, which makes it all the more sombre, almost menacing at points, but permanently on the edge of fragility.
It’s a shame that people will have long made their minds up about IDLES, as this is a genuinely mind-changing record. But for those of us already on the right side of history, it is an extraordinary set of songs, it’s little wonder that they are one of the biggest bands in the country, and this record should put them in another stratosphere. This is an album by a band for those they love and for those that love them. (Steven Doherty)
Red Rum Club – Western Approaches
One of the few musical regrets of 2024 was only giving this album 9/10 instead of full marks, as it’s proved with repeated listens to be a pop-indie behemoth.
2019’s debut album Matador, their lockdown record The Hollow Of Humdrum, and 2021’s How To Steal The World are a trio of barnstormers with nary a bad song on any of them, and it would have been easy for RRC to carry on in their light pop vein that each record has brought further to the fore, whilst leaving behind to some degree the ‘Scouse Americana’ label that their earlier, more trumpet led material had in spades.
This is an even stronger set of tunes compared to those that have gone before, they seem to have gone back to basics, to how they started and it’s a harder, faster, stronger Red Rum Club that we are dealing with here.
You’ll be rewarded with yet another album of pure joy with no dips and no bad tracks, it’s the Red Rum Club way.(Stephen Doherty)
topographies – Interior Spring (Dark Entries)
You can put many labels on this trio from San Francisco, California and they would all be correct. They run the gambit from Post-punk to Goth to Dream Pop and then some. Their second long playing album, Interior Spring, was released in February of this year. The crushing initial beats of opening track, ‘Night Sea‘, paves the way through this impassioned work. Further into the album, ‘I Never Understood’ shimmers and evolves where you can definitely hear the influence of The Cure (Gray’s father is ex-Cure member, Lol Tolhurst) and Cocteau Twins. Title track, ‘Interior Spring’ has the vibes of putting The Chameleons and Kitchens of Distinction into a blender. Penultimate song, ‘Red-Black Sun‘ has a beat that Clan of Xymox could have used on their debut album, but the etherealness harkens to “Medusa”.If you go back to their earlier singles like, ‘Cherry Blossom‘, and compare the sound, they have become a bit more polished but their essence is still intact. The soul is the same. That integrity makes me love them even more. (Michael Mitchell)
A Certain Ratio – It All Comes Down to This (Mute)
45 Years of Post-Punk Funk have all lead here. It All Comes Down to This is a full circle moment for ACR. The tunes, the production, the entire atmosphere all play like this album could have been released back in 1982. It sounds a little lo-fi which makes me think of the late, great Martin Hannett’s work with them back in the day. The songs are all simpler arrangements which again take me back to their early days of ‘Sextet‘ and ‘I’d Like to See You Again‘. In short, this is everything I’ve wanted from ACR in recent times. ‘Keep It Real‘ is a groove that keeps on keepin’ on. Pure Funk and fun. ‘Bitten By A Lizard‘ is spacey and a little creepy in the best possible way. Headphones on, you will lose yourself in this. The single, “God Knows” is a great sing and clap along banger that is sure to be a live favorite. This album truly engages from start to finish in classic ACR form. (Michael Mitchell)
El Perro del Mar – Big Anonymous
Sarah Assbring, Swedish singer, multi-instrumentalist, and composer known as El Perro del Mar released her stunning record Big Anonymous in February. Co-produced with Vessel (Fever Ray, Evian Christ, Malibu)Assbring said: “I think of the album as a journey into the Underworld and back.” And that’s true, it’s an engrossing listen that’s frozen textures, intricate instrumentals and otherworldly explorations delve into horror, grief and trauma of the subconcious mind: envelopinig you in her fascinating world throughout.
‘Kiss of Death’, is a undulating, cinematic composition bristling with captivating and empowering vocals. While the breathtaking ‘In Silence’ is extroadinary, Assbring’s bewitching vocals, that reside with echoes of everyone from early Kate Bush to Gazelle Twin, blanket this nightmarish landscape of cinematic and shifting atmospheric instrumentation. As she hauntingly plunges us into the themes of grief, loss, mortality and darkness. Offering you a glimpse of unplumbed depths as she is holding on for dear life. It’s an extraordinary listen . (Bill Cummings)
Whitelands- Night-bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day
London Shoegaze quartet, Whitelands, sonically bloom in their stunning debut album Night- bound Eyes Are Blind to the Day, fusing a polyphonic bouquet of melodic riffs, blurred and bathed in a rippling ocean of reverb, weaving hazy tremolo motifs between achingly beautiful underwater vocals. They soar from liquid depths, into heavenly choruses, rich with cascades of sonic swirls. The album is cradled by two poetically political songs addressing imperialism, racism and performative ignorance, impeccably laced through smoky dream-pop melodies Meditative, romantic and reflective; nostalgic yet ground breaking, their ethereal waves of sound will wash over you and cleanse your soul. It feels like they have captured lightning in a bottle with this album. Bassist Vanessa Govinden said, “There’s an underlying narrative that it’s OK for white men to be romantic, sensitive, emotional and make dreamy music and, by contrast, young black men should be making angry music…We’ve all grown up with these stereotypes… I want Whitelands to really break some barriers.” They are one of the most stunning, skilful and vital voices on the scene right now and are at the forefront of the 21st Century Shoegaze revival. With impressionistic, yet whip smart political lyrics they are Gen Z Shoegaze champions. (Carmel Walsh)
PACKS – Melt The Honey
On their third album Melt the Honey, PACKS (aka Canadian slacker rock star Madeline Link and band) overcame power outages and dodgy electrical wiring to lay down the album with a minimal recording setup. Their undefeated, laid-back camaraderie oozes into each song, coating the album with a sticky optimism that’s hard to resist.
Opening with ’89 days’, Link’s languid tones chew each phrase like candied tamarind, while the band wrestles their weighty sound to a quiet hum. The album continues to pick at the tiny hanging threads of our daily lives, with ‘Honey’ offering feelings of contentment and resolution. ‘Pearly Whites’ merges acoustic textures and ’90s drones, while ‘HFCS’ delivers a head-buzz of pure scuzz-pop. Retro keys and bold lead guitar create unnerving and exhilarating moments, especially in ‘AmyW’ and ‘Take Care’. An album inspired in equal parts by literature, art, and a visiting stray cat, songs like ‘Her Garden’, ‘Paige Machine’, and ‘Missy’ explore the tense dance between creation and chaos. Like comforting candlelight in a storm, Melt the Honey gives shelter from life’s absurd twists and turns, embracing its imperfections with wit and resolve. (Trev Elkin)
Shaina Hayes – Kindergarten Heart
Canada’s Shaina Hayes creates an inviting melting pot of enchanting vocals, charming melodies, and poetic lyricism. Kindergarten Heart leans into uplifting pop, something for everyone. The opening hums and strums of ‘Early Riser’ recall warm memories of youth and carefree days, providing comfort during a grey winter’s morning. The alt-country lap steel refrains of ‘Kindergarten Heart’ continue this theme, searching for playfulness and weightlessness. ‘Fun’ teases a lively detour, with a simple syncopated bass line, subtle keys, and rich guitar tones complementing Hayes’ layered vocals. ‘Sidewalk’ follows, a barroom country blues ballad with a Shania Twain-like twist of lemon fizz.
Elsewhere, the gentle sway of ‘New Favourite’ and ‘Sun and Time’ create a space where youthful memory and future dreams coalesce in a playground of learning and growth. As with ‘Heatwave’, subtle experimentation moulds her traditional country sounds into something more artful and expansive, like the twilight sound of Loma‘s Emily Cross. However, it is album highlight ‘A Thousand Perfect Words’ that completely seals the deal, providing a brief but heartbreakingly exquisite introspection. Final song, ‘Mastery’ ruminates on the tension between craving stability and longing for change, closing on a profound thought: “for this is the only mastery – to be at once child and poet.” Magical. (Trev Elkin)
Noah Bouchard – Love Of My Life
Noah Bouchard released his excellent debut album Love Of My Live earlier this year, produced alongside Minas, these songs are bedroom production that shine with elements of hip hop and electronica, rife with downtempo tales and vulnerability, it’s a fascinating journey toward self-acceptance. ‘Sometimes’, follows the Welsh artists 2023 single ‘Swan Song’. With a plaintive piano, a shuffling scuffed up beat and wistful down tempo vocals that speaks right into your ear. Atmospheric and bittersweet, it still has a hook and a catchy sway, allied to a diaristic charm that makes you eager to explore the corners of his new album. Contemplating loneliness and isolation and yearning for the moment when he could embrace others again presumably through lockdown, it possess a touchingly quality that really endears you not just to his songwriting, but Bouchard as a artist. (Bill Cummings)
Babehoven – Water’s Here In You
Babehoven, the New York duo of Maya Bon and Ryan Albert, have crafted a profound and evocative indie-folk journey with their latest album, Water’s Here in You. Bon’s songwriting here is like a late-night confessional phonecall from a best friend, exploring the beating heart of personal issues with a gentle, yet visceral touch.
The album begins with ‘Birdseye’ where Bon’s simple lyrics and Albert’s deep, atmospheric instrumentation create a captivating soundscape. Despite looking down from above, Babehoven kick the album off from a rather low place, and the first part delves into past trauma with considerable honesty. Songs like ‘My Best Friend Needs’ and ‘Lonely, Cold Seed’ unravel their emotional trail accompanied by buzzing synths and faint wispy vocals. However, deeper in things turn toward renewal with the spooling, twisting cadences of ‘Dizzy Spin’ and standout tracks ‘Chariot’ and ‘Lightness is Loud’ (inspired by Cixin Liu‘s The Three Body Problem). Bon’s powerful voice there urges us to move forward and look ahead, wrapped in nature’s protection and grounded by “the pearl inside you”. Closing song ‘Ella’s From Somewhere Else’ (for both Squirrel Flower‘s Ella Williams and Bon’s childhood dog), is a heartfelt tribute that leaves us feeling warm and hopeful. Water’s Here In You is a mesmerising and powerful record and their finest album to date. (Trev Elkin)
