Sigur Rós – Odin’s Raven Music

Icelandic geniuses Sigor Rós have dropped a haunting album. As per their catalogue, each track is an orchestral ode to the heavens. A sonic experience that transcends modern production, this collaboration with electronic pioneer Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, frequent collaborator Steindór Andersen, and Maria Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir has been around since 2002. Now, the response to an ancient mythological poem exists in studio-recorded form.

8.9

SIGUR ROS

ODIN’S RAVEN MUSIC

LAUREL – PETROL BLOOM

It’s been more than two years since the release of her shattering debut album DOGVIOLET (with a smattering of releases in between) but LAUREL has returned with a bang. Moving away from the guitar-dominated DIY landscapes of its predecessor, the synth-doused PETROL BLOOM glistens with a new kind of magic, seeing the English alt-pop star traverse new spaces sonically – as she simultaneously does so personally and physically.

Whilst it might not be the season for road trips, PETROL BLOOM promises to take you wherever you want to go.

8.1

LAUREL

PETROL BLOOM

Holy Holy & Queen P – Port Rd

One of Australia’s most beloved live acts, Holy Holy have released a track that will inspire some seriously danceable moments. Port Rd starts small. But buoyant, twangy chords disperse for the rhythmic rhapsody of the defiant Queen P.

7.9

HOLY HOLY & QUEEN P

PORT RD

Juice WRLD & Benny Blanco– Real Shit

On what would have been his 22nd birthday, representatives of Juice WRLD have released a collaborative track with Benny Blanco. Real Shit offers up the best of the beloved emo-rap tropes, with heartbreaking vocals and strained verses. A sombre, posthumous track, it explores the paradox of living with success and mental illness.

8.2

JUICE WRLD & BENNY BLANCO

REAL SHIT

Arctic Monkeys – Live at the Royal Albert Hall

Arctic Monkeys have released a live album, with all proceeds going towards War Child UK – a charity providing aid to children affected by conflict. Live at the Royal Albert Hall is the closest thing to a greatest hits album Monkeys fans are going to get, the tracklist spanning their massive career over a monstrous 86-minute run time.

8.4

ARCTIC MONKEYS

LIVE AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL

Laura Marling – The Lockdown Sessions

London darling Laura Marling blessed the world an EP titled The Lockdown Sessions. Her vocals are something of pure folklore and the first of four love songs, Song For Our Daughter, radiates her natural ear for spacious, delicious songwriting.

7.8

LAURA MARLING

THE LOCKDOWN SESSIONS

Young Franco ft. Denzel Curry & Pell – Fallin’ Apart

Australian DJ Young Franco has released his latest single, an infectious house track, Fallin’ Apart, complete with collabs from Miami rapper Denzel Curry and rising rapper Pell. Featuring a sample from Nigerian singer Steve Monite’s Things Fall Apart, the trio effortlessly synthesise for some late-night magic.

8.3

YOUNG FRANCO FT. DENZEL CURRY & PELL

FALLIN’ APART

Phoebe Bridgers – If We Make It Through December

Just when you thought that Phoebe Bridgers couldn’t possibly do more to dominate this year, she strikes again. Since 2017, the Californian songstress has released a heartwrenching Christmas single each year. This week, the fruits of her labour finally came to fruition. Dropping her latest festive cover If We Make It Through December, Bridgers finally compiled these four singles into a complete collection, with each track as lush, retrospective, and breathtaking as the next.

8.3

PHOEBE BRIDGERS

IF WE MAKE IT THROUGH DECEMBER

King Princess – PAIN

Just over a month since her last single, Only Time Makes It Human, King Princess has followed it up with a second Mark Ronson co-produced song, PAIN. A dazzling, grimy dance track, this latest offering sees KP sweat out heartbreak into a thousand tiny beads of emotion.

8.4

KING PRINCESS

PAIN

Miley Cyrus – Plastic Hearts

Miley Cyrus is here to save 2020 with her much-teased seventh studio album Plastic Hearts. Glittering with insatiable pop-rock anthems, the album includes features from legends Billy Idol, Joan Jett, and Stevie Nicks. Yet the hero remains Miley’s iconic voice: rich with the textural prowess of a true CBGB punk goddess. Infectious and proud, Miley might be known for Party in the USA, but she will be remembered for Plastic Hearts.

8.0

MILEY CYRUS

PLASTIC HEARTS

OK Hotel – Stay Bright

OK Hotel have just unleashed their high octane EP Stay Bright, a collection that hits you like a tsunami of heart-on-your-sleeve alt-rock energy. The EP is packed to the brim with meaty choruses and riffs that draw influence from fuzz-fuelled ’90s bands, such as Smashing Pumpkins, and just the right concoction of shoegazey, dreamy elements. Yet their immediate, intimate writing style and hook-fuelled choruses cement them firmly in the present, as if you’re right there with them every step of the way.

7.8

OK HOTEL

STAY BRIGHT