Variaciones
Dotore
Dotore is here with his third record and this time around it’s pop electronica. The acoustic guitars usually very much to the fore are buried in the mix. It’s heavy on the effects for the voices which, along with repetitive synthesiser riffs, make up the basis for the new songs. Stand-out songs are Balinesa, Sol nuevo and Río de enero.
Sunbathing Animal
Parquet Courts
The band recorded this album in three sessions. They previously released the opening track on the EP Tally All the Things That You Broke, and have made up the rest of the record with new songs. While there is a 90s indie touch to them, songs like Black and white and Always back in town are closer to punk. They even get a little hypnotic on She´s rolling.
Manipulator
Ty Segall
Ty Segall spent 14 months writing material for his latest album, the longest ever for him. The result is a 17-track double album. Segall’s sound is a mixture of different rock epochs, garage and psychedelia. He plays almost every instrument himself and, in comparison to previous releases, there is a heavy emphasis on arrangement work on this one.
Brill Bruisers
The New Pornographers
This is the first release by this Canadian quartet in four years. The long wait hasn’t dulled them in any way and their songs are still full of colourful pop. There is a heavy 70s influence on show here, check out Wide eyes to see what we mean. A listen-to record, from start to finish.
Royal Blood
Royal Blood
Though from the very first notes on the song Out of the black brings the group Muse to mind, duo Royal Blood have released a very solid record with a character all of its own. No guitars here, just bass and drums, and the record is choc-full of powerful riffs. We keep going back to the song Figure it out.
Oya
Ibeyi
Ibeyi is made up of Cuban percussionist Miguel “Anga” Díaz Zayas’s twin daughters Lisa-Kaindé and Naomi Diaz. They use English and Yoruba, the latter a language brought to Cuba from slaves forcibly transported from West Africa. The main instrument on show here is the voices. This is one of the most special releases that XL records’ owner Richard Russell has produced in recent times.
