Shame - Songs Of Praise

Score: 8.0

Just thirty-eight minutes are enough to demonstrate that the British newcomers named Shame are between the most exciting, urgent and necessary bands oscillating the post-punk stratosphere lately. Ten heavy, dirty, cohesively attached and wittily crafted songs make up for an album that asks for a lot, but gives much more in reward.

Tracks I like the most: One Rizla, The Lick, Gold Hole, Lampoon
Tracks I like the least: Tasteless, Angie

Artist: Shame

Country: United Kingdom

Album: Songs Of Praise

Released: 12/01/2018

Genres: Post-Punk, Indie Rock

Length: 38:31

Johnny Jewel - Digital Rain

Score: 7.7

Pristine but shattered and equally meditative and reflective, the newest sound composition by analogue multi-instrumentalist Johnny Jewel finds its place in an ever-present, otherwordly aura that gets smaller and grows bigger in admirably effortless ways. It's the sound of our restless weather and tectonic plates, as well as our close nostalgic feelings and biological reactions every time it's about to rain. It's as much organic as it is electronic; as human as, well, digital.

Tracks I like the most: The City Of Roses, The Runner, Monsoon, Aerosol, Ship Of Theseus
Tracks I like the least: Seven Corners, Cellophane

Artist: Johnny Jewel

Country: United States

Album: Digital Rain

Released: 26/01/2018

Genres: Ambient, Electronic

Length: 41:02

Porches - The House

Score: 6.4

There are a few tracks over there that have potential but are still a bit undercooked or just wrongly adjusted to fully brighten. For the rest, these are a collection of weirdly attached songs that are more often than not trapped and lost in their own airiness and reverie to move something on the listener. Basically, The House is too numb to be substantial.

Tracks I like the most: Find Me, By My Side, Wobble, Goodbye, Ono
Tracks I like the least: Country, Swimmer

Artist: Porches

Country: United States

Album: The House

Released: 19/01/2018

Genres: Synth Pop, Indie Pop

Length: 37:21

First Aid Kit - Ruins

Score: 7.9

The Söderberg sisters return to roots and simplistic song-writing on their fourth record, Ruins. Sometimes the production and pristine details are enough to make some songs wonderfully inspiring, and sometimes the minimalistic approach taken to other ones restrain the album to achieve its full potential. That being said, it's an overall confident step into the right direction.

Tracks I like the most: It's A Shame, Fireworks, Postcard, Hem Of Her Dress, Nothing Has To Be True
Tracks I like the least: To Live A Life, My Wild Sweet Love, Ruins

Artist: First Aid Kit

Country: Sweden

Album: Ruins

Released: 19/01/2018

Genres: Indie Folk, Country, Americana, Folk Pop

Length: 39:34

тпсб - Sekundenschlaf

Score: 8.1

There's something eerily comforting and disturbingly cozy about Sekundenschlaf, a record that bears an overwhelming mystery and symbolism to the state where one is about to fall asleep while driving. Whoever crafted this little gem of ambient techno/jungle should be more than proud, as much as we should be thankful to the one(s) who found it and made it public in the first place.

Tracks I like the most: Catching Rare Birds, Walking Distances, Matted Feathers
Tracks I like the least: Pacifier Habits

Artist: тпсб

Country: United Kingdom/Russia

Album: Sekundenschlaf

Released: 12/01/2018

Genres: Experimental, Abstract, Jungle, Ambient Techno, Drone

Length: 31:53

MGMT - Little Dark Age

Score: 8.0

After five years of complete silence and a serious existential crisis, the neo-psychedelia boys return with their most mature, aesthetically consistent and thoroughly cohesive set of songs in a long time. The combination of murkily sympathetic sounds and morbidly cynic lyrics make most of the songs self-affirming and enjoyable, but the ever-growing little details and production twists make them grow to even memorable heights.

Tracks I like the most: Little Dark Age, When You Die, Days That Got Away, When You're Small, Hand It Over
Tracks I like the least: Me And Michael, TSLAMP

Artist: MGMT

Country: United States

Album: Little Dark Age

Released: 09/02/2018

Genres: Synth Pop, Dark Pop, Gothic Pop, Psychedelic Pop

Length: 44:25

Tune-Yards - I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life

Score: 7.1

In their fourth album, the Merrill Garbus' project follows an iconoclastically electronic path and by purposefully subduing the more tribal aspects of their core sound, the results show up as surprisingly engaging as disappointingly lackluster, sometimes in equal levels and at same times.

Tracks I like the most: Heart Attack, ABC 123, Colonizer, Look At Your Hands, Honesty
Tracks I like the least: Coast To Coast, Hammer

Artist: Tune-Yards

Country: United States

Album: I Can Feel You Creep Into My Private Life

Released: 19/01/2018

Genres: Art Pop, Indie Pop, Alternative Dance, Techno, Afrobeat

Length: 44:18

cupcakKe - Ephorize

Score: 7.7

There's plenty of angry joy and kinky introspection on Ephorize, even too much to mislead this record as merely "another backlash millenial rap manifesto". Elizabeth Eden Harris distills an amazing flow, passion and knack for naughty word-play. But on her third album, she also digs deepest into herself, and reaches her highest heights in attempting at doing music. It's clear we have an artist truly coming of age and making proof of her own multifaceted, colourful and (sure) fun-as-hell abilities.

Tracks I like the most: Self Interview, Fullest, Spoiled Milk Titties, Crayons, Cartoons, Exit
Tracks I like the least: Total, Wisdom Teeth, Post Pic

Artist: cupcakKe

Country: United States

Album: Ephorize

Released: 05/01/2018

Genres: Hip Hop, Dirty Rap, Pop

Length: 46:41

Pax Eudaemonia - Pax Eudaemonia

Score: 7.3

As they so rightly describe it on their official Bandcamp page, the debut full-length self-called deluxe album from the Italian musicians feels like "an ode to the dreamers" and a permeable, malleable if somewhat naïve binaural experience that doesn't harm as much as it does effect the listeners' perceptions of space, time and colour through nine cohesive pieces of ambient, instrumental, positronic electronica.

Tracks I like the most: Leidmotif, Fresco Fantasia, Giants Rising
Tracks I like the least: Grazioso

Artist: Pax Eudaemonia

Country: Italy

Album: Pax Eudaemonia

Released: 01/01/2018

Genres: Electronic, Ambient, Binaural, Instrumental

Length: 26:36

Jeff Rosenstock - POST-

Score: 6.7

Leaving the last two tracks (that are gorgeously executed) aside, POST- already feels exhausted in its own spiral of cynicism and self-deprication. Whereas that characteristic was once one of the (if not the capital-the) most alluring and entertaining feature of the American singer-songwriter's approach to angry rock music, now, for the first time, it might seem like the element that tires and turns the project a bit off.

Tracks I like the most: 9/10, Let Them Win, Beating My Head Against A Wall, Powerlessness
Tracks I like the least: Melba, TV Stars, USA

Artist: Jeff Rosenstock

Country: United States

Album: POST-

Released: 01/01/2018

Genres: Punk Rock, Indie Rock, Power Pop

Length: 40:06