The Alternative Album Chart: The best new indie albums this week
On April 18th, 1930, there was no news. The BBC’s announcer simply said, “There is no news,” before a 15-minute piano segment commenced. Now I know how that announcer felt. Ahead of a bumper surge of indie releases next week from the likes of Noel Gallagher, Baxter Dury, Foo Fighters, Beach Fossils and even a live album from Bob Dylan, this week was notably quiet. However, what the week lacked in quantity, it made up for in quality – isn’t that often the case.
In the final fallow days between the winter warmers and the festival season stage stealers, we’ve got an array of releases; from A.S. Fanning looking back at lockdown in style to Arlo Parks continuing her poetic development as a songwriter. May is a month that typically allows for musical exploration and there is some of that too. So, kick back in the garden this sunny bank holiday weekend and give some of these a spin.
In the week that saw the first festivals of summer in the northern half of the world make their welcome return, this weeks releases are notably more relaxed, making the most of the sweet spring air to offer up a laidback atmosphere. AI seems a world away from these releases despite a tech guru I recently interviewed ensuring the storm is on the way. For the most part, these epic records are ones to relax with.
On that front, we’ve curated the best new music that artists have offered this week. From a lovely rehash by the ever-impressive Kevin Morby to a gem of an EP, there might not be many but these are the best records that the last week in May had to offer.
The best new indie and alternative albums this week:
Mushroom Cloud – A.S. Fanning – 4/5
“No cure for the disease of disappearing,” A.S. Fanning sings in ‘Colony Collapse’. Despite the line being dredged from greater depths of dowerness than the patter on Morrissey’s stag-do, it flows from the album with gorgeous sweetness and charming drama as though its bad news being delivered by a magic doctor in a Pixar movie. The Irish musician’s latest album, Mushroom Cloud takes us right back to the wild uncertainty of the pandemic – the dark days when the use of the word unprecedented reached justly unprecedented new heights – and he deals with the doom-laden absurdity of that period with a comic directness and artistry that has only really been matched by Tim Key.
Fanning might have struggled to find a silver lining in that trying time, but now that the permacrisis has extended, his comical musings, luscious melodies, and moments of perfect poetry help to add a lull of interest to the load if not lighten it. Mushroom Cloud is a superb effort from a songwriter following his muse to unfamiliar territory and reaping rewards. It’s a 21st Century Franz Kafka turns indie album, if only he was a little bit funnier and had a soothing baritone.
My Soft Machine – Arlo Parks – 4/5
How to avoid a hangover: if you’re drinking, make sure to balance the pints with a few glasses of water, don’t forget the Advil before bed, and make sure there’s some spicy food on hand for the morning. If you’re trying to follow up on a massive debut album, hone in on the traits that make you a unique artist and try to push the boundaries of genre and style so it doesn’t seem like you’re repeating yourself. Sounds easy, right? Well, it is…if you’re Arlo Parks.
Parks certainly has a nice view from where she’s currently sitting. Although it’s not quite as natural and impactful on the first listen as Collapsed in Sunbeams was, My Soft Machine nevertheless reads like a new chapter from a master writer. Everything that made fans fall in love with Parks is present here, from the creative beats to the gut-wrenching honesty in her words. Parks has proven that being happy doesn’t mean that you have to be content. Her artistic vision is just as potent, if not more so than ever, within the notes and words of My Soft Machine. (Words: Tyler Golsen)
The Girl is Crying in Her Latte – Sparks – 4/5
The American avant-pop duo Sparks have returned once again for the relentlessly intriguing album, The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte. Over the past six decades, the pair have remained impressively prolific and retain a loyal fanbase that appears to grow with each passing year. This is perhaps a testament to Sparks’ thirst for sonic exploration and aversion to antiquation. It’s more madness from the oddballs.
Sparks have followed up 2020’s A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip with yet another record of bottomless artistry. Staying true to their Andy Warhol and Salvador Dalí semblances, the duo bring the post-Dada trends of early 20th-century art to the airwaves. Like Warhol prints, their colours are bright and attractive, and like Dalí’s melting clocks, the concepts run far beyond skin depth. To all intents and purposes, this album is an eclectic masterclass in avant-pop exploration.
More Photographs (A Continuum) – Kevin Morby – 4/5
Last year, Kevin Morby released his stellar seventh album, This Is A Photograph, proving his talents as one of his generation’s most talented yet understated songwriters. The record is heavily centred around nostalgia, memories, and the passing of time, resulting in a collection of songs best described as powerfully bittersweet. However, Morby knew he wasn’t ready to leave that project behind.
Filled with reworks, re-imaginings and the odd new track, the album ends with ‘Kingdom of Broken Hearts’, the blues-infused piece rounds the album off nicely, utilising soulful backing singers to give the song a warm and optimistic feel. With beautifully full production and complexly layered melodies, the song is a powerful reminder that More Photographs (A Continuum) isn’t merely a collection of This Is A Photograph offcuts or afterthoughts – it’s an incredibly solid and cohesive continuation, ripe with soul, emotion and gorgeously bluesy instrumentation. (Words: Aimee Ferrier)
Romantic Piano – Gia Margaret – 3.5/5
The piano etudes on Gia Margaret’s third studio album, Romantic Piano, are the sort of thing that you should never listen to while operating machinery, driving or simply intending to stay upright. She delicately provides a pillow-propped world of gentle ambient beauty, just about kept fresh by pop sensibilities that provide enough of a solid structure to keep you afloat.
Her Jagjaguwar debut also comes with a brooding undercurrent, somewhere in these romantic sounds something ever so slightly sinister lingers. That adds a vital dash of interest and intrigue to an album that is lulling but maybe not profound enough to fall in love with entirely. Thus, this hint of darkness amid the cloud-like sounds is a welcome wisp that adds depth to lilting tones without upsetting the ease of the melodies.
The Goyt Method (EP) – The Orielles – 3.5/5
After the release of their experimental fourth album, Tableau, on Heavenly Records last year, Halifax-born band The Orielles return with a new five-track release titled The Goyt Method. A triumph in sonic experimentation and self-sampling, the EP repurposes Tableau, borrowing and rearranging elements to form a transcendental collection of new tracks.
The work demonstrates a range across sampling and electronic production developed through The Orielles’ openness to experimentation and their previous experience in remixing. Reflecting on the concept and production of the EP, the band stated: “Our concept for The Goyt Method was birthed from our interest in cybernetics, improvisation and experimental electronic music. We wanted to zoom out of Tableau and disconnect all the pieces, rearranging them in new ways to create variations of songs, which encapsulate the whole record.” (Words: Elle Palmer)
Honourable Mention: Seven Psalms – Paul Simon
Is it an EP, is it an album, is it a single song, or a classical movement, is it an 81-year-old growing self-indulgent in a last hurrah, or is it a master songwriters final masterpiece musing on his own mortality? Only time will tell, because it’s singular a piece that deserves reserved judgement and defies classification, and that is a good sign in itself.
