6 albums you need to hear this week
This week we've highlighted records from Barry Can't Swim, Wet Leg, Burna Boy, Kokoroko, Jessica Winter and Africa Express.
The second album from Barry Can't Swim is a deep and introspective dive into the man behind the music. As Joshua Mainnie told us in the latest issue of Rolling Stone UK, the album came after a period of reflection on the time that turned him into a dance music superstar. 'I like to take the piss, have a laugh and not take myself too seriously, but there's an expectation that comes with that. I'm quite shy and it has been a lot for me to process that and be able to get on a stage and do that in front of people,' he said. On Loner, he dissects this beautifully and frankly, while adding a host of new floor-fillers to his catalogue.
Listen on: | Apple Music | |
After becoming overnight sensations with 'Chaise Longue' in 2021, Isle of Wight duo Wet Leg have returned with a second album that sees them going for the throat. moisturizer is led by the chaotic, furious single 'Catch These Fists' and sees all five members of the Wet Leg live band write for the first time, focusing on replicating the joy and freedom of their lauded live show. Guitarist Hester Chambers explained: 'We were just kind of having fun and exploring. We focussed on: Is this going to be fun to play live? It was very natural that we would write the second record together.'
Listen on: | Apple Music | |
Two years after his I Told Them… LP, stadium-dweller and worldwide superstar Burna Boy returns with No Sign of Weakness, a star-studded album that sees his star rise even further. On the record, he's joined by Shaboozey, Stromae, Travis Scott and – most surprisingly – Mick Jagger, showing himself as a cross-cultural phenomenon.
Listen on: | Apple Music | |
Kokoroko are leading lights of London's world-renowned young jazz scene, but new album Tuff Times Never Last shows that they're not limiting themselves in terms of sound. 'Innately, we're jazz musicians but we've tried not to kind of box ourselves into one sound,' co-bandleader Sheila Maurice-Grey said. 'So there is a level of freedom we're starting to feel. We want to continue being as creative as possible without feeling any boundaries.' Tuff Times Never Last shows off this sense of freedom in all its beautiful, transgressive glory.
Listen on: | Apple Music | |
Jessica Winter says her debut album, suitably titled My First Album, is 'conceptually about 'somebody' aspiring to be a star and wanting to fill the void deep inside herself. Along the way there are various diversions and adventures, involving people, places, and things. Ultimately, however, she is on a journey of self-discovery and realisation, and that all she really needs is to love herself.' Given the Kylie-inspired, radio-ready pop music that inhabits the album, truly reaching gloriously for stardom, it doesn't take too much reading between the lines to work out who this 'somebody' is.
Listen on: | Apple Music | |
Africa Express presents… Bahidorá sees the collective branching out once again. To make the 21-song record, they headed to Mexico and collaborated with musicians from four continents. On the record, they dip into and pay tribute to reggaeton, salsa, Latin and beyond, making an album that is born from all corners of the world and reverent to the music that came before it.
Listen on: | Apple Music | |
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