Tate McRae, “So Close to What.” Canadian pop star Tate McRae didn’t let a premature leak of what would eventually become her latest album, So Close to What, get her down. Instead, the singer refocused and went back to the lab, more fully fleshing out the existing tracks and…

Sam Fender, “People Watching.” British songwriter Sam Fender is perhaps best known for pulling from experiences of his coastal hometown of North Shields, along the Black Sea, including his own coming of age stories. Both his debut studio album, Hypersonic Missles, and follow-up Seventeen Going Under, offer raw and…

Alessia Cara, “Love & Hyperbole.” Canadian singer-songwriter Alessia Cara pushed toward the positive on her fourth album, Love & Hyperbole. In the process of finding the balance between joy and heartbreak, Cara has delivered her most self-assured and mature work to date. From the writing to the arrangement and…

The Lumineers, “Automatic.” For Automatic, its fifth album, folky duo The Lumineers pulled inspiration from the Beatles’ 2021 documentary, Get Back. With a goal of finding organic immediacy, Wesley Schultz, Jeremiah Fraites and friends set up shop in Woodstock’s Utopia studio to write. They moved to recording quickly, creating…

Olly Alexander, “Polari.” It’s no simple task to start anew after being associated with another project for over a decade, but that’s just what Olly Alexander set out to do. Polari Olly Alexander Polydor, Feb. 7 8/10 Get the album on Amazon Music. The former lead of electro-pop group Years…

The Weeknd, “Hurry Up Tomorrow.” The Weeknd has had a fascinating career trajectory, entering the alternative R&B scene in the early 2010s as a mysterious crooner and becoming one of the world’s biggest pop stars. His hits include “Can’t Feel My Face” and “Blinding Lights,” Spotify’s most-streamed song of…

FKA twigs, “EUSEXUA.” FKA twigs, a genre-bending visionary, explores the spirituality of dancing and catharsis of seeking pleasure on EUSEXUA, her first album since 2019. It’s singer-songwriter Tahliah Debrett Barnett in her truest form, an artist piecing together parts of previous projects—like CAPRISONGS’ (2022) electric dance elements and MAGDALENE’s…

JoJo, “NGL.” It has been quite the creative renaissance for pop-singer-turned-best-selling-author Joanna “JoJo” Levesque. Levesque found early success, overcoming depression and addiction at home before falling into a years-long battle with a record label that essentially froze her career for years. With that in the past, Levesque has released…

David Gray, “Dear Life.” David Gray shot to fame at the turn of the century with his third album, White Ladder. He then went from gigs in Irish bars to Glastonbury. White Ladder—not something by U2—remains the best-selling album of all time in Ireland. Dear Life David Gray Laugh…

Ringo Starr, “Look Up.” There’s no questioning Beatles great Ringo Starr’s commitment to the bit on his 21st solo album, Look Up. The drummer finds a little Southern comfort on the country-influenced record with help from the likes of Alison Krauss, Billy Strings and producer T-Bone Burnett. Not unlike…