New Music Friday and to start the weekend we have 4 great albums that should all be on your radar.
1. Del Amitri releases ‘Fatal Mistakes’
Del Amitri release ‘Fatal Mistakes’, their seventh studio album and their first since 2002. It was recorded pretty much live in three weeks with producer Dan Austin (Biffy Clyro, You Me At Six), and it’s the brilliant sound of a 35-years-young band settling into what they do best: melodic rock songs with lyrical bite, soulful comfort and heart-swelling uplift.
Emerged to early critical acclaim, the album has been previewed by the tracks ‘You Can’t Go Back’, ‘It’s Feelings’ and ‘Close Your Eyes and Think of England’. The band will also release a new video for the next single, ‘All Hail Blind Love’, this Friday.
Frontman Justin Currie commented, “When we made ‘Waking Hours’ we knew there was no one else at the time who was doing that: a classic rock-pop record, very song-based, but with guitar solos and proper melodic performances. And it occurred to us a couple of years ago that, again, in Britain there’s a space for this. No band of any generation are doing this. So this feels like the right time.”
“It’s just us, and the songs, all of it played by all five of us – no guest players or session guys. We’ve never done that before,” adds guitarist Iain Harvie. “So it’s a clean sheet, a new album, from a new band. It felt really free to make it.”
‘Fatal Mistakes’ is out on CD, vinyl and digital formats and is available to order here.
2. Moby release his latest album ‘Reprise’
Reprise sees Moby revisiting and reimagining musical highlights from his 30-year career. Together with the Budapest Art Orchestra, he has re-envisioned some of his most recognizable rave classics and anthems with new arrangements for orchestra and acoustic instruments. He’s also joined by a stellar line-up of guest artists from across the musical spectrum, including Alice Skye, Amythyst Kiah, Apollo Jane, Darlingside, Gregory Porter, Jim James, Kris Kristofferson, Luna Li, Mark Lanegan, Mindy Jones, Nataly Dawn, Skylar Grey and Vikingur Ólafsson.
Reprise includes Moby’s biggest tracks, among them his breakthrough dance track “Go”, “Extreme Ways” (famous from the Bourne movie franchise), “Natural Blues” and “Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?”. Some of the new versions are sparser and slower, while others exploit the bombastic potential an orchestra can offer. Three decades into Moby’s career, Reprise is less of a greatest hits record and more of a chance to reflect on the way in which art can adapt over time to different settings and contexts.
3. UV-TV release third album ‘Always Something’
Completing an exhilarating trilogy of releases following 2017 debut ‘Glass’ and 2019’s ‘Happy’, ‘Always Something’ finds the NYC trio taking flight with some of their most complex and accomplished material to date.
Combining a classic feel with a fresh contemporary outlook, the album features recent singles “Back To Nowhere”, “Distant Lullaby” and title-track “Always Something”, which have seen UV-TV garner praise from outlets including Consequence of Sound, Line Of Best Fit, Under The Radar, Stereogum, Louder Than War, The Punk Site, Brooklyn Vegan and more.
The release of ‘Always Something’ today also arrives with the confirmation of an extensive European Tour, planned for Spring 2022. Well established as a cornerstone in the continuation of the DIY and post-punk crossover scene in the US, ‘Always Something’ sees the band confirm their status with one of 2021’s most essential guitar records.
Available digitally on all platforms now, a run of 500 limited edition LPs will also soon be available in the US and for import in the UK & EU.
4. Texas release brilliant new album ‘Hi’ out today
The Scottish band’s tenth studio album was released today via BMG. The record was originally intented to be based on ‘lost’ outtakes from the sessions for their 1997 chart-topping White On Blonde album, but ultimately inspired them to create new material from them.
The 14-track album is a return to their signature pop-rock-soul sound, featuring a reunion with Wu-Tang Clan on the title track (having previously collaborated in 1998) and new single Mr Haze, which samples Donna Summer’s 1977 disco smash Love’s Unkind.
“Our excitement at finding this treasure trove of songs collided with our excitement back then and, unplanned, new songs started coming,” frontwoman Sharleen Spiteri said. “You could say we were inspired by ourselves!”
Other songs on the album include Dark Fire, written with Richard Hawley, and Look What You’ve Done, a duet which sees Sharleen trade verses with Clare Grogan of Altered Images.
The record also includes a rare ballad from Texas, titled Unbelievable. “We don’t usually do ballads,” Sharleen says, “But this one really stuck. The words are very intimate and personal while the music sounds really epic.”
