Normally when I compile these lists, the hardest part is picking three albums worthy of your attention. This is nothing to do with quality or worthiness of artists, but rather because the scarcity of full album releases means we rarely have three big full-length projects on the same day. Today, however, is different – while the heatwave is washed away in a late July flush, a bevy of new music is now on offer. If there’s anything we’ve missed or you’d like to see your upcoming release featured on this page, let us know by emailing us at [email protected]!
NAO – For All We Know
Bearer of quirky R&B fused with mesmerising electronica which she calls “wobbly funk,” Nottingham-born NAO has been previously collaborated on acclaimed records by Disclosure and Mura Masa. Debut full-length For All We Know, released on her own Little Tokyo Recordings imprint, features a track with elusive friend A. K. Paul (‘Trophy’) and sublime singles ‘Bad Blood‘ and ‘Girlfriend,’ which is currently showcasing her impeccable voice and motoring production on BBC Radio 1’s playlist.
The Chainsmokers feat. Halsey – ‘Closer’
Following rapidly from the successes of ‘Roses’ and ‘Don’t Let Me Down,’ The Chainsmokers’ latest dance track with an indie-pop soul comes before Charlee-featuring ‘Inside Out’ has even had a chance to impact. It is, however, far more in the vain of the previous two: a bubbly duet between Halsey, whose 2015 included acclaimed dystopian debut Badlands and an appearance on Justin Bieber’s Purpose, and the duo’s own part-time vocalist Drew Taggart.
Viola Beach – Viola Beach
In a tragic road accident in Sweden earlier this year, the members and manager of young Warrington indie quartet Viola Beach were killed. Today, a 9-track self-titled album is released by their own Fuller Beans Records – a compendium described in our review as “a glimpse toward everything the young band had to offer, with a joyous indie heartbeat running throughout.”
Offaiah – ‘Trouble’
Anonymous Argentinian house producers don’t tend to turn up in Ibiza and run away with everyone’s hearts, yet that’s exactly what Offaiah appears to be doing with ‘Trouble,’ a record built on a sample of a collaboration between Lil Wayne and Charlie Puth for a documentary about Roland’s TR-808 drum machine. Raved about across the island by DJs and dancers alike, its months of floating around end today with a release across all major platforms by Virgin EMI, setting it up to be an inevitable crossover hit.
DJ Khaled – Major ????
What does DJ Khaled actually do beyond hanging with rappers, lions, and hilarious YouTubers drinking his apple Ciroc to celebrate success right and screaming motivational messages into Snapchat? He makes music, apparently. Major ????, his ninth album and first since becoming a bizarre social media celebrity, isn’t afraid to build on those perceptions, featuring as many catchphrase references as tastefully possible (‘Holy Key,’ ‘I Got The Keys,’ ‘Don’t Ever Play Yourself’) and 32 featured guests over its 14 tracks, covering all bases from Jay-Z and Nas to Kent Jones and Meghan Trainor.
JoJo feat. Wiz Khalifa – ‘Fuck Apologies’
“Fuck apologies / I would say I’m sorry if I really meant it.” After a decade out of the limelight, the woman behind teen-pop anthems ‘Leave (Get Out)’ and ‘Too Little Too Late’ is still only 25 and, freed from an elongated legal battle with former label Blackground, preparing for October’s Atlantic debut Mad Love in the punchy fashion that one would expect.
Selected Other Releases
Albums
Beaty Heart – Till The Tomb
Billy Talent – Afraid Of Heights
Chicane – Twenty
Dawin – Sunday EP
D/C – Badman EP
Gary Hoey – Dust & Bones
Jarryd James – High EP
Jason Derulo – Platinum Hits
J-Felix – The Runaway EP
Kllo – Well Worn EP
Kylie Auldist – Family Tree
Steve Aoki – 4OKI EP
TheSoundYouNeed Summer 2016
Trim – 1-800 Dinosaur Presents: Trim
Zhu – Generationwhy
Singles
Abra – ‘CRYBABY’
Bastille – ‘Fake It‘
Billie Marten – ‘Lionhearted’
Blossoms – ‘Honey Sweet’
Buster Moe – ‘Good Kinda Crazy’
Christopher & Matoma – ‘Take Me Back’
Father John Misty – ‘Real Love Baby’
Fickle Friends – ‘Cry Baby’
Flo Rida – ‘Zillionaire’
Glass Animals – ‘Youth’
Hælos – ‘Dust’
How To Dress Well – ‘Lost Youth / Lost You’
Kav Verhouzer feat. BullySongs – ‘Get What You Came For’
Mac Miller feat. Anderson .Paak – ‘Dang!’
Martin Garrix & Bebe Rexha – ‘In The Name Of Love’
Massive Attack feat. Hope Sandoval – ‘The Spoils’
My Chemical Romance – ‘The Five Of Us Are Dying’
Nas & Erykah Badu – ‘This Bitter Land’
New Order – ‘People On The High Line’
RIVRS – ‘Something About You’
Seazoo – ‘Touch’ / ‘Skulls’
Shawn Mendes – ‘Three Empty Words’
Sinead Harnett feat. GRADES – ‘If You Let Me’
The Big Moon – ‘Silent Movie Susie’
Two Door Cinema Club – ‘Bad Decisions’
