Jane WeaverFlock★★★★☆After almost two decades of making off-kilter pop, Jane Weaver, from Manchester, fashioned her latest on an inspirational diet of “Lebanese torch songs, 1980s Russian aerobics
Jane Weaver: Flock review – triumphantly twisting pop music to her own ends | Pop and rock theguardian.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theguardian.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Sleaford Mods – Spare Ribs
The title of Sleaford Mods’ sixth album is apparently an oblique reference to the fatalities in the first wave of coronavirus: “Human lives are always expendable to the elites,” in the words of vocalist Jason Williamson, “we’re in a constant state of being spare ribs.” The presence of a track called Shortcummings suggest events of the last 12 months figure heavily, although lead single Mork n Mindy offered a grim look back at 80s childhood. Released on 15 January
Bicep – Isles
Belfast duo Bicep’s eponymous 2017 debut was an impressively eclectic gem that shifted them away from their deep house roots into breakbeats, electro and drum’n’bass: in scope and ambition, it recalled the blockbusting dance albums of the 90s by Orbital or Leftfield. And Saku, one of three singles already taken from its follow-up, was one of 2020’s low-key delights: a dreamy collaboration with singer-songwriter Clara La San that stirred influences from ID
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Jane Weaver catches cosmic sounds, bygone Lebanese torch songs, 1980’s Russian aerobics records and Australian punk for her new album and turns them into superlative pop like we hear on the song “
The Revolution of Super Visions.”
Playlist