mvm.

As our nights get darker and colder, take a plunge into this weeks’ New Music Friday for the first week in November. A jam-packed November release for the ages. //

The Ezra Collective: First up, we have the might of The Ezra Collective return with Where I’m Meant To Be. One of the UK jazz quintets leading the forefront in a hybrid collective of jazz, samba, afro-beat and grime, they are quintessentially London and mightily talented. You can view the full album review here.

First Aid Kit. Next, we’re enticed into the pastoral hue of First Aid Kit. A Swedish indie folk duo at heart, sisters Klara and Johanna Söderberg have been writing captivating storytales for over a decade. Featuring “Out of My Head” and “Turning Onto You”, their fifth studio albums Palomino demonstrates true masters at work as it harks back to their poppy and airy debut days in 2010.

The Pretty Reckless. Need we say more about this rock stud? Taylor Momsen and co have been in our earholes since 2010, their stamp on ‘traditional’ hard rock ‘n’ roll is too iconic to comprehend. As a sweetened follow-up from surprise of the year, Death by Rock and Roll – which had an impressive roster of Matt Cameron and Tom Morello getting involved – Other Worlds dropped today features powerful ballads, heart-strung acoustics and a real embellishment of songwriting for the New Yorkers.

Phoenix. Eating up enough space on your old iPod playlists back in ’09, it’s safe to say that French artistes Phoenix have had their fair share of indie anthems. Their new music since 2017, sees them blend archaic alternative sounds with everything-Phoenix which rather unsurprisingly, is rather European in its composition. New stand-outs would have to be Tonight, Winter Solstice and Alpha Zulu, which also so happens to be the name of the album.

The Blue Stones. Laced with joyous spirit and off-the-grid crunch, Pretty Monster is an amalgamation of the duo’s time in the sun and their eventful live shows, thrilling and captive as they are. Forever expanding their potent songwriting from debut Black Holes in 2018 that evidently blew up, Pretty Monster is a dirty blues rock with a melodic attention to poppy hooks. From the Hives‘ Tick Tick Boom-esque drive of Don’t Miss to the swampy bass groove in Cards Are Down, finally landing on Twenty One Pilots-inspired Good Ideas with the ‘funkomatics’, Pretty Monster needs to be on your radar turned up.

Crawlers. Initially delayed at first from the week prior, dazed and loud swamped post-rock Loud Without Noise is the bands’ second EP. More brittle to the bone, Loud Without Noise is the band’s next step to a more mature approach to songwriting, all the while perfecting fierce waves in the world of rock. It features hard-hitters Fuck Me (I Don’t Know What To Say), I Don’t Want It and sombre surprise, Hang Me Like Jesus.

Our honourable mentions this week include: Gorillaz’ Baby Queen, Noel Gallagher’s Pretty Boy, Sam Ryder’s next single, All The Way Over, collaborative I felt a funeral, in my Brain with Andrew Bird and Phoebe Bridgers and Avril Lavigne’s continual pop-punk -albeit impractical -surge with I’m A Mess, featuring YUNGBLUD.

You can check the listing in your own delightful playlist below: