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These are your hotly-contested albums for the month of July – reviewed with a fresh, honest take. Some with hard truths to swallow, others fitting the bill marvellously.

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What angle does a popstar turn to when they’ve had one of the most blistering vomit-green Summers of any artist career? Well, you try and dive into the one thing that will almost always have your back. Art. A collision course between the worlds, Charli states a pop stardom quandary on seventh Music, Fashion, Film – a far more sincere follow-up to the expulsions of Brat. Stripping back the auto-tune and greasing up a far more slicked production, we bear witness to a crisis on record. Presenting facades behind a lense on Camera to idolising art as freedom on Yeah, Charli pits the world of art against itself. In a sense, Charli is conflicted. As am I. Taking this album at face value is never a good idea – it requires a deeper listen. For most parts, there’s moments of feel here. Pop music that makes you think more than just moving limbs is always a positive. But any poignant message that Charli tries to convey here, fizzles out with these stingy 2 and a half minute songs that either end with a slowed synth or an abridged vocal stim. You’re better off bringing back fadeouts at this point. For the beauty of existential SS26 brings, we have to listen through its predecessor Rock Music which for want a better word, is utterly heinous. The discussion of immortality and art remaining even after you’re gone is a nice moment on No One Lasts Forever and the self-aware blares of I’m Afraid is a Charli quite possibly at her most vulnerable.

For it’s worth, it’s a pretty bang-average pop record with catchy moments to hold on to. But its jarring monotony and rudimentary layouts make it difficult to really understand what Charli is trying to get at here. Music, Fashion, Film – in theory.

The New Yorkers’ return after six years with a chore to listen to. Seventh studio Reality Awaits was supposed to be their re-claim to their throne, Casablancas’ reprising break from his other side-projects. Instead, we get a driftless trot of auto-tune preamble, haphazard noodling and lacklustre attention. While The Voidz have been a resolute side-project, it seems that his first has warped in the sun. A world far more daunting, the seventh record sees a gloomy and doomy Strokes stride aimlessly in a musical pile-on that’s neither this way or that. It seems that Going to Babble On was just a footnote into Julian’s approach to this record. The obvious stand-outs are the pre-singles of Falling out of Love and Going Shopping of course, but there’s not really anything remotely exciting that will warrant a return to this record, I’m afraid. I’ll stick to the hustle and bustle of Is This It, thanks.

A once-formidable force in slick rock, perhaps Reality Awaits is the smoking gun for Casablancas and co to call it quits.

It’s time to involve the likes of Yard Act in ‘those’ conversations. Leeds’ own quartet Yard Act bring in a Britpop disco romp on third record, We’re Gonna Need A Little Music, which sees them evolve once more with funkily fresh stylings. A group traversing every far-flung corner of alt-rock rivets, Yard Act know no bounds to their creativity. From brandishing grandiose Oasis chants with “New Beginnings” to the frolics of Blur in “Talky Talky People” (albeit reminiscent of Dumb Ways to Die), they venture into the nostalgic ends of ’90s Britpop, skittish alt-rock modernity and everything in-between.

While many may think they hanker down too much on their influences, they still manage to cling on to those original sounds that made them the act into Yard Act. It’s a darkened edge to a band that we saw originally on their debut, as they shook their fists at the state of the country via witty musings and tasteful licks. And there’s much the same here. Tricky piano trills, flamboyant horns, egregious guitar solos – it’s every bit un-nverving as it is exciting. While James’ usually strong lyrical progressions take a bit of a back seat here, there’s still enough here to steer Yard Act into the conversation as one of those high-rising British rock acts.

Six years on from I Let it in and It Took Everything, the seismic metalcore Liverpudlians return with A Stranger To You, as they begin the heavy shedding of Deftones revival era – breaching into new plains of their own. With what shadow I Let It In cast, it was never going to be easy to clamber back to its heights. For many fans, I Let It In was the grip of a scene we’ll never get to experience quite the same again. But the time is right for those fans eager to hear the band in this new era. A venture into the unknown on all accounts, it breathes new life into a band that were on the frays of becoming stagnant and albeit too reliable on what once was. It’s a surge right out the gates with Block of Flats, a partnership with Static Dress that harnesses both destructive riffage and high-octane vocals. Gemini, a favourite, stands out as a suitor for such a progressive band. Revenant is another punch to the gut, as that wall of noise just overloads the filter.

Amongst the carnage, comes moments of tranquility. The inflections of contemporary jazz ambience here are to die for. The Way It Breaks is a heart-wrenching breakaway made all the better with Mansur Brown’s shreddery- the best in the business. We’re not done there either as Jordan Rakei lends his voice on The Ladder, as we receive another welcoming compromise to the noise. Then we’re met with Gifted Every Strength: a multi-faceted journey that’s within striking distance as one of their best tracks put to tape.

Heavy and hard, A Stranger to You‘s soft landings offer little respite in keeping up, as the band rise and deliver a well-rounded record. While the production may feel muddy in places, it’s a harkening reprise for a band that arguably, feels just as flourished and unfiltered as their magnum opus.

There’s no one as exciting as this trio right now. Fresh, bushy-eyed trio begin their ascent with their debut. A hefty post-punk dissection bursting full of ideas, Hoping as a Coping Mechanism is a project that comes hot and angry at the world. It seems that this is your soundtrack to survival. Lead giant Float sets the precedent while the fast hands on Emotive Language is a joy to listen to, while Lucid is a plain old punch to the gut in-between spurges of care-free practice. There’s no imposter present here – it’s thirteen of the bands’ best ideas so far which becomes an album worth every second of your time.

A whirlpool of inventive takes and clever strides, Bleached Cross’ Wrath sees the goth punks embellish themselves as titans truly worth every cent. A flair of the theatrics, Wrath is a performance to remember. Powerful lead Crucible stokes the fire with pulsating synth warbles and waning vocals that’s as Robert Smith as it is Twin Tribes. Euphoric outcries are draped across the records’ canvas as are those mournful guitar lines, making you all the more conflicted in exactly how to feel.

Her most accomplished project to date, new avatar shines a light on the combined efforts of R&B contemporaries and electronic music into a blissful trope of floating limbs and instrumentation under the surface. Angelic vocals complete the look of a beautiful rendition of a singer-songwriter who has been around for the better part of a decade.

The debut record of Swapmeet sees us meander down a guitar-driven road trip with suave alt-rock patterns and glossy slowcore tidbits. The Australian four-piece make their mark with Mount Zero, a bushy-eyed romp of firsts as they navigate young adulthood. With it, comes four who find themselves and their sound. It’s airy sweetness is enough to enjoy but the minimialist instrumentation listed becomes a tad momentous in places.