Folly Group – Down There!
In 2022 I incorrectly predicted that this album would be out in 2023. Fast forward to now (today, 12th January 2024 in fact) and it’s finally out. So I think I can be forgiven for being less than two weeks out with my guess. Anyway, it’s been a while since what you might call a guitar band really excited me. So I’m hoping for good things here. Don’t let me down fellas.
James Spearing
Everything Everything – Mountainhead
One read of the description that the upcoming album from Everything Everything takes place in a world where ‘all of society is consumed with the building of a giant mountain’ has me fascinated, terrified and intrigued in equal measure. One of the most chaotic bands in terms of their output across their career it’s hard to gauge what kind of album we will get from them, but for me I’m very excited to unpack what sounds utterly unhinged.
Sam Atkins
IDLES – TANGK
Well the boys are back and they have grown soft. In the best way. I’ve really enjoyed the singles I’ve heard so far. ‘Dancer’ has a pulsating bass and LCD Soundsystem chorus. ‘Grace’ is moody and sprawling. I can’t help but get excited for the album. I’ve been burned before (I’m looking at you Ultra Mono). But I already feel like this is going to be troubling the top end of my album of the year lists.
Matt Paul
Elkka
Achieving full marks for me across the board on our things to look forward to this year, it’s Elkka. I’m very confident I’ll enjoy whatever shape the album takes. But I’m not sure which way it will go – it could be a loose collection of club bangers, or it could be something more fully formed, album-oriented and introspective. Hopefully it will a mixture, with a few surprises thrown in. At the moment she can do no wrong.
James Spearing
MGMT – Loss of Life
I can’t even remember why I gave MGMT’s last album, Little Dark Age, a listen. I hadn’t paid any mind to them since their odd 2010 album Congratulations, and had assumed they were one-album wonders. But it was unexpectedly excellent; an updated version of the catchy madcap psychedelia of their debut which also felt cutting and satirical at times.
So this time I approach an album of theirs with anticipation, hoping it wasn’t the surprise factor that enraptured me. Christine and The Queens makes a feature, and there are a few big names on the production credits, so I’m hopeful. The early singles and striking artwork are encouraging, so let’s wait and see.
Tom Burrows
Bob Vylan – Humble as the Sun
I can’t help but be excited for the return of Bob Vylan. The Price of Life was one of 2022’s most exhilarating releases and finally seeing them live a couple of months ago cemented their place in my current list of favourites.
Humble as the Sun promises to bring back their visceral, powerful, and to-the-point punk sound and I am here for it all day long.
Fran Slater
The Smile – Wall of Eyes
I thought The Smile’s first album was solid. It was Radiohead-lite. A collection of enjoyable songs, but still very much ‘a side project’ – nothing that touched the main act in terms of quality.
And then I heard what I thought was a one-off single, ‘Bending Hectic’, after it popped up on my Spotify. And oh my, here it was: the first great Smile song. A completely compelling 8-minute epic with perfect pacing, winding and bending like the events it describes before exploding into life in its finale.
When they then announced a second album featuring the track, you could colour me excited. Waiting with bated breath for Wall of Eyes in a mere few weeks.
Tom Burrows
Kojey Radical
This might be wishful thinking, but it feels like Kojey Radical is gearing up for a big release this year. It would be wise, given the momentum gained by 2022’s Reason To Smile. If he can produce something that’s even close to being as good as that one, it is hard to see anything other than superstardom following. The main reason I am desperate for this album to emerge ASAP, though, is that it was hard to come by the hip-hop hit that I needed in 2023. Come on, Kojey – come back and save the genre.
Fran Slater
Dua Lipa
We are definitely getting new music from Dua Lipa this year, an album that kicked off with the incredible song Houdini. I love the darker tone to the track, the influence of Kevin Parker making me hope for the ambition he brought to The Weeknd’s spectacular Dawn FM. Dua Lipa will dominate 2024, and I think she might be about to release her greatest album yet.
Sam Atkins
Picky Bastards 