A week of tentatively lowering a toe into the waters of 2025 albums before the ensuing flood of new releases coming later this month.

Bridget Hayden and the Apparitions           Cold Blows The Rain              

The reinterpreted traditional folk songs that make up Cold Blows the Rain are shaped by the land and the weather. Wrapped in mist and drizzle, the crawling drone of low heavy clouds on flat-top moors. The sound of the dark Calder Valley floor and sun starved hills in West Yorkshire in the North of England.

The Very Things           Mr. Arc-Eye (under a cellophane sky)       

First album in 35 years for band formed from the ashes of The Cravats. The album has an energetic, eclectic post-punk vibe and contains ‘ghosts, radiation, an electrician, rivers of sand, a toga, Samantha Stephens, an antique suit, space walks and a scrap iron man’.

Skinner             New Wave Vaudeville           

The title references the New Wave Vaudeville music variety freak show that took place at the 57 Club in New York from 1978 to 1983. The club was known for its free-form art shows, a debaucherous wild riposte to creeping commerciality of modern culture of the time and inspires the ethos of this album.

Moonchild Sanelly   Full Moon        

Club-ready beats that oscillate between electronic, afro-punk, edgy-pop, kwaito, and hip-hop sensibilities.

Early James   Medium Raw

Jagged moaning blues, a brace of smart, playful, and often fiercely rocking original songs.

Ringo Starr     Look Up            

Country album from the legendary drummer. It was produced and co-written by T Bone Burnett and features a guest vocal appearance from Alison Krauss.

Lambrini Girls              Who Let The Dogs Out          

Sirens blare over a heavy distorted bass and a live drum breakbeat, dancing between upbeat pop punk, dirty grunge tones and discordant post-punk.

Patriarkh          ПРОРОК ИЛИЯ         

Polish black metal band’s new concept album consists of eight new compositions and immerses the listener in the true story of Eliasz Klimowicz, the titular Prophet Ilja, set in the 1930s and 40s.

David Steinhart          Released        

It features ten new songs and highlights Steinhart’s ongoing love of folk tinged pop tunes, this time with lush full band arrangements and his customary rich lyrical imagery.

Lightwave        Cites Analogues        

Reissue of the duo’s 1988 release. The instrumentation consists mainly of analog synthesizers, including several modular systems (RSF, ARP, Roland, Oberheim), while the sequences and rhythms are driven by two Roland sequencers.

Torba                   II            

The Italy-based producer makes stark electronic tracks that pull from punk, industrial and club music while retaining a modern grit of his own

Ellis King          Better Luck EP            

The songs of ‘Better Luck’ showcase personal reflections and potent musical moments with poignant songs about feelings of uncertainty.

Magnum           Live at KK’s Steel Mill            

Live album from the long-standing British rock band.