Alela Diane – To Be Still
Nevada City's beguiling folk heroine Alela Diane returns with a white diamond of a second album. Be still, our beating heart.
The Low Anthem – Oh My God, Charlie Darwin
Oh my god! The third album from this Rhode Island folk trio proves to be a natural selection.
Telekinesis – Telekinesis!
A protégé of Death Cab's Chris Walla, Telekinesis, certainly has the über producer's influence all over its thirteen power pop tracks.
Dirty Projectors – Bitte Orca
"Bitte Orca is an album for the background of a high concept coffee shop on your hipster street". I'm getting that Reality Bites feeling...
Joker’s Daughter – The Last Laugh
Producer Danger Mouse and vocalist Helena Costas come together as Joker's Daughter. It's a mixed deck by all accounts.
Silversun Pickups – Swoon
Have the Silversun Pickups swooned too soon? We pickup the pieces of the LA band's second album.
Sonic Youth – The Eternal
The Enternal is Sonic Youth's celebration of newfround freedom. I guess that mean's no more working for the man.
Peaches – I Feel Cream
The always fruity Peaches is back with fourth album I Feel Cream which finds her giving the past a slip and whipping it real good.
Drop Nineteens – Delaware
Welcome reissue of Boston shoegazers debut effort from 1992 complete with bonus tracks. It's wicked pissa!
The Horrors – Primary Colours
The Horrors pull off the surprise reinvention act of the century and lift the curse of the sophomore slump forever.
Blue Roses – Blue Roses
Blue Roses may not exist in nature but there's nothing artificial about Yorkshire songsmith Laura Groves.
British Sea Power – Man of Aran
British Sea Power take to the Irish Coast to provide a fresh soundtrack to this 1934 documentary on the people of Aran.
Grizzly Bear – Veckatimest
How much can a grizzly bear? We're not sure but this Brooklyn four piece's third album gets a perfect 10/10.
The Church – Untitled #23
Moving on from Uninvited, Like The Clouds to Untitled #23, The Church near the end of the alphabet but not the end of their career.
Lotus Plaza – The Floodlight Collective
The second solo project members of Deerhunter, Lotus Plaza is guitarist Lockett Pundt's self-fulfilling dreampop odyssey.
…And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead – The Century of Self
Texas' Trail of Dead increase their shelf life with their sixth album, Century of Self.
St. Vincent – Actor
The honeymoon of Marry Me is over for Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent, as she sets her gaze on the big stage in Actor.
Camera Obscura – My Maudlin Career
Four albums in, Camera Obscura assess their career, wisely trading 'brilliant' for 'maudlin' and coming up somewhere inbetween.
Prefuse 73 – Everything She Touched Turned Ampexian
No we have no idea what Ampexian means, but globe trotting Scott Herren otherwise known as Prefuse 73 does on his fifth disc of beats and pieces.
The Thermals – Now We Can See
Portland's The Thermals return with warm power-pop, tempered by decidedly cooler lyrical themes on Now We Can See.
King Creosote – Flick the Vs
The two fingered salute is vigorously given by Scottish anti-folk hero King Creosote on new album Flick the Vs.
El Perro del Mar – Love Is Not Pop
While we love pop, Sweden's El Perro Del Mar remind us that pop is not love.
Projekt A-KO – Yoyodyne
From the ashes of the almighty Urusei Yatsura come Projekt A-KO, and the great guitar-led fuzzpop revolution begins anew.
Metric – Fantasies
Canadian/American synth-rockers Metric return with their fourth (or third) album. Fantasies. Will it be yours though?
Doves – Kingdom of Rust
Fourth album in from these Mancunian maestros, offering a slight return to their electro/house days as Sub Sub.
1990s – Kicks
Get your Kicks on route 1990. Jackie McKeown and the boys return with their second album of more of the same pop-punk.
Fever Ray – Fever Ray
Karin Dreijer Andersson one half of The Knife now gives us Fever Ray, in the morning and fever ray all through the (Swedish) night.
PJ Harvey & John Parish – A Woman A Man Walked By
We took at poll at Webcuts, and PJ Harvey is most definitely not a woman one of us would walk by.
Various Artists – SCORE! 20 Years of Merge Records: The Covers
A star-studded cast pay tribute on this anniversary compilation, but who invited Times New Viking?
Kaki King – Mexican Teenagers EP
Diminutive guitar goddess Kaki King gets caught up with the wrong crowd on Mexican Teenagers.
Anni Rossi – Rockwell
How does Anni Rossi rock? Does she rock well? Well, no, not so much actually.
Condo Fucks – Fuckbook
Who are the Condo Fucks? What is a Fuckbook and is it any good? So many questions, but are you prepared for the answers?
HTRK – Marry Me Tonight
New No Wave or Narco-Electro? Whatever the case, Marry Me Tonight is well worth making an engagement with...
Hatcham Social – You Dig The Tunnel, I’ll Hide The Soil
There's no hiding Hatcham Social. "You Dig The Tunnel" kicks the dirt long and high in a dazzling display of pop sensibility.
The Whitest Boy Alive – Rules
Erlend Øye and company break some rules but also unwittingly create them on their second album entitled, you guessed it, Rules.
Vivian Girls – Vivian Girls
Brooklyn twee-punksters the Vivian Girls hit the reverb heights in a hail of cartoon tattoos and converse on their debut album.
Mr. Maps – Mimicry of Lines and Light
Mr. Maps may not be the territory but this Brisbane instrumental rock band are a pretty amazing act to get lost in.
M.Ward – Hold Time
As Conor Oberst once proclaimed, "M. Ward for President". As far-fetched as it sounds, Oberst may have a point.
Various Artists – futurePOP 2.0
It's the future of pop... or is it? Featuring The Cardigans, Faker, The Ting Tings, The Presets, Ladytron, MGMT et al.
Various Artists – Dark Was The Night
North America's finest show their charitable side with this awe-inspiring collection. Just call it "No Alternative Part 2".
Windsor for the Derby – How We Lost
How did we lose this CD? Never mind, we finally give Austin's other post-rock band's eighth album a run through.
Franz Ferdinand – Tonight: Franz Ferdinand
Many a rock band have experimented with electronica but can Scotland's most successful export since kilts and haggis pull it off?
Andrew Bird – Noble Beast
Andrew Bird takes flight with his latest album Noble Beast. Thankfully it's nothing at all like a Flock of Seagulls.
Grand Duchy – Petit Fours
Grand who? Just call them Mr. and Mrs. Frank Black and everything will be peachy, or desserty...
Factory Records – Communications 1978-1992
Long-overdue retrospective from the label that brought you the Happy Mondays, but don't hold that against them...
Animal Collective – Merriweather Post Pavilion
Animal Collective shake the sand from their fur as they take Merriweather Post Pavillion down to the Beach, Boys.
The Decemberists – The Hazards of Love
EMI/Rough Trade, 2009 [7/10] Where once The Decemberists were a modest modern rock band, albeit outsiders with literate leanings that rarely leaned toward rock's excesses, they have gradually extended their artistic aspirations into the musical stratosphere with band leader Colin Meloy seemingly unable to find satisfaction as a storyteller within the 4 minute realm, thus
Webcuts Top 25 Albums of 2008
Ladies and gentlemen, the envelope please! Webcuts favourite albums of 2008 as argued and fought over by us, including star-studded appearances from Beach House, My Morning Jacket, Fleet Foxes, Nick Cave, Santogold, Okkervil River and many more...
Pavement – Brighten The Corners (Nicene Creedence Edition)
Expanded and remastered fourth album tour de force from Stockton, CA quintet. High-ho silver ride!
The Stills – Oceans Will Rise
The Stills channel an environmental apocalypse with Oceans Will Rise. Will anyone be left to hear it?