Notable vinyl releases out this Friday - August 29, 2025

Recorded live in a circle with some of my dearest friends, Animal Poem was made in conversation. We wanted to be together in the room, to listen and respond in real time without the separation of walls and headphones. I met Sam Weber the summer before and resonated deeply with his musicality and his reasons. We sat around on porches swapping tunes and I asked if he would help me make something that felt as unadorned and free. He donned hats seamlessly – co-producer, engineer, musician – setting mics and checking levels before returning to curl around his guitar and disappear into each song. Everyone in the studio made it feel so open, made it easy to forget technology and permanence and just play, messy and alive. It’s this vital mess that moves me when I listen now – ghost notes in the high register of the piano, melodic guitar and bass lines briefly interwoven, earthy cymbals breathing, my dog barking. We came back to add saxophone, strings, vocal harmonies, and a few other tastes, but most of what you hear is just people sitting together in a small room, listening and talking with tenderness and abandon. The songs were written on long drives across the country, airplanes, walks through my neighborhood, nights spent lying on the roof. Every album is a snapshot, a momentary study of the way a mind reaches for understanding. I can feel myself reaching in these songs, for whatever is right beyond my grasp. Mortality and connection. Suffering and meaning. People lead the narratives, come into orbit, spin away again – an exhausted mother at a freeway exit, an aging neighbor surrounded by a growing pile of newspapers, the unsung heroes of a midwest uprising, two lovers looking at the sky.

'Californian Sunset' Coloured Vinyl LP. Demon Music Group are delighted to confirm the release of the new album, 'Once Upon A Time In California' from the icon that is Belinda Carlisle. • The music legend returns to her roots on 'Once Upon A Time In California'. Featuring ten new studio tracks, recorded in her native Los Angeles, it sees the singer take a deeply personal journey through the golden sounds of her youth, with a collection of immaculate cover versions. Steeped in the spirit of her Californian upbringing, the album is a heartfelt tribute to the vintage pop culture that shaped her musical identity. • In addition to the album release and her recent reunion with The Go-Go's for Coachella 2025, Belinda will be embarking on her Heavenly Hits tour in 2025 with five shows in the UK between 5-13 September and one as-yet-announced high profile late-summer concert. • 'Once Upon A Time In California' opens with a stirring remake of the Bacharach & David gem written for Dionne Warwick, 'Anyone Who Had A Heart'. Belinda then pays her respects to such timeless artists as the Carpenters ('Superstar'), Gordon Lightfoot ('If You Could Read My Mind'), and Jim Croce ('Time In A Bottle'), and to songs for the ages including 'The Air That I Breathe' (Albert Hammond), 'Everybody's Talkin' (Harry Nilsson) and 'Reflections Of My Life' (Marmalade). The result is an entirely different kind of California dreamin' for a new generation. Although this marks the first time all ten tracks have been available on one album, three of the selections - 'Superstar', 'If You Could Read My Mind' and 'Get Together' have been available on previous Belinda Carlisle collections.

The new album is titled Essex Honey. It explores themes of family grief, England, and the healing, communal power of music throughout a lifetime. Lyrically, the album is diaristic yet communal, existing in the haze of memory that often follows a loss. Musically, this is reflected sonically through analog recordings, recurring cello motifs, nods to earlier Blood Orange projects, and various musical interpolations from Hynes' youth. Sonically, the album includes an array of arrangements and instruments like the acoustic guitar with a punk distortion and melodic ethereal tones that were woven into his dreams as a kid growing up in Essex, imagining his future. Essex Honey features contributions from The Durutti Column, Mustafa, Caroline Polachek, Daniel Caesar, Lorde, Zadie Smith, Tirzah, Brendan Yates (Turnstile), and Mabe Fratti. The album is self-produced and mixed by Dev alongside Mikaelin “Blue” Bluespruce, with mastering by Heba Kadry.

Nonesuch Records releases pianist and composer Brad Mehldau’s Ride into the Sun—a songbook recordof music by the late singer, songwriter, and guitarist Elliott Smith. Featured musicians include singer/guitarist Daniel Rossen (Grizzly Bear); singer/mandolinist Chris Thile (Punch Brothers, NickelCreek); bassists Felix Moseholm (Brad Mehldau Trio) and John Davis; drummer Matt Chamberlain (FionaApple, Tori Amos, Randy Newman, etc.); and a chamber orchestra led by Dan Coleman. Ride into the Sun’s ten Elliott Smith songs are complemented by four Mehldau compositions that he says are “inspired by, and reflect, Smith’s oeuvre.” Also included are interpretations of Big Star’s “Thirteen,” which Smith also covered, and “Sunday” by Nick Drake, who Mehldau says, “I look at in some ways assort of Smith’s visionary godfather.” Recalling how he first got to know Smith and his music, which has been a regular part of his repertoire for years, Mehldau said that after years living in New York, he moved to Los Angeles “and there was this wonderful scene of singer-songwriters that was congregating at a club called Largo. That included Elliott but it also included artists like Rufus Wainwright, Fiona Apple. And then other musicians who had been around for a while would come down every Friday night to sit in on a gig that was led by Jon Brion. I played behind Elliott on his own tunes with Jon. It felt to me like a kind of renaissance in songwriting that flourished for a number of years.”

Bassist, composer, arranger, producer and bandleader Christian McBride reconvenes his GRAMMY® Award-winning big band for a star-studded follow up to 2020’s For Jimmy, Wes & Oliver. The new album, Without Further Ado, Vol. 1, features unforgettable arrangements of classic songs with a cast of special guest vocalists that only Christian can assemble: Sting, Andy Summers, Jeffrey Osborne, Samara Joy, José James, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Dianne Reeves and Antoinette Henry.

It’s almost inconceivable that it’s only five years since the arrival of CMAT, as she approaches the release of her third album, Euro-Country. This BRITs / Mercury / Ivors-nominated acronymic star feels like she’s been part of the culture forever - and what has endeared fans to her heart-sore tunes and humour is CMAT's ability to combine contradictory themes and moods: wide-eye drama with self-deprecation. Country music has always been a lynchpin for CMAT, but this is country in an augmented, reimagined way. Mixed with classic indie and affirmative soul-pop, it resists the music industry’s desire to pigeonhole artists as one genre. Not only is there a palpable tonal shift, Euro-Country also feels like a huge step-up creatively. There is a sense of determination, of urgency, of ‘gather round and listen up’. From re-evaluating where you come from (geographically, metaphorically) and the impact of economics on a small country, to the attention that comes with increased fame (not all of it good) and being a woman in the music industry.

For this collaborative release, Eiko & Jim edited and remixed material captured at shows they played during a lovely two week tour through France, Switzerland, Italy and Ireland in April 2023. Pareidolia shapes an ideal collage from the best resonances and relationships from those nights. A dynamic medley of color and shape to pulse through earbuds, speaker cones and the air around you, appealing to your suggestibility, wherever you find it.

Flyte's upcoming record, 'Between You and Me', finds Will Taylor and Nick Hill at their most self-assured, having honed their songwriting skills for over a decade to deliver an album full of mesmerizing lyrics and fragile melodies. 'Between You and Me' features some of Flyte's best work to date and showcases collaborations with the likes of Ethan Johns (producer) and Aimee Mann ("Alabaster"). With headline dates throughout 2025 and into 2026, Flyte will find themselves touring Europe, headlining arenas across London and the UK, and performing at venues around North America.

The right songs, strung together, give a revitalized vision of oursurroundings, as if fresh eyes can be granted by rhythm alone,find new shapes for the weathered wireframe of the world andsee the shadows as they dance with the light of day. AnimalHospital, the new LP from Chicago art punks Ganser, is amonument to observation, a tome of stray thoughts gatheredwhile moving through a crowd coalesced into a collective takeon the absurd contradictions of lives moving past.Animal Hospital is Ganser at their most dynamic, stretching theconfines of their sonic boundaries into new territory, testing theelastic limits of sound. The core of the band, Alicia Gaines,Sophie Sputnik, and Brian Cundiff, remain steadfastlycommitted to propulsive patterns; drums that pound exactingbeats on the heart, pulse quickened by bass and guitars,synths to calm the nerves. Building endless rhythm beneathfeet moving in time on a dance floor, or a sidewalkmasquerading as one.What has been gathered here is a collection of observations,recollections of the minutes that turned to days spentwitnessing the humanity within people shift and spin in newdirections. People changed stripes and spots, or maybe theyjust revealed the marks they always held. Lives became held ata distance. Masks pulled tight. There's a profundity to be foundin exploring the the surreal truths lurking in our hearts, that thesad and the mundane can play so effortlessly with the absurdand beautiful to make something haunting, something striking,songs that sting and soar and beg you to dance all at once.Recorded at Jamdek Studios by Doug Malone (with additionalrecording by Nick Broste at Electrical Audio) and produced inpartnership with longtime collaborator Angus Andrews (Liars)between January and March of 2025, Animal Hospital is amasterwork of Ganser's long-honed craft. Songs that began lifeas notes scratched as far back as 2020 (save for "stripe", ademo reworked from 2001) that have been honed andcommitted here to tape, pressed into wax. Ganser has builttheir sound out, constructed walls that tower to new heights,joined on the record by Charlie Landsman and Dove Hollis toshore up the foundation.Time on the road with artists like IDLES, McLusky and Ted Leo,alongside shows with Amyl & The Sniffers, Bikini Kill, ViagraBoys and so many more have only sharpened the indelibletalent that lurks in all corners of Ganser's work, filtering theabsurd and the profound through a prism and emerging withmusic that refuses to believe that any one thing is true, thatinstead all things hold strength and secrets in their shadows,and it's only in beckoning us all to the floor and giving uspurpose that we can understand the inescapable beauty of allcontradictory things.

Jehnny Beth, former frontwoman of Mercury-nominated Savages, returns with her 2nd solo album You Heartbreaker, You via Fiction Records. Her debut solo album To Love Is To Live was released in 2020 followed by touring alongside with Queens of the Stone Age, Depeche Mode, Idles and more. Since her debut solo album she has collaborated with artists such as Gorillaz, Sextile, Bobby Gillespie (Primal Scream) and Idles. 

Lathe of Heaven return with their second full-length album Aurora, a boldexpansion of their sonic and thematic palette that unfolds like a series of vivid,emotional vignettes.Aurora is an iteration of Lathe of Heaven's sound previously unexplored, one thatoffers a delicate balance of their punk roots with captivating new-wave and 80spost-punk aesthetics, incorporating influences from mid 80s British and Finnishpost-punk, combined with subtle nuances from 90s and contemporary underground pop. Recorded with Ben Greenberg at Circular Ruin and masteredby Brad Boatright, the album sonically is inspired by The Cure's melodic rock,Musta Paraati's gothic post-punk synth and intense drumming, and A Flock ofSeagulls' art pop vocals and guitar riffs.Lyrically, Aurora doesn't shy away from heavy themes. Envisioned as a collectionof sci-fi short stories, it is deeply influenced and lyrically driven by themes ofanti-colonialism, diversity, and equality. These stories are inspired by Ursula K. leGuin, Octavia Butler, Greg Egan, and Peter Watts' novels, leading listeners tomythical, bold, and somewhat unnerving realities. The title track, "Aurora," is setin a dystopian future where Earth is long abandoned due to nuclear fallout - it explores themes of loss, love, and devotion. "Oblivion" delves into the phenomenonof semantic satiation - say a word enough times and it begins to lose it's meaning."Exodus" reimagines Theseus' Ship Paradox, narrating the experience of transferring consciousness into a new, perfect body. Elsewhere, "Portrait of a ScorchedEarth" stands as a direct act of resistance. One of the most emotionally raw songson the album, it breaks from the band's usual lyrical abstraction as an unflinchingreckoning with the horrors of modern warfare and displacement, rooted in thelived tragedy of Gaza.Lathe of Heaven hope Aurora elicits a vast spectrum of emotions, and inspiresdeeper reflection on the state of our reality and humanity. It is literary withoutbeing pretentious, political without preaching, and emotional without flinching.Every song holds a piece of a shattered mirror and what emerges is a prismatic,wounded beauty, staring back with a thousand faces. Set to be released August29th, 2025, Aurora stakes it's claim; "tremble without fear into dreamless oblivion."You are invited.

For nearly a decade, Margo Price has created a lane where independent-minded, insurgent country music can exist and thrive alongside the mainstream. Now she's back with an exquisite, timeless album that reconnects with her roots. At its core, Hard Headed Woman is about that furious instinct to never waver - especially when our values and future are so clearly on the line. It's country music as only Price can make it: free of rules, cherishing tradition, hard headed but with a delicate beating heart.

Transparent Blue Vinyl. Nova Twins have risen from the UK's independent scene to become one of it's most transformative acts, rewriting the rules of success and redefining alt. Rock music's future. Sharing stages with Foo Fighters and Muse, earning two BRIT Award nominations, and making history as the first Black rock band shortlisted for the Mercury Prize, they've cemented their legacy as trailblazers. Praised by legends like Tom Morello and Elton John, their electrifying presence continues to captivate audiences worldwide. Their latest album, Parasites & Butterflies, is a genre-defying journey through life's chaos and beauty, blending hip-hop, punk, rock, pop and electronic influences. Fearless and unflinching, it explores empowerment, identity, and mental health, balancing turbulence with clarity and vulnerability with strength. "This is the sound of us pushing the boundaries of everything Nova Twins can be," they affirm-an album destined to challenge, inspire, and redefine expectations. Following the Mercury Prize shortlisted 'Supernova' by MOBO and brit-award nominee alt. Rock duo, Nova Twins, 'Parasites & Butterflies' boasts tracks that'll make you want to cry, laugh, dance; spanning themes of female empowerment, mental health, grief and letting loose - With focus firmly on giving back to the fans with dedicated experiences. Set to make Nova Twins a generational success story, this album demands your attention; P&B will empower new and existing fans WORLDWIDE - everyone is welcome in this new era

Ron is one of Canada’s most accomplished singer-songwriters. He has collaborated with Daniel Lanois, Mitchell Froom, Ane Brun, Tchad Blake, and Bob Rock.  His songwriting appears on albums from Rod Stewart, Michael Bublé, k.d. lang, Emmylou Harris and Feist. Who better to tell you about the whys and wherefores of Hangover Terrace than the man himself?

Man's Best Friend is the latest album from multi-hyphenate global popstar Sabrina Carpenter. Coming off her GRAMMY-winning project, Short n' Sweet, and numerous multi-platinum singles added to her resume, the latest from Carpenter is bursting with high energy pop and criss-crossing genres in only a way that she can.

The Beaches have spent the past decade building something unstoppable. Their third album No Hard Feelings finds the band blaming themselves (rather than their exes), embracing their partying ways and accepting the occasional semi-self destructive thoughts and actions. The LP includes the last-call anthem “Last Girls At The Party”, fan favorite “Jocelyn” and self-reflective “Takes One to Know One.”

"One of the greatest indie-rock bands of their time." - Rolling Stone New Zealand indie rock heroes The Beths latest album Straight Line Was A Lie is a catchy, instant classic out on August 29th. Written in Los Angeles and self-recorded in the band's hometown of Auckland, Straight Line Was A Lie (their first release for ANTI-) follows 2022's critically celebrated LP Expert in A Dying Field. Lead singer and songwriter Liz Stokes delves deeper into her psyche to address everything from roundabout progress to physical and mental health challenges, and fraught family dynamics. Inspired by The Go-Go's, Olivia Rodrigo, filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, and Stephen King's On Writing, amongst others, Stokes' songwriting has achieved startling new depths of insight and vulnerability. Fans will agree that Straight Line Was A Lie is the most sharply observant, truthful, and poetic Beths project to date.

The Hives Forever, Forever The Hives is the bands 7th studio LP, a razor-sharp culmination of their rupturing, signature powder-keg (The New York Times) rock n roll energy that initially captured the zeitgeist during the garage rock revival in the early 2000s. The Hives continue to reach sky-high on the new album, with the majority of it recorded in one take at Yung Lean/YEAR0001s studio and riksmixningsverket a studio owned by Benny Andersson of ABBA in Stockholm. The record was produced by their longtime collaborator Pelle Gunnerfeldt (Viagra Boys, Yung Lean, Elvira) as well as the bands old tourmate Mike D of the Beastie Boys, who flew out to Sweden specifically to work on the album and hosted the band at his studio in Malibu. Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age consulted on the record, too.

The Clearing is the brand new album from Wolf Alice. Written in Seven Sisters and recorded in LA with Grammy-winning, master producer Greg Kurstin last year, The Clearing reveals where Wolf Alice stands sonically in 2025. They deliver a supremely confident collection of songs bursting with ambition, ideas, and emotion.