NME | Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Pop Culture News
In this fast-paced musical landscape, where it’s so easy to simply put a playlist on shuffle, nothing compares to putting a record on, sitting back and enjoying all it has to offer in full (or at least until you have get up again to flip it over).
Every week, we here at NME round up the best vinyl releases, available to buy or pre-order via Norman Records. Here are the latest picks.
Paul McCartney – III’
NME say:
Macca’s lockdown album is, as we put it in our four-star review, “an unpredictable quest of musical evolution”. We write: “Like the rest of us (OK – not quite like the rest of us), Macca’s been whiling away the hours. The result? A stellar return to his three-decade-spanning series.”
Norman Records say:
If you have followed Paul McCartney’s career with interest over the years you’ll have spotted that his ‘numerals’ albums are a series of entirely solo works. ‘III’ is the third in this series and sees the Beatles and Wings maestro recording alone at his home in Sussex. His previous ‘II’ (1980) was a wild and experimental ride that even drew praise from collaborator-turned-nemesis John Lennon, so hopes are high for a similarly eclectic and creative album this time around.
Buy it now from Norman Records
James Blake – ‘Before’ EP
NME say:
“Loved-up ballads and club bangers come together in harmony” on James Blake’s new EP. As we wrote in our review: “he takes this newfound freedom, albatross firmly removed from around his neck, and dives back into his love for club culture, bringing with him everything he’s learned along the way.”
Norman Records say:
James Blake is back with a new EP which celebrates his roots and his London clubbing days. If anyone can remember how good Blake’s early non-vocal EPs were then you might be ready for a belated return to that sound. ‘Before’ gets halfway there, but also maintains the R&B sound that he’s been dealing since.
Buy it now from Norman Records
Liam Gallagher – ‘All You’re Dreaming Of’
NME say:
Who ever thought that Liam G would release a Xmas tune? Well, we recently called this one “a touching festive ballad”, adding that it’s “a tender tune about love triumphing in times of crisis, ideally rolled out on the Hootenanny for an 11pm tearjerker after a few eggnogs.”
Norman Records say:
With all proceeds going to Action For Children, Liam Gallagher bestows new solo material upon us in the form of a festive 7” single, ‘All You’re Dreaming Of’. Led by seasonal-sounding horns, the cues here are all classic ones, with strains of greats like Bing Crosby and (of course) John Lennon.
Buy it now from Norman Records
Mac Miller – ‘Swimming In Circles’
NME say:
We called Mac Miller’s ‘Swimming’ album “brutally honest and a stellar artistic statement”, while his posthumous record ‘Circles’ was dubbed a “moving tribute” and “a conflicting, tantalising taste of what might have been”. Now both albums are being combined for this boxset release.
Norman Records say:
A four-LP boxset combining two of the late Mac Miller’s studio albums, 2018’s ‘Swimming’ and 2020’s posthumous ‘Circles’. In addition to the records we get lyric sheets, a booklet containing images of Miller during the creation of both the albums, and a poster. It all makes ‘Swimming In Circles’ a great artefact commemorating a sorely-missed hip-hop talent.
Buy it now from Norman Records
Pavement – ‘Slanted and Enchanted’
NME say:
Back in 2015, we took on the task of ranking every Pavement album and this one came out on top. We said of ‘Slanted And Enchanted back then: “Not since Hüsker Du spliced The Beatles with west coast hardcore had the American underground produced a sound so simultaneously gorgeous and punk to the bone as on ‘Slanted And Enchanted’, a changing of the guard kind of moment”.
Norman Records say:
A sloppy sprawling lo-fi charm fest taking heavy influence from the Velvet Underground and the Fall but stumbling blinking in the sun with classic melodies glinting through the fuzzy production and madcap drumming. On top of that add Malkmus wordplay and you get an eternal classic.
Buy it now from Norman Records
Roky Erickson & The Aliens – ‘The Evil One’
NME say:
When Roky Erickson passed away in 2019, we described the cult musician as “a psych-rock pioneer whose brilliance was often eclipsed by the chaos of his mind” and it’s true – Erickson’s work is often overshadowed by the backstories of his personal struggles. But this re-release brings things back right to the music, and the sheer wonder that can be found in this underplayed LP.
Norman Records say:
Roky Erickson is one of music’s most enduring ‘outsider’ artists, cultivating an American version of psych-rock with his bands the 13th Floor Elevators, the Aliens and later Okkervil River as his backing band. ‘The Evil One’ was recorded after the time Erickson spent in a mental institution, and saw a version of Erickson led by straight-forward, plaintive rock ‘n’ roll heavy on horror-flick imagery. Originally released in 1981, it’s now being reissued by Light In The Attic.
Preorder it now from Norman Records
Lanterns On The Lake – ‘The Realist’ EP
NME say:
Lanterns On The Lake’s last album, ‘Spook The Herd’, gained the Newcastle-based band a Mercury Prize nomination, seen as many as belated acclaim for the outfit who have been steadily growing four albums in. Now they’re saying goodbye to a successful 2020 with a new EP.
Norman Records say:
This five-track EP, ‘The Realist’ is made up of four tracks left over from the sessions for their previous album which were more immersive – a “headphones” experience, according to singer Hazel Wilde – as well as a stripped-back version of ‘Baddies’. It’s got that sort of Gondwana Records vibe – slightly minimalist, slightly chamber-pop.
Buy it now from Norman Records
Thundercat – ‘Fair Chance’ (feat. Ty Dolla $ign & Lil B) [Floating Points Remix]
NME say:
The prospect of Thundercat, Ty Dolla $ign and Lil B all on the same song sound good to you? How about you throw Floating Points on remix duties into the mix. Sounds great to us.
Norman Records say:
On this remix EP you can hear four different versions of the Mac Miller homage ‘Fair Chance’. This EP includes an album version, an instrumental, an a cappella and most excitingly of all a Floating Points remix.
Buy it now from Norman Records
Night Shop – ‘The Fountain’
NME say:
If guest spots were cosigns then having both Waxahatchee’s Katie Crutchfield and Hand Habits’ Meg Duffy on your album is pretty good going. LA songwriter Justin Sullivan’s new EP is full of, as he says himself, “yearning, romantic odes” and the importance to “focus on what was right in front of me”.
Norman Records say:
Folk-rock singer songwriter Justin Sullivan records under the name Night Shop. His new EP The Fountain, came about when making a new album. The six songs here share a theme of non-physical love and appreciation, making a coherent EP.
Preorder it now from Norman Records
Ana Roxanne – ‘Because Of A Flower’
NME say:
LA’s Ana Roxanne says she begins writing and recording her songs with “a drone element and a mood”, then adds the layers. Her stunning new seven-track release is different more of a mood piece than a droney affair, with ambient washes that unravel, indeed like the titular flower.
Norman Records say:
Following the release of 2019’s excellent ‘~~~’ EP, Los Angeles-based musician Ana Roxanne announces a full-length album via Kranky. Consisting of songs dealing with gender identity – Roxanne identifies as intersex – ‘Because Of A Flower’ is a masterclass in generating mood through economy and texture. Beautiful ghostly, ethereal sounds to file next to Grouper.
Buy it now from Norman Records
The post Paul McCartney, Liam Gallagher, James Blake and other vinyl releases you need this week appeared first on NME | Music, Film, TV, Gaming & Pop Culture News.
