Joe Jackson
Fool
JACKSON is a singer and composer whose output has never followed a conventional course. At first he was lumped into the New Wave – along with Elvis Costello but, as with the latter, he was always more. Too lyrically observational and musically adventurous for the mainstream, he has continued to go his own way. Now, with his 20th album, he has taken his basic touring four-piece and come up with a set of completely new songs based around themes of comedy, albeit dark, and tragedy. Stylistically varied throughout, a track like Dave harks back to his early period, where Friend Better has a Steely Dan feel. The title track is a rocked-up folky tune with sharp comments about power and leaders. Alchemy is a lushly orchestrated ballad that closes the album with delicacy. This is a very impressive album. Well thought out, played and produced by a man who knows what he wants to say and how to say it.
9/10
Steve Grantham
Rudimental
Toast To Our Differences
THE pied pipers of pop are back. Piers Aggett, Amir Amor, Kesi Dryden and DJ Locksmith have carved a reputation as urban Britain's dependable hit-makers. Toast To Our Differences starts with a salvo of decent pop fodder. The eponymous first track has a pleasing bop to it, while Let Me Live with the soon-to-go-stratospheric Anne-Marie conjures brighter days. Some of these 16 songs have been around for years. Sun Comes Up with James Arthur was released in 2017 when The X Factor winner could still claim to be a household name. Rita Ora's Summer Love sounds as evocative as it did when on its first release via Ora's album Phoenix. Toast To Our Difference plays out as you would expect – lots to enjoy but not a lot to unpack. Instead, listen to it as a catalogue of future stars. Rudimental's eye for a hit nearly matches their knack for predicting the future.
5/10
Alex Green
Backstreet Boys
DNA
LET'S get it out of the way early, after 25 years as a band Backstreet are back, but is it all right? I'm not so sure. The five-piece have kept what is their signature sound – five-piece harmonies have been at the heart of all their songs, but they don't appear to have brought anything new to this album. DNA is good, it's just not Backstreet Boys good. The 90s boy band really do seem to pay homage to the 80s. Chances, co-written by Shawn Mendes, poses a list of 'what ifs' and is a true millennial tune. A cappella track Breathe (produced by Ben Bram – who has worked with Pentatonix) is relaxing and stands out, with echoes of the band's heyday (bringing to mind As Long As You Love Me). AJ McLean, Howie Dorough, Nick Carter, Kevin Richardson, and Brian Littrell have made an unashamedly acoustically driven album with an R&B vibe that has embraced an 80s-inspired revival.
5/10
Rachel Howdle
Keuning
Prismism
NEARLY two decades after founding uber-successful rock band The Killers with Brandon Flowers, it's guitarist Dave Keuning's chance to shine as a solo artist. His debut Prismism is a cacophony of 1980s pop-rock, synthesisers and energetic, melodic riff-backed electro jams. There's more than a hint of a whiff of The Killers about the record, but this says more about Keuning's clearly very strong influence on the band than anything else. It's a shade more pop; a nudge more experimental, but not quite as anthemically satisfying. Opening track Boat Accident has tinges of Katy Perry about it, but with a male vocal and a denser, rockier edge. It's a strong start to an album that sometimes loses its way, caught in its own electronic vibe. Title track Prismism is a step too far with the use of autotune – a briefer utilisation of the technology would have sufficed. But there are genuinely decent tracks here too. I Ruined You is a stomp, and the peppy Restless Legs, a summery track, is full of Killers-esque joy.
6/10
Lucy Mapstone
Bring Me The Horizon
Amo
SHEFFIELD Rockers Bring Me The Horizon are really bringing it with what is arguably their most diverse album yet. Bear with me when I say that Amo, their sixth studio album, reminds me of the latter years of Linkin Park, when they became the professors of dance-backed heavy rock. BMTH have taken a big, bold leap with this record, which could prove to be as divisive as Brexit among their legions of fans. Lead singer Oli Sykes has said of the album: "Amo is a love album that explores every aspect of that most powerful emotion. It deals with the good, the bad and the ugly – and as a result we've created an album that's more experimental, more varied, weird, and wonderful than anything we've done before." Experimental and varied, sure, but weird? Perhaps he's pre-empting negative feedback from those who are clutching onto their heavier, rock metal days. Sykes should be owning their genre-crossing efforts. From atmospheric opener, I Apologise If You Feel Something, to tracks such as the drum and bass-flecked Ouch and Sugar, laced with elements of their heavier sound, there is nothing here to scorn at. This is the product of a band who are in the middle of an enlightening journey, and good for them for breaking out and trying something a little different.
8/10
Lucy Mapstone
