If the titling of Oklahoma singer/songwriter John Moreland’s LP5 is not a direct reference to FKA twigs’ LP1, the line between the two works is not as indirect as one would think.

The retro cover art of the Texas Sun EP bears more than a little resemblance to The Velvet Underground’s Loaded. And with Fort Worth’s Leon Bridges on board to cruise around with his south Texas instrumental compadres Khruangbin, it’s certainly a trippy little spin.

First records are often the culmination of years of build-up. Where does a band go next? For Norwegian pop punk four-piece Sløtface, the answer seems to be more of the same, only better.

Mystic Familiar, Dan Deacon’s first new album since 2015’s Gliss Riffer, is far and away his most personal work yet. A single cursory listen reveals several surprising new elements at play.

For its strong humanist streak, ironically Hop Along leader Frances Quinlan’s solo album, Likewise, opens with an array of teeth and bones.

Crimson Tide; a 1995 blockbuster drama somewhat inspired by the Cuban Missile Crisis, perhaps inspires the name, if nothing else, for the opening track of Destroyer’s 12th album Have We Met.

It’s been a torrid few years for Mackenzie Scott, better known by her creative alter ego TORRES. Three Futures, her third album and her first for 4AD, was released in September 2017 to substantial acclaim from critics and fans alike.

ALA.NI has certainly made a massive impression entirely on her own terms. Her unique take on DIY has seen her develop a sparse sound made from sampling voices, beat boxing, strings, and brass to create intricate, if not slightly bizarre, songs with delicate arrangements which has been a huge hit with the critics.

The music on this self-proclaimed psych-funk band’s fifth studio album Presto draws from a variety of genres and sits comfortably between the jazz-rock stylings reminiscent of Frank Zappa and the rhythmic grooves of modern jam bands.