THE BEST:
'Blackstar' - David Bowie
I fucking love David Bowie. I thought the 68-year-old singer had retired from music, but no, we have a new surprise album on the way called 'Blackstar' and this is the title track - a ten-minute-long winding prog-pop epic with strings and horns accompanied by a zany vaguely post-apocalyptic video in which an epileptic fit seems to serve as a dance.
'T.I.W.Y.G' - Savages
'This is what you get when you mess with love!' wails frontwoman Jenny Beth to the accompaniment of growling bass and intense double bass drumming. There is a slightly ambient passage towards the back end of the track, but for the most part this is all-out angriness from the all-female London rockers. Don't mess with Savages. They'll claw your ears off.
'The War Inside' - Azekel
UK R&b singer Azekel lays quivering falsettos over a pulsing electronic bassline. The mood is suspenseful as it is seductive, both the vocals and the beat threatening to crack at any moment.
'Sleep' - 'fō'
Fans of Sufjan Stevens may dig this Philly-based singer-songwriter sporting an equally unpronounceable name. Soothing vocals, delicate folksy guitars and sombre strings make for an earthy and sorrowful acoustic track.
THE WORST:
'Grandma' - Fetty Wap
Hearing the trap rapper spit about his grandma is entertaining and there must be some comical intentions behind it, but the beat blows and Fetty's flow is flat as ever.
'When We Were Young' - Adele
I was kind of hoping for a Killers cover (just as I was hoping 'Hello' was a Lionel Ritchie tribute) but obviously that would be too exciting for the queen of pop ballads. The studio version may turn out to be better, but right now I'm as enthusiastic to hear Adele's new album as I am for my next trip to the dentists.