Bob Dylan and The Band – The Basement Tapes (Columbia)
Why you should listen: To hear the original 138 songs that turned this 47-year-old bootlegged album from a collection of rough takes into an industry altering classic.
It might not be for you if … You firmly believe that you just had to be there to really understand mid-60s Dylan, and aren’t about to buy into the £110 reissue of a bootlegged album.
What we said: “Forty-seven years on, even the listener overwhelmed by the sheer quantity of what’s on offer here – who doesn’t want to hear the false starts and fragments and gags – might conclude that the highlights are as timeless as rock music in the 60s got”, wrote Alexis Petridis, in his lead review for the Guardian. Neil Spencer handed the album four stars, in the Observer.
Score: 5/5
The original 1975 album is embedded above. For a sampler of the 2014 reissue, click here
Dean Blunt – Black Metal (Rough Trade)
Why you should listen: Dean Blunt, of enigmatic lo-fi duo Hype Williams, pulls together this notably odd album of guitar-led indie that folds unexpectedly into dub and dancehall.
It might not be for you if … You want a clear-cut genre on offer – none of this meandering stuff, please.
What we said: “There are longueurs, and snippets of loveliness that drift away too soon, but Blunt’s music – perverse, beguiling – creeps up on you and doesn’t let go,” wrote Killian Fox, in the Observer. Click here for Michael Hann’s three-star review in the Guardian.
Score: 4/5
Neil Young – Storytone (Warner)
Why you should listen: The last time this blog highlighted a Neil Young album, it was his collection of fuzzy covers released in May. Now, Young’s back with a double-disc release, split between orchestral arrangements on one-half and stripped-down acoustic performances on the other.
It might not be for you if … You’re convinced deluxe edition albums are a scam, and aren’t going to rise to the bait. Not even for Young.
What we said: “The standard edition of Tumbleweed’s woodwind is lovely, but its Disneyfied strings are an unnecessary sweetener to Young’s mandolin, which is all his fragile voice needs,” wrote Maddy Costa, in the Guardian. Head here for Kitty Empire’s three-star review in the Observer.
Score: 4/5
Arca – Xen (Mute)
Why you should listen: The 24-year-old FKA twigs and Kanye West collaborator expands on his past EPs and mixtape with this debut album of glitchy and bass-heavy electronic music.
It might not be for you if … You’re still trying to dull the ringing in your ears caused by your first listen of Yeezus, and are not feeling ready for dissonant beats yet.
What we said: “[Xen] is one of those albums that elegantly restates the appeal of digital music, expressing hues and states of being that fall outside the analogue spectrum,” wrote Kitty Empire, in her lead review for the Observer.
Score: 4/5
Devin Townsend – Z2 (Inside Out)
Why you should listen: Following on from 2007’s character-driven album Ziltoid the Omniscient, Z2 combines Townsend’s often silly sense of humour with his talent for composing ebullient, almost ecstatic pieces of pop-tinged rock.
It might not be for you if … You want Strapping Young Lad-era Townsend back, howling shrieks and all.
What we said: “Townsend has sharpened his strategies of late and although the second half of this opulent double set takes us deeper into the mind-bending world of its rubbery-faced, coffee-obsessed and heroically flatulent titular hero, it is the first half that provides the greatest highs”, wrote Dom Lawson, in the Guardian.
Score: 4/5
With releases also due this week from Deptford Goth, Toro Y Moi’s Les Sins project and Dirty Beaches, which albums will you be settling down to sample? Let us know in the comments section.
