Robert Plant. Saving Grace. He’s best known for fronting Led Zeppelin of course, but there is little sign of rock’n’roll sturm und drang here. ‘Percy’ Plant and his crack team of Black Country musicians sail closer to traditional folk as they re-interpret a broad range of timeless numbers. Ten tasteful tracks stretch from the melodic, albeit morbid ballad I Will Never Marry to an urgent cover of blues queen Memphis Minnie’s Chevrolet underpinned by Tony Kelsey’s guitar picking. It’s all rather beautiful. Their sublime version of The Low Anthem’s Ticket Taker is a spine-tingling duet between Plant and Suzi Dian, buoyed by Barney Morse-Brown’s swelling cello. Plant has famously worked with Alison Krauss, Sandy Denny and Patti Griffin but Dian holds her own in that prestigious company. The band sound closest to Zeppelin on their enticing cover of Low’s Everybody’s Song. Driven by Oli Jefferson’s insistent drum beat and Kelsey’s frantic acoustic guitar, the arrangement combines vitality with a middle eastern vibe. How good what that sound at Plant’s beloved Molineux Stadium? We get a gentle, gospely cover of Moby Grape’s It’s A Beautiful Day Today, the haunting As I Roved Out and Soul Of A Man – a languid take on Blind Willie Nelson’s 1930s’ Depression era blues classic. They close with African-American spiritual, Gospel Plough, a mesmerising mix of banjo, acoustic guitar, and percussion. Plant’s voice is still exceptional, and his song choices are as impressive as his musicians and the arrangements. The result is soulful, sincere, and heartfelt.
Terry Hall. Laugh. The late Specials star’s second solo album, from 1997, merges melodic, melancholic pop with dry wit. Stand-out tracks are the poignant Ballad Of A Landlord and Todd Rundgren’s I Saw The Light. Hall’s originals are largely co-written with Craig Gannon (The Smiths), although he wrote the rather wonderful, mournful fairground waltz, A Room Full Of Nothing with Damon Albarn. This deluxe 2xLP re-release has 8 bonus tracks, the b-sides of singles, including Lennon’s Working Class Hero and Sid Ramin’s Music To Watch Girls By. RIP Terry. Sorely missed.
Sprints. All That Is Over. There must be something in the Liffey. Dublin band Sprints, fronted by Karla Chubb, specialise in fiery garage punk but balance that electrifying energy with softer tones. Their second album packs in the propulsive Beg, and Rage, a menacing clenched fist of a song. Descartes channels the great French philosopher of “I think, therefore I am” fame, forgetting perhaps his more pertinent advice to doubt everything.
Biffy Clyro. Futique. The Kilmarnock trio are at their most open and emotional on their tenth album, and and their most honest on A Little Love which tackles the love-hate ups and downs of being in a band together for 30 years. The song shifts from jerky verses to a soaring, arena anthem chorus. The soulful alt-rockers are at their sweetest on the heartfelt Two People In Love.
Johnny Marr. Look Out Live! Guitar legend Marr is keener to embrace his legacy. This stunning live double album, recorded last year at London’s Hammersmith Apollo, packs in songs from The Smiths and Electronic as well as his solo material. Neil Tennant sings on Bowie’s Rebel Rebel and Electronic’s Getting Away With It. The atmosphere is celebratory, Marr is on top form and the result is full of heart.
The Milk. Borderlands. The Milk are the cream of British soul bands. In a world of endless noise – social media alerts, the toxic hostility of Twitter/X, the strident bombardment of rolling news – they offer something different. A musical sanctuary. Like Roman god Janus, the Essex band look in two directions at once, skilfully marrying yesteryear’s soul with modern attitudes. You hear echoes of Bill Withers and Kamasi Washington along with bursts of Earth Wind & Fire brass, lush strings, funk, blissful harmonies and Curtis Mayfield style percussion. But they use those thrilling influences as building blocks to craft something fresh – a kind of retrospective modernism. The evocative Destiny’s Calling opens with an up-tempo Superfly vibe before morphing into dreamy contemporary reflection. Surging melodic ballad Pangs Of Love sails close to The Doves; and laidback Wanted Man nods at the late Miles Davis. The Middle plays to all the band’s strengths, injecting their ambitious brand of “cinematic soul” with dramatic horns, jazzy rhythms, immaculate orchestration, and the Soul Choir’s mellifluence. Opener I Need Your Love switches between the languid yearning of the verses to punchy brass, with bursts of retro guitar. The tender A Time To Let Go – about loss – combines an abiding passion for old-school soulfulness with lavish string arrangements in a sweeping wash of sound. They end with I Saved My Best For You, where a sparse opening swells into a climax worthy of an MGM musical. Emerging from the commuter towns of south Essex, the quartet of pals have been honing their sound for decades. They were named iTunes Band of The Year in 2012 after their debut album went Top 40. Their fourth studio album successfully marries their influences with timeless grooves and immaculate production. If you want quality, The Milk men deliver.
Led Zeppelin. Physical Graffiti. They peaked with Led Zep IV, but their 6th album, a sprawling 15-track double LP, included gems like the mesmerising Kashmir, awash with eastern mysticism, the epic deconstructed blues of In My Time Of Dying and the jazzy Houses Of The Holy. Now available in a 2xLP 50th anniversary set with a bonus 12-inch EP of live tracks from 1975 and ’79.
Cardi B. Am I The Drama? The ex-stripper turned Grammy-winner returns all guns blazing. The New York rapper’s first album since her killer debut delivers like DPD. Cardi defiantly disses her ex on Outside – “tell your mama she raised a bitch” and is at her best on Imaginary Playerz, sampling a Jay Z song (which sampled an 80s hit). Loaded with star turns and verbal alacrity.
Teenage Bottlerocket. Ready To Roll. Awash with punk energy and strong hooks, the band from Laramie, Wyoming, burst into life from the off and don’t stop for 14 tireless, Ramones-influenced tracks. Highs include She’s The S*** (a love song !), the manic High Speed Yoga and quirky but urgent I Want To Die On My Birthday. Fully charged pop-punk with no time for a tea break.