Chiddy Bang - Breakfast

Chiddy bang rapper Chidera ‘Chiddy’ Anamege and his producer and partner in the group, Noah ‘Xaphoon Jones’ Bersin, certainly know their way around a hook. Their 2009 mixtape The Swelly Express was packed with them, not least on the irresistable, MGMT-sampling hit The Opposite of Adults and the Sufjan Stevens-sampling All Things Go. A couple more mixtapes down the line and they have finally released their first album proper. Breakfast is what you might expect if you have heard Chiddy Bang before: all bouncing beats, monster hooks and clever, pop culture-referencing rhymes. It's not deep and it's not creatively groundbreaking but it sure is a lot of fun, and that's the point. Breakfast is the sound of Summer holidays, of braais around the pool, of driving around with the top down and the volume up. It's aural Prozac and it's fantastic.

Rating: 8/10

Top Tracks: Mind Your Manners, Ray Charles, Happening

Release Date: 28 February 2012

Estelle - All Of Me

You may remember Estelle from her hit American Boy with Kanye West a few years back. New album All Of  Me includes further collaborations with the likes of Chris Brown, Trey Songz, Janelle Monáe and Rick Ross, but none match the catchiness of that Kanye collab, and the album is rather underwhelming. Whilst it's hip hop infused neo-soul songs are competent, there are no obvious hits and the spoken-word interludes are grating. Pleasant enough, but nothing to write home about.

Rating: 6/10

Top Tracks: Thank You, Speak Ya Mind, Break My Heart

Release Date: 28 February 2012

Die Antwoord - Ten$ion

It's been an interesting time for Die Antwoord since the release of their debut album $O$. They achieved international recognition, were signed to Interscope Records only to be released by the label for not being commercial enough, and Yolandi Vi$$er was offered, and turned down, the role of Lisbeth Salander in the big-budget films of the Stieg Larsson 'The Girl Who...' trilogy of books. Ten$ion, the group's second album, is released on their own Zef label, and is expected to capitalise on the success of the debut. The album is certainly a step up from $O$; Ninja's rapping is still excellent, as it was on $O$, but the production on this album is better and Yolandi does a lot more rapping than before, and does it very well. These improvements make Ten$ion more rounded than it's predecessor, but don't worry that it's overly different; it's not - if you enjoyed $O$ you will love this - it's just better.

Rating: 8/10
Top Tracks: I Fink U Freeky, Hey Sexy, Fatty Boom Boom, So What?

Release Date: 7 February 2012

Goldfrapp - The Singles

Goldfrapp have been around for 12 years but have never gained the mainstream success their music deserves. Maybe it's because they confused people with their genre-shifting, maybe it's because they are too arty and 'weird' for people. One thing it can't be due to is a lack of quality; The Singles, a compilation of the duo's biggest tracks, illustrates that admirably. The songs vary in style, as their albums have, from trip-hoppy mood music to scuzzy electro-pop to folky semi-acoustic numbers. What they do have in common is that they are all excellent. There are 12 previous singles and two new tracks, and they are uniformly brilliant. If you have never heard or heard of Goldfrapp, do yourself a favour and buy this album. You won't regret it.

Rating: 9/10
Top Tracks: Ooh La La, Strict Machine, Train, Rocket


Release Date: 7 February 2012

Lana Del Rey - Born To Die

Lana Del Rey is a product of modern times: Born To Die is her debut major label album, but before it had even been released, she had been hyped to the heavens in the blogosphere after a couple of YouTube videos, and then ripped to shreds by those same people when they found out she wasn't "authentic", ie. she has had plastic surgery, has a rich father and, according to the detractors, has been completely created by marketing puppet-masters. More productive would be to judge her actual music, and it's really very good - noirish torch songs with sultry vocals performed to an atmospheric backdrop reminiscent of trip-hop icons Portishead. These are pop songs, but on the dark side, and by and large they are excellent. And that should be all that matters.

Rating: 7/10
Top Tracks: Blue Jeans, Video Games, National Anthem, Dark Paradise

Release Date: 31 January 2012

Seal - Soul 2

The soon-to-be ex-husband of supermodel Heidi Klum is back with another album of cover versions of soul classics and, whisper it, it's actually very good. Seal's knack for writing original material waned a long time ago but that voice has never been in any doubt, and he is in finer voice than ever on Soul 2. In lesser singer's hands, taking on classics like these could be seen as sacrilege, but Seal does them justice, and then some. The set offers brilliant takes on songs by such luminaries as Marvin Gaye, Al Green, Teddy Pendergrass and Bill Withers, among others, and nails them. There may be nothing revolutionary about Soul 2, but as a vehicle for Seal's immaculate voice it's perfect.

Rating: 7/10
Top Tracks: Wishing On A Star, What's Going On, Love Won't Let Me Wait

Release Date: 24 January 2012

Snow Patrol - Fallen Empires

The kings of middle-of-the-road arena rock are back and despite them claiming that this album is a move away from their previous style, it's not really at all. Sure, they have added some electronic elements here and there, but the album is basically the same sweeping guitar rock they have been releasing for years. There are tracks on the album that are genuinely moving and they have a way with a melody and a chorus, but what they make are tracks suitable for a Grey's Anatomy soundtrack and that hasn't changed. For fans of the bands previous work that's no bad thing, but if you're looking for wild experimentation, look elsewhere.

Rating: 6/10

Top Tracks: I'll Never Let Go, Fallen Empires, Lifening

Release Date: 10 January 2012