6 albums you need to hear this week
With music from Drake and PARTYNEXTDOOR, Shygirl, Manic Street Preachers, The Wombats, Horsegirl, John Glacier, Rizzle Kicks and Doves.
In the age of streaming, it’s never been easier to listen to new music — but with over 60,000 new songs added to Spotify every day, it’s also never been harder to know what to put on. Every week, the team at Rolling Stone UK will run down some of the best new releases that have been added to streaming services.
This week, we’ve highlighted records by Drake and PARTYNEXTDOOR, Shygirl, Manic Street Preachers, The Wombats, Horsegirl, John Glacier, Rizzle Kicks and Doves.
Drake and PARTYNEXTDOOR – $ome $exy $ongs 4 U
Still fresh from becoming the butt of 2024’s biggest joke – with an added sucker punch at last weekend’s Super Bowl – Drake is instead focusing on love. $ome $exy $ongs 4 U, his collaborative album with fellow Canadian PARTYNEXTDOOR, aims to do what it says on the tin, landing on Valentine’s Day and promising, in Drake’s own words, “the sound people know and love us for”.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Manic Street Preachers – Critical Thinking
They’re 15 albums in, but Manic Street Preachers are on a mission to prove that the fire in their bellies is burning brighter than ever and constantly raging against the darkness. This time around, it’s a rousing call for empathy and understanding. “Live your best life…Have some empathy ,” they offer on the defiant title track. Elsewhere, the brilliant ‘Hiding In Plain Sight’ – one to be filed under classic Manics – sees Nicky Wire offer up a personal reckoning with the prospect of becoming an elder statesman of rock. Time may come for us all, but it’s to the credit of these Welsh icons that they still sound as urgent and vital as ever.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
The Wombats – Oh! The Ocean
In 2008, only the most daring of gamblers would have lumped a sum on The Wombats becoming a fully fledged arena band in the year 2025. And yet, thanks to an online revival and playing the long game, this is the position where these scrappy Scousers now find themselves. It’s appropriate, then, that this album contains an arsenal of songs capable of fitting those lofty rooms. The party-starting ‘Sorry I’m Late, I Didn’t Want To Come’ skips along with a retro groove, while ‘Can’t Say No’ is an all-out banger. Off the back of these songs, you can safely expect those rooms to be packed to the rafters.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Horsegirl – Phonetics On and On
Since the release of Chicago-formed trio Horsegirl’s debut album, 2022’s Versions Of Modern Romance, the members have moved to New York, written and rehearsed outside a parent’s basement, and found a new level to their sound. Phonetics On and On sees them crafting worlds of sound with guitars, violins and sugary vocals, all based around what are, at their core, simple and near-perfect pop songs.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
John Glacier – Like A Ribbon
Existing in the orbit of Sampha, Jamie xx and more, John Glacier has waited a fair while for her moment in the spotlight. It arrives on debut album Like A Ribbon, a record inspired by her home neighbourhood of Hackney but one that yearns to dream beyond its borders, creating fantastical worlds inspired by the grit of everyday life but determined to transcend it. These themes play out on a record defined by innovative and unusual production, laid under Glacier’s nonchalant but affecting voice.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music
Rizzle Kicks – Competition Is For Losers
This third album from Rizzle Kicks, their first since reuniting in 2024, sees the pair heading in a new direction, with outright bangers largely eschewed for contemplative rap and soulful collabs. It’s incredibly forthright as well, as the duo open up on how mental health struggles and addiction worries caused them to knock it on the head the first time around. “I genuinely think I’m the best at rapping that I’ve ever been, I’m more relaxed and Harley and I write better lyrics now,” the pair recently told RS UK. The result is one of the best albums they’ve ever done.
Listen on: Spotify | Apple Music | TIDAL | Amazon Music