ALBUM: CITY REVERB Lost City Folk (Dumb Angel)
Chris Coco has assembled this collective of titular folk to create a genuinely beautiful collection of confessions and impressions that range from the clippy disco-pop of Cut Copy and Hot Chip to the life-weary lyrical unburdenings of Momus. When you drop any of these songs into a barbecue iPod playlist, your fellow guests will secretly sidle over to the table with a greasy fingered borrowed biro and scribble down the band’s name from the screen. Barbecue soundtrack envy – it’s the one-upmanship for a new generation, and this is a spicy rib of a trump card. (NC)

ALBUM: FUJIYA & MIYAGI Lightbulb (Full Time Hobby)
F&M’s last album is still one of the most listened to albums we’ve got in the last few years so it’s with some excitement that we dive into this. A bit gentler than Transparent Things, the krautrock influence is pulled back a bit to let a warmer funk sound in. Knickerbocker starts the album in very much the same way as Ankle Injuries did, and from there it’s not exactly singalong due to David’s rhythmic vocals, but it is more song based. Will we love it as much as the last one? It’s entirely possible. (JK)

SINGLE: MARCUS HESSENBERG & THE TULIPS October Is Coming (Digital)
There’s something enchantingly nostalgic about the change from summer to autumn, don’t you agree? New school shoes, harvest festival and conkers have apparently been put into a special machine called Marcus Hessenberg who has then translated their essence into the medium of song on his debut album, October Is Coming. Hessenberg’s David Byrne-meets-Damon Albarn vocals sprawl over hints of The Arcade Fire, very late Blur and Pete and The Pirates, combining to make this one of the most charming listens of the month. (LB)

ALBUM: TM JUKE & THE JACK BAKER TRIO Boto And The Second Liners (Tru Thoughts)
TM Juke is one of the most prolific producers in town, also lending his musical skills to Alice Russell and forming one half of Me&You. The Jack Baker Trio is a one-man rhythm machine who also plays drums with Bonobo. With this much talent in the studio, the idea to record a bunch of loose South American carnival joints has resulted in an LP of grooves tight enough to put your hips out. With not a sample in sight, and horns to lift the darkest of spirits, this is yet another great Tru Thoughts side project. (JK)

SINGLE: METRONOMY Heartbreaker (Because)
Metronomy are becoming a first class pop band. Heartbreaker is still delightfully wonky in places but comes on like a more fragile Zoot Woman. Turns out Joe has got quite a lovely voice too, but it’s going to be interesting to see how this fits with all the quirky instrumentals of old in the live set and whether the new album (also out this month) mixes it all up. There’s a quite a nice disco version from the long lost Faze Action as a flipside bonus. (JK)

ALBUM: POPE JOAN Hot Water, Lines & Rickety Machines (OIB)
PJ’s melting pot of quirky and jerky guitar staccato, redolent of a Devo/Cardiacs blueprint via noughties Bloc Ferdinand references, has a lean and condensed feel. Mostly timing in around the double minute mark, there’s no room here for expansive passages and repeated refrains, which goes some way to explaining how even on a first listen its individual brevity and paucity of filler flab keeps it engaging to the end. Big, straight hooks dig in quicker of course, but the infectious jagged barbs strung across the whole album hook in way deeper and don’t let go. (NC)

ALBUM: SONS OF NOEL & ADRIAN Sons Of Noel & Adrian (Shelsmusic)
Part of the Willkommen Collective with The Miserable Rich and Shoreline – who have an album imminent too – Sons Of Noel & Adrian are the heavy end of the group. Instantly Indigo dives into fractured vocals and heavy chords that will have you forgetting you’re listening to a record made of harmonies and acoustic instruments. SONA is folk with a heavy heart, bringing to mind those dark traditional songs like Silver Dagger, but that’s not to say it’s not without its delicate prettiness. There’s a great balance of light and shade here. Arresting stuff that demands you give it your full attention. (JK)

SINGLE: X-PRESS 2 Lazy (Remixes) (Skint)
Back to promote the X-Press 2 best of is this ubiquitous shine hit, and it still sounds great – understated and anthemic at the same time. But you’ve all heard it and we’re here to talk about the remixes. Motto Blanco go straight for holiday heaven with funky guitars, wandering basslines and big 90s pianos (the revival has already started). For more serious dancefloors Mowgli overpowers it with stuttering electro, before finding a better balance on his Goes Deep Mix. In a way the original is too good to remix really. (JK)