Lav's Music Corner

Slowthai is a British rapper who also dabbles in the styles of punk with his screamed vocals and distorted arrays of instrumentation. After his first album Nothing Great About Britain  took on heavy political and societal themes he shifted the focus on 2020s Tyron  a double LP that paired some of his normal bangers with some much more emotional and introspective songs on the second half. UGLY  is a follow-up to that second half of Tyron , but applying that introspection to a much wider array of aesthetics. Review by Lav: While I did give Tyron  a positive review when it came out, I can't say I was ever in love with the album and I'm not sure it's aged as gracefully as I had anticipated. These days I'm still much more likely to recommend Slowthai's debut, which is why I was a bit nervous to hear that this record was dipping into that more personal side of things, even though that half of Tyron  was generally much more consistent than it's first. Even though this ...

Jockstrap is a British experimental music duo, one half of which is violinist Georgia Ellery who also serves as a member of Black Country, New Road. Jockstrap's EPs at the end of the 2010s turned enough heads for the band to sign with Warp Records and Jennifer B  is their debut full length album. Review by Lav: When I reviewed Black Country New Road's Ants From Up There  earlier this year I tried to both complement the brilliance of the band's most present voice, Isaac Wood, while also complimenting the talent, creativity and willingness to experiment that all the members of the band possessed. I was itching for an opportunity to dive into their details as individual songwriters and performers which is a big part of what made me so excited for this record. What Jockstrap deliver on their debut is a hectic but beautiful and careful series of experimental pop songs that refuse to adhere to that label or any others.  One of the things I'll say about this album is that it...