Porridge Radio: Clouds in the Sky They Will Always Be There for Me review – exquisite euphoria through repetition
Emotions run high on the Brighton band’s fourth album as frontwoman Dana Margolin exorcises past relationships
Japandroids: Fate & Alcohol review – Canadian duo’s bittersweet breakup record
Brian King and David Prowse’s guitar-drums combo enjoys one last hurrah with tracks ranging from bluesy epics to rock romcom
The Hard Quartet review – cosmically trippy joy from Stephen Malkmus supergroup
Also featuring Matt Sweeney, Jim White and Emmett Kelly, the quality and variety of songwriting on this self-titled debut album raises it above a stoner jam session
Godspeed You! Black Emperor review – urgent intimations of societal collapse
High drama unspools in thunderous waves from the Canadian cult favourites, but beauty and contemplation can be found amid the tumult
The Cure: Alone review – majestically wreathed in misery and despair
Birds fall from the sky, broken voices call us home and youthful dreams are dashed against the transience of life in the band’s first new song in 16 years
Los Campesinos! review – a hero’s welcome for cult indie stars
Despite having only spent £190.86 on marketing their new album its songs are greeted with sweaty glee by new fans and old alongside the band’s indie disco stalwarts
The Last Dinner Party review – Victoriana pomp and bombastic baroque rock
Clearly having a whale of a time leaning into classic guitar rock it’s refreshing to see a group embracing the imaginative and unexpected
Tindersticks: Soft Tissue review – still ruling their own twilit world after 30 years
From 70s soul to glowing strings, the cult outfit continue to inhabit their own quiet space on the fringes of the musical landscape, celebrating the beauty in small things
MJ Lenderman: Manning Fireworks review – joyously weird alt-Americana
(Featuring possibly his best track yet, the North Carolina guitarist-songwriter goes to the sparse and seamy side on this worthy successor to Boat Songs
Mercury Rev: Born Horses review – a lush and serene return
With a half-new lineup, the US rock band’s first album of new material since 2015 finds them in dreamy, reflective mode
Fat Dog: Woof review – a boisterous debut with more bark than bite
Outlandish musical choices from oompah to sleaze should make the Londoners’ debut feel fresh, but they’re the latest interlopers in a crowded experimental field
End of the Road festival review – engagingly eclectic weekender never fails to surprise
A headlining Slowdive ticked the indie boxes, but Lankum’s intense folk, Paranoid London’s filthy techno and Nourished By Time’s slick R&B grooves once again prove this festival has punch and personality
Supersonic festival review – an awesome windmill of noise and connection
This festival of heavier sounds from the fringes was a blast, from chilling Gazelle Twin to Daisy Rickman’s Krautrock-folk, noise icons Melt-Banana and locals Flesh Creep
Richard Hawley review – homecoming hero is in the mood to celebrate
Playing his largest ever gig in the city, the singer tenderly croons his musical love letters to the people and places of Sheffield, while his biting political songs turn into rousing singalongs
Yo La Tengo review – indie royalty run through their beloved back catalogue
Over a two-and-a-half-hour set the trio turn over old songs and new from their 40-year career, unearthing surprises every time