Olivia Rodrigo review – crushing riffs and infectious hooks at secret New York show
Playing to just 1,000 fans, Rodrigo’s pop-up show is a thrillingly intimate showcase of her tour de force talent
Ravyn Lenae: Blue Island review – from Suicide to Squarepusher, grunge to Janet, a pop one-off plots her unique path
Evoking everyone from Janet Jackson to Squarepusher, the US singer follows up her huge hit Love Me Not with stylistic diversity – and lyrics that defy her doubters
Ariana Grande: Petal review – calm, controlled anger at exes, fans and the media
Casting herself as a flower trampled underfoot, the superstar’s eighth album swaps the glitz of her Wicked years for dark blooms of haunted electronics
Shaboozey: The Outlaw Cherie Lee & Other Western Tales review – a striking addition to the rich canon of country concept albums
Beneath the Hollywood narrators, Pink Floyd-y interludes and accompanying comic books lies songwriting that proves the Tipsy singer’s breakout success was no fluke
Luke Combs review – regular Joe megastar brings the arena-sized party home
Despite his humble persona, the highest-selling country artist of all time has the vocal firepower and heavyweight hits to deliver two hours of crowd-pleasin’ pyrotechnics
Bon Dylan review – Justin Vernon’s Bob Dylan covers set brings magic to Wisconsin
At his Eauxs Claire festival, Bon Iver dazzles with a one-off set dedicated to the folk legend
The Strokes: Reality Awaits review – a perfect marriage of mayhem and melody on their best album in years
Allying the crackpot strangeness of Julian Casablancas’ side projects with his band’s gift for pop minimalism, the New Yorkers are on playful, joyous form
Tyla: A*Pop review – old-school pop superstar transports us back to more carefree times
The South African singer reflects on love’s highs and lows on her second album, nimbly flipping between moods but with her voice always holding attention
Charli xcx: Music, Fashion, Film review – slippery search into selfhood that hits just as hard as Brat
How do you follow up the album that made you a star – and a caricature? In classic Charli style: with a pivot to guitar and a meta masterpiece about the instability of identity
Shania Twain: Little Miss Twain review – rootsy revival strays from the dirt track to the middle of the road
The country legend’s seventh album revisits her troubled early life but plays it safe with zany humour and fluffy songs about young love
Bruno Mars review – half seedy club, half church service as diminutive singer answers fans’ prayers
Mars sings every line like it’s his big solo in a show that leans more on his stage presence than pyro and pageantry
Loathe: A Stranger to You review – metalcore masters offer stylistic swerves and surprising beauty
Granite-hard riffola collides with balm-like electronics and tinkling jazz piano in a thrilling fourth album of musical metamorphosis
Nia Archives: Emotional Junglist review – breakbeats and heartbreak combined by a brilliant British one-off
On the Bradford-born producer’s self-assured second album, drum’n’bass rhythms power up angsty odes with shades of Arctic Monkeys, Kate Nash and myriad genres
James Taylor review – 70s legend’s golden baritone shines best when stripped bare
The AI-style backing videos are terrible and his accomplished band can be overly slick at times, but Taylor’s civility and grace cuts through it all
Gracie Abrams: Daughter from Hell review – bloodless anthems hit like a faceful of icing sugar
Despite their goth-coded attempts at emotional turbulence, the saccharine songs of Abrams’ third album feel adolescent in their melodrama