Five tracks to hear this week (Oct 26-Nov 1)

Queen Cardi: Cardi B
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David Smyth26 October 2018

Cardi B has just released her first standalone song since her album. Money couldn’t be more minimal, based on a slow, stabbed, low piano line. If it doesn’t appeal, this week she also gave an “ASMR” interview, whispering into two microphones to send shivers down your neck.

NAO is back with her second album, Saturn, today, and it’s full of high quality homegrown R&B delivered in her distinctive voice. The steady groove of If You Ever, another team-up with her regular collaborator Mura Masa, is a strong highlight.

Experimental California composer Julia Holter was an unlikely visitor to the UK top 40 with her last album in 2015. The follow-up, Aviary, is out today and could do it again thanks to the power of string-drenched abstract gems such as Words I Heard.

As Johnny Borrell revives the Razorlight name for their first album in a decade, he seems to know he’s facing an uphill struggle. It opens with a voice saying: “Genie, this is Aladdin. Print me a Razorlight album that doesn’t totally suck.” And it doesn’t, with the single Carry Yourself offering an energetic reminder of what some former fans may finally be able to admit they’ve been missing.

Indie dance trio Friendly Fires have taken their time following up their second album, which was released in 2011, but their latest song suggests all will be well for album three in 2019. Heaven Let Me In is a slinky slice of French-style disco, co-produced by Disclosure.

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