THE excellent Hurts deliver their new album Surrender on October 9 and, as with their first two records, it is pure quality.
If you like electronic pop music that is big on melody and high on atmosphere, Hurts might just be your new favourite act. A duo comprising the talents of Theo Hutchcraft and Adam Anderson, Hurts have already enjoyed relative chart success with songs such as the epic Stay and the perfectly crafted Wonderful Life but the new material has undoubtedly raised their bar to new lofty heights.
Trailer singles Some Kind of Heaven and the brilliant Lights really are two of the most polished pop songs of 2015 so far – especially Lights, which is smoother than silk and finds Hutchcraft at his vocal best, ranging from a cool moody delivery to an airy falsetto with minimum fuss.
If this song was released by a huge fan base act it would be streamed to death and revered worldwide but right now let's just make do with the fact that is a sparkling pop song that is a welcome breath of fresh air.
The rest of the album is top notch as well and another song worth a heads up is the dramatic Rolling Stone. Produced by the double-pronged attack of the in demand Stuart Price and Ariel Rechtshaid it's no surprise that Surrender shimmers and glows in all the right places. Definitely an autumn highlight for your iPod.
SOMETHING FROM THE WEEKND
THE Weeknd's album Beauty Behind The Madness is well worth a listen. Full of infectious grooves and soulful vocals, the album has been dominating the US album charts in recent weeks and the artist is now set to have another hit in Europe with a song called The Hills.
That track helped to create a very cool accolade last week when it topped the Billboard chart, since the song it replaced was I Can't Feel My Face by, yes, you've guessed it, The Weeknd. Few acts have managed that feat – in recent years it has been achieved, however, by Taylor Swift and Macklemore featuring Ryan Lewis
YOU CAN DANCE
A CLUB track that will hunt you down sooner rather than later is I Can't Dance by Wayward. The producers have taken a vocal nod from 60s hit Do You Love Me by The Contours and built a totally hip and hypnotic dance floor groove around it.
The clever sample, the jazzy guitar sound and the sophisticated, smooth and slick production make this record stand out from the other 10,000 dance tracks released his month.
CARRIE TAKES A BREAK
SMOKE Break is the latest single from the new queen of modern country, Carrie Underwood. The former American Idol star's popularity has been enjoying a steady rise over the years with her music crossing genres and demographics with the greatest of ease.
This latest track from her upcoming album Storyteller is as much pop/rock as it is country and her powerful gutsy vocal ensures that Carrie is very much at home in that particular zone. This big star is about to get even bigger.
