Festival and ‘outdoor gig’ season is officially upon us, but while you may have fun frolicking in a field this June, don’t forget that there are some stellar albums being released, too.

Below, we’ve chosen 5 albums that you really need to hear this month…

ANGEL OLSEN - Big Time [June 3rd]

The fifth studio album from the North Carolina-based indie artist arrives off the back of both personal happiness and tragedy in her life. A few years ago, she came out as gay and introduced her partner to both her family and the world; very soon afterwards, both of her parents passed away within a short space of time. Big Time reflects upon the ups and downs of her recent life entwined with a beautifully eclectic soundtrack, swinging from atmospheric indie-rock to country balladry and back again.

*

HORSEGIRL - Versions of Modern Performance [June 3rd]

One of the hottest new acts on the indie scene, this US four-piece all met in their teenage years, when they were involved on the youth arts scene in their native Chicago. This is their debut album and if you’re a fan of angular, bristling indie and garage acts like Wet Leg and our own Just Mustard, Horsegirl will be right up your street.

*

FOALS - Life is Yours [June 17th]

Staying with the equine theme, Foals are one of the few from that early noughties era who have managed to keep it together without splitting, imploding or really, making a bad album. Their last record (in 2019) was their first to top the UK charts; since then, they’ve lost a couple of members and are now operating as a three-piece. This is their 7th album and according to frontman Yannis Philippakis, it’s their ‘poppiest’ album to date. Eeep.

*

JAMES VINCENT MCMORROW - The Less I Knew [June 24th]

After Covid delayed the release of his last album ‘Grapefruit Season’ by almost two years, it seems that a fire has been lit under James Vincent McMorrow. He releases the first of two albums scheduled for 2022 this month (the second is due in Autumn), and in his own words: “The album is just about doing whatever you want, whatever you need, to make life work for you. Less pretence, less containing emotion inside and hoping it subsides, less worrying about what other people might be thinking or doing.”

*

REGINA SPEKTOR - Home, Before and After [June 24th]

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 16 (!) years since Regina Spektor’s breakthrough album ‘Begin to Hope’, yet here we are. The Russian-American piano-playing musician’s eighth album (and her first since 2016) is said to pay tribute to her adopted hometown of New York in a way that she never has before, with her uniquely quirky mix of emotional heft and zany stories.