The Lead Sheet ~ 5/27/2025

The Lead Sheet is your guide to this week’s new music - taking a look at newly released albums, who made them, and how listeners are responding. 

After a 15 year hiatus, London-based alt-pop band Stereolab has released a new album: Instant Holograms on Metal Film. The band’s newsletter, Lab Report, teased the release through word searches and instagram posts in April of this year, building hype for the long anticipated album. Instant Holograms features all the particulars that made the band stand out when they first hit the scene in the 90’s; hypnotic, psychedelic grooves, retro-futuristic synths, unique rhythmic structure and vocals in both English and French. Critics and casual listeners are both praising the album for being fresh, but still consistent with the band’s original sound, even after a decade and a half of radio silence. 

Norwegian electronic duo, Smerz, released Big City Life on May 23rd, their second studio album after Believer in 2021. The little group (Catharina Stoltenberg and Henriette Motzfeldt) has a big cinematic sound. As you listen to the title track (also called “Big City Life”) it’s hard not to picture the opening sequence to a series or film introducing a down on their luck protagonist. Smerz’s sound often features melodic low ends, with great bass and drum combos not unlike The White Stripes, but with an added air of sophistication and European drama. This is an album that makes you feel like one of the cool kids.

These New Puritans, sometimes abbreviated as “TNP”, released their 5th album, Crooked Wing on May 23. TNP is another one of those music groups that reinvents themselves consistently with each release, exploring and expanding their limits musically and never getting stuck in one genre. Crooked Wing is no exception; bizarre and beautiful, the album creates a lot of unsettling moods and emotions, without relying heavily on repetitive structure or catchy hooks. Rather, Crooked Wing feels like it could find a home on the soundtrack to the newest A24 horror film. Delightfully spooky and emotionally powerful, you may just have to hear it for yourself to really get a sense of it. 

Philadelphia based rapper John michel, (intentionally lowercase last name) teamed up again with producer Anthony James to release Egotrip, a new alternative hip-hop album with neo-soul and jazz influence. John Michel is relatively new on the music scene, having released his debut album Sinful Temptations with Loudmouth Records in 2023, to generally positive reception. Egotrip looks to be doing the same, and the duo is currently receiving over 15000 monthly listeners on spotify as their work continues to gain traction and recognition. Egotrip is deftly mixed- featuring hard hitting and intense raps juxtaposed with soft 70’s rock and jazz themes. Dripping with funk, Egotrip hits that sweet spot of nostalgia, while still feeling contemporary.

For over 5 decades now, American Pop/Rock duo, Sparks, has been making music. Sparks is an enigma. Composed of brothers Russell and Ron Mael, Sparks found its first foothold with UK audiences in the 1970s, and then besides a few hit singles, remained relatively obscure until 2002, when their 19th album Lil’ Beethoven “sparked” interest in the band again, and was acclaimed as the group’s career defining opus. It’s delightfully weird. As is their newest album MAD! which was released May 23rd. MAD! is an electronic opera of sorts, featuring the group’s signature electronic and synth-heavy flair. I can appreciate what MAD! Is doing, but it doesn’t seem to be breaking new ground for Sparks, or music in general. Critique of the new LP ranges all over the map; with some critics finding it to be Sparks in peak form, and others feeling the album was monotonous, and lacked lyrical depth. Sparks will tour this summer throughout the UK and the United States in the fall. 

Hot albums to check out this week: 

Stereolab - Instant Holograms on Metal Film

Released May 23, 2025

Warp Records

Smerz - Big City Life

Released May 23, 2025

Escho

These New Puritans - Crooked Wing

Released May 23, 2025

Domino Recording Company

John michel and Anthony James - Egotrip

Released May 23, 2025

Loudmouth Records

Sparks - MAD!

May 23rd 2025

Transgressive Records Ltd.