Issue 109

On Lovish, Library Voices expand their sound to even wider palettes — going so far as to include saxophones on one track. So while they're still pop-friendly and their experimentation doesn't ever turn them into a different band, the extra room to breathe goes a long way to turning Library Voices into a household name. Read more.

Daniel Caesar reportedly left his home over a crisis of faith, and the Toronto native bears his soul on Pilgrim's Paradise. While he's clearly influenced by the likes of Frank Ocean, it's fair to say that his gospel upbringing has a huge influence on the music he's making today — and he's using that influence to defy our expectations. Read more.

Heralded even by some members of the band as their best record, Strange Geometry might be the best that English band The Clientele have to offer. Airy, wistful, cheery, but somehow still heart-breaking, Strange Geometry is an uplifting and commendable effort from one of England's most unusual successes. Read more.

Unlike many of his other records, Toumani Diabaté goes solo this time around and refrains from bringing in a backing band. Instead, he elects to play through The Mandé Variations with nothing more than a kora, an African instrument that sounds simply beautiful. What follows is a record that is at once classically-inspired with the styles of jazz improvisation and African folk — something truly compelling and unique, again proving Diabaté to be one of the most inventive writers of his time. Read more.