in-store offers
Fopp’s Picks
October 2024
October is here, and we’re excited to share our top picks for this month’s releases.
release: 25th october 2024
available on moondance edition vinyl / standard black vinyl / cd
In the eight years since Amyl and The Sniffers came together in Melbourne’s sticky pub-rock scene, Amyl and the Sniffers have become masters of balancing power and playfulness. With two critically acclaimed albums under their belt – 2019’s self-titled debut and 2021’s visceral ‘Comfort to Me’ – vocalist Amy Taylor, guitarist Declan Mehrtens, bassist Gus Romer and drummer Bryce Wilson have achieved something unique and remarkable. Since the release of ‘Comfort to Me’, the band has seen their horizons broaden exponentially in every way. And it’s this attitude – bigger, brighter, smarter, sharper – that’s fuelling their third album, ‘Cartoon Darkness’. Recorded with producer Nick Launay at Foo Fighters’ 606 Studios in Los Angeles, on the same desk that captured Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’ and Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Rumours’, the latest Amyl offering is full of surprises. Musically, Mehrtens, Romer and Wilson have written The Sniffers’ most diverse album yet. It stretches from classic punk to the glammy strut of recent single ‘U Should Not Be Doing That’ to the stormy balladry of ‘Big Dreams’ (which is a sonic gear shift worthy of the title).
release: 25th october 2024
available on Limited Edition Crystal Clear & Smoky Red Vinyl / standard black vinyl / cd
‘The Night The Zombies Came’ is Pixies’ tenth album and first new music since 2022’s acclaimed ‘Doggerel’ LP. 13 new songs that find Pixies looking ahead to the most cinematic record of their career. Druidism, apocalyptic shopping malls, mediaeval themed restaurants, 12th century poetic form, surf rock, gargoyles, bog people, and the distinctive dry drum sound of 1970s era Fleetwood Mac are just some of the disparate wonders that inform the new songs. Early on in the recording process at Guilford Sound studio in Vermont, the band noticed the new songs were dividing into two camps: what they came to call the ‘Dust Bowl Songs’ – country-tinged, ballad-esque numbers such as ‘Primrose’ and ‘Mercy Me’, and on the other side, the album’s furious punk numbers such as ‘You’re So Impatient’ and ‘Oyster Beds’.
release: 25th october 2024
available on ltd. edition cream vinyl / standard black vinyl / cd
Grammy nominated and Mercury Prize nominated Laura Marling is back with her eighth studio album ‘Patterns in Repeat’. Now eight albums and 15+ years into her career as one of the most acclaimed, prolific and respected songwriters of her generation (multiple Grammy nominations, Mercury nods a Brit Award and more), in ‘Patterns in Repeat’ Laura aims to occupy different spaces and continues to surprise: ‘Laura Marling is not quite who you might think she is’. Written after the birth of her daughter in 2023 (and recorded with her in the room beside Laura), ‘Patterns in Repeat’ now finds Laura reflecting on her own experience becoming a mother. The sounds are grounded in a specific and revelatory time in Laura’s life, but more broadly dive deeper into her reckoning with the ideas and behaviours we pass down through family over generations. Almost entirely acoustic with minimal overdubbing and elegantly placed orchestral accents, this is the most focused, subtle and sharpest collection of Laura’s career.
Clouds in the Sky They Will Always Be There for Me
release: 18th october 2024
available on ltd. edition white vinyl / standard black vinyl / cd
‘All the songs started out as poems’, says Margolin of the work that became Clouds In the Sky They Will Always Be There for Me’, ‘I wanted to challenge myself’. In a song, Dana argues, the writer can always hide behind the tricks of the music and well-worn techniques such as repetition. ‘In a poem, though,’ says Dana, ‘it’s just words and that’s it’. Recorded in the Somerset countryside in early 2024 by longtime Big Thief and Laura Marling engineer Dom Monks, ‘Clouds In the Sky They Will Always Be There for Me’ is Porridge Radio’s new album and first new music in two years. The UK band’s new album is a coming-of-age moment inspired by burnout, the music industry, the brutal collapse of a relationship and – crucially – Dana’s own increasing immersion in her craft as an artist.
release: 18th october 2024
available on double vinyl / cd
The Blessed Madonna began with three magic words, scrawled in shoe polish on a broken-down box and hung on the wall at a small sweaty party: ‘We Still Believe’. ‘I think you have to give up completely to really understand what hope is. It was like 2011? I had spectacularly, monumentally failed. I left the label. I wasn’t DJing. I wasn’t putting out records. I was divorced and living on my Dad’s couch so naturally my friends and I decided to throw an illegal rave. We didn’t have any decorations, so I took a box and wrote, ‘We Still Believe’ on it. I needed to believe that something better was possible and that’s how it all started’. After years of $50 gigs, strung together by gas money and surfed couches, The Blessed Madonna cemented her reputation as a sublime technician behind the decks with a legacy of fluent and dynamic sets, spanning from disco to techno to house and back. One room sweatboxes, circus tents, theatres, massive festival stages and entire city blocks have all served as the canvas for her shows. After a jam packed 2023, from Glastonbury to Sonar to Boiler Room Bali, The Blessed Madonna has been filling the dance floor everywhere she goes and is now releasing her debut album.
release: 4th october 2024
available on vinyl / cd
The fourth album from Grammy Award-winning recording artist, songwriter, and producer Leon Bridges is a masterful showcase of his evolution as an artist. Titled simply Leon, this 13-track collection is a deeply personal journey that delves into the heart of Ft. Worth, the city that shaped him. With his signature storytelling, Leon invites listeners into his world, reflecting on the people, places, and experiences that have had a profound influence on his life. From introspective ballads to uplifting anthems, Leon is a tribute to his roots, his growth, and his creative vision. Each track paints a vivid picture, offering fans not just a collection of songs, but a heartfelt narrative of where he’s been, where he is, and where he’s going.
release: 18th october 2024
available on vinyl / cd
‘Dreamstate’ is Kelly Lee Owens fourth studio album. There’s an incredible feeling of freedom and escapism found throughout the album, born from the experience of inner evolution in the aftermath of a break-up. It’s the sound of a person letting loose and letting go while encouraging everyone else to do the same. ‘Dreamstate’ is built on the foundations of collaboration, with producer-writer credits from Bicep, Tom Rowlands from The Chemical Brothers and George Daniel.
goat – goat
release: 11th october 2024
available on vinyl / cd
This may be a band that has named albums both Requiem and Oh Death, yet this eponymous salvo proves yet again that transcendence and metamorphosis are their watchwords. Following on from the uncharted territory of the soul-searching and folk-tinged Medicine and the dark, atmospheric soundtrack to Shane Meadows’ The Gallows Pole, Goat sees this ever-unpredictable outfit summoning rhythmically-driven rituals in unmistakable, uplifting and scintillating style, equally adept at igniting dancefloors and expanding minds.
tucker zimmerman – dance of love
release: 11th october 2024
available on vinyl / cd
4AD welcomes Belgium-based American singer-songwriter Tucker Zimmerman to the family. His label debut and eleventh career studio record entitled ‘Dance of Love’, will be released on 11th October 2024. Over a career that spans half a century, Zimmerman’s discography is a sonic memoir. A sprawling collection of records that have explored folk, 12-bar blues, full-band rock concertos and classical piano compositions, his work is also a tribute to the people, experiences and sounds that have shaped his life, amassing in a deeply personal and resonating songbook. With ‘Dance of Love’, listeners will find a multi-faceted and heartfelt record from a songwriter who has had a full and exciting life decorated with meaningful friendships, hard but valuable lessons, worldly experience, and ultimately, lots of love.
the smile – cutouts
release: 4th october 2024
available on ltd. edition white vinyl / vinyl / cd
Following the release of Wall of Eyes earlier this year, the trio returns with their third studio album, Cutouts. Recorded between Oxford and Abbey Road Studios, this album was born from the same creative period as Wall of Eyes. Rich with intricate string arrangements by the London Contemporary Orchestra, Cutouts pushes the boundaries of the band’s sound, blending haunting melodies with organic orchestral textures. The album artwork, painted by Stanley Donwood and Thom Yorke during the recording sessions, perfectly captures the essence of the music.