Our Best Albums of January

from ON THE MOVE MAG - FEBRUARY 2018

by On The Move

Zoom on: Lewis Capaldi

OUR BEST ALBUMS

OF JANUARY

Every week of the year, a bunch of records are thrown into the world, portraying the singular influences, universe and sound of artists. Do you get lost in the numerous releases ? On The Move Mag is here to help. This month, as always, we opened our ears and dived into what matters most : music ! Whatever genre suits you, you’ll find something new to discover... Here are our favourite albums released in January.

Two years after “Limitless” which didn’t receive overwhelming support, the Australians of Tonight Alive made their comeback and released their most awaited yet dreaded record. However, from the first notes, “Underworld” sounds way more authentic than its predecessor. “Temple”, “Crack My Heart” and “Disappear” (featuring Lynn Gunn from PVRIS), all released as singles, gave an exciting foretaste of the personal lyricism, heady guitar riffs and neat production that make “Underworld” promising. While being quite predictable, Tonight Alive keeps its recognizable and unique soundscape. Jenna McDougall’s vocals is remarkable, namely in “Looking for Heaven”, a beautiful and powerful piano ballad. “Underworld” definitely has potential, even more on stage, which we are looking forward to hearing soon hopefully!

Top 3 tracks : Temple, Disappear, Waiting For The End

Tonight Alive – Underworld

The Scottish band The Xcerts has finally found its musical path with its newest and best album “Hold On To Your Heart”. Although coming from a dark place, the record highlights general themes like life, love and optimism and puts deep emphasis on the meaning of these words. Musically speaking, the trio want to show people that they’re worth more than the pain they’re going through. Expect catchy choruses, timeless melodies, brilliant guitar riffs as well as a touch of rock from the 80s. From piano ballads, to pure energetic anthems and even some surprising saxophone in the well-mastered track “Drive Me Wild”, The Xcerts never fails to amaze and go beyond their limits. With “Hold On To Your Heart” in its entirety, we feel like celebrating love and life under every circumstance and that’s what it’s about in 2018!

Top 3 tracks : Hold On To Your Heart, Drive Me Wild, Feels Like Falling In Love,

The Xcerts – Hold On To Your Heart

Just over a year ago, Camila Cabello left the successful girlband Fifth Harmony to follow her own musical path. Originally announced last May and given the title «The Hurting. The Healing. The Loving.» the album was finally released in late January and refashioned in the wake of the success of the lead single «Havana». Salsa infected, pop infused and incredibly diverse and good, «Camila» is a collection of the singer’s inspirations and talent. While «Real Friends» and «All These Years» are soft with an acoustic vibe, «She Loves Control» is a bold statement from a young rising star, who dreamed of independence for half a decade. As a whole, this first album carries a bright and powerful pop, and we can’t wait to hear more of it!

Top 3 tracks : Havana, Never Be The Same, All These Years

Camila Cabello - Camila

Three years. It’s been three years since Fall Out Boy released an album, but finally, this year they made a comeback with «M A N I A». New image, mystic atmosphere, mysterious llamas and brand new sound, the Chicago band is slowly drifting away from its emo/pop-punk roots to venture into a more rock’n’roll sound mixed with some EDM vibes, as heard on the first single «Young and Menace». From R’n’B vibes on «Wilson (Expensive Mistakes)» to the Spanish inspired «HOLD ME TIGHT OR DON’T», Fall Out Boy went for more diversity on this album and basically tried their hand at everything this time. Whether you like it or miss their old sound, trust us, «M A N I A» is worth a listen! The more you’ll hear it, the more you’ll love it.

Top 3 tracks : Bishop Knife Trick, Champion, Hold Me Tight Or Don’t

Fall Out Boy - M A N I A

Five years after appearing in our musical landscape and conquering the world with their jungle pop and overflowing originality, the UFO Django Django makes a brilliant comeback with “Marble Skies”, third album of the quartet’s discography. It is seen as the logical follow-up of the first album with unpredictable synths, electronic flavors and tribal rhythms. This rich mixture gives birth to transcending songs like “Tic Tac Toe” or “Real Gone” which would have even more potential on stage. Django Django also succeeds to deliver a sober track with “Surface To Air” while paradoxically offering their most danceable and euphoric track thanks to dancehall influences perfectly accompanied by a feminine voice. “Marble Skies” is a good example of the band’s ambition and inventiveness which create their unique soundscape since 2009.

Top 3 tracks : Surface To Air, Tic Tac Toe, Beam Me Up

Django Django – Marble Skies

Craig David has been teasing this new album for a while and the time is now! After making a huge come back in the UK in 2016 with a brand new album named «Following My Intuition», the British R&B veteran has multiplied the collaborations including «I Know You» with Bastille frontman Dan Smith but also «Live In The Moment» with Goldlink or «Somebody Like Me» with AJ Tracey. If «Following My Intuition» was really EDM oriented, with a lot of influences coming from TS5 - and the DJ sets he’s been playing all over the world for the past couple of years - this new record showcases the beginning of the return of Craig’s R&B roots. Still mainly electro infused, «The Time Is Now» has some R&B gems like «Get Involved» featuring JP Cooper or «Brand New». It’s so good to see Craig David slowly getting back to the sound that made him famous. We just wish there were more tracks like those.

Top 3 tracks : Brand New, Get Involved, I Know You

Craig David - The Time Is Now

After Fall Out Boy and their «M A N I A» it is now time for their little brothers, Waterparks, to shine. With their second album «Entertainment» the trio tried their hands at something a bit different : diverse, juggling between styles and mixing different universes, the 10 tracks are as different from each other as good. Whether you’re looking for pop music with «Peach (lobotomy)», pure rock like «Tantrum» or simple and melancholic melodies on which feelings take over like on «Lucky People», you’ll find something that’ll make you want to dance or bang your head. With Waterparks, you’re in for a treat!

Top 3 tracks : Peach (Lobotomy), Lucky People, Blonde

Waterparks - Entertainment

You’ve been waiting for EDEN’s debut album for quite a while, haven’t you? The 22 year old singer from Dublin made a quite big impression with his latest EP «I Think You Think Too Much Of Me» and his alt-R&B sound matured to the point of releasing «Vertigo», his well-crafted debut album, this month. Five years have passed since Jonathon Ng started to upload music on his Soundcloud account under the name of The EDEN Project and what a journey it’s been ever since. EDEN embraced minimalism while getting confidence in his music and exploring the pop music and electronic sounds. His debut album «Vertigo» showcases EDEN’s artistry and offers a cinematic experience to the fans while touching their hearts in a very singular manner. EDEN is starting off 2018 the right way and this reflection on the past few years and new found maturity makes him one of the artists to discover this year if you haven’t already.