Back in stock: Classical

Review: Andrea Bocelli's remastered edition of Sogno brings renewed clarity to this 1999 classic. The album showcases his powerful tenor voice across a selection of operatic and pop-influenced tracks that blend emotional depth with exceptional vocal performance. Highlights include the stirring 'Canto Della Terra,' the heartfelt 'Vivo Per Lei,' and the soaring title track. The remastering enhances the lush orchestration and vibrant detail making each note and nuance more vivid while Bocelli's emotive delivery, combined with the refined sound quality, makes this one essential for both longtime fans and new listeners.

Review: Lucinda Chua is currently based in South London and is a singer, songwriter, composer, producer and multi-instrumentalist. She crafts elegant and emotive music mainly using her voice and cello, plenty of effects units and draws on ambient for her inspiration. What results is atmospheric and intimate music that is utterly enchaining as this album on 4AD proves across ten tracks that come after she spent an intensive period studying Chinese dance forms. Lead single 'Echo' is a pop song about ancestral trauma that walks a thin line between respect for the past and the hope and freedom of a new future. It's captivating indeed.

Review: The Sonatine (1993) soundtrack is an exceptional work from legendary composer Joe Hisaishi, known above all for his in-house scores for Studio Ghibli. This inviting compendium of neoclassical, synth-driven, turn-of-the-80s electronica highlights the infamous artist's contemplative, intimate side, bringing an equally sparring yet evocative experience. Not a Ghibli contribution, the score instead accompanies a signature addition to the filmography of Takeshi Kitano: Sonatine is a stylish yakuza crime thriller following a weary gangster sent to Okinawa, where violence and existential reflection intertwine. These pensive, purgatory pieces are equally capable capacity to melt and enrapt the listener's heart, with refulgent piano and Roland DJ-800 / D-50s scoring a distinctive J-chillout mood (just listen to those flourishes on 'Play On The Sands').

Review: Moondog's H'art Songs stands out as a defining moment in his illustrious career, marking the first release to omit his name from the title. Recorded in his sixties, this rare vocal album comprises ten art songs that deftly blur the lines between classical and pop music. Dubbed "H'art songs" for Hardin's art, the compositions showcase a musical sophistication that appeals to both pop and classical enthusiasts. Released in 1977, this collection enriches Moondog's eclectic discography, featuring mesmerising wordplay that conveys narratives ranging from political commentary to nature appreciation, all wrapped in poetic intrigue. Moondog's unique singing style, devoid of vibrato, allows for accessibility, encouraging listeners to join in. He intentionally simplified the vocal lines, leaving the intricate harmonies to the piano, which carries the melodic weight of the songs. This album is undeniably one of Moondog's most impactful releases.

Review: A wet dream by any other name, Nocturnal Emissions first gave us Innovation of the Beast Gods in January 1989. A year that would wind up changing the very face of the world and global order, it's fitting that we should be returning to it at a point when history seems to be getting made in some rather overwhelming ways, and established structures are again being called into question and actively dismantled. Enough politics, though - Innovation of the Beast Gods is disinterested in the discourse of artificial power and resolutely committed to a more natural world. Tracks are more collages of layered sounds, recordings of creatures that come out as the sun goes down and humans tend to take more of a back seat. Bats, owls, marine life, foxes, and insects all contributed to the aural tapestry, captured noises augmented by synthesised and electronic tones completing a deeply textured and immersive experience.

Review: This monumental 27-disc box set spans six decades of the composer's career through his evolution as a pioneer of minimalism and one of contemporary music's most influential figures. Released by Nonesuch Records, the collection includes seminal works like Music for 18 Musicians and Different Trains, alongside recent recordings of Traveler's Prayer (2020) and Jacob's Ladder (2023). These pieces reaffirm Reich's enduring relevance in shaping the musical landscape. The set is accompanied by extensive essays from notable collaborators and admirers, including Nico Muhly and Michael Tilson Thomas, offering profound insights into Reich's creative process and his transformative impact. Particularly compelling is Timo Andres' observation of Reich's music as a utopian microcosm, underscoring its harmonious blend of communal effort and structured innovation. Reich's ability to integrate diverse influencesifrom Ghanaian drumming to Hebrew psalmsiremains a defining hallmark. Notably, Music for 18 Musicians continues to stand as a landmark composition, celebrated for its kinetic energy and harmonic brilliance. This collection, the most extensive yet, is a gateway for new audiences to explore his profound reshaping of modern classical music.

Review: The results are in and the doubters have been silenced - Barbie's silver screen debut has been a resounding success. As well as adroitly treading the line between bubblegum escapism and socially astute observation, Greta Gerwig's blockbuster features a heavyweight soundtrack pieced together by premier league pop auteur Mark Ronson alongside Andrew Wyatt.

Review: After a two-decade interlude, Jim O'Rourke's Moikai returns with Spectral Evolution, a major new work by Rafael Toral. Making his name in the mid-1990s with influential guitar drone platters like Sound Mind Sound Body and Wave Field (both reissued by Drag City in recent years), Toral has never been one to rest on his laurels repeating past glories. In the early years of the 21st century, Toral began his "Space Program", a 13 year investigation of the performance possibilities of an ever-expanding set of custom electronic instruments, played with a fluid phrasing and rhythmic flexibility inspired by jazz. Dedicated to honing his skills on these idiosyncratic instruments, Toral founded his Space Quartet, where his mini-amplifier feedback integrates seamlessly into the frontline of a classic post-free jazz quartet rounded out with saxophone, double bass, and drums. Since 2017, Toral's work has been entering a new phase, often still centred around the arsenal of self-built instruments developed in the Space Program, but with a renewed interest in the long tones and almost static textures of his earlier work; he has also, after more than a decade, returned to the electric guitar. Spectral Evolution is undoubtedly Toral's most sophisticated work to date, bringing together seemingly incompatible threads from his entire career into a powerful new synthesis, both wildly experimental and emotionally affecting.