Jessie Ware & Benzel - If You Love Me
Glorious cover of a 90s R&B hit, Ms Ware getting back to her roots, can't say fairer than that. (Her R&B roots, that is, not her London Jewish roots. Else we'll be hearing a dubstep Hava Nagila and sending mitzvahs all round.)
Charli XCX - Cold Nites (How to Dress Well) Remix
This girl. THIS GIRL. We've been touting Charli XCX since Nuclear Seasons, and then a couple of weeks ago she dropped the utterly incredible Super Ultra mixtape (download it for free hither). PressPLAY are gigantic fans of Tom Krell as it is - his falsetto gets our vas deferens in a twist - so this union is perhaps the greatest in music since Marvin and Rochelle. 2013 is all yours, love... especially since we're all a bit over Azealia Banks now.
Autre Ne Veut - Counting
Talking about How to Dress Well reminds us of Autre Ne Veut, another mysterious purveyor of neo-R&B. His raw self-titled first album (containing the swell New Depth) has proven to be decent training for a more produced and refined second album, Anxiety. Yes, the same name as Ladyhawke's second album. Originality is dead.
The Staves - The Motherlode
Oh yes, we do like a bit of folk here too at PressPLAY (minus Mumford & C*nts, they can do one). This trio of sisters - along with HAIM this seems to be a 'thing' now, apparently - create sumptuous pastoral pop in their album Dead Born & Grown, a highlight of which is The Motherlode. Perfect to see out the autumn.
Lana Del Rey - Cola
Everyone's getting on the Lana-slagging bandwagon these days, but the fact is: she's prettier than all of us so she can do whatever the bloody hell she wants. One such thing is to start a song with the words "My pussy tastes like Pepsi Cola", which raises all manner of questions: Did she miss her appointment at the clinic? Has she tasted it herself? And most importantly, why not Coca-Cola? Regardless, what a tune.
Lulu James - Stuck
Oh, this is good. Dub-dance with a soul vocal from upcoming Londoner Lulu James. It's like someone brought Des'ree to 2012.
Stuck - Lulu James & Mao by Lulu James
What we're NOT listening to: Rihanna and another one of her manufactured albums. Have her fans got themselves a name yet? We suggest Riharseholes.
We also care very little for the new Girls Aloud ballad. This never ends well for you, girls. Stop it.