9 of the best albums of May 2024

We’re officially halfway through the year and what a month it’s been for music! Returning with his first full-length solo release since the dissolution of his PC Music label, AG Cook has blessed us with Britpop, a 24-song album from the wizard of the pop industry featuring the likes of Addison Rae and Charli XCX, and an entire multiverse of characters, games, videos and bonus downloads via three ultra-weird yet suspiciously familiar sites, Wandcamp, Wheatport and Witchfork. Next up, Billie Eilish returns with her third studio album, Hit me hard and softand includes the steamy single ‘Lunch’, which we quickly added to our canon songs about girls eating outwith lyrics like “I could eat that girl for lunch” leading the lesbian revival by taking control of our ear waves.

Elsewhere, Portishead’s Beth Gibbons unveils her long-awaited solo album, which I must confess is achingly beautiful and bound to bring a tear to your eye as Igloophantomhis Tidal Memory Exo it’s a master class in world-building – think geomagnetic storms, prehistoric creatures, invented micro-genres like ‘foamtek’ and ‘sporestyle’. At the clubbier end of the spectrum is Lyzza, who delivers raw dance edits on a new EP that leaves her, in her own words, “yearning for subversion.” Check out our full list of highlights below.