Playing with a Different Sex was the debut album by seminal post-punk band Au Pairs, released in 1981. Described retrospectively by AllMusic as ‘one of the great post-punk records’, a review by Record Mirror on its release said the band’s ‘critique of all forms of possession and sexual stereotyping assumes a devastating power’. Themes include sexual politics and the torture of women imprisoned in Northern Ireland during The Troubles of the 1970s, as well as a stunning cover of David Bowie’s ‘Repetition’ about domestic violence. It peaked at No. 33 in the UK, and features the single ‘It's Obvious’, which reached No. 37 on the US Club Play Singles chart.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. We're So Cool
2. Love Song
3. Set Up
4. Repetition
5. Headache For Michelle

Side B
1. Come Again
2. Armagh
3. Unfinished Business
4. Dear John
5. It's Obvious

When The Devil Drives is inspired by the sounds of lo-fi, trip-hop and downtempo alternative music. The album soundtracks the topics of mental health, hangover/hangxiety, bad decisions and hazy memories, contrasted with moments of serenity, calm and chill.

TRACK LISTING

01 In Medias Res
02 Thisiswhyidon’tknowwhy
03 KTM
04 In This Moment For Days
05 Sertraline Daydream
06 Down By Piccadilly East
07 November
08 DAMN
09 Needs Must When The Devil Drives
10 Same Skit Different Day
11 RAGS
12 Makeshift Raves By The Side Of Railway Arches
13 The Sadness Won’t Last Forever

Brand new single drop from one of the most beloved bands of the modern era, part-pioneers of DFA records and Brooklyn-based scene starters, LCD Soundsystem. As you'd expect, the main groove is an angular vocal-led stomp that harks back to the classic days of machine-heavy off-piste electronics (Chris Carter, Reznor) and minimal, snappy electro but soon descends into an artifact-laiden suite of echoic blips and increasingly frenetic synth soloing. 

Murphy's vocals here slot in perfectly beneath the slow synth passages too, lending a momentum that belies the reasonably unchanging percussion, and the flip-side focuses a little more on the vocal and snappy percussion with an aquatic sounding dub that relies even more heavily on the avant-garde drone elements of the original. Another superb single from one of the most legendary figures in todays indie landscape. 

TRACK LISTING

A1. X-Ray Eyes
B1. X-Ray Eyes (Extended Trash Can Dub)