Albums to Look Forward to in December 2024
As we approach the end of the year, new album releases are winding down to make way for the holidays. Come December, we’ll all be tuning into Sabrina Carpenter’s “A Nonsense Christmas” Netflix special, and Michael Bublé and Mariah Carey will make their annual return to the top of the charts. This shift often prompts labels to hold on to new releases until January to ensure projects aren’t overshadowed by the chaos of the season. Even still, there are a few exciting releases slated for the beginning of this month that are worth highlighting. This Friday we’re looking forward to four new music projects, each a unique flavor of pop: Lauren Mayberry’s confessional pop collage, Babymorocco’s hyper-sleazy electronic pop, LUCY (Cooper B. Handy)’s absurdly experimental pop, and Dev Lemon’s bubbly DIY bedroom pop.
Watch the video for “Something in the Air” on YouTube.
Lauren Mayberry - Vicious Creature - Dec. 6
Lauren Mayberry is known best for her roles as vocalist and percussionist in the band Chvrches, who for a decade has been charming the world with synth-infused indie pop. Now, Mayberry is stepping out on her own with the release of her solo debut album, Vicious Creature. In this record, Mayberry ruminates on her experiences in the music industry. Touching on the topics of sexism, internalized misogyny, and toxic personal and professional relationships, Vicious Creature is Mayberry seizing the chance to confess every lesson she’s learned since the start of her career. Musically, she’s chosen to embrace the pop sound of her youth with clear influence from the 80s and 2000s – namely Whitney Houston, Annie Lennox, All Saints, and Yeah Yeah Yeahs as she revealed in a recent interview. This is a clear departure from the colorful, era-specific electro pop that Chvrches rose to fame with. Their song “The Mother We Share” goes hand in hand in my mind with oil spill images on tumblr. Instead, Mayberry’s Vicious Creature is fresh and undeniably her own.
Watch the video for “Bikinis and Trackies” on YouTube.
Babymorocco - Amour - Dec. 6
You may have heard whisperings that a recession pop revival is afoot. The rumors are true, and one of the most prominent figures in this scene is the international pop artist known as Babymorocco. When I found his 2023 album, The Sound, it became an instant favorite of mine. His promiscuous, energetic, messy, vain, and party-centered persona shines over bass heavy dance tracks, selling a fantasy. Since then, I’ve been following his antics as he travels between the UK and the U.S. to hang out with other sleaze revival scenesters. With a history of opening for The Dare in NYC, collaborating with and joining Frost Children on stage in LA, and throwing many FOMO worthy DJ sets, he’s proven to be well connected within the subculture. This Friday, he’s set to debut his sophomore record, Amour, the first to be executively produced by Frost Children. In addition to being produced by them, his latest single, “Bikinis and Trackies,” features Frost Children and is nothing short of a dancefloor masterpiece. The innovative production on this one and on tracks like “Crazy Cheap,” becomes more intoxicating with each listen.
Watch the video for “Rhododendron” on YouTube.
LUCY (Cooper B. Handy) - Cooper B. Handy’s Album, Vol. 9 - Dec. 6
LUCY (Cooper B. Handy) is a NYC based artist that has found a cult following from sticking to his unconventional style. Despite facing disapproval from audiences who didn’t see his vision, Handy now finds himself with fans who really get it. On Friday, he’s releasing his aptly titled new project, Cooper B. Handy’s Album, Vol. 9. Of the singles that are already out, “Rhododendron” is the most exemplary of Handy’s sound. Within the first few seconds, the universally recognizable tin whistle melody of “My Heart Will Go On” (the Titanic theme) is sampled on a loop, and serves as the base of the entire song. While this choice is inherently amusing, the rest of the song builds beautifully with Handy’s verses complementing the sample over a clever minimal beat. Referencing widely known melodies tends to be a recurring practice for Handy. On a collaboration with True Blue called “Airplane Mode”, he did the same, this time singing the opening lyrics of “Dreams” by Fleetwood Mac on his verse. In an interview with GQ, he stated, “I think I make pop music, but people who really listen to pop music say it’s not that. I guess it’s more experimental.” Handy is hosting a special release show on Friday night at the Grotta Azzurra in NYC.
Watch the video for “In The Party” on YouTube.
Dev Lemons - songs with the volume on - Dec. 6
Dev Lemons is an enigma. You may recognize her from her music, from her side project’s viral song “PINEAPPLE UPSIDE DOWN,” or from her recently popular YouTube videos where she recreates songs from memory using a music software on mute. Her bedroom pop ranges from catchy, head nodding tracks to spacey, pensive ballads. This Friday, Lemons is releasing an EP titled songs with the volume on related to her YouTube channel’s recurring endeavor to recreate songs without being able to hear what she’s doing. In these videos, she does her best to choose elements that, based on the name of the sound, will fit the song she’s making. Of course, being unable to hear it means the reveal at the end of each video is either surprisingly impressive or hilariously awful. In the upcoming EP, Dev took some accidentally beautiful compositions from these attempts and used them to create new original songs.
