New releases

THE WATERBOYS: Out Of All This Blue (BMG)

SINGER Mike Scott hits new heights on a sprawling but consistent sequel to 2015’s Modern Blues. Punchy Celtic pop is underpinned by strings that hark back to Seventies soul and, on New York I Love You, some Beck-like plastic funk. Nashville is a Stones pastiche and Monument a nod to The Clash. Over 23 tracks, there’s little slack.

TORI AMOS: Native Invader (Decca)

AFTER detours into classical music and theatre, Tori Amos continues her move back to piano pop. These tunes lack her usual bite, but there are reliably bonkers moments, with Cloud Riders featuring ‘a chariot pulled by cats, purring’. Her teenage daughter Natashya duets on Up The Creek; tender Mary’s Eyes is a tribute to her mother.