Saunder Jurriaans

★★★★ Beasts DECCA. CD/DL/LP After 20 years, NYC-based soundtrack specialist makes his solo debut. Jurriaans was part of the prog-minded Tarantula AD and the earthier Priestbird before making more lauded advances as half of a soundtrack-writing duo with Danny Bensi (Ozark, The OA and Boy Erased all feature on their joint CV). Over time, he’s accumulated solo songs and has finally bundled 11 of them together here. Given his diverse background, it’s little surprise that

Beasts tries on various guises: glowering piano ballads (All The King’s Men), uncoiling rock drama (Miles To Go), guitar instrumentals (The Small Follower’s crackly jazz, Brittle Bones’ flamenco flourish), the Morricone-like The Three Of Me. But a unifying vision slowly emerges, until Beast resembles an alternate-universe, one-man Radiohead. In its aching melodies and darkest recesses, this is arguably the Thom Yorke solo album many Radiohead fans wish he’d make. Martin Aston