5. Frankie Cosmos takes a (brief) trip to the Sand

Sand is the deliciously short new single from Frankie Cosmos, lifted from her upcoming release, Fit Me In. The EP is out later this year on Bayonet Records. forty-nine seconds of rumbling bass, ticking cymbals, and gorgeous warbling synths, accompanying Frankie’s trademark, unhurried, vocal delivery; it’s frankly delightful.

Describing the record, Frankie Cosmos, or Greta Kline to use her real name, has described it as, “a one-off experiment in “fitting” Kline’s songwriting into an electronic sound, characteristic of current pop culture”. Whether it fits into the current pop climate is questionable, but it certainly sounds very good to us.

Fit Me In is out November 13th on Bayonet Records.

4. You Can Stick Your Waiting Room

Tindersticks formed in 1991, to put that in some context that was shortly after Margaret Thatcher lost the leadership of the Conservative party. Plenty has changed, but early next year, some twenty five years later, they will return with their tenth album The Waiting Room, their first since 2012.

As well as confirming details of their new record, this week the band shared their new single, We Are Dreamers featuring the vocal talents of Savages’ Jenny Beth. The track is a typically dark and brooding piece, with a heavy percussive edge. Lead-singer Stuart Staples being joined by Jenny Beth as they repeat, “this is not earth, this is not earth, we are dreamers” possibly a Planet Of The Apes homage. Whether that’s the case or not you can officially mark down The Waiting Room as one of 2016’s most anticipated releases.

The Waiting Room is out January 22nd via City Slang. Tindersticks’ UK tour starts at the end of April next year.

3. The Casket Girls Stay Sixteen Forever

Savannah, Georgia based three-piece The Casket Girls consist of pianist Ryan Graveface and singing-sisters Elsa and Phaedra Greene. They formed when Ryan was looking around what would become his new home town, he stumbled across the sisters, “playing autoharp and singing weird songs”. Ryan, being obsessed with the Shangri-Las, approached the duo with the idea of forming, “a far darker and more complex version of the 60’s group.”

This week The Casket Girls announced the release of what they’re calling their 2.5th LP, The Piano Album. A stripped back affair based around a fantasy, “of travelling around from piano bar to fancy hotel lobby with our new lounge act”. They also shared the first taster in the shape of single, Sixteen Forever. The track is unsurprisingly based around a delightful, meandering piano piece and the Greene sisters gorgeous, hauntingly harmonious vocals. Lyrically, it concerns the ageing process, as they sing, “only the dead stay sixteen forever”. They might not consider it a whole album in its own right, but based on this track it might be their most intriguing record yet.

The Piano Album is out October 17th via Graveface Records.

2. The Spook School 1 – Binary 0

Edinburgh queer-trans-punk band, The Spook School are set to release their new album, Try To Be Helpful next month, and this week they shared the video for superb new single, Binary. The albums penultimate track, Binary finds the band questioning the neat little boxes prescribed by societies gender norms, and concluding we are all more than a series of ones and zeroes.

The Spook School have described the album as, “triumphant queer pop songs about identity, sexuality and being awesome.” Based on Binary, we certainly can’t argue with that.

Try To Be Helpful is out October 9th via Fortuna POP! The Spook School play lots of UK gigs across both October and November.

1. Lyla Foy looks to the Stars

This week, Lyla Foy shared her new single Right To Be, the first new music from Lyla since last year’s excellent Mirrors The Sky album, which came out on the legendary Sub Pop label. Right To Be is an atmospheric, downbeat affair, all muted guitar strums, processed beats and haunting, piercing vocals.

Lyla has also confirmed details of her next longer release which will come in the shape of self-release EP, UMi. That record will arrive at the start of next month, and takes it’s title from abbreviation of the constellation Ursa Minor, or the Little Bear. Describing the record, Lyla has suggested the tracks on it are reflections of night-time, a direct contrast to her previous album, which was based around images of daylight. Nocturnal or otherwise, we’re looking forward to hearing this next step from this hugely talented songwriter.

UMi is out October 2nd. Lyla Foy plays The Courtyard Theatre in Hoxton October 1st, before heading out for US dates.