This week’s round-up sees the return of Nicole Scherzinger, whose follow-up to her 2011 debut album hits the shelves on Monday. Elsewhere, Ben Howard is back with his highly-anticipated second album, and Rae Morris will release another EP prior to her first full-length record which will be available early next year.
Albums
Nicole Scherzinger – Big Fat Lie
Nicole Scherzinger will finally return on Monday with her highly-anticipated second album. The American artist’s debut album Killer Love was released back in 2011, and spawned the number one single ‘Don’t Hold Your Breath’. The album also created hits ‘Right There’ and ‘Poison’. Having topped the charts with singles and her debut entering the UK’s top ten, the pressure was on with Scherzinger’s follow-up’s lead single, ‘Your Love’ which peaked at a respectable six. Scherzinger released ‘On The Rocks’, the second single from the album, last Sunday, but it doesn’t appear that it will chart at all this weekend. No longer on the panel, will Scherzinger’s Big Fat Lie prove that she still has The X Factor or suffer from the second-album-curse?
Ben Howard – I Forget Where We Were
Three years on from debut album Every Kingdom, which spawned the likes of summery folk anthems ‘Only Love’ and ‘Old Pine’, Ben Howard will be returning this week with I Forget Where We Were. The first glimpse of the new album in the form of ‘End of the Affair’ was released in August, and served as a representation of what fans are to expect of the new record: a slightly more darker and experimental album. A few weeks later, a concrete track was released, the title track ‘I Forget Where We Were’ which is the first official single to be lifted from the album. Having been in the top five for Every Kingdom and nominated for the 2012 Mercury Prize, fans and critics alike will have high expectations of Howard’s second record.
Rae Morris – Closer EP
Following the release of extended play Cold of whose title track features Lily Allen’s current UK tour support act Fryars, Rae Morris returns with another EP, Closer. The four-track record features two of Morris’ original songs, ‘Closer’ which is accompanied by a somewhat surreal video, and ‘My God’ a mellow, euphoric piano-led song which the artist premiered just a few days ago. The up-and-coming artist is currently touring with George Ezra, the pair donning the Twitter hashtag #EZRAE. Rae Morris’ highly-anticipated full-length debut record, Unguarded, is set for release early next year. But for now, check out her upcoming EP, Closer, which is available to preorder on iTunes.
