CD REVIEWS: Including N.E.R.D and Linkin Park live

N.E.R.D – No one Ever Really Dies: The R&B/funk/pop-rock outfit are back wholeheartedly, unapologetically and exquisitely. Their first album in seven years spills over with hefty collaborations (Rihanna, Ed Sheeran, Kendrick Lamar and M.I.A. to name a few) and is a deluxe dossier of genres from ska to disco, but with the trademark energetic N.E.R.D touch. In a very 2017 move, Williams and co have taken a step into the political arena. Standout track Don’t Don’t Do It!, featuring Lamar, wraps the heavy subject matter – the shooting of Keith Lamont Scott by North Carolina police in 2016 – into an upbeat package. It’s a smart step, and the more you listen the more it resonates. Other highlights include banger ESP, Rihanna’s rapping on opener Lemon, and Sheeran on reggae-tinged Lifting You. Lucy Mapstone

Linkin Park – One More Light: Live: There couldn’t be a better way to honour Linkin Park frontman Chester Bennington than with this album. The collection features songs from the band’s One More Light tour, which was cut short following Bennington’s shock death in July. It shows him off at his best: on stage, giving the audience everything with his powerful vocals. The band dedicated the album to Bennington and from beginning to end it stays with you. From the haunting rendition of One More Light to old favourites like Numb, In The End and What I’ve Done, it’s all exactly as it should be. The stripped-back version of Crawling is a standout. Somehow the lyrics of each song seem more poignant now, and Bennington’s voice cements itself in the annals of artists and talent gone too soon from the world of music. Kerri-Ann Roper

Luke Bryan – What Makes You Country: Luke Bryan is perhaps best seen as both a guide for those uninitiated in the ways of “country” whilst landing firmly in the “nothing special” pile for those already clued in to the genre. On the opening track Bryan tells us that everyone from cowboys to city dwelling secret fans (among others) is “country” in their own way, after the opening lyrics inform us of the discussion with “people talking about what is and what ain’t country”. It’s unfortunate (or deliberate?) that the opening/title track could well be the best song on the entire album, perhaps given a run for its money by penultimate love anthem track Driving This Thing: which does (sort of) make you wish for a Chevrolet truck. If you have a passing interest in the genre it’s a record worth giving a spin. Ryan Ward

Monster Rally – Flowering Jungle: Listening to Monster Rally’s new album during coldest winter Britain has seen in years is a like using coconut-scented shampoo: it may make you feel like you’re on a desert island, but you’ll still see your breath when you leave the house. Monster Rally expertly curates a dreamy island mood with the help of lazy Hawaiian guitars and crisp sunny beats. The album is not ambitious, picking a theme and running with it, but its relentless commitment to setting a scene brings comparisons with Eden Ahbez’s primal psychedelica in Eden’s Island, or (though opposite in tone) Bon Iver’s cabin-in-the-woods aesthetic. While this attention to detail and slick sampling is the album’s strength, by the 16th track you may start to wonder if it has anything else up his sleeve. Zander Sharp