Blondshell - Blondshell

Sometimes an album immediately signals the arrival of a bonafide superstar. With Blondshell's self-titled debut, that coming is welcomed in the boldest and warmest way possible, with a record that at one moment sounds like a lush wall of sound merging together in stunning fashion and at the next like catching up with a best mate.

It's that confessional style which makes Blondshell so special: alt-rock licks on tracks like 'Veronica Mars' and 'Joiner' are primed to takeover festival summer, while the spinning twists of 'Salad' and 'Sepsis' deliver the sort of cracking quips that grounds everything Blondshell does in a clear sense of individuality (the latter's confession of "going back to him, I know my therapist is pissed, we both know he's a dick, at least it's the obvious kind," is already in the running for lyrics of the year).

Lighter moments are mixed with devastating ones - the gorgeous 'Sober Together' is a raw look at someone you love struggling through sobriety and showcases that breadth in songwriting bliss that makes you wonder how we all were knocking about without Blondshell in the first place.

Stunning in its history, all-engulfing in its glorious hooks and ripping turns. 'Blondshell' is the alternative arrival that 2023 has been waiting for.