The Lead Sheet ~ 11/11/25

The Lead Sheet is your guide to this week’s new music - taking a look at newly released albums, who made them, and how listeners are responding. 

Alt-pop star Rosalía released her fourth studio album, Lux this week to overwhelmingly positive reviews. The new project is a distinct shift towards a classical and operatic sound, moving away from the somewhat reggaeton themed previous album, Motomami. The singer has often blended genres in her work, mixing flamenco, pop, jazz, reggae, and classical. Lux, recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra, is a concept album, with each track inspired by a different female saint. The fifteen track (or eighteen, on the physical edition) album is divided into four parts, and Rosalía sings in fourteen different languages, demonstrating her extensive study and meticulous dedication to musical variety. Listeners and critics agree the album is bold, ambitious, transcendent, and Rosalía is a completely unique voice in art-pop. 

UK indie-rock band Sorry’s new album Cosplay dropped this week, and critics are calling it the band’s best work to date, rating it higher than their previous albums 925, and more recent Anywhere but here. The band is known for using different genres like rock, hip-hop and R&B to create unique and unnerving sounds. Thematically, Cosplay explores the concept of adopting different personas, which the group then does by shifting between genres. Standout tracks like “Waxwing”, which re-imagines the catchy chant from Toni Basil’s 1981 hit “Hey Mickey” into something sinister and dark-industrial, and “Echoes”, a dreamy love-song which paints a poetic relationship and features a stunning guitar solo. Sorry is currently on tour with plans to tour COSPLAY through North America, the UK, and Europe into early 2026.

Beloved Alaskan indie alt-rock group Portugal, the Man’s tenth studio album, Shish released this week, to generally positive reviews. Shish is a return to form; heralding back to the band’s early years which were dominated by heavy guitar riffs, raw energy and wall-of-sound breakdowns. The record’s title refers to Shishmaref, Alaska, and explores themes of rural community, survival, and isolation, and sees the band shift away from their recent pop-mood. The album is well liked, but most agree that Shish unfortunately has a few dull tracks, like “Pittman Ralliers” and “Mush”, which are abrasive and muddy, interrupting the record’s momentum. Portugal, the Man will tour through the United States for the remainder of 2025, and Europe in February and March of 2026. 

This week, American music legend Mavis Staples, released Sad and Beautiful World, to immediate praise and critical acclaim. Staples, a professional musician for nearly eight decades, is known for her iconic raspy alto, and myriad contributions to music, civil rights, and social progress. Sad and Beautiful World is a collection of covers, featuring new versions of classic folk songs, spanning seven decades in American music. Covered artists include Tom Waits, Frank Ocean, and Leonard Cohen, and Staples collaborates with contemporaries Buddy Guy, Derek Trucks and Nathaniel Ratelif. The album’s one original song, “Human Mind” was written by Hozier and Allison Russell, is highly rated, and a poignant highlight of the record. 

Singer-songwriter Hatchie, perhaps best known for her big 2017 single “Try” released her new LP Liquorice, this week, to mostly positive critical reception. The new album’s name refers to the bitter and sweet elements of life, and Hatchie’s personal connection to liquorice; the singer used liquorice tea on tour to recover from chronic laryngitis, and drank the beverage frequently throughout the recording process. Liquorice features eleven tracks of shoegaze dream-pop, and is praised for its mature lyricism and standout singles like “Lose It Again” and “Sage”. Self-described as her most vulnerable album, Liquorice’s emotional depth and authenticity are resonating with listeners, and the work has been called her best so far by more than a few. Hatchie will perform a few showcase concerts in February of 2026 in Los Angeles and New York City. 

Rosalía - Lux

Nov 7 2025

Columbia Records

Sorry - Cosplay

Nov 7 2025

Domino Records

Portugal, the Man - Shish

Nov 7 2025

KNIK

Mavis Staples - Sad and Beautiful World

Nov 7 2025

Anti- Records

Hatchie - Liquorice

Nov 7 2025

Secretly Canadian