Summer 2024 European Music Festivals Light Up Major Cities
Sure, Glastonbury and Rock Werchter dazzle with pastoral grandeur, but if you’re more of a city-dweller, check out the best European music festivals this summer.
electropop
MUNA’s New Live Album Is a Joyous Hometown Victory
For two nights in Los Angeles, queer indie-pop trio MUNA put on a joyous homecoming concert ten years of dreaming in the making.
KOKOKO! Electrify on the Intensely Innovative ‘Butu’
KOKOKO!’s Butu is full of heat and movement, from the traffic sounds that start the opening track “Butu Ezo Ya” to the final claps of razor-sharp “Salaka Bien”.
Will Gregory Moog Ensemble Goes to the Symphony
Sent back through a wormhole from the distant future by mad synth scientists, the Will Gregory Moog Ensemble, this Heat Ray is a weapon of unknowable power.
Charli XCX Is Everything on ‘Brat’
Brat is next-level Charli XCX, a miracle and an instant classic. It’s the kind of album that makes you feel lucky to be alive at the same time as it.
Dark-Pop Queen CXLOE and Her ‘Shiny New Thing’
CXLOE’s Shiny New Thing is hook-forward pop music, an unrelenting collection of emoto-bangers, and an arch response to a clueless music executive.
Lynks Balances Swagger and Self-Doubt on His Catchy Debut
ABOMINATION has a secret weapon: Lynks’ ear for catchy musical hooks. It’s a rollicking record that’s equal parts swagger and self-doubt.
Arab Strap Still Clearly Give a Fuck on Their Latest LP
Once again, Arab Strap have done a grand job worthy of broad smiles, screens off, and the stereo turned all the way up. Get outside and hear the birds sing.
Dua Lipa Sets a Major Breakthrough for Indie and Pop Music
With the help of Kevin Parker and Danny L. Harle, Dua Lipa’s new album Radical Optimism sounds like Tame Impala meets PC Music and goes to headline Glastonbury.
Justice Dance Through the Decades on ‘Hyperdrama’
Parisian dance duo Justice’s first album in eight years might not bottle the same lightning as their debut, but it’s still got enough charge for a wild night out.
Ibibio Sound Machine Elevate Their Sound on ‘Pull the Rope’
Ibibio Sound Machine have gone from exciting transcontinental party upstarts to a soulful, sophisticated phenomenon. Pull the Rope is a refreshing new chapter.
Emel Keeps Her Electropop Revolution Strong on ‘MRA’
Tunisian artist Emel’s MRA is what contemporary pop should be: a true and socially conscious mélange that makes its audiences want to listen, learn, and move.