New Music Reviews: The Lemon Twigs and Arlo Parks

I’m weirdly short of new releases to cover at the moment – it’s been a quiet few weeks. Enjoy the retro sounds of The Lemon Twigs and the late-night chill of Arlo Parks.

Arlo Parks

Ambiguous Desire

2026, 7/10
From Nigerian and Chadian ancestry, Arlo Parks started her career young. She released her first single at 18, while she was 20 when her debut album cleaned up at the Brits and Mercury Prize. Her third album has a sense of making up for lost time, exploring the nightlife she missed while building her career.

But I definitely did come to the conclusion that I had missed out – I hadn’t really had the time to be silly and have crazy, deep conversations in the smoking area. To be in an anonymous space and feel like you’re part of this whole.

Arlo Parks, The Guardian

It’s her smoothest album yet, perhaps a little too smooth for its own good, although it works on pretty tracks like ‘Luck of Life’. But sometimes it diminishes the intimacy, like on ‘What If I Say It’. The single ‘2Sided’ is excellent – the hard-edged guitar and clear synths sound great together. The Sampha feature on ‘Senses’ is another highlight, adding some zest.

Ambiguous Desire is worthy, but would benefit from a rawer sound.

The Lemon Twigs

Look For Your mind!

2026, 8/10
The Lemon Twigs are a duo where both members look and sound like Todd Rundgren. It makes sense that they look the same – Brian and Michael D’Addario are brothers from Long Island. Like Billy Joel they attended Hicksville High School. Their music feels derived from mid-1960s Beatles and Beach Boys, or from the early 1970s Big Star and Badfinger.

On their sixth album, they make an effort to capture a live sound. Touring members Danny Ayala and Reza Matin play on the record, as well as Tchotchke bassist Eva Chambers. It sounds great, with tight playing but not too pristine.

It’s possible to spot the influences. ‘Mean To Me’ owes a debt to Beach Boys songs like ‘Forever’, while the excellent opening riff to ‘Nothin’ But You’ feels akin to Big Star’s ‘September Gurls’. The closer ‘Your True Enemy’ successfully uses a studio-based sound, and it’s a nice change of pace.

They haven’t totally overcome the believability issue. It’s adorable that the brothers are dating two members of the all-girl band Tchotchke, but it’s hard to buy songs like ‘I Just Can’t Get Over Losing You’.

I’m sometimes a little leery of self-consciously retro bands, but this is strong enough to work.

Read More

• 2026 albums on my to-do list
• New music reviews