The past three months have been crammed with twists and turns: Kanye West finally released his punk gospel odyssey The Life Of Pablo via a truly chaotic public unveiling, Rihanna came back into our lives and speakers for good with sexy stoner creation ANTI, Beyoncé unleashed the powerful and defiant “Formation” and PJ Harvey announced her imminent return. Most importantly, though, we mourned the loss of a cultural icon when David Bowie left us, leaving Black Star as his final parting gift. But what about some of the lesser-known gems that may have passed us by amidst all this chaos? To celebrate the slept-on winter releases that deserve another listen, we charted ten of our favourites, from Dai Burger’s club-rap mixtape to Darq E Freaker’s intense new version of grime.  

LEIKELI47 – LK-47 PART III

In 3 words: Brutal, eclectic, alive

For fans of: Future Brown and Little Simz

To listen to when... riding the subway in New York at night

DIIV – IS THE IS ARE

In 3 words: Psychedelic, raucous, sweet

For fans of: Warpaint and Yuck

To listen to when... holed up your room, dreaming about next summer

ARISTOPHANES – NO RUSH TO LEAVE

In 3 words: Dizzying, twisted, fresh

For fans of: Grimes and Zola Jesus

To listen to when... you’re unleashing your weird side to the unsuspecting

LAYLA HENDRYX – OUT OF TIME

In 3 words: Silky, honey-dunked, blissful

For fans of: Tinashe and Kehlani

To listen to when... you’re in the club showing your ex what they’re missing

MAJID JORDAN – MAJID JORDAN

In 3 words: synth-soaked, languid, irresistible

For fans of: Roy Wood$ and The Weeknd

To listen to when... you’re feeling stoned and sexy

DARQ E FREAKER – DON’T FREAK OUT

In 3 words: super-charged, intricate, bass-heavy

For fans of: Dai Burger and D Double E

To listen to when... you’ve had one too many energy drinks

ALEXANDRIA – PROMISE

In 3 words: Full of vibes

For fans of: Abra and Tommy Genesis

To listen to when... you’re the last one standing at a party

WILLOW SMITH – ARDIPITHECUS

In 3 words: Otherworldly, discordant, existential

For fans of: Björk and FKA twigs

To listen to when... you’re seriously contemplating every year of your life so far

CHINO AMOBI – ANYAS GARDEN EP

In 3 words: Beautiful, chaotic, unexpected 

For fans of: ANGEL-HO and Lotic

To listen to when... you’re skipping school to do something better

DAI BURGER – DAI BURGER

In 3 words: Brash, club-rap, throwback

For fans of: Le1f and Junglepussy

To listen to when... everybody in the club getting tipsy