Making what is still a relatively premature, if fucking compelling, case for that tantalising accolade of ‘Album of 2019’, Sleater-Kinney have followed up the “grand-slammable” Hurry On Home with The Future Is Here – a second to come from their forthcoming The Center Won’t Hold full-length. Once again, St. Vincent’s prints are prominent – not least on a slinky chorus which hears Carrie Brownstein keen, “I need you more than I ever have/ Because the future’s here, and we can’t go back” – as the call to call in Annie Clark on production duties seems increasingly prudent. Thus, presently, it doesn’t seem all that prescient a suggestion to guess the Portlanders’ latest will be right up there on those end-of-years come October / November / December (delete as applicable).
The Center Won’t Hold is available from August 16th via Mom + Pop, while Sleater-Kinney play the O2 Academy Brixton on February 26th.