New music releases: 21 Savage, The Raconteurs, Novelist plus spotlight artist Lou Stone

It's CHRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISTMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS.

Sorry, I let my festive cheer get the better of me there. Also, I'm really excited about The Raconteurs being back. Did you hear? One of Jack White's thousand bands has released two new singles, and they're pretty great. The group, made up of White, Brendan Benson, Jack Lawrence, and Patrick Keeler, hadn’t been heard from since the 2008 album Consolers Of The Lonely, but now it looks like they're preparing to put out another record.

"Sunday Driver" is a rabble-rousing rock song, with White taking the lead on trademark squalling guitar and hoarse shouts. "Now That You're Gone" is a drastic change of gear: Brendan Benson takes over vocals on the bluesy, Fifties-influenced slowjam, which is completed by a signature White solo.

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I have a new obsession, and it's KOKOKO! La Belle Kinoise production have been working in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, with local musicians since 2004. Led by prolific producer débruit, who melds synthetic music with African and Arabic sounds, KOKOKO! involves a group of musicians from the Ngwaka neighbourhood who play repetitive melodic patterns on self-designed string instruments and percussion. That incredible vocal you hear on their new track "Affaire a Mbongo" is Makara Bianko, who has created a hybrid of “coupé décalé” with a punk attitude he calls “Zagué”, out of the Lingwala neighbourhood where he plays six nights a week with his superb dancers. Their music has an electrifying energy, and I can't wait to see them live for the first time at All Points East festival next year.

Back in London, rapper Novelist has released a dark'n'stormy new track, "Calm". Don't be fooled by the title – there's an underlying menace on the eerie synth beat and Nov's low, determined flow. Elsewhere in rap, 21 Savage has released a new record that I have yet to get all the way through; standouts so far include "monster" featuring Childish Gambino, which has a great piano hook plus Savage and Gambino reminiscing about how they both came up from nothing.

Aside from that it's pretty slim pickings, since it always goes quiet around this time of year. The good news is that it means we've had time to think about all the great new music coming in 2019 – keep an eye out for our annual Ones to Watch list, landing tomorrow (Saturday 22 December).

My final spotlight artist of 2018 is Lou Stone, a London-based multi-instrumentalist with a rather beautiful voice that recalls crooners like Dean Martin. Those deep vocals can swoop low then soar upwards, and work best when backed by Stone's simple, effective work on the guitar and piano.

Check out our premiere of his video for his cover of Jorja Smith's "Carry Me Home" and read my Q&A with him, below. Merry Christmas!

Hey Lou! How's your 2018 been?

2018 has been a lot of hard work but great. I've been writing and recording for the best part of two years now and the last few months in particular I've been bringing everything together and launching the project, tying the production side of things together and trying to get two steps ahead of myself with future recordings.

When did you pick up the guitar and start writing your own music?

I first started on the guitar at about age nine. Then I think by the time I'd got my hands around barre chords at about 12, I'd started writing my own riffs and eventually my own songs. The first song I ever wrote was called “Ragdoll” and was a hideously melodramatic heartbreak song for a 12 year old. I then played in bands all the way through school and university until a couple of years ago, when I decided to embark on this solo project.

Are there any particular artists who have influenced your work?

Vocally, I've always really admired the old crooners like Mel Tormé, Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin as well as more contemporary singers like Charlotte Day Wilson and Julia Jacklin. In the songwriting world though, I've never been able to look past Bill Withers and more recently Michael Kiwanuka. They have both written songs that seem to be able to embed themselves into people's consciousness.

What do you hope listeners will come away with after hearing your music?

Goosebumps, or I'll settle for a little bit of escapism.

What was it about Jorja's song that you loved enough to include it on your own EP?

The first thing that drew me to Jorja Smith was – unsurprisingly – her voice. It's an incredible instrument. She makes everything sound so effortless, but with so much emotion behind every word. “Carry me home, bare my weight on your shoulders” is such a beautiful line. She perfectly captures that moment.

What are your priorities for next year?

My main priority is to release a lot more music next year, and playing live again. I will be releasing my debut “Fictions” EP in February and will then be following it with new songs that I am working on with a few different producers right now – I've got to work with Ian Grimble & Zero 7 in the studio recently which has been an amazing experience. I have my first show at The Waiting Room in January too. It will be the first time I’ll be performing a lot of these songs live which I’m really excited about.

Lou Stone plays the Waiting Room in London on 15 January, tickets available here