Five songs to hear this week (Dec 11-17)

New York duo Sleigh Bells have a fourth album on the way. The comeback song, Champions of Unrestricted Beauty, ditches their rougher noise elements in favour of a pop feel and Alexis Krauss’s voice front and centre.

Gavin Clark, who sang on two Unkle albums and appeared on numerous soundtracks to films by his friend Shane Meadows, died earlier this year. His final release is an album called Evangelist, a dark work completed after his death by his bandmates and released today.

Singer-songwriter Lissie continues to channel Stevie Nicks on the atmospheric Don’t You Give Up on Me, the latest airing from a third album due in February. The blurry, nostalgic video on is a treat too.

Once a prolific maker of mixtapes, rapper Wretch 32 is taking his time with his third album. A new song, Alright With Me, with Rudimental singer Anne-Marie on the bright chorus, is an indication that a poppy new sound is on the way.

Dance duo Chase & Status precede their fourth album with a new EP out now. London Bars is a moody, bass-heavy collection that features grime rappers including Novelist and Frisco. There’s also a 16-minute video containing all four songs, on YouTube now.