An extract from the latest Lush compilation album, Best Day Of All Time. The album captures 31 covers of iconic songs from the 00s and features contributions from artists as diverse as Jackie Oates, Eliza Carthy, Beans on Toast, Noah Malcom, Stealing Sheep and many others. Compiler/curator Mark Constantine (co-founder of the Lush cosmetic brand) describes the album as a chronicle of his life through the songs that shaped it.

Teddy Thompson’s contribution to the compilation is a sublime interpretation of Robyn’s Call Your Girlfriend. You know what? – it’s outstanding!

A stunningly clear Teddy Thompson vocal is accompanied by gently fingerpicked acoustic guitar. Discrete pedal steel and, eventually, soft strings complete the sound and the effect is thoroughly stunning – folky, yet so very smooth. Teddy has provided a sterling example of how a good song can, in the right hands, be transformed into something very special indeed.

Liverpool’s grove collective, EJOY are on a mission – a mission to alchemise a sound and a vibe that is entirely their own. It’s a plan that got off to a great start earlier this year when the band’s debut EP caused heads to turn. In Liverpool and elsewhere.

EJOY draw their influences from the historic and contemporary fonts of funk and soul; from Motown to Funkadelic, from Isaac Hayes to hip-hop.

Speaking of new single, Love Bugs, vocalist/songwriter Ellen says: “The whole idea of Love Bugs is quite playful and childlike. It’s about being happy in your own little creative space, playing around with ideas, being yourself and not performing for anyone. It’s also about love arriving unexpectedly, that feeling of excitement and wonder of having someone new running around in your mind.”

A solid drum figure offers the way in to three minutes of authentic, rich, 70s soul. Vocalist Ellen calls the shots at the top of the mix, whilst bassist Ryan weaves a complex, solid foundation. With Love Bugs, EJOY have managed to combine the happy visions of dreamland with metropolitan sophistication.

Three years on from their last headline tour dates and 30 years since they first convened, the Coral continue to make waves. A 10-date tour of the UK and Ireland is imminent and, just a few months ago, the band released their 13th album, 388 – initially in physical-only formats.

The presence of 388 was announced by the release of a pair of singles, Let The Music Play and Leave It In The Past. Now, here comes single #3. And it’s a doozie.

You and Me (And the Beautiful Sea) is classic Coral. James’s vocal is accompanied by a single, strummed acoustic guitar, whilst Paul and the others supply the lush harmonised backing vocals. The song is steeped in that special Scouse wistfulness that makes the listener yearn to take a long, damp stroll along a rain-drenched northern promenade. And that’s an image that is only compounded by the atmospheric video.

Otherwise known by its component parts – actress Spencer Grammer and multi instrumentalist/songwriter Davis IL, Belle & Chain is an LA-based alt-country duo. Laila is the duo’s sophomore single. Belle & Chain have developed a sound that feels both wide-open and weather-worn. A sound that draws from and reflects the dust, darkness and stark beauty of the American West.

Laila is an exploration of jealousy, denial and betrayal. “[It] can be interpreted in two ways,” says Spencer. “[Firstly] an obsession with the woman one wishes they were or, as a plea to the woman who tempts your partner. It was written about a specific experience with a woman who came and tried to steal the attention of someone I was seeing.”

in keeping with the lyrical subject matter, the initial impression is of a traditional English folk song. But that’s a impression that’s quickly dispelled by Spencer’s Stevie Nicks-like vocals and the swoops of sound that turn Laila into a cosmic pop adventure. Spencer’s acting chops come in handy as she lives up to the drama of the situation, especially as the intensity of her cries: “Oh, Laila,” builds.

Unburnt Green is a British-led recording project, based in Buenos Aires. According to the band, they aim to produce a sound that “mixes folk-rock with punk influence and a more psychedelic edge.” When you think about it, that’s a combination which, mixed in the correct proportions, equals classic prog. And, to all intents and purposes, that’s what Pink Confetti is.

Pink Confetti is an atmospheric song with lyrics that evoke images of the flamingoes that inhabit the salt lakes of South America.

The disparity between the keyboards-led prog instrumentation and the quasi-operatic vocals comes as a pleasant surprise. Andean pipes provide a constant reminder that this is a song set in the majestic, otherworldly surroundings of Argentina’s Salinas Grandes. And, in-keeping with the song’s avian theme, the soaring guitar seems to take its cue from Camel’s Snow Goose. With lyrics like: “Indebted to the palette, that made her a starlet, on Kokomo islet, from a gangly grey goose,” that may be more than mere coincdence…

Canadian songwriter Hayden releases his next album – The Recent Past – on 6th November. And, to set the ball of anticipation in motion, lead single, Time Has Been More Kind, has just made its appearance.

For more than thirty years, Hayden has built a body of work from moments in life that can easily pass unnoticed. Taken together, his ten studio albums amount to an ongoing conversation about family, memory, love, loss, absurdity, and the strange beauty hidden inside ordinary days. The Recent Past will, no doubt, provide a rich addition to Hayden’s continuing search for unsung moments.

Speaking about Time Has Been More Kind, Hayden says: “It is perhaps the most ‘country’ sounding song I’ve ever recorded. One of my favourite concerts was country legend Ray Price opening for Willie Nelson at Massey Hall in 2009. He played with a classic old-school ensemble including pedal steel and double fiddles. It was perfection. To match the regretful, longing, rosy retrospection of the song’s narrative, I tried to channel that feeling and atmosphere on this recording.”

It’s an easy-going affair. Hayden’s voice is cracked and vulnerable-sounding as he sings evocative lyrics like: “All along the roads, the lakes have froze. Fields of snow are sparkling so slow.” A shuffling drumbeat provides the foundation as guitar, piano and – particularly – violin and pedal steel, each play their subtle part in building the song. It’s a song that expresses elusive regret – and also issues a timely reminder that our days of summer are coming to an end…