What to stream: Rolling Stones new album and Backrooms headline massive week

The latest Rolling Stones album and the streaming debut of the hit film Backrooms are among the highlights headlining a packed week of new entertainment offerings across television, film, music, and gaming. Also making their way to screens and devices are a reboot of Little House on the Prairie, new music from Adam Lambert and Finn Wolfhard, and the latest instalment of College Football 27 from EA Sports.

New Films to Stream from 6-12 July

The box-office sensation Backrooms makes its premium video-on-demand debut on 7 July, available to purchase across major streaming platforms. Directed by 20-year-old Kane Parsons, the feature-length adaptation of his viral web series explores the dread of liminal spaces, starring Chiwetel Ejiofor as a furniture store salesman. In his review, Associated Press Film Writer Jake Coyle described it as a "fitfully unsettling nightmare that never convincingly builds beyond its creepy, dated-decor premise."

Maika Monroe takes on the role of a woman striving to rebuild her life after prison, heartbreak, and tragedy, opposite Tyriq Withers in the Colleen Hoover adaptation Reminders of Him, streaming on Peacock from Friday, 10 July. Mark Kennedy, reviewing for the AP, called it "a well-crafted, well-acted sad-happy Hoover adaptation," praising Monroe, who, he writes, "stretches out her dramatic muscles to play Kenna and nails the assignment, a woman with a hard shell who is looking for a little grace, a tricky role that’s both flirty and maternal."

Just in time for a post-Fourth of July comedown, The Long Walk, set in a dystopian, postwar America, arrives on HBO Max on 10 July. Cooper Hoffman and David Jonsson star in this adaptation of a Stephen King story, where 50 boys are selected by lottery for a harrowing contest that only ends when a single survivor remains. Fittingly, Francis Lawrence, known for his work on The Hunger Games, directs.

A24/Netflix/Universal via AP

New Music to Stream from 6-12 July

Only The Rolling Stones possess the gravitas to enlist Anya Taylor-Joy and Charles Melton for one of their music videos. The film stars portray a frustrated couple in the video for the new soulful R&B single "Jealous Lover." This track is taken from their upcoming album, Foreign Tongues, out Friday, 10 July, which features The Cure’s Robert Smith on guitar for the rollicking single "Divine Intervention." The album also includes contributions from Steve Winwood, Paul McCartney, and Chad Smith of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Notably, Foreign Tongues, will also feature a special appearance from the late drummer Charlie Watts, lifted from one of his final recording sessions before his death in 2021.

Finn Wolfhard, the Stranger Things star, is not resting on his acting or musical laurels. His sophomore solo album is released on Friday, 10 July, a year after the intriguing multi-hyphenate artist dropped Happy Birthday.Things appear to be evolving for Wolfhard: while his debut was a lo-fi, distortion-heavy sneer of garage-band strut, the singles from the 12-track Fire From the Hip so far reveal a more mature songwriter, with a more melodic bent and less dense, punky production. The lead single "I’ll Let You Finish" cheekily nods to the viral VMA moment when Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift in 2009.

Adam Lambert steps away from Queen for his sixth solo studio album, simply titled Adam. Lambert states he was inspired by ’90s alternative rock and electronica, including Nine Inch Nails, Björk, Prince, and Muse. Singles from the 12-track album include the "vampire-dance" of "Eat U Alive" and the "infectious glam" of "Under the Rhythm," which samples ATC’s "Around the World (La La La La La)." Both tracks explore themes of losing control with a lover: "I know I look a mess, but I’m gon’ sweat it off," he sings in the latter.

The Associated Press first reviewed The War and Treaty in 2018, writing: "Michael Trotter Jr. and Tanya Blount-Trotter, the pride of Albion, Michigan, are husband and wife and a powerhouse R&B duo who sound as though they were born to sing together." This assessment holds true nearly a decade later, as they prepare to release their latest album, "The Story of Michael and Tanya." Lead single "Don’t Say Goodbye" is a smooth throwback, timeless with its harmonies and soulful production. The album also features Wynonna Judd and Whoopi Goldberg.

More is More/Capitol/Atlantic Outpost/AWAL Recordings via AP

New Television to Stream from 6-12 July

A reboot of Little House on the Prairie debuts on Netflix on Thursday, 9 July. Like the original series starring Michael Landon and Melissa Gilbert, the show is based on the classic books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Set in the American West in the late 19th Century, the tight-knit Ingalls family settles in Kansas, but their new home comes with a variety of challenges. Luke Bracey plays the father, Charles, with Crosby Fitzgerald as Caroline, the family matriarch. Skywalker Hughes plays eldest daughter, Mary, and Alice Halsey is the feisty younger daughter, Laura, also known as Half-Pint.

J.K. Simmons stars in the new MGM+ crime drama The Westies, about the real Irish gang that ruled the Hell’s Kitchen neighbourhood in Manhattan in the early 1980s. In the series, the Jacob Javits Convention Centre is under construction in their backyard, promising an abundance of (illegal) ways to make money. The Westies’ turf is threatened by a clash of ideas between the young and old-school members. The eight-episode series debuts on Sunday, 12 July.

New Video Games to Play from 6-12 July

The World Cup may still be raging, but EA Sports would like to remind you that the other kind of football is right around the corner. College Football 27 promises streamlined play-calling, a new "Dynasty Blueprint" mode for aspiring athletic directors, and a revamped "Road to Glory" campaign that lets you rake in sponsorship cash as you fight for the Heisman Trophy. Ole Miss running back Kewan Lacy, Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney, and Oregon quarterback Dante Moore are the cover models, but the buzziest addition may be Mascot Mashup, which pits team mascots against each other in 11-on-11 slugfests. Kick-off is Thursday, 9 July, on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S, or PC.

The title location in Bandai Namco’s Echoes of Aincrad is a 100-story floating castle. The first floor is pleasant enough, with plenty of amiable villagers ready to help, but once you get to the second floor you may have to contend with giant cows and other monsters. The whole edifice is really one giant virtual reality maze, and you’ll need mad sword skills to escape. Echoes is a spin-off of the long-running Sword Art Online franchise, which encompasses novels, manga, anime, and games, but it represents the first time you’ll be able to create your own avatar rather than playing as teenage protagonist Kirito. Start slashing Friday, 10 July, on PlayStation 5, Xbox X/S, or PC.