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For their fifth long player, Tite return with a sound that is familiar in its use of distortion, drive, echo and swirling melodies, but refreshed with an embracing of vocal hooks and harmonies, often absent in the world of psyche and shoegaze. It’s Psychedelic Baby Magazine: ‘Asylum Harbour,’ named for a maritime safe-haven, symbolizes resurfacing from the darkness of 2022-2023 and the pandemic. (Band leader) John Treanor says the album reflects a journey out of a dark place, focusing on voices and harmonies over layers of fuzz. ‘The record marks, to my mind, a further evolution of the band with the voice(s) becoming a main feature rather than being used as another instrument.’” Jammerzine: “The term ‘shoegaze’ gets thrown around more and more, to the point that it’s beginning to become an assembly line genre, with Tite, and ‘I’m Not Like That’ we get a solid progression of original music with a true purpose. That purpose is to inspire.”

Over atmospheric instrumentation expanded by cinematic structure and pacing, Pearlty presents Knifeplay somewhere between dream-pop influenced shoegaze and lofty slowcore, never fully committing to one or the other in its insistence on creating an immersive, organic world.

Originally released in 2019, Knifeplay’s vivid debut Pearlty documents songwriter Tj Strohmer’s expressions of early adulthood in what he describes as “the journey from innocence to experience.”

Written during a time of immense inspiration, Strohmer was able to peel himself away from detached nihilism, uncovering the physicality and therapeutic powers of songwriting. Newly emboldened by this discovery and the talented community surrounding him, Strohmer channeled this revelation into his work, taking Knifeplay from a bedroom experiment that merely wrote songs to a more substantial project with a purpose.

Pearlty’s various climactic passages, like those heard on the impressionist album opener “Tears”, envelop listeners in textured walls of distorted guitar and noisy breakdowns, a distinct hallmark of shoegaze – but Knifeplay’s compositions go far beyond such conventions.

Also featured are downtempo compositions – such as the tribute track “Angel” – that call on a range of influences, from grunge to lofi pop, all the way back to slowcore. Layers of Strohmer’s falsetto lilt adorn the songs with another dimension of sentimentality, while rounding out the sonic vastness of the group’s emotionally enrapturing style, lending impressive depth to the band’s debut full-length.

Total speed metal rager Obnoxious Youth return with a new album out in October.

The Swedish-Finnish speed and thrash metal quintet Obnoxious Youth is back with a bang after a four year break. New album Burning Savage will be out in 18th October 2024.

-“A total speed metal rager manifesting the driving force behind the onslaught that is Obnoxious Youth. A sexual flame and a satanic force of nature. An urge to discover and embrace the primitive flame that grows inside. Succumb to the Burning fucking Savage” Affe ”Phantasma” Piran, the vocalist of Obnoxious Youth, manifests.

The sperm of Satan’s cock AKA the Obnoxious Youth was born in 2002 in Uppsala/Sweden. But the fully fledged and perverted behemoth that stands before you today was an international collaboration brought to life in 2009 by John ”Zeke” Finne, Affe ”Phantasma” Piran and Frans ”Cult” Utterström. But today Edde ”Shit” Aftonfalk and Lukas ”Spine” Häger are added to the live lineup of the band.

The purpose of the band was to break boundaries and to return to the time when extreme music didn’t have any rules or regulations. When there was no ”death metal” or ”thrash metal”, when there was just ”metal” or ”punk”. Just channeling the most insane music that was humanly possible. Using methods that was founded in the 80’s, Obnoxious Youth fully encloses itself and gets swallowed by the power of extreme music and getting influences from a feeling rather than other bands. Taking the listeners back to a time when heavy music was something to fear.

In 2012 the band received a Manifest Award for the debut album The Eternal Void and has since then released two EP’s (Suck On The Cross, 2013 and Mouths Sewn Shut, 2020) and one more full length album Disturbing the Graves in 2017. They have established themselves as a fierce live band that leaves no one unaffected.

Members of Obnoxious Youth has played in or currently plays in bands such as Vorum, Undergång, Endtime, Reveal!, Morbus Chron, Century, Tøronto, Degial, Begravningsentreprenörerna, Entombed and No Future.

Svart Records releases Obnoxious Youth’s new album Burning Savage 18th of October 2024 on black, transparent red and limited yellow/red/black marble vinyl versions – and of course on glorious CD. Pre-orders are now available on Svart Records’ webstore.

“Afterlife”… Planet of Zeus’s sixth album finds them reinventing themselves rather than the wheel. After their prophetic, pre-Covid release “Faith in Physics” and the consecutive postponements of their European and North American tours, the band took a deep dive into its own vulnerability and managed to come back stronger and more dangerous than ever before. No matter how far humanity and technology has reached, people always seem to be puzzled by the same old questions. From the ancient Greek philosophers, to Dostoevsky, Hesse and the average bloke on the corner. A blend of failed relationships, parenthood, sobriety, the constant search for a higher purpose and the thin line between “beneficence and rascality” with a unique and adventurous modern heavy rock sound, “Afterlife” is a perfect musical representation of the beauty and the curse of the human condition. A heavy rock must-have for fans of Queens of the stone age, Foo fighters, Mastodon, Clutch, Monster Magnet, Hellacopters and Royal Blood. Available in a limited edition, clear transparent 180g gatefold Vinyl by ihaveadrum records.

Here we have the third LP by the excellent Guy Hamper Trio, featuring James Taylor on Hamond organ, and Guy Hamper on guitar (sometimes called Childish) and what a first-class LP this is! 'Instrument of Evil' in particular has a very eerie vibe. We asked the man himself what was the inspiration for it? G.H. The track is the sequel to '7% Solution', which featured on the last Guy Hamper Trio LP (with Thee Headcoats standing in as rhythm section). A 7% Solution being the amount of morphine Dr Watson administered to Sherlock Holmes. For 'Instrument of Evil' I took Sherlock Holmes' later designation of his syringe as "an Instrument of Evil". This is originally a quote from the bible- "Wicked men do at times reject God's purpose for the state, transforming the good of civil government into an instrument of evil." Point of interest: Morphine addiction happens to tie in with another aspect of the song. In the section that nods to Elmer Bernstein's main title theme to the film of the book The Man With the Golden Arm, in which the main character is also a morphine addict. Another ingredient - we added six-string bass to that section in tribute to Jet Harris - he formerly of top group The Shadows, who recorded a great version of Bernstein's classic. To top it all off the record sleeve references the fine graphics of the great Saul Bass. The track also features contributions from Tom Morley (trumpet) and Anna Jordanous (sax) . Both Were a pleasure to work with. My job at the wheel is to basically make a playground and let Jamie, Anna and Tom loose in it with very little direction, apart from pointing out the swings and location of the roundabout. I told Tom "you're a Spanish trumpeter stood on a hill in Spain." For Anna, I think we said "go low and nasty." Other titles are taken from early poetry chapbooks I made in my youth. 'The First Creature is Jealousy' and 'Dog Jaw Woman' being examples. The title 'Incense Rising From a Censer' comes fromDostoevsky's The Brothers Karamazov, a book I really recommend....

As Patois Counselors close in on a decade of existence, they are back to confirm their standing as one of America’s most consistently forward-thinking rock units. Although it’s been an entire presidential term since the Counselors acclaimed sophomore album The Optimal Seat came out, Bo White’s group hasn’t been lying fallow. Over the last few years, the seven-person line-up has been busy writing, recording and gigging, resulting in Enough: One Night at the Daisy Chain, a live-in-the-studio document captured in Brooklyn while on tour. Released at the beginning of 2024, Daisy Chain works splendidly as both a greatest hits primer and a forthcoming album teaser. Alas, the teasing is over with the arrival of Limited Sphere, the third album from Charlotte, NC’s Patois Counselors. Once again, Ever/Never steps up to the plate to demonstrate their confidence in this hard-working crew. In most contexts, a septet band configuration signals either a jazz ensemble or a mishmash of madcap noise. Beholden to no rules, Patois Counselors pluck from a selection of tactics as needed. Even augmented by extra players, each member reinforces their specific role, performing exactly what is needed for the track at hand. White’s post-modern muse needs plenty of room to stretch out and breathe and the big band spreads out the tent as far as it will go. White’s songs are rife with earned skepticism, sly asides and deft twists of tongues and licks. The manner in which the little details accumulate into the structure of the whole keeps the listener engaged. In other words, this is pop music for benevolent, discerning brainiacs, but regular people can dig it too. For Limited Sphere, Patois Counselors relax their grip on the tense post-punk that they mastered long ago. Songs like “Fountain Of UHF,” “Serious Rider” and “Ranking Set” still touch on this style, but now White’s voice shares the air with woodwind instruments that add even more depth and texture to his songs. The effortlessly groovy, vaguely loungey “Marge Attack” conjures fond memories of early Stereolab, while “Return To Sensitivity” evokes the magic hour of twilight, insects buzzing and zipping through dusky sky. Foregrounding the haze and mist in these songs, you can detect traces of Eno’s Another Green World in Limited’s atmoSphere, particularly on the closing “Cathy Music.” For their third proper album, Patois Counselors have crafted another seamless set of songs for practical fantasists and head-in-the-clouds cynics. The sphere outlined here may be limited, but the boundaries have been expanded significantly. —Erick Bradshaw

We're proud to announce that Trapped Animal will be releasing the new album by Cormorant Tree Oh, Moonish! On 180 GSM Clear Vinyl with artwork illustrated by CTO. Since CTO's 2022 sophomore album, Swoontide, Mary has found herself supporting Lankum at Vicar Street, gracing a cover CD of Uncut, picking up new fans from all over the world. She will be performing songs from Moonish at this year's Quiet Lights Festival (w/e Nov 21) in Ireland and on December 7th in London at The Lexington.

Cormorant Tree Oh often gets labelled as folk horror and whilst there are still spooky elements, this album veers into new territory. With heavy use of drones and new instrumentation. Music tends to come out of CTO weirdly regardless of her intentions, so her innate oddness still shines through.. and this album embodies that oddness and beauty.

First single, Terror Of The Countryside, opens with a frivolous sounding catchy riff, until the dark drones of Terror drop in on the listener like a roar from a John Carpenter movie. The song moves with a dark, ominous groove that has become CTO’s trademark. Something about this new recording shows a maturity and confidence that has always been present in her previous work… but owns the tape it is pressed to in a new way. Terror is the opening track from Moonish, and like all great set ups, it embodies the tracks to follow.

There are songs that makes friends with anyone and do great at parties, doling out compliments left, right and center. And then there are those songs that just don’t seem to fit in, songs that knock over glasses and makes awkward comments to the host as they stubbornly refuse to adapt and adjust to whatever larger setting you needed them to work in; these are songs that seemingly insist on remaining outside your control no matter how many stylistic or production tricks you try to pull.

Usually, for a band such songs eventually fall by the wayside, are left behind or butchered for parts a few years later. But sometimes quite a few of them show up at the door, at the same time, unruly & ready to shake things up a bit. Sometimes there is trouble.

These are the songs that makes up Neigh!!* Not merely a companion piece to last year’s Yay!, not a collection of B-sides or simply leftovers from that same period, but a reaction, a party for those not invited to parties, consisting of troubled, sometimes weirdly clothed outcasts that refused to go away and instead languidly found their place in the post-plague world while the tunes from Yay! were being pampered and sing-along’ed by band and fans alike.

So, then, it’s not a Nay! These songs care not that the band didn’t notice their potential at first. They know who they are, what their purpose is and what they’re capable of. They proudly wear their ‘lo-fi/no-fi’ and ‘recorded in rehearsal room/home studio’ as embroidered patches on jackets you only now realize are pretty cool. Granted, they had a tough upbringing, some of them come from broken homes and they learned the hard way to ‘Turn a frown upside down’, but here they are, together + strong!

Neigh!! is an album of ‘songs that won’t fit on an album’ – the non-concept of all concepts – a home for strays and runaways perhaps, but more importantly a bunch of tunes Motorpsycho are finally happy with, that found their purpose and now have a home: songs that the band are proud to finally being able to present to the world.

- Dr. Th. Kneipp

The iconic, game changing Modern Sounds in Country And Western albums, combined into a single release for CD in the 2000s, will be restored and released individually, as originally intended. The significance of these records cannot be overlooked. They are proof that great country music is malleable, and open to interpretation.

Volume 1 quickly became one of the best-selling albums recorded by a Black musician of the time, as well as one of the best-selling country albums. It topped the Billboard Pop Album Chart of a month, and spawned four hit singles, including “I Can’t Stop Loving” which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, R&B, and the Adult Contemporary Charts, was nominated for Record Of The Year, and won the GRAMMY for Best Rhythm & Blues Recording at the 5th Annual Grammy Awards in 1963. “You Don’t Know Me” met with similar success. Ray Charles remains the first and only Black performer to earn a GRAMMY Award and a #1 Billboard Pop Chart Hit with a country and western song as he did with “l Can’t Stop Loving You.”

Volume 2 followed its predecessor by just six months, and is widely regarded as just as strong, if not stronger than the first - the second made with the confidence that this formula or country & soul works. With three hit singles on both the R&B and Pop charts, including the #1 hit You Are My Sunshine, both volumes changed the course of popular music and remain a testament to the genius of Ray Charles.

The iconic, game changing Modern Sounds in Country And Western albums, combined into a single release for CD in the 2000s, will be restored and released individually, as originally intended. The significance of these records cannot be overlooked. They are proof that great country music is malleable, and open to interpretation.

Volume 1 quickly became one of the best-selling albums recorded by a Black musician of the time, as well as one of the best-selling country albums. It topped the Billboard Pop Album Chart of a month, and spawned four hit singles, including “I Can’t Stop Loving” which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100, R&B, and the Adult Contemporary Charts, was nominated for Record Of The Year, and won the GRAMMY for Best Rhythm & Blues Recording at the 5th Annual Grammy Awards in 1963. “You Don’t Know Me” met with similar success. Ray Charles remains the first and only Black performer to earn a GRAMMY Award and a #1 Billboard Pop Chart Hit with a country and western song as he did with “l Can’t Stop Loving You.”

Volume 2 followed its predecessor by just six months, and is widely regarded as just as strong, if not stronger than the first - the second made with the confidence that this formula or country & soul works. With three hit singles on both the R&B and Pop charts, including the #1 hit You Are My Sunshine, both volumes changed the course of popular music and remain a testament to the genius of Ray Charles.

A sense of destiny hangs over Sentir Que No Sabes, Mabe Fratti’s fourth solo-credited album released in a five year span. Her work has always possessed a finely tuned sense of drama capable of expressing a range of emotional states, and across this new album, she conveys the struggle to process various relationships or situations–and the actions that come next. Sentir Que No Sabes is urgent and clear, poppy, generous and approachable, while showcasing a considerable emotional hinterland. It is also, as Fratti is quick to mention, “groovy.”

Written and recorded with her partner, multi-instrumentalist, and co-composer Héctor Tosta (I.La Católica, Titanic), Sentir Que No Sabes is the result of an intense, detail-oriented process. Fueled by a new confidence gained in their collaborative project, Titanic, and its critically acclaimed 2023 LP, Vidrio, the two hunkered down in the familiarity of their studio (aka Tinho Studios) to bash out the initial sonic coordinates of her new record. “We talked and talked, and discussed ways of playing and recording, until things became inevitable,” Fratti explains. “We recorded a bunch of demos at our home studio and that meant we had a lot of time to re-edit and experiment. We really dug in. We were super focused on detail.” Tosta also took up the controls as producer and arranger-in-chief for all additional instruments. The album was later completed at Willem Twee Studios in Den Bosch in the Netherlands, and Pedro y el Lobo Studios and Soy Sauce Studios, in Mexico City.

For the final studio recordings, the pair were joined by drummer Gibran Andrade and trumpetist Jacob Wick to fill out and expand on Tosta’s percussion and brass arrangements. This small group of friends were able to work quickly and openly, and without fear: a testament to the exhaustive groundwork put in at Tinho Studios.

Sentir Que No Sabes is a record full to the brim with a modern pop sensibility, invoked by the sort of magpie spirit that ensnares anything it can find, repositioning sounds for the here and now. The keys and melody on the melancholy “Pantalla azul” (“Blue screen error”) transport us back to the glossy mid-1980s.

The lyrics, for their part, have a stop-start quality to them, and hint at the small, incremental emotional taxes we pay through just living our lives. They circle around the music like birds waiting to swoop. There is something of the spiritual in all of Fratti’s work that expresses itself in a form of yearning: she looks to new horizons while personal dramas find themselves internalized, contextualized, and then dealt with through metaphor.

So what to make of Sentir Que No Sabes? High gloss Pastoralism? The sound of a city-bound, post-post modern soulscape? No matter the emotions evoked, it's the work of an artist coming into their own, and creating a benchmark record.

Most of the writing of Naima Bock's second album, Below A Massive Dark Land, was a solitary affair. It may not sound like it - it's made up of strong, purposeful arrangements with a huge host of musicians, filled with cradling space and warm light. This will also come as a surprise to anyone who has seen Naima perform in the time since the release of her 2022 debut Giant Palm, which was undoubtedly a communal experience. But there's power in the solitary, too. Giant Palm was arranged with collaborator Joel Burton, but going this one alone in search of something that was truly hers, Naima found she was capable of more. "After me and Joel stopped working together", she remembers, "it was an impossibility to even fathom doing arrangements myself but then I started learning violin and it was possible". Finding that she could go it alone was incredibly powerful for Naima: "I think I needed it, to be able to feel proud of something". Beyond the writing process, however, the record is not a stark, stripped back affair. Below_ still has the majesty that made Giant Palm so remarkable. Having tugged the first record down from the skies and spreading it across the earth, Naima finds a newfound vocal power and confidence born from hundreds of hours on stage, and the music sounds fuller, more tangible, and no less enveloping. This can be heard on the album's lead singles: "Kaley" feels fresh and surprising in its rug-pull choppiness but is distinctly Naima in its swinging, jubilant choruses. The accompanying "Further Away" takes a different tack, drawing you in with its simplicity. Finally, the hazy, luxurious beauty of "Feed My Release" draws on the sepia-toned traditions of The Roches, John Prine and Loudon Wainwright III and imbues them with the kind of stark confessional songwriting of Mount Eerie. These are ambitious, rich arrangements that reach deeper and darker lyrically than Giant Palm. Below a Massive Dark Land was predominantly produced by Jack Osborne (Bingo Fury) and Joe Jones, and recorded at The Crypt in north London, with additional production and arrangement by Oliver Hamilton (caroline, Shovel Dance Collective) and Naima herself. Six of the tracks on Below_ were mixed by Jason Agel, with the remainder done by Osborne and Jones. The album was mastered by Kevin Tuffy.

"The contributions Black women have made to the growth of rock & roll cannot be overstated, from the genre’s beginnings to the present day. Embracing this legacy, world renowned poet jessica Care moore and prolific performer Steffanie Christi’an have joined forces to form We Are Scorpio, an explosive new project blending rock & roll with poetry. A leading voice of her generation, moore has performed on stages across the globe, written acclaimed books and plays, and recorded her poetry with artists like Common, Nas, Jeezy, Karriem Riggins, Jeff Mills, Roy Ayers, Jose James, and more. Her latest foray into music is We Are Scorpio, a unique take on modern rock sparked by chemistry with fellow Detroit native Christi’an and encapsulating an undeniable Black femme punk energy. Joining a long line of Detroit artists who spoke truth with force across genre and gendered borders, the duo is now unveiling its self-titled debut album. With unapologetic vocals and rapid-fire poetics occupying the same space as head-banging guitar riffs, the collection features appearances by talented artists like Talib Kweli, Sada Baby, Divinity Roxx, Niko Is, and Militia Vox. Expansive but intimate, We Are Scorpio delves into parts unknown with fiery purpose."

You’ve Changed Records presents a special limited edition first-ever vinyl pressing of Julianna Riolino’s debut EP “J.R.”. Previously available only through digital channels, J.R. predates her 2022 breakthrough full-length “All Blue”, feted by the New York Times, Pitchfork, Uncut, and NPRs Mountain Stage, among many, many others, as well as Julianna’s stint in Daniel Romano’s Outfit. For the most part, J.R. omits the county, americana, and folk influences heard on All Blue though there is a shock of recognition in the always surprising power and pure tone of her voice. Rich in melody and early confidence, Julianna Riolino here draws from classic girl-group pop and contemporary indie while establishing a characteristic song-writing template of interpreting foundational texts and iconography to portray uniquely personal experiences and emotional truths. “It’s like it’s who you are before you grow more” she says of J.R. now. It’s an important step in the formation of an important and thrilling artist, and one of today’s greatest singers.

Glow White/Black Dot Vinyl.The year 2020 sure wasn't the most ideal time to form a band, especially for a group of musicians who never played together before. But for New York rock quintet GIFT, this strangest of periods was the auspicious backdrop for a bold new sound - a dizzying blend of early shoegaze, classic `90s alternative rock and even modern pop.Indeed, that GIFT emerged somewhat fully formed on their 2022 debut album Momentary Presence was a testament to the creative possibilities laying deep within. Now, Illuminator, their Aug. 23 debut album for revered New York independent label Captured Tracks, is the long-awaited payoff of GIFT's ever-growing musical and human chemistry. And while nods are apparent to label forerunners such as Beach Fossils, DIIV and Wild Nothing, GIFT are shepherding those elements into wondrous new vessels for the present moment - sleek, often danceable and frequently mesmerizing.GIFT - vocalist/guitarist TJ Freda, multi-instrumentalists Jessica Gurewitz and Justin Hrabovsky, drummer Gabe Camarano and bassist Kallan Campbell - are firmly enmeshed in the New York scene as talent buyers, photographers, DJs, audio engineers, art directors and, in the case of Campbell, an owner of the beloved Brooklyn DIY venue Alphaville.GIFT introduced Illuminator with "Wish Me Away," their first new song in the 18 months since the debut. With its earworm guitar lines, propulsive rhythms, riveting vocals and mind-expanding aural flourishes, "Wish Me Away" is the perfect sonic springboard from Momentary Presence to where GIFT are going next. It's also a potent reminder that you can still preserve that twinkle in your eye even when you feel like everything's slipping away.On songs such as "Light Runner", "Going In Circles" and "Destination Illumination," Freda demonstrates a newfound confidence and versatility, embracing pop music as a vehicle. The relentless, often painful dance of love has never sounded as exhilarating as on "Going in Circles," while the strident tone poem "Water in...

"The contributions Black women have made to the growth of rock & roll cannot be overstated, from the genre’s beginnings to the present day. Embracing this legacy, world renowned poet jessica Care moore and prolific performer Steffanie Christi’an have joined forces to form We Are Scorpio, an explosive new project blending rock & roll with poetry. A leading voice of her generation, moore has performed on stages across the globe, written acclaimed books and plays, and recorded her poetry with artists like Common, Nas, Jeezy, Karriem Riggins, Jeff Mills, Roy Ayers, Jose James, and more. Her latest foray into music is We Are Scorpio, a unique take on modern rock sparked by chemistry with fellow Detroit native Christi’an and encapsulating an undeniable Black femme punk energy. Joining a long line of Detroit artists who spoke truth with force across genre and gendered borders, the duo is now unveiling its self-titled debut album. With unapologetic vocals and rapid-fire poetics occupying the same space as head-banging guitar riffs, the collection features appearances by talented artists like Talib Kweli, Sada Baby, Divinity Roxx, Niko Is, and Militia Vox. Expansive but intimate, We Are Scorpio delves into parts unknown with fiery purpose."

"Indonesian rock trio Voice Of Baceprot (vob) have had to weather many challenges after they decided to carve a career in music. With the lack of music-related facilities in their village of Singajaya in Garut, West Java, they had to practically build their own modest practice studio. And they could only get a gig in the nearest city of Garut, three-and-a-half hours away. They had to face more significant adversities, namely the stigmas and unsolicited suggestions regarding religion and decency directed at them.

"You must remember that we come from a village where many see women as inferior to men. After completing high school, we did not have a lot of options. It was either work at home or for a relative at a convenience store. Or marry someone our parents choose," vocalist/guitarist Marsya recalls. It is a mindset that has survived from one generation to the other, even to this day. Hence, garnering support from even their family members became an uphill battle. ""No wonder only the three of us managed to come this far when you consider that VOB started with 15 members in 2014!"" drummer Sitti exclaims.

With all the setbacks that have come from all directions for an extended period, it is no surprise that they have played a massive part in developing VOB's character as a band and as individuals. Rather than dampening their spirits, however, they have moulded the trio to become stronger. "We have become rocks now. Hardened, rigid, and stiff due to all the doctrines in our minds. But through music and our friendship, we became fully aware that they must be cut through and broken regardless," Marsya explains. And from the trials and tribulations that they have had to suffer, VOB chose to name their debut album “Retas”. In Bahasa Indonesia, ""retas"" is ""a body of igneous rocks that breaks through by cutting through other rocks"". It epitomises how the band see themselves: igneous rocks, the end product of the socio-economic challenges that have shaped them into who they are now. ""Retas"" is a collection of songs that embody their solid determination to break free and carve out their path as a band, as musicians, and as independent women. With Ntrl guitarist Coki Bollemeyer at the helm as producer for the newer songs on the album, “Retas” comprises nine tracks, including album focus track “Age Oriented”, fan-favourite “What’s the Holy (Nobel) Today?”, “The Enemy of Earth is You”, instrumental track “Kawani”, and four previous singles that they have released since 2018, including their breakthrough single “School Revolution” and the smash hit “God, Allow Me (Please) to Play Music”. ""We really enjoyed making this album, thanks in no small part to Coki. His support and appreciation towards the hard work we put into the process have made a huge difference. It gave us the energy and confidence to give our very best,"" Marsya acknowledges. Most of the songs have roots since VOB were still in middle school, each immaculately capturing their emotional responses to the variety of experiences they have gone through, transcribed and transformed into a combination of lyrics and melodies feeding off of raw energy and passion. Focus track ""Age Oriented"" is a protest song aimed towards age restriction that they once had to endure because they were playing rock music at such a young age. The piece lays bare their anger as tight and heavy riffs roar atop Sitti's groovy thumping beats and Widi's dexterous basslines. “More often than not, we were told it was ‘inappropriate and too soon’ and we ‘did not have enough experience’. There is a partiality towards age being the main benchmark to determine the merit of one’s artistic work. It meant the young must wait until they reach a certain age deemed worthy of independence to show their true potential,” Marsya remarks. The role of vocal director Irvan Natadiningrat has also become more significant in developing VOB's trademark sound. Take What's the Holy (Nobel) Today?"" for example. Irvan suggested the inclusion of the dramatic marching chant in the song. This powerful addition could make it the anti-war anthem for the modern generation. "The Enemy of Earth is You"" addresses the negative impacts of climate change. Never in their wildest dreams would they expect massive natural disasters to affect their village. Were they simply a show of might by nature's customary dynamics? Or are we, as human beings, to blame for our greed, ignorance, and narcissism? Writing instrumental “Kawani” felt fresh and intriguing for VOB. They had a unique opportunity to express their enthusiasm for Sundanese music, which they likewise hold in high regard. "In Sundanese, 'Kawani' means courage. This song represents the bravery with which we girls have refused to be treated as something ‘sweet and beautiful’. We are greater than that. That courage is reflected in the rhythms' dynamic quality. We may appear to be serene and unruffled, yet we can abruptly change into something else that is challenging to control,” according to Sitti.

HELLS HEADBANGERS is proud to present a brand-new mini-album from SPITER, Enter the Gates of Fucking Hell.It was but the summer of 2022 when SPITER burst from the fucking grave with their debut album for HELLS HEADBANGERS, Bathe the Babe in Bats' Blood. Featuring members of labelmates SHITFUCKER and Devil Master, the power-trio made plain - and vulgar - their infernal & infectious True Vampyric Metal Punk: a raw-yet-anthemic blend of cult blackthrash, obscure hardcore punk, and even the wildest deathrock. The album sowed its seeds of sanguine depravity and SPITER took their madness on the road, cementing their cult status immediately.Now, the deviants of SPITER return with a ripping new mini-album, Enter the Gates of Fucking Hell. This six-song / 26-minute recording sees the lineup scaled back to vocalist / guitarist / songwriter Richard Spider (Daemon Bitch of SHITFUCKER) and drummer Snake (Disjawn) - they continue to be a trio for live purposes - and remarkably shows even more fire and focus than that not-inconsiderable debut album. Somehow, those six(-six-six) songs sound shorter and more epic simultaneously, with Spider showing his songwriting chops between wild & winding mania and ghoulish catchiness. The production, in kind, is colder and harsher but clearer and heavier, assaulting the listener with arguably more undead energy than said debut. And then, over before it began, you're again possessed to press "play" and enter those fucking gates over and over...again, until it fucking hurts. 1. Enter The Gates Of Fucking Hell 04:212. Drowning In Darkness 03:413. Tears Of Blood 03:494. The Creeping Serpent Psychosis 04:275. 666 On The Crucifix 05:046. Reflection Of The Vampire 04:21

On 2021’s Noise Noise Noise, THE Last Gang pushed their musical boundaries in new and unexpected ways, spitting barbs both personal and political at whoever might listen. The follow-up Obscene Daydreams is 11 tracks of sharply composed, no-punches-pulled punk, which finds the Orange County quartet in top form and ready to explode. Produced once again by Cameron Webb (Motorhead, Pennywise, Alkaline Trio, Nofx), Obscene Daydreams is the result of a new, more intentional writing process. Working on a deadline this time around, the album was written and recorded in less than a year. The expediency of recording served the quartet well, as Obscene Daydreams delivers in abundance, The Last Gang's signature mix of melodic hooks and raw feelings. While outrage and defiance figure prominently in those feelings, love and pride share center stage. Opener “Electric Avenue” is an ode to ride-or-die friendship, and “Madness” is a full-on love song (or as close to one as a “nihilistic optimist” like singer Brenna Red can deliver). “Berlin to Rome” celebrates life on the road, and “Rumors” finds Red flexing her no-bullshit self-confidence. An interaction with a bigoted fan inspired “The Others,” forcing Red to make clear the quartet’s Lgbtqia+ allyship. The authenticity of The Last Gang's music lies in these lived experiences, making each album a kaleidoscopic journal of sorts. With nonstop touring planned throughout 2024, The Last Gang cannot wait to share this chapter with the world.

A sense of destiny hangs over Sentir Que No Sabes, Mabe Fratti’s fourth solo-credited album released in a five year span. Her work has always possessed a finely tuned sense of drama capable of expressing a range of emotional states, and across this new album, she conveys the struggle to process various relationships or situations–and the actions that come next. Sentir Que No Sabes is urgent and clear, poppy, generous and approachable, while showcasing a considerable emotional hinterland. It is also, as Fratti is quick to mention, “groovy.”

Written and recorded with her partner, multi-instrumentalist, and co-composer Héctor Tosta (I.La Católica, Titanic), Sentir Que No Sabes is the result of an intense, detail-oriented process. Fueled by a new confidence gained in their collaborative project, Titanic, and its critically acclaimed 2023 LP, Vidrio, the two hunkered down in the familiarity of their studio (aka Tinho Studios) to bash out the initial sonic coordinates of her new record. “We talked and talked, and discussed ways of playing and recording, until things became inevitable,” Fratti explains. “We recorded a bunch of demos at our home studio and that meant we had a lot of time to re-edit and experiment. We really dug in. We were super focused on detail.” Tosta also took up the controls as producer and arranger-in-chief for all additional instruments. The album was later completed at Willem Twee Studios in Den Bosch in the Netherlands, and Pedro y el Lobo Studios and Soy Sauce Studios, in Mexico City.

For the final studio recordings, the pair were joined by drummer Gibran Andrade and trumpetist Jacob Wick to fill out and expand on Tosta’s percussion and brass arrangements. This small group of friends were able to work quickly and openly, and without fear: a testament to the exhaustive groundwork put in at Tinho Studios.

Sentir Que No Sabes is a record full to the brim with a modern pop sensibility, invoked by the sort of magpie spirit that ensnares anything it can find, repositioning sounds for the here and now. The keys and melody on the melancholy “Pantalla azul” (“Blue screen error”) transport us back to the glossy mid-1980s.

The lyrics, for their part, have a stop-start quality to them, and hint at the small, incremental emotional taxes we pay through just living our lives. They circle around the music like birds waiting to swoop. There is something of the spiritual in all of Fratti’s work that expresses itself in a form of yearning: she looks to new horizons while personal dramas find themselves internalized, contextualized, and then dealt with through metaphor.

So what to make of Sentir Que No Sabes? High gloss Pastoralism? The sound of a city-bound, post-post modern soulscape? No matter the emotions evoked, it's the work of an artist coming into their own, and creating a benchmark record.

A Killer’s Confession tells it out loud on their fourth full-length offering and MNRK Music Group debut LP, Victim 1. Fronted by vocalist and mastermind Waylon Reavis, the band plunge past the point of no return, channeling the captivating repugnance of true crime set to a soundtrack of melodic hard rock dosed with fits of pummeling metal and insidious industrial.A near-decade journey led to this point. After three seminal albums with Mushroomhead, Waylon retreated from music, only for it to draw him back in 2016. He resurfaced at the helm of A Killer’s Confession, delivering three cult favorite albums—Unbroken [2017], The Indifference of Good Men [2019], and Remember [2021]. Along the way, the band tallied tens of millions of streams in addition to collaborating with everyone from Brian “Head” Welch of Korn and Love And Death to Chad Gray of Mudvayne and HELLYEAH.During 2022, Waylon hit the studio with collaborators and producers Dusty Boles [Make Me Famous] and Evan Mckeever [Nine Shrines]. Shocking this vision to life, he emerged with the ten-track equivalent of “falling down a YouTube rabbit hole of unsolved mysteries.” In the end, A Killer’s Confession tells a story you won’t be able to turn away from. 1. Tongue2. Sun3. Greed4. Voices (ft. Aaron Nordstrom)5. Purpose6. Martyr7. Kill Or Be Killed8. Filth9. Rain10. Wasteland

A Killer’s Confession tells it out loud on their fourth full-length offering and MNRK Music Group debut LP, Victim 1. Fronted by vocalist and mastermind Waylon Reavis, the band plunge past the point of no return, channeling the captivating repugnance of true crime set to a soundtrack of melodic hard rock dosed with fits of pummeling metal and insidious industrial.A near-decade journey led to this point. After three seminal albums with Mushroomhead, Waylon retreated from music, only for it to draw him back in 2016. He resurfaced at the helm of A Killer’s Confession, delivering three cult favorite albums—Unbroken [2017], The Indifference of Good Men [2019], and Remember [2021]. Along the way, the band tallied tens of millions of streams in addition to collaborating with everyone from Brian “Head” Welch of Korn and Love And Death to Chad Gray of Mudvayne and HELLYEAH.During 2022, Waylon hit the studio with collaborators and producers Dusty Boles [Make Me Famous] and Evan Mckeever [Nine Shrines]. Shocking this vision to life, he emerged with the ten-track equivalent of “falling down a YouTube rabbit hole of unsolved mysteries.” In the end, A Killer’s Confession tells a story you won’t be able to turn away from. 1. Tongue2. Sun3. Greed4. Voices (ft. Aaron Nordstrom)5. Purpose6. Martyr7. Kill Or Be Killed8. Filth9. Rain10. Wasteland

Baby Blue & Halloween Orange Vinyl.In their decade-plus together, the four-piece_Julia Shapiro (guitar, vocals), Lydia Lund (guitar, vocals), Gretchen Grimm (drums, vocals), and Annie Truscott (bass, vocals)_have created a resonant body of work. Live Laugh Love is a natural continuation. Against the bizarre backdrop of the past few years, Chastity Belt remained a supportive space for the members to grow and experiment, drawing on the ingredients most essential to their process since the beginning: authenticity and levity. Recorded over three sessions in as many years (January 2020, November 2021 and 2022), the focus became more about enjoying their time together in the studio than making it feel like work. Their ease and familiarity with engineer Samur Khouja in LA, who also recorded their last album, made for a particularly enjoyable process. Once completed, they returned to renowned engineer Heba Kadry who mastered the album.Album opener "Hollow" sets the tone with a gently driving rhythm while guitar layers stream like sun rays through an open car window. A warmth radiates through Shapiro's voice, even while grappling with feeling lost and stuck. "The older I get," Shapiro says of the lyrics, "the more I realize that I might just always feel this way, and it's more about sitting with the feeling and accepting it, rather than trying to fight it." That wisdom seems to anchor Live Laugh Love. Chastity Belt has never shied from navigating the spectrum of difficult emotions, and an existential thread weaves throughout the subject matter. And yet the songs feel more grounded than ever; there's a sense of quiet confidence and self-assurance that comes with being less numb and more present. Facing discomfort takes more fortitude, after all.Live Laugh Love finds the members in their prime as musicians. Their parts trace intricate patterns over one another, but there's room to breathe between the layers. Everyone contributes to the writing, sometimes switching instruments, and for the first time, all four mem...

Shortly after Jacob Diamond unassumingly self-released his first record, he found himself touring the world - first with art-pop outfit Methyl Ethel, then with singer-songwriter Stella Donnelly. Upon returning, the sharp, avant-pop songwriter moved from Perth, where he had started out at open mics on school nights, to Melbourne where he found a burgeoning scene of like-minded artists to collaborate and build confidence with. He would go on to join Camp Cope, Julia Jacklin, Courtney Barnett, Phoebe Go and Angie McMahonon stages around the country.

Now signed to Dalliance Recordings (Francis of Delirium, Gia Margaret, Highschool, lilo),Jacob is re-leasing his stunning new album Yes Angel this August. With contributions from Julia Jacklin and Stella Mozgawa (Warpaint), he’s refined his expression into nine remarkable songs through three years of painstaking assembly.

A study in space, each song on Yes Angel is also a setting. Themes of self-love and discovery settle like dust over simple, beautiful performances. Of the album, Jacob says, “I set out to make something confident, intimate, beautiful and alive. I wasn’t confident I could do what I set out to do, so Yes Angel will always be meaningful to me because I did it. Making it taught me to trust my instincts. Recording the album’s most challenging song ‘icuicry’ with producer and Fremantle icon Brod Madden-Scott epitomised this change in me: the song meanders and has a poem in the middle (or a ‘Ted Talk’, as Brod called it) so it needed a delicate touch, but I did what I have the tendency to do and went big. It had a big finish that was almost insecure - as if the song wasn’t enough without a show-stopping finale. But after version 38 or whatever, Brod sent through a mix with a note attached: ‘I just stripped it all back’. It was perfect. Nothing fussy. I immediately knew it was right because I trusted the relief and joy I felt. The song was enough exactly as it was and, as its author, I too was enough. This trust guided the rest of the process.

”Reminiscent of Arthur Russell and Vini Reilly, Jacob’s singular voice and sparse guitar stylings give ache, shape and atmosphere to his songs, allowing tinges of synth and drum machine to push through like flecks of light at their edges. Yes Angel excitingly feels both intimate and alien, perhaps due to being recorded as close to home as Fremantle and as faraway as Joshua Tree. Either way, it stands as a testament to the value of continuing to search for your own voice. Featuring singles ‘New Museum’, ‘Bay of Fleas’ and ‘That Meant The World To Me’, Yes Angel is a revelation. When you allow this music to take you with it, it settles into the heart.

Following a series of meditative explorations in the form of the Singularity Zone series of releases, The Oscillation have returned with a new sense of vigour and purpose. Refreshed and re-energized, the result is The Start Of The End, an album that casts more light and shade than ever before to create a mood of hope and re-birth.

At once warm and welcoming, The Start Of The End is an album quite unlike anything that The Oscillation have ever released before. Fuelled by optimism and taking stock of what’s good about life and what needs to be jettisoned, the record is a result of spiritual and physical re-charging and cleansing.

Leaving the claustrophobic environs of the big city for a more bucolic backdrop, the change in location has left a profound mark on Demian Castellanos, the creative force behind The Oscillation. Where the exorcism of dark emotions of previous album Untold Futures left Castellanos wondering if he’d ever make music again, his new surroundings stirred something within him.

“When I made my new home, I allowed myself time to do nothing for a while,” says Castellanos, “and I then started some new songs without worrying about them being on an album. I just wrote with the mindset to put out something positive.”

He continues: “I did a lot of reflecting on the past and really wanted to change something in myself, but not knowing how and thinking that a lot of people must be feeling the same way.”

Recalling the creation of The Start Of The End, Castellanos says, “Writing and recording in an environment where I had little contact with people, no hanging out or partying or even having conversations was very interesting.”

The result is an album that’s recognisably the work of The Oscillation while pointing to a variety of new directions. Be it the celestial majesty of the title track, the melodic infusions that drive opening track ‘War On The Mind’ or the pulsing grooves underpinning ‘Faraway’ and ‘Body Electric’ or even hypnotic repetition at the heart of ‘Mantra’ and ‘The Eternal’, this music brimming with zeal and confidence. And to crown it all, closer ‘Sovereign’ is akin to communing with angels.

The Start Of The End is a line in the sand and one that points to a better tomorrow.

Total speed metal rager Obnoxious Youth return with a new album out in October.

The Swedish-Finnish speed and thrash metal quintet Obnoxious Youth is back with a bang after a four year break. New album Burning Savage will be out in 18th October 2024.

-“A total speed metal rager manifesting the driving force behind the onslaught that is Obnoxious Youth. A sexual flame and a satanic force of nature. An urge to discover and embrace the primitive flame that grows inside. Succumb to the Burning fucking Savage” Affe ”Phantasma” Piran, the vocalist of Obnoxious Youth, manifests.

The sperm of Satan’s cock AKA the Obnoxious Youth was born in 2002 in Uppsala/Sweden. But the fully fledged and perverted behemoth that stands before you today was an international collaboration brought to life in 2009 by John ”Zeke” Finne, Affe ”Phantasma” Piran and Frans ”Cult” Utterström. But today Edde ”Shit” Aftonfalk and Lukas ”Spine” Häger are added to the live lineup of the band.

The purpose of the band was to break boundaries and to return to the time when extreme music didn’t have any rules or regulations. When there was no ”death metal” or ”thrash metal”, when there was just ”metal” or ”punk”. Just channeling the most insane music that was humanly possible. Using methods that was founded in the 80’s, Obnoxious Youth fully encloses itself and gets swallowed by the power of extreme music and getting influences from a feeling rather than other bands. Taking the listeners back to a time when heavy music was something to fear.

In 2012 the band received a Manifest Award for the debut album The Eternal Void and has since then released two EP’s (Suck On The Cross, 2013 and Mouths Sewn Shut, 2020) and one more full length album Disturbing the Graves in 2017. They have established themselves as a fierce live band that leaves no one unaffected.

Members of Obnoxious Youth has played in or currently plays in bands such as Vorum, Undergång, Endtime, Reveal!, Morbus Chron, Century, Tøronto, Degial, Begravningsentreprenörerna, Entombed and No Future.

Svart Records releases Obnoxious Youth’s new album Burning Savage 18th of October 2024 on black, transparent red and limited yellow/red/black marble vinyl versions – and of course on glorious CD. Pre-orders are now available on Svart Records’ webstore.

Indonesian cloak-of-horrors Nokturnal emit dark radiance with the group’s debut record “Shades Of Night”, an imposing fresh wound of victorious dejection.Nonchalant in its core but with a heavy sense of dispiritedness, “Shades Of Night” has a quiet confidence and allure that melodiously articulate in an ethereal domain; an unabashed adoration for remarkable musical sensibilities interweaved with conanesque Death Metal. “Shades Of Night” has astounding romanticism in deathlike fantasies but with constant suffocation of worldcollapse! Recorded, mixed and mastered at Watchtower Studio under the meticulous helm of Yuda “Bable” Hasfari Sagala. Cover artwork by Bayu Mors (Pazuzu, Exhumation, Baphomet, etc).

Crack Cloud’s new album Tough Baby is both a clarion call and a life-manual for the listener. Unsurprisingly, it is a record with purpose and resolve. Nothing is wasted. Sometimes the music feels deliberately compressed, the essences extracted and bottled into an overpowering cordial, as on ‘115 At Night’, which sounds like an ‘80s Van Halen track being squeezed into another shape. And it’s difficult to see how a track like ‘Virtuous Industry’ can hold itself together, such are the sonic hoops it jumps through. The sharp angles and hook-laden guitar lines that were once seen as a trademark sound are less in evidence. Last track ‘Crackin Up’ does nod back to earlier releases with a booming beat and guitars that snag, like wool on barbed wire. Tough Baby contains music to think to, music with which to educate, agitate and organise. Zach Choy: “The name Tough Baby is an allusion to our Planet. To our Culture. And to our Selves.” It’s made to remind us that whilst we are all in the gutter to some extent, some of us are looking at the kerb.

You’ve Changed Records presents a special limited edition first-ever vinyl pressing of Julianna Riolino’s debut EP “J.R.”. Previously available only through digital channels, J.R. predates her 2022 breakthrough full-length “All Blue”, feted by the New York Times, Pitchfork, Uncut, and NPRs Mountain Stage, among many, many others, as well as Julianna’s stint in Daniel Romano’s Outfit. For the most part, J.R. omits the county, americana, and folk influences heard on All Blue though there is a shock of recognition in the always surprising power and pure tone of her voice. Rich in melody and early confidence, Julianna Riolino here draws from classic girl-group pop and contemporary indie while establishing a characteristic song-writing template of interpreting foundational texts and iconography to portray uniquely personal experiences and emotional truths. “It’s like it’s who you are before you grow more” she says of J.R. now. It’s an important step in the formation of an important and thrilling artist, and one of today’s greatest singers.

When Man Man released its last album, "Dream Hunting in the Valley of the In Between," frontman Honus Honus (née Ryan Kattner) was in a state of unrest, oscillating between hope and cynicism. Perhaps fittingly, the album dropped during the pandemic, a time at which we could all relate. But, much like that bizarre turn of events, the ennui now seems so distant to Man Man. A revived sense of purpose washes through Man Man's new album, Carrot on Strings, radiating a mix of calm and confidence. Kattner always embodied a wild-man pied-piper vibe: his melodic, unhinged art-rock was at once intriguing and angsty. He was so alluringly creative that you went along with it, even if you were never sure where Man Man would take you. Carrot on Strings is no less inventive, but its ethos is radical in context of the band's two-decade career. "When I was younger, I would feed off of chaos. I would, you know, be upset and get drunk and smash chairs," Kattner explains. "Now those chairs are in my head: It's less of an outward projection, more of an interior monologue." The name "Carrot on Strings" came to Kattner while experimenting with the sound of someone munching on the vegetable, which you can hear in the cacophonous, similarly named song. It alludes to how success always seemed to dangle uncertainly before him, often just out of reach. But listen intently and you'll hear a more content Kattner finding an uneasy peace: "Life, as far as I've known it, has always been side hustles. Would it be great if I could go into a studio and record for a year without figuring out how to finance it? Yeah, it would be," he says. "But ultimately, I need to keep making music because art is an extension of my psyche. It's how I have learned to translate the palpitations of my heart. Simply put, I'd go insane without it." Growing up as a multiracial Hapa kid (half Filipino, half white) with a father in the U.S. Air Force, Kattner lived an itinerant childhood that included a few pivotal years in Germany, where he honed in on an appreciati...

In a time where it’s become increasingly difficult to find the motivation to head out my front door, CUT Piece has become one of the few exceptions, and in their brief year of existence my favorite local band. Featuring a lineup of Portland scene stalwarts from RED Dons, Piss Test, ERA Bleak, Dials, Petite... every time they hit the stage with power, ferocity, and a purpose, commanding the audience and never out staying their welcome. On their debut LP Your Own Good they stick to that formula. Combining elements of post-punk, hardcore, and the early 80s UK anarcho scene, Cut Piece turn in a 23 minute album of driving anthems that demand your attention and drill their way into your brain. Songs about the fucked-up state of our world, the overwhelming apathy of the population at large, self-empowerment, and the creeps who lurk the neighborhood. With one of the hardest badgers in the game, a constant barrage of hook exchanges between the wiry guitars and rumbling bass, and a vocalist shouting arithmetic calls to protests, Your Own Good makes for a captivating debut, and if album closer Gugi is any indication of what’s to come sign me up now. Dark, powerful, and 100% Total Punk!

Riyl: Orange Juice, Sarah Records, early Creation, Mary Chain, C86, Lush. Tlv168lpxx repress edition of 300 copies on pink vinyl. The first run sold out very quickly so a small repress has been ordered. The Umbrellas are four renegade romantics crafting irresistible indie pop hymns. The band’s self-titled 2021 debut album became a breakout moment, winning critical praise and sparking an international tour. Follow-up LP ‘Fairweather Friend’ goes a step further – absorbing the sonic attack of their live shows, it balances this with studio finesse, allowing the San Francisco four-piece to become the band they’ve always aspired to be. It's a record overflowing with highlights. The candyfloss melodies of introductory track ‘Three Cheers!’ are matched to an impactful percussive punch; ‘Say What You Mean’ finds The Umbrellas working with total confidence, letting the song ride out to its chiming conclusion, four voices working in precision. ‘When You Find Out’ offers rotating notes of guitar punctuated by a vocal that pushes past angst to accept a world full of hope. A lean 10 track affair, it grasps towards beatific pop while fuelled by a sense of risk, and the precision that comes from long months on the road. The Umbrellas coalesced around a group of musicians who would frequent legendary San Francisco record emporium Amoeba Music. Singer and guitarist Matt Ferrera links with bassist Nick Oka, while Keith Frerichs is the powerhouse drummer. A chance encounter with Morgan Stanley singing karaoke at a Fourth of July party cemented the line-up around an avowed thirst for melody. “All of us love really earnest pop songs,” Nick points out. “I guess we got to a point in our lives where we wanted to be genuine.” Playing shows at San Francisco’s vital DIY redoubt Hit Gallery, The Umbrellas would share line-ups with local heroes such as April Magazine and Cindy. Recording their debut album across a two-day spell at Matt’s parents’ house, the results won a devoted cult following. Yet the experience of touring bonded them tightly and allowed the volume to tick up a little higher, and higher, and higher. “I think we got tired of people saying, oh you’re so much louder than I thought you’d be!” laughs Matt. “Our early recordings are sweet and earnest… and we wanted it to be louder.” Kicking off sessions in November 2022, the band used an ad hoc space Matt created in his basement, working across a four-month period. Sessions were a little more relaxed in terms of timescale than their debut, but The Umbrellas were incredibly focussed on the project. “We gave ourselves more space for this album,” says Keith. “We wanted time to sit on the songs, and really work on them.” Allowing their live dynamic to bleed out on tape, The Umbrellas are at once more physical and yet also more controlled on their new album. Take opening track ‘Three Cheers!’ – the peppy, sun-soaked rush masks a barbed lyric, courtesy of Nick Oka. “It’s a pseudo-political song about power struggles that occur in a job situation, or a friend group. It’s an observational song.” ‘Toe The Line’ has an unkempt, rollicking sense of energy, the playful relationship analogy of the lyric pushed to the speed of light by Keith’s ultra-fast punk drumming. ‘When You Find Out’ meanwhile epitomises their unified, egalitarian way of making music – with The Umbrellas, each voice counts. “It sounds different from any song we’ve ever written together,” says Morgan. “It shows how much we’ve grown. Trust helps us to build the songs. It’s definitely a team effort.” It's also a record of ambition. ‘Say What You Mean’ stretches past the four-minute mark, the viola performance informed by Estonian minimalist composer Arvo Pärt. ‘Gone’ was the first song attempted for the new album, and the last they actually finished, endless re-writes transforming it into a manifesto of control and release. Taken as a whole ‘Fairweather Friend’ is a bold indie pop triumph, crafted with purpose and attention. Taking their time over each note, the four-piece have strengthened their songwriting, adding depth and assurance while unlocking their potential. Some bonds last a lifetime – The Umbrellas are ready to capture your heart.

Linda, you already know her, without really knowing her. Because in 2002, she piloted The beat goes on, DJ Bob Sinclar's house hit. because she directed Gospel pour 100 voix, an XXL choir that filled Bercy several times. It's a big difference, in keeping with the way she embraces music: a matter of emotions and feeling, not labels. A deep love that goes back to the childhood of this American native of North Carolina. When her father's amateur gospel group rehearsed at home, when the microphone was a hairbrush in front of a mirror reflecting a little girl imitating Aretha, Otis and Michael. As a young adult, winning a singing contest in a Pennsylvania club gave her confidence. Linda is gifted at embodying songs and drawing audiences along with her. Word of mouth opened doors for her. Under her spell, several bands recruited her in the seventies, until she set up her own band in 1980. And then she was hired by a musical that ran for several years in Atlantic City. A few years on the Caribbean island of Saint-Martin followed, before a guardian angel extricated her from a nightlife that was beginning to burn her wings. Off to Paris. In June 1991, Linda settled in for good. A godsend for France, its studios and touring artists. Nino Ferrer, Bernard Lavilliers, Gloria Gaynor, Percy Sledge, Ray Charles and many others called on Linda's expertise. As did Ben l'Oncle Soul in 2013 for Hallelujah!!! (J'ai tant besoin de toi), the lead single from his second album "À Coup de Rêves". Ben knew that this treasure of a voice deserved a new light. He introduced her to his great guitarist & accomplice Christophe Lardeau. The collaboration is immediately crystal-clear, naturally fruitful, and the compositions are deep and meaningful. For the first time, Linda has her own album. Drawing on the rich roots of Afro-American music and her own personal experience, "Spirit & Soul" encapsulates all the vitality of a hidden gem that we are at last truly discovering. With a repertoire like this, upcoming concerts promise to be particularly intense moments.

To address the weight of the world without speaking of weariness. To march thesong to breathlessness but loosen your grip when the band wanders. To tell allyour secrets but shield your loved ones from vulnerability. To dress up in thecharm and temptation of the pop song but maintain a core of peculiarity, of asingle voice trying to navigate this world. This is the project of the Spatulas.Think of the few songwriters who know they're the only ones in the world whocould write their songs. The ones who sing in the confidence that the songcouldn't exist without them: Peter Jefferies, Jenny Mae, Ron House, HeatherLewis. Jonathan Richman? Put Miranda Soileau-Pratt and the Spatulas on thislist.All eleven songs on `Beehive Mind' share a percussive, unshadowed presence,a steady, clear-voiced clop. Every note on the record is a little bit sad on its ownbut then they're organized in a way that you don't actually notice. Credit this tothe band's skill_Jon Grothman, Lila Jarzombek, Kyle Raquipiso and MirandaSoileau-Pratt all play with no limits and they all play with profound ease. Thesongs breathe in warmth and patience, they are immediate and sweet. And thenthey start to meander. The guitar skitters with the deliberate unpredictability of awild animal. Parts repeat and reset with the obsessiveness of an anxious mind.The lyrics open doors to unexpected scenes of lovers, family, and violence.This is all intentional: "I need to play music and listen to music as a form oftherapy," explains Soileau. This means safety, this means encouragement, thismeans trauma, this means hard questions. Only a band so comfortable at themargins, only a band so capable, only a band so trusting can achieve all this.Miranda Solileau-Pratt wrote the first Spatulas song in 2020, while living inOregon. Since that time, the band has released two cassettes and toured theUnited States. Members of the Spatulas have also played in The Blimp, HoneyBucket, Hot Gum, and Meerkaz. The band has shared stages...

"I was in a dream, but now I can see that change is the only law." With a credo adapted from science fiction author Octavia E. Butler, an album title from a collection of metaphysical poetry, and an expansion in consciousness brought on by personal crisis, guitarist and songwriter Shana Cleveland learns to embrace a changing world with unconditional love on News of the Universe, the new full-length from California rock band La Luz. News of the Universe is a record born of calamity, a work of dark, beautiful psychedelia reflecting Cleveland's experience of having her world blown apart by a breast cancer diagnosis just two years after the birth of her son. It's also a portrait of a band in flux, marking the first appearance for drummer Audrey Johnson and the final ones from longtime members bassist Lena Simon and keyboardist Alice Sandahl, whose contributions add a bittersweet edge to a record that is both elegy for an old world and cosmic road map to a strange new one. But is there any band in the world more suited to capturing the chaos of change in all its messy beauty than La Luz? Formed by Cleveland in 2012, La Luz is beloved for their ability to balance bedlam and bliss, each new record another fine-tuning of the band's mix of swaggering riffs with angelic vocals borrowed from doo-wop and folk; a band so reliably great that it makes the huge step forward in confidence and sheer musicality that is News of the Universe all the more formidable. Cleveland, also a writer and painter, has developed into a truly original songwriter with her own canon of haunted psychedelia. Yet if Cleveland has spent years writing songs about ghosts, what lurks in the shadows of News of the Universe is nothing less than death itself. "There are moments on this album that sound to me like the last frantic confession before an asteroid destroys the earth," says Cleveland. The powerful sense of openness that permeates News of the Universe is at least partially due to the fact that it is a record made entirely by women-from the performing, writing, and producing all the way through to the recording, engineering, and mastering. Working with producer Maryam Qudos (Spacemoth), the all-female environment allowed Cleveland to feel safe tapping into difficult places and expressing hard emotions women are socialized to suppress. Unashamedly vulnerable, unabashedly feminine, and undeniably triumphant, News of the Universe is another knockout record from a band so reliably great that it has perhaps led people to overlook how pioneering La Luz really are: women of color in indie music forging their own path by following their own artistic star into galaxies beyond current musical trends, always led by an earnest belief in the cosmic power of love and a great riff. Never is that more true than on News of the Universe, which might be La Luz's most brutal record to date but also their most blissful.

After crisscrossing the nation for the last half-decade looking for a home, Pokey LaFarge found himself in Mid-Coast Maine. Upon arriving, the Illinois-born singer/songwriter/actor pursued a major life change, working 12-hour days on a local farm—a turn of events that catalyzed an extraordinary burst of creativity and redefined his sense of purpose as an artist. Rhumba Country was initially shaped from material that emerged while LaFarge was deep in work on the farm. “I’d be pushing a plow or scattering seeds, and the songs would just come to me,” he recalls. “It was tremendously inspirational and made me realize that apart from singing, farming is perhaps the oldest human art form.” While farming, LaFarge began dreaming up a kaleidoscopic sound informed by his love of music from far-ranging eras and corners of the globe, including mambo, tropicália, rocksteady, and mid-century American rock-and-roll. “The songs that naturally come to me are upbeat and make you wanna dance or at least bop your head—they’re all very colorful,” says LaFarge. “I used to think of my music in dark blue, but now I see it in technicolor.” Co-produced along with Chris Seefried and Elliot Bergman and recorded in L.A., the resulting Rhumba Country is an invitation to come together to celebrate life and love.

After crisscrossing the nation for the last half-decade looking for a home, Pokey LaFarge found himself in Mid-Coast Maine. Upon arriving, the Illinois-born singer/songwriter/actor pursued a major life change, working 12-hour days on a local farm—a turn of events that catalyzed an extraordinary burst of creativity and redefined his sense of purpose as an artist. Rhumba Country was initially shaped from material that emerged while LaFarge was deep in work on the farm. “I’d be pushing a plow or scattering seeds, and the songs would just come to me,” he recalls. “It was tremendously inspirational and made me realize that apart from singing, farming is perhaps the oldest human art form.” While farming, LaFarge began dreaming up a kaleidoscopic sound informed by his love of music from far-ranging eras and corners of the globe, including mambo, tropicália, rocksteady, and mid-century American rock-and-roll. “The songs that naturally come to me are upbeat and make you wanna dance or at least bop your head—they’re all very colorful,” says LaFarge. “I used to think of my music in dark blue, but now I see it in technicolor.” Co-produced along with Chris Seefried and Elliot Bergman and recorded in L.A., the resulting Rhumba Country is an invitation to come together to celebrate life and love.

Nick Llobet (they/them) was ready to throw in the towel. Llobet, who grew up in South Florida, learned to play guitar at a very young age, dabbling in everything from classical, blues, classic rock, and flamenco. They'd spent much of their early 20s searching for their voice as an artist and as an individual, as well as for a musical community Llobet would eventually move to Brooklyn, but after three years of looking for a hopeful artistic breakthrough, they spent much of their time in seclusion, consumed by social anxiety and imposter syndrome-and they were considering abandoning songwriting completely. One day, while commuting through Penn Station en route to their partner's family home in Virginia (that would also lead to the crucial purchase of a secondhand Tascam cassette recorder), they noticed Patti Smith sitting alone, waiting for a train. The typically shy Llobet decided to approach the icon, who was, in turn, delighted to see that Llobet was carrying a guitar. At the end of their interaction, Smith offered some parting wisdom: "She wished me luck and said, 'Practice hard, Nick.'" Llobet took her advice to heart, and this chance encounter kicked off a personal and artistic rebirth. They started performing as youbet, a play on their last name, and began "changing [their] vision for what a song could be." youbet's debut, Compare & Despair, a delightful gem of a record that showcases Llobet's propensity for freewheeling whimsy and emotional intensity. In May 2019, inspired by a song-a-week writing group that produced Compare & Despair, Llobet started a second club in which contributors would upload that week's song to a private Bandcamp. Invigorated by this small musical collaboration, the feedback, and the accountability, Llobet wrote 18 songs throughout the duration of the club, twelve of which became Way To Be. After this songwriting marathon, Llobet spent 2020 focusing on instrumental guitar work and political engagement. By the summer of 2021, they were ready to revisit the Way To Be tracks. Over the next year-and-a-half, Llobet worked on the record relentlessly, refining the lyrics, recording, and arrangements from their apartment. Llobet self-produced Way To Be and describes the process as an enormous, labor-intensive undertaking that felt akin to "making a whole film." Along the way, Llobet was joined by collaborators, including Julian Fader (Ava Luna), Adam Brisbin (Buck Meek), and Daniel Siles. Across Way To Be's 12 delightfully off-kilter tunes, Llobet uses wordplay and tongue-in-cheek humor to obliquely explore dysfunctional relationships, regret, self-confidence or the lack thereof, queerness, and self-discovery. Fuzzy at the edges and filled with playful, kinetic arrangements, Way To Be is a bridge into the entrancing world of youbet. You won't want to leave.

Named after one of the basic rhythms of Cuban folk music and drawing on influences from across the globe, Cho Co Pa Co Cho Co Quin Quin are quite simply a world unto itself. Comprised of three childhood friends, Daido, Yuta and So, who reconnected during the coronavirus pandemic, Cho Co Pa initially emerged as a playful way for the three 23-year-olds to pass the time. Tapping into their youthful connection, they created a sound that exudes confidence and curiosity, a homage to the masterful world of YMO’s and Happy End’s Haruomi Hosono, rooted in the trio’s own idiosyncratic experience of the present. Recorded at home and promoted on hugely popular DIY TikTok videos, their debut album Tradition is a technicolour exercise in armchair travelling – a kind of lockdown exotica for the housebound whose nostalgic flights of fancy are laced with a sense of whimsical melancholy for the lost freedoms of youth. Referencing everything from Afro-Cuban percussion to lo-fi beats, Buddhist spirituality to trap, each member of the band brings different musical inspirations to the table. Latin American and Middle Eastern styles sit adjacent to a fascination for the electronic music of Aphex Twin, Dorian Concept, Underworld and Daft Punk. At times, the music verges on acid pop bliss, at others, it grooves with the instrumental funk sensibility of Badbadnotgood. “In the first place, when I create a song, my goal is to transport the listener to a mysterious place,” vocalist Daido explained in a recent magazine interview. Using lyrics as another sonic texture in the composition of ideas, Cho Co Pa paint beguiling sonic postcards of far-flung moods across 12 highly original tracks. Marrying the organic and the electronic on rhythmically sophisticated compositions like ‘Chichibu’ and ‘Watatsumi’, it is on the album’s standout track ‘Gandhara’ that the experimental sound of Cho Co Pa comes to the fore. Referencing the ancient city of Gandhara through which Buddhism made its way from India to China, the track is a vocoder-trap-inspired, Udu drum-driven pop jam that lilts with unmistakable Balearic flair. If that’s difficult to imagine, then know simply that ‘Gandhara’ sounds like nothing else on this side of Saturn. Even Daido seemed surprised by the outcome: “I feel like we were able to create something that exceeded our abilities. That was huge!” Hugely popular in Japan, with festival appearances lined up alongside Badbadnotgood at Asagiri Jam in October, it's safe to say the success of Tradition has taken Cho Co Pa by surprise. Released digitally in July 2023, Tradition will get a full international vinyl release in January 2024. You won’t have heard anything like it.

Available on ltd edition Eco mix vinyl, with only 250 copies pressed. Includes download.

We’re delighted to bring you the latest full length from London psych heads The Confederate Dead.

‘As an artist, one of the most extraordinary gifts is the ability to convert life's experiences and emotions into music, transmuting pain into beauty, tragedy into art. With our latest album, 'Flamingo', we embarked on this creative journey. The inception of this project dates back to 2022, a year marked by a period of separation that was both challenging and transformative. 'Flamingo' is not just an album; it is a voyage through the labyrinth of heartache and healing. Each track resonates with the overarching theme of the album, yet each presents a unique interpretation of it. Every song echoes the same meaning, the same core narrative, but from a different emotional lens.’ Butchy Davy (The Confederate Dead)

‘“Flamingo by London’s psychedelic indie band The Confederate Dead flows by like a strange dream. Each song flows differently, shifting the dreamy images into another direction. Thoughts of The Black Angels, the Fuzz Club catalogue and genres from shoegaze to garage pop and back to good old psych rock fight a confusing fight for my attention. In the end it appears that this struggle will never truly be decided. The Confederate Dead is their own beast, and a great one at that.

Theirs is a sound that oozes confidence and grandeur, presented like a big name would. and there is no reason why The Confederate Dead would not dream big, they have the chops, the songs, the looks, the only thing standing in the way of moving up might be their dark brooding undertones and their refusal to do a cool thing twice.

Because the most powerful thing about Flamingo is its versatility. The album is like a box of assorted chocolates, the one you can’t get enough of because each song is delicious and sweet in its own way. So, indulge yourself, have a chocolate, or ten…before you know it the album is over, and you’ll press play again.

After 20 years of living on the road in different places, Six Organs of Admittance had returned home to Humboldt County - a far country, to some, but still part of the world through which creatures of all kinds are moving through and contributing to. And some of them are human. Alone together - forming connection and exchange out of thought and expression - no different from the people on the other side of the Redwood Curtain. It was there, where Six Organs had long ago emerged, in the name of everything cycling, of circles that spiral concentrically and remain unbroken, the new music was conceived. In moments, it was as if the future had somehow wrapped around 360 degrees; elsewhere, the systems and patterns inside the writing and recording only became evident later - like a recognition that cumulus and nimbus clouds which passed through the sky the day before contained familiar shapes. Informing the songs accordingly as he went, Ben picked up on modes both musical and lyrical, threading backward through the time of Six Organs of Admittance. Almost marinating in it as a way of life. Working on the music and the vocals, then spending some time with them while stepping away from them. Walking the dog and coming back to them Time is Glass is made of that kind of time. Alone time. Recorded in the visceral environs of home, Time is Glass is sharply focused, even as misty impressionist mountains float through the background. Sweet and spiny, "The Mission" sings its purpose, before turning abruptly to the orchestral rumble of "Hephaestus": rural industrial psychedelia, ecosystem goth, synths arcing to lift a helplessly earthbound community into the firmament above. Winding almost imperceptibly back into song with "Slip Away", the time of the record becomes clear, moves fluidly, relaxed but aware, from event to event. People and things coming around again. The intuit, passing through wormholes and time, sounding deep then dissolving into the universal. The acoustic sounds ringing, layered suddenly, then clear again. Explosions of a new kind of distortion. Ecstatic melodies. Communing. The space of a day. The space of a season. Time is Glass, and Six Organs of Admittance is here and will be here, again.