Def Nettle explore music as release on ‘Trauma Removal Machine’
‘Trauma Removal Machine’ finds Def Nettle using the language of therapy, spirituality and self-help as the basis for a tightly constructed piece of post-punk-inflected indie dance. The Irish outfit have always drawn from a wide range of influences, and this single continues that approach without sounding overly busy. New wave,Continue Reading
Atomic Cherry examines the cost of fitting in on ‘Social Skills’
‘Social Skills’ is a restrained but pointed second single from Istanbul-based artist Atomic Cherry. Following the dreamier alt-pop of ‘Somewhere in Between’, this new track moves into darker alternative hip-hop and neo-soul territory, using a moodier backdrop to explore people-pleasing, social performance and the pressure to appear comfortable in environmentsContinue Reading
Peppermint Heaven reframe ‘Disco Lights’ through Mark Lower’s nu-disco lens
Mark Lower’s remix of ‘Disco Lights’ gives Peppermint Heaven’s retro-pop instincts a cleaner, more overtly club-oriented setting. The LA duo have long drawn from 80s pop and electronic music, and this version keeps that foundation intact while moving the track towards contemporary nu-disco. Mark Lower’s production is focused less onContinue Reading
Kontai Ensemble explore the possibilities of violin and cello on ‘Trost’
Trost is a concise but thoughtfully constructed debut EP from Munich-based Kontai Ensemble. Built around violinist Teresa Allgaier and cellist Juri Kannheiser, the four-track EP brings together new works by Annamaria Kowalsky, Ralph Heidel, Friederike Bernhardt and Matīss Čudars. Each composer arrives from a different musical background, and that range givesContinue Reading
Robert Jordan’s ‘Plato’s Cave’ is an exuberant call to wake up
On his new single ‘Plato’s Cave’, Boulder-based artist Robert Jordan takes the philosophical image of people mistaking shadows for reality, and turns it into an energetic rock song about questioning what we think we know. But instead of treating Plato as something distant or academic, the artist makes the allegoryContinue Reading
The Sunmills turn gossip into a grinning alt-rock vice with ‘Secret To Tell’
‘Secret To Tell’ is built around one of the least admirable and most entertaining human impulses: knowing something you absolutely shouldn’t repeat, then immediately wanting to repeat it. Here, Utah alt-rock trio The Sunmills take that weakness and push it into deliciously ridiculous territory, turning gossip into the engine ofContinue Reading
The Goodbye Radio’s ‘Late To It’ offers a reason to keep going
‘Late To It’ understands that regret and hope can occupy exactly the same space. The new single from New York indie-rock band The Goodbye Radio looks at loneliness, missed opportunities and the uncomfortable feeling that certain parts of life should have happened by now. Yet beneath that sadness is theContinue Reading
Lo Barnes lets ‘Heaven Was His Name’ unfold with patience and restraint
‘Heaven Was His Name’ finds Lo Barnes working on a broader, more cinematic scale while keeping the emotional core of the song deliberately understated. The Margate artist’s latest single runs for almost six minutes, allowing its story of betrayal and disillusionment to develop gradually. Here, she gives the opening sectionContinue Reading
Larusta & The Dead Dogs explore uncertainty and isolation on ‘Schrödinger’s Blackout’
‘Schrödinger’s Blackout’ finds Larusta & The Dead Dogs approaching political subject matter through a personal and carefully framed perspective. The single was inspired by Larusta’s experience of losing contact with his Iranian friend Mahsa during a communications blackout, leaving him unsure whether she was safe. That uncertainty becomes the song’sContinue Reading
The House Flies broaden their post-punk palette on ‘Lions and Ore’
On their new album Lions and Ore, The House Flies expand their post-punk foundation without losing the directness that has defined their earlier work. The Moline, Illinois band’s second full-length moves through seven tracks shaped by recurring images of houses, fields, heat, sleep and things left behind. Those details give theContinue Reading