Photo by Krišjānis Kazaks Why England Slept – House of Pizza jazz If you’ve ever thought that you might benefit from more jauntiness, then look no further than “House of Pizza” the jovial title track an album by the US alternative group Why England Slept. The Salem duo, who areContinue Reading
“Welcome to the deal of the century,” sings Londonite Jem Doulton on the opening track of his recent album Deal of the Century. It’s a clever narrative hook that draws the listener into the burning matters of the present. The subtly political, glaringly philosophical, and often sarcastic lyrics (“Tory, Tory,Continue Reading
Photo by Memories on 35mm Recalculating – Candide Says post-punk Packed around a sunny riff, New York three-piece Recalculating delivers snarling observations with deliberate aberrance on “Candide Says,” an ultimately optimistic missive made unique by bassist and vocalist Sean Wiederkehr’s menacing bursts of Sprechgesang that touch on everything from improperContinue Reading
Canadian artist SUUNCAAT has shared her second single of 2024, the moreish “Salad Years”. Montreal is sizzling under an intense heatwave, but inside, surrounded by the cool embrace of air conditioning, SUUNCAAT is buzzing with creativity. “Mild weather hazards are such an ideal time for introspection,” she replies when IContinue Reading
Earlier this year, by the banks of the Avon River, English songwriter Jody Prewett entered a studio and recorded the songs he had been working on for a year and a half between Bristol and Bath. There wasn’t much nitpicking—no multiple takes or elaborate double-tracking. Prewett channelled the rough-and-tumble immediacyContinue Reading
Popular music critic Anthony Fantano once quipped, “In music, trends are always rising and fading in popularity, but nostalgia never dies.” His statement is supported by Comedowns, the fourth album from Bedford-based Luna Waves, the celestial stage name of Rob Muir. Muir’s songs are as heavenly as they are groundedContinue Reading
There’s an explosive quality to the songs of Scottish alternative shoegaze group Sunstinger. Their recent EP, Worthless, opens with its oceanic title track, which builds in intensity through stucco-textured synths, escapist basslines, and a thumping drum march. Frontman Taylor Wright has an exotic voice, as though it’s coming from aContinue Reading
The phrase “ignorance is bliss,” coined by 18th-century poet Thomas Gray, seems to be an undeniable truism. However, bliss needn’t always be the end goal. One could make the case that it’s more interesting, exciting, and human to illuminate what terrifies you. One proponent of this idea is the rockContinue Reading
Photo by Pin Han Lim Nicholas Skalba – (circadian) ambience and soundscapes ambient Nicholas Skalba is a multi-instrumentalist composer from Chicago now based in Los Angeles. Having earned a master’s degree in scoring music for film and television from Columbia College Chicago, Skalba’s work is emboldened by theoretical know-how andContinue Reading
Photo by Aysegul Alp sparring – In The Fish Tank experimental There’s a supernatural quality to “In The Fish Tank”, the debut single from obscure Mexican artist sparring. It seems to float in the air and bend a finger towards some stellular realm, though often veers towards somewhere closerContinue Reading