Bristol-based musicians Oliver Wilde and Nicholas Stevenson make up the charmingly named indie-folk project Oro Swimming Hour. Following Penrose Winoa (2017) and Lossy (2019), their third album, Pterodactyl, is a cocktail of emo-folk-driven sentiments and personable songwriting that manages to warm the heart as it slays. While lo-fi luminaries Sebadoh and Elliot Smith, as well asContinue Reading
The region known as the ‘Nordic countries’ is known worldwide for its progressive politics, cold weather, and tradition of music performance of the highest standard. Icelandic jazz singer Marína Ósk met her band while studying for a master’s degree at the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, and while theContinue Reading
Australian renaissance man Ziggy Alberts has been asserting his presence as a purveyor of earnest music and the written word since 2011. His sixth album, “Dancing In The Dark”, comes with an alluringly minimalist sound that is processed and slick but doesn’t compromise its human touch. The ten songs here,Continue Reading
Is our willingness to trust an artist to be sincere based solely on intuition? In his paper “Trust and Sincerity in Art”, C. Thi Nguyen of the University of Utah wrote, “In aesthetic life, we trust each other to follow our own paths, so that it is more meaningful whenContinue Reading
Technology, much like nature, is fallible. Though modern technology and cloud computing promise accurate data representation and secure archiving, the truth of existence is that nothing is sacred, and even the most robust and protected information is liable to be corrupted. One need only look to the relevant example ofContinue Reading
Analogue recording equipment has long been lauded for producing a warm and natural sound. However, on “atrophy”, Londonite vocalist/rapper privacydied and Charlottean producer jodimattiaccy utilise analogue’s ability to handle distortion while feeding their anxious and youthful expressions of angst through a blender of effects. The sound often alludes to hip-hop,Continue Reading
There’s an alluring innocence to “afterville”, the third album from Sydney-based indie pop group Key Out. Full of carefully arranged harmonies, intimate moments via sweetly played acoustic-leaning instrumentation, it delivers heartwarming songs that are often careful and light. Recorded in different locations in their native Australia as the group wereContinue Reading
Looking for information on Portuguese experimental electronic composer and producer Jorge is fruitless. His recent album, “Entre células”, is accompanied only by the cryptic statement that Jorge was “born and raised in the Portuguese alternative rock world” but that he now focuses on ambient-leaning electronic inspired by the works ofContinue Reading
Two of the most intriguing states of mind are the hypnopompic, when you first wake up, and the hypnogogic, right before falling asleep. These moments often provide a mix of the waking and dream world, and Descartes noted it was when he did his best philosophizing. While they appear toContinue Reading
Swiss electronic duo Paraphon came together out of a mutual love of synthesizers. This is not surprising as their debut album, “Anecdotes of Wired Minds”, is built upon a foundation of crafted electronica and atmospheric mixes. Using the dreamy possibilities of synthesized sound as a catalyst for catchy pop melodies,Continue Reading