Single Reviews: 9 August 2024: AM sin, Soft No, Yndling, Supercaan, Trigger Object
Photo by Junpire Nguyen AM sin – Silver Lining electronic London-based duo AM sin crafts a meticulously roaming synthetic piece with “Silver Lining.” Soft sounds turn to harder territory across the six minutes of this track, but the sense of melody is never lost, even if it’s never explicitly expressed.Continue Reading
The Finch Cycle – Mt.Pilot (Album Review)
Australian artist Bradley Murray has been releasing sprawling instrumental music under the moniker The Finch Cycle since 2020. Having released two EPs, Murray has taken the leap to a full-length debut, collaborating with drummer Michael Evans-Barker and trombonist Brendan Bartlett on Mt. Pilot. The album leans into a shady, atmosphericContinue Reading
Album Reviews: Manatee Commune, Brendan Byrnes, Yosef Gutman, Christopher Lock, Alek Barkats
Photo by Samura Silva Manatee Commune – Simultaneity Soft and luscious sounds abound on “Love Tone”, the opening track on Simultaneity, the recent album from Seattleite Manatee Commune. This beatless introduction is not without rhythm but is mainly a layering of vocalises and ambient synths. It sets off an album ofContinue Reading
Single Reviews: 2 August 2024: Why England Slept, Aurélie Barbé, Nebno, Extended Blundering, Alex Zethson
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
Jem Doulton – Deal of the Century (Album Review)
“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
Single Reviews: 30 July 2024: Recalculating, Signal Quartet, We Are The Willows, Trophy Wife, Ignacio Wer
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
Interview: SUUNCAAT
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
Jody Prewett – River Songs (Album Review)
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
Luna Waves – Comedowns (Album Review)
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
Sunstinger – Worthless (EP Review)
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