In another universe Anxious Arms are a straight-up punk band. The Californian outfit are adept at barrelling riffs, skating rhythms, and hard-edged melodies. In the here and now though, they are weighed down by the state of… well, everything. You can hear that in their lyrics, in lines like “A future with no hope, I’ve seen it all and I’m […]
Read moreWhile a lot of new records arrive on cue, fresh and clean, at the end of an extensive promotional campaign to an expectant and prepared public, others seem to appear from nowhere. They’re born in darkness, formed without fanfare, and yet haul themselves out of the vast ocean of new music and still somehow, some way, end up in your […]
Read moreNo Devotion have had it tough. Born as an escape from immense, intense pain in the first place, the band subsequently experienced record label collapse, addiction, poisoning and personal assault. When their debut record was suddenly pulled from shelves (and streaming services) just as it was supposed to be making its biggest splash, it was finally too much for some. […]
Read moreI know the last few years haven’t been much fun for any of us, but somebody needs to check in on the members of KEN Mode immediately. If the sound of this, the Canadian outfit’s eighth album, is anything to go by, their spirits might be well and truly broken. While the band’s last full-length was a fast, furious, Steve […]
Read moreThe third album by Tiny Blue Ghost is beautiful, brilliant… and a total bummer. This is the sound of dusk, of the final days of summer, and, just maybe, of something even more significant fading away. The record’s release date last week makes perfect sense but so distinct and powerful is the vibe here that it could have come out […]
Read moreJess Webberley has a gift. As the brains (and everything else besides) behind Graywave they have, pretty much since their very first single even, proven adept at adding ambience, establishing tone, and building an atmosphere. Ok, so not all of their songs will stick in your memory, but they’ll certainly linger in your feelings. Last year’s ‘Planetary Shift’ was perhaps […]
Read moreLook, it’s a silly band name. I know it’s also the name of a Can song, a celebrated, epic jam track, and that kind of makes sense when you get to hearing Yoo Doo Right. But it’s still a silly band name. It is, however, just about the only thing this Canadian trio have ever got wrong. Guitarist and vocalist […]
Read moreThis is a wiry, wily affair. This is four tracks in ten minutes of stark, sticky-floor punk rock’n’roll. I’m listening intently to the fuzzed-up bass and buzzsaw riffing of opener ‘Waiting for Another One’, sure, but I’m also balling my fists just in case the song comes bursting out of my speakers looking for a fight. ‘Vocal Harmony Trio’ isn’t all adrenaline […]
Read moreThe year isn’t even halfway through, but it seems impossible that a more aptly-titled album will be released in 2022. The second full-length by Shropshire based collective Haress is a collection of eerie ambience, distant whispers, and ominous drones. That doesn’t mean ‘Ghosts’ lacks staying power though- these are not your modern, ambiguous apparitions, these are powerful, possibly primordial spirits. […]
Read moreHalosar is the collaborative electronic project of multidisciplinary artists and childhood friends James Jano and Cullen Miller. And maybe this, their debut album, could only have been made by two people. Because as much as ‘New Forge’ is reminiscent of solo sonic pioneers like Tim Hecker or Daniel Lopatin, there’s also an audible push and pull to proceedings. ‘Pretzel Summit’ […]
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