The legendary Gruff Rhys returns with 'Dim Probs', his ninth solo album, fourth Welsh language long player, and first release through Rock Action Records.

Featuring fellow Welsh artists Cate Le Bon and H. Hawkline on backing vocals, and produced with Ali Chant (Yard Act/PJ Harvey), 'Dim Probs' echoes the warmth and closeness of Gruff’s career defining first solo album (2005’s 'Yr Atal Genhedlaeth') and the stargazing melancholy of 2021’s 'Seeking New Gods'. Written and performed entirely in Welsh/Cymraeg, 'Dim Probs' places the listener side by side with one of the country’s greatest and most thoughtful songwriters in the corner of a studio as the songs grow around them from just voice and guitar. The result is an intimate and hypnotic record that mixes acoustic folk with whatever scratchy, primitive electronic machines come to hand on each track. One listen? Dim probs indeed!

TRACK LISTING

1. Pan Ddaw’r Haul I Fore
2. Cân I’r Cymylau
3. Saf Ar Dy Sedd
4. Taro #1 + #2
5. Dos Amdani
6. Chwyn Chwyldroadol!
7. Cyflafan
8. Dim Probs
9. Adar Gwyn
10. Gadael Fi Fynd
11. Slaw
12. Acw

David Byrne's 'Who Is the Sky?', his first new album since 2018’s acclaimed and award-winning 'American Utopia'. The album was produced by the Grammy-winning Kid Harpoon (Harry Styles, Miley Cyrus), while its 12 songs were arranged by the members of New York-based chamber ensemble Ghost Train Orchestra.

Musical friends old and new, including St. Vincent, Paramore’s Hayley Williams, The Smile drummer Tom Skinner and American Utopia percussionist Mauro Refosco, also make appearances on 'Who Is the Sky?', which is led by the infectious single 'Everybody Laughs'.

“Someone I know said, ‘David, you use the word “everybody” a lot.’ I suppose I do that to give an anthropological view of life in New York as we know it,” says Byrne. “Everybody lives, dies, laughs, cries, sleeps and stares at the ceiling. Everybody’s wearing everybody else’s shoes, which not everybody does, but I have done. I tried to sing about these things that could be seen as negative in a way balanced by an uplifting feeling from the groove and the melody, especially at the end, when St. Vincent and I are doing a lot of hollering and singing together. Music can do that – hold opposites simultaneously. I realized that when singing with Robyn earlier this year. Her songs are often sad, but the music is joyous.”

Byrne was inspired to enlist Ghost Train Orchestra for the album after hearing their 2023 tribute album to the blind New York composer and street poet Moondog, and later that year jumped on stage with the group during a Brooklyn performance. Enticed by the 15-member Ghost Train’s varied instrumental lineup – which includes drums, percussion, guitar and bass along with strings, winds and brass – he thought to himself, “what if that’s what these new songs of mine sounded like?” Byrne asked if they’d want to serve as his band for the 'Who Is The Sky?' sessions, and they quickly agreed.

“I suspected that intimate orchestral arrangements would bring out the emotion I sense is there in these songs,” says Byrne, who is planning to tour 'Who Is The Sky?' later this year. “It’s something that folks don't always hear in my work, but this time for sure I thought it was there. At the same time, I also see myself as someone who aspires to be accessible. I imagined that Kid Harpoon would help with that, as well as being a set of trusted ears, since there was a lot going on. People think of producers as people who mainly make a record sound good, and Kid Harpoon did that, but he was also aware of how important the storytelling is.”

An admitted “stickler when it comes to grooves,” Byrne welcomed late-in-the-game contributions from Skinner and Refosco, with whom he’s recorded and toured for more than 30 years. Mixed by Mark “Spike” Stent and mastered by Emily Lazar, the finished product is about both hiding and revealing, or as Byrne puts it, “a chance to be the mythical creature we all harbor inside. A chance to step into another reality. A chance to transcend and escape from the prison of our ‘selves.’” These concepts are heavily incorporated in the 'Who Is The Sky?' album package, which was designed by Shira Inbar and finds Byrne nearly obscured by radiating, colored patterns and psychedelic, spiky outfits designed by Belgian artist Tom Van Der Borght.

“At my age, at least for me, there's a ‘don't give a shit about what people think’ attitude that kicks in,” Byrne says. “I can step outside my comfort zone with the knowledge that I kind of know who I am by now and sort of know what I'm doing. That said, every new set of songs, every song even, is a new adventure. There's always a bit of, ‘how do I work this?’ I've found that not every collaboration works, but often when they do, it's because I'm able to clearly impart what it is I'm trying to do. They hopefully get that, and as a result, we're now joined together heading to the same unknown place.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Everybody Laughs
2. When We Are Singing
3. My Apartment Is My Friend
4. A Door Called No
5. What Is The Reason For It?
6. I Met The Buddha At A Downtown Party
7. Don't Be Like That
8. The Avant Garde
9. Moisturizing Thing
10. I'm An Outsider
11. She Explains Things To Me
12. The Truth

Scheduled for release on 12th September on Metropolis Records, ‘Arctic Moon’ is the first full-length album by Chameleons since the release of ‘Why Call It Anything?’ in 2001. 

Long cited as a hugely influential act, having inspired the likes of (The) Verve, Oasis, Interpol, The Killers, Editors and White Lies, Chameleons are renowned for their transformative catalogue and intense, emotionally charged live performances, creating a legacy that extends far beyond their four studio albums to date. Their widely acclaimed debut, ‘Script of the Bridge’ (1983) has been cited by many as a masterpiece way ahead of its time, and was followed by ‘What Does Anything Mean? Basically!’ (1984), ‘Strange Times’ (1986) and ‘Why Call It Anything?’ (2001).

Their unique sound quickly won them an audience with its mix of melancholic yet energetic and powerful tunes, hypnotic, ethereal riffs and a potent, timeless lyrical style. They are considered one of the most influential guitar bands of the ‘80s and ‘90s, contributing substantially to the post-punk, shoegaze and indie scenes.

2024 saw the release of two EPs that kicked off a new chapter for the band. ‘Where Are You?’ consisted of three new songs, while ‘Tomorrow Remember Yesterday’ featured five re-recorded archive tracks. ‘Arctic Moon’ sees them propelling forward musically while retaining the essence that originally made them iconic.

TRACK LISTING

1. Where Are You?
2. Lady Strange
3. Feels Like The End Of The World
4. Free Me
5. Magnolia
6. David Bowie Takes My Hand
7. Saviours Are A Dangerous Thing

Double Infinity is the follow-up to 2022’s Grammy-nominated album, Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You, recorded last winter at the Power Station, New York City. For three solid weeks, the trio would ride bicycles on frozen streets between Brooklyn and Manhattan, meeting in Power Station’s warm wood-panelled room. Together with a community of musicians (Alena Spanger, Caleb Michel, Hannah Cohen, Jon Nellen, Joshua Crumbly, June McDoom, Laraaji, Mikel Patrick Avery, Mikey Buishas) they would play for nine hours a day, tracking together – simultaneously – improvising arrangements and making collective discoveries. Double Infinity was produced, engineered and mixed by longtime Big Thief collaborator Dom Monks.

“How can beauty that is living be anything but true?” Adrianne asks as she drives nose against the future with childhood mementos on ‘Incomprehensible’. She understands, “everything I see from now on will be something new.” The silver hairs on her shoulders are new as well. Yet fear of aging is cracked by proof. If a life is shaped by living, “Let gravity be my sculptor, let the wind do my hair.” Being born, then staying a while, remains the greatest mystery. Adrianne claims her place and time. “Incomprehensible, let me be.”

TRACK LISTING

Incomprehensible
Words
Los Angeles
All Night All Day
Double Infinity
No Fear
Grandmother [ft. Laraaji]
Happy With You
How Could I Have Known

THE PICCADILLY RECORDS ALBUM OF THE YEAR 2024

Romance is the band’s first album with producer James Ford and is without doubt their most assured, inventive and sonically adventurous record yet. Its 11 tracks constellating ideas that have been percolating among Grian Chatten (vocals), Carlos O’Connell (guitar), Conor Curley (guitar), Conor Deegan (bass), and Tom Coll (drums) since they released Skinty Fia in 2022. These ideas crystalised while touring the U.S. and Mexico with Arctic Monkeys as the five band members shared music and found a throughline with artists that deftly build out their own sprawling creative worlds: the attitude and aesthetic sheen of artists like Shygirl and Sega Bodega, the bolshy sonic palettes of hip hop and heavy metal, Mos Def, A$AP Ferg, OutKast and Korn. They had time apart to build more singular visions for what future music could be: O’Connell went to Spain’s Castile-La Mancha and later became a new father, while Chatten spent time in LA, and Deegan in Paris. They laid deeper roots in London. Each member spent time pushing their boundaries – experimental riffs, chord progressions, and far-flung lyrical references without intentions for a record. After wrapping up the US arena tour in Autumn 2023, they spent a month writing together again, three weeks of pre-production in a North London studio, and a month in a chateau close to Paris, sleeping among studio equipment, completely immersed.

Of the album’s title, Conor Deegan says, “We’ve always had this sense of idealism and romance. Each album gets further away from observing that through the lens of Ireland, as directly as (Mercury Prize-nominated debut) Dogrel. The second album (the GRAMMY-nominated A Hero’s Death) is about that detachment, and the third (Skinty Fia) is about Irishness dislocated in the diaspora. Now we look to where and what else there is to be romantic about.”

Expounding on the theme, Chatten recalls Katsuhiro Ôtomo’s anime Akira, where the embers of love develop despite a maelstrom of technological degradation and political corruption around its characters. “I’m fascinated by that - falling in love at the end of the world,” he says. “The album is about protecting that tiny flame. The bigger armageddon looms, the more precious it becomes,” while O’Connell adds “This record is about deciding what’s fantasy – the tangible world, or where you go in your mind. What represents reality more? That feels almost spiritual for us.”

The sonic evolution of the band, who bared their teeth in early records with antagonistic punk sensibilities, is an ascent into grungier breaks, dystopian electronica, hip-hop percussion, and dreamy Slowdive-esque textures that may surprise fans. The shoegaze touchpoints first pressed on Skinty Fia unfold on Romance like a purpling bruise. But any “retro aesthetic”, as Chatten describes it, is left behind. Reflecting on the release, Chatten says, “We say things on this record we’ve wanted to say for a long time. I never feel like it's over, but it’s nice to feel lighter.” The fantasy is felt for better or worse, and Fontaines D.C. welcome either end of oblivion.

STAFF COMMENTS

Andy says: I obviously admired this band, in particular “Boys in the Better Land” and “Jackie Down the Line” (the big ones!) but I'd never committed to a full album before. To be perfectly honest, my feeling was that with their truckload of attitude and post punk urgency, they were more a band for the younger generation and not a boring old fart like myself! That's all changed with ‘Romance’ though. Mainly because the song-writing has gone up about ten notches! Grian Chatten proved himself a man of melody with last year's superb solo record, but here that's combined with his band's more dynamic, rambunctious and freewheeling vibe to make the perfect sound. Absolutely brilliant!

Liam says: Well, well, well, those boys from Dublin City have done it again. When we first heard the anxiety-inducing stomp of “Starburster” and the timeless indie jangle of “Favourite”, it certainly felt like Fontaines D.C. had something truly special on the horizon with 'Romance' - and oh boy were we correct. From the bombastic and cataclysmic synth-led opener of the title track, to the shoegaze tinged pairing of “Desire” and “Sundowner”, Fontaines' sonic palette is now at their most varied. “In The Modern World” is a sweeping Lana Del Rey inspired epic, whilst “Here's The Thing” and “Death Kink” go head first into grunge. Fontaines have always been massively popular in the shop with staff and customers alike, but there's no doubt that 'Romance' sets them on course to be the biggest band in the world and deservingly earning our album of the year title - absolutely incredible stuff!

TRACK LISTING

LP Tracklisting:
1. Romance
2. Starburster
3. Here's The Thing
4. Desire
5. In The Modern World
6. Bug
7. Motorcycle Boy
8. Sundowner
9. Horseness Is The Whatness
10. Death Kink
11. Favourite

7” Tracklisting:
1. It's Amazing To Be Young
2. Before You I Just Forget

Cutthroat is shame at their blistering best. An unapologetic new album with Grammy winning producer John Congleton at the helm; it’s souped up and supercharged. It’s exactly where you want shame to be. Still in their twenties, the five childhood friends - Charlie Steen, guitarists Sean Coyle-Smith and Eddie Green, bassist Josh Finerty and drummer Charlie Forbes - have grown Shame exponentially, with ambitious sonic ideas and the technical chops to execute them. Having proved themselves several times over with legendary live shows and three critically-acclaimed albums under their belts, Shame went into Cutthroat ready to create a new Ground Zero. “This is about who we are,” says Steen. “Our live shows aren’t performance art - they’re direct, confrontational and raw. That’s always been the root of us. We live in crazy times. But it’s not about ‘Poor me.’ It’s about ‘Fuck you’.” Crucial to this incendiary new outlook was producer John Congleton (St. Vincent, Angel Olsen). From their initial meeting, Congleton’s no-bullshit approach became a guiding force to streamline the band’s ideas.

Stamped throughout with Shame’s trademark sense of humour, the album takes on the big issues of today and gleefully toys with them. Casting a merciless eye on themes of conflict and corruption; hunger and desire; lust, envy and the omnipresent shadow of cowardice. Musically, too, the record plays with visceral new ideas. Making electronic music on tour for fun, Coyle-Smith had previously seen the loops he was crafting as a separate entity to the things he wrote for Shame. Then, he realised, maybe they didn’t have to be. “This time, anything could go if it sounded good and you got it right,” he says. The result is an album that revels in the idiosyncrasies of life, raising an eyebrow and asking the ugly questions that so often get tactfully brushed over. “I’m not here to answer the questions, I’m a 27-year-old idiot…” Steen caveats with a self-effacing chuckle. But the one answer that Cutthroat gives with a resounding flourish is that, right now, Shame have never sounded better.

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A
1. Cutthroat
2. Cowards Around
3. Quiet Life
4. Nothing Better
5. Plaster
6. Spartak

SIDE B
7. To And Fro
8. Lampião
9. After Party
10. Screwdriver
11. Packshot
12. Axis Of Evil

'All The Young Droids: Junkshop Synth Pop 1978-1985' is a new compilation that charts the underbelly of the epoch-defining sound of the synthesiser in 80s popular music. Compiled by Philip King (previously seen compiling All The Young Droogs, Glitterbest and Boobs - The Junkshop Glam Discotheque), the music here connects the dots between DIY synth enthusiasts grappling with new, cheap synthesisers at the tail-end of punk and wannabe, jobbing songwriters enthral to the new music pioneered by Gary Numan, Depeche Mode and Daniel Miller’s Mute Records. Featuring rare tracks of auto-didactic progressive pop music, proto-techno punk, shoot-for-the-stars-land-in-the-gutter chart flops and heralded, underground synth classics, School Daze paints a picture of beautiful failure.

Complete with extensive sleeve notes written by King and never before seen imagery, all 24 tracks were remastered by RPM in-house engineer Simon Murphy, many from vinyl copies due to lost master tapes. The story told on All The Young Droids is one of the dawning opportunity presented by both the emergence to the market of cheaper analog synthesisers and the distribution networks plus indie labels that exploded with the advent of punk music in 1976. While the music that sprouted out all over the globe in the wake of these factors was decried as fake, plastic, a refutation of punk’s guitar-led revolution, it’s telling that much of the music on All The Young Droids.. was created in bedrooms, ramshackle studios and home-made set ups with often borrowed equipment. In the era of record labels jumping to capitalise on the success of The Sex Pistols, The Clash (both on major labels, of course) these artists struggled to stand out from a new gold-rush with next to no budget or PR team. With radio and labels desperate for the new Yazoo, what resulted was a testament to necessity being the mother of invention.

At the time, the synthesiser was the music of the future, a shiny new machine that could paint like an orchestra with a single finger and a 4-track. In the hands of Manchester avant-pranksters Gerry & The Holograms it’s a pulsing, sardonic weapon.. the only instrument on the Messthetics classic lampooning of New Wave fashion. In Hamburg, a 16 year old Andreas Dorau used it to write and record (with his female classmates on vocals) a global smash in Fred Vom Jupiter (later licensed to Mute Records). The hard-to-find English version (Fred From Jupiter, natch) is included here. Many artists with already-storied careers caught the bug and recorded synthesiser-fuelled peons to space, computers, the future and, of course, love-interests. Harry Kakoulli, late of Squeeze, recorded a solo album in 1979 that included the incredible power-synth-pop smash-that-never-smashed I’m On A Rocket. Similarly, Ian North of Neo and American Power Pop stalwarts Milk ’n’ Cookies bought a Korg MS20 and used a tape machine to record We’re Not Lonely, an absolute lost-classic of minimal synth pop. We’re Not Lonely also features on the Junkshop Synth Pop sampler 7” twinned with John Howard unreleased track You Will See, released April 12th 2025.

There are plenty of compilation debuts in evidence. Sole Sister were a mysterious trio who were featured on the Scaling Triangles compilation of female-fronted, queer-adjacent post-punk / underground music that also featured The Petticoats. Selwin Image were from San Francisco and featured members of the recently defunct power pop/punk group The Pushups. Their stupidly catchy The Unknown fizzes with New Wave energy - think XTC to Sparks but remains unreleased until now. Dream Unit’s A Drop In The Ocean is an early synth wave cut, positively teaming with Joy Division instrumentation, previously only released on a long-forgotten and super rare, self-released EP. Incandescent Luminaire’s Famous Names belies an archetypal struggle of a small-town trying to make it in a cruel industry but is a thrilling New Romantic-Synth Wave cross over with a OMD gloominess that’s a joy to hear. Feminist Minimal Wave track I Am A Time Bomb by performance artist Peta Lilly and Michael Chance is a revelation destined for new found cult status. It was released on 7” and lost until now.

The flipside to the subterranean, never-made-it synth pop mentioned above are the ambitious, even fruity attempts at success that have a perennial elegance to their confidence. New Jersey-ite Billy London (real name Ed Barth) tried to cash in on the synth boom with Woman, released by a major label, a lurching new wave track built on the Louie Louie rhythm and a wonderfully camp Lou Reed-style sleazy vocal before exploding in the synthesised chorus. The song bombed but with a chorus like this, you have to wonder why? Ex-Glitter Band member John Springate’s My Life is truly epic, with doomed chord progressions and massive sounding drums turning into at least 3 different songs in the course of the track. Before you wonder what’s going on the song resolves with a glorious return to the main refrain.

The dry-ice-dressed dance floor is well catered for too. Design’s Premonition and Vision’s Lucifer’s Friend are stone-cold minimal synth bangers, well loved but given a new lease of life here. The Warlord’s The Ultimate Warlord was released in 1978, a homespun proto Hi NRG banger that was later re-recorded by The Immortals in Canada who had a club hit with it. One-man- band Disco Volante’s No Motion was re-issued by Synth wave label Medical in 2012 but makes its first vinyl compilation appearance here. Close your eyes and you can imagine what Lawrence of Felt would have sounded like with some cheap Korgs a little earlier in his career. Gibraltar-based trio The Microbes imagined a computer programming people to dance - how prescient - and ended up with a propulsive, robo-funk track with splendid rubbery bass playing over a tectonic drum machine. Previously picked up by Belgian label Stroom TV, Dee Jay Bert & Eagle’s heavily Euro-accented I Am Your Master demands the listener to “come to paradise!” In a frankly terrifying manner. All The Young Droids is the first compilation to peel away from the narrative that dour, Minimal Synth and Cold Wave were the only musical children of the first rush of synth pop. Philip King and School Daze Records describe a much more complicated world: along with the austere, Brutalist children of Daniel Miller (who produced Alan Burnham’s Bowie-Low-influenced Science Fiction here) was a plethora of desperate cash-ins, accidental mainstream hits, ambitious pop dramas and major label punts that went nowhere. Crucially, the compilation blurs the line between junk and treasure. What if the two things are interchangeable. What if it’s all science fiction?

TRACK LISTING

1. Design - Premonition
2. Vision - Lucifer’s Friend
3. Richard Bone - Alien Girl
4. John Howard - I Tune Into You
5. Ian North - We’re Not Lonely
6. Selwin Image - The Unknown
7. Harry Kakoulli - I’m On A Rocket
8. Rich Wilde - The Lady Wants To Be Alone
9. Billy London - Woman
10. Alan Burnham - Science Fiction
11. The Microbes - Computer
12. The Goo-Q - I’m A Computer
13. Gerry & The Holograms - Gerry & The Holograms
14. The Warlord - The Ultimate Warlord
15. Die Marinas - Fred From Jupiter
16. Dee Jay Bert & Eagle - I Am Your Master
17. Peta Lily & Michael Process - I Am A Time Bomb
18. Sole Sister - It’s Not What You Are But How
19. Alasdair Riddell - Do You Read Me?
20. Karel Fialka - Armband (The Mystery Song)
21. John Springate - My Life
22. Incandescent Luminaire - Famous Names
23. Disco Volante - No Motion
24. Dream Unit - A Drop In The Ocean

Brighton-based, Welsh instrumentalist Gwenifer Raymond is set to announce her third studio album to be released September 5th on Canadian label We Are Busy Bodies. Last Night I Heard the Dog Star Bark is a hybrid of the ancient and the futuristic where the arcane etchings of occult folk horror fuse with the unfathomable equations of the cosmos. A big bang, yes, but also an atom cleaved. On her latest album, this celebrated new champion of the finger-picked guitar looks upwards, outwards. somewhere beyond. Now the landscape is mapped – its knotted woodlands, its aurora-crowned mountains, its tangled undergrowth – Gwenifer Raymond hears the stars call.

Last Night I Heard the Dog Star Bark is a natural evolution for such an intensely questing, personally excavating artist. The album is Raymond’s first since 2020’s Strange Lights Over Garth Mountain, which drew widespread acclaim for its repurposing of Mississippi blues and John Fahey’s intricate Americana to embody Raymond’s roots in rural South Wales and her interests in folk horror and the avant garde, a new form dubbed Welsh Primitive. Now, on her forthcoming album, Raymond finds herself conjuring the work of pioneering rocket scientists, the words of fictional hobo prophets and the concepts of mathematical infinity.

Having toured Europe, the US and Canada with the likes of Michael Chapman, Michael Hurley, The Handsome Family, Lankum, Charlie Parr, Richard Dawson, Ryley Walker and Squid, and played festivals including WOMAD, Green Man, End of the Road and Transmusicales in France, Raymond began recording Last Night I Heard the Dog Star Bark; exploring textures and following threads alone in her flat’s home studio, trying to get a sonic grip on a world spinning out of control.

Sci-fi and scientific readings provided a strange, objective clarity. One key reference was Tom O’Bedlam, an insane homeless mystic from Grant Morrison’s comic book series The Invisibles who sees holy words in street signs reflected from the city’s wet concrete, hidden meanings within the modern chaos. “The world seems to have been taking on an increasingly surrealistic tilt,” Raymond says, “and ol’ Tom makes more and more sense.”

“I’ve always been a big sci-fi reader,” she says, listing Phillip K Dick, Kurt Vonnegut and Ray Bradbury amongst the authors she read avidly as a child from her parents’ extensive sci-fi collection. Raymond would go on to complete a PhD in Astrophysics at Cardiff University, before moving to Brighton to become an AI and video game programmer.

Midway through writing her third album, then, she was drawn to the pulp sci-fi corners of Brighton market, picking up and devouring second hand tomes of strange science and the mystique of eternities. “A bunch of the stuff I was reading had these themes about the nature of infinity, and tying this into concepts about the afterlife,” she says. “Those thoughts were running in my mind a lot, especially when I was creating some of the droney sounds that book-end the album. The album enters from the cosmic void and exits through the galactic plane. Maybe you’re exiting out of hyperdrive into some strange planet where the album lives, then you zip out to find whatever is next.”

At times, ladies and gentlemen, she found herself floating in space. The opener ‘Banjo Players of Aleph One’, for instance, is built on a celestial drone – its Gibson Mastertone banjo an off-world presence, purchased second-hand from a widow looking to pay for her husband’s funeral. “I had this image in my head of him somewhere very distant, playing the banjo on the cliffs of Mount On,” Raymond says. Hence the reference to Aleph numbers, a mathematical concept often used to describe the size of infinite sets, and by Rudy Rucker in his novel White Light to outline levels of the afterlife. “I’ve always felt a strong pull to the world of the weird, and I don’t think there’s a lot weirder than infinity, the product of a division by zero,” this atheist astrophysicist muses. “We all get divided by zero eventually.”

‘One Day You’ll Lie Here But Everything Will Have Changed’ has a more serene star-gazing feel, Raymond’s slide guitar tones resembling comets filling the night sky with warping, criss-crossing threads. The title track – a Tom O’Bedlam quote – is a frenetic blues that bends and twists like space-time. And lead single ‘Jack Parsons Blues’ is a passionate fingerpicking dervish full of Arabian flair and flamenco fury, named in honour of a 1940s Californian rocket scientist who helped found NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and was also a friend of L Ron Hubbard and acolyte of Aleister Crowley.

“I’ve long been obsessed with Jack Parsons,” Raymond says, recalling reading Fortean Times articles about him as a teenager. “He lived in this vast old mansion which he shared with a whole cast of oddballs and shysters. He also came to an abrupt end, blowing himself up in his home lab. For all his faults, I find him to be a sort of romantic character – full of boundless zeal and ideas. He was both a scientist and an embracer of the weird and esoteric. He’s oddly inspirational.”

Converts to Raymond’s brand of Welsh Primitive will find plenty to clutch at their ankles here too, with tracks evoking mythical Welsh goddesses (the prairie-wide ‘Dreams of Rhiannon’s Birds’) and Raymond’s childhood woodland discovery of gruesome animal remains (the frantic, exotic ‘Bleak Night in Rabbit’s Wood’), played on a devil-haunted guitar.

A kissing cousin of Lankum’s mutant folk, the furious, gothic and wonderfully wild ‘Champion Ivy’ sounds like Hell’s hoedown, while ‘Bliws Afon Taf’ (Welsh for ‘Taff River Blues’) is more pastoral and tumbling, wrapping the listener in spider threads of gossamer guitar. At Raymond’s blessed fingertips, the earthly meets the stellar on some far-off event horizon, and you can barely see the join. 

TRACK LISTING

Side A
Banjo Players Of Aleph One
Jack Parsons Blues
Bliws Afon Tâf
Bonfire Of The Billionaires

Side B
Dreams Of Rhiannon’s Birds
Last Night I Heard The Dog Star Bark
Cattywomp
Bleak Night In Rabbit’s Wood
One Day You’ll Lie Here But Everything Will Have Changed

After a storied first year as a band releasing and touring behind their critically acclaimed debut album Today, Galaxie 500 closed out 1988 with a quintessential performance at New York City’s famed CBGB with every bit of their signature intimacy and autumnal bombast on display. The unusual bill which also included Sonic Youth, B.A.L.L. and Unsane was a benefit show for the zine shop See Hear.

Captured here in a raw but inspired board mix by Kramer and restored and mastered from the analog source by Alan Douches at West West Side Music, CBGB 12.13.88 is a live snapshot of a Galaxie fully formed, punctuating the end of their first chapter while poised to step into their next with On Fire the following year.

TRACK LISTING

1. Tugboat
2. Oblivious
3. Parking Lot
4. Don’t Let Our Youth Go To Waste
5. Pictures
6. Flowers
7. It’s Getting Late
8.Temperature’s Rising

Its creation led by pure emotion, Cate Le Bon’s seventh record 'Michelangelo Dying' usurped the album she thought she was making. The product of all-consuming heartache, her feelings overrode her reluctance to write an album about love, and in the process became a kind of exorcism. What emerges is a wonderfully iridescent attempt to photograph a wound before it closes up — but which in doing so, picks at it too.

Musically, there is a continuation and expansion of a sound — a machine with a heart — that has taken shape over her last two records (2019’s 'Reward' and 2022’s 'Pompeii') as Le Bon has increasingly taken control of the playing and producing herself. As guitars and saxophones are pushed through pedals and percussion and voices are fed through filters, an iridescent, green and silky sound emerges, with flashes of the artistic singularities of David Bowie, Nico, John McGeoch and Laurie Anderson surfacing and disappearing below the waterline throughout.

What we’re left with is an ever-changing, continuous entity, a kind of song cycle. Each iteration reflects and progresses the last, “each one a shard of the same broken mirror” — shifting, glinting, concealing and revealing, depending on how it is turned in the light. There are ultimately, Cate asserts, “No revelations. No conclusions. There is no reason. There is repetition and chaos. I eventually allowed myself a vacant mind to experience it without resistance and without searching fora revelation or order to any of it.”

An exercise in the viscerality of life, of love, of humanity for both listener and artist, 'Michelangelo Dying' knows what it is to hold, to be held, and to be exquisitely, profoundly alone. “The characters are interchangeable” concludes Cate, “but at the end of it all, it’s me meeting myself.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Jerome
2. Love Unrehearsed
3. Mothers Of Riches
4. Is It Worth It (HappyBirthday)?
5. Pieces Of My Heart
6. About Time
7. Heaven Is No Feeling
8. Body As A River
9. Ride (featuring John Cale)
10. I Know What's Nice

'The Art of Loving' is a tender, intentional deep dive into the many dimensions of love – romantic, platonic, self, and everything in between. A multi-BRIT Award and Mercury Prize nominee, 'The Art of Loving' features the the lead single ‘Nice To Each Other’.

TRACK LISTING

TBC

Rock trio HAIM have announced a June 20 official release date for ‘I quit’, their highly anticipated fourth studio album on Polydor Records. The 15-track album was produced by Rostam Batamanglij and Danielle Haim. The album radiates the raw energy of seasoned performers whose deep reverence for classic rock shapes songs that are built for live performances.

I quit is the first new album since the band’s 2020 album Women In Music, Pt. III, which earned them a Brit Award for International Group. The album received two GRAMMY Award nominations, including the prestigious “Album of the Year” recognition. With this nomination, HAIM became the first all-female rock group to be included in the GRAMMY’s top category.

‘Songs for Nina and Johanna’ is the beautiful new album from James Yorkston, this time featuring not one but two of Sweden’s most recognisable female vocalists. Recorded in Stockholm with Nina Persson (The Cardigans), Johanna Söderberg (First Aid Kit) and members of The Second Hand Orchestra, these are songs about family, love and parenthood. Tender and heart-breaking yet overwhelmingly life-affirming, ‘Songs for Nina and Johanna’ is a vital addition to the James Yorkston catalogue.

Songs for Nina and Johanna is the beautiful new album from James Yorkston, his sixteenth on Domino and his third to be recorded in Stockholm in conjunction with members of The Second Hand Orchestra. Nina Persson (The Cardigans), who teamed up with James on his previous critically-acclaimed album, The Great White Sea Eagle, this time divides singing duties with Johanna Söderberg (First Aid Kit), the two of them singing separately with James on five and four tracks respectively.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. I Can Change
2. Oh Light, Oh Light
3. A Moment Longer
4. Love / Luck
5. Where's The Time?

Side B
6. Rabbit
7. Love That Tree
8. Oh Sparrow, Up Yours
9. I Spooked The Neighbours
10. With Me, With You

Dinked Edition Bonus CD EP: “Reimaginations” By The Second Hand Orchestra
1. Time Was Short (5 1/2 Min To Be Exact)
2. With You, With Me (in Swedish)
3. A Moment Longer (Lina Langendorf Solo Saxophone)
4. Where’s The Time? (Instrumental)

GoGo Penguin, the Manchester trio that has inspirationally blended jazz, classical, and electronic influences since forming in 2012, has reached a thrilling moment with their new album, 'Necessary Fictions'.

This release finds pianist Chris Illingworth, bassist Nick Blacka, and drummer Jon Scott digging deep internally to reach their integral and authentic qualities at this moment in time. This entails some of their boldest moves to date, such as incorporating modular synthesizers into their sound more than ever before. For the first time, GoGo Penguin expanded their familiar three-man formation to invite guest players, including the Manchester Collective led by creative director and violinist Rakhi Singh. Additionally, 'Forgive The Damages' features the debut appearance of a human voice on a GoGo Penguin recording, belonging to singer-songwriter Daudi Matsiko.

All told, 'Necessary Fictions' is an album of ambitious fresh developments from a band fully at ease with who they are: confident enough to open the door to collaboration, excited about where they can explore next, and keen to have fun doing so.

TRACK LISTING

1. Umbra
2. Fallowfield Loops
3. Forgive The Damages (feat. Daudi Matsiko)
4. What We Are And What We Are Meant To Be
5. Background Hiss Reminds Me Of Rain
6. The Turn Within
7. Living Bricks In Dead Mortar
8. Naga Ghost
9. Luminous Giants (feat. Rakhi Singh And Manchester Collective)
10. Float (Loi Krathong, 2003)
11. State Of Flux (feat. Manchester Collective)
12. Silence Speaks

'She Hangs Brightly' is the debut album from guitarist Dave Roback and vocalist Hope Sandoval. Released in 1990, it is an incredible mixture of dream-pop and layered psychedelic rock sounds. The album features songs such as 'Halah', 'Ride It On', and 'Be My Angel'.

TRACK LISTING

1. Halah
2. Blue Flower
3. Ride It On
4. She Hangs Brightly
5. I'm Sailin
6. Give You My Lovin
7. Be My Angel
8. Taste Of Blood
9. Ghost Highway
10. Free
11. Before I Sleep

'Among My Swan' is the third studio album by Mazzy Star. Released in 1996, it is the follow-up to the multi-Platinum 'So Tonight That I Might See'. The album continues the band's dreamy pop and quiet vocals. Key songs are 'Rhymes of an Hour', and 'Cry, Cry'.

TRACK LISTING

1. Disappear
2. Flowers In December
3. Rhymes Of An Hour
4. Cry, Cry
5. Take Everything
6. Still Cold
7. All Your Sisters
8. I've Been Let Down
9. Roseblood
10. Happy
11. Umbilical
12. Look On Down From The Bridge

It’s A Beautiful Place opens with zero-gravity instrumental ‘One Small Step’ – a fitting prelude for what is one giant leap for New York duo Water From Your Eyes. The album is a gleaming megalopolis, a satellite view of eras and musical forms, a reframing of the y2k songbook that is at once awe-struck and mindful of its place in the vastness. “It ended up being about time, dinosaurs and space,” says Nate Amos. “We wanted to present a wide range of styles in a way that acknowledges everything’s just a tiny blip.”

The duo recorded the bulk of It’s A Beautiful Place last summer, just as they have every other WFYE release: in Amos’s bedroom. But this time, much of the writing and recording were shaped around the dynamics of a full-blooded live group: “When you’re playing with a band you tend to write with one in mind - this was the first time I wrote anything for WFYE imagining us playing anywhere bigger than a basement,” he observes.

Throughout the album is a clear sense of a band who have honed their curveballs into home runs. Looming and melancholy, wide-eyed and petrified, it’s Blade Runner meets WALL-E, it’s Kubrick and Asimov with a hint of Jay and Silent Bob. These are songs that look outward, conscious of our smallness and questioning our place in the universe while admiring the surrounding beauty.

“A song can feel like everything, communicating vast emotional landscapes,” says Amos, “but your favorite album is less important than any person. That person is less interesting than any mountain. That mountain is boring compared to any planet. That planet is only a part of a solar system. If music and all other human practices are meaningless on a cosmic scale why does it still feel so important?”

“One of the most exciting bands out there right now.” Rolling Stone.

“There’s a lot of beauty to be found in the scatterbrained mayhem.” Stereogum.

“Excellent” The New York Times.

“Thrilling” The Guardian.

“WFYE are one of the most interesting acts in music these days.” Under the Radar.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
One Small Step
Life Sings
Nights In Armor
Born 2
You Don’t Believe In God?

Side B
Spaceship
Playing Classics
It’s A Beautiful Place
Blood On The Dollar
For Mankind

Following the release of their triumphant breakthrough album ‘Cartwheel’, which gained widespread critical acclaim from the likes of Pitchfork (8.4/10 Best New Music) and Stereogum (Top 10 Albums of 2023 - “riveting, restless shoegaze packed with massive hooks”), NYC’s Hotline TNT are back with their best album yet, ‘Raspberry Moon’. The record marks what many are calling 'the next phase in New American Shoegaze'.

Hotline TNT have toured relentlessly, including US-wide tours with Wednesday and Snail Mail, enduring seemingly endless lineup shifts to become a linchpin of several interconnecting DIY scenes. Whilst ‘Cartwheel’ was largely conceived by frontman Will Anderson (previously of cult indie group Weed), ‘Raspberry Moon’ is very much a full-band effort, which is evident in the album’s all-consuming, rip-roaring sound. For fans of Teenage Fanclub, Dinosaur Jr. and My Bloody Valentine.

TRACK LISTING

1. Was I Wrong?
2. Transition Lens
3. The Scene
4. Julia’s War
5. Letter To Heaven
6. Break Right
7. If Time Flies
8. Candle
9. Dance The Night Away
10. Lawnmower
11. Where U Been?

On his sixth studio release 'Roulette', the prolific producer, songwriter, pianist and MC Alfa Mist has created his own sci-fi universe - a vast dystopia where themes of revenge, forgiveness and redemption loom large.

Alfa Mist’s albums have always tackled big themes. This time, however, he explores an imagined near-future in which reincarnation is discovered to be a potent tool linking dreams and past lives. But with this discovery comes consequences: ethical, moral and philosophical. “If reincarnation is real, how does that shape society?” he explains. “If reincarnation means accumulation of knowledge, would you share it and enable everyone to understand more about the world? Or do you struggle for power? And do some people want to stop others from remembering who they were?”

Over 15 tracks, Alfa explores these ideas with heady potency. Each song is a spin of the wheel – a different song and character. The musician’s signature is still there – lambent keys, intuitive groove, free-flowing jazz improvisation – but Roulette is imbued with a smoky psychedelia. An immersive listen, this album is designed “to feel” on every level, says Alfa. It also contains some of his most impressive arrangements yet - see the eight-minute title track that effortlessly flips through time signatures – “because life’s like that,” says Mist; it’s not always linear.

'Roulette' underlines Alfa Mist as one of the most forward-thinking composers in UK music, with poignant, plaintive melodies that lodge deep in your psyche. “I’m exploring different parts of myself,” he says. “But obviously, as I grow, all of those parts change. Music is a constant; it’s my state of mind that I constantly chisel and work on and make sure that’s always growing and staying interested in new things. As long as I do that, it’ll come out in the music.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Reincarnation (Feat. Homeboy Sandman)
2. Roulette
3. You’re Not Blind
4. All Time (Feat. Tawiah)
5. Between Lives
6. 9 Months
7. Found You
8. Dersen Cafe
9. Always Be - (Feat. Kaya Thomas-Dyke)
10. Avoid The Drones
11. Who Were You?
12. Give Nothing
13. Give Anything
14. From East
15. Black Snow

moisturizer is the bold, second album from Wet Leg, the Isle of Wight five-piece founded by Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers. Joined by Ellis Durand, Henry Holmes, and Joshua Mobaraki, Wet Leg has spent the past few years on the road, evolving into a feral, electrifying live force. This new record captures that energy, delivering a sound that’s tighter, bolder, and more self-assured, yet still brimming with the same quick wit and raw, unrefined energy.

Isolated in a remote house in the countryside, moisturizer was written in a creative frenzy, diving into themes of obsession and all-consuming love. While their 2022 debut earned Grammy wins and chart-topping success, moisturizer brings the bite: brash guitars, heavy beats, and a fearless devotion to feeling everything—all at once.

TRACK LISTING

1. CPR
2. Liquidize
3. Catch These Fists
4. Davina Mccall
5. Jennifer's Body
6. Mangetout
7. Pond Song
8. Pokemon
9. Pillow Talk
10. Don’t Speak
11. 11:21
12. U And Me At Home

When Modern Nature toured their last album, 2023’s No Fixed Point In Space, it became apparent to Jack Cooper – the band’s main creative force – that they were already pulling away from the free, open-ended approach they had spent five years working towards; almost as if the music had become so abstract and elasticated, it now had to snap back towards something more structured. As they found themselves naturally locking into more fixed grooves, he realised a new direction had been set. Their new album – The Heat Warps – is the triumphant manifestation of where that new direction took them.

In the aftermath, Cooper’s songwriting, which had become increasingly impressionistic, found a new focus and the idea of making an album that followed a similar path to the last two increasingly seemed obtuse. The purpose was to forge a radical change. The core trio of him, Jim Wallis (drums) and Jeff Tobias (bass guitar) were augmented by a new guitarist – Tara Cunningham.

Modern Nature’s recent records have reflected an insular life. Cooper had moved out to the countryside in 2021 and had, in his words, been “hibernating” while he started a family. He felt this new band was a symbol for his reawakening and the perfect vessel for him to continue to explore themes that he’s sung about with Modern Nature – collectivism, our relationship with the natural world, the weight of consciousness – but with more directness and purpose. The key was the new dual guitar sound.

“I’ve always been drawn to bands where two guitarists work as a unit to move around and colour the rhythm section,” explains Cooper. “I’d been listening to the demos Television did with Brian Eno in the day and then that night I played with Tara for the first time at an improvised music show. We have a very similar approach to the guitar and that extends to the way we sing, so it gives the music an interesting balance.

“What we do is mirrored; a symmetry on either side of what Jim and Jeff are doing in the rhythm section. We’ve played with lots of amazing musicians who continue to orbit around what we do, but Tara joining the band felt like finding the other side to the square. Previous records have been performed by upwards of fifteen people but it was apparent the four of us could achieve something more powerful and more direct.”

In the time Modern Nature has been a band, the world has undoubtedly changed. The words Cooper had been writing previously were somewhat ambiguous but it had started to feel like he was sitting on the fence and that was something he needed to address. “Every day we’re confronted with a confusing and scary world,” he says. “Making music and creating things can feel flippant or unnecessary, but my own world view was defined and influenced by art and artists who weren’t afraid to highlight and offer solutions: Public Enemy, The Smiths or a wider American counterculture.”

“The community we’ve built our life around – artists, musicians and the people who gravitate to these things as way of communicating – are struggling to reconcile how they fit into an increasingly cruel world. This album, the themes and the lyrics are directed towards them because I think there are still seasons to be optimistic. There are amazing things happening all around us and it’s up to communities like ours to double down on the things we believe in. It feels as if being part of a group like Modern Nature and making an album that’s open, optimistic and ambitious is in itself part of the solution.”

As the new band started to play together more, the energy, excitement and telepathy between them gained momentum and it became clear they needed to make a record that captured that. They locked into a process where they booked a couple of shows, directly followed by four days in the studio (the all-analogue Gizzard Recording in east London). They’d spend two weeks living in each other’s pockets – a very condensed rush of creativity.

“It’s rare to hear a recording of a band playing in a room together,” adds Cooper. “And that interaction, the discrepancies in timing, synergy, in pitch, that’s where the magic really is, I think, and that’s what we wanted to capture.”

One additional (and slightly unlikely) influence on the record was Andrew Weatherall. Before he passed away, he’d played Modern Nature on his NTS show and Cooper was thrilled that he liked them. He made it an aim to make a record Weatherall might have played to his friends late at night. His motto “Fail we may, sail we must” is what the Can-esque track Pharaoh is about.

“It’s difficult to stay aware of the world around you without becoming despondent,” says Cooper. “Pharoah makes the case for finding a personal philosophy and trying to live a life that might inspire others or at the very least not hurt them.”

Elsewhere, Radio touches on the contempt capitalism has for the natural world. The line “there’s a fire all around” offers a kind of gallows humour. Cooper adds that recently they played the songs on a day that the news was showing footage of the Los Angeles fires. It occurred to him that it was perhaps an insensitive subject to be singing about but there again – in his words – he feels it’s “important not to turn away from these things.

” The same desire not to shy away might also be attributed to Source, which touches on the recent riots in the UK directed towards asylum seekers, inspired by misinformation spread online.

For all this wrestling with the grimmer realities of 2025, The Heat Warps is ultimately not a record entirely consumed by anxieties. Its frequently beautiful sounds offer consolation and a wide-eyed optimism amid all the upheaval. Nowhere is that more apparent than on the transcendent album closer, Totality. As Cooper explains: “It was fascinating spending time in America as the country geared up for the 2024 solar eclipse. The news stations covered the event in the same way they’d cover a big football game or the Oscars. Everywhere I went, people were talking about the eclipse and for a few days it really seemed to capture the public’s imagination.“My friend’s dad had organised a huge party and had obviously done his homework. When he was running us through his preparation and how the day was going to go down, he said, ‘We’re hoping for totality, ’ and it blew my mind.

“The day of the eclipse I was driving through New Mexico and we stopped by the side of the road with hundreds of other people gazing up to the heavens. It felt exciting to be part of something that clearly resonated with people on such a profound level. It’s a fitting album closer and somewhere in there is a philosophy; a romantic nihilism”. And at its heart, right there is the core of Modern Nature’s appeal. Never more so than on this new record.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
Pharaoh
Radio
Glance
Source

Side B
Jetty
Alpenglow
Zoology
Takeover
Totality

Too Slow To Disco are back with another chapter in their ongoing series of unearthing smooth vibes from all over the world, this time they go back to the FUTURE for you with: 'THE SUNSET MANIFESTO Volume 2'.

After a five year break mainly concentrating on the late 70s/early 80s Westcoast Soul/Yacht/AOR sound, they finally dive deep into the modern world of their beloved sister-label Too Slow To Disco NEO (for the third time after 2018s TSTD NEO - 'En France' and 2020s 'The Sunset Manifesto' excursions).

But of course it wasn't a real 5 year break since the first Sunset Manifesto compilation, as in the meantime they also released a few digital TSTD Neo singles, and - more importantly - their "Too Slow To Disco NEO - FM" playlist on spotify (handcurated by Dj Supermarkt every week and now hosting more than 1500 tracks of mellow, modern sunshine vibes) was growing steadily and becoming a new, important fixpoint in the TSTD musical universe.

TSTD NEO is the outlet Dj Supermarkt is using to unearth modern laidback, smooth, sunny slow disco vibes with a soulful Westcoast/Balearic touch. For him TSTD always has been about a laidback vibe/feeling, not a certain time period in musical history. And that sunny Westcoast vibe that they dug out on those traditional TSTD compilations has become a huge influence to so many modern artists. So it makes sense that they present the cream of new slo/mo Nu- Disco/Sunset Disco/Daytime Disco acts in the TSTD format, a luxurious compilation, with artists from all across the globe: Not only from the two homelands of that modern slow disco sound, Los Angeles/California and France, but also from Beijing, Montreal, Mexico, London, New York, Stockholm, Rotterdam… the moon, you name it! This music is more a state of mind, a feeling, then a geographical thing. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Lovetempo - Same Ole Love (365 Days A Year) (Extended Summer Breeze Mix)
2. Nicholas Cangiano - Falling Behind
3. Poolside - Ventura Highway Blues (Monsieur Van Pratt Dub)
4. Prep & Eddie Chacon - Call It (Turbotito Remix)
5. Moi Je - Découvre
6. Turbotito - Time Starts Moving Slow
7. Young Gun Silver Fox - Curious
8. B.U.M.P. - Give A Little Love A Lot
9. Woolfy Vs Projections - Seeds
10. 1-900 - Breakin' 84
11. Goodvibes Sound - Stay For One More Night (Matt Hughes Remix)
12. Moods & Nic Hanson - Music Never Looked So Good Good
13. BowAsWell - Over When The Night Is Gone
14. Joel Sarakula - Hands Of Love (Phil Martin Remix)
15. Kimchii - Do You Ever

'Find El Dorado' is a deeply personal new album of reinterpretations, that sees Weller revisit songs that have long lived in the back of his mind - now reimagined with fresh meaning and a sense of reverence. Less a covers album and more a map of his emotional and musical DNA.

Produced by Steve Cradock, the album includes further guest appearances from Declan O’Rourke, Noel Gallagher, Amelia Coburn, Seckou Keita, Robert Plant and more.

TRACK LISTING

1. Handouts In The Rain
2. Small Town Talk
3. El Dorado
4. White Line Fever
5. One Last Cold Kiss
6. When You Are A King
7. Pinball
8. Where There’s Smoke, There’s Fire
9. I Started A Joke
10. Never The Same
11. Lawdy Rolla
12. Nobody’s Fool
13. Journey
14. Daltry Street
15. Clive’s Song

“The Clearing” the brand new album from Wolf Alice, releases 29th August 2025. Written in Seven Sisters and recorded in LA with Grammy-winning, master producer Greg Kurstin last year, The Clearing reveals where Wolf Alice stand sonically in 2025, delivering a supremely confident collection of songs bursting with ambition, ideas and emotion.

RE:WARM Records are very pleased to announce their next release ‘Rituals’, a new compilation series from the curator and DJ, Josh Mason-Quinn, aka Somewhere Soul.

For Volume 1 Josh takes us on a journey through the various shades of his ritualistic listening habits across twenty-four hours. From rising first thing in the morning, radiating positive energy throughout the day, retreating into the evening before finally releasing your inhibitions on the dancefloor.

The compilation spans four sides of vinyl and is presented in a double gatefold sleeve. The release will also be available on CD and digital formats.

The album is a celebration of new and emerging talent from the underground Jazz, Soul, World and House Music spheres, sitting neatly alongside artists already carving their way into the collective conscience of those who have been curious enough to dig deep.

TRACK LISTING

1. Allysha Joy & Finn Rees - Murmuring
2. Chip Wickham - Last Day On Earth
3. Amanda Whiting - The Other Side
4. Emanative - Space Is The Place
5. Edbl & Raelle – Enough
6. Matt Wilde & Miranda Joan - Like You
7. Blue Lab Beats – Item
8. Melodiesinfonie - Sa Ka Fête (ft. Keza)
9. MATTERS UNKNOWN - Dream Of The Contest (ft. Megiapa)
10. Opek – Delight
11. E. Lundquist – Yellow
12. Isolde Lasoen - Things Left Unsaid
13. SHOLTO – Manzana
14. MOMO. - Cavalo Marinho
15. Charif Megarbane - The Cartesian Joint
16. Yarni – Smile
17. Bamia, Mitchum Yacoub - Métele Más (ft. Lourdes Iri)
18. TEYMORI - Manu Vision
19. Divorce From New York - Merzouga (ft. Arturo Martin)
20. Marla Kether - Morning Light (ft. Naima Adams)

Suede have announced details of their 10th studio album ‘Antidepressants’. Due for release on 5th September via BMG, the album is a milestone achievement that sees the band at the top of their game. It follows the success of their critically-acclaimed ninth top 10 album ‘Autofiction’ released in September 2022, which charted at No.2 on the UK Albums Chart and was their highest-charting release in over 20 years.

Suede will celebrate the release of ‘Antidepressants’ with a takeover of London’s Southbank Centre, through a series of exciting live performances kicking off in September, Suede’s four-night residency will commence with two consecutive nights at the Royal Festival Hall on September 13th and 14th, followed on September 17th by an intimate stripped-back performance at the Purcell Room, culminating in a collaboration with the Paraorchestra on September 19th at the Queen Elizabeth Hall.

TRACK LISTING

Standard Format
1. Disintegrate
2. Dancing With The Europeans
3. Antidepressants
4. Sweet Kid
5. The Sound And The Summer
6. Somewhere Between An Atom And A Star
7. Broken Music For Broken People
8. Criminal Ways
9. Trance State
10. June Rain
11. Life Is Endless, Life Is A Moment

Deluxe Formats
1. Disintegrate
2. Dancing With The Europeans
3. Antidepressants
4. Sweet Kid
5. The Sound And The Summer
6. Somewhere Between An Atom And A Star
7. Broken Music For Broken People
8. Criminal Ways
9. Trance State
10. June Rain
11. Life Is Endless, Life Is A Moment
12. Dirty Looks
13. Sharpening Knives
14. Overload

“The true follow up, 35 years later, to The KLF’s ‘Chill Out’”.
JD Twitch (Optimo).

"This record and film are just lovely. You need this in your life. Moo-Moo!” Balearic Mike (Down To The Sea & Back)

"The album is a perfect companion to the KLF classic, utilising the British countryside as the setting, occasionally reminding you that Mother Nature is not to be messed with.” Strictly Kev (DJ Food)

"A beautiful ambient journey into the landscape, taking the listener from reality to dream state and back again. A mystical realm full of mysterious chanting, rattling trains and sounds from the very depths of the earth."
Lally MacBeth & Matthew Shaw (Stone Club)

Recorded in a remote cabin on the Devon coast, STILL OUT is an album-length collaboration between musician-filmmakers – and childhood friends – Will Cookson and Tom Haverly. A reflection on friendship, landscape and the passing of time, it inspired a road trip from North Yorkshire to North Devon they took together in the summer of 2024, and forms the soundtrack to a film of the same name which had its premiere screening as part of Stroud Film Festival in March 2025.

Like the film, STILL OUT is also an oblique homage to The KLF’s iconic 1990 album Chill Out, which the Gloucestershire-based pair revisited after it turned up unexpectedly a few years back in Tom’s dad’s record collection. Inspired to create their own recording using a similarly free-spirited process, Will and Tom relocated to the Devon coast in late summer 2023, splicing together a 40-minute mix from their personal archive of recordings and found sounds in a remote cabin with no electricity or mobile reception.

"It came together using cut-and-paste techniques, with ongoing shifts and tweaks,” says Will. “The final result was an audio collage that felt like something [legendary hip hop producers] The Bomb Squad might make - if ambient music was the only material in their sample library."

Using ‘ambient’ as a starting-point rather than an end in itself, they took inspiration from across the musical spectrum – classic-period Brian Eno, Philip Glass, Bill Evans, plus outliers such as 80s singer-songwriter Virginia Astley and the late DJ-producer Andrew Weatherall. The connections, though, are anything but obvious as the audio shifts seamlessly from field recordings and spoken-word interludes to mood pieces and snatches of vintage pop.

Edited and assembled using freely available open source programs, the source material was often radically altered using tools such as “PaulStretch”, a digital sound-morphing algorithm that allows users to stretch audio files to extreme lengths.

"When we found ourselves in a creative slump or unsure how to navigate a tricky part, we'd say, ‘Let's put some syrup on it and slow it down,’” says Tom. “That always helped us get back on track during late-night recording sessions at the cabin."

Part-soundtrack, part-meditative experiment, STILL OUT is intended as a reflection on the mental and emotional shift that occurs when stepping away from the routine of daily life – an album that forms a celebration of our ever-changing relationship to the world around us and the mystery of what it means to pass through time and space.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1:
Swaledale To Blakeney Straits

Side 2:
Laugharne Estuary To Welcombe Mouth

Saint Etienne’s new album, 'International', is their final album-length statement, after the group’s 35-year excursion through pop. A dreamlike drift with friends and collaborators, International features cameos from the higher echelons of pop - 80s chart heroes, electro, acid house and all points in-between, from Vince Clarke to Nick Heyward, Confidence Man to Erol Alkan, Chemical Brothers, Orbital, Doves and Xenomania, through to the lesser known, but equally exhilarating Bradfordians Augustin Bousfield and Flash Cassette (an artist described as “sitting somewhere between Funkadelic and a SEGA Mega Drive”). Saint Etienne are the 90s band who never left us, never imploded, and never adhered to clichéd excess. They are a testament to getting along, getting on with creating something new and, of course, getting away with it. 

TRACK LISTING

1. Glad
2. Dancing Heart
3. The Go Betweens
4. Sweet Melodies
5. Save It For A Rainy Day
6. Fade
7. Brand New Me
8. Take Me To The Pilot
9. Two Lovers
10. Why Are You Calling
11. He’s Gone
12. The Last Time 

Wrexham’s The Royston Club return in Summer 2025 with Songs For The Spine — a soaring, emotionally-charged second album that captures a band stepping up and standing tall. Opening track Shivers sets the tone immediately: a dark love song that channels the spirit of The Cure at their most euphoric, and signals a bold new era for the band. Recorded at Liverpool’s Kempston Street Studios with acclaimed producer Richard Turvey (Blossoms, The Courteeners), and released via Run On / Modern Sky Records, this is the sound of a group at the peak of their powers.

Following the success of their Top 20 debut Shaking Hips and Crashing Cars and a sold-out UK tour in 2024, The Royston Club have emerged tighter, louder, and more emotionally driven. Songs For The Spine builds on the band’s signature indie DNA while embracing something weightier and more expansive. The soul-baring The Patch Where Nothing Grows is already resonating as a fan anthem, while tracks like Crowbar shimmer with glad-but-sad disco nostalgia. Cariad wears its heart firmly on its sleeve, and The Ballad Of Glen Campbell brings the record to a cinematic close.

At its core, this is a collection of songs about the people and places that hold you up — the emotional backbone of everyday life. There’s love, loss, guilt, longing and joy in these ten tracks, delivered with a raw honesty and a more human, less polished sound than before. The band and Turvey purposely embraced imperfection in the studio, leaning into live takes and leaving in the edges that give these songs their pulse.

Songs For The Spine is the sound of The Royston Club turning a breakthrough into a mission statement — urgent, ambitious, and unafraid to evolve. If the first album was a sprinting start, this is a victory lap with the road wide open ahead.

TRACK LISTING

Shivers
The Patch Where Nothing Grows
Crowbar
Glued To The Bed
Cariad
30/20
Spinning
Through The Cracks
Curses & Spit
The Ballad Of Glen Campbell

Maybe I’m Dreaming is the latest collection selected by Mikey Young (Total Control, Eddy Current Suppression Ring) and Keith Abrahamsson (Founder and Head of A&R at Anthology Recordings), the mangled minds behind the beloved Follow the Sun, Sad About the Times, and …Still Sad compilations. The twenty tracks of Dreaming make a conscious, and unconscious, detour from its predecessors, sourced entirely from private press releases, spanning new decades and production modes within homespun folk, soft rock, and otherwise 70s and 80s FM radio adjacent music. The magic of Dreaming is the untold story of the artists behind these songs; those who missed the big time, but whose song craft and unrequited care hit the right notes, both high and low.

Where Follow the Sun and Sad About the Times introduced us to the fame chasing, ambition crashing crooners who missed their shot in the mainstream, Dreaming delves deeper into the isolated wilds — a private world where production quirks, late-night tape hiss, and one-man studio dreams were not necessarily a choice but the hand that was dealt. With the parameters set to "private press only,” Young and Abrahamsson follow a circuitous trail of invention and emotion, documenting a spirit that’s more homespun, sometimes lonelier, and often a little weirder. The guitars still strum, but the keyboards’ hum is more prevalent and precious; wistful harmonies brush up against lo-fi drum machines; a bittersweet fog lingering over even the brightest melodies.

As with their previous collaborations, Young and Abrahamsson weren’t interested in constructing a museum or drafting a historical survey. Dreaming is a sentimental mixtape, assembled late at night when the mind wanders and old memories blur with imagined futures, those within reach and those far too mysterious to ever encounter. Songs were unearthed in personal collections, deep YouTube burrows, dilapidated web archives, and the dim corners of Discogs, with many selections tied not only to intuition but to personal connection. Some tracks arrived via friends — Kelley Stoltz, a frequent guide for Young, tipped him off to both Peter Kraemer’s lost gem “Let the Light Slip” and Awakening’s revelatory closer — adding an unseen but deeply felt thread of camaraderie to the compilation.

The journey takes in a wide, strange sweep: The Watson Brothers Band's “Just Whistle” opens the collection with a sigh and a shrug, a song that feels like it’s been waiting for decades to be heard again. Jim Huxley’s “Tessa on a Magazine,” rediscovered after a long and winding search by Young, shimmers with a distinctly Australian melancholia. The heartbreak of Rick Penta's “My Story Changes” and Twice As Nice’s delicate “Thoughts of You” float easily alongside the more buoyant, radio-dream sheen of Barracuda’s Baby “I Love You” and MAK’s sunshine-dappled “That's Life.”

Widening the aperture to the late 70s and early 80s allows for a deeper exploration into evolving production techniques and musical technologies. The Squad’s “D.L.M.H.I.M.A.” and Christoph Spendel Group’s “Forever” crackle with the kind of bedroom synth warmth that could only come from the analog age, while the soulful, yearning undercurrent of Awakening’s “Gotta Do Somethin / Might As Well Cultivate” caps the collection with a call for action — or maybe just acceptance – in an accidental Brian Eno Here Come the Warm Jets parroting.

While Dreaming moves away from the "sad man with guitar" archetype that hovered over its predecessors, it remains tethered to a familiar emotional gravity — a balance of longing and lightness that defines this corner of the musical universe. Each track shuffles gently between resignation and hope, sadness and serenity, as if the artists themselves were chasing a dream just beyond reach, recording not for fame but for the simple act of getting it, that primal, creative itch, out into the world.

The result is a collection that feels both ephemeral and eternal. A flicker caught in amber. A transmission from the other side of the night; a place where the angels and demons mingle, sharing shots and lines with those that enter their parlor. Dreaming is an invitation to drift a little while longer, eyes half-closed, into that liminal space between memory and imagination. Maybe you're dreaming. Maybe you're awake. Maybe it doesn’t matter.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
A1. The Watson Brothers Band - Just Whistle
A2. Jim Huxley - Tessa On A Magazine
A3. Rick Penta - My Story Changes
A4. MAK - That's Life
A5. Palm Pizazz! - Silent Letter
A6. Twice As Nice - Thoughts Of You

Side B
B1. Barracuda - Baby I Love You
B2. Elderberry Jak - Forrest On The Mountain
B3. Dennis - Walk With Me
B4. Jim Ware - Green Eyed Gypsy
B5. John Lyle - Oh My Wind

Side C
C1. Peter Kraemer - Let The Light Slip
C2. Brian Freel - Nightrider
C3. Michael Moore - Holland
C4. Clete Stallbaumer - John's Song
C5. Ronnie White - The Jump

Side D
D1. David Owens - Take Off Your Armour
D2. The Squad - D.L.M.H.I.M.A.
D3. Christoph Spendel Group - Forever
D4. Awakening - Gotta Do Somethin / Might As Well Cultivate

Originally released on 29th May 2015, 'In Colour' quickly established itself as a modern classic - a kaleidoscopic journey through UK dance culture that continues to resonate with fans and critics alike.

It received widespread acclaim upon its release: Pitchfork awarded it Best New Music, hailing it as “a dazzling and deeply emotive record that reimagines the club as a space of memory, euphoria, and introspection.” Rolling Stone praised its “masterful blending of genres and eras,” Mixmag crowned it their best album of 2015, while NME called it “a modern masterpiece.” The album appeared on countless more year-end and decade-end best-of lists, cementing its status as one of the most important electronic releases of the 2010s.

Featuring standout tracks like 'Loud Places' (featuring Romy), 'Gosh', (with its epic Romain Gavras-directed music video) and 'I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times)' (featuring Young Thug and Popcaan), 'In Colour' struck a rare balance between underground credibility and crossover appeal. It earned Jamie xx multiple GRAMMY, Brit and Ivor Novello Award nominations alongside a shortlist for the 2016 Mercury Music Prize. A decade later, 'In Colour' endures not only for its production brilliance but also for the emotional depth it brought to the dancefloor – a record that transformed a personal love letter to UK club culture into a global, generation-defining statement.

TRACK LISTING

1. Gosh (featuring MC Moose)
2. Sleep Sound
3. SeeSaw (featuring Romy)
4. Obvs
5. Just Saying
6. Stranger In A Room (featuring Oliver Sim)
7. Hold Tight
8. Loud Places (featuring Romy)
9. I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times) (featuring Young Thug & Popcaan)
10. The Rest Is Noise
11. Girl

Coach Party return with their explosive second studio album, ‘Caramel’, set for release on September 26th via Chess Club Records.

Coach Party are poised to make their mark on 2025 and beyond with their new album ‘Caramel’, it is a melody packed, infectious record born from the shared experiences and unity of the band's four members: Jess Eastwood, Steph Norris, Guy Page and Joe Perry. Produced by the band’s own Guy Page, it channels the introspection and bite of bands like Hole, Sprints, Turnstile, and Amyl and the Sniffers. Clocking in at 33 minutes, it’s a sharp, melody-driven record that expands on the themes of their 2023 debut ‘Killjoy’ - heartbreak, identity, and finding your voice.

The band have built a reputation for intense, sweat-soaked live shows, touring with the likes of Queens of the Stone Age, Wet Leg and Royal Blood, and making festival appearances at Glastonbury and Rock en Seine.

With ‘Caramel’, they push their sound further than ever-hook-heavy, emotionally honest, and made for the big stage.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
A1. Do It For Love
A2. Girls!
A3. Georgina
A4. Control
A5. I Really Like You

Side B
B1. Disco Dream
B2. Fake It
B3. Medicate Yourself
B4. Do Yourself A Favour
B5. Still Hurts

If there's one thing Panic Shack know, it's how to have a good time. Comprised of Sarah Harvey (vocals), Meg Fretwell (guitar/backing vocals), Romi Lawrence (guitar/backing vocals), Em Smith (bass/backing vocals) and Nick Williams (drums), the band formed in 2018 as a middle-finger to the “members-only club” atmosphere of indie and punk scenes – not just because they’re male-dominated, but because they make playing music seem out of reach or, even worse, boring. “Boys make it look so hard,” Em says, rolling her eyes. “Whenever I see someone on the floor fiddling with their pedals with a face like a slapped arse I think, you're making this look so unattainable and it’s actually so fucking easy.”

This carefree approach gives Panic Shack’s music the same effect as popping a bottle of Prosecco – explosive, intoxicating, and delightfully chaotic. With barely any music available online, they built a word-of-mouth following off the back of their live shows, which have been praised for fusing “thrashy early LA-style punk with choreography that owes something to the Go-Go’s and Iron Maiden all at once” (The Guardian). That quickly snowballed into tours with the likes of Bob Vylan and Soft Play, and festival appearances at Glastonbury, Reading & Leeds, Green Man, End of the Road, SXSW and more. Released in 2022, their acclaimed Baby Shack EP bottled the lightning they have on stage, cementing their ability to blend killer hooks with a contagious sense of humour. The first vinyl pressing – splattered pink, obviously – sold out almost instantly.

To be released in July, Panic Shack’s self-titled debut album represents a serious level up. Linking up with producer Ali Chant (PJ Harvey, Perfume Genius, Yard Act), it finds the band expanding their gutsy punk sound into fuller territory, packed with vocal harmonies, synths, electronic experimentation, and even a trumpet at one point.

Over 11 breakneck tracks, Panic Shack never lets up or loses momentum. It opens with the rising sound of chatter, glass clinking and laughter, most of which was recorded in the beer garden at an Amyl & the Sniffers gig. Fizzing with the anticipation of walking into a club at the start of a night out, it feels like party-punk’s answer to the intro of Spice Girls’ ‘Wannabe’. From there, the bouncy bass line and blistering guitars of ‘Girl Band Starter Band’ kick in, and the band pulls you into their world the way a friend would grab your hand and drag you onto the dancefloor. “Four iced lattes / Sit outside / Smoke a rolly / Sun is shining / People watching / Things are moving / Got us talking…” Sarah chants, the pace ramping up like a heartbeat beginning to race.

Across the album, the lyrics are conversational, often stemming from in-jokes, while the subject matter spans the full range of the feminine experience. Whether it’s everyday stuff like browsing Hinge (‘Unhinged’) and remembering everything you need to stick in your bag because your dress has no pockets (‘Pockets’), or broader societal issues like the impact of toxic tabloid culture on body image (‘Gok Wan’) and sexual harassment (‘SMELLARAT’), no topic is too frivolous or too vast. There’s no point-scoring or political commentary to be made here, though. The songs spring naturally from the way they live their lives, which is, more often than not, with a great deal of enjoyment.

Irresistible because of their simplicity and charming because of their familiarity, Panic Shack are the answer to a question that, quite frankly, isn’t asked often enough: what if the funniest girls you know started a band? The sonic equivalent to a coming-of-age film unfolding over a single night, Panic Shack takes the shape of a bender, beginning by approaching a bar and ending with an impassioned speech at sunrise about how much you love your friends. Swerving the expected topics of sex and romance, the entire album revolves around the ionic bond between the four girls.

“This band has taken us on the most mental journey that nobody else will fully understand,” says Meg. It’s only right, then, that their debut marks a celebration of that as much as it does the start of a new journey entirely. “We've always wanted people to come in and be part of our world, and this album is every part of who Panic Shack are. The party side, the angry side… It’s a story about us, really,” Sarah explains. “That’s why we named it after the band. We can't help but be ourselves.”

TRACK LISTING

SIDE A:
1. Girl Band Starter Pack
2. Gok Wan
3. Lazy
4. Tit School
5. We Need To Talk About Dennis

SIDE B:
6. Do Something
7. Personal Best
8. Pockets
9. Unhinged
10. SMELLARAT
11. Thelma And Louise

Laufey's third album, 'A Matter of Time', is a beautiful piece of introspection about the anguish that comes with life and love.

TRACK LISTING

TBC

It was Sunday June 28th, 2024 and Baxter had just stopped from a rapturously received set on The Park Stage at Glastonbury festival. After towelling himself down, a familiar figure approached him backstage. It was Paul Epworth, the lauded producer / songwriter whose creations have draped themselves across the airwaves of the 21st Century more successfully than other Briton.

They agreed to meet back in Epworth’s North London Church Studios in late November, not long after Baxter had finished touring his last album. Their first day in the studio working on this new eighth solo Baxter Dury album was an eye-opener for Baxter, though, and not just because of the comfortable surroundings of The Church which has hosted the likes of Frank Ocean and Adele (“incredible place, all this glistening fruit and catered sushi, I felt like the bloke from Trading Places, stuffing it down my sleeves.”).

Together they dreamt up 'Allbarone’s nine-track tour-de-force, stripping everything away and building Baxter’s most melodically direct, futuristic collection in intense three-hour daily shifts throughout December and January.

“It’s kind of a character arc that goes through the whole thing, two personalities,” he explains. “It’s very critical of people, this album, whoever they are, maybe some bloke with a moustache and sockless loafers in Shoreditch or a fat old Chiswick gangster lording it up in a really comfortable middle class part of London”

“I don’t want to say it’s contemporary,” he summarises. “Because I sound like a cunt using that word. But it does sound really contemporary. It doesn’t sound like a Harrods hamper band made it. It doesn’t sound like a band made it all. Which is what I wanted most of all. It’s just something that’s brand new for me. It’s quite exciting, really.”

Which in Baxter Dury-speak is as good as proclaiming “I’m top of the world!” 

TRACK LISTING

1. Allbarone
2. Schadenfreude
3. Kubla Kahn
4. Alpha Dog
5. The Other Me
6. Hapsburg
7. Return Of The Sharp Heads
8. Mockingjay
9. Mr W4

International Rock Sensation The Hives, the best live band on the planet and still your new favourite band, lauded on all continents for their masterful skill and reckless abandon in the rock music field, have once again, sooner than you expected, created a new body of work the likes of which have never been heard or indeed probably will again.

A new record so full of energy, joy, anger and life that you will be questioning reality as you have known it.

They finally did it. Every single song a single, every single single a hit, every hit a direct hit in the face of the man.

This long playing music album, consisting of thirteen pieces of music was crafted with commitment, abandon and skill in Sweden in cohorts with the esteemed producers Pelle Gunnerfeldt and Mike D of Beastie Boys.

TRACK LISTING

1. (Introduction)
2. Enough Is Enough
3. Hooray Hooray Hooray
4. Bad Call
5. Paint A Picture
6. O.C.D.O.D
7. Legalize Living
8. (Interlude)
9. Roll Out The Red Carpet
10. Born A Rebel
11. They Can’t Hear The Music
12. Path Of Most Resistance
13. The Hives Forever Forever The Hives

Just a year after her critically-acclaimed album 'Still', Erika de Casier returns to surprise release her fourth album 'Lifetime'.

A sonic moodboard fully written and produced by Erika herself, 'Lifetime' is a testament to de Casier’s singular taste - her ability to pull from the past, to curate sonic and visual references with intention, and to transform them into something uniquely hers. Thoughtfully composed yet effortlessly cool, 'Lifetime' is an album that resonates, proving that Erika’s vision isn’t just about what she creates, but how she makes us feel when we listen.

She began dropping breadcrumbs about the record last month, Erika mysteriously putting a limited set of nameless cassettes up for sale on Bandcamp. Even with no context of what was on it, the tapes quickly sold-out in under thirty minutes and fans began to speculate new music coming. As cassette deliveries began to pour in last week, their theories proved correct. Derrick Gee streamed the cassette live on his channel and fans online began freaking out as they put the pieces together (see here and here!). That so many rushed to embrace the music before even knowing what it was speaks volumes - Erika isn’t just admired, she’s trusted, and with 'Lifetime', she rewards that devotion in the most Erika way: subtly, stylishly, and on her own terms.

'Lifetime' follows last year’s aforementioned album 'Still', which was named one of the Best Albums of the Year by Pitchfork, Stereogum, NPR, Vogue, Vulture and more, and features Blood Orange, They Hate Change, and Shygirl. The album took her on a world tour including a US run that included both weekends of Coachella. She also released one of the best songs of the summer shortly after in the form of 'Bikini', a track with her frequent collaborator Nick León that was named the #1 song of the year by The FADER and Resident Advisor.

STAFF COMMENTS

Matt says: Eagerly anticipated new LP from recent star of alt-RnB. Hypnotic and hazy, tipping its hat to downbeat and street soul flavours; this is the mellowed out sound of the summer.

TRACK LISTING

Miss
You Can't Always Get What You Want
Season
You Got It
December
Delusional
The Chase
Moan
The Garden
Two Thieves
Lifetime

'Trouble' is a patchwork of sorts: its 11 songs are not only eclectic in genre, but play like stitched-together vignettes, fly-on-the-wall scenes in which Gina describes meeting a stranger on a train, or a flare up with her teenage daughter, or the nostalgia of driving past a certain part of your neighborhood that’s been unchanged for as long as you can remember. It’s the politics of the everyday, a work that is feminist not because of slogans or placards, but because it’s a candid portrait of a female artist simply existing. “It's a bit out there, a bit off the tracks, and I always like to go there,” says Gina about the album’s diaristic undertones. “I unofficially subtitled the album ‘Trouble I've Caused and Trouble I'm In’, so the songs are based around that feeling—that dangerous place to be.”

As such, the connecting factor that links all the songs on 'Trouble' together isn’t one single ideology or theme or topic, but Gina herself. It’s her vision, informed by her status as a rock icon, her voice as a forward-thinking artist, and her perspective as someone who just thinks life should be a bit of a laugh sometimes. For a musician who has had such an impact on her genre, it’s downright life-affirming to realize that she still has so much to share with her audience—and frankly, 'Trouble' is just cracking the surface. “These songs came to me like a radio tuning, the airwaves going along, and I just plucked them out of the air. Something just clicks in the atmosphere, and I just take it. I'm not writing an opus about one thing. I'm writing an opus about being me.”

TRACK LISTING

1. I’m Going To Live Forever
2. Happiness
3. Causing Trouble Again
4. Cello Song
5 Keep To The Left
6. Doomonger
7. Don’t Fight Your Friends
8. Nothing Will Ever Change
9. Hey Hey
10. Train Platform

The Richard Sen remixes of John Grant were commissioned in 2016 but were never released. Since then, enquiries about release have continued to this day. Sen's remix of 'Disappointing' featured on Andrew Weatherall's Beats In Space mix in 2016 and was a staple in his DJ sets, especially at ALFOS. Charlie Bones, Ivan Smagghe and Optimo also supported it at the time. This release on Sen's DIYC label follows his much hyped album, India Man. In addition, Richard's compilation, Dream The Dream on Ransom Note (2023) was voted Best British Compilation by DJ Mag. These remixes have also been gaining much interest from the listeners of Sen's weekly show on Do!! You!!! Radio.

TRACK LISTING

A1. Disappointing (Richard Sen Remix Vocal)
A2. Disappointing (Richard Sen Remix Instrumental)
B1. Voodoo Doll (Richard Sen Remix Vocal)
B2. Voodoo Doll (Richard Sen Sunshine Dub)

Mercury and BRIT nominated Kae Tempest’s fifth studio album ‘Self Titled’ featuring Neil Tennant, Tawiah, Connie Constance and Young Fathers and co-produced by Fraser T Smith and Tempest.

TRACK LISTING

1. I Stand On The Line
2. Statue In The Square
3. Know Yourself
4. Sunshine On Catford
5. Bless The Bold Future
6. Everything All Together
7. Prayers To Whisper
8. Diagnoses
9. Hyperdistillation
10. Forever
11. Breathe
12. Till Morning

'The Giver' single marks Chappell Roan's debut in the country music genre. Co-written and produced by Dan Nigro, the song blends traditional country instrumentation—such as fiddle and banjo—with Roan's signature theatrical flair.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Giver
2.  Fix It In The Morning (Demo)

Four decades after it lit up college radio and launched R.E.M.’s remarkable career, 'Radio Free Europe' is sending out a brand-new signal. Overseen by original producer Mitch Easter—who mixed the band's very first recording of 'Radio Free Europe' back in 1981—the EP opens with a never-before-released 2025 remix by GRAMMY®-winner Jacknife Lee (U2, Snow Patrol, Taylor Swift, The Killers). Lee, who produced R.E.M.’s final two studio albums, Accelerate and Collapse Into Now, gives the track a fresh take, while staying true to its indie-rock DNA. The 5-track set also features rarities from 1981—including the Original Hib-Tone Single mix of 'Radio Free Europe', B-side 'Sitting Still', plus demos 'Wh. Tornado' and 'Radio Free Dub', the latter making its digital debut. In 2009, 'Radio Free Europe' was inducted into the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry for “setting the pattern for later indie-rock releases.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Radio Free Europe 2025 (Jacknife Lee Remix)
2. Radio Free Dub 1981 (Mitch Easter Remix)
3. Radio Free Europe (Original Hib-Tone Single)
4. Sitting Still (Original Hib-Tone B-Side)
5. Wh. Tornado (From Cassette Set) 

Missing each other and the music they made together, Allo Darlin’ started having group Zoom calls during the early days of the corona pandemic, and decided that when the pandemic was over, they would become a band again. True to their word, in early 2023, the band announced that they would play a couple of shows in October of that year in the UK, and the fan response was truly overwhelming. Tickets sold out in minutes, with fans travelling from all over the world, and the band had to upgrade their London show to a venue twice the size of the original. It seemed like their fans had missed Allo Darlin’ as much as they had missed each other.

'Bright Nights' follows the emotional tides of the preceding ten years: “It’s an album from the heart, dealing with themes of love, birth and death, which are things we reflect more on than we did when we made our first album. I would hope that the album sounds timeless and joyous, at other times reflective and emotional” says songwriter and vocalist Elizabeth Morris Innset.

Drawing inspiration from a mix of classic pop, folk and country, 'Bright Nights' picks up where Allo Darlin’ left off with the warmth of 2014’s 'We Come From The Same Place', and recalls the confident and sophisticated sound of their second album, 'Europe'. “When I listen to it I think of the desert, but I can see the sea. The sweet sounds of summer’s bright nights in the Northern hemisphere, but an awareness that winter will one day return”.

The lilting first single ‘Tricky Questions’ exhibits Elizabeth's adept skill at taking specific experiences and creating something timeless and universally resonant, and recalls living in Florence. “The city was full of tourists during the day,” she recalls “but after 9pm, they would all go back to their hotels. That’s when the city came alive to me, and it felt like it was just for us.”

This sense of place is also prevalent on the warm reflection of ‘Historic Times’, which paints pictures of quin-tessential Mediterranean European scenes while musing on the magic of love, acting as a perfect distillation of the songwriting that's led to a legion of adoring fans following Allo Darlin's journey to date.

While 'Bright Nights' isn’t a country album, the timelessness of folk and country influences weave throughout the record. ‘My Love Will Bring You Home’ might be written about Elizabeth’s young daughters, but it’s a mother’s love song, disguised as a country love song. “It also makes me feel a connection to the place I come from, which is a country town in Queensland, Australia - if I think of myself as a country singer, it makes more sense that I come from Rockhampton.”

On 'You Don’t Think Of Me At All' bassist Bill Botting’s songwriting makes an appearance for the first time on an Allo Darlin’ album, exhibiting his brand of road-trip power pop that he's made his own courtesy of 2017's well-received solo album. “I'm nervous and excited to have this song on the record and I hope people will think of it as a sad banger! It's about the heart break and embarrassment you feel when you figure out someone you maybe think of as a dear friend, just doesn't think of you at all” Bill explains. “It marked a fun change in the recording process, letting someone else be in the spotlight” adds Elizabeth, “especially when that someone is Bill”.

‘Slow Motion’ showcases Elizabeth's Morris’ skill of crafting songs that are both vulnerable and poignant. “I wrote Slow Motion after reading Lucinda Williams’ autobiography. I wanted to try writing a song that was just telling a simple story. I wrote it in about 10 minutes, about a car crash I had while I was pregnant and my eldest daughter was in the backseat. It felt good to make a song out of a situation that was frightening, to turn that into art. The recording on the album is a live take, which we have found is the best way for me to record these types of songs.”

Allo Darlin's songs work because, to borrow from Don Draper's Kodak Carousel pitch in Mad Men, they take us to a place where we feel loved. Emotional trust falls, they often take us to parts of ourselves we've either suppressed or have yet to discover and then are always there to catch us if and when we get there. In a changeable world, the warm embrace of their new record is as needed as it is welcome.

TRACK LISTING

1. Leaves In The Spring
2. Tricky Questions
3. My Love Will Bring You Home
4. Northern Waters
5. You Don’t Think Of Me At All
6. Historic Times
7. Cologne
8. Stars
9. Slow Motion
10. Bright Nights

'The Wee Small Hours: B-Sides and Other Detritus 2011-2025' consists of rarities spanning Real Estate's last decade plus with Domino.

“This is something we’ve talked about doing for a while now: a compilation of non-album tracks with a title, subtitle, and maybe throw a span of years in there to make it official-sounding,” Martin Courtney said of the compilation. “The title comes from the lyrics to an unreleased song we recorded during the Atlas sessions at Wilco’s loft in Chicago back in 2013, which in turn references a great Frank Sinatra record. This feels to us like a worthy addition to the catalog and we hope you all love it.”

The compilation’s earliest track dates back to 2011, with a cover of The Strokes’ 'Barely Legal' for a Stereogum Tribute album, and the b-side of the 'It’s Real' / 'Blue Lebaron' 7”. Other covers include 'Paper Dolls' (The Nerves) from 2014, 'Days' (Television) from 2021, and of course 'Daniel' (Elton John) from 2024. It also includes 'In My Car', dating back to a Record Store Day fanzine flexi-disc from 2012, more b-sides including the tracks from the 'Atlas' bonus 7” from 2013, and an unreleased track entitled 'Two Part' from the 'Atlas' sessions.

TRACK LISTING

1. Pink Sky
2. Exactly Nothing
3. Barely Legal
4. In My Car
5. Two Part, Part Two
6. Paper Dolls
7. Blue Lebaron
8. Days
9. The Chancellor
10. Recreation
11. Daniel
12. Two Part

Manchester’s Autocamper are the perfect pop antidote to the city’s predictable post-punk machismo. Like a Northern kitchen sink rendering of The Vaselines’ call and response motif, vocal duties are shared by Jack Harkins and Niamh Purtill—their world-weary reflections on bedroom tiffs and hungover misdemeanours capture the jangle pop spirit of the ‘80s without the C86 revisionism.

Recorded at Glasgow’s Green Door Studio and produced by Chris McCory of Catholic Action, Autocamper shed their bedroom pop roots on their debut LP while retaining the candid, bittersweet sincerity of earlier releases. Vocalist and guitarist Jack Harkins’ casual lilt often resembles a less baritone, Northern English iteration of Calvin Johnson, countering keyboardist Niamh Purtill’s soft, whisper-like timbre. This classic dynamic runs through the album, yielding a tenderness that strikes a perfect balance — never too cloying, and offering a modern twist on the unpretentious earnestness found in ’60s sunshine pop of groups like The Millennium.

A good melody is inherently sincere as it originates from an authentic emotional space. In the case of Autocamper, memorable melodies are abundant, shaped by an impressive collective knowledge of music’s past, present, and future. Their sound is both nostalgic and fresh, combining the DIY pop sensibilities of Sarah Records with the jangling, melodic impulse of James Kirk-era Orange Juice, while also capturing the heartfelt songwriting of Curt Boetcher and Sandy Salisbury.

‘Map Like A Leaf’ parallels the later output of The Pastels, a connection strengthened by Tom Crossley from the band contributing his flute to the track. On “Dogsitting,” Niamh’s pleasantly wonky organ echoes Martin Duffy’s keyboard ruminations during mid-period Felt. The rhythm section, comprising Harry Williams on bass and Arthur Robinson on drums, resides somewhere between the crispness of The Feelies and the pure, youthful pop essence of Motown, evinced in Robinson’s complete control of the snare. Those bouncy basslines act as a shimmering glue that binds the pieces together, not unlike the standout moments of The Field Mice’s Michael Hiscock.

Autocamper add colour to the everyday; transforming a sigh-ridden, pedestrian Sunday into moments of fleeting optimism amid the tangled web of love and life in The Age of Anxiety. Not twee, not anorak, not lucky, just pop: it’s these truths that distinguish them from their peers, the hollow strains of Instagram Indie and the corporate pop that forces us to be joyful.

TRACK LISTING

1. Again
2. Red Flowers
3. Map Like A Leaf
4. Foxes
5. Proper
6. You
7. Dogsitting
8. Somehow
9. Linnaean
10. Streetview

Crafted between Baltimore, London, and NYC, 'The Passionate Ones' is a sermon, a twelve-track catharsis, howled from the underbelly of late-stage capitalism, a blueprint for building your own altar in the ruins of the American Dream.

Initially created in Los Angeles' in late 2019, Nourished By Time emerged as Marcus Brown’s escape from the monotony of his day jobs and a continuously crushed spirit by an increasingly corrupt world. Channeling his deeply personal and sharply observational visions into songwriting, Brown has created a singular sonic world shaped by his hometown of Baltimore’s rich and eclectic musical heritage where jazz, punk, indie, hip hop, electronic and R&B collide in raw harmony. On 'The Passionate Ones', Brown tackles love, labor, existentialism, dreams, disillusionment, and hope through the lens of metamodernism, documenting an American story of an artist using their vices to keep them afloat while they follow their passions and dreams.

'The Passionate Ones' arrives in the wake of a radiant ascent. With 'Erotic Probiotic 2' (Scenic Route), Nourished by Time cracked open 2023—earning Pitchfork’s Best New Music and topping Gorilla vs Bear’s year-end list, while drawing praise from The Guardian, The FADER, Paste, and more. 2024’s 'Catching Chickens' (XL) only deepened the allure: CRACK Magazine placed him on its cover, naming ‘Hell of a Ride’ the track of the year. The song echoed across NPR, Resident Advisor, CLASH, The FACE, Mixmag, UPROXX, and Spotify’s Best Songs of 2024 lists, and he performed a magnetic live performance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’s #LateShowMeMusic live series. Along the way, Nourished By Time’s voice threaded through collaborations with Yaeji, Kacy Hill, and evilgiane, a spectral remix of Dry Cleaning’s 'Gary Ashby', and tours with Metronomy, Panda Bear, and Toro y Moi, solidifying his position as one of contemporary music's most intriguing and vital new artists.

TRACK LISTING

1. Automatic Love
2. Idiot In The Park
3. Max Potential
4. It’s Time
5. Cult Interlude
6. 9 2 5
7. Crazy People
8. Jojo Feat. Tony Bontana
9. BABY BABY
10. Tossed Away
11. When The War Is Over
12. The Passionate Ones

Red Rum Club return with 'BUCK', their boldest record yet — a defiant, high-energy evolution that smashes expectations. Following the band’s best-selling 'Western Approaches' and a landmark headline show at M&S Bank Arena. , 'BUCK' is built for the big moments.

TRACK LISTING

1. Crush, TX
2. Taste
3. American Nights & English Mornings
4. Buck
5. Call Me On Your Comedown
6. Trouble In The Neighbourhood
7. Wild
8. Vanilla
9. Animal
10. Wish I Was Here
11. Someone’s Baby Isn’t Coming Home

Recorded on the stairway of Jack White’s home in the Indian Village neighborhood of Detroit, 'Get Behind Me Satan' sees The White Stripes at their most experimental, creative best, augmenting their traditional sound of guitar, drums, and piano with marimba, tympani, mandolin, bells, and more. Not commercially released on vinyl until 10 years after its initial 2005 release, the album made a Top 3 debut on album charts in the US, the UK, Canada, and Australia and earned global acclaim thanks to its unique rhythmic approach and such classic singles as 'Blue Orchid', the GRAMMY® Award-nominated 'My Doorbell', and 'The Denial Twist', all three of which proved Top 10 hits on the UK’s Official Singles Chart. Hailed by Rolling Stone for “twisting a variety of American music styles to their own emotional purpose…the music is so wild, it could make you weep over how pitilessly the White Stripes keep crushing the other bands out there,” 'Get Behind Me Satan' went on to earn RIAA Gold certification in the US, Platinum certification in the UK and Canada, and The White Stripes’ second consecutive GRAMMY® Award for “Best Alternative Album.”

TRACK LISTING

1. Blue Orchid
2. The Nurse
3. My Doorbell
4. Forever For Her (Is Over For Me)
5. As Ugly As I Seem
6. The Denial Twist
7. White Moon
8. Instinct Blues
9. Passive Manipulation
10. Take, Take, Take
11. Little Ghost
12. Red Rain
13. I’m Lonely (But I Ain’t That Lonely Yet)

Co-written with Edwin de Goeji, ‘Bookends’ is the heart of 'Scratch It'. The sprawling ballad pays tribute to Remy’s late friend and former Power Trip frontman Riley Gale, through the lens of Remy’s own reading of John Carey’s Eyewitness To History, a historical collection of 300+ eyewitness accounts spanning twenty-four centuries. In consuming these first-hand accounts of human history, she began to ponder the thought, “there is not a hierarchy to suffering, and death is the great equaliser.”

Remy was asked to play a festival in Hot Springs, Arkansas — over one thousand miles away from her Toronto home — it was instinct that led her to enlist guitarist friend Dillon Watson (D. Watusi, Savoy Motel, Jack Name) to assemble a one-time Nashville-based band for the occasion. The performance went so well that she decided to ride that energy right back to where the impromptu band had initially rehearsed, in Music City itself, kickstarting the journey toward 'Scratch It'.

In just ten days, Remy and the band — Watson on guitar, Jack Lawrence (The Dead Weather, The Raconteurs, Loretta Lynn) on bass, Domo Donoho on drums, and both Jo Schornikow and Tina Norwood on keys, as well as harmonica legend Charlie McCoy (Elvis, Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison) — recorded Scratch It live off the floor with minimal overdubs, mixed to tape. Closeness and ease emanate from this core band with Remy’s singular voice sparkling on top of every tune, the most relaxed it has ever been.

'Scratch It' weaves together country, gospel, garage rock, soul, disco, folk balladry, and more, with Remy’s masterful songwriting threaded throughout. Her choice to discard the computer-based production of previous albums in favour of two-inch tape serves the songs well, introducing an element of sonic shapeshifting expected from an artist nearly twenty years into making records. If instinct was an instrument, Remy would be a virtuoso. 'Scratch It' and see.

TRACK LISTING

1. Like James Said
2. Dear Patti
3. Firefly On The 4th Of July
4. The Clearing
5. Walking Song
6. Bookends
7. Emptying The Jimador
8. Pay Streak
9. No Fruit

TRACK LISTING

T.H.
R.L
K.T.Y.W.S.
P
I.L.T.S.
L.I.
S.I.T.L.
H.T.T.R.
W.A.L.
S.O.T.H.

'Hopefully!' - a life-affirming exploration of fatherhood, childhood and alternative music, marking Loyle Carner as you’ve never heard seen or heard him before.

TRACK LISTING

TBA

The story of Manic Street Preachers is unique in pop. Raging out of the stricken mining communities of south Wales in the late 80s, they were bonded by friendships, family ties and a self-styled 'geometry of contempt', whereby James Dean Bradfield and Sean Moore would orchestrate the daring intellectual broadsides written by Richey Edwards and Nicky Wire. Seemingly condemned to mere cult status by a cruel juncture of artistic triumph, commercial failure and personal despair, the story took an agonising twist when the tragedy of Edwards' 1995 disappearance was followed by a remarkable rebirth built upon 'A Design For Life's hymn to the band's working-class roots, and then the award-winning, multi-million-selling album Everything Must Go, a majestic soundtrack to history and loss.

Less than five years later, Manic Street Preachers played to 60,000 at the national stadium of Wales and had their second UK Number 1 single. Subsequent output has confirmed the band as both a wellspring of restless creativity and a barometer of the cultural conversation. Because it was music that saved them, it's through the prism of their music that Keith Cameron tells the definitive story of Manic Street Preachers, drawing on many hours of new interviews to dive deep into 168 songs, from 1988's debut single 'Suicide Alley' to the late day peaks of 2025's album Critical Thinking.

Writing with the band's full co-operation, his book charts the dynamic evolution of a universe in which Karl Marx and Kylie Minogue happily co-exist, that accords Rush and The Clash equal favour, and where Morrissey & Marr meet Torvill & Dean via Nietzsche and New Order in a single four-minute pop song - all in the name of what Nicky Wire himself calls 'the fabulous disaster' of Manic Street Preachers.

Having released three albums in Welsh and Cornish, 'Utopia' is Gwenno Saunders’ first album recorded predominantly in English, and presents a very different side to her life and songwriting.

Forty-three years into her life, Saunders has been many people. The disaffected Cardiff schoolgirl; the teenage Las Vegas dancer; the singer in indie pop group The Pipettes. There was a turn in a Bollywood film, a nightclub tour, a stint cleaning floors in an East London pub. Long before she would become an acclaimed solo songwriter in both Welsh and Cornish, a winner of the Welsh Music Prize, a nominee for the Mercury, a Bard of the Cornish Gorsedh, there were the days of Nevada, London, Brighton; of Irish dancing, techno clubs, messiness and chaos.

'Utopia', Saunders’ fourth solo album, is an extraordinary exploration of all of these selves. If the singer regards her first three solo records — 2014’s Y Dydd Olaf, 2018’s Le Kov and 2022’s Tresor as “childhood records”, rooted in her upbringing, her parents, her formative identity, then Utopia captures a time of self-determination and experimentation. These are songs of discovery, of the years between being someone’s daughter and becoming someone’s wife and someone’s mother. They range from floor-fillers to piano ballads, via contributions from Cate Le Bon and H. Hawkline, and encompass William Blake, a favourite Edrica Huws poem, and the Number 73 bus. It is her finest work to date.

TRACK LISTING

1 London 1757
2 Dancing On Volcanoes
3 Utopia
4 Y Gath
5 War
6 73
7 The Devil
8 Ghost Of You
9 St Ives New School
10 Hireth

Set for release on July 11th via Brownswood Recordings, ‘Tuff Times Never Last’ is a spirited and vibrant collection of songs serving as an optimistic reminder to tightly hold and embrace the many dualities that occur in life. Over the course of the 11-song suite, the album explores togetherness, community, sensuality, childhood, loss and above all perseverance.

Initially drawing inspiration from a viral social media meme, co-bandleader Onome Edgeworth said of the title’s origins and meaning: “It’s true! Although we’re reflecting on joy and celebration, you realize that a lot of that beauty comes out of challenges and difficulties. It felt like a natural truth that we discovered whilst writing”.

The accompanying artwork was painted by Luci Pina, the acclaimed illustrator whose work has been sought and commissioned by the likes of The Cut, Soho House, DICE, Apple Music and It’s Nice That. Embedded within the image is Kokoroko’s ode to London in the summer. Speaking on its design, co-bandleader Sheila Maurice-Grey said: “The remit was summer in London, family and sense of everyone being in a congregation-like audience, and us being the musicians”.

The artwork’s imagery and colour was inspired by feelings of innocence and nostalgia - coming of age in London and those rare summer nights where everything felt full of hope. The cityscape also pays homage to Spike Lee’s 1994 film ‘Crookyln’ and Rick Famuyiwa’s 1999 opus ‘The Wood’. The band saw these movies as heartwarming representations of black family, community and resilience that served as a balm for them as Londoners. Speaking further on this, co-bandleader Onome Edgeworth said: “‘Crooklyn’ is very emotional, but also very uplifting. It felt like how I grew up. This album is us sharing our own feelings, hopes and dreams. We didn’t always have those stories in the UK”

Three years on from their debut album ‘Could We Be More’ which peaked at No.30 on the UK Albums Chart and received acclaim from The Guardian, The Telegraph, Financial Times, Jazzwise, CRACK Magazine and Downbeat Magazine, ‘Tuff Times Never Last’ sees the London band with careless abandon expand their wide-ranging palette and influences.

While the afrobeat jazz of their previous work is still a core part of the record’s sonic design, the new album largely pulls from British R&B from the 80s, neo-soul, West African disco, bossa nova, lovers rock and funk. Sonically taking cues from the likes of Loose Ends, Don Blackman, Common, Sly & Robbie, William Onyeabor, Patrice Rushen, Ofori Amponsah and Cymande. Throughout this instinctive evolution, the septet's seasoned musicianship preserves the essence of who Kokoroko are as masterful jazz artisans.

Speaking on the band’s progression in sound, co-bandleader Sheila Maurice-Grey said: “Innately, we’re jazz musicians but we've tried not to kind of box ourselves into one sound. So there is a level of freedom we're starting to feel. We want to continue being as creative as possible without feeling any boundaries”.

The unveiling of the new album comes alongside the LP’s lead single ‘Sweetie’, a tantalising first taste of the new record that bridges the gap between where the band has been and where they’re going. A tribute to the playful bond between lovers, ‘Sweetie’ is a horn-led and wonky-sounding tune saluting West African disco. It expands upon the band exploring more electronic sounds and toying with obscure drum machine and synth sounds.

TRACK LISTING

A1 Never Lost
A2 Sweetie
A3 Closer To Me
A4 My Father In Heaven
A5 Idea 5 (Call My Name) [feat. LULU.]
A6 Three Piece Suit (feat. Azekel)
B1 Time And Time (feat. Demae)
B2 Da Du Dah
B3 Together We Are
B4 Just Can’t Wait
B5 Over / Reprise

Kanye West, Lil Wayne and Schoolboy Q are among the big guests on 'Cherry Bomb'. It is practically an all-caps homage to Pharrell's funk-rock vanity project, trading in the grayscale of his angst to explore the technicolour corners of his quirkiness.

The Odd Future frontman is at his most indecisive, swerving from high-decibel ear assaults ('Deathcamp,' 'Pilot') to sugary, saxophone-laced cuddle tunes ('Find Your Wings,' (expletive) 'Young / Perfect'). He makes the obligatory rap muscle-flexing feel like recess, hopscotching through Galaga blips with Schoolboy Q ('The Brown Stains of Darkeese Latifah Part 6-12 (Remix)') and playing lyrical hot potato with Kanye West and Lil Wayne ('Smuckers').

It takes patience to tag along, but hearing Tyler abandon shock for shock's sake to explore other sides of his oddness is a sign he's less interested in being rap's Quentin Tarantino, and more its Wes Anderson.

TRACK LISTING

1. Deathcamp
2. Buffalo
3. Pilot
4. Run
5. Find Your Wings
6. Cherry Bomb
7. Blow My Load
8. 2Seater / Hair Blows
9. The Brown Stains Of Darkeese Latifah Part 6-12 (Remix) / Special
10. Fucking Young / Perfect
11. Smuckers
12. Keep Da O’s
13. Okaga, CA
14. Yellow

At the tail end of 2022, Glasgow's Humour put out their debut EP ‘Pure Misery’, a six-track fever dream that established the band as one of the most exciting new bands on the circuit, a record they called themselves "a montage of miserable things... a bit desperate and a bit grim, but also a bit ridiculous". Already known for the strength and raw unpredictability of their shows, 2023 saw more touring, their inclusion in the NME100 and the group taking further strides with A Small Crowd Gathered To Watch Me, a second collection of songs that showed a further progression towards capturing the powerful sound that emanates from their live stage - "something unique: vocals that veer wildly between extremes, sometimes a manic gibbering mess, others an emotive swagger, the instrumentals tightly wound and hard-hitting." (NME)

Humour live together in Glasgow and formed across the lockdowns, writing and recording their material at home, with the music intended as a backdrop to Andreas' narrative-driven and often surreal lyrics. Sometimes they’re about letting people down, sometimes they’re about pets dying, sometimes they’re about trying to say something when you don’t have anything worth saying.

The imagery of the lyrics is reflected in the illustrative designs Andreas makes for the single and album artworks, making drawings to go along with each of their songs, and the visuals behind the lyric videos for previous singles.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
1. Neighbours
2. Memorial
3. Plagiarist
4. Learning Greek
5. Dirty Bread
6. Die Rich

Side B
1. Knew We’d Talk About It One Day
2. Aphid
3. I Only Have Eyes (feat. Theo Bleak)
4. In The Paddies
5. It Happened In The Sun

Art students Gina Birch and Ana da Silva formed The Raincoats in 1977. Since the release of their seminal early records, the 'godmothers of grunge' have been revered by punk, queer, feminist and indie pop artists alike. The Raincoats reimagined the nature of experimental music and DIY design and went on to inspire Sonic Youth, Nirvana, and an entire generation of Riot Grrrl and queercore musicians.

Shouting Out Loud: Lives of the Raincoats tells their astonishing story in three
extraordinary lives. In The Raincoats' first life, they recorded three full-length albums now regarded as classics and were the first punk band to play behind the Iron Curtain in Warsaw. Nearly a decade later in 1992, the band's second life took off when Kurt Cobain's love of the band catalysed their renaissance.

In 2001, The Raincoats emerged from their five-year hiatus into their third and ongoing iteration marked by performances in art museums such as New York's MoMA, the Pompidou Centre in Paris, and London's National Portrait Gallery. The Raincoats have and continue to be a singular phenomenon and influence for so many.

Featuring exclusive interviews and never-before-seen images from The Raincoats' archive, Shouting Out Loud is the ultimate, authorised biography of this pioneering group of women - and the must-have account of a legendary band that holds a vital place in twentieth and twenty-first century sonic history.

'The Making Of Five Leaves Left' includes unaccompanied demos, studio outtakes and previously unheard songs that tell the story of how Nick Drake’s debut album ‘Five Leaves Left’ came to be released on Island Records in 1969.

This Nick Drake Estate authorised edition comprises over 30 previously unheard outtakes from the sessions, compiled across three discs. The final disc to complete the package is the original Joe Boyd produced album. The whole set has been mastered by John Wood.

Accompanied by a 60 page book printed on special textured paper stock, written by Neil Storey in collaboration with Richard Morton-Jack, complete with full track recording details, charts and recording history.

TRACK LISTING

LP/CD1 - 1st Sound Techniques Session Aka The Beverley Martyn Demo & Alt Takes From February 1968 To April 1969:
1. Mayfair - 1st Sound Techniques Session – March 1968
2. Time Has Told Me - 1st Sound Techniques Session – March 1968
3. Man In A Shed- 1st Sound Techniques Session – March 1968
4. Fruit Tree - 1st Sound Techniques Session – March 1968
5. Saturday Sun - 1st Sound Techniques Session – March 1968
6. Strange Face - 1st Sound Techniques Session – March 1968
7. Strange Face – Rough Mix With Guide Vocal – September 1968
8. Day Is Done – Take 5 – April 1968
9. Day Is Done – Take 2 – November 1968
10. Day Is Done – Take 7 – April 1969
11. Man In A Shed – Take 1 – May 1968
12. My Love Left With The Rain – Cambridge, Lent Term 1968

LP/CD2 - Paul De Rivas Reel – October 1968 / Out-Takes November 1968:
1. Blossom – Cambridge, Lent Term 1968
2. Instrumental – Cambridge, Lent Term 1968
3. Made To Love Magic – Cambridge, Lent Term 1968
4. Mickey’s Tune – Cambridge, Lent Term 1968
5. The Thoughts Of Mary Jane – Cambridge, Lent Term 1968
6. Day Is Done – Cambridge, Lent Term 1968
7. Time Has Told Me – Cambridge, Lent Term 1968
8. Three Hours – Take 2 – November 1968
9. Time Has Told Me – Take 4 – November 1968
10. Strange Face – Take 1 – November 1968
11. Saturday Sun – Take 1 – November 1968
12. Fruit Tree – Take 4 – November 1968

LP/CD3 - Out-Takes From December 1968 To April 1969:
1. Time Of No Reply – Take 3 Into Take 4 – December 1968
2. ‘Cello Song – Take 4 – January 1969
3. Mayfair – Take 5 – January 1969
4. River Man – Take 1 – January 1969
5. Way To Blue – Cambridge – Winter 1968
6. The Thoughts Of Mary Jane – Take 2 – April 1969
7. Saturday Sun – Take 1 Into Take 2 – April 1969
8. River Man – Take 2 – April 1969

LP/CD4 - The Original Album – Released 3rd July 1969:
1. Time Has Told Me
2. River Man
3. Three Hours
4. Way To Blue
5. Day Is Done
6. ‘Cello Song
7. The Thoughts Of Mary Jane
8. Man In A Shed
9. Fruit Tree
10. Saturday Sun

UNIVERSITY, the Crewe-based four-piece formed of Zak Bowker (vocals/guitar), Ewan Barton (bass), drummer Joel Smith and Eddie (mascot), announce their debut album, ‘McCartney, It’ll Be OK’, following last year's incredible debut EP and a slew of shows that have them firmly established as one of the best live bands in the UK right now.

With influences from the 80's DIY noise underground, emo-core, Burroughs and obscure arthouse cinema and the likes of 'Windmill' scenesters Black Midi they're the most exciting group to emerge from Crewe since, well, ever. The tightest of friendships thrust them together in a void of culture, where in-jokes, a fourth member who plays computer games on stage whiles they thrash out (and maybe writes all the songs!?!?!), these charismatic young upstarts invite you into their gang, where the riffs are melodic, the lyrics emotional yet humorous and the drums are set to eleven.

Recorded with producer Kwes Darko (Sampa The Great, Denzel Curry) at Damon Albarn’s Studio 13 in London, ‘McCartney, It’ll Be OK’ furthers the extremely exciting beginnings of UNIVERSITY’s 2023 debut EP, ‘Title Track’, with the hooks now brighter and more melodic, the breakdowns heavier and the lyrics more refined. The band recorded ‘McCartney, It’ll Be Alright’ totally live, and it retains the delightfully unhinged energy that’s defined their work so far, with everything thrillingly close to falling apart at any minute.

TRACK LISTING

1. Massive Twenty One Pilots Tattoo
2. Curwen
3. Gorilla Panic
4. Hustler’s Metamorphosis
5. GTA Online
6. Diamond Song
7. History Of Iron Maiden Pt. 1
8. History Of Iron Maiden Pt. 0.5

Poor Creature is comprised of Ruth Clinton, Cormac MacDiarmada and John Dermody, all three are members of other bands (Landless and Lankum respectively) who have built a large following on re-interpreting songs from the past. Songs that have existed for centuries can seem immutable and anchored to time. A new generation of Irish musicians are keen to acknowledge that musical legacy, while reimagining the songs within a contemporary context.

Poor Creature’s sound – particularly in the context of contemporary Irish folk – offers something unique. There’s the gauzy, underwater, almost psychedelic seams of ‘Bury Me Not’ and ‘Adieu Lovely Erin’. ‘All Smiles Tonight’ and ‘Hicks’ Farewell’ nod to the influence of American folk/bluegrass acts like Doc Watson and the Louvin Brothers. These shifting sounds are made possible by producer John ‘Spud’ Murphy, who has produced all of Lankum’s albums, and worked with Junior Brother, ØXN, Pretty Happy, Ye Vagabonds as as well as the final two albums by The Jimmy Cake, with whom John has played for over 20 years.

“There’s something about the everyday and the fantastical, being entangled, which I think Irish music does so well.” This also sums up All Smiles Tonight, moving through stories and loss and history to create an otherworldly and timeless album for the ages.

TRACK LISTING

Side A
Adieu Lovely Erin
Bury Me Not
The Whole Town Knows
Lorene

Side B
An Draighneán Donn
All Smiles Tonight
Hicks’ Farewell
Willie-o

Jessica Winter’s debut ‘My First Album’ is a fully realised bold, questioning album, full of personality sitting somewhere on the spectrum between therapy and the dancefloor. Musically there are shades of Kylie Minogue and the glitter of 80s Madonna, there’s the flamboyance of Prince and Queen, the energy and occasional snarl of punk and the dreamy arched eyebrow of psychedelia. In a world where maximalist pop is back and therapy memes rule supreme, My First Album is the perfect soundtrack.

Jessica Winter is a British singer, songwriter, and producer known for her experimental pop music that blends elements from various genres, including pop, industrial, and indie. To date, Jessica has released a series of EPs, including Limerence (2023), More Sad Music (2021), and Sad Music (2020), each showcasing her ability to infuse unconventional themes and introspective lyrics into pop song structures.

In addition to her solo project, Winter has an extensive list of credits as a co-writer and producer, having collaborated with artists like The Horrors, The Big Moon, Jazmin Bean, Phoebe Green, Lauren Auder, Pre Goblin, Sundara Karma, Walt Disco, and Brodka.


“a pure pop confection” – The New York Times.
“Jessica Winter is a pop-music obsessive whose sound and lyrics are high-concept experimentations that test how far she can take the genre” - Rolling Stone US
“The UK’s most exciting alt-pop oddball” - NME
“Moreish pop music that’ll be spinning around your head for days” - GQ
“Gothic, pop-centric cabaret” - The Guardian
“Weird, moreish pop music” - Dazed
“Rebellious alt-pop that feels both classic and utterly new” - CLASH
“The new face of outsider pop” - The Line Of Best Fit
“Vibrant, paradoxical, and all-in-all exuberant” - DIY
“Jessica Winter is an artist with an astounding talent” - So Young

TRACK LISTING

1. Nirvana
2. L.O.V.E.
3. Feels Good (For Tonight)
4. Aftersun
5. Big Star
6. Worst Person In The World
7. I See The Robin
8. All I Ever Really Wanted
9. Wannabe
10. Just Like That
11. Got Something Good
12. Only Lonely
13. To Know Her

It’s almost inconceivable that it’s only five years since the arrival of CMAT, as she approaches the release of her third album, 'EURO-COUNTRY'. This BRITs / Mercury / Ivors-nominated acronymic star feels like she’s been part of the culture forever - and what has endeared fans to her heart-sore tunes and humour is CMAT's ability to combine contradictory themes and moods: wide-eye drama with self-deprecation.

Country music has always been a lynchpin for CMAT, but this is country in an augmented, reimagined way. Mixed with classic indie and affirmative soul-pop, it resists the music industry’s desire to pigeonhole artists as one genre.

Not only is there a palpable tonal shift, 'EURO-COUNTRY' also feels like a huge step-up creatively. There is a sense of determination, of urgency, of ‘gather round and listen up’. From re-evaluating where you come from (geographically, metaphorically) and the impact of economics on a small country, to the attention that comes with increased fame (not all of it good) and being a woman in the music industry.

TRACK LISTING

TBA

This is the inside story of The Charlatans, told through the lens of legendary
photographer Tom Sheehan and the words of the band's frontman Tim Burgess.

More than 250 of Sheehan's photographs - blending iconic shots with those seen here for the first time - are accompanied by moving and insightful text from Burgess, sharing his memories of a band at the very height of their powers.

Covering a decade of the band's story, the book captures recording sessions, live performances, cover shoots, tours and intimate moments snatched backstage and around the world.

Beautifully presented in a cloth-bound hardback, this book is a stunning visual
history of The Charlatans, one of the defining bands of a generation.

Hailing from Brighton, indie rock quintet Youth Sector expertly balance astute political observations with campy indie romps. Inspired by the art school greats DEVO and Talking Heads, their music is a coiled spring of urgency and unpredictable energy that offers a sense of catharsis for the confusion of modern adult life.

Across their critically acclaimed EPs, the Brighton quintet have never revelled in bleakness, managing to twist everyday narratives into music that is quite the opposite being upbeat, full of energy and with irresistible choruses you can’t help but sing along with.

Evidently Youth Sector are no strangers to weaving prescient issues of culture and politics into the warm embrace of strong grooves and sing-along choruses, but debut album ‘Pop Couture’ raises the bar considerably, marking their strongest statement to date. From grift culture to political corruption to the devolution of living standards, Youth Sector prove they can transform the weightiest subject matter into the most irresistible of choruses.

“'Pop Couture', our debut album, is a body of work which for a long time seemed out of our reach; it's the culmination of several years of development and is the vehicle for which we have been saving the best material we've ever written. The album explores prescient issues in our culture and politics such as grift culture, corruption and the devolution of standards in public life, but wraps these ideas in the warm embrace of strong grooves and sing-along choruses.”

“We've been more ambitious than ever on these recordings in terms of the scale of the songs we're writing, with the help of Richard Wilkinson (Bombay Bicycle Club, Spector, Kaiser Chiefs), this album includes our most expansive recordings to date. Woven throughout the record is a self-awareness and introspection from five individuals who have worked through the financial and personal burdens that come with being a small artist the modern music industry; the record is bookended by 'God's Work' and 'Not Coming Down' that explore the journey through different lenses.”

“Although the road to 'Pop Couture' has been long and arduous, Youth Sector can confidently confirm for any apprehensive listeners that it is certifiably all killer and no filler.”

TRACK LISTING

1. God's Work
2. Crime
3. Fit For Purpose
4. Buy For Less
5. Spitting Image
6. The Ball
7. House Proud And Bed Bound
8. Primetime
9. Here Comes The Fear
10. Break Something
11. Not Coming Down

BIOGRAPHY BY IRVINE WELSH
I discovered the Beta Band, like I discovered a lot of great music, basically through eventually surrendering to the enthused urgings of a mate who was cooler than me. He continually evangelized about the EP’s. I was lost to the concert hall and firmly ensconced on the dancefloor by then and highly resistant, but quite taken by the idea that a band would bring out extended plays rather than singles. When I did check them out, I was instantly smitten by their originality and power.

The band, therefore, were pivotal for me in terms of my own musical journey, in that they represented a gateway back into indie guitar music, which I’d basically given up since becoming obsessed with rave and acid house.

The Beta Band were definitely a band for the cool cognoscenti- like my buddy- the ones you make a bit of a tit of yourself trying to convert quite straight boring people to.

The emotions they induced were a kind of throwback to school days when you were very pompous and prescriptive about what you liked, and derisive towards non believers. It’s a testimony to the power of the music that they could take me to the raw state of the younger man.

I took it personally that they didn’t hit the mainstream commercial base. At least two of the three albums they made deserved quadruple platinum status. Hot Shots II and Heroes to Zeros are permanently lodged very high in my top one hundred albums of all time.

So, the return of the Beta Band has me moving into the same mode of immature, adolescent anticipation. Everyone should have the Beta Band albums and EP’s in their collection. It still kind of annoys me - in fact it bugs the shit out of me - that most of them don’t.

And that really is something. 

TRACK LISTING

A1 Dry The Rain
A2 I Know
A3 B + A
B1 Dogs Got A Bone
B2 Inner Meet Me
B3 The House Song
C1 The Monolith
C2 She's The One
D1 Push It Out
D2 It's Over
D3 Dr. Baker
D4 Needles In My Eyes 

Barry Can’t Swim’s rise has been nothing short of meteoric. Following the success of his debut album 'When Will We Land?', Barry has continued to solidify himself as one of the most exciting names in electronic music today and his new album 'Loner' further cements that. 

TRACK LISTING

1. The Person You’d Like To Be
2. Different
3. Kimpton (with O’Flynn)
4. All My Friends
5. About To Begin
6. Still Riding
7. Cars Pass By Like Childhood Sweethearts
8. Machine Noise For A Quiet Daydream (feat. Séamus)
9. Like It’s Part Of The Dance
10. Chosen
11. Marriage
12. Wandering Mt. Moon

• The Pale Fountains were an English band formed in Liverpool in 1980, and composed of Mick Head, Chris McCaffery, Thomas Whelan, Andy Diagram and Ken Moss.

• Inspired by 1960s music such as Love, Burt Bacharach and The Beatles, the group released their debut single ‘(There's Always) Something on My Mind’ in October 1982. Although the Pale Fountains failed to make much commercial headway, the band would earn critical praise for the two albums released on Virgin, ‘Pacific Street’ (1984) and ‘...From Across the Kitchen Table’ (1985).

This 4-CD box set brings together both albums as well as all the B-Sides, mixes, and some previously unreleased material from the Virgin vaults all housed in a sturdy box with extensive sleeve notes by Classic Pop’s John Earls.

Mick Head – Vocals, Guitar (1981–1987)
Chris McCaffery – Bass Guitar (1981–1987)
Thomas Whelan – Drums (1981–1987)
Andy Diagram – Trumpet (1982–1984)
John Head – Guitar (1984–1987)

STAFF COMMENTS

Andy says: Michael Head's first band were so romantic and melodic and young and beautiful. It's all here!

TRACK LISTING

DISC ONE: 
Pacific Street
1 Reach
2 Something On My Mind
3 Unless
4 Southbound Excursion
5 Natural
6 Faithful Pillow (Pt 1)
7 (Don't Let Your Love) Start A War
8 Beyond Fridays Field
9 Abergele Next Time
10 Crazier
11 Faithful Pillow (Pt 2)
BONUS TRACKS
12 Thank You - Single
13 Meadow Of Love - Single B Side
14 (There's Always) Something On My Mind - Remix
15 Palm Of My Hand - Single
16 Palm Of My Hand - Instrumental - Single B Side
17 Love's A Beautiful Place - Single B Side
18 Unless - Extended Version 12" Single
19 (Don't Let Your Love) Start A War - Single
20 (Don't Let Your Love) Start A War - Extended Version 12" Single
21 Love Situation - Single B Side

DISC TWO:
Mixes And Unreleased Tracks
1 Partner Picking Man - Rough Mix With Bass And
Drums*
2 Fight Think Love / Love Situation - Rough Mix Take 1*
3 Jock's A String Bean - Rough Mix*
4 Fight Think Love / Love Situation - Rough Mix Take 2*
5 Spanish Tragedy (Beyond Fridays Field) - Rough Instrumental Mix*
6 Take A Little Shelter - Rough Mix Take 2*
7 Partner Picking Man - Acoustic*
8 Sun Drenched Girl (Crazier) - Acoustic
9 Lavinia's Dream - Rough Mix Take 1
10 (There's Always) Something On My Mind - Rough Mix
11 Hey There Fred - Rough Mix
12 One By One - Rough Mix Take 2*
13 Norfolk Broads - Rough Mix Take 1
14 Untitled Jam / 7 And 7 Is*
15 Unless - Rough Mix
16 (There's Always) Something On My Mind - Rough Mix
17 Sundrenched Girl (Crazier) - Rough Mix
18 Southbound Excursion - Rough Mix

DISC THREE:
From Across The Kitchen Table
1 Shelter
2 Stole The Love
3 Jean's Not Happening
4 Bicycle Thieves
5 Limit
6 27 Ways To Get Back Home
7 Bruised Arcade
8 These Are The Things
9 Its Only Hard
10 ...From Across The Kitchen Table
11 Hey
12 September Sting 

DISC FOUR:
Mixes And Unreleased Tracks
1 From Across The Kitchen Table - Extended Version 12" Single
2 Bicycle Thieves - Remix Single B Side
3 Just A Girl - Remix Single B Side
4 Thank You - Remix Single B Side
5 Silver Bendix – Demo*
6 The Outsider – Demo*
7 Detrimentally (Stole The Love) - Demo
8 27 Ways To Get Back Home - Demo
9 Summertime (It's Hard) -Demo
10 Shelter - Demo
11 Yeah Eah Eah – Demo*
12 These Are The Things (Stay) - Demo
13 Bruised Arcade - Demo

*Previously Unreleased.

After more than a decade of music-making, Durand Jones & The Indications have blossomed as a unit and are basking in their successes. On their aptly titled new album, 'Flowers', The Indications unfurl their true colors — embracing all their roots and influences, maturation and confidence, and share them with the world.

Since forming in 2012, the road has taken The Indications from those origins at Indiana University, Bloomington to the global stage, selling out shows across Europe, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand to the West Coast— where DJI has a strong following among the lowrider and vintage soul enthusiasts.

For as far as Durand Jones & The Indications have come, 'Flowers' grew from the desire to return to their roots in a Bloomington basement, a space where they first found camaraderie in gritty funk and Southern soul that would inspire their self-titled debut. Pulling sonically and spiritually from each of the group's previous releases and solo work, Flowers is the next stage of DJI's inspired soulful discography. DJI are not only accepting their flowers, but indulging in their sweet and sexy fragrance.

TRACK LISTING

1. Flowers
2. Paradise
3. Lovers' Holiday
4. I Need The Answer
5. Flower Moon
6. Really Wanna Be With You
7. Been So Long
8. Everythin
9. Rust And Steel
10. If Not For Love
11. Without You

Genre-bending Tropical Fuck Storm present their highly anticipated fourth album, ‘Fairyland Codex,’ on their new label home Fire Records. Recorded with co-producer Michael Beach at the band’s Dodgy Brothers studio in Nagambie, Australia, the songs on ‘Fairyland Codex’ immerse us in the chaos of a fateful landslide, picking out the characters that litter the impending collapse of society.

Acidic, acerbic, anarchic; Tropical Fuck Storm's command of wordplay, undercut by snarling guitars, pulsing rhythms, and explosive salvos, populates a hinterland between light and dark. The vocal interplay between Liddiard and the soaring harmonies of Kitschin and Dunn creates a teetering balancing act that’s intensified by the frantic narratives that evolve from their collective psyche.

Tropical Fuck Storm formed when guitarist and vocalist Gareth Liddiard and bassist and vocalist Fiona Kitschin’s previous band, The Drones, went on hiatus in 2016. Joined by guitarist, keyboardist, and vocalist Erica Dunn and drummer Lauren Hammel, the group has released a string of critically acclaimed albums and gained a reputation for their incendiary live shows.

TRACK LISTING

1. Irukandji Syndrome
2. Goon Show
3. Stepping On A Rake
4. Teeth Marché
5. Fairyland Codex
6. Dunning Kruger's Loser Cruiser
7. Bloodsport
8. Joe Meek Will Inherit The Earth
9. Bye Bye Snake Eyes
10. Moscovium

'Coles Corner' was Hawley’s third studio album and his first for Mute Records. After five years of garnering praise for his songwriting talents and heart-melting baritone voice, and steadily building a solid fanbase through his outstanding live performances, hard work paid off on an album regarded by many as his best.

Recorded in Sheffield’s Yellow Arch Studios, and co-produced with his long-time bassist Colin Elliot, and Mike Timm, Coles Corner featured fellow musicians Shez Sheridan (guitars), Jon Trier (keyboards), Jonny Wood (upright bass) and Andy Cook (drums). They conjured up an exquisite album inspired by Hawley’s love of vintage ‘40s and ‘50s sounds, chamber pop, country, blues, and rock ‘n roll, on a set of intimate love songs full of nostalgia, regret, sadness and a bittersweet atmosphere, on a collection that would cement Hawley’s abiding love and passion for his hometown of Sheffield. 'Coles Corner' is a cornerstone in the catalogue of one of the most creative and outstanding UK singer-songwriters of the past two decades.

TRACK LISTING

LP Tracklisting:
1. Coles Corner
2. Just Like The Rain
3. Hotel Room
4. Darlin' Wait For Me
5. The Ocean
6. Born Under A Bad Sign
7. I Sleep Alone
8. Tonight
9. (Wading Through) The Waters Of My Time
10. Who's Gonna Shoe Your Pretty Little Feet?
11. Last Orders

CD Tracklisting:

CD1 - Coles Corner:
1. Coles Corner
2. Just Like The Rain
3. Hotel Room
4. Darlin' Wait For Me
5. The Ocean
6. Born Under A Bad Sign
7. I Sleep Alone
8. Tonight
9. (Wading Through) The Waters Of My Time
10. Who's Gonna Shoe Your Pretty Little Feet?
11. Last Orders

CD2 - Single Versions, B-Sides And Acoustic Versions:
1. The Ocean - Single Version
2. Just Like The Rain - Single Version
3. Born Under A Bad Sign - Single Version
4. Hotel Room - Single Version
5. Long Black Veil
6. Room With A View
7. I'm Absolutely Hank Marvin
8. Dark Road
9. Kelham Island
10. Some Candy Talking
11. Young And Beautiful
12. I'm Just Here To Get My Baby Out Of Jail
13. Can You Hear The Rain Love?
14. Coles Corner - Acoustic Version
15. Hotel Room - Acoustic Version
16. Darlin’ Wait For Me - Acoustic Version
17. I Sleep Alone - ( Live At Sheffield City Hall)
18. A Bird Never Flew On One Wing

A dark Italo compilation not for the faint of heart with the mystery, murder and madness of all that is Giallo. Serving as a soundtrack to a fictitious film Luna Rossa, Johnny Jewel of Italians Do It Better fame laces the opening with the breathy arsenic laced "Flesh" as Simple Symmetry's "Il Gatto Nero delivers a disco banger that even samples a cat's heartbeat. Legowelt creeps into lens with "Oberalp Catarsi under his Occult Orientated Crime moniker. Other suspects include Prefuse 73, Antoni Maovvi, Makeup And Vanity Set and Om & Grails member Emil Amos. Lucky dip vinyl with base transparent blood base edition with a red moon marbled rare version. QR code on label for a secret non album track! Limited and will be gone by nightfall!!

STAFF COMMENTS

Mine says: Secrets Of Sound are back with their third comp, this time introducing us to considerably darker sounds (which - shock, horror - I am totally on board with). Look at that sleeve too, what a beaut!!

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Johnny Jewel - "Flesh"
2. Makeup & Vanity Set - "Notte Della Norte"
3. Simple Symmetry & Gilbert Broid - "Il Gatto Nero"
4. Occult Orientated Crime AKA Legowelt - "Oberalp Catarsi"

Side 2
1. Umberto - "Nightwish"
2. Prefuse 73 - "Snare Attack Illusion"
3. Antoni Maiovvi - "The Emperor Drowns Three Times"
4. Emil Amos - "Realistica II"

RECORD STORE EXCLUSIVE - SIGNED COPIES WITH BONUS BILLY & HELLS PORTRAIT ART PRINT.

As a member of Big in Japan, The Slits and, most famously, Siouxsie and The Banshees and The Creatures, 'Budgie' became one of the era-defining drummers in the much-mythologised post punk scene of the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Growing up in working class St Helens in the 1960s, Peter Clarke lost his mum as a young boy and it's her 'absence' that haunts the pages of this book. Disenchanted with art school inLiverpool, Peter became Budgie and befriended the likes of Jayne Casey, Holly Johnson, Pete Burns, Bill Drummond and other luminaires of the legendary Eric's' Club, before taking off for London and the big city heat of punk. Budgie's unique technique and musical sensitivity endeared him to the all-female group The Slits, who asked him to play on their debut album Cut. Subsequent touring with former members of the Sex Pistols and others from the post punk aristocracy firmly established Budgie's reputation for innovation.

But the beating heart of this painfully honest and frank account of a life often sabotaged by substance abuse and alcoholism is, of course, his long-term position as Siouxsie and The Banshee's drummer and co-writer alongside ex-lover, and ex-wife, Siouxsie Sioux. In the Banshees and seminal side project The Creatures, their creative partnership produced some of the most seductive and celebrated pop music of the decade, from Juju, through A Kiss in the Dreamhouse to the salutary valedictory album, Peepshow. Eventually, their personal relationship started to fall apart, with inevitable consequences for both bands. The Absence is brave and unflinching in its dissection of how and why this happened. Angels emerged, many of them female, to show Budgie that a mother's lost love can be replaced.

A man and musician whose creativity and singular style came to define the goth-pop 1980s as much as any other individual, Budgie's life is both fabulously glamorous and a tawdry cautionary tale. For the first time the story of this most exalted and mysterious of bands has been told by one who survived inside the belly of the beast.