Basement are back to hotwire your brain yet again with another deeply natural and familiar track from their upcoming album ‘WIRED’ out May 8th.

Fresh off the back of a brilliant double header of singles last month, Basement have dropped another world-beater to build buzz around their upcoming album ‘WIRED’. If there is one thing that new single ’The Way I Feel’ does, it’s create buzz; its atmosphere builds almost immediately through the blunt-force chords and vocal effects, driving a more spacious, linear sound. This song truly has all the makings of a track that is set to be screamed at the top of everyone’s lungs worldwide across their future shows. This song feels innately designed to be sung in unison while still working as its own internal and personal experience. This blend of community and individuality has been an ever-present staple of Basement’s albums since the band’s inception, and it’s beautiful to see that not only the sound but the feeling and visceral, almost involuntary, reaction to their music has not strayed from the path in the slightest and that fans still bounce in elation on the floors of sweaty venues to these brilliant tracks. They remain creatively empowered while still making tracks that are welcomed with open arms and strained vocal cords.

Lead singer of Basement, Andrew Fisher, has stated that “The Way I Feel’ is about standing on the edge of a really important decision, right before you make it. Constantly questioning whether you have the courage to stand up for yourself and fight your side, while at the same time begging for forgiveness and acknowledgement. My tongue is in my cheek quite a lot in this song - you need to decide when I’m saying what I mean or not.” This message of internal questioning has cropped up in many basement songs before and is something that every listener, no matter the age, no matter the life experience, can relate to, this is one of the elements that makes basements music so powerful, this sense of natural emotion and human experience is laid out over every project, with that in mind it's no wonder that these albums have connected so deeply with all of their listeners.

At the heart of this track is the sound of the familiar, whether it’s beers in a field with your friends in the middle of summer or the first time you accidentally got lost in time with the love of your life, this songs takes you back to a treasured moment in time with its sense of familiarity and comforting tones that wouldn’t feel out of place being blasted in the background of any of your top 5 coming age movies. Basement are one of those once-in-a-lifetime bands; this feeling is only emphasised the more you listen and the more you pick apart. There is a different meaning here for every listener; that’s what makes the fact that we’re getting a whole 12 tracks in May all the more exciting. Keep your eyes peeled for ‘WIRED’ releasing via Run for Cover on the 8th of May, and get lost in the sound of a band that will stick with you for life.

Words by Josh Pook

Wax Head lead an Osees-infused revolution that makes remarkable usage of a drummer-fronted psych-punk quartet. 

Wax Head are one of the liveliest, noise bands now in a genre that’s full of lively, noise-bands. They follow psych-heroes like Osees and there’s even touches of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and Psychedelic Porn Crumpets here, that feels like garage rock and designed to test the endurance with several sharp, punchy tracks. Titular track GNAT is brash and abrasive, lively and full of what you kind of have come to expect from a Wax Head gig – “seize up, feel the sweat // drip down the back of your neck”, it’s all “part of the critter control” they claim – all part of the Wax Head experience. If you leave a Wax Head show and aren’t covered in sweat from the mosh pits that will surely come what would you be doing? 

Their creative process is akin to bursts of inspiration and maximising unfinished ideas into raw tracks that explore whatever’s going through songwriter Lewis Fletcher’s head. That leads to – in short, a lot of songs about bugs and death that’s reflected in the second track, Bug Doctor – a song that embraces the infection of bugs and is catchy, very House Arrest in tone. The ability to shift from GNAT to Bug Doctor is smooth, raw and full of lively overture that bubbles under the surface. It’s lyrics that find inspiration from Fletcher’s time growing up in rural Somerset – and that is reflected on third track, Terminal Sinker, and it’s easy to see why that was chosen as a lead single for the band. It shifts gears full on into addressing the current state of UK punk – “your ambitions have just shrivelled up and died” captures those who are stuck in the past in the genre and refuse to move on, of which there are plenty in rural Somerset who spend all their time complaining with absolutely no effort to change the situation that they’re in at all. It’s not subtle “I’m a terminal sinker / inexplainable inexplainable” Fletcher cries, but it doesn’t need to be – it gets the point across in a way that acts as a wake up call. 

If you weren’t awake after the first three tracks you will be now. Clatter Coats embraces the chaos full on, its lyrics feeling almost sinister; talking about how religious zealotry drives people to unthinkable acts of violence from the outside of society looking in “your holiness has driven you to the edge now/taking younglings and burning them in their beds now” taps into the praying on the weak and the sinister side of life and the outcasts of society being driven underground. Like the nature of the cult-like tunnel-dwelling creatures that inspire its lyrics it is unrelenting, and to see Wax Head live is to live in that unrelenting experience right the way down to the very core. 

We’re well into the back half of the record by the time Rusty Cutter and Resin 214 roll around. They’re both bangers – and the most imaginative title on the record is Drawöh vs Lineus Longissimus as they once again return to the tunnel-like creatures of Clatter Coats – “I feel pity as you are foolish enough to think I fear you” is an arrogant cry of resistance, “your life underground is nothing compared to here” that continues the narrative of this fight between these two characters where victor realizes he has won; but is far too late, and he is standing on a town of ruins that he has failed to protect. This thematically akin to a story throwing in motion – the noise rock version of say, Carpenter Brut’s The Temple released earlier this year – and it’s incredibly compelling as each song peels away a different layer. 

If you like loud music where the frontman is your drummer you’ve come to the right place, there are few more incendiary bands than Wax Head right now, their live shows quickly becoming the stuff of legend in the DIY scene. It’s good to know the intensity of their pits can translate across to that of their record – and you just know that the next Wax Head show I’ll be at, that must be purchased as a physical copy. I’ve never heard a bad word against Wax Head and it’s easy to see why based off the strength of this and how quickly they can win a doubter over.

Words by Miles Milton Jefferies

Three years after her last full-length release, Arlo Parks returns with Ambiguous Desire, a record that further cements her place as one of the UK’s most emotionally transparent voices. Across the first half of the decade she has already delivered two defining projects: the Mercury Prize-winning debut Collapsed in Sunbeams and 2023’s introspective My Soft Machine. Both albums established Parks as a songwriter capable of turning quiet internal monologues into universal moments of recognition.

In an ostensibly superficial world, Parks’ honesty still cuts through. Her songs rarely hide behind metaphor or spectacle. Instead, they linger in the raw details of love, regret and self-reflection. Ambiguous Desire follows that same instinct. Across singles such as Get Go, Heaven and 2sided, Parks once again peels back her layers, offering listeners another intimate glimpse into her mind. Vulnerability has always been her greatest strength, and here it remains the album’s emotional centre.

Opening track Blue Disco eases listeners into the record with a sense of weightless calm. A soft electric guitar drifts above a gentle drum pattern while Parks’ comforting vocals set the tone. Lyrically, the themes feel familiar: heartbreak, disappointment and the lingering echoes of something lost. The repeated refrain “I always knew” carries a quiet resignation, establishing the album’s central tension between acceptance and longing.

Jetta shifts the energy immediately. Chopped vocal fragments and a smoother groove give the track a stronger pulse, building toward a chorus that bursts into life. Parks sounds full of character here, her voice carrying both warmth and urgency. By the closing moments the track evolves into something closer to a house rhythm, an unexpected turn that showcases her willingness to experiment within her signature introspective style.

The momentum continues with the single Get Go. A crackling radio sample and crashing drums launch the song forward, while hypnotic keys pull the listener into a trance-like state. Despite the euphoric instrumental, Parks’ lyrics wrestle with the painful decision to let someone go. That contrast is where the track truly shines. Her writing remains razor sharp, capturing the push and pull of emotional attachment, while the instrumental steadily builds toward a thrilling climax and a sense of release.

Senses featuring Sampha blends seamlessly into the album’s flow. Persistent percussion drives the track as both artists explore feelings of vulnerability and self-doubt. Sampha’s soft, aching delivery adds another emotional layer to the song. When Parks confesses, “I can’t find no love for myself,” the moment lands with quiet devastation. Sampha’s closing verse deepens the atmosphere, creating one of the album’s most compelling and long overdue collaborations.

On Heaven, Parks returns to a more intimate space. A soft drum pattern supports her confessional writing, while the refrain “What is in the summer breeze?” floats through the hazy production. The song feels suspended in a warm but fragile atmosphere before dissolving into a gentle instrumental outro.

That intimacy carries into Beams, perhaps one of the album’s most emotionally exposed moments. Bright keys lift the chorus toward something aspirational, yet Parks’ lyrics remain grounded in uncertainty and quiet despair. The line “I know it’s the right thing to do but I don’t wanna” stands out as one of the album’s most striking and relatable confessions. A brief musical detour midway through the track adds texture without breaking its emotional spell.

The brief South Seconds may be short, but it leaves a lasting impression. Parks reflects on the fragile nature of love, acknowledging the delicate balance between winning and losing someone. A simple voice note saying “I miss when we did stuff together” captures the aching nostalgia that runs through the album.

Nightswimming reintroduces the rhythmic pulse that has quietly threaded its way through the project. The track carries a late-night atmosphere, lingering in the aftermath of emotional upheaval. When the chorus arrives, shimmering synths punctuate the line “It’s a moment in time,” bringing a sudden brightness to the melancholy mood. The closing section feels like the blurred calm after a long night out, drifting gently into silence.

2sided leans further into groove. Also released as a single, the filtered drums and glistening keys give the track a subtle 80s shimmer, reminiscent of the glossy nocturnal soundscapes heard on Dawn FMby The Weeknd. Parks glides across the instrumental effortlessly, maintaining the album’s delicate balance between vulnerability and atmosphere.

On Luck of Life, she delivers another quietly crushing line: “Everything reminds me that you’ve left.” The chorus soars while the instrumentation remains carefully layered and nuanced. Throughout the record, the recurring theme of loss never feels repetitive. Instead, Parks approaches it from multiple emotional angles, with each track revealing another shade of reflection.

The penultimate track What If I Say It? slows everything down again. Parks’ voice sounds as delicate as ever as she admits, “Tired of being angry, tired of being brave.” Moments like this underline what makes her songwriting so compelling. Her lyrics feel intensely personal while remaining deeply relatable.

Closing track Florence ties the album together with quiet emotional clarity. Parks has spent the record confronting fear, doubt and insecurity, yet that honesty ultimately transforms into strength. As the drums swell toward the end, they feel almost ceremonial, a rhythmic celebration of everything the album has explored.

With Ambiguous Desire, Arlo Parks once again proves that vulnerability can be powerful. It is a record filled with emotional detail, gentle experimentation and songwriting that cuts straight to the core. Another remarkable addition to her discography, it confirms Parks as one of the most thoughtful and profound voices of her generation.

Words by Alex Peters

Metalcore’s newest slasher villains have unveiled their most ethereal and gut-wrenching track to date, and while the band may be faceless, the music is uniquely identifiable and truly brilliant. 

PRESIDENT hit the scene last year with a variety of elusive teasers and singles that culminated in multiple shows across the world. These shows spread like wildfire with word of mouth, creating a genuine buzz around the band, and it’s great to see that this buzz has not died. The faceless four-piece has created a brilliant intersection of styles with every track. ‘Mercy’ takes this blend of styles, collates it with all the power of its unnamed vocalists’ gorgeous and prudent vocal sections and allows the track to transcend genre ties, refusing to be put in a box and instead choosing to exist as it is with no remorse. The electronic elements of this track work perfectly with the dropped and discordant guitar pieces of the choruses, allowing the whole track to blend together perfectly through its exceptional production quality. 

PRESIDENT is tantalising in every way; the quality of the tracks carries a familiar sincerity to them that brilliantly contrasts with the mystique of their anonymity. This mystery spills into the music while still managing to remain identifiable and excellent. Metalcore has been in a great place talent-wise for a while now, but outside of bands like Bring Me The Horizon, there hasn’t been a quietly whispered level of excitement like this for some time. This plays into their hands perfectly, as the secrecy that surrounds every release and every live show makes the audience feel like they’re in on something that they shouldn’t know. That feeling transfers itself perfectly into ‘Mercy’ with its dulcet electronic sounds emitting nostalgic horror elements before doing what this band does best, colliding in a chaotic medley of tonal perfection and aggressive catchy chord progressions, brutally dynamic and inexplicably spectacular, this track stands to become one of PRESIDENT’s best.

PRESIDENT kick off their UK tour this spring, playing a laundry list of venues around the country in what is bound to be a stretch of shows that will be etched in the minds of their audience eternally. While still shrouded in mystery, the band has built a reputable and strong fanbase that not only supports each release but sell out their shows. The anticipation is clear as every single one of these shows has completely sold out, so if you were one of the lucky few to get one, let the inauguration begin, and if you weren’t, keep a close eye on these future superstars. 

Words by Josh Pook

Nearly twenty years on, Scouting For Girls prove their feel-good formula still works.

Scouting For Girls return with their first album in three years, following their 2023 record The Place We Used To Meet. Roy Stride, Greg Churchouse and Peter Ellard have been steadily releasing music since their iconic 2007 debut, and the band’s ability to capture nostalgia in a bottle has not faded. Across nearly two decades they have built a reputation for warm, relatable songwriting and instantly recognisable hooks. These Are The Good Days continues that tradition.

The album title itself carries a quiet melancholy. It is a simple sentiment, yet one that feels deeply relatable. At some point we all look around and realise that the moments we are living through now may one day be the ones we miss the most. Over the course of ten tracks the band lean into that feeling, delivering classic Scouting For Girls singalongs, reflective ballads and the type of songs that made people fall in love with the band in the first place.

The title track These Are The Good Days opens the album on a contemplative note. A melancholic introduction sets the tone before Roy Stride’s familiar vocal cuts through the mix. The lyrics feel reflective, almost like a personal trip down memory lane, highlighted by the line “spend my life tryna make it big, just to prove I was worth something.” The bridge features some strong guitar work, and the layered vocals on the outro bring the song to an emphatic close. It feels like the kind of track that could soundtrack a jamboree, a reunion or any moment where nostalgia hangs in the air.

Get What You Give launches the album forward with a burst of energy. The chorus takes centre stage and demands attention, built around the refrain that “you only get what you are given.” It is an uplifting song about living life to the fullest, even if the message carries a hint of realism. The track has a feel-good spirit that fits comfortably within the band’s catalogue.

Waiting For Your Love introduces a completely different flavour. The song carries a Western-style groove, almost like it could soundtrack a chaotic saloon fight scene. Scouting For Girls have always been at their best when they lean into a particular style or concept, and this track is a great example of that strength. The energetic guitar solo emphasises the wild nature of the song and adds another layer of character.

The album takes a more emotional turn with Stars Never Fade. This ballad is dreamy, comforting and deeply affirming. Gentle instrumentation allows the lyrics to shine, and the refrain “people come and go, some people stay the same” lands with a subtle emotional weight. The songwriting here feels particularly strong, while the guitar riff that closes the chorus adds a beautiful finishing touch.

The upbeat nostalgia returns on Don’t Go Solo. There is a lighter, more humorous tone running through the track, with self-aware lyrics that lean into the band’s charm. The back and forth towards the end of the song gives it a playful energy, although the final verse introduces a surprising vulnerability that almost feels out of place on such an upbeat track. That contrast ultimately makes the moment stand out even more.

As Bad As You Are continues the singalong feel with a reassuring message at its core. Amid the chaos of the world, Roy promises to stick around no matter what. It taps into a feeling most people recognise, that quiet desire for security and loyalty. The closing line “it will never get better than this” gives the song a slightly sombre ending that grounds its optimism in reality.

Love Gone Bad begins beautifully, with Roy’s distinctive voice floating over soft and simple guitar work. The track gradually builds before bursting into life with a wave of colour and energy, reminiscent of the glossy optimism of a 2000s Sony TV advert. It is arguably the best produced song on the album, polished and bright while still retaining the band’s signature warmth. The chorus, which pleads “when you gonna love me back,” captures the universal ache of unrequited love.

Counting Down The Days delivers one of the most nostalgic moments on the album. A steady drum groove, a memorable chorus and lyrics centred around love combine into a track that feels unmistakably Scouting For Girls. It has everything that has made the band so beloved over the years. The playful countdown into the chorus adds an extra spark of energy that makes the moment particularly satisfying.

The album slows down for the penultimate track Still Feel The Love. It is an emphatic moment that allows the instrumentation to breathe and take centre stage. Once again the guitar work stands out, weaving around Roy’s passionate vocals and creating a strong emotional pull as the album moves toward its conclusion.

Closing track Alright In The End brings back that vintage Scouting For Girls feeling one final time. The song carries a reassuring message, with the title ringing throughout the chorus like a mantra. “If it is not alright, then it is not the end.” It is a sentiment that feels fitting for a band whose music has stayed with fans for so many years, and it provides a warm and satisfying way to close the album.

After a brief hiatus, Scouting For Girls return sounding as comfortable and heartfelt as ever. These Are The Good Days is packed with nostalgic charm, strong melodies and moments that remind listeners why the band has endured for so long. Their music still exists in its own warm, familiar bubble, and stepping back into that space feels so good.

Words by Alex Peters

The Maine embrace chaos and unpredictability on their new single “Palms”.

As they approach the release of their tenth studio album "Joy Next Door", The Maine release an energetic new single "Palms”, which is the third single off the album. Following the two previous singles “Die To Fall” and “Quiet Part Loud,” “Palms” pushes further into the band’s evolving sound with its modern production and its upbeat melody. The song challenges the idea that everything happens for a reason and leans into the unpredictability of life, with frontman John O'Callaghan delivering the catchy chorus line “Don’t think, it all happens for a reason, fuck that”. It is a track that talks about letting go even when that feels uncomfortable.

Taking its title from the phrase “reading palms” which also appears in the song’s lyrics, the track taps into the human instinct of searching for signs and looking for certainty even when none exists. However, instead of indulging this impulse, the narrator repeatedly shrugs it off with the line “Don’t think, let it happen”. There is a chaotic and carefree energy throughout the track with mentions of “getting drunk” and “spending it all” which is not necessarily framed as healthy, but feels raw and honest. The lyrics don’t try to guide the listener but rather capture a state of mind that is bound to resonate with people across all age groups.

Sonically, the track echoes elements of previous releases such as “Pretender” and “Sticky” which are some of my personal favourite tracks by the band. However, it leans more into an alternative pop-driven sound than rock, which might disappoint fans of heavier tracks such as “Black Butterflies and Deja Vu” (another personal favourite). There is a sense of motion throughout the track, as if the song itself is refusing to sit still. This sentiment is consistent with the creative process behind the track, with O’Callaghan revealing that the initial demo came together in only 30 minutes.

In terms of vocal performance, there is an almost conversational tone in parts of the song, and the repetition of the line “Don’t think, let it happen” gives the impression of a real-time internal monologue, like a thought being looped in someone’s mind until it finally sticks.

With “Joy Next Door” arriving on April 10th and a major headline tour underway, The Maine are stepping into what could be the peak of their career so far. As a longtime fan of The Maine with “Lovely Little Lonely” and “American Candy” still in constant rotation, I’m excited to see what else the band has in store with their upcoming album.

Words by Irina Atanasiu

Returning for their first full-length album in 5 years, Tigers Jaw, a band that needs absolutely zero introduction, bare all in their brilliantly prudent new album ‘Lost On You’. 

Scranton, Pennsylvania's Tigers Jaw are a band that has evolved from stepping stone to stepping stone; every project, be it a single, EP, or LP, has had a consistent sense of belonging to where the band were at the time. The self-titled album was so effective and cutting to fans because at the time, very few had taken such an archaic and sporadic sound and managed to mould in to a meaningful and emotionally pressing emo album. as their career progressed albums like ’Two Worlds’ and ’Charmer’ kept the lightning in a bottle that they captured during the explosion of the self-titled album and continued to create a more refined yet still raw and open sound, blending more studio time and expertise with a more mature and individual tone behind the vocals to create a new sound, and with their all new love letter ‘Lost On You’, this cycle of progression has continued, leading to one of their most brilliant albums to date, blending the acoustic chaos an d dual vocals of the first album with the brilliance and craftsmanship of their later projects. This album is refreshing and familiar, but most of all, it’s Tigers Jaw at their best. 

The front half of the album contains elegant brilliance, contained in tracks like ‘It’s Ok’, ‘Anxious Blade’ and one of the feature singles, ‘Primary Colours’, the latter of which is arguably the greatest vocal performance from the band to date. the duality of notation between vocalists Ben Walsh and Brianna Collins creates this brilliantly intertwined sound scape, with the vocal points acting as the highest and lowest areas of the tracks, the instrumental takes place within the walls of these vocal pieces to create a well packaged and dynamic track that will likely be added to the band’s setlist as well as the fans’ playlists. This elegance also gives way to harsher, more abrasive tracks at times, with power chords and drum fills aplenty. Songs like ‘Head Is Like A Sinking Stone’ and ‘BREEZER’ bring back more of the bite and tenacity of the previous albums, but with a sharper and more defined edge. While the charm and beauty of the early albums lay in their mess and abundance of heart and emotion, this album finds its identity in the medley of brutal lyricism and sharper production. These 2 singles are an excellent example of that. Both of these aforementioned tracks really give the band space to breathe and show off, with every member getting shining moments in the final product. ‘Head is Like a Sinking Stone’ is another example of this, with Ben Walsh leading on vocals, delivering a tough and brooding performance through his lyricism, simultaneously playing this off against the album’s catchiest chord progressions and lead lines, managing to create sound that feels complete and linear with similar tones in the vocal parts as there are in the rhythm and guitar parts, making a well baked and easy listening heavy hitter. This is a contrast to the track ’BREEZER, as it creates the inverse effect, with Brianna’s vocals on this track taking a much higher and gentler range than the scathing riff played alongside it. This ability to play with its dynamics is the best part of this project, as it creates a beautiful ebb and flow of both pacing and feel. This track is also an absolute masterclass from behind the kit of Teddy Roberts. The drumming on this album is absolutely exceptional and while he does a stellar job on tracks like ‘Ghost’ and ’Staring At Empty Faces’, he truly shines in ‘BREEZER’, carrying the pace and dictation of the track on his back with his violent half-time verse sections that act as both the heartbeat of the track and a source of sheer adrenaline whenever he sneaks a fill underneath the gliding tone of the guitar and vocals. 

The second part of the album contains fewer singles but an absolutely brilliant collection of deep cuts. Tigers Jaw always sound best when their albums are listened to cover to cover. Everything is intentional, well-placed and beautifully written, and this often shines through best in the band’s deep cuts, as while the singles are picked for a reason, every track contains an equivalent level of excellence; tracks like ‘Ghost’ keep a high pace that works in perfect contrast with their despondent lyrics of loss and longing for bad times to pass and something new to begin. This more upbeat pacing is quite common on the second half of the album and makes the slower tracks all the more brutal. Tracks like ‘Roses and Thorns’ take the overall cheery sound of the second half of the album and dips back into immersive and ethereal ballads, truly carrying the listener off somewhere else with its heavy pedal usage and gorgeous vocal phrasings. As this track closes out, we are gifted the title track, signing off an absolutely exceptional album in the most authentic and immersive way they could, piercing and upbeat chords, coupled with an all-timer hardcore-inspired drum performance, carrying the song through its entirety with absolutely no let-up, a deep and rich bass line that allows the chords and vocals to really cut through. This track feels like an amalgamation of every era; the emotional weight of the early albums and the brevity of their new projects meet head-on in a beautiful collision to see this 11-track trip off into the sunset.

While Tigers Jaw have always been a force of nature this album blossoms into something more than that, their wisdom and tenure in the genre has collectively gathered a true wealth of skill that is demonstrated through every second of every track of ‘Lost on You’, if you skip it, your skipping the greatest heartbreak this genre has had to offer for a while so give it a listen, try and keep it together, and enjoy every moment. 

Words by Josh Pook

The Boxer Rebellion’s ‘The Second I’m Asleep’ — a reflective return from indie’s quietest survivors.

For well over two decades, The Boxer Rebellion have been one of the UK’s most quietly poignant indie bands — the kind of group whose longevity can almost go unnoticed, especially after a five-year stretch without live shows or new material. Since returning, however, the band have thrown themselves back into touring, gracing a sold out hometown show at KOKO in Camden last year and preparing for another imminent London date at Electric Brixton, just ahead of the release of their latest record, ‘The Second I’m Asleep’.

While 2013’s ‘Promises’ may be the album that hooked most fans — alongside the neon-washed, dream-pop, indie-shimmer of 2016’s ‘Ocean by Ocean’, of course — every The Boxer Rebellion release has cultivated its own devoted following, each with its own highlights, atmosphere, and emotional weight. ‘The Second I’m Asleep’, the band’s first album since 2018’s ‘Ghost Alive’, is no different.

It’s a beautiful record, full of ostensibly warm, uplifting tones, yet carried throughout by a sense of longing that runs through vocalist Nathan Nicholson’s heartfelt, almost crooning delivery. Taken as individual moments, the songs often shine; taken as one complete piece, though, the album can feel slightly disjointed — like a therapist’s notes shuffled out of order, each page meaningful on its own but not always forming a clear narrative when read straight through. 

Opener ‘Flowers In The Water’ throws you straight into the band’s latest chapter, the anthemic first single from the album wasting no time in announcing the group’s return. Warm guitars and urgent rhythms push the track forward, even as the surrounding soundscape wraps everything in the band’s familiar glow. When Nicholson sings “I gave too much thought to perfect”, it feels both like a reflection on overthinking life and a quiet apology for the band’s absence — although the band sure seem to be making up for that now! 

That same warmth continues into ‘The Last Of A Dying Breed’, where gentle, tranquil instrumentation sits beneath Nicholson’s emotive vocals. Even as the guitars begin to swell in intensity, there’s something oddly calming about the track — perhaps why it’s already become a regular fixture in the band’s live set, the only non-single from the album to do so as of yet.

Even ‘Hidden Meanings’, built on falsetto, reverb, and the twinkling guitars that slowly expand as the track unfolds, has some of that same warmth. One moment it feels like a moment of emotional breakthrough, the band breaking free from some cocoon that was trapping them, and the next it’s closer to embodying a samara, a twirling Sycamore seed drifting in the wind. It feels untethered in ways that few The Boxer Rebellion songs do — a list which ironically quickly grows to include the quietly hopeful ‘This House’, a track shaped by  its steady drums and stable foundation. Lines like “Regrets […] they are useless” land with the feeling of someone trying to rebuild after things have fallen apart — cautious, a little bit broken, but steadfastly determined. 

‘Storm Chaser’, meanwhile, introduces more of a restless edge, its looping guitar chords giving the sense of a track constantly chasing its own hook, an instrumental ouroboros, never quite settling. That unsettled state pervades ‘Satellite Above’, too, where slightly discordant guitar lines and bass grooves mirror Nicholson’s uneasy musings on modern life’s constant demand for attention, hinting at emotional fatigue in a world of instant access and endless noise.

The following pairing of ‘Don’t Leave Yet’ and ‘Perception’, meanwhile feel like a call-and-response caught in the wrappings of the album; the former plays like a hopeful plea, encapsulated in echoing guitars and hazy production, while the latter feels like the answer to it — more definite, more grounded. The warmth that runs through the album remains, but as the duo progresses it feels stronger, triumphant even, especially as the latter’s chorus steadies the former’s earlier uncertainty. And, as the instrumentals bloom outward, there’s hope once more.

Also, what sounds like a woodblock. If a woodblock features on an album, it must be remarked upon. Sorry, don’t make the rules. 

As the album ticks over to ‘Second Guess’, though, the mood turns inward again. Falsetto drifts over a bass-heavy foundation, creating a hazy, almost mirage-like atmosphere filled with self-doubt. There’s even a faint trip-hop pulse at times, giving parts of the track a subtle, Massive Attack-like dissonance that adds to its unease. 

And, finally, the closer, the ostensible album clincher, of ‘Your Side Of Town’. Honestly? It feels exactly how a ‘The Boxer Rebellion album closer’ should. It’s simultaneously hopeful and heartbreaking, harmonious and devastating. Nicholson sounds weary, almost aged by the journey of the record itself, his voice carrying a quiet resignation in the verses — even as held keys sound like evangelical choirs harmonising, even as soft drums and echoing piano keep the song gently moving forward, there’s something despondent there… but also, something strangely trusting. Like, no matter how resigned you feel, it’ll work out. 

It’s that self-same dichotomy that threads its way through the album. As a whole, ‘The Second I’m Asleep’ feels less about big statements and more about fragments of emotion — longing, doubt, hope, regret — presented in different shades across its runtime. It may not flow as seamlessly as some of the band’s earlier work, but its individual moments are often strikingly beautiful, and when it lands, it lands with the same sincerity that has kept The Boxer Rebellion quietly enduring for more than twenty years. 

It’s a fittingly solemn and shining return.

Words by James O’Sullivan

Five years after the striking and heartbreaking Valentine, Lindsey Jordan returns with her third studio album, Ricochet, a record that feels less like a diary entry and more like a transition into adulthood. Now 26 and resettled in Greensboro, North Carolina, Jordan has traded the immediacy and chaos of her youth for a settled, low-key life. You can feel this in the record, which is defined by a newfound vocal clarity, the result of a 2021 surgery for vocal polyps, and a deep-seated obsession with mortality inspired by Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, New York. On Ricochet, Snail Mail isn't just singing about heartbreak; she goes deep into existentialism, helping her realize and accept “that the world still turns no matter what is going on in your tiny life.”

Co-produced by Jordan and Momma’s Aron Kobayashi-Ritch, the record is a lush love letter to the turn of the millennium. The power-pop opening "Tractor Beam" and the grungy "Dead End" evoke the golden era of Liz Phair, The Sundays, and even the radio-friendly hooks of Avril Lavigne. The inspirations are clear, even when looking at the album cover, a clear tribute to The Sundays’ Reading, Writing and Arithmetic. Nevertheless, none of this takes away from her originality; instead, it adds to her own unique vision. Ricochet is not mere nostalgia, but rather an outlet that serves as a homage to her roots.

Jordan employs brass choirs, grand string arrangements, and piano throughout the record, resulting in an expansive but diverse listening experience. This is evident in tracks like "Cruise," but it is also contrasted by the standout “Light On Our Feet,” a heartwarming, stripped-back love song which feels like a breeze inside an album filled with moments of isolation and an internal tug-of-war between the need to belong and the desire to disappear.

Lyrically, the album moves away from the edge and heartbreak of her earlier work. Jordan, who grew up Catholic, uses religious imagery as a playground for her anxieties. On "My Maker," she imagines flying a plane to heaven only to "tarry at the airport bar”. The fear of death is the record's deeper theme. On the track "Hell," which channels The Cranberries, she plainly admits she is "scared to die," while the title track, "Ricochet," finds a strange peace in nihilism: "If nothing matters / we can do whatever we want." This isn't a depressive record, but rather a searching one. As she notes in a recent interview with The Fader, she is no longer "bathing in her own agony," but rather studying it from a distance.

One of the most haunting tracks is "Butterfly," a song that masterfully shifts from fast-paced guitar melodies to a sudden descent in which she sings about transformation, the struggles of being a new artist in the industry, and substance abuse, a recurrent theme in the record: “You want a trip? / You want a quick vacation? / I saw you sneaking undercover / Taking something then another / Just to feel alive / And you are.” She has successfully navigated the transition from indie-rock prodigy to a mature songwriter capable of handling heavy themes without losing the spark that made her a staple of the genre.

In the closing track, “Reverie,” she sings: “Older, now I’ve realized / All my heroes are nothing more than socialites / Fuck them too / But you’re a lighthouse / In my cold, stormy life / And I could do it all the time.” These lyrics resonate with the current climate and suggest that life is still worth living, no matter what is happening around you. You matter and your actions matter, but the anxiety and disproportionate emotions are simply not worth it in the grand scale of things.

Ricochet is not as bold and "in your face" as its predecessor, but it’s still a triumph of restraint and growth for Jordan. It follows a similar path to Japanese Breakfast’s For Melancholy Brunettes (& Sad Women) and Lucy Dacus’ Forever is a Feeling, subtle and low-profile records acknowledging the simpler life and its temporary state. Snail Mail has lost the angst of her teens, but in its place, she has found a voice that is stronger, more mature, and ready to face the unknown.

Words by Marcos Sanoja

Don Broco’s fifth studio album, ‘Nightmare Tripping’, feels like a culmination of the group’s journey over the past (nearly) two decades: and you’ve got to love them for it. 

Don Broco, as a band, have gone through one hell of an evolution over the years. From the very early days of the ‘Thug Workout’ and ‘Big Fat Smile’ EPs, to the catchy and quirky debut of ‘Priorities’ and the slick and sleek ‘Automatic’, came ‘Technology’; put simply, a chaotic, fun, and distinctly laddish hour of tracks that feel like someone took a Mad Max DVD and concentrated it through a juicer, which naturally launched the Bedford boys into arena-playing status. ‘Amazing Things’ felt like a natural progression, with distinctly Broco-esque promotion — most notably Ron Damiani scheduling and training for a boxing match with heavyweight boxer Dave Allen, which was naturally building up to ‘Gumshield’ — albeit a little heavier, a little more experimental, a little more honest, and a little more outraged with everything going on. Finally, last Summer, the first taste of the band’s latest offering was aired, with a new single every month or so, culminating in their headlining Wembley arena for their second time. ‘Cellophane’ is furiously fun, swapping between swagger and self-loathing, anguish and animosity. ‘Hype Man’ somehow perfectly straddles the line between machismo, burnout and the beauty of a support network. ‘Disappear’, meanwhile, is a beautiful, addictive, beat-filled four minutes of exhilaration, about the paralysis that can grip you when trying to support someone who’s mentally or emotionally drowning. And, finally, ‘Euphoria’ — the music equivalent of wanting to chase the dragon, particularly with Tom Doyle’s irresistible bass lines riding on the top. 

But — still no news as to the album.

Enter ‘Nightmare Tripping’. Released just before Valentine’s Day, the track really does feel like a love letter to the fans. It’s got a bit of everything you could want from Don Broco: Rob Damiani’s frantic, frenetic, and frenzied screams, Matt Donnelly’s still-surprisingly-delicate vocals, Tom and Simon’s chaotic guitar and bass lines. It’s even got the ol’ four part harmonies back, the band sharing the track’s eponymous bridge duties. It feels like two or three other tracks, hacked up and then stitched together in some unholy hybrid of rock, metal, shoegaze, nu-metal, and any of the other myriad influences you might be able to pick up. And it’s beautiful. 

Oh, and Nickelback are in it too. That feels like quite an important fact to not gloss over; not to take anything from the Bedford boys, but the feature’s amazing, adding another layer of excitement to the track when you listen to it for the first (or hundredth) time. 

But that’s not the only feature on the album. 

‘True Believers’ starts off feeling like an exploration of the entire Don Broco journey, what with the ‘Priorities’-esque intro or the ‘Automatic’-like chorus.  And that stays kind of true the whole way through, if you discount Sam Carter’s inimitable blegh. But it’s probably more accurate to say it feels more like a ‘the story so far’, what with Damiani and Carter swapping screams between themselves like the Architects’ frontman is formally inducting Don Broco into metalcore stardom. It feels like a track that’s going to quickly become a live favourite, between Donnelly’s catchy, swaying vocals and verses that all but literally scream for a mosh pit. Though, noticeably, it’s actually got some pretty poignant lyrics — good luck picking them out as you listen though!

Speaking of tracks that feel like a look at the band’s journey, ‘Ghost In The Night’ feels like a logical successor to ‘One True Prince’. It has the same expansive, cinematic force, the same ethereal haze dripping off of each of Rob and Matt’s vocals. ‘Ghost In The Night’, though, feels more… urgent? Rather than the philosophical pondering of the ‘Amazing Things’ favourite, it seems desperate for an answer, an acknowledgement — and, with the sudden instrumental crescendo at the end, it seems to reach a heady boiling point.

‘Somersaults’, on the other hand, seems to relish its relative, lethargic chill-ness. It feels like a track destined to just drown your thoughts, shoving it on through your headphones and sinking into the halcyon, nostalgia-laden chorus. There’s a teeny bit of ‘Swimwear Season’ in the expansive chorus, but mostly the track’s its own mesmerising beast.

Three tracks left, even if the whole review’s been out of order.

‘Pacify Me’ is the most unexpected track in the album bar none. Not that it doesn’t sound like Don Broco — from the weird, breathless verses to the catchy choruses, it’s distinctly them. But more just because it’s just so strange, at least as verses go, and then the sudden transition into the Matt-dominated chorus feels unexpected in its normalcy. There’s nothing you can say to give the track any justice — to speak in first person, I’m putting my hands up in surrender for this one.

‘Swimming Pools’ is a bass laden, vocally distorted behemoth, full of pounding drum lines, echoing choruses, and what feels like some indignant rage. It feels a little like a ‘Technology’ deep-cut in its relative straight-forwardness — think ‘Porkies’, perhaps? — but switched up to the new ‘Nightmare Tripping’, acid-riding, sleep paralysis demon normal.

And then, finally, ‘The Corner’. 

There’s always a question around album closers. Generally speaking, though, the most memorable are either ballads or huge, crescendo-ing affairs. ‘The Corner’ is certainly closer to the latter, with new instrumental flourishes seeming to pop into existence every fifteen seconds or so, but don’t discount the fragility of Damiani’s vocals in terms of the former. And, when Matt’s vocals finally burst into the track during the chorus, particularly as the track starts to fade into the ether, ‘The Corner’ seems to somehow act as both. 

Even if it’s the Nickelback-featuring, eponymous title track that both has and will doubtlessly dominate discourse around the album, the whole album feels like Don Broco turned up a notch. Although it took months after the first few singles graced the music scene for anything concrete to be announced, it’s well worth a weight. Just a shame that the arena shows from November mean we’ll have to wait a while longer for another London headline show… although the Biffy Clyro festival day in Finsbury Park in July is looking all the more tempting. 

Words by James O’Sullivan

One day like this a year would see me right: Elbow began 2026’s program of Teenage Cancer Trust shows at the Royal Albert Hall with a glorious debut gig at the historical concert hall. 

Bringing together a selection of the band’s vibrant recent material with emotionally resonant classics like ‘Lippy Kids’ and ‘One Day Like This’, it was an unforgettable beginning to this year’s Teenage Cancer Trust shows as Guy Garvey’s booming vocals and touching songwriting graced the Rpyal Albert Hall for the first time. The first act in a star-studded lineup handpicked by ‘Cureator’ Robert Smith, the storied British alternative rock act kicked off a week of sold-out music and comedy at the legendary venue, all raising funds for Teenage Cancer Trust’s vital work supporting and caring for young people with cancer. 

Establishing the tone for the night was accordionist Nihad Hrustanbegovic, whose drifting notes were both eerie and beautiful, shifting from spectral melancholy to pointed intensity with ease. 

Next onstage was MRCY, the duo of producer Barney Lister and vocalist Kojo Degraft-Johnson, bringing warm, soulful beats to the concert hall’s growing audience. Announced as a supreme concoction of everything from Marvin Gaye to Fela Kuti, the band didn’t disappoint, with the six onstage musicians delivering a suave cocktail of jazzy, neo-soul and afrobeat-inspired tracks. The smooth ‘RLM’ was a standout, putting Kojo’s remarkable vocal talents at the forefront of the slick track. The talented Yazmin Macey was brought out for a live debut of their recent collaboration ‘Better Days’, a groove-laden bop built around the silky duet of Yazmin and Kojo’s vocals, and the darker final track ‘Sierra’ left the crowd wanting more as the Royal Albert Hall bathed in rich harmonies for an undeniably triumphant closing to MRCY’s set. 

A brief return from Hrustanbegovic and his accordion saw a striking rendition of ‘Friday I’m In Love’ before departing for a final time, the ode to his longtime friend Robert Smith complete. 

With lights blaring and thunderous applause, Elbow took to the stage, the looming Guy Garvey parading around with a bravado that he would carry with him across the whole night. Alex Reeves’ crashing drums, Pete Turner’s piercing bassline and Mark Potter’s blaring guitar solos stole the show across their opening tracks ‘Things I’ve Been Telling Myself For Years’ and ‘Lovers’ Leap’, alongside the stellar contributions from their 5-strong horn and string section, who also doubled as a powerful choir of backing vocals. With influences including Cream, Jimi Hendrix, Beastie Boys and Sly and the Family Stone across their 2024 album AUDIO VERTIGO, the record was pure revelry in live performance, but it wasn’t long before the first big moment of the night came in the form of the skeletal ‘The Bones of You’ and ethereal ‘Mirrorball’ emanating across the Royal Albert Hall. With crescent moons lighting up the upper stalls and a colossal glistening mirror ball shining twinkling sparks around the concert hall, all arms waved back and forth for Elbow’s ultimate feel-good track.

Elbow are a band that’s never shied away from inscribing their left-leaning politics in song, most overtly in their 2005 album Leaders Of The Free World. “We live in a troubling age” Garvey whispers during the thudding ‘Her to the Earth’, the only track where Garvey consciously reflected on the state of the world on the otherwise deliberately politically avoidant AUDIO VERTIGO. Reflecting on the significance of the night's occasion, he later remarked “when there’s so much fear and division in the news, and madness… isn’t it wonderful that people get together and do things like the Teenage Cancer Trust?”.

Sliding from controlled chaos to softer sweetness with ease, the intense, groove-based rumblings of ‘Balu’ led into the unique moment of Elbow playing ‘Great Expectations’ for the first time this year, making it only the fifth time they’ve played the song over the last six years. The 2005 track was followed by the tenderest moment of the night as Elbow played ‘The Seldom Seen Kid’, the elegant waltz dedicated to the band’s long-departed friend Bryan Glancy, who also inspired the title for their 2008 Mercury Prize-winning album. Garvey spoke touchingly on his mind wandering back during the pandemic, writing the song imagining Garvey’s now-wife on a dancefloor with Glancy. Paired with keyboardist and producer Craig Potter’s beautiful, heartstring-pulling arrangement, the song was a powerful force live.

Stoking the crowd to its limit with the relentless march of ‘The Birds’, Elbow again showcased the dynamic range of their ten-album discography by dropping back down to the stately, keyboard-led opening of ‘Lippy Kids’. The glorious refrain “Build a rocket boys” came as a revelation as it echoed serenely over soothing backing vocals, with the eager crowd singing back the chorus line per Garvey’s request. It was clear Elbow’s powerful, almost cult-like live atmosphere had entirely enveloped the mythical concert hall. 

Continuing this slew of singalong numbers through ‘My Sad Captains’ and ‘Magnificent (She Says)’, the head-banging classic ‘Grounds For Divorce’ rounded off their main setlist in furious style, before the steady build-up of ‘Station Approach’ prepared the crowd for the moment we’d all been waiting for. Heralded by Garvey directing crowd vocals into the long-awaited stirring of violins, ‘One Day Like This’ graced The Royal Albert Hall in all its glory, a moment nobody in attendance would forget anytime soon. One day like this a year indeed saw us all right. 

Elbow have come a long way since they formed in Bury 35 years ago, and now they’ve conquered a long-awaited holdout in the pantheon of the capital’s most hallowed venues. Following their stunning first night, Teenage Cancer Trust’s week-long Royal Albert Hall takeover continues with performances by Manic Street Preachers, Garbage, and my bloody valentine, finishing with fellow Mercury Prize winners Wolf Alice playing the iconic venue for a high-flying finish this Sunday. 

Words by Taran Will
Photo credit: John Stead

With 2023’s Wallsocket, April Harper Grey, better known as the hyperpop superstar underscores, offered us a sprawling, multi-media folk-punk odyssey that felt as wide and dusty as the fictional town it inhabited. However, her third and latest record, U, suggests that once you’ve built a world, the only thing left to do is burn it down and wander around what is left, which in this case, is pure magic.

The sonic landscape of U is perhaps Grey’s most forward-thinking to date, yet it feels effortless. The record was built in the Mall of America, the largest shopping center in the United States. There, Grey spent days wandering its consumer-centered corridors, absorbing the liminal energy of a space designed to be everything and nothing at once. Grey herself has described it as the soundtrack to an "iPhone spy movie," and “designed for malls, airports, and supermarkets.”

It is an album, titled after her artistic name, that analyzes the relationship between the U and I. On the opening track, "Tell Me (U Want It)," we immediately enter a world of lust and recklessness in which she confesses: “I guess I’m that type of person: I get what I want and then find out right after I get it, I don’t even want it.” Shifting from the full blown-out chaos of her past music, she is now opting for more slick and controlled drops. "The Peace" is a stripped-back track which takes on a smoking journey from Brooklyn to Coachella and ultimately Europe, in which she sings to a friend: “I couldn’t escape the vibe sleeping on the couch / It’s always been like this and it might be forever / We took a hit outside together.”

The production doesn't just support the lyrics; it enacts them, shifting from the nostalgia of "Music," in which she describes a partner as every genre of music and admits how she “just can’t stand when people talk like they’re a therapist / But your words sound like they come from God, I can’t compare to it,” to the club-ready glitch of "Innuendo (I Get U)," which is bound to make you move.

The album’s strongest moment is difficult to pinpoint considering that every song is so meticulously crafted, but "Lovefield" might take it. More than just a ballad, it is the most heartbreaking moment in the tracklist. In a melody reminiscent of Imogen Heap’s early records, she sings: “It hurts for me to wait on U / I bet you’re waiting on me too / Always almost never ever / Wish I could get it but I can’t / I can’t, you’re just outside the Lovefield.” It is undoubtedly a career highlight, and one of the best releases of the year so far.

This emotional moment leads into the high of "Do It," which features what is arguably Grey’s most irresistible pop chorus to date. Dropped as the last single before the release of the record, alongside a self-directed music video, it is a banger in which she warns a love interest about her lifestyle while debating if they might be good for her, and viceversa: “If you don’t know me, and I don’t know you / Then this might be something we should do / It’s all on the line for me, you could ruin everything / Or you could make me somebody new… U!”

The record concludes with the pop-heavy “Bodyfeeling” and the haunting "Wish U Well." It is a finale that feels purposefully anticlimactic, but somehow it works. “This ain’t what I had imagined / That’s just how it happened,” Grey sings, acknowledging the gap between the thrill of the chase and the stillness of the aftermath. It offers some of the most vulnerable lyrics she’s ever written: “And if I’m being honest with myself, I don’t want closure / I want to feel the gravity of losing you / And if I’m being honest with myself, the feeling’s over / My worst nightmare coming true…”. It is a quiet conclusion that feels like the ending of a film when the credits roll and you’re left sitting in the dark all by yourself.

U is underscores’ strongest project to date, proving her ability to create sonic landscapes. By turning the lens inward and toward the "U" that haunts her, which is mostly just her, she has created a record that feels singular; a new bible of modern pop. It is a concise, fun, but gut-wrenching album that will stay in your head for a long time.

Words by Marcos Sanoja

Rising artist Nessa Barrett has long flirted with the intensity of emotional candour, but her brand-new EP, Jesus Loves a Primadonna, crystallises that daring into a fully realised artistic statement. 

Across eight tracks, Barrett navigates the labyrinthine terrain of love, its beauty, its collapse, and the inevitable self-preservation that follows. Framed as the “villain origin story” of every woman who has loved until she cannot love anymore, the EP feels both intimate and cinematic, a testament to Barrett’s evolution from bedroom pop starlet to an artist of considerable emotional and sonic maturity.

The record opens with ‘West Coast Prayers’, a 3-minute-and-30-second invocation that immediately sets the tone. Minimalistic yet enveloping, the track combines moody electronic textures with Barrett’s signature whispery vocal approach, establishing a sense of spiritual longing that threads through the entire EP. Her voice is at once soothing and urgent, hinting at the vulnerability to come without ever compromising its ethereal beauty.

Next, ‘Moulin Rouge’ introduces a subtle playfulness, contrasting the heavier emotional themes with a slightly more theatrical sensibility. Barrett’s ability to inhabit different emotional registers without losing cohesion is remarkable; even the lighter moments carry an undercurrent of tension, a sly acknowledgement that love is never simple. Similarly, ‘Black Haired Madonna’ continues this exploration of romantic duality, blending electronic melancholy with a melodic directness that demonstrates Barrett’s growing command of mood and atmosphere.

By the time we reach ‘Venom’, the EP’s dark, club-influenced production becomes more pronounced. The track’s title is fitting: Barrett’s vocals insinuate danger, passion, and longing in equal measure. Here, the electronic textures feel “dirty and dark,” yet the song is never oppressive; Barrett’s voice, soothing, almost hypnotic, balances the brooding instrumentation, proving that she can wield her emotionality as an instrument itself.

‘Buffalo 66’ serves as a centrepiece of narrative and sound. With a cinematic sweep, the song unfolds slowly, building tension through layered synths and hauntingly precise percussion. Barrett’s lyricism here is sharp, reflecting a keen understanding of heartbreak’s complexities. The production, moving away from her pop-punk roots, signals a confident pivot into a club-ready yet introspective domain.

Perhaps the most sonically adventurous track, ‘High on Heaven’, mixes desert-rock expansiveness with trip-hop rhythms, hypnotic vocal layering, and a restrained sensuality. Lyrically, the song juxtaposes desire and devotion, exploring attachment in a way that is suggestive yet measured: “I know it’s late / But, darlin’, I need you now, I’m freaking out / Straight in my veins,” she confesses, comparing emotional dependence to being “high on heroin”. It’s a bold metaphor, executed with enough subtlety to feel vulnerable rather than performative.

‘Special To You’ condenses emotional complexity into a brief but affecting burst of melody. Its intimacy is striking; Barrett’s whispery timbre draws the listener close, emphasising the tenderness at the heart of the EP.

The record closes with ‘Stay With Me’, a 3-minute-and-47-second tour de force of vulnerability and heartbreak. Opening with soft, almost hesitant guitar strums, Barrett immediately immerses the listener in her emotional landscape: “Maybe I’m not meant to be held / I get close, and they always leave / Will you be like everyone else / Or will you stay with me?” The song’s cinematic, gothic aura, accentuated by black-and-white visuals and the cover featuring Barrett cradling a black kitten, underscores its emotional weight. Here, Barrett confronts abandonment, past trauma, and borderline personality struggles with astonishing openness. The rising tide of grunge-infused guitars and surging synths mirrors the intensifying emotional stakes, allowing her voice to cut deeply into the listener’s consciousness without ever feeling melodramatic.

What ties Jesus Loves a Primadonna together is Barrett’s uncanny ability to translate complex emotional states into sound. The production’s moody electronic palette, layered with club-ready textures and desert-rock expansiveness, supports her lyricism without overpowering it. Her vocal performances, soothing yet tinged with fragility, communicate a spectrum of vulnerability, anger, and desire with nuance and precision. The EP is a masterclass in balancing accessibility with depth, pop sensibilities with dark, immersive atmospherics.

Jesus Loves a Primadonna announces Nessa Barrett as a fully realised artist capable of marrying raw emotional honesty with a sophisticated sonic vision. Each track is meticulously crafted, each lyric thoughtfully rendered, resulting in a record that is both a personal confession and a universal exploration of love’s transformative power. Barrett has not only expanded her musical palette but has also sharpened her narrative voice, offering listeners a profound and compelling portrait of a woman who loves fiercely, loses deeply, and ultimately survives with artful grace.

Words by Danielle Holian

Foo Fighters show off on new single ‘Caught In The Echo’, it’s the third from their 12th full-length studio album, ‘Your Favorite Toy’, which is out on the 24th of April. Their stadium-ready rock has clearly not reached its peak yet, with ‘Caught In The Echo’ being as exciting as their debut was.

On their previous album we heard Grohl pull on our heartstrings, bringing ballad-like stories of echoing heartbreak, on this new series of releases the band return to their heavily riffing, thumping and stomping roots. ‘Caught In The Echo’ is soaring and thunderous and brings together the different assets the Foos have come to be known for; stadium-ready, screaming rock, strumming riffs, as well as softer, almost introspective chapters and that all within just over four minutes of music.

Grohl, Mendel, Shiflett, Smear, Jaffee and Rubin show off an amount of energy we didn’t realise they still possessed, Foo Fighters are a band not to expire anytime soon, with ‘Caught In The Echo’ making me more and more excited about the upcoming album. Although the previous album was a personal favourite, as I’m a soft rock girl at heart, this one brings new and fresh energy to the forefront, giving me something else to long for once again. This track foreshadows the new album’s rough hewn energy with arguably the band’s most explosive opener in a while.

Grohl tears at the edges with “Do I? Do I? Do I? Do I?”, then ends with closing plea “Who can save us now?” which is a journey in itself, ignoring the other layers of the track, which makes it an even more impressive one. Together with the others on the upcoming album, this track was recorded at home, and co-produced by Foo Fighters and Oliver Roman, engineered by Roman, and mixed by Mark Stent. Ten track-counting album ‘Your Favorite Toy’ heralds the band’s Take Cover world tour, which includes their return to the UK for two dates at Liverpool’s Anfield Stadium and the 25th and 27th of June. It’s an exciting time to be a young(ish) Foos fan.

Words by Laura Rosierse

Energy Whores is the electrifying avant-electro/art-pop project led by New York-based artist Carrie Schoenfeld, who has just unveiled their latest album ‘Arsenal of Democracy’.

Urgent, tense, and unapologetically political, the record confronts democratic erosion, manufactured fear, and public disengagement in an era shaped by instability and distraction.

It’s a bold, high-voltage work that fuses experimental sound design with sharp, unflinching commentary. When we spoke with Schoenfeld, she highlighted a wide spectrum of inspirations, all feeding into the project’s confrontational edge. She also spoke about her aspirations, at its core, Energy Whores isn’t just a musical project; it’s a call to attention, urging audiences to question, engage, and resist complacency.

Who are your top three musical inspirations and why?
David Bowie, because he refused categories. He treated identity as fluid, theatrical, and conceptual. Bowie wasn’t just writing songs, he was building new images and entire worlds. That permission to reinvent, to merge sound, fashion, art, and philosophy is deeply embedded in what I do. Talking Heads, their ability to make intellectual anxiety danceable changed everything for me. They combined art school thinking with rhythm and groove. That tension between the cerebral and the physical is exactly where my music lives, and of course Burning Down the House! Patti Smith, fearless truth. Poetry as protest. She showed that you can stand on a stage and speak uncomfortable truths without apology.

Is there a certain film that inspires you and why?
Blade Runner. It’s visually hypnotic, but beyond that it questions humanity in a technological world. What is real, what is constructed, what makes someone “human”? As someone blending electronic sound with emotional urgency, I’m very drawn to that tension between machine and soul. A lot of my work lives right there inside that friction. I also love their outfits, and the soundtrack is amazing.

What city do you find the most inspiring and why?
New York City. I was born and grew up in Manhattan. It’s chaotic, layered, contradictory, relentless, and wonderful. You can walk down one block and hear five languages, see wealth and poverty collide, eat food from all over the world, hear music from everywhere, know people from every corner of the planet, and feel like you are at the centre of the world. New York doesn’t let you sleepwalk through life, especially not on the subway. It demands awareness. That urgency feeds my writing constantly.

Who is the most inspiring person to you and why?
My parents. I grew up in a house where art, theatre, and photography were part of everyday life. My father was Chairman of the Shubert Organization and produced many successful Broadway plays, so the world of theatre, storytelling, and live performance was always around me. I spent many Saturdays doing “the rounds” with my father. This meant everything from going into dressing rooms before shows and just hanging out with performers, to talking with people backstage or the musicians. A few times I even sat in on rehearsals, listening to directors and actors interact, change scenes, or sometimes remove entire scenes. My mother, Patricia Schoenfeld, helped found the International Center of Photography and has been deeply involved in the arts throughout her life. Through her work I saw how visual art and photography can shape culture and change the way people see the world. Growing up between theatre and visual art taught me that creativity isn’t just personal expression, it is part of how a society thinks, questions itself, and evolves. That idea has stayed with me and absolutely influences what I do with Energy Whores today.

What were your inspirations when writing your new track?
Frustration, information overload, watching democracy strain under misinformation and spectacle. But also resilience. If I am willing to tell the story, then hopefully somebody else is ready to do something about it. I was thinking about how ordinary people navigate systems that feel overwhelming. How do we stay human inside the noise, how do we keep dancing while the world feels unstable? When I write songs, music becomes a kind of sonic pressure chamber, a whole spectrum of emotions set to rhythm.

How would you like to inspire people?
I want to inspire awareness and independent thought. If someone hears my music and feels less alone in their questioning, or feels empowered to challenge something that feels wrong, then I have done my job.

This week's Artist of the Week is Canadian indie-folk artist Cat Clyde - who has just released her new album 'Mud Blood Bone' via Concord Records.

Clyde’s fourth full-length and first release with Concord arrives in a sonic overlap: the rockabilly grit of contemporaries like Sierra Ferrell, The Deslondes, or Nick Shoulders, meets the vulnerable, folk rock volatility of Big Thief or Angel Olsen. It’s a trudge through the swamp and into vast, cleansing waters that finds Clyde at a critical point of personal evolution—equal parts despair, invocation, discovery, and celebration.

She took a moment to talk to us about how the album came together.

Hey there Cat, how are you? So your album is out now – how does it feel to have it out there?
It feels great to have my album out! It’s been an enormous amount of preparation and creation to get here and it feels so good to finally share it all. 

It is called 'Mud Blud Bone' – what is the meaning behind that?
I went through a lot of transitions in my life making this record. In a lot of ways I felt like I went through a rebirth. I waded through a lot of mud internally, shed a lot of blood and the very fabric of my bones changed and evolved. It was a painful transition, but being on the other side - I feel there’s been a lot of room created for big blessings to come through for me and I am so grateful. 

Where was it recorded? Any behind the scenes stories you are willing to share with us?
This record was recorded at Chase Park Transduction Studios in Athens, Georgia.

What are the key influences behind the album?
My key influences for this record were the natural world, love, and time. 

If the album could be a soundtrack to any film – which one and why?
Interesting question. Maybe a movie about an alchemist who gets her heart broken. 

Now the album is out there – what next for you?
What’s next for me is sharing these songs out in the road. Feeling them and allowing them to change and evolve in a new way. 

I Wanna Be a Cowboy, Baby! CMAT takes over a sold-out Ally Pally with a riotous, shenanigan-ridden performance for her biggest headline show to date.

What a year 2025 was for CMAT, the popstar alias of Dunboyne-born Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson. With the revelation of EURO-COUNTRY, the Irish singer-songwriter leapt from a rising indie pop act to a cultural sensation, an eminent new voice for thoughtful, feisty and vivacious pop that took airwaves, charts, critics and festival crowds by storm. Battling with Sabrina Carpenter for a number one album, raiding Glastonbury’s Pyramid stage, and supporting Sam Fender’s mammoth stadium tour; all in a year’s work for the Dunboyne Diana. Oh, and she sold out Ally Pally in an hour last August. 

The final UK show of her It’s The Euro-Country tour was always going to be special, but a cocktail of hilarity that only CMAT could construct surpassed all expectations, including a guest appearance from Harry Hill dressed as a giant dart board and a live premiere of the music video for ‘The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station’, starring Jamie Oliver himself. 

But first, supporting act Katy J Pearson took to the stage, wielding just her acoustic guitar. Her voice cascaded around the cavernous hall, a smooth, warming blend of resonant post-Fleetwood Mac Stevie Nicks and the knottier folk hues of Joan Baez. New track ‘Lucky Star’ was met with intrigue, and her 70s country vibe grew with the addition of Evie on violin for much of her set, which included an alternative version of the striking ‘Alligator’, the soft mythology-infused ‘Siren Song’, and the memorable ‘Beautiful Soul’. The Bristol singer-songwriter’s ninth show supporting CMAT, her final number ‘Take Over Town’ felt like an ode to the Irish pop heroine’s incoming presence.  

The first of many surprises followed, with “Please stand by for a very important message from a very important CMAT and a very important chef” emblazoning the two giant screens flanking the main stage, along with a countdown. Chanting anticipation revealed a video of an extravagantly fur-clad CMAT announcing the premiere of her ‘The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station’ music video, all whilst sat next to a very disinterested Jamie Oliver (“a guy I found on the street”). The video alternated between shots of The Very Sexy CMAT Band’s excellent synchronised dance moves and an increasingly stressed Jamie Oliver running a kitchen. Both converge at - you guessed it - a service station, and a fed-up Jamie Oliver is tempted towards a drumkit by CMAT, who dances and wails around him as he lets go on the toms and cymbals. 

The crowd more than warmed up, it wasn’t long before the ominous piano opening of ‘Janis Joplining’ blared through the speakers and The Very Sexy CMAT Band filtered onstage in matching black and yellow Dunboyne Darts Co. outfits. Cheers erupted as CMAT revealed herself on the far side of the crowd with her first words “I’m a writer…”, pausing for the gleeful audience to watch before continuing. Soon frolicking onstage, she delivered the rest of the song with an electric stage presence until the band froze (in very impressive poses) and a puzzled CMAT surveyed the crowd to thunderous applause. 

After a resurgent performance of ‘Jamie Oliver Petrol Station’, the theatrics continued as CMAT patrolled the front of the crowd with a scowl, directing heartrending lines from the powerful ‘I don’t really care for you’ at unsuspecting fans (then apologising after). Midway through the track she paused, taking it all in. 

“Holy fuck… this is a lot of people. We don’t usually get to play for this many people! Either the culture is getting stupider or hornier… both things I feel would be better for the way of the world”.

Her energy totally infectious, and the crowd lapping up every word and glance, she declared that despite her feud with the chef, “he’s a good man”, jumping into the bittersweet ‘When A Good Man Cries’. The stomping country-tinged ‘Tree Six Foive’ was up next, leading into another romp as Ally Pally turned into a sea of waggling fingers for ‘Have Fun!’. Another shenanigan ensued as the one and only Harry Hill took to stage dressed as a giant dart board to announce The CMAT Darts Break, and each of the band took turns throwing darts at a staggering Hill, who held back laughter to repeatedly announce “180!” with incredulity. It was Ally Pally, after all. 

Next, self-affirmation anthem ‘Take a Sexy Picture Of Me’ led into Katy J Pearson’s return to the stage for a crowd-rousing cover of Girls Aloud’s ‘Biology’, with CMAT and Katy playfully trading lines back and forth throughout. 

After the sombre, amethyst-hued moment of ‘Coronation Street’, “a song about severe depression when I lived in Manchester”, CMAT took an impromptu song request from the crowd, launched into the verse and chorus of ‘California’. Next, her introduction of the one and only Very Sexy CMAT Band predictably descended into pantomime. Undoubtedly their showmanship knew no bounds, but their musical talents deserve equal plaudits, staying tightly knit however many dance moves were thrown, or in guitarist Jack Wolter’s case, how many instruments.

“Do you think we can take the people of Alexandra Palace on a run and a plan?”, the Irish star asked, beginning the final song of her main setlist. Her voice was a tour de force across the whole night, shifting from tender moments to operatic tendencies with ease, and we’d now reached the pinnacle. The crowd hanging onto her every word, CMAT’s lyrical narration of the societal pressures around heterosexual relationships displayed her expert ability to effortlessly balance humour with hardship, all wrapped in a song that truly brought the house down. 

You can't get much stronger encores than CMAT’s closing numbers, barrelling through the titular ‘EURO-COUNTRY’ into the joyous romp of ‘I Wanna Be a Cowboy, Baby!’, with a break in between for some “administration” across three points: the T in CMAT stands for trans rights, fuck Reform and free Palestine. Shortly after, 10,000 of us rallied together for perhaps the largest Dunboyne County Meath Two-Step held in one room ever before, swaying back and forth as our redheaded overlord commanded.

With one final boogie left, ‘Stay For Something’ saw CMAT climb into the crowd once again, before returning to take a much-deserved bow with the Very Sexy CMAT Band. Her packed touring schedule will take her across Europe and then America over the next few months, playing multiple shows almost every week until festival season kicks in. Ready to break her own record again - and sure to do so in style - in June CMAT will head 10 miles Southwest across the capital to headline LIDO festival in Victoria Park. That’s a whole lot of Running/Planning,

Words by Taran Will
Photography by Stefania Semini

Albany's hardcore darlings release 'Pynch' via Pure Noise Records, their first single since their previous album alongside a tidal wave of worldwide tour announcements for your local antagonists to really sink their teeth into.

Sharp and laser focused is one of the first things that comes to mind when I think about Drug Churches catalogue of releases and their all new single 'Pynch' is no different. This emphatic and boisterous track kicks off immediately into a blister of power chords and tonal perfection, taking pieces of every album and continuing to define their very evident sound into concrete pillar of the current hardcore and punk scenes. Everything is so tightly packed together with excellence, now having mastered the art of a short track they manage to blend a gorgeous chord progression into an eruption of melodic chaos within seconds of the song starting, this dynamism and ability to play with both emotion and sheer velocity is something that makes this band so special and 'Pynch' proves that yet again.

This track could not have arrived at a better time for the band either, as fresh off of the back of a support tour around Europe and the UK with alternative icons Deftones, they have not only been able to grow their cult following past its previous numbers but they have been able to hone their skill continuously into this excellently blended formula that has been hammered away at for years. Everything is truly coming together and something about this recent release feels like an ascension past their current level of success, this is a band that have written some of the greatest songs in their respective genres history and loads of these tracks have despicably gone under the radar.

With the Deftones tour behind them and the wider alternative scene aware that they are present and constantly a driving force of creativity this song will mark a turning point for them and their upcoming shows, with both a co-headline tour with White Reaper and a mammoth UK and Europe tour with support from Liquid Mike and Downward starting in September of this year, Drug Church will undoubtedly explode and I cannot wait for the wider world to jump on the hype train as you would be hard pressed to find another band that is as dedicated to their craft and driven to be creatively brilliant as this Albany 5-piece powerhouse.

Words by Josh Pook

MOULD leave The Lexington wanting more.

First up on a lively Friday night at The Lexington, are Martial Arts, whose evocative lyrics such as ‘I saw the rich man cry’ on their song ‘Defector’ are stirring when combined with thunderous drums. Expanding on their 2024 single ‘Triumph’, Singer and lyricist, Jim Marson says: ‘Triumph’ is a rallying cry for anyone who feels stifled by societal pressures. It’s an exploration of the tension between personal desires and the pressures of society. Societal norms can suffocate the younger generation, many of whom can feel out of place in a world that demands conformity. It questions the true cost of such conformity to our own potential and values.” Much like tonight’s headliners MOULD, they are a formidable live band, their lead singer provocatively yelling the punk fuelled mantra ‘Do as I say not as I do’ with increasing intensity in his menacing tone. 

Rising from the UK post-punk scene, MOULD are known for short, intense tracks and politically charged energy, in a similar vein to established acts like fellow Bristolians Idles and Fontaines D.C. Emerging from the UK underground scene in the early 2020s, they’ve gained attention for their fast, abrasive sound and DIY ethos, channelling traditional British punk while leaning into the current post-punk revival that gives them their own distinctive sound. A charismatic figure onstage, their lead singer Joe Sherrin possesses a great turn of phrase and spiky vocal delivery that adds real depth to the scuzzy, visceral guitars. Their latest single ‘Falling Posture’ released last month really captures the sense of alienation of adolescent British life: ‘Comfortable wasting time/Dismantling all my enthusiasm/The languid medium mind’, the anguished vocals and uptight lyrics feeling incredibly apt in the bleak British economy. Part of the same wider UK scene that has recently produced bands like shame, MOULD’s sound veers more intro hardcore-punk territory and feels distinctly stripped back.

MOULD have built a steady momentum through their singles and EPs rather than a large catalogue so far, and these impressive tracks circulating in the UK indie circuit have helped them develop somewhat of a cult following in small venues and DIY spaces, The Lexington’s lively Friday night crowd reflected the hype the band are clearly revelling in. Their tracks are characterised by their raw production. minimal overdubs and erratic tempo changes, giving their live shows a palpable sense of unpredictability in the true punk sprit and translating very well to sweaty small room gigs like tonight’s. Their short and relentless songs give the band an intoxicating energy that feels fitting on a buzzing Friday night. Both chaotic and tight, their crowd driven set inspires passionate moshing and some great singalong moments. 

Describing themselves on their website as an ‘Unhinged musical joyride’, MOULD certainly know how to have a good time, with the lead singer suddenly quipping to a crowd member: “How did you get an Aperol spritz?” as he sips his can of beer, which gets a big laugh. They take many opportunities to address their seemingly adoring crowd. Showcasing new single ‘Lucid’, lead singer Joe announces it will be on their brilliantly titled debut album ‘Hoping As A Coping Mechanism’, with an eagerly awaited release date on July 10th, perfectly poised to take the summer festival season by storm as they truly break the MOULD with an inspiring sound full of punk promise. 

Words by Brendan Sharp

The Scratch have both bite and bark on their latest album, Pull Like A Dog. 

The Scratch, who started as a busking project between four friends a decade or so ago, are now one of the fiercest and liveliest bands to come out of Ireland. A perfect fusion of metal and traditional folk, there is no other band out there quite like them, and their third album, Pull Like A Dog, is perhaps their best work yet. 

Opening the album is the title track, Pull Like A Dog, and there’s immediately no holding back from The Scratch. The song plunges you straight into the madness; it’s pure raw energy from the get-go, with bone-rattling percussion and naughty riffs. Its title was inspired by a phrase coined by the O’Donovan brothers, Irish Olympic Rowers, who once said in an interview, “close your eyes and pull like a dog,” after winning a silver medal at the Olympics. It’s a phrase that embodies the sheer grit and determination it takes to achieve your dreams. An apt title for the song, as well as the album. It’s a phrase that throws one hell of a punch and captures the tone and direction of the album nicely. 

The Scratch go from one high-energy song into another, Pullin’ Teeth. It is, at its core, a folk song, opening with acoustic guitars plucked at such a pace that they resemble the fiddle, before the cajon drum begins, and my god, the sheer amount of raucous energy that pours from this track is truly infectious. “Sometimes you get lucky / sometimes they’ll disappear back up their own arse if it’s not too mucky / if you’re lucky,” a nod to the genius lyric writing must also be given here. What The Scratch have truly nailed is the ability to balance two differing genres perfectly, and as you get deeper into Pullin’ Teeth, they begin to merge their metal expertise with their folk. It starts as a slow rumble, before the dark, heavy metal thumping begins.

The deep dive into the album continues with Crack, which has an eerie tone to it, slower to start and almost hypnotising “step on a crack and you might find yourself alone.” The acoustic guitars carry this song from the beginning, while the slow, steady drumbeat that kicks in keeps the energy floating. Mother Of God is as dirty as they come with its riffs, and while it feels slower than the first few tracks, it also feels like one of the heaviest, and perhaps exactly why The Scratch have landed a slot at Bloodstock this year. 

Pull Like A Dog does actually contain some moments of respite, though, with slower, or as slow as a band like The Scratch can go, songs like Spacer and I Hope All Is Forgiven. The latter will potentially catch you off guard with its haunting beauty, vocalist Daniel Lang accompanied by nothing more than a few strums of the guitar. A song that confronts death and grief headfirst, “then I heard that he’s no longer living / he’s gone, he’s gone / I hope all is forgiven.” It is the slowest song on the album by far, but it still packs a punch as strong as the rest of them. 

The droning end of I Hope All Is Forgiven rolls seamlessly into Horsefly, which picks the pace of the album back up again. The twang of the guitar strings and quick-paced beat of the drum will immediately get under your skin, will have you scratching an itch you didn’t know you had. Roses n Poses is similar with its addictive energy.

Closing out Pull Like A Dog is the track Ringsend, which is another slower track in comparison to the majority of the album. The Scratch lean more into their folk roots with Ringsend; it’s a song that feels laced with the sounds of their ancestors, and the addition of the strings elevates it further. It’s a suitable track to end on, gently drawing the fierce energy of the album in and wrapping it up nicely. As they say, all good things must come to an end…the beauty in this is that you can just hit repeat. 

Pull Like A Dog is a firecracker of an album from start to finish. The talent that oozes from this four-piece knows no bounds; those who have seen them live can testify to this. The Scratch are truly one of a kind, and if Pull Like A Dog is anything to go by, they show absolutely no signs of slowing down or stopping. It feels like their most confident album yet, and dare I say it, their best. 

And while it’s only March, Pull Like A Dog is already a strong contender for Album Of The Year. 

Words by Angela English