ALBUM REVIEW – JEFFREY ALEXANDER + THE HEAVY LIDDERS: SYNCHRONOUS ORBIT

Often, I use the word ‘meandering’ as an insult when describing music or any other art form. However, ‘Synchronous Orbit’, the new album from Jeffrey Alexander + The Heavy Lidders warrants that description but in the best possible connotations of the word. It is unhurried like a walk of exploration with no map and predefined […]
The Kooks tap into that sixties countercultural influenced sound at the start of the opening title track with Jonathan Harvey playing a groovy bassline and Alexis Nunez keeping a steady beat. Luke Pritchard’s relaxed vocal joins the mix along with Hugh Harris on organ. The perfect summer sound. The repeated harmonies of “Never know when […]

ALBUM REVIEW – THE KOOKS: NEVER/KNOW

ALBUM REVIEW – VARIOUS ARTISTS: TRUE NAMES

The first track took me straight back to my year 7 drama class, where we were all trying to look cool while doing freeze frames and delivering our intense spoken word pieces on why drugs are bad. It feels very unorganised and quickly put together. Saying this, though, it’s not an unenjoyable track. The bond […]
Rock influences ripple throughout the album by Scottish band Tide Lines, and the band write songs which resonate on such a high level, tracks that are memorable and evocative. From the start to the conclusion of their record Glasgow Love Story, the act generates an emotional twist, evolving with every earnest touch, and every beating […]

ALBUM REVIEW – TIDE LINES: GLASGOW LOVE STORY

ALBUM ROUNDUP WEEK ENDING 2 MAY 2025

Lots to enjoy from this week’s roundup of new releases. Lael Neale      Altogether Stranger Clocking in at just 32 minutes, the 9-song LP covers an unexpected breadth of musical and lyrical terrain – from garage rock nursery rhymes and creation myths to Motorik dance dirges and solitary Omnichord meditations. Sally Potter    Anatomy          Filmmaker whose album […]
Stunning finger picking guitar blesses your ears as you are introduced to If You Asked For A Picture by Blondshell. ‘Thumbtack’ explores the theme of letting someone treat you horribly because at least they will treat you at all, to reference Phoebe Bridgers. This song is so easy to listen to as the melodies and […]

ALBUM REVIEW – BLONDSHELL: IF YOU ASKED FOR A PICTURE

ALBUM REVIEW – IRON LUNG: ADAPTING // CRAWLING

Seattle powerviolence band Iron Lung pretty instantly became part of the canon of the hyper-fast, hyper-aggressive genre. Albums like Life. Iron Lung. Death, Cold Storage 1 & 2 and White Glove Test are now listed among genre classics over a decade their senior when recommending starting material to the uninitiated. That’s not even to mention […]
Arthur Russell is a big inspiration for me. His unconventional voice with his cello is a combination that has resonated with me ever since he was first recommended to me by a friend a couple of years ago. When I found out there was new material of his being released, especially live recordings, I was […]

ALBUM REVIEW – ARTHUR RUSSELL: OPEN VOCAL PHRASES, WHERE SONGS COME IN AND OUT

ALBUM REVIEW – MODEL/ACTRIZ: PIROUETTE

I first heard Dogsbody, the debut album by Brooklyn based noise-rockers Model/Actriz, while in Berlin. Though unintentional, the setting proved fitting for an album set at steamy queer clubs on late evenings. Their new album Pirouette sees the emotional intensity being turned up to unstable levels, culminating in a message about reinvention against a backdrop of a world […]
It’s over 20 years since Propagandhi unleashed their angry, immature, skate-punk-rooted debut How To Clean Everything; it’s eight years since their last release, the high-energy, thrash-influenced Victory Lap. On my first listen of At Peace, I hear the age and roughness in Chris Hannah’s vocals, and he reflects that sense himself, singing “Behold the cruel […]

ALBUM REVIEW – PROPAGANDHI: AT PEACE