ALBUM REVIEW – MAYA ONGAKU: NOTHING SPACE MUSIC

There are numerous records in my collection that include the command “Play Loud” on their sleeve. It does not appear far-fetched to imagine Maya Ongaku’s latest conveying the suggestion that it should be played quietly. After a period of international touring in support of their decidedly undemonstrative debut album ‘Approach to Anima’ where the audiences […]
The word renascent means to become active or popular again, to be reborn. Therefore, it works flawlessly as the title of The Durutti Column’s first album in 16 years, to be released this month. From their Factory Records origins all the way to influencing Harry Styles’ latest album, The Durutti Column are one of the […]

ALBUM REVIEW – DURUTTI COLUMN: RENASCENT

ALBUM REVIEW – LOATHE: A STRANGER TO YOU

Few bands occupy the space between metal, shoegaze and ambient music as convincingly as Loathe. On A Stranger To You, the Liverpool outfit pushes those boundaries further, crafting an album where crushing heaviness and delicate introspection exist in a constant exchange. Rather than chasing bigger riffs or louder breakdowns, Loathe focuses on atmosphere and narrative, resulting in their most cohesive and ambitious record to date. A Stranger To You opens with ‘Entrance,’ featuring musician bucki sugar. Rather […]
Robyn Hitchcock          The Confuser   As ever, Hitchcock proudly carries the flame for a particular brand of traditional singer-songcraft, a deeply personal penchant sparked by his Summer of Love adolescence (detailed in his acclaimed first memoir, 1967: How I Got There and Why I Never Left) and furthered throughout the myriad cultural metamorphoses that followed. Samuel […]

ALBUM ROUNDUP WEEK ENDING 24 JULY 2026

ALBUM REVIEW – BLUE STATES: WHERE THE FADES MEET

Eagerly scanning the Silent Radio mailbox, ever searching for exciting new releases does create a transient, goldfish-like relationship with music. In March 2022, I favourably reviewed ‘World Contact Day’ by Blue States, a woozy, dreamy yet subtle record that I thoroughly enjoyed. In the intervening four years, I had completely forgotten the act and record. […]
Rave culture was never built for daylight. It belongs beneath railway arches, inside abandoned warehouses and in the forgotten shells of Britain’s industrial past, where concrete sweats and basslines rattle rusted steel. At Nia Archives’ DJ set in Manchester, the dancefloor remains a place of escape, expression and relentless bass-driven community. But first, give way […]

LIVE REVIEW – NIA ARCHIVES: THE WHITE HOTEL – 17/07/2026

ALBUM REVIEW – SPEARMINT: CHASE ME

Spearmint serves as a great example of the value of fierce independence. All eleven albums from their 1999 debut LP onwards have been released on their own hitBACK label, allowing the band to develop their own distinctive niche in which storytelling is paramount. There is an instantly recognisable quality to their music which is pop-focused […]
It got to a point where anytime I’d turn on the radio and a song came on that I liked, it was by Bradford-born Nia Archives. A quick listen to 2024’s Silence Is Loud and I realise that radio was right: this is an artist who absolutely needs to be heard. And we’re not the […]

ALBUM REVIEW – NIA ARCHIVES: EMOTIONAL JUNGLIST

ALBUM REVIEW – GRACIE ABRAMS: DAUGHTER FROM HELL

Gracie Abrams has become one of modern pop’s defining voices, celebrated for her intimate songwriting and emotionally honest lyricism. Beginning to write songs at just eight years old, Abrams draws inspiration from artists including Joni Mitchell, Elliott Smith, Bon Iver, Phoebe Bridgers and Taylor Swift, shaping her reflective and diaristic approach to music. Since releasing […]
Pop punk and progressive metal should, in theory, never be mixed. Some bands form to change things though, and that is exactly the case with Protest The Hero. This Canadian band has never shone away from pushing musical boundaries, and on Within, their first fully independent release, this could not be more obvious. Most importantly, […]

ALBUM REVIEW – PROTEST THE HERO: WITHIN