Chris Sawle, Author at Backseat Mafia

SEE: Indigo Sparke – ‘Everything Everything’: astonishing spectral folk

IF MARISSA NADLER, Aldous Harding, Joanna Newsom, Vashti Bunyan light up your world with otherworldly folk fire – and if they don’t, then maybe we can’t be friends after all…

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TRACK: Douglas – ‘Cigarettes’: euphoric, blurry synthpop futurism

AMY DOUGLAS WHITE is a Los Angelino by adoption, by way of Madrid, where she was raised the child of American parents. She’s got form in the music biz, serving…

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NEWS: The Peacers return with March set for Drag City; see ‘Irish Suit’

SIC ALPS were one of those bands which, with the amount of the talent in its ranks, could only burn bright and, like an unstable isotope, emit members to spin…

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SEE: Post Coal Prom Queen – ‘Salt’: a cool, dystopian synthpop opener

FORMERLY the creative heart behind L-space, the electronic alt.pop outfit who released three albums from 2018 up to last year, Lily Higham and Gordon Johnstone have cleaved away into a…

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ALBUM REVIEW: Aaron Cupples – ‘Island Of The Hungry Ghosts’ original soundtrack: a sonic film in itself

There's always that caveat with a soundtrack that this is music in service to another artform. But Island Of The Hungry Ghosts is a sonic film in itself. It wholly lets the soul of the island through and onto your record deck. If you're a fan of labels like Touch, Kranky, this is so a record for you.

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ALBUM REVIEW: Richard von der Schulenberg – ‘Moods And Dances’: a fun, exotique library music trip

Moods And Dances is the sort of album you cheekily slip onto the deck at a very groovy soiree at about, ooh, midnight, to bring some bizarre and spacey dimensions to proceedings and during which at least two of your friends turn to you and say with a bewildered grin: "Wow, what is this?"

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ALBUM REVIEW: Tamar Aphek – ‘All Bets Are Off’: superb opening salvo from Tel Aviv power trio

Tamar Aphek takes the power trio thing and moves it forward into new psych-blues-rock territories with elegance and so much fire. She also might just be the best new noisy guitar stylist since Joey Santiago and John Dwyer. She's potent and has a voice of real elegance, and sonic firepower, and tunes, and the future is very, very bloody bright indeed

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EP REVIEW: Clarice Jensen – ‘Anu Mosir’: a quarter-hour of deft cello and electronics

Anu Mosir is a gorgeous way to spend a quarter of an hour of your time. Put it on repeat, let it maybe move beyond a rudely fractional usage of your day

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TRACK: Endlings – ‘Fragil’: raw evocation from John Dieterich and Raven Chacon

ENDLINGS is the collaborative project of John Dieterich, guitarist with the ever bizarre, angular, captivating Deerhoof, and Navajo Nation ambient and field recordings voyager Raven Chacon. They’ve worked together once…

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ALBUM REVIEW: The Besnard Lakes – ‘ … Are the Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings’

Are the Last of the Great Thunderstorm Warnings is the sound of a band set free, wings spread; big, theatrical, but not self-indulgent. They know exactly what these songs demand and are prepared to give them everything they need. In terms of scope, file next to Ladies And Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space and The Soft Bulletin. A lot going on, in short. Trust in their vision; they've got this.

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