Album Reviews
Album Review: The Offline –‘La grande évasion’: another compelling sonic journey set in cinematic-soul snapshots.
For Felix Müller aka The Offline, a journey is always as important as the destination. His instrumental music, rooted in yester year soul, funk and soundtrack, has an episodic quality, snapshots which compile to reveal an overall mood. It all began in 2022 with the ‘En Clair-Obscur’ EP, a set of sleek instrumentals mapping his …
EP Review: Sydney-raised, Tokyo-based artist Joey Sachi unveils the luminescent and silky tones of EP ‘Rise’.
Sydney-raised, Tokyo-based artist Joey Sachi has caught our attention with a series of mesmerising singles released over the last few years, including honouring us with the premiere of her debut single ‘Fractured’ back in 2023. She has now collected two of these singles in an EP entitled ‘Rise’ with additional unheard material, and, continuing to …
EP Review: Frankie Alph – Fragrances
Frankie Alpha shines on the radiant debut EP Fragrances. Across the EP, Frankie Alpha’s captures a creative unsettledness, an eagerness to experiment whilst delivering some danceable, interesting electronic music. From the opener ‘Leave My Bones’ the influence of the likes of Jamie XX, BICEP, Bonobo and Caribou feels evident. Moving through well placed vocal samples, …
Album Review: Lutruwita/Tasmanian band Lennon Wells unveil stunning debut album ‘Blink (and you’ll miss it)’ ahead of national tour
Lennon Wells first caught my attention last year when they supported iconic Australian band Jet celebrating 20 years since the release of their album ‘Get Born’ in Hobart – a special night bejewelled by the visible appearance of the spectacular Aurora Australia in the skies that evening. They put on an incredibly immersive performance lead by …
Album Review: Inwards –‘Free Flow’: Fizzing mod-synth and sampler refreshment straight from the Worcestershire wilds.
Electronic music can often seem fixed on darkness and dystopia, cavernous scale and vastness but Kristian Shelley’s electro-fusion projects as Inwards have always focused on the small things. Inpired by the countryside around his Worcestershire home there’s a folktronica playfulness about his music and a warmth to his quirkiness. Past Inwards tracks been built around …
Album Review: The Black Cat’s Eye – Decrypting Dreams Of Weird Animals And Strange Objects
The Black Cat’s Eye – these are glaring fuzz, bass and drum riffs, interwoven chord pickings andlead guitars rooted in the blues – sometimes screaming, singing or rough. And above everything,the instrumental and song melody hovers almost like a hymn.With their musical style, the band, founded in Frankfurt am Main/Germany in 2018, is directlylinked to …
Album Review: Fabiano do Nascimento – ‘Cavejaz’: a stunning collection of guitar and percussion miniatures.
It may be a decade into the consistent series of impactful releases from composer/guitarist Fabiano do Nascimento but here is a musician who continues to build on his reputation as an innovator both within the MPB world and beyond. A guitarist from the age of ten, his natural affinity for the instrument and intuitive feel …
EP Review: Kat Greta collects her glorious singles into a shimmering EP aptly entitled ‘Rhythm & Reverie’.
Kat Greta has been blinding us here at the antipodean outpost of Backseat Mafia with her brand of luminescent pop that seems to emit rays of sunshine and joy with every note. Greta’s background in percussion permeates every note, adding a frisson to the sound and a beat that is irrepressible. After releasing a series …
Album Review: All India Radio etch beautiful contrails of sound across the skies in new album ‘The Unified Field’.
After a long absence, the ethereal All India Radio triumphantly return with the exquisite ‘The Unified Field’ – astonishingly their 21st album. Their absence has much to do with member Marin Kennedy’s prolific creativity – witness in just the past couple of years the release of three albums with The Church’s Steve Kilbey (‘Jupiter 13’, …
Album Review: Levitation Orchestra – ‘Sanctuary’: Another expansive, spiritual jazz epic from the London collective.
UK jazz collective Levitation Orchestra show that the creative possibilities of the large ensemble can endure. Lead by trumpeter Axel Kaner-Lidstrom who first brought this group of young, scene-busting players together in 2018, the collective has been gathering momentum ever since. The Levitation Orchestra’s debut album ‘Inexpressible Infinity’ arrived a year after their formation and …