Album Reviews
Album Review: Sessa –‘Pequena Vertigem de Amor’: Uncanny magic and lush funkiness from the rising São Paulo songsmith.
Sergio Sayeg (aka Sessa) is an artist who travels through distances and circumstances with his music. Coming from São Paulo his first pull was towards the psychedelic pop-toned Tropicalia mash-up of Garotas Suecas, a band he guitared and sang with until his family moved to New York. Sessa then made the most of the Big …
Album Review: The Boojums –‘The Boojums’: From garage punk to grunge rock, the Nova Scotian trio never miss the spot.
It seems to have been a while waiting for this debut LP from Nova Scotian power-punk trio The Boojums. Last seen around here on their breakneck showcase gigs with We are Busy Bodies/Having Fun label mates No Frills and Absolute Losers, they caused a mighty stir with their driving dynamism and hook filled momentum. To …
Album Review: Emma Rawicz –‘Inkyra’: Bold, widescreen, dynamic jazz from the irrepressible saxophonist and her explosive band.
You could say prestigious young saxophonist Emma Rawicz is on a roll right now. Just a few months ago she was turning jazz-heads with her exquisite and sumptuous ‘Big Visit’, a duo album with the phenomenal Gwilym Simcock and now in hot pursuit comes her new set ‘Inkyra’ via the ever-discerning ACT. To be completely …
Say Psych: EP Review: Rhys Bloodjoy – Evils Highway EP
Rhys Bloodjoy is a one man noise machine, using sophisticated loops, echo drenched harmonies and reverb soaked melodies to create a truly unique style all of his own. His new EP is something special, and we had to see what all the fuss was about! His debut album Human.Pattern.Repeat. at the start of the pandemic …
Album Review: Jessica Moss – ‘Unfolding’: The Montreal violinist/composer’s most incisive, inspirational statement to date.
Violinist and composer Jessica Moss has always made instrumental music that speaks out. Her essential work does more than reflect times, events and tragedies, it engages with them and voices our emotions about what is being witnessed or endured. Her last two studio albums, ‘Phosphenes’ from 2021 followed a year later by ‘Galaxy Heart’, captured …
Album Review: Mykah – Long Time Coming
Mykah shares something vibrant and deeply resonant with his new eight-track project Long Time Coming, a seamless fusion of bopping R&B, Afrobeats, and soulful pop. At once danceable and introspective, the album radiates bright, melodic soundscapes that balance summery ease with subtle undertones of melancholy and reflection. Known for his meticulous ear and genre-blurring versatility, …
Album Review: Smote –‘Songs From The Free House’: A striking return for the drone rock/ dark folk adventurer.
Daniel Foggin, landscape gardener, guitarist, psych folk expressionist and drone rock interpreter works relentlessly. His creative portal Smote is now five albums into its journey with the venerable Rocket Recordings, an expedition which only began in 2021 with the folk trance deep-dive of ‘Droomin’. Since then Smote music has intensified, from rustic rhythm-driven psychedelic ceremonials …
Album Review: Joe Harvey-Whyte & Paul Cousins – ‘In A Fugue State’: A contemplative dreamscape of pedal steel and tape loop alchemy.
Joe Harvey-Whyte may be a go-to pedal steel player (Liam Gallagher, Billy Bragg, Josephine Foster, Nilüfer Yanya and more) but as a multi-instrumentalist and solo artist he’s been calmly extending the cosmic-country boundaries beyond its imagined cosmos for a while now. Working with Sheffield based guitarist Bobby Lee, he’s helped conjure up two mind-stretching kosmiche-americana …
Album Review: Rianne Downey, The Consequence of Love
Scottish singer-songwriter Rianne Downey drop her sunny debut album
Album Review: Snakeskin –‘We Live In Sand’: Enlightening, intense dream pop from the ever impressive Beirut duo.
Lebanese, electronic dream pop duo Snakeskin don’t so much shed layers from release to release, they harden their resolve, reinforcing their messaging into songs which are even more powerful and defining. Formed by singer-songwriter Julia Sabra, of alt-rock/experimental scene stalwarts Postcards, and Fadi Tabbal, founder/producer at Beirut’s irreplaceable Tunefork studios, Snakeskin’s soundscape first emerged in …