Album Reviews
Album Review: Prefaces – ‘Acqua Marina’: Cinematic surf rock and dream-state instrumentals from the singular Beirut trio.
If you thought the limits of surf-rock had been reached by Gitkin or Ribot or Khruangbin then the Beirut trio Prefaces have other ideas. Formed around the mercurial and prolific multi-instrumentalist Charif Megarbane, convener of the Cosmic Analogue Ensemble and more, with Fender expressionist Salim Naffah plus drumming dynamo Pascal Semerdjian from the mighty Sanam, …
Album Review: TILE’s Human On Hold Vol. 2 Finds Power in the Unresolved
TILE’s Human On Hold Vol. 2 channels post-punk tension and 80s shadows into five urgent tracks, ending with the explosive “Answer.” A sharp, atmospheric sequel that thrives on the space between doubt and clarity.
Say Psych: Album Review: The Dirt – Monkeypunch
The Dirt are back with a new album after a thirty month gap. In that time they have scaled the length and breadth of the country and now hit us with a Monkeypunch. Released on independent label Sister9 Recordings. The Dirt are Pennines based Jack and Sachiko, a marital Anglo-Japanese couple who create alternative psychedelic …
Album Review: Fabia Mantwill Orchestra – IN.SIGHT : Expansive big band jazz packed with invention, melody and sonic lushness.
For any composer the jazz orchestra has always been about much more than expanding the soundscape, it represents a leap of faith where artists dare their own capabilities and imagine what’s possible. That’s why seminal orchestral jazz music of Gil Evans, Carla Bley, Ellington, Sun Ra and beyond carries such a potent thrill and why …
Album Review: The Slow Summits have ‘Every Intention’ to blast a ray of luminescent pop sunshine into your ears all the way from Sweden.
Anyone else remember the children’s Swedish detective series Agaton Sax by Swedish author Nils-Olof Franzén and illustrated by Åke Lewerth, with Quentin Blake illustrating the English editions? Agaton Sax also ran the local newspaper, the Byoping Post. I loved this series for its quirky sense of humour and cheeky delivery. In a complete non-sequitur, The Slow Summits hail from …
EP Review: Tall Child innovates London’s indie pop formula on debut ‘Somehow you Grow’.
Tall Child is the pseudonym of South-East London based songwriter Zha Ghandi, whose music and talent I’ve been aware of for a long time. They are a permanent fixture of the indie scene here, playing constantly in multiple different acts but all the while building up a repertoire of their own. I’ve watched the material …
Album Review: Yesterday’s Princess – ‘Tomorrow’s Yearning’: Library music influenced duo deliver a brisk, fresh debut set of soul-jazz teasers.
Bringing something new to the table where Library music sits as the prime influence is difficult but Swedish producers Fredrik Bergsten and Marcus Larsson might be onto something with their debut EP as Yesterday’s Princess ‘Tomorrow’s Yearning’, out now on DeepMatter. Both long time devotees of hip-hop sounds and the endless possibilities of samples and …
News + EP Review: Hobart’s The Black Sea Carnys announce new 6 track EP, ‘Cultland’ on back of news of Australian east coast tour dates
Following on from the release of their debut EP, Nistar (read about it here), The Black Sea Carnys, Tasmania’s kings of all things dark and industrial have announced the impending release of their second EP, Cultland. Cultland sees The Black Sea Carnys continue to shape their already unique sound as they add a further 6 …
Album Review: BODIES Return With Long-Awaited Sophomore Album ‘Ores’
The amount of amazing music coming out of Ireland at the moment is staggering, and the new album from Dublin based BODIES is no exception. The post-punk-alt-rockers shine on their second album Ores – bringing polished recordings that keep a raw sense of energy and an emotive, thoughtful musicality. Released seven years after their debut, …
Album Review: Wolfgang Pérez-‘Só Ouço’: Bringing a new avant-pop, no-wave edge to MPB lushness.
Chance happenings sometimes take music to the right place. For Spanish-German, Cologne-based singer-songwriter/arranger Wolfgang Pérez that place is his new succulent album ‘Só Ouço’ out now via Hive Mind Records. Two albums into Pérez’s pop fusion experimentation, ‘Who Cares Who Cares’ from 2021 and last year’s ‘Ahora’, the thrilling tones of Música Popular Brasileira were …