Buscar:frustration

In 2024, Audrey Powne emerged as a compelling new voice in contemporary jazz with the release of her acclaimed debut album From the Fire; a self-produced and self-composed work celebrated for its lush string arrangements, soaring trumpet performances, and emotionally rich songwriting. Now, two years later, Powne returns with Bodies of Water, a bold and deeply introspective follow-up that continues her elemental exploration: from fire to water. An exploration of what it means to exist alongside others in an increasingly unstable world, Bodies of Water reflects on vulnerability, responsibility, and human interconnectedness. The album’s title and conceptual foundation were inspired by a passage from Caleb Azumah Nelson’s novel Small Worlds: “...to make himself a body, like water, a still surface, but beneath this, a ripple, and beneath this, an ebbing tide, and beneath that, a violent, constant tow…” Throughout the record, lyrics ruminate on the idea that like all bodies of water, we are vulnerable to disruption and catastrophe. Unlike inanimate bodies of water, however, we are conscious participants in both the damage and the repair. That tension between what we are made of and what we are responsible for became a grounding and harmonious thought. This album is a meditation on that idea, both in my personal life and in a broader, collective sense. Swollen, Broken Record, and Karma, reflect on moments of cruelty and error including her own that felt unbearable. Viewing them instead as forces moving through the landscape of a life, violent but temporary to survive their immediate impact. More socially conscious tracks Stay Awake, Creeds, RYV, and Two Sides confront frustration with political polarisation and the emptiness of language unaccompanied by action. The title and final track Bodies of Water brings these ideas together, reimagining both personal and societal upheaval as events shaped by bodies of water moving through the world destructive at times, transformative at others, and always in motion. Blending traditional jazz with Afrobeat rhythms, Dilla-inspired grooves, ambient textures, and expansive arrangements, Bodies of Water reveals the breadth of Powne’s artistic vision. The record moves fluidly between spiritual jazz, warped soul and rhythm-driven experimentation, while layered interludes and meticulous production thread its disparate influences into a unified and immersive sonic world.

Purple Vinyl, inkl. Poster. The Black Wizards, das in Porto beheimatete Trio bestehend aus Joana Brito (Gitarre/Gesang), José Gomes (Bass/Gesang) und Helena Peixoto (Schlagzeug), kündigt sein neues Album ,Force Majeure & The Acts of God" an, das am 4. September über Hassle Records erscheinen wird. Force Majeure & The Acts of God ist von einem dunklen Humor geprägt. Der Titel bezieht sich auf den juristischen Begriff für unkontrollierbare oder nicht beeinflussbare Umstände und spiegelt damit das Chaos wider, das die Entstehung des Albums begleitet hat. Gleichzeitig deutet er auf den verschmitzten, widerständigen Geist der Band hin.Das Album entstand in einer Zeit, in der politische Landschaften weltweit zunehmend ins Chaos abzugleiten schienen. Es kanalisiert Frustration und Dringlichkeit, ohne dabei in Hoffnungslosigkeit zu verfallen. Für die Texte ließ sich Frontfrau Joana Brito von Büchern über Politik, Geschlechterrollen und toxische Männlichkeit inspirieren. Diese Themen finden sich in Songs wieder, die sich kritisch mit leerer Führung und gesellschaftlicher Spaltung auseinandersetzen. Besonders ,Killing The Buzz" durchschneidet das politische Spektakel mit scharfem Humor und energiegeladenem Punk-Spirit. Musikalisch markiert Force Majeure & The Acts of God einen deutlichen Wendepunkt für die Band. Anstatt den ausufernden Klangnebeln ihres früheren Heavy-Psych-Sounds zu folgen, setzen The Black Wizards nun auf einen kompakteren, raueren und direkteren Ansatz. Das Album vereint die Attitüde des Garage Rock, die nervöse Spannung des Proto-Punk und einen unaufhaltsamen rhythmischen Antrieb. Getragen wird dies von Britos kantigem und durchsetzungsstarkem Gesang, den rauen Gesangsantworten von José Gomes sowie dem kraftvollen Schlagzeugspiel von Helena Peixoto. Aufgenommen wurde das Album während einer intensiven fünftägigen Session mit Cooper Crain in Porto. Das Ergebnis lebt von Dringlichkeit, ungeschliffenen Kanten und einer explosiven Live-Energie.

Carpark are the kind of band that turn everyday frustration into something loud, sharp, and impossible to ignore. Their debut EP *Born to Be Average* leans into the chaos of modern life with biting lyrics, jagged guitars, and a raw, unfiltered energy that feels both familiar and defiantly unpolished. Across five tracks, they blur the line between self-deprecation and quiet rebellion, capturing the sound of a generation stuck somewhere between apathy and ambition. It’s messy in all the right ways: honest, hooky, and built to be played loud on repeat. Pressed on vinyl, this release isn’t just a record, it’s a statement that being “average” was never really the point.

Dead Best return on August 7th with God: Out of Order, their third and most fully realized album yet. Sharper, louder, and more melodic than ever, the record captures the absurdity, anxiety, and emotional whiplash of modern life through songs that are equally noisy and undeniably catchy. God: Out of Order finds Dead Best at their most fully realized — turning chaos into hooks, frustration into humor, and confusion into something worth shouting along to.

Citizens anhaltende klangliche Weiterentwicklung und ihre konsequente Weigerung, jemals zweimal dasselbe Album zu machen, haben ihnen den Ruf eingebracht, eine der konstant fesselndsten Bands der modernen Rockmusik zu sein. Genau dieses kompromisslose Bekenntnis zu ihrem Handwerk führte zu ihrem neuen Album Halcyon Blues. Es ist eine dynamische und selbstbewusste Kulmination all dessen, was zuvor kam - und macht unmissverständlich klar: Bei aller klanglichen Rastlosigkeit wussten Citizen immer genau, wer sie sind.Von Beginn an war die Band - Sänger Mat Kerekes, Gitarrist Nick Hamm, Bassist Eric Hamm sowie die neueren Mitglieder Gitarrist Mason Mercer und Schlagzeuger Ben Russin - fest entschlossen, ihrer Kreativität kompromisslos zu folgen, wohin auch immer sie sie führen würde. Über die Jahre bewegten sie sich souverän durch rohen Emo, bedrohlichen Post-Hardcore, hymnischen Alternative Rock, garageartigen Indie-Pop und vieles mehr.Halcyon Blues vereint nun Elemente aus dem gesamten bisherigen Katalog der Band zu einem geschlossenen, unmittelbar befriedigenden Album, das einfach unverkennbar nach Citizen klingt. Während frühere Citizen-Alben oft wie direkte Reaktionen auf den jeweiligen Vorgänger wirkten, fühlt sich Halcyon Blues an, als würde die Band ihr gesamtes bisheriges Werk umarmen und geschlossen weitertragen.Aufgenommen von Kerekes in seinem Heimstudio in Toledo und anschließend von Tom Lorde-Alge (U2, Weezer, Blink-182) gemischt, greift das Album die Dringlichkeit und Wildheit der frühen Citizen-Veröffentlichungen auf und verbindet sie mit der epischen Weite und den unbestreitbaren Hooks ihres jüngeren Schaffens. Das Ergebnis sind große Rock-Songs mit entsprechend großen Emotionen. Doch auch die jugendliche Frustration der frühen Jahre ist gereift - ersetzt durch eine nuanciertere, wenn auch nicht weniger scharfzüngige erwachsene Perspektive.

Citizens anhaltende klangliche Weiterentwicklung und ihre konsequente Weigerung, jemals zweimal dasselbe Album zu machen, haben ihnen den Ruf eingebracht, eine der konstant fesselndsten Bands der modernen Rockmusik zu sein. Genau dieses kompromisslose Bekenntnis zu ihrem Handwerk führte zu ihrem neuen Album Halcyon Blues. Es ist eine dynamische und selbstbewusste Kulmination all dessen, was zuvor kam - und macht unmissverständlich klar: Bei aller klanglichen Rastlosigkeit wussten Citizen immer genau, wer sie sind.Von Beginn an war die Band - Sänger Mat Kerekes, Gitarrist Nick Hamm, Bassist Eric Hamm sowie die neueren Mitglieder Gitarrist Mason Mercer und Schlagzeuger Ben Russin - fest entschlossen, ihrer Kreativität kompromisslos zu folgen, wohin auch immer sie sie führen würde. Über die Jahre bewegten sie sich souverän durch rohen Emo, bedrohlichen Post-Hardcore, hymnischen Alternative Rock, garageartigen Indie-Pop und vieles mehr.Halcyon Blues vereint nun Elemente aus dem gesamten bisherigen Katalog der Band zu einem geschlossenen, unmittelbar befriedigenden Album, das einfach unverkennbar nach Citizen klingt. Während frühere Citizen-Alben oft wie direkte Reaktionen auf den jeweiligen Vorgänger wirkten, fühlt sich Halcyon Blues an, als würde die Band ihr gesamtes bisheriges Werk umarmen und geschlossen weitertragen.Aufgenommen von Kerekes in seinem Heimstudio in Toledo und anschließend von Tom Lorde-Alge (U2, Weezer, Blink-182) gemischt, greift das Album die Dringlichkeit und Wildheit der frühen Citizen-Veröffentlichungen auf und verbindet sie mit der epischen Weite und den unbestreitbaren Hooks ihres jüngeren Schaffens. Das Ergebnis sind große Rock-Songs mit entsprechend großen Emotionen. Doch auch die jugendliche Frustration der frühen Jahre ist gereift - ersetzt durch eine nuanciertere, wenn auch nicht weniger scharfzüngige erwachsene Perspektive.

Citizens anhaltende klangliche Weiterentwicklung und ihre konsequente Weigerung, jemals zweimal dasselbe Album zu machen, haben ihnen den Ruf eingebracht, eine der konstant fesselndsten Bands der modernen Rockmusik zu sein. Genau dieses kompromisslose Bekenntnis zu ihrem Handwerk führte zu ihrem neuen Album Halcyon Blues. Es ist eine dynamische und selbstbewusste Kulmination all dessen, was zuvor kam - und macht unmissverständlich klar: Bei aller klanglichen Rastlosigkeit wussten Citizen immer genau, wer sie sind.Von Beginn an war die Band - Sänger Mat Kerekes, Gitarrist Nick Hamm, Bassist Eric Hamm sowie die neueren Mitglieder Gitarrist Mason Mercer und Schlagzeuger Ben Russin - fest entschlossen, ihrer Kreativität kompromisslos zu folgen, wohin auch immer sie sie führen würde. Über die Jahre bewegten sie sich souverän durch rohen Emo, bedrohlichen Post-Hardcore, hymnischen Alternative Rock, garageartigen Indie-Pop und vieles mehr.Halcyon Blues vereint nun Elemente aus dem gesamten bisherigen Katalog der Band zu einem geschlossenen, unmittelbar befriedigenden Album, das einfach unverkennbar nach Citizen klingt. Während frühere Citizen-Alben oft wie direkte Reaktionen auf den jeweiligen Vorgänger wirkten, fühlt sich Halcyon Blues an, als würde die Band ihr gesamtes bisheriges Werk umarmen und geschlossen weitertragen.Aufgenommen von Kerekes in seinem Heimstudio in Toledo und anschließend von Tom Lorde-Alge (U2, Weezer, Blink-182) gemischt, greift das Album die Dringlichkeit und Wildheit der frühen Citizen-Veröffentlichungen auf und verbindet sie mit der epischen Weite und den unbestreitbaren Hooks ihres jüngeren Schaffens. Das Ergebnis sind große Rock-Songs mit entsprechend großen Emotionen. Doch auch die jugendliche Frustration der frühen Jahre ist gereift - ersetzt durch eine nuanciertere, wenn auch nicht weniger scharfzüngige erwachsene Perspektive.

Sometimes the only way to feel better is to spend some time feeling bad. Countless albums have provided the soundtrack for picking yourself back up, but Public Opinion are there for when you’re getting kicked while you’re down. Their sophomore album, the cheekily titled The Curse of Public Opinion, is a ten-song, 23-minute ode to frustration and disappointment–all set to some of the catchiest punk songs you’ll hear this year. Who knew swallowing a bitter pill could be this fun? Recorded with Brett Romnes (Anxious, I Am The Avalanche, Hot Mulligan), the album plumbs the depths of disappointment over a tight set of fuck-you anthems that perfectly bottle 2000s garage rock swagger, classic punk hooks, and hardcore ferocity into Public Opinion’s own sneering cocktail. "Public Opinion are making straight up, relentless, rock and roll. And thank God." -Anna Zanes, Alternative Press

Catch them on tour across the US this year with Drug Church, White Reaper and Spy.

Downtown Boys have pushed relentlessly forward as an artistic and political project since their founding. Singer Victoria Marie and guitarist/singer Joey La Neve DeFrancesco first met at union meetings while working together at a hotel in Providence, RI, writing many of the band's early songs about labor organizing and exploitative workplaces. The quintet is completed by Joe DeGeorge (sax/synth), Mary Jane Regalado (bass), and Joey Doubek (drums). Over years of touring, and three acclaimed albums, Downtown Boys have continued to grow as artists, musicians, and organizers. Now, the band has arrived with Public Luxury, an enthralling album that keeps politics front and center while summoning the band's most urgent and powerful sound to date. The definition of Public Luxury falls very much in line with that of the title of the second Downtown Boys LP, Full Communism. Straight up, Public Luxury means, "everything for everyone." It's the stubborn insistence that a better world is possible, while fully recognizing the horrors we witness daily, and the individual and collective responsibility to resist the nihilism and hopelessness we all feel. Sentiments like "everything for everyone," and "we will have it all" perfectly represent the cathartic, communal live experience this cadre of multi-instrumentalists create. These sentiments also encapsulate the inclusive, joyful sonic fusion that defines the album: anthemic punk and indie rock mix with Latin traditions, drum machines blend with acoustic drums, saxophones punctuate riffs, and layers of synths add flourishes from new-wave to industrial. The amount of ground covered on Public Luxury can't be overstated, and yet the album feels totally vital and cohesive. Public Luxury is a revisitation of the band's past for the sake of their future. It was co-produced by DeFrancesco with recording engineer and longtime Downtown Boys supporter Seth Manchester (Lambrini Girls, Lightning Bolt, Model/Actriz) at the Pawtucket, RI studio and arts space Machines With Magnets, not far from the band's first home of Providence, RI. Victoria Marie's grandmother-a monumental figure for the band throughout their existence-passed away in May of 2025, and her influence looms large over the album; the songs "No Me Jodas" and "Sirena" are crystallized representations of the love between a woman and her ancestor. Beyond the loss, rage and frustration of the present, Public Luxury points boldly towards a vibrant, open-hearted vision of both music and the world: "Our music is simply for anyone and everyone who believes in the new future we can make together," Victoria Marie declares. "A world that will be awkward, inconsistent, yet truly free when it comes to all that matters."

The 18th Parallel strikes hard once again with its new riddim series called ‘BONANZA CHARGE’. Carefully produced in its Geneva studio, the collective of musicians presents two vocal cuts and one horns instrumental released as three 7” singles with dubs mixed by Roberto Sánchez. This is heavyweight roots reggae tailor-made for the heaviest sound systems!

First song recorded on the riddim, ‘Don’t Tell Me To Smile’ is NIGHTSHADE’s debut single on Fruits Records and it really is music with a powerful message. Turning an everyday frustration into a universal cry, Nightshade sings out loud what she always wanted to answer to the countless strangers who told her – like so many other women – to smile… because “a woman who smiles looks so much prettier”.

She says: “If it’s really such an innocent thing to say as some claim, why do men never say it to other men? Why do some feel entitled to tell complete (women) strangers how they should look, feel or behave? These so-called ‘small comments’, repeated over and over, are just one piece of the constant scrutiny and everyday violence many women face – and we can’t take no more of it.”

Carried by three united voices, ‘Don’t Tell Me To Smile’ reminds us that a woman is not a decorative object meant to please the male gaze. It’s a call to see through the trap: under the guise of compliments, what is at work is control over women’s bodies and minds. A smile should come from the heart, never from an obligation.

Born out of frustration with the obsession over A-side bangers, Besides flips the script : two B-sides, where depth, detail, and personality thrive.

Same rules, new game : Caught In Between places and ideas, Namur returns to find his home on Besides.

In Lande’s words: “It’s a daydreaming song about wanting a life of excitement and adventure rather than a dull and ordinary life - one where people underestimate you and belittle you. And where you’re forced to buy into capitalism and become a pathetic, losing player in a game that you hate. I’d rather escape and live in a queer space fantasy and be brave.”

Available on limited turquoise vinyl and digipack CD

It is with both pride and excitement that we announce the reissue of ‘House Without A View’, the out-of-print second album by singer-songwriter Lande Hekt – the first of a three-part reissue series on Circuitry, with ‘Going To Hell’ and ‘Gigantic Disappointment’ (first time physically) to follow in the coming months.

With a new album ‘Lucky Now’ released on Tapete in January, supported by an extensive spring UK tour (dates below), Lande’s contemporary twist on the classic C86 indie sound - with a queer feminist punk identity lyrically explicit throughout – is drawing in an ever-growing audience of devotees, such is the consistent quality of her songwriting, and the personality within.

The opening track of the album is ‘Half With You’ which “is about growing into yourself as a queer person, and enjoying who you are after not enjoying it for so long,” says Lande. ‘Cut My Hair’ is about how her relationship with her gender has changed over the last few years, becoming more comfortable in herself and understanding more about what makes her happy. “It’s also about how easy it is to not talk to people when you’re struggling, which is something I did for a long time,” admits Lande.

The title track of ‘House Without a View’ deals with childhood trauma and how events of our formative years “affect us so much into our adult lives and are intrinsic to our personalities and the way we cope (or don’t) with life and relationships,” says Lande. Although there’s darkness and sadness within the record, there’s also some shining beacons of positivity and a light-hearted side, albeit with a side of frustration. ‘Lola’ was written about Lande’s cat shortly after she came to live with her and her girlfriend. “She’s the first pet I’ve ever had and I wasn’t quite ready for how hard it would be to not be able to verbally communicate with her. I worried constantly that she was depressed because all she did was sleep, but my girlfriend assured me that that was regular cat behaviour.”


APRIL 2026 DATES: 4th Cardiff/5th Trowbridge/6th Penryn/7th Portsmouth/9th Ramsgate/10th Cambridge/11th Norwich/12th Nottingham/13th York/19th London/20th Brighton/21st Bristol/22nd Exeter/23rd Manchester/24th Sheffield/25th Oxford

After two EP releases and a few millions streams later, Hamburg based songwriter, producer and visual artist KUOKO is about to drop her debut self-titled album. Released via Kabul Fire Records this album is brimming with energy and purpose, the singles such as Perfect Girl and Strong Girls Don"t Cry see KUOKO channeling her frustrations with society"s demands of women, and the impact that it can have on them. As a Vietnamese-German woman KUOKO is claiming her own place in an industry that often doesn"t represent women in the complex and fluid ways in which they actually exist and create music - self-taught, conceptual, ambitious.

"I decided to just let myself go," Zzzahara says of their new record, 'Spiral Your Way Out' "I think I finally came to this acceptance that I don't have to be perfect. I want to be a good role model to my fans and stuff like that, but I also don't want to hide who I am." Zzzahara's music wades into the deep waters of love, lust, and self-discovery in a part of the world where artifice and authenticity co-exist. Emerging from the heart of LA's alternative music scene, their sound is raw in feeling and rebellious by nature.

Their 2022 debut album, Liminal Spaces, chronicles a coming- of- age in Highland Park, following painful childhood memories through to late- night, live- fast coping mechanisms, and the changes the neighbourhood has endured over the same period of time. Their 2023 follow- up, Tender, marked a period of slowing down, looking inward, and embracing a softer side of being. 'Spiral Your Way Out' sees Zzzahara evolve again. Emotionally, its foundations are built on scorched earth.

The album finds Zzzahara in the aftermath of a relationship spent trying to fit someone else's mould, being jerked around by indecision, and then hitting "emotional rock bottom." Made in a three-month burst that let all their pent-up frustrations loose, 'Spiral Your Way Out' is in part a work of self-reclamation, swapping there 2nd album Tender's meditative state for something fiery and more assertive. The new album marks another sonic evolution as much as an emotional one. Zzzahara's songs have always come wrapped in a warm glow that reflects how they were written -namely at home in their bedroom.

That glow remains on 'Spiral Your Way Out', but it also packs an ambitious streak and a gutsy punch. Taking a more collaborative approach than usual, Zzzahara worked with a range of producers including Jorge Elbrecht (Japanese Breakfast, No Joy, Sky Ferreira), Sarah Tudzin (boygenius / Cloud Nothings / The Armed), former Ducktails guitarist Alex Craig (Jelani Aryeh / re6ce) and Halsey tour drummer Franco Reid, who helped harness their intimate style of writing and blow it up into something more panoptic. After a year of upheaval, Zzzahara finally feels "calm." The musical equivalent to going several rounds on a punching bag, 'Spiral Your Way Out' finds solace between extremes. It licks its wounds in a place where pain and love, healing and abandon, sit side-by-side. If it has a message, it's one of standing tall in your own shoes - scuffs and all.

"I decided to just let myself go," Zzzahara says of their new record, 'Spiral Your Way Out' "I think I finally came to this acceptance that I don't have to be perfect. I want to be a good role model to my fans and stuff like that, but I also don't want to hide who I am." Zzzahara's music wades into the deep waters of love, lust, and self-discovery in a part of the world where artifice and authenticity co-exist. Emerging from the heart of LA's alternative music scene, their sound is raw in feeling and rebellious by nature.

Their 2022 debut album, Liminal Spaces, chronicles a coming- of- age in Highland Park, following painful childhood memories through to late- night, live- fast coping mechanisms, and the changes the neighbourhood has endured over the same period of time. Their 2023 follow- up, Tender, marked a period of slowing down, looking inward, and embracing a softer side of being. 'Spiral Your Way Out' sees Zzzahara evolve again. Emotionally, its foundations are built on scorched earth.

The album finds Zzzahara in the aftermath of a relationship spent trying to fit someone else's mould, being jerked around by indecision, and then hitting "emotional rock bottom." Made in a three-month burst that let all their pent-up frustrations loose, 'Spiral Your Way Out' is in part a work of self-reclamation, swapping there 2nd album Tender's meditative state for something fiery and more assertive. The new album marks another sonic evolution as much as an emotional one. Zzzahara's songs have always come wrapped in a warm glow that reflects how they were written -namely at home in their bedroom.

That glow remains on 'Spiral Your Way Out', but it also packs an ambitious streak and a gutsy punch. Taking a more collaborative approach than usual, Zzzahara worked with a range of producers including Jorge Elbrecht (Japanese Breakfast, No Joy, Sky Ferreira), Sarah Tudzin (boygenius / Cloud Nothings / The Armed), former Ducktails guitarist Alex Craig (Jelani Aryeh / re6ce) and Halsey tour drummer Franco Reid, who helped harness their intimate style of writing and blow it up into something more panoptic. After a year of upheaval, Zzzahara finally feels "calm." The musical equivalent to going several rounds on a punching bag, 'Spiral Your Way Out' finds solace between extremes. It licks its wounds in a place where pain and love, healing and abandon, sit side-by-side. If it has a message, it's one of standing tall in your own shoes - scuffs and all.

Falls Sie Lowertown - die faszinierende Band bestehend aus Olivia Osby und Avsha Weinberg - noch nicht kennen, ist jetzt der ideale Zeitpunkt dafür dies zu ändern. Es hat einige Jahre gedauert, bis das in New York ansässige Duo wieder zu Atem gekommen ist: Nachdem die Band aufgrund von Streitigkeiten mit ihrem Label, kreativen Frustrationen und einer ungesunden Bindung an ihre künstlerische Partnerschaft jahrelang am Rande des Zusammenbruchs stand, war es Zeit für einen Neuanfang. Ihr neues Album ,Ugly Duckling Union" beginnt mit einem gelassenen Ausatmen von Osby, einem symbolischen Moment, der die Bühne für ihre bisher nachdenklichste, ungehemmteste, eingängigste und exzentrischste Sammlung von Songs bereitet. ,Ugly Duckling Union" ist ein Konzeptalbum, das auf den eigenen Erfahrungen der Band basiert, durch ihre Musik eine Gemeinschaft zu schaffen. Der Protagonist Dale und seine Gefährten schließen sich zusammen, um LBH zu besiegen, ein tyrannisches Medienunternehmen, das in seinem Streben nach Kontrolle auf Spaltung und Isolation setzt. Das Album enthält ein Handbuch mit Überlieferungen und illustrierten Comics von Doctor Nowhere (Silias Orion). Darüber hinaus können Fans mit Plüschpuppen und einer spielbaren Minecraft-Welt, die von ,Ugly Duckling Union" inspiriert ist, noch tiefer in die Materie eintauchen. Inspiriert von der konzeptionellen Kreativität von Bands wie Gorillaz und der Betonung des gemeinschaftlichen Konzerterlebnisses von Fugazi, verbindet Lowertown Online- und Offline-Fandoms zu einem umfassenden Erlebnis.,Ugly Duckling Union" wurde vollständig von Osby und Weinberg geschrieben, aufgenommen, produziert und gemischt. Obwohl Lowertown die alleinigen Hüter ihrer Kunst sind, ist der Titel ihres neuen Albums eine Hommage an die bedeutungsvolle Gemeinschaft, die sie aufgebaut haben.

Falls Sie Lowertown - die faszinierende Band bestehend aus Olivia Osby und Avsha Weinberg - noch nicht kennen, ist jetzt der ideale Zeitpunkt dafür dies zu ändern. Es hat einige Jahre gedauert, bis das in New York ansässige Duo wieder zu Atem gekommen ist: Nachdem die Band aufgrund von Streitigkeiten mit ihrem Label, kreativen Frustrationen und einer ungesunden Bindung an ihre künstlerische Partnerschaft jahrelang am Rande des Zusammenbruchs stand, war es Zeit für einen Neuanfang. Ihr neues Album ,Ugly Duckling Union" beginnt mit einem gelassenen Ausatmen von Osby, einem symbolischen Moment, der die Bühne für ihre bisher nachdenklichste, ungehemmteste, eingängigste und exzentrischste Sammlung von Songs bereitet. ,Ugly Duckling Union" ist ein Konzeptalbum, das auf den eigenen Erfahrungen der Band basiert, durch ihre Musik eine Gemeinschaft zu schaffen. Der Protagonist Dale und seine Gefährten schließen sich zusammen, um LBH zu besiegen, ein tyrannisches Medienunternehmen, das in seinem Streben nach Kontrolle auf Spaltung und Isolation setzt. Das Album enthält ein Handbuch mit Überlieferungen und illustrierten Comics von Doctor Nowhere (Silias Orion). Darüber hinaus können Fans mit Plüschpuppen und einer spielbaren Minecraft-Welt, die von ,Ugly Duckling Union" inspiriert ist, noch tiefer in die Materie eintauchen. Inspiriert von der konzeptionellen Kreativität von Bands wie Gorillaz und der Betonung des gemeinschaftlichen Konzerterlebnisses von Fugazi, verbindet Lowertown Online- und Offline-Fandoms zu einem umfassenden Erlebnis.,Ugly Duckling Union" wurde vollständig von Osby und Weinberg geschrieben, aufgenommen, produziert und gemischt. Obwohl Lowertown die alleinigen Hüter ihrer Kunst sind, ist der Titel ihres neuen Albums eine Hommage an die bedeutungsvolle Gemeinschaft, die sie aufgebaut haben.

Falls Sie Lowertown - die faszinierende Band bestehend aus Olivia Osby und Avsha Weinberg - noch nicht kennen, ist jetzt der ideale Zeitpunkt dafür dies zu ändern. Es hat einige Jahre gedauert, bis das in New York ansässige Duo wieder zu Atem gekommen ist: Nachdem die Band aufgrund von Streitigkeiten mit ihrem Label, kreativen Frustrationen und einer ungesunden Bindung an ihre künstlerische Partnerschaft jahrelang am Rande des Zusammenbruchs stand, war es Zeit für einen Neuanfang. Ihr neues Album ,Ugly Duckling Union" beginnt mit einem gelassenen Ausatmen von Osby, einem symbolischen Moment, der die Bühne für ihre bisher nachdenklichste, ungehemmteste, eingängigste und exzentrischste Sammlung von Songs bereitet. ,Ugly Duckling Union" ist ein Konzeptalbum, das auf den eigenen Erfahrungen der Band basiert, durch ihre Musik eine Gemeinschaft zu schaffen. Der Protagonist Dale und seine Gefährten schließen sich zusammen, um LBH zu besiegen, ein tyrannisches Medienunternehmen, das in seinem Streben nach Kontrolle auf Spaltung und Isolation setzt. Das Album enthält ein Handbuch mit Überlieferungen und illustrierten Comics von Doctor Nowhere (Silias Orion). Darüber hinaus können Fans mit Plüschpuppen und einer spielbaren Minecraft-Welt, die von ,Ugly Duckling Union" inspiriert ist, noch tiefer in die Materie eintauchen. Inspiriert von der konzeptionellen Kreativität von Bands wie Gorillaz und der Betonung des gemeinschaftlichen Konzerterlebnisses von Fugazi, verbindet Lowertown Online- und Offline-Fandoms zu einem umfassenden Erlebnis.,Ugly Duckling Union" wurde vollständig von Osby und Weinberg geschrieben, aufgenommen, produziert und gemischt. Obwohl Lowertown die alleinigen Hüter ihrer Kunst sind, ist der Titel ihres neuen Albums eine Hommage an die bedeutungsvolle Gemeinschaft, die sie aufgebaut haben.

Seit ihrer Gründung im Jahr 2016 haben die Londoner High Vis ihre Palette an progressivem Hardcore mit Nuancen von Post-Punk, Brit-Pop, Neopsychedelia und sogar Madchester-Groove verfeinert und einen Mittelweg zwischen Hooks und Wut, Melodien und Moshpits gefunden. Sänger Graham Sayle beschreibt ihr drittes Album Guided Tour als eine Achse der konkurrierenden Kräfte: "Es versucht, eine hoffnungsvolle Platte zu sein, während es gleichzeitig wütend macht." Die Band, die von Schlagzeuger Edward 'Ski' Harper, Bassist Jack Muncaster und den Gitarristen Martin MacNamara und Rob Hammaren komplettiert wird, ist tief in der britischen und irischen DIY-Hardcore-Szene verwurzelt und wird von Rastlosigkeit und rechtschaffener Wut gleichermaßen inspiriert. Die 11 Songs des Albums umfassen das gesamte Spektrum zeitgenössischer Gitarrenmusik, die durch Erfahrung, Kameradschaft und gesellschaftliche Frustrationen geschärft wurde. Von schwungvollem Streetpunk ("Drop Me Out", "Mob DLA") über schrillen Indie-Spott ("Worth The Wait", "Deserve It") bis hin zu Heavy Alt ("Feeling Bless", "Fill The Gap") und shoegazeartigem Spoken Word ("Untethered") - die Chemie der Gruppe verwandelt jeden Stil in ihre einzigartige Intensität.

Get ready for a musical history lesson of the wildest kind! Vancouver's garage-punk specialists THE BAD BEATS are back with a bang On their new album "Shiver and Shake - 14 Canadian Cold Cuts," released via SOUNDFLAT RECORDS, the band pays homage to the musical heritage of their Canadian homeland--with 14 hard-hitting cover versions. After proving they have the 60s "fuzz" spirit in their DNA with albums like "His Vengeful Hand" and "Off the Hook," they've now dug deep into Canadian music history. Instead of the usual hits, THE BAD BEATS present a selection of "Cold Cuts"-- raw, unpolished gems from cult bands that shaped the sound of the North. Look forward to high-energy reinterpretations of legends such as THE DEVRONS (who would later become THE GUESS WHO with the classic "She's Your Lover"), DAVID CLAYTON THOMAS & THE SHAYS (with the gripping "Take Me Back"), LES LUTINS ("Je Cherche") and of course, a tribute to the legendary NEIL YOUNG, with a gritty version of "Mr. Soul," is a must.

Sem is the first album by Victor Negri under his own name, after a decade making music as Arubu Avua. Released via Stray Signals (Berlin) in partnership with Mutum (Portugal/Brazil), the album was composed between late 2023 and early 2025 during a prolonged period of compounded grief and relocation, and is built upon layers of guitar in irregular loops, alongside samples, experimental electronics, and field recordings.

Begun in Lisbon and finished in Campinas, Brazil, Sem (meaning “without”) deals with loss by juxtaposing new material with unfinished recordings from previous years. As the process unfolded, catharsis emerged as much through editing as through raw expression. The album became a symbolic attempt to glue together fragments and memories from a world that ceased to exist, in order to move forward.

Across its eight tracks, some pieces gradually unfold while others crumble or explode into distortion and feedback, while some seem almost suspended, as if unsure of the next steps. There is a loose trajectory from disorientation and collapse (“Voçoroca”) through astonished frustration (“Não”) and numb acceptance (“Obrigado”), toward a fragile optimism on the closing tracks “Os cacos” and “Boa continuação.” Negri’s first fully instrumental album, Sem contains no vocals at all. That absence emerged gradually after fruitless attempts at songwriting during the period; overwhelm and speechlessness ultimately prevailed. The result leaves room for ambiguity, wandering, and the unfamiliar.

Victor Negri is a Brazilian musician and songwriter. Previously known as Arubu Avua, he makes music framed by noise, feedback, irregular loops, and field recordings.

With American idealism and societal unity in flames, the ethereal ambiance of Denver's ABRAMS has been permeated by vibrating, hair-trigger fury. On new album Loon, wistful melodies warp into dissonance and aggression, and crystalline beauty is inhabited by bitterness and rage. 2024's soaring and driving Blue City was a record full of arresting, nostalgic textures that Metal Hammer Magazine called "an upswell of positivity in the face of frustration that's sure to shake you from your existential slumber." But this is no longer the world of that album. The grinding hopelessness and chaos of these times have infused ABRAMS with the shattering intensity of Converge. Urgent and abrasive, Loon is acerbic, fed up, and riddled with pulverizing fury. Wistful melodies warp into dissonance and aggression. Crystalline beauty is inhabited by bitterness and rage. The band's instinctive hooks aren't gone, and hopeful moments do shine intermittently through. But it's clear that ABRAMS, like a lot of us, are pissed off. Desperate and seething, Loon is an irresistible, frenzied purge from a band refusing to give in. For fans of Torche, Converge, Cave-In, Failure, Quicksand and Hum. Coloured LP (white vinyl) & digipaked CD

Ok Leute, die fünf legendären Thrasher aus Antwerpen kommen mit einem dicken Moshbrett zurück auf das europäische Crossover-Parkett! Glatte 9 Jahre nach 20 Last Century brettert "Future Is Calling" straighter und direkter, aggressiver als je gehört - I know, das liest man bei jeder neuen Platte, aber hier stimmt es ausnahmsweise mal. Im Ernst, das neue Zeug klingt in keinster Weise angestaubt oder so, als wäre es schon das 100. Mal wieder aufgewärmt - im Gegenteil: Toxic Shock hat die kleine Pause der letzten Jahre offensichtlich gutgetan und ordentlich Fuel in den Motor geschüttet. Hier passt alles - die Gitarren sind super aufeinander abgestimmt, das Drumming ist tight und vor allem Wally, der Sänger, hat einen fetten Sprung in die A-Liga der Shouter geschafft. Aber klar - Toxic Shock erfinden das Crossover-Thrash-Game nicht neu, im Gegenteil, sie zollen den Großen des Genres Tribut! Klar, Excel, Suicidal Tendencies, Testament - das sind die Referenzen. Gleichzeitig merkt man die Hardcore/Punk-Wurzeln der fünf - nicht zuletzt durch das überaus passende und gelungene Cover von The Gun Club. Und fun fact - bei dem Gun Club-Song klingen Toxic Shock stellenweise wie Lee Hollis zu seinen besten Spermbirds-Zeiten! Was "Future Is Calling" aber wirklich auszeichnet, ist diese rohe, ungebremste Energie, die trotzdem nie ins Chaos kippt. Die Songs sind kompakt, kommen schnell auf den Punkt und haben trotzdem genug Hooks, um im Ohr zu bleiben. Kein unnötiger Schnickschnack, kein selbstverliebtes Gefrickel - einfach ehrlicher, wuchtiger Crossover mit Haltung. Genau so muss das 2020er-Thrash-Revival klingen. Moshpit-Garantie inklusive.

The Portland, ME trio returns with Feels Like Hell, their most self-assured and emotionally charged record yet. Despite the title, the album is a celebration of personal growth, creative freedom, and defiant joy in the face of a chaotic world.

Coming off the burnout and frustration captured in their 2021 album Quitter, Feels Like Hell finds Sonia Sturino (vocals/guitar), Annie Hoffman (bass/vocals), and Adam Hand (drums) leaning into clarity, gratitude, and renewed purpose. Sturino’s lyrics are as raw and honest as ever, but now they reflect strength rather than despair. It’s an album that drags existential dread into the daylight and sets it on fire.

“I decided to stop being such a sad-sap negative person,” Sturino says. “Now I practice being grateful, being proud, being happy, and not being envious.” That mindset shift shapes the tone of Feels Like Hell, which looks at darkness but chooses not to be consumed by it.

The record also marks the band’s first foray into co-writing, with Hoffman playing a significant role in shaping its sound. Embracing a more intuitive recording process, the trio stripped back the excess and focused on what felt right. The result is a record that’s resilient, cathartic, and brimming with creative energy.

While the world may still feel like it’s falling apart, Feels Like Hell pulses with the power of letting go. Letting go of fear, of perfectionism, of the illusion that vulnerability is weakness. With driving guitars, unflinching lyrics, and a renewed sense of purpose, Weakened Friends prove that it’s possible to stand in the wreckage and still find something worth singing about.

Both lyrically & musically, 'VOiD' reflects a disillusionment with a world increasingly defined by division, ideological rigidity & the loss of nuance. The album documents a conscious withdrawal from the noise - a retreat into a personal void. "Metal as well as Rock, from the head as well from the heart" - Classic Rock DE Much of 'VOiD' is driven by frustration with the binary nature of modern discourse, where context & intent are routinely discarded in favour of winning arguments. The record rejects that environment entirely, choosing introspection over confrontation & exploring Darran Charles' (lyricist & vocals) balancing of misanthropy with optimism & isolation with connection.

"Their blend of indie-rock & alternative metal has emotion & depth" - Buzz Magazine The writing process for 'VOiD' was exacting & often punishing, with songs repeatedly reworked in pursuit of emotional impact. Long- standing collaborators Tom Price & Gavin Bushell play a vital role throughout, while the introduction of new bassist Francis George - the band's first line-up change in twelve years - brings a subtle but important shift in the overall feel of the rhythm section.

ADULT. kooperiert nicht. Seit über 25 Jahren verkörpert die dystopische Detroit-Synth-Punk-Institution, gegründet von Nicola Kuperus und Adam Lee Miller, unbeirrbare Frustration, Misstrauen und Beklemmung. Man könnte erwarten, dass sich die Kanten mit der Zeit abschleifen, doch ADULT. hat kein Interesse am Komfort eines Vermächtnisses. Noch nie klang die Musik des Duos so unmittelbar, so dringlich und so unverhohlen wütend wie auf dem abschließenden, kompromisslosen Kissing Luck Goodbye.Mit aufgerüstetem Equipment und einer neuen Klangbibliothek gebaut, ist das Material erdrückend dynamisch, lauter - und zugleich klarer. Kuperus' dominante Darbietung rückt im Mix stärker in den Vordergrund und skizziert ein Arsenal aus lebhaften, ätzenden Rufen, Sprechchören und Gedankensplittern. Lachen - ob in den Texten oder als besessene Präsenz - fungiert als Leitmotiv und verweist auf die bedrohliche Absurdität der modernen Zeit.,THE CHAOS IS WHAT THEY WANT", singt sie in ,R U 4 $ALE" - zugleich eine Absichtserklärung: einer brennenden Welt aus Gier und Unordnung mit trotzigem, meisterhaft zusammengebautem Chaos zu begegnen. ,Du hast in dieser Höllenlandschaft, in der wir gerade leben, zwei Möglichkeiten: kämpfen oder depressiv sein", sagt Miller. ,Beides ist okay. Aber, na ja, die Entscheidung war einfach."ADULT. ist bekannt für hochriskante Katharsis auf der Bühne und griff kürzlich auf seinen Backkatalog an Bassgitarren-Songs aus den 2000ern zurück, wobei sie die vorausschauende Anxiety Always-Ära erneut nachzeichneten - teils aus Notwendigkeit angesichts der heutigen politischen und technologischen Angsttemperatur. Die Reaktion war sofort spürbar: ,Wir waren in Paris, und die Kids sind von der Bühne gesprungen. Und ich dachte nur: Das ist großartig. Das ist irgendwie die Energie, in die ich wieder zurückwill", sagt Kuperus.Diese Erkenntnis fiel mit einer Reihe von Rückschlägen zusammen - Kuperus' Anfällen von chronischem Schwindel, dem Verlust ihres engen Freundes und Kollaborateurs Douglas McCarthy von Nitzer Ebb, dem das Album gewidmet ist - alles unter dem drohenden Regime noch einmal erheblich verschärft. ,Wir dachten nur: Alles zerbricht. Wir zerbrechen. Wir sind kaputt." Dieses Gefühl hielt jedoch nicht an, denn letztlich waren sie viel zu sehr von Wut aufgeladen, um stillzuhalten. Die Stimmung vor Kissing Luck Goodbye waren vier Mittelfinger, die kerzengerade nach oben zeigten.Anstatt sich zurückzuziehen, konzentrierten sie sich auf den Prozess und überarbeiteten ihr Setup - inklusive der ersten neuen Mikrofone seit 20 Jahren. Hält man das Album an irgendeiner Stelle an, zählt man wahrscheinlich ein Dutzend Dinge, die gleichzeitig passieren, in seltsamer, schwindelerregender und dissonanter Harmonie. ,No One Is Coming" attackiert Untätigkeit angesichts des Faschismus - ,NO ONE IS COMING TO YOUR RESCUE". ,None of It's Fun" feuert mit atemloser Dringlichkeit, rasenden Glissandi und pointierten Zeilen wie: ,OH I AM TEARING MY GUTS OUT / LOOK AT ME_ DO YOU THINK THAT THIS IS AMUSING?"Eine geradlinige Basslinie und Kickdrum prallen im Abschlusstrack ,Destroyers" auf pulsierende Mantras, werden dann vollständig gesättigt und kakophonisch. Ihre jüngeren Ichs hätten den Song vielleicht sich selbst zerstören lassen, doch hier gelang es ihnen, die Lautstärke durch alle Extreme hindurch zu stabilisieren und Raum für ein eindringliches, abschließendes A-cappella zu schaffen: WE PAY THE PRICE FOR THOSE IN POWER EXPLOITING YOU EXPLOITING ME CONSUMING YOU CONSUMING ME SICK SICK SICK SICKENING IT IS US THAT ARE DEVOURED BY EVERYTHING I WILL EAT YOUR HATE

more eaze is the moniker of Brooklyn-based composer, orchestrator, and multi-instrumentalist, mari maurice. A renowned collaborator both in performance and on recordings, maurice"s own work is a fantasia, a reflection of her curious and explorative musical mind, encompassing entire spectrums of sound from a wide sonic pallet of electro-acoustic textures, folk traditions, and pop forms that pirouette into fully realized ecosystems. sentence structure in the country is a definitive statement of the matchless quality of more eaze"s skill as player and musical thinker. The album relishes the ecstatic in performance and collaboration with an inviting wit and incisive compositions, imbuing tenderness, frustration, and joy into each passage. sentence structure in the country is a collection of compositions, each beautifully realized, self-contained worlds. maurice"s dexterous, tasteful arranging lays bare her influences and obsessive fascinations with remarkable congruency while foregoing any sense of indulgence. Her music holds a density not only in the lush compositions and embellishing flourishes, but also for those moments of spare, minimalist beauty. sentence structure in the country is a textural marvel, a mosaic of ethereal electronics and loamy acoustics sculpted around deeply moving, enduring songs.

more eaze is the moniker of Brooklyn-based composer, orchestrator, and multi-instrumentalist, mari maurice. A renowned collaborator both in performance and on recordings, maurice"s own work is a fantasia, a reflection of her curious and explorative musical mind, encompassing entire spectrums of sound from a wide sonic pallet of electro-acoustic textures, folk traditions, and pop forms that pirouette into fully realized ecosystems. sentence structure in the country is a definitive statement of the matchless quality of more eaze"s skill as player and musical thinker. The album relishes the ecstatic in performance and collaboration with an inviting wit and incisive compositions, imbuing tenderness, frustration, and joy into each passage. sentence structure in the country is a collection of compositions, each beautifully realized, self-contained worlds. maurice"s dexterous, tasteful arranging lays bare her influences and obsessive fascinations with remarkable congruency while foregoing any sense of indulgence. Her music holds a density not only in the lush compositions and embellishing flourishes, but also for those moments of spare, minimalist beauty. sentence structure in the country is a textural marvel, a mosaic of ethereal electronics and loamy acoustics sculpted around deeply moving, enduring songs.

Repress on neon magenta vinyl, limited to 200 copies. Portland, Oregon based quartet Hippie Death Cult present their sophomore album "Circle Of Days". An album that serves as a musical bridge to their critically acclaimed debut "111", while being a fresh exploration of sound and vision. "Circle Of Days" is a pensive reflection of frustration and hope, experienced as we evolve from the confinements of self indulgence and into a more altruistic mindset. Listeners new to HDC can expect to hear a band that feels familiar yet also unique. Hippie Death Cult are a group with their own musical identity. One that manages to be influenced by great rock and metal bands of the past while not becoming a blueprint of them.

A journey into the raw and visceral origins: from the demo sessions mixed by Steve Albini to the night of the very first secret show on December 20th, 1988. In the heart of Chicago, Geordie and Martin Atkins turned frustration and distance into pure creative energy, recording the now-legendary "Black Cassette" demos at Albini"s house. Distorted, menacing bass lines, unruly oscillators, and Albini running endlessly up and down the stairs between the basement drum room and the pantry control room defined a sound that was brutally direct and uncompromising. The first interactions with the Yamaha drum machine foreshadowed elements that would later shape parts of the album. Those sessions sparked essential ideas, while the future studio - purchased from Steve and moved to Wabash Ave - would soon become the core of Invisible Records and Killing Joke"s operations. On the other side, a truly rare document: excerpts from Atkins"s very first show with the band, at Burberries in Birmingham on December 20th, 1988. In a small, mirror-lined club filled with tension, adrenaline, and inevitable collisions with the walls, Extremities, The Fanatic, Intravenous, and The Beautiful Dead were performed publicly for the first time. It was the night when everything ignited: the blast beat still in its embryonic stage, the controlled fury Geordie demanded - "can you go a bit more Moonie on it?" - and above all Jaz"s theatrical yet strikingly genuine laughter. Not just joy, but a declaration: a giant "fuck off" to the doubters and a prelude of what was about to come. A raw, essential, indispensable testimony: the birth of an era.

A journey into the raw and visceral origins: from the demo sessions mixed by Steve Albini to the night of the very first secret show on December 20th, 1988. In the heart of Chicago, Geordie and Martin Atkins turned frustration and distance into pure creative energy, recording the now-legendary "Black Cassette" demos at Albini"s house. Distorted, menacing bass lines, unruly oscillators, and Albini running endlessly up and down the stairs between the basement drum room and the pantry control room defined a sound that was brutally direct and uncompromising. The first interactions with the Yamaha drum machine foreshadowed elements that would later shape parts of the album. Those sessions sparked essential ideas, while the future studio - purchased from Steve and moved to Wabash Ave - would soon become the core of Invisible Records and Killing Joke"s operations. On the other side, a truly rare document: excerpts from Atkins"s very first show with the band, at Burberries in Birmingham on December 20th, 1988. In a small, mirror-lined club filled with tension, adrenaline, and inevitable collisions with the walls, Extremities, The Fanatic, Intravenous, and The Beautiful Dead were performed publicly for the first time. It was the night when everything ignited: the blast beat still in its embryonic stage, the controlled fury Geordie demanded - "can you go a bit more Moonie on it?" - and above all Jaz"s theatrical yet strikingly genuine laughter. Not just joy, but a declaration: a giant "fuck off" to the doubters and a prelude of what was about to come. A raw, essential, indispensable testimony: the birth of an era.

For more than three decades, Converge have delivered musical and emotional catharsis, putting purpose before perception and intent before interpretation. Whether it’s their 2001 landmark recording Jane Doe or their 2021 Bloodmoon: I collaboration with Chelsea Wolfe, they have created some of the most compelling music, lyrics, and visual art of the 21st century. During that time, fewer bands have had a greater impact on the underground imagination. It seems unlikely that anyone who has been making music for this long would create one of their best works for their eleventh album, in their 35th year as a band. And yet: Love is Not Enough might be the apotheosis of Converge’s decades-long journey through the punk, hardcore and metal microcosm. What vocalist/lyricist Jacob Bannon, guitarist/producer Kurt Ballou, bassist/vocalist Nate Newton and drummer Ben Koller have created is a strident artistic statement on the turmoil of living that hones their collective strengths to a razor’s edge. There isn’t an ounce of fat. Every song moves with a power and purpose that eclipses their human origins, that speaks to the anger, pain, and frustration of the modern age.

A brash, unapologetic blend of electronic, dance, punk, industrial, and pop music, No Lube So Rude exists at the intersection of the personal and the political, where the body serves not only as a sexual and spiritual vessel, but also as the front line in a battle for basic human rights. Peaches’ lyrics are bawdy and explicit here, laced with biting sarcasm and clever wordplay, but they’re also surprisingly vulnerable, offering up a candid look in the mirror from a post-menopausal queer icon reckoning with a society that’s come to expect silence, if not outright erasure. The result is a deliberately provocative exploration of identity, sexuality, and bodily autonomy from a trailblazer, a singular work of emotional and sonic alchemy that balances the poetic and the profane in equal measure as it transforms all the friction and frustration of modern life into joy and transcendence.

8-page lyric / drawing booklet, glossy poster, download card (inc. mp3s), white inner paper bags, sticker on cover.

After 7 strange years of relative silence, and 13 years of being a band, Dog Chocolate have returned with ‘So Inspired, So Done In’. Their fourth album is their most focused, cohesive and song-y yet. They still sound like a bin full of wasps, but now the bin has double-cream or a Viennetta or something at the bottom. While many of the 16 songs on here barely make it past the 3-minute mark, each one is bursting with all the textures and colours of an office cupboard: full of old sweets, fluorescent markers, and multiple ways to fix paper together.

Thematically, a lot of ground is covered, with songs tackling subject matter as diverse as overheard conversations, healing fungal toenails, the Rogerian concept of the Actualising Tendency, bronze age living conditions, dreaming songs into being and human-plant relations. Work (and anti-work) is a recurring theme, as is artistic inspiration and burnout. Dog Chocolate revel in the mundane and incidental, to explore bigger, existential questions. Recorded and mixed by POZI’s Toby Burroughs and mastered by Sofia Lopes, ‘So Inspired, So Done In’ charts a long and confusing period in the band’s collective life, marked by major life changes, losses and shifts, colouring the band’s trademark frantic, daft and anxious energy with a contemplative glaze. Dog Chocolate continue to investigate their internal and external landscapes with playful curiosity, frustration, silliness and empathy.

Pre/history of the band: In the early 2000’s Andrew (vocals), Rob (guitar, vocals) and Matthew (guitar, vocals) played together as teenagers in South-East London-based maximalist, costumed surrealist punk band Yeborobo. They met drummer Jonathan playing with his instrument-swapping masked band Limn at art space Utrophia in Deptford. Later, when both bands had split, Dog Chocolate formed with a shared desire to make a band that was simpler than their theatrical past: small amps and light guitars, no more than 2 drums at any one time, a keyboard no longer than a ruler and a shared ethos… “it’s about giving a shit, but at the same time not giving a shit, but not ‘whatever’, not giving up never!”. The band floated the term “pencilcase punk” to describe their jumbled, colourful, dense and instant music.

Dog Chocolate built on this early scrappiness, bedding into their sound over several albums. Their first “Or” (2014) was a split with Ravioli Me Away, soon followed by “Snack Fans” (2016) and “Moody Balloon Baby” (2018). Along the way they played gigs with bands as wide ranging as Deerhoof, No Age, Dry Cleaning, Palm, Daniel Wakeford, Shopping and Pozi.

With a tendency to converse with each other both lyrically and musically cultivated over many years, the members of Dog Chocolate bounce off each other, respectfully disagree, try to make each other laugh and share some of their most vulnerable feelings with each other. ‘So Inspired, So Done In’ is their own unique offering during these unsteady times: a language of friendship translated into songs.

Steeped in nocturnal, death rock adventurism, riven with a post-punk anxiety that feels increasingly like the twitching heart of our modern age, and driven by hardcore punk intensity, the second studio album from Boston’s FINAL GASP, titled New Day Symptoms, does what all great rock records do - not only does it place itself within a lineage, summoning up and amplifying a spectrum of powers from Rock n' Roll lore, it makes them resonate in the here and now. It gives voice to those fears and frustrations lurking just under the surface of waking consciousness and turns them into a rallying cry. Throughout New Day Symptoms, FINAL GASP create a potent reaction from the furious and the forlorn, frontman Jake Murphy’s vocalizes both a supercharged howl into the void and a remorseful echo back. But where the band’s 2023 debut, Mourning Moon, was a concentrated shot of acrid, underground death rock, its propulsion tanks largely filled with references to Samhain and Killing Joke, New Day Symptoms keeps all the core urgent energy while vastly broadening its scope. Through the anthemic, acid-corroded vistas of "Look Away" and gothic tub-thumping beat of "Gifted Shame" to "No Hand To Lead" channelling "Don’t Fear The Reaper" and its loping groove, New Day Symptoms takes the familiar into uncharted territory and makes the unfamiliar instantly, internally recognisable. With new space to explore, this is an album that feels a mapping of personal trials and dark recesses. Short: Boston's FINAL GASP return with New Day Symptoms - the new album steeped in nocturnal, death rock adventurism, riven with a post-punk anxiety that feels increasingly like the twitching heart of our modern age, and driven by hardcore punk intensity! FFO: Danzig, Killing Joke, TSOL, Lathe of Heaven, Poison Ruin, Gouge Away, Tribulation

Apollo Ghosts return with “Amethyst,” a seven-song EP overflowing with introspection, defiance, and the frustration of grappling with the world’s ills. With distortion pedals and walls of feedback - a first for Apollo Ghosts! - the songs contrast the monotony of daily life with climate anxiety, the rise of autocracies with the rise of apathy. But throughout, the album cements Apollo Ghosts' status as lifelong underground music defenders and eternal optimists with plenty of nods to 90s indie rock heroes Yo La Tengo, Dead Moon, Pavement, Guided By Voices, Eric’s Trip and Built To Spill

LP, Green Slime Vinyl

The Portland, ME trio returns with Feels Like Hell, their most self-assured and emotionally charged record yet. Despite the title, the album is a celebration of personal growth, creative freedom, and defiant joy in the face of a chaotic world.

Coming off the burnout and frustration captured in their 2021 album Quitter, Feels Like Hell finds Sonia Sturino (vocals/guitar), Annie Hoffman (bass/vocals), and Adam Hand (drums) leaning into clarity, gratitude, and renewed purpose. Sturino’s lyrics are as raw and honest as ever, but now they reflect strength rather than despair. It’s an album that drags existential dread into the daylight and sets it on fire.

“I decided to stop being such a sad-sap negative person,” Sturino says. “Now I practice being grateful, being proud, being happy, and not being envious.” That mindset shift shapes the tone of Feels Like Hell, which looks at darkness but chooses not to be consumed by it.

The record also marks the band’s first foray into co-writing, with Hoffman playing a significant role in shaping its sound. Embracing a more intuitive recording process, the trio stripped back the excess and focused on what felt right. The result is a record that’s resilient, cathartic, and brimming with creative energy.

While the world may still feel like it’s falling apart, Feels Like Hell pulses with the power of letting go. Letting go of fear, of perfectionism, of the illusion that vulnerability is weakness. With driving guitars, unflinching lyrics, and a renewed sense of purpose, Weakened Friends prove that it’s possible to stand in the wreckage and still find something worth singing about.

Rough Trade Records freut sich, die Veröffentlichung einer neuen Single von Lankum anzukündigen. Ursprünglich für die Tanzshow "Specky Clark" von Oona Doherty im Sadler"s Wells Anfang des Jahres komponiert, ist die Single eine eindringliche, fast übernatürliche Interpretation des Nummer-eins-Hits "Ghost Town" von The Specials aus dem Jahr 1981. "Ghost Town" erscheint als 12"-Vinyl mit einer kunstvollen Gravur auf der B-Seite. Zur Entstehung des Stücks erklärt die Band: "Ghost Town kam unter ungewöhnlichen Umständen zu uns. Oona Doherty, deren Arbeit wir bereits aus dem Video zu Gilla Bands 'Shoulderblades" kannten, erzählte uns von einem neuen Stück über ihren Ururgroßvater, der als Kind nach Belfast geschickt wurde, um bei seinen Tanten in einem Schlachthof zu arbeiten. Sie wollte für eine Halloween-Party-Szene ein Musikstück, das zunächst verschwommen und unkenntlich beginnt und sich dann in den bekannten Song von The Specials verwandelt. Anfangs waren wir zögerlich - ein Ska-Cover war nicht unbedingt unser Stil -, doch schließlich entschieden wir uns, es zu versuchen. Dabei entstand eine spannende Studioerfahrung, in der wir begeistert mit Synthesizern und Drum-Machines experimentierten, um einen rauen 90er-Techno-Sound für das Outro zu schaffen. Wir sind sehr zufrieden mit dem Ergebnis und dankbar, dass Oona uns ermutigt hat, neue Wege zu gehen. Es ist uns eine Ehre, diese ikonische Nummer neu zu interpretieren, deren Themen - städtischer Verfall, wirtschaftliche Not und Frustration der Arbeiterklasse - heute so aktuell sind wie damals."

From 1968 through to the mid 1970’s the reggae beat began to slow down,some say due to the extreme heat hitting down onto Kingston Town and its surrounding enclaves. People needed something less strenuous to dance to. The Ska and Rocksteady Sounds (see 101 Orange Street KS007) that rocked Jamaica previously, had now found a slower tempo and become more ‘Dread’ lyrically to suit the times. Reggae music has always moved within the social climate it found itself in and this set here, as we ‘Return To Orange Street’ was ROOTS ROCK REGGAE TIME....

The Rastafarian message that runs through this collection of ‘Reality’, sometimes labelled ‘Sufferers’ music,is strong and works on many levels. It can come across on a heavy rhythm and vocal cut. Its example represented here by Prince Jazzbo’s ‘Dread in a Earth’ and ‘I Roy’s ‘Roots Man Time’, moving through to the popular new sounds of the DJ’s working over an old rhythm and alongside its existing vocal. As with Busty Brown working with Delroy Wilson's ‘Know Your Friend’ and Mr Jah Stitch working over Johnny Clarke’s ‘Roots Natty Roots’ to produce an even more dreader ‘True Born African’. The heartfelt lyric can also convey this message as we can see when Horace Andy laments ‘Where is the Love’ and Delroy Wilson again shows us on his ‘Who Cares’ cut. The great Twinkle Brothers also put the message across on their two cuts we have here, ’Too Late’ one of their lost classics if ever there was one and the thoughtful ‘It’s Not Who You Know’,being another prime example.

Orange Street itself is always at the heart of all reggae's musical changes and some singers also ride these waves as Mr Cornell Campbell shows us here with two cuts. The mournful ‘Too Be Loved’ and his uplifting ‘Girl of My Dreams’, which uses the same rhythm as our previously mentioned Prince Jazzbo’s 'Dread in a Earth’. Showing us that firstly you can’t keep a good rhythm down and secondly that two if not more great songs can work from the same source point. The light hearted ‘Vengeful’ lyric also worked in this period when artists spared off to each other on records to vent their frustrations. As we can hear here with Mr Lee Perry’s ‘You Funny Boy’. The song snipping back at a previous employer over what he felt were his misdoings to an under appreciated Mr Perry. We have culled these tracks together to show that the Dread Roots feel of the 1970’s came across in many guises and even in earlier songs these sentiments were also prevalent. As represented in Slim Smith’s almost bluesy feel in ‘Trying To Find a Home’, never a truer statement in Kingston's ghetto areas.

Well we hope you enjoy this musical journey and make a connection with messages portrayed here, as Mr Monty Morris points out on his contribution to this collection ‘Times Are Dread’.... Dread indeed.....

Indignation Meeting präsentieren ,Murder On The Santa Express", einen brandneuen Song, der die zur Jahreszeit passende Geschichte eines verärgerten Eisenbahnarbeiters erzählt. Zu einem eingängigen Punk-Riff und einem Refrain, den man mitsingen kann, erzählt der widerwillige Weihnachtsmann von seinen Erfahrungen mit den jährlichen Santa Specials, wobei seine Frustration immer größer wird, bis der Satz ,it was murder..." (es war Mord...) von einer klischeehaften Metapher zur grausamen Realität wird. ,Murder..." ist die freche Seite der Single; um die Stimmung ein wenig aufzulockern, gibt es mit ,Christmas Train" die nette Seite, eine neue Version des ältesten Songs von Indignation Meeting, der geschrieben wurde, als Frontmann Peter gerade einmal sieben Jahre alt war! Die neue Single ist bei Damaged Goods Records auf kohlefarbenem 7"-Vinyl (ok, das ist schwarz!) mit vollfarbigem Insert erhältlich. Dies ist die zweite Single von Indignation Meeting nach ,That Leeds Feeling" (Eigenveröffentlichung 2023), wobei die Alben ,Trouble In The Shed" (2023) und ,A Model World" (2024) ebenfalls in allen Formaten erhältlich sind.