3-5 Stars
Manic Street Preachers - The Ultra Vivid Lament
A requiem, but one that looks for sonic positivity in the thematic darkness.
10th September 2021
3-5 Stars Album & EP Reviews
3-5 Stars
Lazarus Kane - Psychobabble
‘Psychobabble’ proves that Lazarus Kane never needed to don any costumes to be at their best.
10th September 2021
3-5 Stars
Flossing - Queen of the Mall
There’s an icy new wave heart to much of Flossing that feels out of step with 2021.
10th September 2021
3-5 Stars
Big Red Machine - How Long Do You Think It’s Gonna Last?
There’s a terrific bounty to be enjoyed in the centre of the Vernon-Dessner Venn diagram.
27th August 2021
3-5 Stars
Maisie Peters - You Signed Up For This
Big emotions, small glances, everything feeling life-defining.
27th August 2021
3-5 Stars
Chubby And The Gang - The Mutt’s Nuts
As could probably be extrapolated from the record’s title alone, one thing ‘The Mutt’s Nuts’ does well is evoke an approximation of ‘70s pub rock.
27th August 2021
3-5 Stars
The Bronx - Bronx VI
Long-time followers will not be disappointed, but new converts are likely to be few in number.
27th August 2021
3-5 Stars
Lorde - Solar Power
A heady trip that prances around greatness but settles for pretty good.
20th August 2021
3-5 Stars
Wednesday - Twin Plagues
A coming-of-age record of sorts, loose clippings of memory bob in and out of squalls of feedback.
13th August 2021
3-5 Stars
IDER - shame
IDER are back at what they do best, providing a glimmering sense of hope that we aren’t alone with our anxieties.
6th August 2021
3-5 Stars
FEET - Walking Machine
FEET’s knack for making something that should sound like chaos into a jam is still clear.
6th August 2021
3-5 Stars
Oscar Lang - Chew The Scenery
It’s when Oscar’s inner ‘nice guy’ sits at the forefront that he succeeds most.
13th August 2021
3-5 Stars
Horsey - Debonair
On ‘Debonair’, Horsey walk the tightrope between comedy and tragedy with ease.
30th July 2021
3-5 Stars
Dusted - III
A series of snapshots of a former life, lovingly delivered.
23rd July 2021
3-5 Stars
Emma-Jean Thackray - Yellow
‘Yellow’ mixes it up nicely with freak-outs, group chants, P-funk and mellowing R&B.
23rd July 2021
3-5 Stars
DZ Deathrays - Positive Rising: Part 2
The Aussies want you to know they haven’t given up hope.
9th July 2021
3-5 Stars
Ten Tonnes - So Long
A short but sweet collection of breezier-than-thou perky indie pop.
1st July 2021
3-5 Stars
Doja Cat - Planet Her
Whether the record’s legacy will hold past the next trend cycle is not quite written in the stars.
25th June 2021
3-5 Stars
Modest Mouse - The Golden Casket
Not quite Modest Mouse at their best, but they’re not a million miles away from it, either.
25th June 2021
3-5 Stars
Drug Store Romeos - The world within our bedrooms
If the goal of a debut album is to introduce yourself to the world with a sound and a style that’s purely your own, the Romeos have done a pretty stellar job.
25th June 2021
3-5 Stars
Francis Lung - Miracle
He isn’t reinventing the wheel here, but he knows what he’s good at.
18th June 2021
3-5 Stars
Garbage - No Gods No Masters
Both rhythmic and chaotic, it mirrors the frenetic turbulence of the times that have inspired it.
11th June 2021
3-5 Stars
Folly Group - Awake And Hungry
Not a bad start at all.
11th June 2021
3-5 Stars
deep tan - creeping speedwells
The trio already have a clear and exciting identity - they can hammer out the details later.
4th June 2021
3-5 Stars
cleopatrick - BUMMER
Not everything about ‘BUMMER’ is fully perfected just yet, but there’s plenty to feel upbeat about.
4th June 2021
3-5 Stars
N0V3L - Non-Fiction
Funereal, chorus-soaked bass-lines, razor-at-the-throat guitar turns, and febrile grooves.
28th May 2021
3-5 Stars
black midi - Cavalcade
Building from a sound already so idiosyncratic and unpredictable, they end up in some head-scratching corners.
28th May 2021
3-5 Stars
Billie Marten - Flora Fauna
The onus on ‘Flora Fauna’ is on Billie’s voice, in more ways than one.
21st May 2021