half•alive have upped the stakes for what it takes to be ‘in a band’, and their debut release Now, Not Yet shifts through musical dimensions with purpose. Although still to draw significant attention around the world from serious music fans, half•alive are demanding us to listen. Led by singer Josh Taylor, around whose talented shivery vocals and diverse songs the outfit is … [Read more...] about half•alive: Now, Not Yet – Review
Marika Hackman: Any Human Friend – Review
British singer-songwriter Marika Hackman delivers her most sexually charged and immediate songs to date in 'Any Human Friend', broadening her musical reach with a synth-rock swagger. The twenty-seven-year-old, London-based singer-songwriter Marika Hackman first came to prominence with her 2015 debut, We Slept At Last, a delicate and elliptical record that drew on the folk … [Read more...] about Marika Hackman: Any Human Friend – Review
Bon Iver: i,i – Review
Justin Vernon’s fourth album presents a satisfying, intelligent and purposeful redrafting of the styles of his previous three releases which evolves and coalesces into something buoyant and serene. Since emerging in 2008 with the stripped-down and stunning For Emma, Forever Ago, the alt-pop singer-songwriter Justin Vernon has ploughed a yearning furrow under the Bon Iver … [Read more...] about Bon Iver: i,i – Review
Pétra: Aunis – Review
Pétra release their debut album Aunis amidst sonic landscapes and skillfully realised sounds that manage to dive into your subconscious and never let go. Pétra’s debut release, Aunis, announces its arrival with the treacly, ‘Stranger Things’-like synth arpeggios and post-industrial static of the title cut. It’s an eerie musical soundscape laden with an ominous, otherworldly … [Read more...] about Pétra: Aunis – Review
Mungo’s Hi Fi x Eva Lazarus: More Fyah – Review
Veteran roots reggae and digi-dancehall stylists team up with a contemporary powerhouse to craft punchy summer bangers whilst pushing their ravenous sound forward in subtly refreshing ways. Since forming in 2000, the Glasgow reggae sound system collective known as Mungo’s Hi Fi have become a synonym for open-minded, welcoming and curious musical collaborations, as typified … [Read more...] about Mungo’s Hi Fi x Eva Lazarus: More Fyah – Review
Kit Sebastian: Mantra Moderne – Review
The fertile, cross-pollinating imagination of Kit Sebastian permeates a heady, joyous and oddball debut album that conjures summery sonic flotsam by drawing upon three languages and an array of outre styles. We’re living in unnerving times dominated by base demagoguery and voices of exclusion, intolerance and insularity, which is why Kit Sebastian’s perfectly formed debut … [Read more...] about Kit Sebastian: Mantra Moderne – Review