Melodious musings, taken too far.
✳
By
Last year, Gorillaz were on the nostalgia treadmill. For their silver anniversary, they reminisced on their visual history with the brilliant House Of Kong exhibition. This was located just behind the Copper Box Arena where they performed a residency consisting of their first three albums, plus a secret set (which turned out to be a full rendition of The Mountain). Not long after, they relaunched their interactive website, a significant element of Gorillaz’ early days. It was perhaps the most backwards-looking Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlitt had been since their virtual…
By
Leeds alt-rockers Supermaus have crafted their sound around a shared love of ’90s alternative rock, refracted through a contemporary post-punk lens. They are currently releasing singles for their debut EP, Out Of Body, out on May 8. Their latest, ‘Second Place’, will be released tomorrow. I asked lead singer Helen Edgeworth ten questions to find out more about one of Leeds’ latest outfits.
By
When clouds heave the night on their slumped shoulders, and rain falls like treacle from a spoon, what could be a better soundtrack than some French indie pop? Though it may have been in Brixton, the weather thrashing not the banks of the Seine, but the gullies of the Effra, Melanie Pain’s set of quaint covers and Francophonic folk were more than enough to transport even the most hardened of South Londoners to a Parisian boulangerie.
By
Opal Ocean are a brilliantly peculiar band. The Melbourne-based duo, comprised of Alex Champ and Nadav Tabak combine high-octane Spanish guitar techniques and dynamic performances to create something truly unique. A video of the pair busking their track ‘J.A.M.’ on the streets of Melbourne went viral, and they haven’t stopped since, gearing up to tour the UK this spring and releasing there upcoming album, Temple of the Stars, on February 27. I asked Opal Oceans ten questions to decipher the minds behind such a singular style of music.
By
A roundup of new releases this past week (16/02/26-22/02/26).
By
Ten years on from their breakout moment, Sports have released their self-titled LP (out now). Old schoolmates Christian and Cale meld the electronic and the dreamy, crafting a pop sound that’s as clean as it is emotive. The Oklahoma duo’s latest album is self-produced, having worked with Chad Copelin for their last three efforts. I asked Sports ten questions to see how they’ve thrived in this new independence.
By
To unlock Shapes Unravel, you have to spend time with its cover art. A woman in red, her fist clenched, pasted between crags and crevices. She is facing a black tombstone, potentially a shrine, that stalks her, its central eye wide and unnerving. It looms over her, as though it floats amongst the mountain tops. The tension of the two figures is reinforced by the distant peaks, a great chasm separating the foreground and the background.
By
Having toured the globe as Elle King’s backing band, The Bretheren are gearing up to release some music of their own. Moving away from their usual country stylings, the band have most recently toured the UK with Midlake, with their upcoming debut album featuring vocals from plenty of acclaimed artists, including King, Britt Daniel, Ben Bridwell, Hamilton Leithauser, and Michael Shannon. Yes, twice Oscar-nominated actor Michael Shannon. I asked The Bretheren ten questions to understand how they’ve found stepping into the spotlight.
Last year, Gorillaz were on the nostalgia treadmill. For their silver anniversary, they reminisced on their visual history with the brilliant House Of Kong exhibition. This was located just behind the Copper Box Arena where they performed a residency consisting of their first three albums, plus a secret set (which turned out to be a…
Leeds alt-rockers Supermaus have crafted their sound around a shared love of ’90s alternative rock, refracted through a contemporary post-punk lens. They are currently releasing singles for their debut EP, Out Of Body, out on May 8. Their latest, ‘Second Place’, will be released tomorrow. I asked lead singer Helen Edgeworth ten questions to find…
When clouds heave the night on their slumped shoulders, and rain falls like treacle from a spoon, what could be a better soundtrack than some French indie pop? Though it may have been in Brixton, the weather thrashing not the banks of the Seine, but the gullies of the Effra, Melanie Pain’s set of quaint…
Opal Ocean are a brilliantly peculiar band. The Melbourne-based duo, comprised of Alex Champ and Nadav Tabak combine high-octane Spanish guitar techniques and dynamic performances to create something truly unique. A video of the pair busking their track ‘J.A.M.’ on the streets of Melbourne went viral, and they haven’t stopped since, gearing up to tour the UK this…
A roundup of new releases this past week (16/02/26-22/02/26).
Ten years on from their breakout moment, Sports have released their self-titled LP (out now). Old schoolmates Christian and Cale meld the electronic and the dreamy, crafting a pop sound that’s as clean as it is emotive. The Oklahoma duo’s latest album is self-produced, having worked with Chad Copelin for their last three efforts. I asked Sports…
To unlock Shapes Unravel, you have to spend time with its cover art. A woman in red, her fist clenched, pasted between crags and crevices. She is facing a black tombstone, potentially a shrine, that stalks her, its central eye wide and unnerving. It looms over her, as though it floats amongst the mountain tops.…
Having toured the globe as Elle King’s backing band, The Bretheren are gearing up to release some music of their own. Moving away from their usual country stylings, the band have most recently toured the UK with Midlake, with their upcoming debut album featuring vocals from plenty of acclaimed artists, including King, Britt Daniel, Ben…
A roundup of new releases this past week (09/02/26-15/02/26).
Every UK No.2, reviewed in order – #1
So Long, Good Friday is an all-day music event in Liverpool on – you guessed it – Good Friday (April 3, 2026). It’s an event focused on community, affordability, and promoting up-and-coming alternative acts, whether they’re from across the globe or down the road. It also has some established heavy-hitters: Fat Dog, The Orielles, Brigitte…
In the music industry, authenticity is gold dust. The Reytons, for example, have built their whole identity around their working-class roots. Amongst their catalogue (which seems to consist either of the same Arctic Monkeys B-side riff or a Little Man Tate singalong), titles like Kids Off The Estate or Alcopops and Charity Shops tap into that mid-2000s indie aesthetic…
Surrounded by vinyls and polaroids at Kingston’s Banquet Records, Dream Nails played a set of unnerving riffs and stomping rhythms, all taken from their latest LP, You Wish (which I reviewed last week). After the long record-signing queue dissipated, I got the chance to chat to Mimi Jasson (vocals, bass) and Lucy Katz (drums) – Dream Nails sans guitarist…
Saul Adamczewski is something of a cult icon, but as with most cult icons, his popularity (or what some might call infamy) is just as much about his circumstances as his music: a psychotic drug addict, a South London squatter, a meth dealer’s teaboy – or so his Fat Possum Records bio renders him. My…
A roundup of new releases this past week (02/02/26-08/02/26).
Baek Hwong, aka NoSo, is a Korean-American singer-songwriter known for their intricate guitar-playing, poignant lyrics and reverbed production. Hwong is currently performing across Europe after the release of their sophomore effort, When Are You Leaving?, closing the tour in the UK. I had the pleasure of chatting to Hwong, touching on Hong Kong film, Karen O,…
With their third album, You Wish, Dream Nails have eschewed the overt for the opaque, menacing their way through eleven tracks, crunching and crackling like a heavy cloud. This is immediately apparent before the needle touches: the cover art shows a horse in endless water, both symbols of freedom and liberty, the image a departure from…
The last time I saw Stefan Mahendra was in late August last year, deep in the dustbowl that was Victoria Park. He was crooning in a silk shirt on All Points East’s ‘Amex Unsigned’ stage, swaying with a gentle coolness as his backing band laid down some soulful R&B.
Sunday Smoke are a London-based trio, recently formed and steadily releasing tracks inspired by classic rock and post-Britpop alike. With online support from The Kinks, the band have a keen eye on glory, hoping to ramp up their touring schedule after the release of their most recent single, ‘Already Know’ – an acoustic endeavour evocative of…
Every kid wants to become a musician at some point. The lure of popularity is far too strong to ignore, the aesthetics of a guitar slung around your torso or a microphone gripped like a Millwall brick so ephemerally unreal that you can’t help but fixate on it. There are plenty of unlikely stories in…
Album cycles often feel like a musician’s curse. You work for months, sometimes years, on a project, only to wait another however-many months to get it out there. Don’t release another album too soon, otherwise fans get burned out; release one too late, and they’ll have moved on to a more regular artist.
Gitika Partington…
Eugene McGuinness released his debut EP, a wry collection of frenetic songwriting underpinned by the clash of the electronic and acoustic, a few days before his 22nd birthday. Nineteen years later, with half a dozen more release under the belt, McGuinness is gearing up for the release of his next effort, Eugene McGuinness Versus The…
Tommy James and the Shondells are a curious band, at least to my generation. ‘Who?’ I hear you ask, scratching your plasticine head, still wet from the womb. If I tell you that ‘Crimson and Clover’ is their song, your mind would jump to one-hit wonder. If I went on to explain that they had…
A roundup of new releases this past week (19/01/26-25/01/26).
Throwing a bit of grit under the bubblegum chompers of British Invasion pop, Leeds-based garage-rockers Vehicle come out a-swinging with kitchen-sink cynicism, buoyed by a wink and a knack for melody. Starting 2026 off properly with the country-cruncher single ‘You Are Not A Cowboy’, we asked Vehicle ten questions to really get under their bonnet…
Mathis Akengin is a piano prodigy, training in conservatories before most of us could do our times tables. After collaborating with a variety of bands, like Dead Chic and Neptune Quartet, Akengin decided it was time to launch a solo career, no less with the piano-slapping ‘First Floor’. I had the pleasure of interviewing Akengin,…
A roundup of new releases this past week (12/01/26-18/01/26).
Breeze are an indie rock band, born and bred in Hull. Three brothers like the mighty Cribs, Breeze are honing their sound, with their latest single ‘Superheroes’ adding a guitar-fuzzed swagger to their repertoire. I had the pleasure of interviewing Breeze, asking them ten questions to dig into what it means to be an up-and-coming…
Sometimes, before a drum pad is tapped or a vinyl is scratched, you can tell if a gig will be good just by the crowd. I was reviewing a show in Islington the other week, and the gathering masses of laddish middle-aged men and boorish teens in Parkas, taunting each other across the room and…
Gladboy are a Leeds-based garage rock band, born in a now-demolished eyesore in Norwich. They have honed one of the underground’s most unique and frenetic live shows – confounding, occasionally ear-piercing, but always melodic. With their latest single ‘Doin’ Art Badly’ out now, I had the pleasure of interviewing lead singer George, asking him ten questions…
Something went wrong. Please refresh the page and/or try again.
Argus Far 