This New Basement - "Scatter" | Album Review
Snooper - "Snõõper" | Feature Interview
Snapped Ankles - "Forest of Your Problems" | Album Review
We might all have a part to play in addressing the climate crisis, but I for one am more than happy to let Snapped Ankles provide the soundtrack to dance as weirdly as you want. Limbs flailing in anxious frustration, losing consciousness of the singularity of selfhood and melding with the sweaty weirdos around you, truly may help.
Mach-Hommy - "Pray For Haiti" | Album Review
Double Grave - " Chrysanthemum" | Album Review
Gash - "Leftern" | Album Review
The catchy songwriting of Gash was on full display with their 2018 album haha and while it comes into play in moments on Leftern, it feels like less a focus on individual songs and more on the album as a whole. The record rewards repeat listening, with different aspects of the band’s writing revealing itself with each subsequent listen.
Helvetia - "Essential Aliens" | Album Review
Jason Albertini’s latest Helvetia album, Essential Aliens, is a masterclass on how lo-fi recording at home can be a vehicle to showcasing a vision of unavoidable, but captivating quirks and laconic storytelling. That story is one of a recurring dream Albertini had wherein his life is upended by ghosts.
Jolee Gordon - "The Good Parts" | Album Review
Shrapnel - "Alasitas" | Album Review
Sydney’s Shrapnel has come a long way since 2013. In the intervening eight years, he’s consistently nourished the project with an expanded lineup and on Alasitas, their latest album, there’s now six members throwing everything at it, including a flute, a synth, and clarinet to embellish the trusty guitars, and it gives the record a renewed lush feel.
Hard Nips - "Master Cat" | Album Review
In 2009, four Japanese women met in Brooklyn and decided that they really wanted to start a band. Master Cat is their third album and a remarkably strong one considering none of them were musicians beforehand. It does mean that the songs in Master Cat are raw and real but they carry them all with an underlying intelligence of craft and ambition.
EXEK - "Good Thing They Ripped Up The Carpet" | Album Review
Sinwat - "Sinwat" | Album Review
Slowcore has always been the perfect music for feeling sad. A genre that allows you to ruminate in your emotions and all that is going on. On their self-titled debut, St. Louis band Sinwat shows that this has not changed. What they have created are nine songs that all capture the feeling that the best slowcore has always been able to convey.
Squirrel Flower - "Planet (i)" | Album Review
Planet (i) swiftly follows Squirrel Flower’s debut, and offers an even further improvement in voice, production, and style. The reoccurring lyrical themes, the diverse yet consistently focused sonic palette, and some of the most well written songs in the Squirrel Flower catalogue proves this to be their strongest statement to date.
Sweet Williams - "What's Wrong With You" | Album Review
Sweet Williams occupies a unique space, taking influence from sludge, noise rock and following in the tradition of bands like Unwound and Lungfish. They have found a sweet spot. Though it’s tempting at times to compare them to one band or another, it’s clear that What’s Wrong With You defies any attempts at labelling this band.
Pom Pom Squad - "Death of a Cheerleader" | Album Review
Mia Berrin, with a blistering attitude and personal freedom indebted to self-discovery, establishes herself as a songwriter of raw pathos. The kind where every plucked string is a “fuck you.” The kind where snark and melodrama are cherished tenets of a sound and style. The kind that’s so fundamentally queer, it’s inspiring.
Black Midi - "Cavalcade" | Album Review
Cavalcade has been out for nearly a month now, and we’re all still oozing over how they managed to rip it up and start once more in their own orbit. The change to producer John “Spud” Murphy and significant increase in the size of their backing arrangements did not betray their adherence to any of the critical Speedy Wunderground tenants.
Rose City Band - "Earth Trip" | Album Review
Rosali - "No Medium" | Album Review
Mountain Movers - "World What World" | Album Review
The latest in Mountain Movers’ deepening discography, World What World shows the New Haven, Connecticut band continuing to explore their own beautifully distorted landscape. Crucial to the band’s sound is the live and unrestrained form that each album takes; a performance that’s tastefully edited to fit the LP format.