Refreshingly organic and honest folk-pop returns to its unfiltered and vulnerable roots, as singer and songwriter Tilda blends journal-style poetry and personal lostness, with hypnotic and gentle melodies, for The Way I’m Wired.
EPs
An interesting edge of character draws you into the colourful grooves and hooks of this project. Washington DC band Stephen Sol & The & 7 blend the excitable musicianship of folk-rock, with the softer conceptual and melodic stylings of pop, for their five-track EP Sunshine Wine.
Featuring Ted James on guitar, George Pestana on Drums, and David Escamilla on bass, there’s a level of togetherness and tightness amidst this band’s live captures that’s second to none. It’s a faultless and stylish progression, naturally urging you to crank up the volume, and its balancing of playfulness and fast-fingered ability is mighty.
In a time when AI is turning everybody into a ‘musician’, genuine projects like this mean more than ever, and Sketches #1 feels like something that was genuinely written, performed and recorded as a means of healing or understanding for the artist. A therapeutic process, which shines like a secret light – stumbled upon in the darkest of times.
but…why? is wonderful, in short – self-explanatory but not, focused and free; a multitude of moments presenting the complexity of feelings and relationships in a bold and beautiful way. This closing song again lets the passion and layers collide and culminate, amidst this subtly unique soundscape, for a haunting crescendo that leaves you keen to replay the whole project once again.
Sweeping sonic landscapes bring drama and depth, to an otherwise intimate singer-songwriter approach to vulnerability and expression. Australian artist LACHYO captures a uniquely meaningful series of moments, for the five-track EP Tell Me No.
As an introduction to the introspective and revealing poetry of this project, Armour is superb – a relatable resolve proving inclusive and melodically satisfying, with deeper-seeking verses that shine a more specific light on the intricacies and weights of living with autism.
Lush organic grooves and intimate vocals and lyrics pave the way for a deeply comforting five-track EP. goodtoknow present a collaborative impromptu musical space, a creative moment captured in time, live and spontaneous, from Mexico City, and it’s as humble and nostalgic as it is gorgeously calming.
Driven by an unwavering love for the unique euphoria of atmospheric, intense techno and psytrance, Belgian producer and artist Daan Schoonvliet has embarked upon an outstanding venture, releasing a brand new track every month, and introducing his prowess and presence in the space with the likes of the impassioned single Rija.
Artist and rapper DarcyOwla is someone with a clear sense of original identity and purpose in modern music. The EP Destruction is uniquely distinct, both in its atmospheric, industrial production, and the varied flow and vulnerability of the voice. It’s a hazy mix, with cinematic nuance subtly adding dynamic throughout, and the lo-fi set-up and trap-variant rhythms all meet well with these often piercingly dark lyrical reflections.
Stylish live-band urban pop music brings catchy grooves and soulful falsetto vocals. Lugo™ highlights the professional and smooth precision of his approach, with the uplifting seven-track EP Let Them Eat Cake.
Atmospheric progressive metal of extensive meandering soundscapes – an EP of genre-fusing takes both dissonant and harmonised, beginning with a nine-minute epic that feels like multiple tracks in one. Swedish composer and musician David Blomgren creates under the project name Valfreyja, and The Rose Of Rebirth is a multi-coloured, chaotic and conceptually profound look at the artistic freedom that drives his approach.