Brilliant basslines, soulful vocals, quirky but satisfying melodies and a fiercely human sense of passion and live-music vibrancy. Scottish artist and producer Novaborn captures a moment of pure addictive escapism, with the soaring stomp and seduction of Gone.
Folk Rock
From bedroom pop to programmed vocals and an anthemic Celtic celebration of football and the old school World Cup Campaigns – Rodeo Terrorists brings a fully loaded soundscape of folk-rock knees-up intentions, with the heavy production and catchy Celtic riffs of Saltire (Tartan Army).
Real human connection in musical form – an intimate capture, acoustic and thoughtful, honest and unedited. Gibishki introduces a sublime and interesting new album, with the rising passion and distinct identity of 7 Wonders.
Introducing a creative duo whose songs are the sort to make long-time music writers instantly excited about their work again. Wisconsin alt-folk artists Leiting & Van Kammen blend organic, acoustic folk musicianship, with honest, alluring vocal charm, rising intensity, and haunting, reflective stories.
Building from a purely acoustic and nearly whispered introduction, Monsters employs Frida Mann’s unmistakable vocals, and slowly but surely evolves through a story of anger, resentment, confinement. The voice is captivating, and later near-euphoric in its outcry, and as such, this conceptual journey is incredibly passionate, in both vocal and instrumental delivery.
French duo Riatto & The Dog captivate in seconds, with the breathy harmonies and lyrical poetry of this heartfelt and melancholic but hopeful indie folk stomp.
Lush riffs and dreamy good vibes meet with a kind of energising folk-rock energy and brightness that’s instantly infectious. Belgian creative Hidden Shores blends indie pop, shoegaze and anthemic passion, with the limitless creative tools of AI, for the intoxicating album Mighty Oak.
Parallel Acceptance is a tearjerker of a listen, the perfect soundtrack to lose yourself within, to shake out those aches of uncertainty, lostness, regret, and to feel understood and strangely comforted, by the universal weight of disconnection.
An exciting indie duo, Summerhouse write with a sincere and rather poetic sense of realism and reflection. Excuse My Issues is everything its title implies, but so too is the band name, and the resulting sound is a strangely enchanting fusion of summertime lightness and conceptual, emotional weight.
Folk-punk, blues-rock and Gypsy-jazz brings stories of traditional and modern poetry, as Until They Burn Me launch their sensational, impressively organic, melodic, gritty and infectious new album, A Carnival of Reveries.
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.
It’s a song about hidden wisdom, loyalty, honesty, but it’s complex – not linear but meandering between various thoughts and feelings. The music and lyrics alike walk you through this hallway of introspection, and it’s catchy, uplifting, and confronting.