Good things take time. Rachel Carmen also took this saying to heart, allowing her music to mature. The singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist from the idyllic Swiss village of Muotathal earned her stripes, among other things, with the cover band Coverstreet. From the snow-covered peaks of Switzerland to the sunny beaches of Spain, she also won over audiences as a singer and bar pianist.
In 2014, she won the Prix Walo “Sprungbrett” (breakthrough award). This was followed by radio appearances, a duet with Piero Esteriore and the Esteriore Brothers on Donnschtig-Jass, a performance at the KKL Lucerne, and a spontaneous jam session with Büne Huber of Patent Ochsner.
It is therefore high time for a new beginning—for stepping into the wider public eye—with her own single “Whole Again.” The soulful, danceable electropop anthem marks the start of a series of further singles as well as an EP set to be released next year. Rachel Carmen’s sound matured in Los Angeles, where she spent considerable time a few years ago gathering new creative impulses and further developing her style.
As a songwriter, Rachel Carmen is active internationally: she regularly takes part in songwriting camps and sessions in Switzerland, Norway, and London, where she collaborates with other artists to create new songs. In 2025, Rachel further expanded her artistic expression through acting training, strengthening her stage presence and emotional depth even more.
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Thomas Duxbury and New Mother Nature - Already Dead.
Thomas Duxbury and New Mother Nature continue to ride the momentum of previously released singles “Istanbul” and “She Never Knows” with “Already Dead,” a brooding and deeply introspective blues-tinged garage rock track that captures the disorienting weight of sleepless nights and spiraling thoughts. Built around eerie guitar textures and restless energy, the song finds Duxbury grappling with isolation and exhaustion while searching for some glimmer of light beyond the darkness. It arrives as the latest single from the band’s forthcoming album, set for release on May 19th, 2026.
“I was lying awake in bed, anxiously stuck in my thoughts and unable to sleep,” Duxbury explains. “It felt like I had been awake for weeks and was losing touch with reality. In my mind I kept picturing myself driving my old red Ford Ranger down a dirt road at dusk, trying to clear my head. I wanted to try and fight my way back to some sort of light and hope that I could cling to.”
“Already Dead” sits in the uneasy space between awareness and detachment. Duxbury describes moving through crowds and conversations while carrying a private internal battle no one else could see. “There was a war going on in my mind that I was alone in and the people around me were completely unaware,” he says. “I didn’t want to talk about it. I just wanted to keep it to myself.”
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| Photo - Angeline Simon |
Sparkle Blood is the kind of band that gets in, says exactly what they need to say, and gets out—no wasted time, no excess, just sharp, punchy songwriting delivered with total conviction. The trio, Tyler Stewart on guitar and vocals, Bailey Kate on bass and vocals, and Bre Day on drums, lock into a sound that feels both scrappy and impossibly tight, balancing sweetly fuzzy guitars with driving rhythms and melodies that hit instantly.
There’s an easy chemistry between Stewart and Kate that calls back to the dynamic interplay of The Lemonheads and Pixies, while Day keeps everything grounded with a powerful, no-frills approach behind the kit. It’s hook-heavy, harmony-rich, and just rough enough around the edges to keep things interesting.
Their upcoming LP ZIP ZAP leans all the way into that energy, opening with “Mad About It,” a track that feels like a thesis statement, urgent, a little fed up, but still undeniably fun. From there, the band keeps things moving at a clipped, confident pace.
“Totally Ignorant” barrels through in under a minute and a half, landing its punch with the kind of efficiency you’d expect from Ramones or Guided by Voices, while songs like “Burning Barrel” and “I Don’t Know” stretch things just enough to let the hooks breathe, pulling from the timeless melodic instincts of Buddy Holly and the punchy edge of Buzzcocks and Hüsker Dü. Across the record, Sparkle Blood strike that sweet spot between catharsis and celebration, pairing real-world frustration with undeniable charm. It’s the kind of album that sneaks up on you, quick, catchy, and quietly addictive after just a couple of spins.
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Lending 'acappella' Americana with a jazz nuance, echoing the warm atmospheres of Pentatonix pairing rich vocal harmony with open-road storytelling and an understated groove, State of Mind is an intimate, roots-driven track built for listeners who value authenticity, mood, and craft. With no heavy production, the voices carry the landscape, creating a cinematic vibe that feels grounded in a quiet uplifting reflective mood.
Darryl Scotti is the creative force behind Big Yard, a sound grounded in rock, blues, and country soul - woven together with heartfelt storytelling. A veteran artist with authentic roots in classic Americana music and a pulse on today’s evolving scene, Scotti delivers songs that are raw, real, and deeply human.
With decades of experience as a performer, writer, and producer, his work continues to bridge generations - music that moves, inspires, and heals. Big Yard is where seasoned producers and one veteran singer songwriter collide to create a bold, genre-bending sound that fuses contemporary rock, pop, smooth jazz, big band, and R&B - all produced with a modern, hip edge.
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| Photo - Hanna L Hayden |
London/Barcelona-based Lala Hayden today announces her new EP 'Queen of Midnight', out 8th May via Goldun Egg and shares new single 'Goodthing'. Produced by Jake Gosling (Lady Gaga, Paloma Faith), 'Goodthing' is a stark alt-pop examination of self-sabotage. Written during pregnancy and early motherhood, the track forms part of an EP that documents both the intensity of new life and the psychological shifts that accompany it, as identity begins to recalibrate.
Speaking on the release, Lala Hayden said: "I feel like I'm always one bad decision away from completely sabotaging everything in my life. It feels like most of the time I'm living in a bubble that can't last, constantly treading a fine line that could break at any moment. The sabotaging part in me is so loud, especially in times when I'm sleep deprived, hormonal, or feeling disconnected from my surroundings. Goodthing is a story of intimacy and absence, where love lingers in empty rooms, in memory, and in the quiet realisation that sometimes, the hardest thing isn’t losing something good but realising you’re the reason it never lasts."
Drawing inspiration from films such as The Dreamers, Blue Is the Warmest Colour and Paris, Texas - 'Goodthing' explores the tension of holding something real, while slowly pulling away from it.
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