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| Photo - Emily Cardona |
Just ahead of the anticipated upcoming EP To Cast the Sea in Concrete (5th November), Cork risers Pebbledash share the haunting indie-folk sweller ‘O, The Wind’. Following the bands sync on the new Netflix series House Of Guiness, ‘O, The Wind’ showcases the blend of traditional Irish folk, shoegaze and post-punk that has seen Pebbledash so widely acclaimed. Led by the haunting vocals of Asha Egan McCutcheon, the track unfolds into an ethereal, dark and emotionally affecting soundscape, intertwining biting, fingerpicked electric guitar with atmospheric swells of strings and synth, warm bass lines, and driving, shuffling drums. The result drifts effortlessly between genres, enveloped in a beautiful haze of reverberated echoes and subtle field recordings.
Speaking about the track, Cormac Donovan O’Neill explains – “I think we all felt that this song represented a major departure for Pebbledash in terms of the barriers of genre we were willing to cross.
The track’s opening section foregrounds the emotional tumult of Asha’s lyrics exploring isolation in an urban landscape and the surrealism evoked by this floating through time, delivered in the ornamented manner of a traditional sean nós tune accompanied only by soft wheeze of air passing through a harmonium’s body and Fionnbharr’s spare guitar figure. But from there, we wanted the bass and drums to carry Asha’s stark lyricism atop an off-kilter groove more akin to the likes of DJ Shadow or Portishead, propelling the listener in unforeseen directions before the song returns home in its final moments, the vocal standing alone amidst a landscape of Terry Riley-esque arpeggios and eerie sampled vocals.
We were incredibly excited to share this song as a statement of our development, attesting to the outer reaches of our sound we sought to explore in recording this EP.”
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Richmond, Virginia's The Melody Chamber, a southern gothic new romantic jangle-pop band have just released their third single "1 + 1." The third single is the perfect blend of Psychedelic Furs meets early R.E.M.. The band came together by happenstance with Wallace Dietz of Silent Boys fame working in the same studio as Dan-O Deckelman and him walking by and hearing a song from another studio and striking up a conversation.
Dan-O coming from a hardcore and metal background was working on a very Elvis Costello pop track invited Wallace to collaborate and the two just gelled quickly and the songs started to pour out. (There are multiple album already written from what I hear).
The self-titled debut album is out on November 7th, 2025 from HHBTM Records (USA) on vinyl and Too Good To Be True (Europe) on vinyl and CD.
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Yesterday, Swiss’ Vendredi sur Mer released the single “Si t’étais là”, her first after her album Malabar Princess. The much lauded album includes “Arrêter le temps” featuring the pianist/composer Sofiane Pamart, “Malabar Princess”, “Hard” (feat. Hanni El Khatib) and “Tout résonne,” which are included in the upcoming album! Vendredi sur Mer will be supporting on stage during her 11-date American tour starting in March 2026, tour dates to be announced shortly!
The title track “Malabar Princess” sounds like a nostalgic ode to her native Switzerland and the Swiss Alps in particular. Malabar Princess marks a return to the softness and nostalgia of her early work, following a more combative phase. Born from a writing residency in Montréal, the album reflects her return to the mountains and a search for self. Sam Tiba and new collaborators Adrien Gallo and Owlle helped guide this evolution toward more organic, intimate sounds. Malabar Princess is a sincere, poetic album where the artist fully reveals herself, blending desire and truth.
“Arrêter le temps” shows Vendredi sur Mer and the renowned French pianist/composer Sofiane Pamart bringing a touch of emotion, making this piano-voice duet a breath of fresh air on the album. Blending touching lyrics and a melancholic instrumental in perfect harmony, the track feels like an open letter, destined to resonate deeply with every listener.
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| Photo - Dominic Berthiaume & Delphine Snyers |
The new single, "Kindness in a Cup," is out now from Hélène Barbier's forthcoming 'Panorama.' The Montreal singer's latest full-length features Meg Duffy (Hand Habits) and showcases Barbier's charismatic and cool songwriting.
Panorama (from Bonsound and out in November), showcases a totally charismatic balance between intellectualism and nonchalance. Parallels may be drawn to Cate Le Bon though Barbier shifts between English and French over cool grooves and vines of guitar that wouldn't be out of place on a Television record.
What Barbier does is distinct and enviable. It's rock music but it's made by someone who is clearly a consummate artist. Beneath the artful minimalism here there is a kind of maximal meaning and emotional charge that crystallizes with repeated listens. Now we have the pleasure of sharing the second single, "Kindness in a Cup" built around a hypnotic bass line, the track culminates with sublime violin arrangements, perfectly highlighting the singer and bassist'ss distinctive vocal patterns.
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Howling Bells have announced 'Strange Life', their first album in over 12 years, will be released on the 13th February 2026 on Nude Records. Having recently released their comeback track 'Unbroken', a brooding yet soaring anthem, today they share 'Heavy Lifting', a song featuring loose-limbed drums and bluesy intonation as Juanita takes aim at the entitled and the opportunist.
She explains: "'Heavy Lifting' is a hazy and grunge-fuelled declaration. Like anyone who’s worked at the thing they love tirelessly, you build up great resilience. The callouses on your hands, the muscles you’ve strengthened, the swagger in your stride. 'Heavy Lifting' is a song about the thousands of miles you walk to acquire this kind of confidence; this is not anything that can be stripped away from you".
The single is accompanied by a video directed by Orlando Cubitt. Howling Bells will return to the stage for a very special full band sold-out show at the iconic Lock Tavern in Camden on 5th November, with more live dates to be announced soon.
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Ahead of tomorrow’s (24 October) release of her new reworks album, Jesca Hoop shares a new video for ‘Memories Are Now’. Tomorrow, California-born, Manchester-based singer-songwriter Jesca Hoop will release Selective Memory - a live, unplugged reworking of her acclaimed 2017 Memories Are Now (Sub Pop). Joining the cast of stripped back album versions for her first three releases, this new collection finds Hoop and her two bandmates, Chloe Foy and Rachel Rimmer, capturing the record in its entirety live in Hoop’s Manchester home.
Opening the door to an intimate performance space, Selective Memory shines a new light on one of Hoop’s most beloved albums. Raw and immediate in its delivery, the record brims with luminous harmonies, lyrical richness and unguarded emotion. It is sweet and bitter, fresh and raw, and very much of the moment.
Though a return to songs first written over a decade ago, Hoop notes their continued urgency: “Though I wrote these songs 12 years ago, strangely they feel so very relevant to me today. And the album ends in one hell of a protest song… if I do say so myself.”
Ahead of the album’s release, today she is sharing her new version of the album’s title track, ‘Memories Are Now.’ Stripped of its original production, this reimagining lets the song’s core message stand in sharp relief - a defiant declaration of autonomy and strength. As Hoop sings, "Clear the way. I'm coming through. No matter what you say, I've got work to be doing. If you're not here to help, go find some other life to ruin. Let me show you the door."
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