Saturday, 29 November 2025

Lasse Lokøy - Luke Shamblin - Colin Lillie - Walter Rootsie and the Blue Connection - Delilah Rose - Frank Rabeyrolles

Lasse Lokøy - Lot of People Here.

Norwegian artist and producer Lasse Lokøy just shared the new single ‘Lot of People Here’, and announces new album ‘& The Roommates’ - out 9th January 2026 via his own Glimten Records.

Written in his bedroom studio overlooking the LA River and the sprawl of Northeast Los Angeles, ‘Lot of People Here’ began with a passing piece of advice from neighbour Øystein Greni (Bigbang): write the first half like Lennon, the second like McCartney. The result is Lokøy’s dustiest and most rustic work to date, a song that lets the desert seep into his voice, released today alongside a video shot by Lasse Lokøy & The Roommates in Lanzarote.

Its lyrics mirror the heavy traffic of the 5 freeway and the endless grid of houses before turning inward, asking where he belongs, as Lasse explains: “It embodies two crises. An inner crisis of belonging, and the climate and political crisis of the world. I hoped I’d find an answer while writing but instead found peace in the drifting. I’ve drifted far from where I started and I don’t know where I’m going either. I guess I’ll keep on going.”

Across the ‘& The Roommates’ track list, stories unfold like a scrapbook of inner snapshots, sometimes melancholy, sometimes mischievous, and shaped by the musicians who became his closest collaborators. The album features contributions from Safario, Emma Jensen, Mikhael Paskalev, Vuyo and more, with earlier singles ‘Treatment’ and ‘Julia’ revealing Lokøy’s evolving voice as a songwriter and performer.


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Luke Shamblin - Hills of Home.

Bluegrass musician Luke Shamblin is releasing a heartfelt new recording of Hazel Dickens’ beloved classic “Hills of Home” today November 29, 2025. The single pays tribute to one of Appalachia’s most iconic songwriters while spotlighting a fresh, emotionally resonant interpretation led by a powerhouse lineup of Appalachian and Bluegrass-rooted artists.

Anchored by Shamblin’s moving lead vocal, the recording captures the longing and reverence at the heart of Dickens’ original, a timeless reflection on home, loss, and the enduring pull of the mountains. Lending their unmistakable harmonies are Suzanne Cox of the legendary Cox Family and acclaimed vocalist Corey Hensley, whose voices blend seamlessly to elevate the song’s plaintive emotion. Jason Barie provides haunting fiddle work that threads through the arrangement with warmth and restraint, echoing the spirit of classic mountain balladry.

“This song has always hit me in the heart and is the first song of Hazel’s I ever learned to sing,” Shamblin shares. “Hazel captured something that every Appalachian knows deep down—that no matter how far you go, those hills never really leave you. I wanted this version to feel like coming home.”

Produced with an emphasis on clarity, authenticity, and heart, “Hills of Home” feels both reverent and revitalized. Shamblin’s interpretation balances traditional bluegrass instrumentation with contemporary precision, allowing the vocals and lyrics to take center stage. The result is a sound that feels as rooted as it is current—a fitting homage to Hazel Dickens’ legacy and the Appalachian soul she so eloquently embodied.

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Colin Lillie - This Land.

“This Land”, is more than a song – it’s a national story told through music, film, education and children’s literature. Inspired by Colin Lillie’s journey as a Scottish born migrant who fell in love with Australia, “This Land”, celebrates freedom, gratitude and belonging – reminding us that art should bring people together.

At the heart of the project is the anthem, “This Land”, a soaring ballad of courage and identity. “It’s refrain, “We belong to this land”, captures the essence of those who’ve come from all corners of the world to call Australia home”, says Colin. “The song is both personal and universal – a declaration of love for a country that welcomes, unites and inspires.”

Produced by Brad Bergen (Catherine Britt/The Pleasures/Wade Forster) the song was recorded all around Australia, capturing an incredible sound of unity. Featured artists include Norman Daymarringu, Liam Jangala Price, Xueyan Chen, Gretta Ziller, Pete Denahy, Brad Bergen, Wayne Davis, Colin Lillie and the stunning AustraNesia Choir from Cairns.

The accompanying music video was shot by Wayne Davis of Treetop Media, highlighting the magic of all contributors in their own local environments. Wayne also filmed a feature length documentary following Colin’s journey across Australia, meeting artists, elders and everyday Australians whose stories reveal the true heart of the nation. It celebrates a land of beauty, resilience and humour.


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Walter Rootsie and the Blue Connection - People Talk (Album).

Top Dutch/Finnish roots unit Walter Rootsie and his Blue Connection have just release of their new masterpiece People Talk. In 2025, Finnish Roots Americana band Walter Rootsie and his Blue Connection marks its 20th anniversary with the release of their fourth studio album, People Talk, available worldwide via Coast to Coast released by Wraf Records.

Formed in 2005 around Dutch singer-songwriter Walter Rootsie, the band has built a reputation for heartfelt, genre-blending music that draws from blues, country, folk, rock, and singer-songwriter traditions. With a Dutch core and Finnish soul, the band has toured extensively across Europe and earned international acclaim for their performances, songs and sounds and previous albums Waiting, Get Up and Go and Dark Water.

People Talk features 10 original songs written and composed by Walter Rootsie, exploring themes of love, loss, longing, and emotional truth. From the haunting ballad Empty Heart to the gritty groove of Gone, Gone, Gone, the album offers a rich and varied sonic journey. All the songs are arranged to get a unique sound to capture the stories and analogue played, recorded and mixed to keep and the right sound into each of them.


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Photo - Tashi Hall
Delilah Rose - Times A Wastin'

Hailing from Boorloo/Perth and now based in Meanjin/Brisbane, Delilah Rose is a firecracker of soulful sound and fierce style. With her big hair, velvet flares and unapologetic stage presence, every stage becomes her playground and every crowd feels like a room full of old friends.
 
Delilah’s musical journey has taken her from award-winning beginnings (Best Group, WA Country Music Awards; two-time Best Country Act nominee, WAM Awards) to festival stages across Australia and beyond. From Nannup and Boyup Brook in WA to Gympie Music Muster and Malaysia’s Miri Country Music Festival, she has shared the bill with artists including Samantha Fish (USA), Regurgitator, Jaguar Jonze, Nathan Cavaleri, Kasey Chambers and Andrew Swift.
 
Now, Delilah returns with Times A Wastin’, the kind of song you would sing arm in arm with your mates on a balmy country night, full of beer, good food, hope and heart, reminding us that we are stronger together, not despite our differences, but because of them.
 
“It’s about being present, right here, right now, with your people,” Delilah shares. “We all move through highs and lows. No one gets to skip the dark or the dawn. Everything can change in an instant, so don’t wait. Hold close, laugh hard, eat the cake and wear the dress.”
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Frank Rabeyrolles - All is in your head.

Ultimately, little is known about Frank Rabeyrolles. A discreet and unclassifiable figure on the French music scene, he first gained attention in 2004 with Life Behind the Window, the debut album from his project Double U. His dreamy, hybrid music, oscillating between pop, electronic, and songwriting, astonishes and seduces. He has been featured in Les Inrockuptibles and Libération and was named Album of the Month by Trax.

A prolific and insatiable artist, Frank Rabeyrolles has released a solid succession of albums first under Double U and then Franklin on various labels such as Sonar Kollektiv, Nocturne, Karat, and Plug Research, Wool Recordings His creative approach over the years, and now decades, could be seen as a yearning for artistic ritual driven by passion, but also as an existential necessity.. 

At the end of 2011, Frank Rabeyrolles decided to release a new album under his real name, and with it, a desire to reveal himself a little more. Between Experimental Pop, Lo-Fi Folk, and Ambient, Frank has never wanted or needed to choose. In early 2024, Frank Rabeyrolles returned to solitary work in the home studio, cultivating a gentle schizophrenia between tenderness, sonic roundness, echoes, spleen, and hope. The album "In Conversations" was released in February 2025 on Araki Records. After two albums recorded in a trio/quartet format, this new album marks a return to a certain pop bricolage and organic work created around layers of guitars. 

It's 2025/2026 and here's a new album ''Slow'' which will be released in February on the French label Too Good To Be true. We often expect change from a musician who has a reputation for being prolific. It's in the interstices, in the sound, the arrangement and the writing that we will have to listen with this new album entirely produced and mixed by Frank Rabeyrolles We also find our traveling companions Romain Delorme on bass, Sébastien Pasquet on drums and some appearances from Rémi Saboul. Here is a first extract / ''all is in your head'' while waiting for winter and the album.

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Friday, 28 November 2025

sleepy soph - Austel - Jeremy Voltz - KK Lewis - Eugene McGuinness - The Chemistry Set

Photo - Jenna Elson
sleepy soph - lucky (EP).

With heavy eyes and an open heart, Boorloo/Perth-based singer-songwriter sleepy soph awakens with her debut EP ‘lucky’, out today Friday, November 28.

sleepy soph creates songs that feel like pages from a diary written at golden hour, that are shared in a dozy blend of indie folk and alternative pop. Moving through daydreaming bedroom intimacy to bright beams of energy, the record captures the soft, reflective moments that come with growing up and learning to let go. Speaking on the EP, Sophie states:

"My debut EP ‘lucky’ is a reflection on what it feels like to navigate my early twenties. I tried to capture the fleeting moments that define this time; falling in love again, losing and gaining friendships, and the growing pains that come with figuring out who you are."

Built around delicate guitars, airy vocals and laidback rhythms, ‘lucky’ moves with lazy ease and a cosy warmth.  Opening with the gentle sounds of ‘leave it’, one of two tracks previously released from the EP, Sophie explores the emotional complexities of letting go of friendships that no longer serve us. Like overhearing her play in her own bedroom, soft layers of harmonies wrap around her dulcet vocals before the song shifts and is joined by drums, subtle ambient textures, and an overdriven electric guitar.


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Photo - Artemis Szekir-Rigas
Austel - The Beach in December.

Artist and producer Austel (Annie Rew Shaw) shares her divine new single ‘The Beach in December’ ahead of her upcoming live show at The Waiting Room on the 4th of December with Arthur Squawks. The new single arrives alongside a gorgeously nostalgic music video shot with her brother Louie on Brighton beach on an old camcorder. Sharing more, Austel said: This song has a very specific sense of place for me, but it's also about reflection and looking back. So it felt fitting to retrace the steps of the journey within the video.'

Rich, soothing instrumental and meticulous lyricism reflect on the lasting impact that childhood has on our adult relationships. Beautifully cinematic, Austel wrote the track after a fleeting summer romance in Brighton ended amicably but sadly. Sharing more, she said: ‘I returned to the beach during the winter months (Bon Iver season) and reflected on how our childhood experiences impact how we move through the world. I decided to record the entire journey from Brighton beach to the train station, then the train back to London, on a Zoom recorder.  I wanted to create a memory for people to get lost in for a few minutes - travelling with the song along the beach, on the train. It still evokes a lot of memory - it’s a bit of a time capsule, which I think is the work of the field recordings.’

The release of ‘The Beach in December’ marks a new chapter for Austel. Now exploring the folkier intimacies of the guitar, she is developing a very personal sound that preserves a very spacious and open feeling. Her extensive production work has seen her sound and talents continually expand over the years, honing her ability to create polished, indie-folk outputs that shine with an unmistakable texture and warmth. The track was mixed by Grace Banks (FKA Twigs, Jockstrap, Paloma Faith, Hozier) and mastered by Katie Tavini (Shura, Los Bitchos, Arlo Parks).


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Photo - Josh Kolby
Jeremy Voltz - Feel It All.

Burned-out mathematician turned indie-soul artist Jeremy Voltz returns with "Feel It All," a deeply introspective track about the struggle to care for someone despite anger, distance, and the vulnerability that comes with connection. As the latest release from Voltz's 2025 music campaign, the single captures the push and pull of human relationships – tender, complicated, and ultimately unbreakable.

"The song came from a rocky relationship with a friend," Voltz shares. “I tried for almost a year to distance myself and keep safe at arm's length. But I realized that no matter how hard I tried not to care about my friend, I couldn't stop. My anger had dried up without me noticing, and I even tried to cling to it so I wouldn't have to care, because caring is hard. But ultimately, care blooms in spite of our best efforts."

Uniquely, this is the first song Voltz has ever released that he created on an Akai MPC – the legendary drum machine and sampler made famous by J Dilla and first discovered by Voltz through Dilla's influence on D'Angelo's music. "It's an amazing new way to create away from my guitar," he shares. "The track inspired the lyrics, which is usually the other way around for me. When I came up with the beat, these emotions and lyrics flowed out of me almost instantly."

Voltz adds, "The message of the song is that you can try as much as you want to harden yourself, to not care, but care and concern grow in spite of yourself. Like a flower growing out of a crack in the sidewalk."


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Photo - Zoe Ardiff.
KK Lewis - Pigeon Man.

Dublin’s KK Lewis returns after a four-year hiatus with ‘Pigeon Man’ - a tender piano ballad of youthful heartbreak. Marking her first release in four years, Dublin artist KK Lewis makes a powerful comeback with ‘Pigeon Man’ out yesterday (November 27th). The single signals the beginning of a new era for the rising Irish talent, one that captures the bittersweet space of being in your twenties, caught between girlhood and adulthood.

Originally emerging as one of Ireland’s most exciting new voices, KK was named ‘One to Watch’ by Hot Press (2021) and quickly gained recognition from the likes of Notion Magazine, Earmilk, The Thin Air, Nialler 9 and Ones To Watch, and national radio. Following the success of her acclaimed debut EP ‘Dreaming’ in 2021, she now steps back into the spotlight with ‘Pigeon Man’, a song that feels both intimate and timeless.

Recorded with Daniel Da Burca (Amble) in Drogheda, mixed by Joseph Rodgers (beabadoobee, Rina Sawayama), and mastered by JHJ (Olivia Dean, Adele, London Grammar) ‘Pigeon Man’ is an evocative piano ballad inspired by classic Disney romance and soul, while echoing the emotional depth of modern storytellers like Adele. The song revisits KK’s first heartbreak - breaking up with her first boyfriend in Dublin’s St. Stephen’s Green, left standing beside the familiar figure of the “pigeon man” feeding birds. The result is a stripped-back yet cinematic sound that bridges nostalgia with raw emotion.

Talking about the single, KK Lewis says, “This song represents more than just a heartbreak - it’s about growing up. Everyone remembers their first heartbreak, that moment you realise love isn’t the perfect thing you imagined it to be. I remember how lost I felt at the time, having lost friends too, but I also remember how important my girls were. Female friendships soften the heartbreak, the confusion, the rejection - they remind you that you’re not alone. I recorded the song with my good friend Tadhg (SexyTadhg), who helped me arrange it and translate that heartbreak-romantic feeling into the piano part. We tracked it pretty much live in a studio up in Dundalk, spending the whole day keeping it minimal and intimate - as if you were hearing it in the room, without being overly produced.”

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Eugene McGuinness - London / Seascape.

Eugene McGuinness is an inventive songwriter and performer, known for his wry, nimble lyricism and blending retro influences with contemporary sounds to create his unique brand of off-kilter pop.

“London” is the majestic new single from the returning Eugene McGuinness. Adorned with sweeping string sections and lovelorn lyricism, the latest from the breakthrough talent is both a stirring paean, and playful personification of the capital. London is where McGuinness was born and currently resides, but one he’d never really call ‘home’ - despite his deep affection for the city. Born to Irish parents, his complex relationship with London is considered in this lyrically personal - yet universal - exploration. 

“You and I go back a long time // We braved the rain and bathed in sunshine // But you walk all over me sometimes” quips McGuinness here. McGuinness' wry lyrical flair is once again flaunted in this 'widescreen romance' about displacement and uncertainty. Capturing the dichotomous nature of London - both its fun, vibrant and romantic surface; and its hard, bleak and intolerant underbelly - it’s a song that muses themes of identity and belonging, of where you come from and where you're going, in a place that can seem to be fighting against you.

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The Chemistry Set - The Tragic Fridge Magnet.

We featured The Chemistry Set a few days ago & at the time gave some background & we quote "The cult London psychedelic scientists have quite a history…founded by Dave Mclean and Paul Lake in 1987, The Chemistry Set's discography now stands at 54 releases and, since their comeback in 2008, every single and album have 'sold out' on release. For some inexplicable reason, they’ve given Fruits de Mer exclusive rights to pretty much everything they’ve released since they got back together – in fact, we created the ‘Regal Crabomophone’ label specifically for the band"

We now have a video for The Tragic Fridge Magnet and & band member Paul Lake explains… “Whenever my wife and I go on holiday we always buy a fridge magnet. We’ve done this for many years from way back on family breaks when our kids were little and it’s become a bit of an obsession.

Now we have a fridge plastered with the things…which is great when they relate to somewhere you enjoyed, but a few remind you of a holiday that maybe was not so good, so I try not to look at those ones, but can’t bring myself to remove them.

Now suppose you bought one that was really an ancient amulet from the days of the Pharaohs that had been nicked from a tomb, stuck to a magnet, inscribed with the words “Hello from Cairo” and sold for a few quid in a local souk? It could happen, right? Now that would be tragic wouldn’t it? Both for the magnet with its terrible fall from grace and possibly for you…if it were cursed…..look what happened to Lord Carnarvon!”


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Wednesday, 26 November 2025

Moving Into Tucson - Total Hip Replacement - Dylan White

Moving Into Tucson - Love Is Real.

We just had a quick check and this is the fourth time this year we have featured Moving Into Tucson on Beehive Candy and each time their brand of indie music really resonates with us, this being no exception, the band from Amsterdam clearly have something rather special going on! 

With Love Is Real, Moving Into Tucson take another bold step toward the dancefloor. The Amsterdam-based indie rock band trades tension for release — a pulsing beat, sharp hooks, and a chorus that refuses to leave your head. It’s the sound of a band embracing light without losing their edge.

The second single from their upcoming album All Dressed Up (2026) shows the group at their most accessible yet — a perfect mix of indie attitude and pure pop energy. Direct, heartfelt, and impossible to ignore, Love Is Real feels like a celebration — of connection, movement, and everything that makes the heart race. Moving Into Tucson are all dressed up — and they’re not looking back.

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Total Hip Replacement - In Dub (Album).

We have received some excellent reggae & dub albums this past year or so & Total Hip Replacement are right up their with the best of them, Beehive Candy are mightily impressed...

“Do it for the love of music” was a central message of the song “Roady” by Fat Freddy’s Drop from New Zealand. This attitude is also reflected in the Danish band Total Hip Replacement.

The Aarhus-based musicians cultivate relaxed yet energetic beats, enriched with elegant grooves, fine percussion, a driving rhythm section and highly sophisticated brass. Musically, they are extremely versatile, combining reggae with soul, jazz, and African rhythms – depending on the needs of each song. On the last two of their four albums, “Anyankofo” and “Would It Be The Same,” they collaborated with musicians from Ghana, which resulted in significant highlife influences.

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Dylan White - Fronds (EP).

Ontario-based multi-instrumentalist and composer Dylan White makes his solo debut with Fronds – a lush, groove-driven EP that explores the repeating patterns of love and fear that shape human connection across lifetimes and generations. Rooted in jazz, soul, and funk, Fronds reflects both the intricate structure of nature and the resilient spirit of those who dare to break cycles of trauma and doubt.

"We're surrounded by deep-rooted and mysterious patterns," says White. "This album was inspired by those patterns – of both love and fear – that repeat themselves throughout a lifetime and across generations. As a nature boy, I've always been intrigued by the fact that repeating systems are the basis of all life."

Across Fronds, White leans into the concept of iteration both musically and emotionally. Recorded across Guelph, Toronto, Haliburton, and Calgary, the EP captures a wide network of collaborators who helped shape its textured, communal sound. "I cashed in all the favours that I could," he laughs. "All of the musicians on this record are players that I've performed with for years. Their backgrounds span acoustic singer-songwriter, funk, soul, jazz fusion and everything in between."


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Tuesday, 25 November 2025

Enabling Behaviour - Gwenno - The Widows

Photo - @meatgrinder
Enabling Behaviour - Electric Pop Songs (EP).

This is our introduction to Enabling Behaviour and what a welcome event that is. They have a new video for 'Tarantulina' that we have included however the entire EP is definitely one to hear as the band shift across genres with creative flair whilst maintaining a distinctive identity that is quite addictive.

Some background: Cardiff-based Enabling Behaviour are back with a new EP “Electric Pop Songs” (out on 25th November 2025 via Krautpop!). The six-track collection follows the band’s 2024 debut album “GILT!” and showcases an expansion of their musical sensibilities. Still rooted in post-punk, dripping with fuzz, and giving space to Eli’s soft, idiosyncratic vocal, the EP glitters with psychedelic folk and hints at their early shoegaze aspirations.

Recorded by bass-player Billy Tucker at Vault Studios in Cardiff and mastered by Billy Mattock, “Electric Pop Songs” is released in full on 25th November 2025. Pre-orders for a limited run of CDs and cassettes are live now on Bandcamp. Enabling Behaviour are gearing up for more shows across the UK and a European tour in 2027. Enabling Behaviour are: Eli Alison - Vocals, Guitar. Will Bevis - Guitar, Vocals. Bully Tucker - Bass. Conor Havard - Drums.



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Photo - Clare Marie Bailey
Gwenno - Hireth (QUINQUIS Remix) / Dancing On Volcanoes (Stone Club Remix).

Following her recent UK tour, Gwenno today shares two exceptional remixes of tracks from her universally acclaimed album Utopia. The first is by Breton producer and Mute artist QUINQUIS (aka Émilie Quinquis) who supported Gwenno across her UK tour. The two artists met when they interviewed one another earlier this year, talking extensively about preserving their cultural identities through their art. Both QUINQUIS & Gwenno sing in their native tongues: the Celtic languages of Breton, Cornish and Welsh. Here, QUINQUIS has re-imagined Gwenno’s magical album closer “Hireth” into an otherworldly reverie, delicately stripped back with an added electronic hook, alluring the listener into a dreamlike state reminiscent of the astral projection found in the original harp-led track.

Gwenno has also shared a Stone Club remix of “Dancing On Volcanoes”, the first single to be released from Utopia. A reimagining of Gwenno on the Vegas dancefloor via Cardiff and the Cornish landscape that this remix was made within. Seeking out sounds and the feelings of club nights and the transcendence of repetitive beats with a vision of future free festivals in an alternative cultural reality. 

43 years into her life, Gwenno Saunders has been many people. The disaffected Cardiff schoolgirl; the teenage Las Vegas dancer; the singer in indie pop group The Pipettes. There was a turn in a Bollywood film, a nightclub tour, a stint cleaning floors in an East London pub. Long before she would become an acclaimed solo songwriter in both Welsh and Cornish, a winner of the Welsh Music Prize, a nominee for the Mercury, a Bard of the Cornish Gorsedh, there were the days of Nevada, London, Brighton; of Irish dancing, techno clubs, messiness and chaos.


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The Widows - Bardo Blues.

London’s genre-defying group The Widows are back. Post-punk, psych, rock ’n’ roll—call it what you like. Their sound is raw enough to shake the walls and hypnotic enough to make you forget your pint (unlikely for our editor, but great PR comments nonetheless)...

Formed in 2015, The Widows earned a reputation for electrifying live shows and releases that stirred equal parts confusion and acclaim—most notably their album Popular Demand and the provocatively titled single Brexit Chainstore Massacre. After a hiatus (blame a disappearing drummer), the band re-emerged in 2023 with a revitalised line-up: Kim Le Tan – vocals/synth, Francesco Manzi – guitar/vocals, Roger Salsas – bass/vocals, Vince Johnson – drums.

Influenced by the likes of The Stooges, Bowie, The Cramps, Television, The Fall — but imitation isn’t their game. Instead, The Widows conjure shadowy guitars, psych-tinged textures, and grooves that grip hard. Songs swing between melodic and chaotic, anchored by Kim’s vocals—seductive one moment, savage the next. Having haunted Camden Rocks and other notorious events around town, The Widows now prepare to release their most ambitious record yet.


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Monday, 24 November 2025

Tulpa - Lisa SQ - Alan Vega - Elinborg

Tulpa - PSYOPS.

A few days in advance of the release of their debut album, Leeds-based Tulpa have a brand-new single: PSYOPs is mesmeric and infectious, with a dark nursery rhyme of a melody threaded through a gauzy mesh of guitars. What is a Tulpa? It’s a mythical being manifested into existence through the act of concentrated thought, like an imaginary friend brought to life, but (sometimes) scarier…

Tulpa are very new: nothing has been released up until now, not even a digital single.  Despite this, they attracted the attention of Marc Riley & Gideon Coe, who invited the band to record a live BBC6 Music session this summer.  Around the same time, Skep Wax Records were sent the finished album and knew they had to release it.  Meanwhile, in the creative hotbeds of the UK’s DIY festivals and indie venues Tulpa are quickly gathering a loyal following. They have recently supported Throwing Muses, Pale Blue Eyes and Bug Club.

This album has some of the same qualities.  A whole set of loud, catchy, perfectly-crafted pop songs have been conjured into existence - and want to be part of your life.  Josie’s hyper-melodic lead vocals are cool and crystalline - but the lyrics are warm and human.   The twin guitars create a sonic mesh, a web of textures that traps you, whether you like it or not.  And yes, something scarier does lie below the surface.  Occasionally the guitars force their way to the front, furious and intense.  And sometimes those lyrics aren’t as innocent as they first appear.  The danger, just below the surface of the songs, is maybe that’s what makes this album so arresting.


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Photo - Martin Reis
Lisa SQ - Reel Me In (Album).

Montreal, QC-born, Hamilton, ON-based multidisciplinary artist Lisa SQ unveils her debut full-length album Reel Me In, a kaleidoscopic reflection of her late 20s and early 30s, filled with snapshots of introspection, growth, and playful sonic experimentation. Released alongside the brooding, atmospheric lead single "Teeth," the album captures Lisa SQ's penchant for turning life's sticky moments into artful, indie-pop catharsis.

"Reel Me In is kind of a sonic photo album," she shares. "It's a collection of songs that have grown from me trying to get to know myself better during a perplexing time of life. Naturally, some of the songs are moodier and more introspective, but overall I think there's a playfulness fuelling the whole thing."

Half recorded overseas on the Isle of Wight in a converted stone abbey, and half captured during impromptu "birthday sessions" in Toronto with a crew of close friends, Reel Me In embraces spontaneity, collaboration, and imperfection. The project, produced by Tyler Kyte (Dwayne Gretzky), Ian Docherty (July Talk), and David Granshaw, bridges continents and creative circles from late-night jams at Toronto's Dwaynespace to sun-soaked sessions in the English countryside.

At the heart of it all is "Teeth," a hypnotic swirl of dream-pop textures and lyrical bite. "Have you ever been crushed by the thing you love?" Lisa SQ asks. "'Teeth' is young love and falling hard. It's lapping up the poison of pop culture romance – the glamourized torment of Ross and Rachel. Bonnie and Clyde, doomed from the start."

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Photo - Curtis Knapp
Alan Vega - Ice Drummer.

The Vega Vault Project and Sacred Bones Records continue to uncover Alan Vega’s robust collection of work left behind by the influential visual artist, musician and poet. They have just announced the reissues of Vega’s highly influential 1980 debut S/T solo album, in addition to its follow up, Collision Drive. Now remastered from the original tapes, and available on streaming services for the first time ever, the two albums will be faithfully re-released by Sacred Bones Records, preserving the raw intensity of Vega’s original recordings while making them newly accessible to listeners worldwide. 

The Vega Vault Project and Sacred Bones have meticulously assembled these packages and will also offer a companion piece Alan Vega Deluxe Edition which will be available as a limited deluxe double LP and include unheard demos, unseen photos and new artwork. All three albums contain unseen photos and new album artwork (including Vega's original track sheets from his 1978 Suicide / The Clash Tour Notebook).

More About Alan Vega and Collision Drive: Alan Vega was released in 1980 at the same period Suicide released their second album, Suicide: Alan Vega and Martin Rev. Vega wanted to dig deeper into the roots of his own sonic identity, fueled by rockabilly, early rock n roll, and his enduring love for Elvis Presley. Filling the gaps between recording with Suicide, and fleshing out the songs he was writing on his own, Vega committed to producing his own songs and started performing solo shows live to develop his sound. 

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Sigríður Ella Frímannsdóttir 
Elinborg - Blood.

Following the acclaimed release of her debut album, Í Ævir (“Forever”), Faroese artist Elinborg released her new single, “Blood,” (November 21) via Embassy of Music. “Blood” is the highly anticipated English version of the album’s standout track, “Blóð.” This rare shift into English allows Elinborg’s growing international audience to fully connect with the deeply personal meaning of her writing, which has previously been sung entirely in her native Faroese.

On the single she shares, “I chose to release an English version of my song “Blood” not only because it holds a very special place in my heart, but also because I wanted to explore how my sound might change when I switch languages. I’ve always been intrigued by different languages, and even though Faroese has a special place in my heart—and I’ll absolutely continue writing in it—I think it’s important to grow and evolve as an artist. That’s why I wanted to try releasing English versions as well: to reach a more international audience, but also to add new colors to my artistic world.”

Building on the sound she introduced with her recent dark wave releases, Elinborg continues to assert herself as one of the most distinctive new voices in the Nordic scene. Her unique position lies in her poetic lyricism, which bridges the ancient and the modern, carrying a rare language through a futuristic sonic world. With management by FlyingFox AB and the backing of Embassy of Music, the release of “Blood” is an invitation for listeners worldwide to dive deeper into the tides of sound and emotion that define Elinborg’s darkly poetic universe.

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Beth Lucas - Emory Duncan - Strange Plants - Aldous Harding - Nic Panken - Desperately Seeking Suki - Eleyet McConnell

Beth Lucas - What I Deserved. Australian Country artist Beth Lucas has released her deeply personal new single ‘What I Deserved'. Writt...