The fourth record from the Watford sextet, Slow Fade follows a string of records that saw the band borrowing motifs from other genres to brush into their emo orientated sound. Yes, whilst those aforementioned records absolutely continued elements of such genres in their sound both musically and thematically, to dully slap genre tags on them and be done with it would be a disservice to Lakes’ approach. Rather, the sound of this band as a whole is something of a beautiful hand-painted composition. Such musical dollops of paint are not the defining feature of Lakes‘ musical canvas, but rather smaller parts of a greater whole. The musical dashings of a brush that help bring to life something far more greater. Slow Fade is makes such a sentiment inarguable and visceral to the point of it being almost palatable.
The first record to be released via the band’s own freshly launched label Lucky Art, Slow Fade is both the product of the records that came before it and a fresh mantra of ‘if it sounds good, then it’s good”. And indeed does it sound good. The composition that is band’s sound has not been defaced by a cheap sheen, but rather touched-up with additional vibrancy. Whilst many a band in Lakes’s collective shoes may have been anxious about continuing such an intricately mercurial sound, or stressed about how to balance all such musical elements in the mix, there’s none of this here. Rather, Slow Fade feels like Lakes most concise, organic and carefree record to date. Which is feat given just how more expansive this album can be at times when compared to it’s predecessors.
The initial three track run that is ‘Annecy’, ‘Trouble’ and the summer-ready emo anthem that is ‘Peach Fuzz’ feel like the Lakes we’ve become to know following their past three records, but subtle indications of greater things are present. As the respective opener blooms from gently strummed beginnings into the glockenspiel and math-rock-tinged emo we’ve come to expect, newfound elements begin to emerge on their musical canvas. Rousing viola, mechanical beats, pedal steel and synth flourishes are present, complimenting a wider painting they’ve been introduced to. But yet, what makes this new expansionism in sound so brilliant is just how organic it sounds. There’s no forced dynamism or fleeting grasps at shoehorning new motifs here, just musical creativity articulated with a kind of effortless finesse that’s awe-inspiring.
Where do you even begin with a band as unique, influential yet as puzzling as Vildhjarta.
Starting off their career with an album as ahead of its time and as influential as 2011’s måsstaden followed by 2013’s Thousands of Evils EP, the band went into slumber for almost a decade, only showing brief signs of life through short teasers with no further detail, until 2019 with the release of single ‘den helige anden’, which opened the doors to the more “contemporary” sound of the band, notably with the inclusion of modern metal producer extraordinaire Buster Odeholm in their line-up as both their drummer and producer.
This eventually led to the 2021 release of the monolithic, conceptual successor of their debut, måsstaden under vatten, which presented an even heavier, somber and more experimental approach to the band’s technical, angular sound, counterbalanced by the beautiful melancholy of the ever-present clean guitar soundscaping acting as a structural backbone.
Needless to say, it was unexpected to hear again from the secretive Swedes so soon after they had released such a colossal body of work. And yet, a short riff teaser released during the summer of 2022 became the start of a trail of singles, ‘+ den spanska känslan +’, ‘+ ylva +’ and ‘+ kristallfågel +’, released between summer and winter of 2023.
What seemed like a trio of standalone singles eventually turned out to be part of something bigger when + där skogen sjunger under evighetens granar + was announced alongside the release of another single,’ + sargasso +’ shortly followed by ‘+ ? regnet, the ? +’.
At this point, half of the album had already been released, parts of which had been out for roughly two years so the question is : Is Vildhjarta still able to surprise and satisfy their devoted listeners with the other half ?
And the answer is a resounding “Yes”, absolutely.
In fact, as soon as + där skogen sjunger under evighetens granar + opens with the instrumental ‘+ byta ut alla stjärnor på himlen mot plustecken +’, echoing the instrumental ‘lavender haze’ which opens 2021’s måsstaden under vatten, Vildhjarta lull listeners into a false sense of familiarity, gently opening with their eerie, pensive ambiance which morphs into a riff motif from lead single (now album closer) ‘+ den spanska känslan +’, before throwing a complete curveball with a playful riff that bubbles and undulates between odd serenity and looming malevolence .
Crossover punk/thrash metal trio Death Pill has once again overcome all adversity in order to keep their powerful musical project going. Two years after their debut album, the Ukrainian sensations Mariana, Anastasiia and Nataliia are back with Sologamy, a record that is a massive step forward in terms of innovation, sound and genre diversity for the band. Ten tracks full of fast thrash riffs, blast beats, melodic emo guitars and even pop vocals, all bangers no fillers.
“The title, inspired by the concept of marrying oneself, speaks to the importance of making a personal commitment to self-care, happiness, and emotional well-being,” the band says.
And we can only imagine how important it is to take care of yourself, prioritize your mental health and do what makes you happy when you’re a person that is experiencing the traumas and consequences of war every day. The three musicians have been living in different countries since the Russian invasion of Ukraine (Spain, Australia and Ukraine) and have been working on this album remotely on zoom calls and recorded it separately as well. If this is not a real commitment to punk music, what is it?
It’s rare that a band comes along and not only borrows heavily from a number of popular, powerful genres of music in the beginning of their career and manages to carry not only the musical style but the ethos and work ethic throughout their career. Malevolence are a rare band indeed however, having scratched and clawed their way from the basements and social clubs of Sheffield to becoming one of the best, most sought after live bands in heavy music today. Famed for their levels of not only aggression but also high levels of technicality and above all, a sense of humour, they currently stand at a level few other bands have reached. Indeed, in terms of quality they possess a much more consistent (Thought smaller) and high quality catalogue than their mates in While She Sleeps, who they came through the scene with.
With a sound that has encompassed bands like Crowbar, Trivium, Terror and Lamb Of God to name but a few, at the fore, Malevolence have always been heavy. Whether that’s a headbanging, breakneck drums and finger shredding riff style of heavy or a crushing, antagonizing form more akin to metallic hardcore, they’ve never let up across their four previous releases. This has allowed them to weave in and out of festivals and lineups with ease, as much at home at Bloodstock as Outbreak, without diehards of either turning their nose up. Indeed, they could now headline the latter easily and only a fool would bet against them one day headlining Bloodstock, but of course that depends on the momentum of their recorded output, of which, before Where Only Truth Has Spoken has never faltered.
Existing as a solo project with a rotating cast of hired guns backing frontman Will Anderson for much of their seven years producing music, New York based shoegaze and noise pop act Hotline TNT have finally taken the plunge for their third full length album and added bassist Haylen Trammel, drummer Mike Ralston and guitarist Lucky Hunter as full time members. Raspberry Moon builds on the foundation of the band’s 2023 breakout hit Cartwheel with more varied shoegaze and alternative rock sounds alongside catchy pop songwriting.
Opening track ‘Was I Wrong?’ acts as a perfect introduction to the intricately layered yet carefully arranged world of Hotline TNT, enhancing a Tom Petty style power ballad with a thick fog of fuzzed-out guitars. Peeling back the layers of ‘Was I Wrong?’ reveals a relatively straightforward yet memorable throwback pop rock song reminiscent of Weezer’s Blue Album viewed through a hazy stained glass of overdriven, feedback fuelled guitars fighting each other for dominance over the track’s melancholy core. While many bands within the -gaze genres are content to simply throw more and more guitar pedals at their songs until they’re a blurry mess, Hotline TNT instead wrap a hazy gauze of blown-out fuzz around a core of great songwriting.
Raspberry Moon builds on a tried and tested shoegaze formula, keeping the wall of sound approach intact but with a heavy focus on pop songwriting and psychedelic textures. Tracks like ‘Julia’s War’ and ‘Letter To Heaven’ feel like a bit of a contradiction, keeping the textured vocals low in the mix compared to the sea of overdriven guitars but both are built like typical pop songs with memorable choruses and catchy lead lines. This back and forth between carefully structured pop sensibilities and grainy noise creates a fascinating dynamic that helps Hotline TNT stand out in the shoegaze renaissance.
