HENGE - Piper Butcher - Just Pearls - Clara Cloud - Junior VP - Casii Stephan

HENGE - Brains.

Attention Humans! Cosmic rave-prog outfit HENGE return with “Brains”, the first single from their fifth studio album ‘Humans’, arriving 29 January 2027. Where previous album ‘Journey to Voltus B’ took listeners to a distant planet, ‘Humans’ plants HENGE firmly on Earth, with its apex inhabitants as the subject. "Human beings are intriguing to us," says HENGE front creature Zpor. "Your capacity for abstract thought, your creativity, is nothing short of astonishing.”

Lead single “Brains” channels rave and electro, powered by trouser-flapping bass from Venusian bass maestro Brother Goo. Groove-centric and casually delivered, it features a guitar solo that sounds like it is ripping through the fabric of the universe. "The human brain is truly a thing of wonder, and I naturally felt compelled to write an ode to it" explains Zpor.

The single follows a huge year for the band, with clips of “DNA” and “Mushroom One” racking up over 20 million views across platforms. ‘Humans’ will be accompanied by a world tour of 80+ dates across 25 countries, including the band's first shows in North America and Asia. Find the band’s UK dates below. 

Extra-terrestrial joymongers HENGE have been delighting audiences on Planet Earth for over a decade, earning an Association of Independent Festivals 'Live Act of the Year' award and legions of fans along the way. They have four acclaimed albums and their own comic book series to their name. Their last album, Journey to Voltus B, sold out headline shows across the UK and Europe and earned support from BBC 6 Music's Stuart Maconie, Deb Grant and Craig Charles.

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Piper Butcher - Directions (EP).

The last few years have seen the rise of Newcastle country artist, Piper Butcher. After being crowned the inaugural winner of the CMAA Young Achiever Award, she didn’t slow down - she increased her output and took her music to the people, continually refining her songs by road testing them in front of live audiences across the globe. As a result, her maturity and evolving artistry are evident on her brand-new EP, “Directions”, due for release yesterdy Friday 23rd October 2026 through Community Music.

“I am so proud of this collection of music”,says Butcher. “This year I’ve taken a new direction with songwriting, being upfront and writing exactly what I’m thinking and feeling, rather than being metaphorical with every song. It has encouraged me to find inspiration in more places and delve deeper into other people's music to learn from as well. All of these songs are me down to a tee.”

Produced by Andy Mak (The McClymonts/Brooke & Adam), the EP showcases five original songs including co-writes with Austin Mackay and Kingswood’s Alex Laska, that not only grew their friendship but allowed Butcher to explore the scary feelings that were difficult to describe in song. The balance of the tracks sit between crazy ideas that woke her up at 2am begging to be heard and confronting feelings that flowed out when written in full.

The title, “Directions”, came from Butcher’s love of all musical genres. “I’ve always created music with the idea of serving the song and I wasn’t trying to stick to a certain sound or brand. But it’s evident to me now - I’m a country artist, through and through. And this feels like the first EP I’ve released that is cohesive and packed to the brim with my musical identity.” “I hope you love this EP. I feel like there’s a story for everyone; songs for people travelling in any direction of their life!”

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Just Pearls - Flutterby (Album).

Flutterby had a magical beginning at its book premiere in Berne’s Stiftsgarten and has received many rave reviews. Kate Pearl’s lovingly illustrated fairy tale for children and adults touches audiences and has led to invitations for interviews and guest appearances on Radio. But Kate Pearl is not only an author. A musician and teacher who grew up in Ohio and has lived in the region of Emmental, near Berne, since 2001, she has been writing and performing music for many years under the name Just Pearls. And in many ways, it is the music that lies at the heart of Flutterby. “Although the book came first in terms of its release, it is really an accompaniment to —and an extension of — the album,” she explains.

Music has been a constant thread throughout Kate Pearl’s artistic life. Her musical journey has included collaborations with Balts Nill and Ursula Hotz of the Rodeo Ranchers, who have themselves worked with artists such as Tammy Wynette, Brent Moyer and Hans Holzherr. American songwriting legend Tom Paxton has also personally supported Kate Pearl’s work and her translation of his song “The Crow That Wanted To Sing”, included on this album (“Dr Chräie”).

Singing and writing in English, French, Standard Germanand Bernese German, she moves freely between musical worlds. Her songs have been described as combining the directness of Tracy Chapman with the poetic sensibility of Patti Smith and the distinctive energy of Courtney Barnett. Her latest single, “Comes Love,” received more than 400 plays on cultural radio stations around the world this summer, including numerous Swiss independent stations.

Now comes Flutterby— an album that brings together Kate Pearl’s songwriting with the work of a number of accomplished Swiss musicians. Among them is drummer and percussionist Dave Jutzi, who contributed to the soundtrack of Pirates of the Caribbean and has worked with Joe Cocker and Nils Burri, as well as Tom Gisler, known for collaborations with Bo Katzman, Nubya, Zia Lisa & Gattopardo and Mario Capitanio, and for his earlier work with Polo Hofer.

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Clara Cloud - As Above (Album).

BC singer-songwriter and “fairy songstress” Clara Cloud returned yesterday October 23 with As Above, her most ambitious project yet, a cinematic new album and companion novella that reimagines the Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice from Eurydice’s perspective. Blending alternative, folk, pop, Celtic influences and dream-like textures, the album follows Eurydice from the world above into the Underworld, exploring love, loss, fate and the fragile possibility of hope. While Cloud’s debut album The Woods was rooted in reconnecting with the inner child and finding the light, As Above ventures into darker territory, asking whether there can be comfort in learning to live alongside the shadows rather than simply trying to escape them.

The album arrives alongside a novella of the same name, written by Cloud, which keeps readers at Eurydice’s side as she moves from nymph to wife to inhabitant of the Underworld. Together, the music and story challenge the familiar tragedy and imagine whether Eurydice might have more agency over her fate than mythology has traditionally allowed her. “Could there be a world in which Eurydice marches herself out of Hell and back into the arms of the one she loves?” Cloud asks. Produced by Sal Verma, Jenna Marie, Charlotte Duggan and Cloud herself, with mastering by Greg Mindorff and additional vocals from her real-life partner Tristan “TEEG.” Giroux, As Above creates a haunting, atmospheric world where mythology, nature and storytelling collide.

The project is already receiving recognition ahead of its release. Album track “Shadow Song” was selected through MusiCounts to become an educational arrangement for the 2027 CBC Music Class Challenge, with Cloud collaborating with composer Hope Salmonson on an arrangement that will be made available to educators across Canada in winter 2026/27. Originally from Kimberley and now based in BC’s Kootenays, Cloud has built her work around the belief that music and storytelling can create worlds of their own. With As Above, she takes that idea further than ever, inviting listeners not simply to hear Eurydice’s story, but to descend into the Underworld alongside her and consider whether even the oldest stories might still have another ending.

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Junior VP - American Optimism.

Glasgow indie-rock trio Junior VP return with their new single ‘American Optimism’ yesterday October 23rd, the latest track to be taken from their forthcoming debut album ‘Do You Feel The Same?’, due in 2027. Following the release of July’s ‘Red Cardigan’, which picked up support from RTE, Total Rock and KUTX, American Optimism sees Junior VP lean further into the melodic, emotionally charged indie that has quickly become their calling card.

Since forming in 2025, Junior VP have quickly built momentum. The debut studio EP ‘Head Full of Sadness’ arrived in May 2026, earning national airplay from BBC Introducing and saw the band shortlisted for Kerrang Radio’s The Deal competition. The band’s name is taken from the distinctly American position of ‘Junior Vice President’, paying tribute to the golden era of American college rock, emo and indie that inspires their sound. Through pop hooks and expansive guitar sounds, Junior VP blends the emotional immediacy of the early 2000s with a modern melodic edge. 

“We can’t escape the music that influenced us growing up,” says vocalist Ross. “There’s a real 2000s nostalgia in our music that seems to connect with people who lived through that era and those discovering it for the first time.”

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Casii Stephan - Happy.

Released this weekend we have the new single "Happy" by Minnesota born Tulsa Oklahoma based award-winning singer-songwriter Casii Stephan. Written late at night out of a string of existential questions, "Happy" features a catchy hook that asks what it actually means to be happy. The track is carried by Casii’s warm, soulful voice and a retro, sunlit production from Chad Copelin (SPORTS, BRONCHO, Ben Rector). "Happy" emerges as the first offering from Casii Stephan's debut album Let Her Have Her Flowers set for release spring 2027.  Written in the wake of her father's death, the album is an exploration of what it means to grieve those we've lost and love those who are still here. 

Casii Stephan is hard to pin down—to genre, that is. To Casii, genre has always felt more like a tool to tell a story or evoke an emotion than a category to fit into. Anytime someone has said she’s found her “niche,” no one has ever told her the same thing twice.

Born and raised in funky Minnesota and cultivated in rootsy Tulsa, Casii is carving her own space in music—just don’t ask her to label it. Best described as somewhere between pop, soul, and rock, she has also been embraced by the folk community for her love of storytelling. Casii writes her songs honestly, from the depths of her emotions, with themes including life and death, love and loss, protest, and pushing back on negative societal norms like sexism, ageism, and fascism. 

In 2026 she has received recognition for her songwriting from the International Acoustic Music Awards winning Best AAA/Alternative Song for “California Gold”,  finalist for Best Rock Song with the International Songwriting Competition, the coveted “New Folk Finalist” from Kerrville Folk Fest with two unreleased songs off her upcoming debut album, and most recently a finalist for Best Rock Song at the Unsigned Only Music Awards.  

She has toured regionally and internationally, including London’s inaugural SXSW, and has performed multiple official SXSW and Folk Alliance showcases, and just performed her first official showcase at AMERICANAFEST in Sept. She has been profiled by Billboard, NPR, SPIN, and American Songwriter. Her catalog is with TRO Essex Music Publishing, home to writers like Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger, and bands like The Who and Black Sabbath. Her EP Relationship Status, produced by Ben Tanner (Alabama Shakes, St Paul and the Broken Bones), was released in September 2024 on Shamus Records to rave reviews.

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Christian Wethered - Marsy - James Felice - runner - Raynes - D.B. Tait - Night Teacher - Rosina Cove

Christian Wethered - The First Thing.

Opening the album 'From the Balustrade', 'The First Thing' is a song about vulnerability, restraint and the search for authenticity. Its refrain – "The first thing is keep yourself at bay" – offers an unexpected piece of advice: not to withdraw from life, but to resist performance, certainty and the temptation to lose oneself in appearances. It suggests that stepping back can sometimes be the first step towards genuine connection.

Blending spoken word with song, 'The First Thing' unfolds through fragments of memory and recurring images: pines, birds, dawn, a strange star at the end of the road. Rather than resolving into a fixed narrative, these images remain deliberately open, inviting the listener to inhabit the song's atmosphere rather than decipher its meaning.

Carried by a warm yet haunting arrangement, with echoes of French chanson and the rhythmic directness of spoken poetry, 'The First Thing' establishes the emotional landscape of 'From the Balustrade': a world where tenderness and uncertainty coexist, and where moments of intimacy are inseparable from the fear of losing oneself within them.

Christian Wethered is a songwriter and poet based in Dublin. His music sits at the intersection of alternative folk, chanson and more experimental sound worlds. His influences include Leonard Cohen, Serge Gainsbourg, Fionn Regan and Laura Marling.

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Marsy - Miss Wave.

Marsy announce their new EP Miss Wave, out November 20 via Heavenly Recordings, alongside the release of its title track. One part bucolic folk, one part Wire-esque angular rock ’n’ roll and five parts magic, “Miss Wave” introduces a young band finding confidence in their own weird selves. 

From the track’s hypnotic, metronomic drone to the haunted dancehall of “My Old Guy” and the beautiful harmonic overdrive of “All My Love,” the EP captures Marsy finding their own sense of confidence and cohesion—and letting it guide them onwards and upwards. 

Wrap up warm, play loud and prepare to fall in love.

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Photo - Michael Koshkin

James Felice - Midflight.

James Felice released “Midflight,” this week the second song to be released from his sophomore album Homeworld Blue that will be released on November 13 via Conor Oberst’s Million Stars Records. Produced by Nate Walcott of Bright Eyes, “Midflight” captures the expansive sound of Felice’s sophomore album, which builds on the intimate world of his debut with lush orchestration, pounding piano, brass and strings, while continuing his lifelong fascination with the small, strange and deeply human stories unfolding against the vastness of the universe.

About the song, Felice explains, “This is a big swing! Pretty far outside my wheelhouse as a writer and musician. But this song was rattling in there somewhere and I needed to get it out, despite my shortcomings…despite my reach always and forever exceeding my grasp. But listen to Nate Walcott’s plangent and vivid orchestration. That is what makes this track speak and slither. There is detail and thoughtfulness and exploration on this track…from the opening cascading strings, to the delicate pizzicato of the verse, to the final culminating wild exclamation at the tail end. If any songs can be considered alive, I’d submit this one into the taxonomical record.”

Nate Walcott adds, “This was one of my favorite songs to work on on this record. James’s vision was clear and before we got to work he was saying something about waking up while falling from the sky and miles of xylophones. So I had to pull out all the stops on this one - full orchestra along with harp, timpani, the works. When it got to the mile of xylophones part I wanted it to feel like the speakers were going to explode sort of like in the audacious apex of the first movement of Berlioz’s Symphony Fantastique. That’s not the easiest thing to aim for but I’m grateful for James trusting me to go for it and for gifting the world this song.”

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Photo - Peter Thor

runner - My Man.

Vancouver, BC-based band runner share “My Man,” a playful, wistful country song about leaving one relationship and finding another waiting around the corner. Warm and easygoing, with a touch of romantic nostalgia, the track captures that strange in-between period when one chapter has barely closed and you’re already learning the small, intimate details of somebody new.

Singer-songwriter Kira Cuthbertson wrote the song while coming out of one relationship and entering another, reflecting on how quickly romantic lives can change, and how sometimes it’s better to enjoy the experience than search too hard for greater meaning.

“I was thinking about how there’s always someone around the corner if one relationship ends,” Kira explains. “I was feeling like I was just moving on from one to the next but also having fun and trying not to take any of it too seriously.”

That lightness comes through in one of Kira’s favourite lyrics: “How do you take your eggs?” It’s a deliberately ordinary question that captures something much bigger about the beginning of a relationship, when getting to know somebody often means accumulating tiny pieces of information that gradually turn a stranger into someone familiar.

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Photo - Alexander Tamargo

Raynes - Radio Remind Me.

British-American trio Raynes are celebrating the release of their debut album Radio Remind Me, out now. The 10-track collection follows the theme and exploration of time, memory, and nostalgia (or anemoia). Aesthetically, the album draws from the design principles of the Art Nouveau movement of the early 1900s, both visually and sonically—in the same way that practitioners of Art Nouveau created organic and beautiful art with man-made materials. 

Raynes’ intention in creating Radio Remind Me was to make organic and beautiful music with vintage synthesizers, electronic drums, and more electric guitars than ever. Radio Remind Me was produced by Mat Charley of Raynes and co-produced and mixed by GRAMMY award-winning engineer Chris Sclafani (The Weeknd, Selena Gomez, Ariana Grande).

“Radio Remind Me is an album built on our belief that people still care about music. That maybe sounds a little strange to say (obviously people still care about music!), but it’s become incredibly easy to shuffle and skip our way through life, constantly hearing songs but rarely really listening.

We’ve constructed this album very deliberately. Every aspect of it, from the lyrics to the arrangements to the track list itself, is designed to work together to create a complete work of art. There’s a reason the first track is the first track; there’s a reason the last track is the last track.” – Raynes.

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D.B. Tait - Where Are You Going Now.

As anticipation builds toward the release of his 2027 full-length debut album Losing Time, D.B. Tait has offered another preview in the form of “Where Are You Going Now,” a woozy, country ballad highlighted by Tait’s soaring vocals, which, combined with Allison Burke’s supporting voice, build into the sound of a full-blown choir. The song continues to establish the Canadian singer-songwriter based in Prince Edward County, Ontario as a northern contemporary of the new generation of alt-country artists led by MJ Lenderman, Greg Freeman and others.

Tait explains, “I started to write ‘Where Are You Going Now’ a handful of years ago when my grandfather was going through dementia, and seeing the brilliant man he was begin to slip away. Like many of the songs I write, it's not meant to be specific to just that, but to any relationship that you feel drifting away. Musically, it is probably the closest thing to a traditional country song that I have ever written, at least instrumentally, with lots of steel guitar and a focus on more acoustic sounds.”

As with Tait’s previous 2026 singles “Before You Go” and “Nothing To Lose,” “Where Are You Going Now” was largely recorded in his home studio, with Tait tracking most of the guitars and vocals on his own. Close collaborators Ian Roantree and Mitch Cory from the band Kojak added overdubs, while fellow Prince Edward County singer-songwriter and Littleknown Records head David James Allen handled the mix.

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Photo - Alea Doronsky

Night Teacher - Reckless.

Night Teacher has shared a new single produced by Katie Von Schleicher (Cassandra Jenkins, Frankie Cosmos, Lady Lamb). “Reckless” opens on the earthy pluck of a banjo and a vividly recalled meet-cute. Songwriter Lilly Bechtel conjures a fond but somewhat ominous feeling, her memory unfolding with autumnal moodiness.

We met in November, when the deer get reckless
You told me in yellow leaves
How their desire for life for a little while
Outruns the fear of dying

“It’s about meeting someone in the small Virginia town I grew up in, and navigating the double-edged sword of shared history,” shares singer and songwriter Lilly Bechtel. “It’s about the challenge of finding new ways of being in a small hometown where old, familiar voices can feel at times stabilizing and other times limiting. It’s about my struggle to separate my fear of getting hurt from legitimate warning signs as I puzzle through who and what to believe, and the tension between a deep desire to have a new experience without ignoring the wisdom—or dangers—of the past.”

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Photo - Travis Nesbitt

Rosina Cove - Don't Forget.

After leaving an indelible impression with their previous single “Kenwood,” Rosina Cove follows it up with another expansive and inspiring song, “Don’t Forget.” Both tracks will be on the band’s full-length album Left Of Me, out Jan. 15, 2027. “Don’t Forget” once again displays the Edmonton, Alberta modern folk-rock collective’s big-hearted Canadiana sound, based around the core trio of lead vocalist/guitarist Peter Stone, vocalist Vicky Berg and lead guitarist Drew Malcolm.

In a joint statement, the group says, “‘Don’t Forget’ continues the theme of healing and returning to self that ‘Kenwood’ introduced. At its centre is a reminder to hold on to your sense of self through periods of change and to stay close to the people who recognize and hold space for who you are.

“Throughout the project, the idea of rebuilding is explored not as a complete reinvention, but as a process of remembering—of finding your way back to the pieces of yourself that remain beneath the weight of change, trauma, loss, and personal transformation. Sometimes, it means returning to who you were before the world and others asked you to be anything else; rebuilding isn’t always about becoming someone new, but rediscovering the parts of yourself you may have lost along the way.”

Rosina Cove debuted in 2023 with the album Someday We Will Make It There, and have fully matured on Left Of Me with an intoxicating blend of bright jangle-pop and cinematic folk-rock, highlighted by expressive harmonies and sparkling production courtesy of Harry Gregg, also a member of Juno nominees Second Hand Dreamcar.

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Arbor Green - Texas - MG x CD + JL - MOONRIIVR - Charlie Horn - Raye Zaragoza

Photo -  Jamie Coltart

Arbor Green - The Timeslip (EP).

Scottish indie-folk outfit Arbor Green return today with the forthcoming The Timeslip EP, a richly varied four-track collection exploring hope, change, sobriety and the uneasy passage of time, while marking a confident new chapter for the project. Moving between expansive alt-country, restless indie rock and intimate contemporary folk, The Timeslip EP finds songwriter Ali Begg reflecting on personal growth and the difficult process of learning to live more deliberately.

The EP moves through distinctly different musical and emotional territory while retaining the heartfelt songwriting at the centre of Arbor Green’s sound. Where the self-produced 2022 debut album grew gradually from years of home recordings and largely solitary experimentation, Timeslip was approached from the outset as a band record, resulting in a fuller, more collaborative sound. “I feel like it sounds much more like a band,” says Begg. “Everyone had authorship over the arrangements. Each track on the EP pushes a little further at the edges of what Arbor Green can sound like.”

First single and opener, ‘Wanderer’ looks back across a decade of emotional upheaval, finding gratitude and optimism in a love song to Begg’s now-wife, while pushing Arbor Green further into warm, expansive alt-country. Second single, ‘Cue The Timeslip’ takes a more restless approach, pairing driving guitars and warm harmonies with reflections on doom-scrolling, mobile phone addiction and the pressure of comparing your life to everyone else’s.

‘Headed West’ turns that restlessness outwards, capturing Begg’s frustration with life in the UK and the excitement of relocating to Canada. Closing track ‘Passing The Cup’ moves into a quieter, more intimate space, drawing on Begg’s experience of sobriety to explore self-forgiveness, positive change and his evolving relationship with himself. “I wanted each track to push slightly forward at the different edges of our sound,” says Begg, “and explore slightly different versions of what Arbor Green can sound like.”

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Texas - Another Way To Cry.

Texas, one of the UK’s defining bands of the 21st century, celebrate 3 decades of the record that made them superstars when White On Blonde turns 30 on February 5th, 2027 via Play It Again Sam. 

Alongside the anniversary release news comes brand new single “Another Way To Cry,” their fiest new music in three years. Proudly influenced by their love of Northern Soul, and filled with brass and strings, the song finds Texas broaching new territory yet again. 

“It's a really good test for a new song if you play it up against the big hits; it’ll either sit up to them, or it f''king dies,” Sharleen Spiteri says. “‘Another Way To Cry’, you could put it in the set list tomorrow with all the hits and it'll stand its ground.”

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Photo - Travis Shinn

MG x CD + JL = - Cross Whisper.

Martin Gore, songwriter, electronic composer and founding member of Depeche Mode, has collaborated with artist and lyricist Cliff Damavandi on a haunting new track, "Cross Whisper", featuring vocals from Gore’s daughter.

The track has an unusual genesis: while deep in conversation with some friends, the subject came around to unexplainable phenomenon. Explaining that “he wouldn’t be surprised by anything”, Gore went on to say that on several occasions birds had appeared when someone close to him died. In one instance, he was visited by an insistent bird, tapping ferociously at the window of his studio. Two days later he found out a close friend had passed, and he wondered about the symbolism and mythology that has surrounded birds since ancient times, and whether these birds could be a harbinger or messenger.

He goes on, “I was out with some friends and we started talking about death so I shared that whenever someone close to me has died, birds start appearing, sometimes arriving every day for a year outside my window. When my mother died, a bird came, and again when my dog passed. When my cat died, a bird came into the house and flew downstairs into the room where it slept!” 

Cliff Damavandi was so moved by the story that he wrote lyrics that Gore then put to music. Damavandi expands, “When Martin was sharing his story, he was so alive, and I could feel the story as well as hear it. There was an otherness that compelled me to write the words.” "Cross Whispers" opens with evocative whispered voices, that gradually give way to Gore’s synths. Undulating between melodic passages, the whisper comes in waves, alongside an insistent hammering, that mirrors the bird that visited Gore’s studio.

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Photo - Heather Saitz

MOONRIIVR - Lady Of The Lake.

Toronto-based duo MOONRIIVR return with “Lady Of The Lake,” a moody, indie single that blends slow-motion surf rock with mournful saxophones and haunting guitar textures. Exploring emotional stagnation and moving forward, the track is the latest offering from their forthcoming sophomore album, expected in early 2027.

The song began with a musical foundation written by Champagne James Robertson, which immediately resonated with bandmate Gavin Gardiner. As Gardiner developed the melodies and lyrics, he drew from a period of feeling emotionally stuck, turning the song into a personal reminder that new experiences and challenges still lie ahead.

“I was feeling very stuck in one place at the time emotionally so this song was a bit of a call to arms for myself,” Gardiner explains. “Realizing there’s still a world out there and that there are new challenges to face and finding beauty in that.”

Originally built around saxophone, floor tom, and voice, “Lady Of The Lake” evolved through live performances before taking shape in the studio. Its defining sound emerged by accident when the duo recorded Robertson’s guitar amplifier through a microphone positioned roughly 15 feet away in another room, still covered by a cloth dust bag. “We were both quite taken by the ‘haunted’ sound of it and that became the north star for the recording,” Gardiner recalls.

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Charlie Horn - Kate Welsh.

The third single "Kate Welsh" by Charlie Horn name checks the ghost that haunts Horn’s home. Written for (and perhaps with?) the former occupant of Horn’s home that passed away in it, the track possesses a striking metaphor for the legacy we leave behind and the places we already haunt. A slow-tempo track that employs rich, layered percussion and mournful guitar melodies that sound like they are being beamed in from some forlorn country western station that hasn’t been on the air for forty years.

In The Pines is widely known as Cincinnati, OH's next big psych-rock export. Horn's work, however, dials back the bombast of ITP's swelling, spacey songs in favor of stripped-back, emotionally poignant narratives that track some pretty harrowing emotional points in Horn's timeline. 

Recorded at the In The Pines nerve-centre, a synthesizer repair shop in the basement of a decommissioned Masonic Temple in Dayton, KY, these songs have a world-weary sound of being fully lived in. Fans of Big Star's 3rd, Conor Oberst's Ruminations or the darkness around Kurt Vile's halo of smoke will find a lot to love here.

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Photo - Linoa Mizo

Raye Zaragoza - Where I’m Supposed To Be.

Los Angeles-based artist Raye Zaragoza has debuted a brand new single, “Where I’m Supposed To Be,” produced by Anna Schulze. Co-written with and featuring vocals from Natalie Closner of JOSEPH, it’s a spirited and cinematic anthem of ancestral revelation. 

Do I want to be part of something? 
Or do I want something to be a part of me? 

Directed by the singer’s brother—actor Román Zaragoza and edited by Ade Ogunnaike, the official music video follows Raye across Arizona, Taipei, and Tokyo—three sites essential to her lineage. “Coming from so many different racial and cultural backgrounds, I’ve spent a lot of my life wondering where I belong,” says Raye, who is of Indigenous, Taiwanese, Japanese, and Mexican descent. “This song is about those questions and the joy in finding the answers—we are enough, and we are exactly where we’re supposed to be.”

The folk songwriter has been described by NPR as “one of the most fresh and compelling voices in folk music today” and by Paste as “one of the most politically relevant artists in her genre.” Her catalog, three albums deep with accolades spanning the International Folk Music Awards and Global Music Awards among others, is a vibrant and evocative contribution to the canon of contemporary Americana. Today’s offering previews a fourth full-length, yet to be announced. 

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Puzzle Muteson - Maren Davidsen - Raven Reid - OK Go - Macy O - PINS

Puzzle Muteson - Mechanical Kiss (Album).

This week Mechanical Kiss, Puzzle Muteson’s first album in eight years has been released. His unmistakable voice finds a new setting in these ten songs, dense electronics, deep bass and the restless movement of Bangkok. Much of Mechanical Kiss took shape on foot. In Bangkok, Terry Magson walked with an MP3 player loaded with electronic sketches by Manuele Chiaravalloti, writing lyrics as he went.

His fourth album for Bedroom Community sits closer to the nocturnal unease of Tricky’s Maxinquaye than the spare intimacy of Nick Drake’s Pink Moon. The voice remains at the centre, surrounded by deep bass and restless electronics.

Produced by Chiaravalloti and Valgeir Sigurðsson, who mixed and mastered at Greenhouse Studios, the album features contributions from Nico Muhly, Francesco Fabris, Benjamin Meyer and Giovanni Corgiat Mecio. Chantal Acda joins Terry on “Above the Stage”. Begin with “Shiota”, or settle in for all ten songs. Mechanical Kiss is available now on CD and digital.

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Maren Davidsen - This Is Where I Leave You (Album).

Maren Davidsen is a singer-songwriter from Stavanger, Norway, whose music blends Nordic americana with country and folk influences, rooted in honest storytelling and an organic, song-led sound. After spending eight years in London, she moved to Oslo in 2023 in search of the space and clarity to write new music. Having picked up the guitar at six years old and grown up listening to artists such as Mark Knopfler, Bruce Springsteen and Willie Nelson, songwriting has long been part of her life. It was during her early adult years in London, particularly while immersed in Mayfair’s party district, that she began pursuing music more seriously. The highs and upheavals of those years eventually led her back to Norway, where she began writing what would become her debut album, This Is Where I Leave You.

“The music is all based on personal experiences, dreams or interpretations of what I go through in life. Feelings of being lost, misunderstood and of course having your heartbroken,” says Maren.

The album’s title reflects both leaving another person behind and leaving behind the version of herself that accepted less than she deserved. Across This Is Where I Leave You, those experiences form the basis of a record shaped by heartbreak, change and the emotions surrounding the end of a relationship.

At the centre of the record is its focus track, “Dimensions,” a folky exploration of a relationship that became too strong and simply could not survive in the real world. The song imagines an alternate universe where that love can still exist, with the two people forced to meet in their dreams, separated from the circumstances and rules that made their relationship impossible. The dream world becomes both a refuge and a way of surviving the pain.

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Raven Reid - Too Late.

Following her acclaimed 2024 album Waiting For Change, Raven Reid is set to return on Oct. 30, 2026 with Stages Of Gold, a new 10-song collection that once again offers unflinching glimpses of her life as an Indigenous woman, as well as the lives of members of her community.

On the upbeat single “Too Late,” Raven tells a more traditional tale of a potential love affair that didn’t get the chance to blossom due to bad timing. “‘Too Late’ is about a missed connection,” she says. “There was a guy I really liked, but I took too long to tell him. We became friends instead because I was too scared to say how I really felt.”

Made at Toronto’s Gold Standard Recorders with engineers Ron Skinner and Paul Phelan, Stages Of Gold also marks a creative milestone for Reid as it was her first experience recording live off the floor with a full band that included top-notch players such as guitarist Kevin Laliberté (Sultans Of String) and drummer Dani Nash (July Talk, Andy Shauf). It all inspired Raven to embrace her inner Lucinda Williams on “Too Late,” owning her heartache while channelling it into a song suitable for blasting on a car radio with the windows down.

Born in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, with ancestral connections to the Mikisew Cree First Nation in Alberta, Raven was a victim of the Canadian government’s “Sixties Scoop” policies that took Indigenous children from their birth parents and placed them into the child welfare system and making them eligible to be adopted by white families. In Raven’s case, she was raised in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan where her artistic journey began at age six with short stories and poetry that she eventually turned into songs once teaching herself how to play guitar.

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Photo - Nathaniel Wood

OK Go - Return / Shooting The Moon (Handbells).

This week Award-winning rock band OK Go have announced the release of their songs “Return” and “Shooting the Moon” performed on handbells. The song “Return” was originally released on the band’s self-titled debut record from 2002, OK Go, while “Shooting the Moon” was originally featured on the Twilight: New Moon soundtrack and then released on the record, Of the Blue Colour of the Sky (Extra Nice Edition) from 2010. These arrangements celebrate the band’s unique live show experience: you never know what will happen at an OK Go show, except that it will be extraordinary and there will be lots of confetti. 

Damian Kulash says: “Handbells are among the only instruments that can't really be played by a single person. They require an ensemble, and I love that. I love that they're definitionally communal: they're not about personal expression, they're about cooperation and losing yourself in the larger whole, like a singer melting into a choir. 

They were one of the first instruments I ever played, thanks to my first grade music teacher, and I've always been enamored of them: their stately, clear beauty, their stark simplicity. To me, their holiness comes not from their religious overtones but from the purity of their sound and the collaboration in making it.”


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Macy O - Roll With Me Tonight.

Shropshire England based singer-songwriter and performer Macy O brings together soulful pop, R&B and indie influences, drawing on the rich sounds of soul and Motown that shaped her musical upbringing. Her music combines powerful vocals with expressive songwriting and an energetic stage presence. Having explored a variety of genres throughout her career, from pop and R&B to dance music, Macy is now embracing the sounds that first inspired her, marking a new chapter in her musical journey.

Her new single, “Roll With Me Tonight”, offers a taste of her upcoming soul EP, Soul Searching. Exploring the excitement and uncertainty of an unexpected attraction, the song captures the internal struggle between playing it safe and surrendering to the moment. Musically, the track embraces a rich, sultry sound, with prominent bass, strings and piano complementing Macy's powerful yet controlled vocals. Oozing with confidence and sensuality the song emphasises the message of trusting your instincts and allowing yourself to embrace new experiences. With its soulful sound and empowering energy, “Roll With Me Tonight” will appeal to fans of Olivia Dean, Aretha Franklin and Stevie Wonder.

Soul Searching is set for release on November 27th via So, Let’s Talk / Moose Records, with distribution through Stem. The EP sees Macy return to the soul and Motown sounds she grew up listening to. Speaking about the inspiration behind the new music, she explains, “All the new music is all about discovering a part of yourself that was previously buried and finding inner peace through the realisation of your own strength.” Through the EP, Macy hopes to inspire others to be confident and sure in their feelings and subsequent decisions, and to embrace their strength and self-awareness.

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PINS - All Over.

Marking over a decade of their celebrated post-punk sound, Manchester four-piece PINS return today with energetic new single ‘All Over’ and announce the release of their fourth album ‘If I’m Alive Now, Then I Was Dead’ released on 12th February via Haus of PINS. 
 
PINS – friends Faith Vern, Lois MacDonald, Kyoko Swan and Abbi Phillips – released their album ‘Girls Like Us’ in 2013, followed by the acclaimed ‘Wild Nights’ in 2015, which marked its 10-year anniversary last year, their Bad Thing EP (featuring Iggy Pop) in 2017, and ‘Hot Slick’ in 2020. In February, they return with their fourth record ‘If I’m Alive Now, Then I Was Dead’, which marks a profound rebirth for the band, signalling a fresh new chapter in their sound. Created as a cathartic exploration of existentialism, the deeply meaningful collection of songs explores the themes of true love and the complex dualities of life and death, with the album’s rebirth-themed title borrowed from a Sylvia Plath poem ‘Love Letter’. It can be pre-ordered here.
 
Introducing the album is new single ‘All Over’, which was recorded at Stockport’s Resonance Studios and engineered and mixed by Joel Patchett (King Krule, Let’s Eat Grandma), with the band leaning into a more organic and real approach to the recording process. Opening with poised yet disconcerting guitars, backed by fierce, smoky vocals that build into a chant-like anthemic chorus, the song references PINS early musical influences from the 60s girl-group sound of The Ronettes to the gritty punk of The Stooges. The video inspires a feeling of empowerment and new beginnings as it follows the band on a nocturnal journey through Manchester.  
 
The band says, “’All Over’ started as a demo about desire. It was one of the most fully formed songs that we had when we started working on our new album. The structure and everything was already there, it was just about getting the sounds down. The energy is driving and it feels a little angular.”

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Holly Wild - British Birds - The Legendary Ten Seconds - Saycouth - Eidetic Dreams - The Spongetones

Holly Wild - Technicolour (Album).

Sydney-based indie-pop artist Holly Wild embraces the messiness of life through dreamy guitar, catchy choruses and emotionally honest storytelling on new album ‘Technicolour’, released this weekend.  

Following her debut album 'Fire' released in 2024, Wild continues to discover and shape her own personal sound, drawing from the experiences, relationships and emotions of her own life. Produced with Grammy-winning producers including Brian Forbes, the album channels these familiar experiences into a dynamic and colourful soundscape. 
  
‘Technicolor’ explores the complicated spaces between love, jealousy and self-worth. Wild moves from the extremes of consuming love to the quiet moments of questioning self-worth, turning small, unspoken moments of her life into tracks grounded in emotional honesty. The album celebrates the contradictions of choosing to feel deeply and being many things at once.

The 13-track album paints this vivid portrait of human emotion with catchy indie-pop melodies, bubbly vocals, and infectious hooks. Slower acoustic moments weave throughout, with intimate verses swelling into anthemic choruses. Wild leans into moments of angst and defiance through powerful vocals belts and haunting textures, while stripped-back tracks make room for airy vocals, chiming guitar arrangements and a more unfiltered intimacy. 

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British Birds - Murmurate, Oscillate (Album).

We have had the pleasure of featuring a couple of track from the new album, now we are delighted to feature the full album (released this weekend) on Beehive Candy! ‘Murmurate, Oscillate’ kicks off with Lie Down With Dogs, Stand Up With Fleas, a rousing expression of exasperation at our passivity in the face of lame authority.  British Birds are acute observers of the English political scene, shrouding their observations in humour and surrealism.  Polka Dot Eyes is another piece of sharp social observation: it portrays Lancashire lads – friends from school – who join the Army and return home physically and mentally damaged. The song is simultaneously disturbing, funny and catchy as hell. 

From the fog of disinformation and doubt that surrounds us all in 2020s Britain, British Birds embrace the darkness, but with wit and verve – no slogans, no easy answers – and with an energy that helps us escape the mundanity of a declining island.   This might all sound a bit bleak, but it’s not: every single one of the songs on this album has a chorus as big as a house.  

There are personal songs too: Scary Movies is a poignant description of Bobby and Emma’s grandfather, who delighted in showing them horror films when they were kids – giving them sneak previews of the darkness they’d come to embrace as adults; Just Like Them is a celebration of introversion: it might not be fun, but it’s better than being an idiot. (Paradoxically, any other introverts who hear this song will feel impelled to join in in the chorus.)  

Blame Game and Thunder Claps examine the darkness inherent in relationships: there is always an impending storm, if you recognise the low hum of the imminent thunder.  Once again: the choruses of these songs confound the melancholy sentiment.

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The Legendary Ten Seconds - Our Unfinished Business (Album).

Ian Churchward of The Legendary Ten Seconds continues his musical journey with the new album 'Our Unfinished Business.' The Legendary Ten Seconds is the music project of Ian Churchward who is the former guitarist of The Morrisons, who were featured on John Peel's Radio One show in 1987.

Ian has a deep passion for blending rich historical narratives with his distinctive sound. His musical project took on new life in 2013 when Lord Zarquon joined forces with Ian, bringing additional depth to the recordings. Since then, a talented roster of guest musicians and vocalists have stepped in to contribute to the studio projects, the most recent being Jay Brown, who co-composed and helped to record the evocative Sci Fi Hi Fi album. This is an astronomy/science fiction themed album which includes a song about a rogue planet.

As The Legendary Ten Seconds Ian has made a name for himself in the folk-rock genre, notably for his historically inspired albums. He has received critical acclaim for the work chronicling the Wars of the Roses and the life of Richard III, focusing on England’s 15th century. The music is more than just entertainment; it's a dedication to keeping history alive through story-driven songs that resonate with modern listeners.

In addition to crafting meticulously researched and artistically compelling albums, Ian has donated part of the proceeds from his music sales to a scoliosis charity. In 2018 he took the historical work to new heights with the release of the Mer de Mort album, commissioned by the Mortimer History Society in honour of its tenth anniversary. This album is a historically accurate collection of songs that delve into the fascinating and impactful history of the Mortimer family, from their roots in Normandy before the Battle of Hastings to their role in the 15th century. The album features narrative interludes read by the late actor John Challis—known for his iconic role as Boycie in Only Fools and Horses—who was a proud patron of the Mortimer History Society.

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Saycouth - Heartbreaker.

Saycouth blends elements of Jazz, dance and Soul with storyful lyrics from singer Mikayla DeBassio, creating a lush soundscape underpinned by groove. Saycouth dropped three singles and videos in ’25, along with appearing at Nashville shows & parties. Their charismatic live performances shared the stage with house and soul DJs Soulsixnine and Erica Schultz from WNXP’s the brunch. 

In 2026, Saycouth brought a new set of songs to life at Wild Feather Recordings with producer Zach Kasik. The first single “Where Do We Go” is in equal parts, a dangerous love song and an allegory for our current times…with a decidedly Shakespearean twist. 

The new single "Heartbreaker" was released a few days back along with a lyric video, directed by Jason Stoltzfus. The band are celebrating the release with a free show at Living Waters Brewing in Nashville this coming Wednesday (details 'here').

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Photo - Meri Björn

Eidetic Dreams - Shields (Album).

Finnish dream pop duo Eidetic Dreams released their long-awaited debut album Shields this weekend via All That Plazz. Four years in the making, the record combines towering walls of guitars, thunderous drums, shimmering pop melodies and an unwavering belief in the importance of tenderness. Formed by singer-songwriter Siiri Kähönen and guitarist-producer Antti Heikkilä, Eidetic Dreams have spent the past four years developing a sound that balances the ethereal beauty of dream pop with the intensity of shoegaze and the emotional immediacy of indie pop.

At the heart of Shields lies a deceptively simple idea. In a world that increasingly rewards cynicism, emotional distance and the appearance of toughness, perhaps softness is a form of strength. The album was born out of idealism, friendship and the belief that good people can still prevail. Kähönen and Heikkilä openly embrace their romantic worldview, rejecting the notion that vulnerability or naivety should be considered weaknesses.

For Eidetic Dreams, romance is more than a musical aesthetic. It is a way of approaching the world, an active choice to remain open to beauty and human connection even when doing so feels increasingly difficult. The album's title reflects this philosophy. Each song becomes a shield of its own, a place of refuge from the noise and harshness of the outside world. Rather than building barriers through emotional detachment, Eidetic Dreams find protection in tenderness.

Musically, Shields is both intimate and expansive. Its sound is built around enormous drums, dark synthesizer basslines and luminous guitar melodies, with influences from 1980s pop production woven into a distinctly contemporary dream pop landscape.

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The Spongetones - Starting To Feel.

The past two years have marked a surprising and welcome renaissance for The Spongetones. Having celebrated their 40th Anniversary with a sold-out concert in their home state of North Carolina – a show preserved for posterity on a hit live album from Big Stir Records – the band has been hard at work pushing forward in the studio ever since. ]

The current lineup of founding singer-songwriters Jamie Hoover (guitar), Steve Stoeckel (bass), Pat Walters (guitar) and recently-inducted drummer Eric Willhelm –not only delivered three new powerhouse studio tracks in support of the live album, but continued on this year with a series of old school standalone guitar pop singles. Each one (“So Long,” “(I Really Need) To Kiss You,” “Lifetimeline” and “The Music At The Close”) has left its mark on indie pop radio and playlists worldwide, and each has showcased a different facet of the band's pop acumen. 

The fifth in the series, “Starting To Feel,” performs the amazing feat of introducing a new voice from among the talent on hand in the band's lineup while preserving everything about The Spongetones' enduring identity. “This is the first time in the band’s history that someone other than Jamie, Pat, or me has sung lead vocal,” says bassist Stoecke. He's referring to Willhelm stepping to the fore to deliver the soaring melody over an emotive backing track (and a wall of signature harmonies) that couldn't be crafted by any band other than The Spongetones. 

It's Willhelm's second co-written song with Spongetones co-founder Hoover, who sang lead on this past June's joyful hit “(I Really Need) To Kiss You,” but his debut in front of the band (while also still manning the drum kit) and he's more than up to the challenge of lending a voice to this lush, moving tale of recovery and rebirth. Willhelm explains, “As with the first co-write with Jamie, this was another series of chords and a melody line I’ve had bouncing around in my head since the early '90s. All this time it’s just been a la-la thing in my head. Jamie remedied the la-la part!”

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