Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Sweeping Promises Returns with Roaring “Rapture, Or . . . “

Lawrence, KS-based duo and JOVM mainstays Sweeping Promises — Lira Mondal (vocals, bass, production) and Caufield Schnug (guitar, drums, production) — just released their thorn album You Say I Romanticize through Sub Pop.

Recorded over an 18-month period, You Say I Romanticize is a tribute to the chaos of creation and collaboration under shifting circumstances. Mondal and Schung found and tested themselves in their combination tour house and recording studio annually working on dozens of albums by other bands, hosting tour stops, planning shows and the like. After an immersive process of tracking and whittling down YSIR demos and carving out an idiosyncratic chamber recording method for the album’s deliberate and international wall-of-sound approach, the duo brought in touring drummer Spenser Gralla to play the album’s material as the band would on stage. 

The album’s frenzied and passionate sound shines most in Modal’s vocal perforamnce. Where you might have heard a growl here and there on certain previously released Sweeping Promises trcks, the band’s frontwoman shouts, roars, hits tricky notes all over the place and shreds her throat throughout the album’s runtime. 

YSIR takes the art-by-any-means-necessary ethos that Mondal and Schung have firmly established throughout their careers and turns the prompt upside down, landing on a personality epidemic that manifests across the album’s ten songs. 

The JOVM mainstays’ third album includes the previously released “Cocoon,“Accent,” and it’s latest single “Rapture, Or . . .” “Rapture, Or. . . .” is a roaring and punchy apocalypse fantasy written with a defiant, plucky resolve that’s strangely sort of upbeat. It’s a song that’s perfectly suited for our contemporary hellscape fueled by greed, hatred and blood.

The duo explain, “‘Rapture, Or…’ we originally envisioned a sort of fallen monastic, mockingly devout, longing for a near-term judgment day (catch phrase: ‘I can’t wait for tomorrow’). The actual lyrics are scenario-adaptable, though, as apocalypse fantasies seemingly guide culture now, so you can’t blame us for finding a desire lane amid the ruins. It’s one of our poppier songs ever. We double-tracked Lira’s loud vocals in our tiled bathroom – our ‘cathedral’. A malfunctioning arp played the ascendant synth arpeggios, and the guitar on this one was improvised.” 

Directed by Shawn Brackbill, the accompanying DIY-styled video is split between features the duo performing the song in a small studio wth a brewing end-of-times-like phenomenon — one that seems like part-storm, part-eclipse, part-nuclear explosion.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Marigny Shares Brooding and Murky Visual for Bruising “The Still”

Brooklyn-based post punk/heavy goth rock outfit Marigny blends coldwave textures, heavy analog distortion and dark atmospheres to craft material that’s simultaneously intimate and volatile. Their sound is intentionally analog and physical — loud, low end, corroded textures, cassette tape-like saturation and tension that feels more like a live room recording than a clean, polished digital mix. Thematically, the band’s work explores grief, obsession, addiction, masculinity and spiritual decay through a modern Afro-gothic lens.

The Brooklyn-based outfit’s debut single “The Still” is a bruising and gritty blend of post-punk, industrial, drakwave, New Wave and goth that showcases their ability to craft a punchy, hook-driven and rousingly anthemic song that’s rooted in raw, soulful emotion.

“My whole life has been defined by the feeling that I’m missing something,” says Marigny. “For nearly a decade, this prevented me from making music that I believed in. But I’ve finally found the language I’ve needed to put that pain into art. ‘The Still’ was the first step, and I’m very excited for the future of this project.”

Directed by Kate Hautakoski, the recently released accompanying video for “The Still” features the mysterious Brooklyn-based artist performing the song in candlelight, further emphasizing the brooding and murky vibes of the single.

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Berlin’s Lemongrab Shares Strutting and Insouciant “Yoko”

Originally founded in Montréal, Lemomgrab — currently founding duo Gaëlle Cordeau (vocals) and Léonie Dishaw (guitar, vocals), along with Fritz Ali Hansen (bass) and Joris Bo Monty (drums) –quickly established their unique brand of punk-tinged garage rock with 2016’s self-released The Ones with the Brooms EP, 2019’s self-released, full-length debut It Doesn’t Sound Good But It Feels Awesome. In their early days, they played house shows, now-defunct DIY spaces, deep dives across Canada and later touring the US with Broncho back in 2019. The duo relocated to Berlin in 2020.

Following their move to Germany, the duo self-released 2021’s six-song, The Wet Album, which saw them further embracing a punk ethos. Their sophomore full-length 2024’s I Spy with My Little Eye was released through German label U-Bac Records and received praise from Vancouver’s Range Magazine and others. Since relocating to Berlin, they do have sharpened their sound amidst the European underground circuit, making a quick yet lasting impression in the international punk scene. Adding to a growing international profile, the band has made a run of the international festival circuit, paying sets at Berlin’s Synästhesie Fest; Paris’ Supersonic Block Party; Friedland, Germany’s Jenseits von Millionen; Calgary’s Sled Island; and Pop Montréal. They’ve also shared stages with L.A. Witch, BODEGA, Meatbodies, Das Beat, Cumgirl8 and Shame. And while in Berlin, the band expanded from a duo to a quartet with the addition of Fritz Ali Hansen (bass) and Joris Bo Monty (drums).

The Berlin-based outfit’s new 7-inch, Another Kind of Freedom is slated for a September 11, 22026 release through Mothalnd and Chrüsimüsi Records. The new effort reportedly sees the German-based quartet further cementing a sound that draws from an eclectic array of influences including The Stooges, The Clean, Pylon and Bikini Kill while being a cranky yet uplifting patchwork of songs. While each song is stylistically diverse, the material questions belief systems rooted in existential angst and witty social commentary informed by our dystopian hellscape.

Another Kind of Freedom‘s latest single “Yoko” is built around a insouciant and downright nonchalant, strutting groove and squiggling burts of guitar. Sonically seeming to channel Talking Heads: 77 and More Songs About Building and Food-era Talking Heads, The Velvet Underground and The Jim Carroll Band‘s Catholic Boy, “Yoko” is one-part school punk, one-part mutant disco that pays homage to Yoko Ono while calling out misogyny and criticizing the superficiality of the male gaze. The song points out that Yoko Ono was not just misunderstood as an artist and person, but that she was has long been incorrectly blamed for The Beatles breakup.

“‘Yoko’ came from a discussion about how we repeatedly had this annoying conversation with men who hate Yoko Ono and say she’s just ruining everything, laughing about her ‘screaming’ over Chuck Berry, Lemongrab’s Cordeau and Dishaw explain. “‘Yoko’ is a song that decenters the male ego as the measure of experience and plays with the notion of who holds the narrative. It’s not anymore about if someone is Paul or John, but Yoko or John, putting them both on equal terms. Inspiration came from late 70s post-punk music like Delta 5 and Au Pairs and we riffed on this idea which all came together when Fritz found the perfect bass groove.”

Filmed by Gaëlle Cordeau and Léonie Dishaw, the accompanying video for “Yoko” follows the pair as they set out on an adventure to visit the grave of German singer/songwriter, actor and model Christa Päffgen, a.k.a. Nico.

The German-based outfit will be embarking on a European Union tour to close out 2026. Check out the tour dates below.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 85th Birthday, David Crosby!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates the 85th anniversary of David Crosby’s birth.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Jonas Davies Shares Shimmering and Earnest “My Dear”

Oregon-based singer/songwriter and musician Jonas Davies can trace the origins of his music career to a childhood love with music. With the release of his debut single, last year’s “Porchlight” and his full-length debut, Off Days, which was released earlier this year, Davies has quickly established a sound that blends hazy guitars with subtle and dreamy R&B-like textures. The result is material that exists in the uneasy space between warmth and tension.

His latest single “My Dear” is the first bit of new material since Off Days, and the single is a shimmering and introspective tune that’s one-part shoegaze, one-part indie pop while showcasing an artist, with an uncanny knack for a pairing a catchy hook with earnest, lived-in songwriting.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Dolours Shares Sneering and Aggressive “I Am the Dog”

Dolours (pronounced like colours — but with a d) is a mysterious and emerging UK-based duo, who blend post-punk urgency with noise rock intensity rooted in a defiant DIY approach. The duo have quickly established an atmospheric sound that features driving bass lines, abrasive guitars that thematically explores frustration, disillusionment and emotional unrest.

The duo’s latest single “I Am the Dog” is a pulsing and hook driven banger that blends elements of New Wave, goth, industrial and noise, seemingly channeling Fat Dog, FAT CONCUBINE and others — but with a sneering aggression.

New Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Yasiin Bey Shares a Cognito-Filmed, Directed and Edited Visual for “Priority”

Originally released on Downtown Records back in 2009, a decade after his celebrated and beloved solo debut, Black on Both Sides, Yasiin Bey‘s sophomore album The Ecstatic was widely regarded as his strongest work in years. The album earned near-universal praise for its lyrical breath and eclectic production and received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Rap Album, anchored around a globe-spanning sound shaped by a collection of visionary producers including Madlib, J. Dilla, Oh No, Preservation, Mr. Flash, The Neptunes‘ Chad Hugo and Georgia Anne Muldrow. The album also featured guest spots from Slick Rick and Talib Kweli.

The acclaimed and beloved emcee recently teamed up with Rhymesayers Entertainment, who will release a re-issue of The Ecstatic on all physical formats on tomorrow, August 14, 2026. This reissue marks the first time Yasiin Bey’s landmark sophomore album has been made available for worldwide distribution in over 15 years. The reissue brings the album’s jazz, soul and Middle Eastern-inspired sound back to the analog format, allowing listeners to experience tracks like “Supermagic,” and the Grammy Award-nominated “Casa Bey” with the warmth and depth the production deserves.

Among the physical format variants of The Ecstatic is a deluxe package pressed on double LP 180-gram black vinyl, and a translucent red 7″ vinyl single featuring the previously unreleased bonus tracks “The Size” and “The Tournament.” The reissue package will also include a 120-page hardcover book, designed and laid out by Frolab featuring photos from legendary filmmaker and photographer Cognito, who documented a two-year span of Yasiin Bey creating and promoting the original 2009 release, along with lyric quotes and some of his handwritten notes from the era. And of course, all vinyl orders will receive instant digital downloads of the full album. Fans are also encouraged to visit CasaBey.com for news and special announcements from Yasiin Bey, as well as The Ecstatic apparel.

The album will also be available through exclusive streaming partner Quboz.

To celebrate the release of the reissue, the acclaimed and beloved emcee shared a new, Cognito-directed video for album track “Priority” featuring never before seen footage of Yasiin behind the scenes in the studio, on the road and more. I turned 30 that year, so looking at this footage of a young Yasiin Bey is very much like looking back into my entire 30s. “After culling images that would eventually make it into the deluxe edition photobook + vinyl, I created a music video for ‘Priority’ too,” Cognito says. ” I used clips pulled from over 70 hours of mini DV footage I captured during those years – from the first studio visit in LA when yasiin was recording the album, to press appearances for the initial release, to out on the road for The Ecstatic Tour across the US and all the way to South Africa.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Halfway Up a Jagged Hill Share Sludgy and Expansive “Silver Sword”

Brooklyn-based indie duo Halfway Up a Jagged Hill (HUAJH) — longtime friends Devin Gilbert and Jeb Holstein — were walking in the woods one January night, looking for owls, when they can came across what could only […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Dummy Shares Hypnotic and Mind-Bending “Full Spectrum Dominance”

Los Angeles-based outfit Dummy — Alex Ewell, Emma Maatman, Nathan O’Dell, Joe Trainor and Lance Umble — will be releasing their fourth studio album, do you love the color of the sky on October 16, […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

New Video: Two Lush and Soulful Tunes from Zurich’s Okvsho

Zurich-based sibling duo Okvsho — Georg and Christoph Kiss — will be releasing their fourth album Frozen Flashes on September 18, 2026 through Current Moves. Recorded between Zurich and London, Frozen Flashes reportedly find the […]

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: The Womack Sisters Share Soulful and Heartbroken “Monster”

Rising Los Angeles-based sibling soul trio The Womack Sisters — Kucha, Zeimani and BG — can trace the origins of their careers to their childhood: The trio were singing before they could even walk. They grew up on stages and in studios across the globe, singing behind their parents, as well as their legendary uncle, Bobby Womack. And adding to The Womack Sisters’ remarkable pedigree, their grandfather was the iconic Sam Cooke. 

No matter where they called home at the time — London, Thailand, Amsterdam, Kenya, West Virginia, The Bahamas — music and family were always a constant at the center of their lives. Of course, as the sisters grew up, each with their own respective journeys, experiences and heartaches, they managed to find their own voices and their own path.

Each member of the trio has their own individual vocal styling and timbre, but they playfully trade leads and effortlessly blend their harmonies perfectly in a way that only siblings can do.

Back in 2016, a mutual friend introduced The Womack Sisters to Daptone Records co-owner and producer Gabriel Roth, a.k.a. Bosco Mann, who heard them sing and fell quickly and deeply in love with their voices. Shortly after, they met, they went to Daptone’s Riverside, CA-based Penrose Studios to record their label debut, “If You Want Me“/”I Just Don’t Want You (To Say Goodbye).”

The rising Los Angeles trio’s long-awaited self-titled, full-length debut is slated for a Friday, August 14, 2026 through Daptone Records. The album will feature the previously released “Chauffeur” and the album’s latest single “Monster.” “Monster” is a slow-burning and heart-wrenching ballad rooted in a cinematic and old school-inspired arrangement and production. The song is about coming to terms with the devastating, emotional void left by unrequited love that features the siblings’ vocals expressing heartache, confusion, yearning and stubborn, determined pride within a turn of a phrase.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard Return with Muscular and Menacing “Kill For The Steel”

Wildly prolific Melbourne-based JOVM mainstays King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard — Stu Mackenzie (vocals, guitar), Ambrose Kenny-Smith (harmonica, vocals, keys), Cook Craig (guitar, vocals), Joey Walker (guitar, vocals), Lucas Harwood (bass) and Michael Cavanaugh […]

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 77th Birthday, Mark Knopfler!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Mark Knopfler’s 77th birthday.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 54th Birthday, Del The Funky Homosapien!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Del The Funky Homosapien’s 54th birthday.

Video by William Ruben Helms

Throwback: Happy 63rd Birthday, Sir Mix A Lot!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Sir Mix A Lot’s 63rd birthday.