Category: lo-fi

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: CASTLEBEAT Shares Shimmering, Hook-Driven “Stay With Me”

Growing up biracial in Southern California — his father Korean, his mother Spanish — CASTLEBEAT creative mastermind and Spirit Goth Records founder Josh Hwang absorbed a wide range of musical traditions early on, filtered through the quintessentially Californian experience of listening to the radio on long drives. Drawing comparisons to Craft Spells, Beach Fossils and Day Wave, Hwang’s CASTLEBEAT sound can be described as jangly guitar-driven dream pop with melancholic overtones and sharp pop hooks, anchored around a sense of melody and motion.

Hwang’s newest CASTLEBEAT effort, CASTLEBEAT II is slated for a June 26, 2026 release through Spirit Goth Records, the label he runs with his wife Sonia. Much like his previously released work, Hwang wrote, recorded and produced everything himself, continuing the lo-fi DIY ethos that’s been at the core of the project. The album is conceived as a ten year anniversary reflection on Hwang’s 2016 self-titled debut. And he approached the album as both a time capsule and a creative reset, deliberately returning to the sounds, instincts and unfinished ideas of his early CASTLEBEAT era — but with a decade worth of refined craftsmanship.

“This album is a 10-year anniversary ode to my 2016 debut,” Hwang explains. “Some of the songs started as ideas from that era that I never finished at the time. Other songs were written more recently, but I intentionally limited myself to the kinds of sounds and choices I would’ve made back then — just with a more dialed-in approach I’ve developed over the years.” Adding to the homage paying vibes, CASTLEBEAT II‘s artwork and song sequencing deliberately echoes Hwang’s 2016 CASTLEBEAT debut, down to the original font on the artwork. “This record is about taking a moment to recount a chapter before moving forward,” says Hwang.

Unlike his previously released work, there is one major departure: Hwang recruited Brian Fisher to handle mixing and mastering. According to the Southern Californian-born artist, it was a decision that took some letting go of. “The hardest part was trusting that handoff and not endlessly tweaking. But once I let that happen it actually made the album stronger,” he admits.

CASTLEBEAT II‘s third and latest single “Stay With Me” features jangling guitar lines and a slacker rock-meets-New Order-like groove paired with Hwang’s achingly wistful vocal and a remarkably catchy hook. “Stay With Me” sees Hwang walking a tightrope between being defiant upbeat and heartbreaking melancholy, evoking a familiar sensation to anyone who’s been in a relationship on the verge of a breakup: the desire to hold on, but the sense of that person slipping away before your eyes.

As Hwang says: “‘Stay With Me’ is an upbeat, home-recorded dream-pop single built around jangly Stratocaster lines and a laid-back slacker-rock feel. Lyrically it’s about wanting someone to stick around when you can feel things starting to slip. Bright guitars, relaxed groove, and a hook that lands quickly.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: lazybed Shares Jangling, Hook-Driven “time”

Macau-based Filipino artist Richard Winstanley can trace the origins of his music career back to high school, when he started writing, producing and mixing demos using GarageBand. His first solo project, a fictional band he called The Yankies saw him writing and recording songs in both English and Filipino. Although he never released those early tracks publicly, this early work wound up laying the foundation for his future musical explorations.

Winstanley stepped away from music while attending college. But after graduation, he found his passion for music re-ignited. He publicly emerged with his second solo recording project Cardz, which saw him release 2024’s mini-album Lok Kuan Express through Bandcamp and YouTube. For the most part, music was a beloved hobby that offered him a creative escape from his full-time job.

Earlier this year, the Macau-based artist emerged with his latest solo project lazybed, which derives it name from “lazy afternoons on [sic] my bedroom making music.” lazybed reflects a shift in sonic direction that sees Winstanley embracing guitar-driven indie rock. jangle pop and psych pop. Drawing from Broken Social Scene, MGMT, Blur, Eraserheaads, Mac DeMarco and more, the Macau-based artist creates songs from his bedroom using his MacBook and Logic Pro X.

The Macau-based artist’s latest single “time” is a remarkably catchy, hook-driven song that seemingly channels 00s jangle pop, slacker pop and New Order while thematically focusing on the inevitable passing of time, getting older and feeling like you’ve wasted both time and your life away. The song is rooted in a timeless theme that would be familiar to someone in their 20s or their 40s — but with a slightly different weight.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Johan Hiro Shares Vibey and Trippy “the vacancy”

Jonah Hiro is a Boston-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, who specializes in a brand of bedroom psych pop informed by his obsession with blown out sounds, trippy and hypnotic soundscapes, paired with dreamy vocals. 

Hiro released his debut EP, lost at sea earlier this year. The EP features the mesmerizing opening track “i gaze at mars” and “the vacancy.” Featuring twinkling keys, quivering synths, blown out beats paired with Hiro’s layered and dreamily delivered harmonies, “the vacancy” seemingly channels a mind-bending synthesis of Sgt. Pepper-era The Beatles, Dark Side of the Moon and Tame Impala to create a lo-fi, lysergic vibey tune.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: JOVM Mainstay The Offline Teams Up with Koralle on a Vibey and Laid-Back Remix of “Enfin, la paix”

Hamburg-born and-based photographer, composer Felix Müller is the creative mastermind of the JOVM mainstay cinematic soul project The Offline. The Offline was deeply inspired and informed by Müller’s travels along the Atlantic coastline of southern France with an analog camera, capturing beach life. Upon his return to Hamburg, he started writing compositions as the sonic counterpart to his visuals.

The German-born artist’s full-length debut, 2023’s Timor Litzenberg co-produced La couleur de la mer was inspired by the work of Francois de Roubaix, and saw him creating a soundtrack to an imaginary film with themes and atypical song structures. Morning from dramatic cues to fragile romanticism, the album’s material incorporated elements of psychedelia, retro soul and hip-hop — inspired by his extensive record collection.

2024’s Les Cigales saw the German-born JOVM mainstay building upon the head-nodding blend of hip-hop and 70s soul jazz that he developed on his debut with the effort’s material taking sonic cues from 1960s and 1970s film and TV scores, while nodding at Francois de Rouabix, David Axelrod, Surprise Chef and Robohands.

Last year, saw Müller release the live EP, The Offline In Session, which featured live renditions of some of his previously released work including “Théme de la couleur de la mer,” and “Cap Camarat.”

Interestingly, his forthcoming effort, Révisé is reportedly a look back into his growing catalog — but this time with the hip-hop and beatmaker ramped up. The effort will feature contributions from highly sought-after producers across the global, lo-fi hip-hop scene including, Koralle, Knowsum, Jake Milliner and 53 Keys, as well as rising underground emcees like SANITY, Summer Sons‘ TURT and Physical Graffiti.

“One of my main motivations for The Offline project was to create a modern version of television and film music from the 60s and 70s, with an analog touch reminiscent of the old funk and jazz albums that hip-hop artists used to sample,” Müller explains. “After releasing several albums an [sic] EPs, the idea arose to change perspective and look at the music from the point of view of hip-hop artists and beatmakers, leading to the remix project Révisé.”

Révisé‘s lead single, sees Müller team up with Italian producer Koralle on a remix of Le couleur de la mer album track, “Enfin, la paix.” The Koralle remix adds anecdotes a laid-back, lounge/headphone hip-hop feel with congo, boom bap beats and dub-inspired textures paired with the original’s twinkling and reverb-soaked Rhodes, Müller’s soulful and psychedelic guitar lines and sun soaked vibes. The remix is perfect for that Chill Out/Make Out/Daydream playlist you’re thinking of.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Boston’s Jonah Hiro Shares Dreamy, Lo-Fi “i gaze at mars”

Jonah Hiro is a Boston-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, who specializes in a brand of bedroom psych pop informed by his obsession with blown out sounds, trippy and hypnotic soundscapes, paired with dreamy vocals.

Hiro released his debut EP, lost at sea earlier this year. The EP’s opening track “i gaze at mars” is a mind-bending and mesmerizing tune, featuring buzzing bass synths, blown out, skittering beats, twinkling keys as a lush, chilled-out bed for the Boston-based artist’s dreamy delivery. The result is a song that kind of reminds me of a lo-fi take on JOVM mainstays Tame Impala, GUM and POND while showcasing Hiro’s ability to craft a remarkably catchy hook.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Seoul’s Amohouse Shares Hook-Driven and Woozy “Lofi House”

Seoul-based producer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Amohouse blends lo-fi textures with driving house rhythms. The result is music that features a chill yet energetic vibe. The South Korean artist describes his music as “the perfect soundtrack for your daily life,” adding that “whether you’re studying, driving or just relaxing,” that he’ll give you the beats you need.

Amohouse’s latest single “Lofi House” features a woozy and looping production that brings Kainalu and MUNYA to mind: skittering and dusty beats, twinkling, reverb-drizzled synths and a chopped up, sultry vocal, paired with the Seoul-based artist’s ability to craft a razor sharp, catchy hook.