HOJII is a mysterious and emerging, French electronic music producer. His latest single “Báilalo,” is a summery, hook-driven blend of Latin house and reggaeton, anchored around skittering beats, a chopped up vocal sample, a looping and arpeggiated synth melody and a bombastic horn line. Inspired by the club music of 2000s era Latin clubs, “Báilalo” sees the French producer specifically crafting a song meant to get you to get on that dance floor and move your body. But it you’re old enough, it’ll remind you of sweaty night’s at BOB’s,. The Canal Room and Webster Hall.
Tag: Single Review
New Audio: Dream Bodies Shares Brooding and Road Trip Friendly “Run”
Steven Fleet is a Los Angeles-based multi-instrumentalist, poet, writer and artist, who has been in several music projects that have allowed him to play shows across the US, the UK, Germany and the Czech Republic. He is also the creative mastermind behind the solo recording project Dream Bodies. With Dream Bodies, Fleet crafts “witchy, dreamy, gothy, post punk, dream pop, cold wave with poetic, philosophical lyrics.”
The Los Angeles-based artist’s recently Dream Bodies debut EP, Circle of Light features the previously released “Dream Hangover,” and the EP’s latest single, EP title track “Circle of Light,” which I wrote about earlier this year.
Fleet’s latest single, “Run” is presumably a standalone track that sees him further cementing the project’s sound and approach — Cocteau Twins-like reverb, relentless motorik pulse paired serving as a brooding bed for the Los Angeles-based artist’s sonorous baritone croon. But thematically, “Run” may arguably be the most road trip friendly track of Fleet’s steadily growing catalog.
New Audio: Glimmer Shares Rousingly Anthemic “Dissolve”
Over the past couple of years, New York-based grungegaze outfit Glimmer — Jeff Moore (vocals, guitar), Jaye Moore (drums), Johnny Nicholls (guitar) and Kevin Dobbins (bass) — have released a handful of well-received singles have seen the quartet firmly establishing a sound that mixes elements of shoegaze, grunge and dream pop in a way that’s both nostalgia inducing and yet contemporary.
Building upon a growing profile, the band’s highly-anticipated full-length debut, Get Weak is slated for an October 3, 2025 vinyl release through Philadelphia-based label, Abandon Everything. Recorded with Jeff Berner at Brooklyn-based Studio G and mastered by Will Yip, Get Weak reportedly sees the band pairing their more pop-leaning singles with heavy-hitting alt-rock anthems and softer, more ethereal material.
The album’s latest single “Dissolve” continues a remarkable run of material anchored around rousingly anthemic, The Colour and The Shape-era Foo Fighters-like hooks, reverb-soaked guitars and a dreamy coda. At its core, the song evokes a dreamy and aching nostalgia for past summers — for times and things that are gone and can’t be had again.
After returning from a European tour, the members of Glimmer will be embarking on a short run of Stateside tour dates. You can check out the tour dates below.
New Audio: Cochemea Shares Soulful and Timeless “Omeyocan”
Acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, arranger and composer Cochemea Gastelum comes from a long line on musicians on both sides of his lineage. Over the past 25 years, Gasteum has built a distinct and accomplished career as a soloist and arranger/composer, collaborating with an eclectic array of artists across a wide range of genres — from his lengthy stint with Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings to the likes of Kevin Morby, Run The Jewels, Jon Batiste, Amy Winehouse, The Roots, Archie Shepp, Mark Ronson, the legendary Quincy Jones and a lengthy list of others.
His previously released material has received praised from both critics and DJs. 2019’s All My Relations, the acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, arranger and composer’s critically applauded Daptone Records debut was a family reunion of sorts, uniting spirits, musicians and melodies across space and time. Leading a nonet, Gastelum and company employed drums, winds and vocals to create a deeply personal meditation on the interconnectedness of all things. Vol. 2: Baca Sewa expanded this exploration into the archives of family history, mythology and the cultural imagination.
Slated for a September 26, 2025 release through Daptone Records, Gastelum’s forthcoming effort, Vol. 3: Ancestros Futuros completes a triology while anchored in the cultural fabric that has nurtured him from the beginning. A Californian of Yaqui ancestry, Gastelum describes a central part of his work as “accessing ancestral memory that comes in different forms — sometimes when you visit a place, sometimes in dreams . . . it’s in our DNA.”
“For me it’s about seeking wholeness in these zones of fracture.” In fact, dreams play a vital role in his creative process., “A lot of melodies come to me through dreams,” he says. “I’ve kept a dream record for years, shaping the language into what I call dream scores.” One of these scores appears on the back over of Ancestros Futuros, reflecting the intuitive and layered nature of his work. This dream-guided approach carries into the album’s opening track, “Transmisíon del Soñar,” which serves as a “portal” between dimensions, echoing his connection with both the dream realm and the dynamic interplay of time and space.
His musical and spiritual synthesis is made possible through his deep reverence for the horn, and the music and traditions that precede him. Inspired by Eddie Harris, Yusef Lateef, Jim Pepper and Gary Bartz, Gastelum attempts to bride ancestral rhythmic traditions with forward-looking vision, to create a signature sound that’s both deeply rooted and expansive. With the new album, Gastelum continues to expand upon his work, effortlessly blending past, present and future into a ritual offering, in which memory, survival and imagination converge. The album’s material is also shaped by stories of survival and resistance.
The acclaimed multi-instrumentalist, arranger and producer gathered a core group of longtime collaborators, an octet featuring some of New York’s best percussionists and members of Daptone’s world famous rhythm section. Additionally, the album sees Gastelum collaborating with Daptone Records founder Gabriel Roth, a.k.a. Bosco Mann returning as producer and mixing engineer, recording the band live to 8-track analog tape.
Ancestros Futuros will feature the previously released album title track “Ancestros Futuros” and the album’s second and latest single “Omeyocan,” a soulful composition that seamlessly blends Miles Davis and early John Coltrane modal jazz-like melody with tribal drumming and group singing and chanting, which gives the track a a timeless, almost ancient air. You can almost envision being at a bonfire for an ancient ceremony to celebrate and please the gods.
“Omeyocan means ‘Place of Duality’ in Nahuatl. In Aztec cosmology, it’s considered the highest of the heavens—a place outside the temporal world where life and essence originate,” Gastelum explains. “Connected to dreams, birth, and the convergence of opposites, it’s linked to emergence and balance. The track mirrors this idea of duality and becoming, starting with a long, winding instrumental melody before shifting into heavy drums and group singing—moving from something inward to something collective.”
New Audio: Big Wild Teams Up with Phantogram on Slinky, Dance Floor Friendly “Too Loud”
Jackson Stell is a rising producer and artist, who initially started his career in his native Massachusetts as hip-hop producer, known as J Beatz. Following a life-altering trip to Big Sur, Stell switched creative lanes, adopting influences from the area’s natural beauty and open spaces. As Big Wild, the Massachusetts-based artist refines alt/indie electronic music by blending organic elements, lush soundscapes with bold, genre-defying creativity and panache.
Stell’s breakthrough was back in 2015 when he toured with acclaimed electronic outfit Odesza and remixed “Say My Name.” That year also saw the release of “Aftergold,” feat. Tove Stryke, which stopped the Spotify Global Viral charts.
Building upon a rapidly growing profile, Stell followed up with 2017’s Invincible EP and his full-length debut, 2019’s Superdream, which saw the Massachusetts-born artist taking on the roles of singer/songwriter for the first time, while blending indie, electronic and disco influences. Stell supported Superdream with extensive touring across the US, European Union and UK while helping to establish his reputation as an innovative and boundary-pushing artist.
His sophomore Big Wild album, 2022’s The Efferusphere saw Stell continuing to explore and push the boundaries of genre and emotion.
The past few months have been busy for Stell: Earlier this year, he released -the first bit of new material since The Efferusphere — “Love Any Longer,” “You Belong Here,” and “The Universe” feat. feat. iDA HAWK, a sprawling dance music track that mischievously nods at James Bond-thriller-like soundtracks, cinematic psych soul and British Big Beat fueled by an infectious optimism. All three of those previously released songs will appear on Stell’s highly-anticipated sophomore album, Wild Child. Slated for an August 29, 2025 release through Giant Music, Wild Child is reportedly one of Stell’s most dynamic and personal albums to date. After The Efferusphere, Stell found himself craving the curiosity and joy that initially drew him to music.
That search let him to reconnect with his inner a child — a creative alter ego that he has dubbed Wild Child. The album’s material reportedly sees Stell creating a richer sonic palette that draws from and meshes elements of indie pop, psych rock and ’60s music. And throughout the album, Stell embraces the kind of playful and mischievous unpredictability informed from creating without constraints.
Primarily written and produced by Stell alongside a close-knit cast of talented collaborators, Wild Child‘s material explores themes of renewal, resilience and connection to the Earth that simultaneously echo throughout the lyrics and sonic textures while striking a balance between childlike wonder and the hard-fought wisdom of maturity. “Wild Child runs throughout the album and is fighting to stay alive and thriving despite the things the world throws at us,” Stell says. “The album’s about exploring that side of ourselves that we don’t explore much as we age. I think we’re often pushed to repress that part of ourselves when we get older, because it’s deemed silly or irresponsible, but I’ve realized that maturity is about balancing both aspects of ourselves.”
Wild Child‘s latest single “Too Loud” feat. Phantogram is a slinky, dance floor friendly bop that showcases Stell’s unerring knack for crafting incredibly catchy hooks. Anchored around the same playful and upbeat sensibility of its immediate predecessors, “Too Loud” feat. Phantogram may arguably be the most 80s sounding track of the album to date, managing to channel Rockwell’s “Somebody’s Watching Me,” and the like.
“I first made the demo while I was making The Efferusphere. I can’t really pinpoint inspiration besides following what excites me,” Stell says. ” I try to trust that feeling and not overthink it. As simple as the demo sounded, there was something that consistently grabbed me when I listened back. It was sexy and ethereal. I was hung up on the second verse and the lyrics until I was connected with Sarah from Phantogram. Her voice was perfect and was the last big piece to the puzzle. She smashed it and my team and I were so stoked to work with her. I remember the head of the label, Nate Albert, telling me the song needed to be finished in a week to make it to vinyl. It’s such a cliche when finishing an album, but this truly was one of those songs submitted in the final hour in a mad hellish dash.”
Stell continues, “Sarah’s voice was meant for this track, she really occupied the imaginary space of the track,Her tone and attitude was the perfect compliment [sic] to the production. Sexy and ethereal. I’m really excited for the day when we can play this one together on stage.”
“This song makes me want to roll the windows down and turn the volume all the way up,” Phantogram’s Sarah Berthel says. “Working with Jackson has been such a blast and we can’t wait to dance with you to this soon.”
New Audio: rhythmspitter Shares Hypnotic “Yilan”
Things look a bit different around here. There’s a reason for that: Regular freelance work dried up for me last July. Not much has gone on with full-time work, or anything else. So,. whatever meagre earnings i had have pretty much evaporated. And now, when it came to certain subscriptions — i.e. WordPress — I can’t afford it at all. Admittedly, things are extremely frustrating and discouraging. But I’m trying to keep the show running as best as I can until things get better. Hopefully. But in this environment, who the fuck really knows?
Michael Mosley is a San Francisco-based musician, composer, producer, who may be best known for playing bass in Red Thread Theory. Mosley is also the creative mastermind behind the JOVM mainstay act rhythmspltter. And with rhythmspitter, Mosley explores instrumental indie rock and lo-fi beat-driven material that’s influenced from an eclectic array of sources, including Bill Laswell’s Material and Jah Wobble‘s Invaders of the Heart.
Each rhythmspitter composition sees Mosley weaving together a rich tapestry of instruments and rhythms from across the world. Each composition is meticulously crafted to resonate with listeners while providing a chill and captivating vibe that’s entrancing. With rhythmspitter, Mosley seeks to break down barriers and introduce audiences to a world of sonic exploration that they may not have encountered before — but he also hopes to open minds to the beauty of different styles and instruments.
Mosely’s latest rhythmspitter EP, The Antique Land is inspired by Alexander the Great and Percy Bysshe Shelley’s “Ozymandias.” The EP’s latest single “Yilan,” continues a run of percussive and hypnotic material with shimmering Middle Eastern-styled instrumentation and eerily atmospheric vocal samples ethereally floating through the mix. And much like the previously released material, “Yilan” channels the hypnotic and dreamy beauty of gnawa but with a swaggering and slick, modern production.
New Audio: The Desertones Share Broodingly Cinematic “The Portal”
Things look a bit different around here. There’s a reason for that: Regular freelance work dried up for me last July. Not much has gone on with full-time work, or anything else. So,. whatever meagre earnings i had have pretty much evaporated. And now, when it came to certain subscriptions — i.e. WordPress — I can’t afford it at all. Admittedly, things are extremely frustrating and discouraging. But I’m trying to keep the show running as best as I can until things get better. Hopefully. But in this environment, who the fuck really knows?
Arizona-based instrumental trio Destertones specializes in a sound that they’ve simultaneously described as “hypnotic soul-meets-desert groove” and as feeling “like dry heat, long shadows, and endless sky.
The trio’s recently released full-length debut, The Portal features album title track and opening track “The Portal,” a broodingly cinematic track anchored around a slow-burning and hypnotic grove that recalls JOVM mainstays Tinariwen, The Diasonics and Mildlife. Recorded live and straight-to-tape to get the song a human, imperfect touch, “The Portal” manages to evoke dry and dusty desert heat rising up from blacktop.
New Audio: Lomotor Returns with Scorching “Second Sun”
Josh Rathburn is a Northern Massachusetts-based electronic music producer best known as Lomotor. Drawing comparisons to Boards of Canada and JOVM mainstay Rival Consoles, and inspired by the hills and valleys of his rural surroundings, Rathburn’s work sees him blending modular and analog synthesizers with found sounds and early childhood cassette recordings to create songs that often feel like a scratched and faded memory of a melody heard long ago.
The Northern Massachusetts-based producer’s latest single “Second Sun” is a broodingly hypnotic track built around a glitchy, growling and warped synth melody paired with skittering beats. While seemingly channeling Tobacco and Black Moth Super Rainbow, “Second Sun” evokes sun-scorched landscapes and grainy, analog fuzz, making the song sound as though it was a distant transmission from a malfunctioning satellite.
New Audio: GHXST Shares Brooding “Cosmic”
Initially formed in Brooklyn back in 2010 and currently based in Los Angeles, indie duo GHXST — Shelley X and Chris Wild — specialize in a sound that draws from The Velvet Underground, Black Sabbath, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Mazzy Star, 90s grunge, and their never ending travels to nowhere.
The duo’s latest single “Cosmic” is slow-burning, slithering and brooding doom metal-like dirge reminiscent of the RidingEasy Records roster and Faetooth with a subtly stoner rock/desert rock vibe. At its core, the song channels the heat and the hauntingly uneasy stillness of the desert.
Lyric Video: Nation of Language Shares Swooning “Under the Water”
Acclaimed Brooklyn-based synth pop trio and JOVM mainstays Nation of Language — Ian Richard Devaney (vocals, guitar), Aidan Noell (synths) and Alex MacKay (bass) — have amass a rapidly growing and devout national and international fanbase as a result of a dance floor friendly sound that draws from New Wave, post-punk and shoegaze. The JOVM mainstays three albums, 2020’s Introduction, Presence, 2021’s A Way Forward and 2023’s Strange Disciple have received coverage from Billboard, The New York Times, Document Journal, BrooklynVegan, MOJO, NME, Pitchfork, Stereogum and lengthy list of others, including this site.
Adding to a rapidly rising profile, the band has performed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. They’ve also become a mainstay on the international festival circuit, playing sets at Austin City Limits, Desert Daze, Pitchfork Festival, Primavera Sound, Pukklepop, Corona Capital, Outside Lands, Bonnaroo, and a growing list of others globally. And recently, “Weak In Your Light” was featured in the series finale of the Netflix hit show You.
Earlier this year, the acclaimed JOVM mainstays announced that they signed to Sub Pop Records, who will be releasing their new material globally in 2025 and beyond, including the band’s highly-anticipated fourth album, Dance Called Memory. Slated for a September 19, 2025 release, the 10-song album was recorded, produced and mixed by Holy Ghost‘s Nick Millhiser, who produced 2023’s Strange Disciple. “What’s so great about Nick is his ability to make us feel like we don’t need to do what might be expected of us,” says Nation of Language’s Aidan Noell. The album was mastered by Heba Kadry, who has worked on some of the most acclaimed records of the past decade or so.
Sonically, the album is imbued with a subtly shifted palette: On some tracks percussion is smashed through a synthesizer to nod at early-2000’s electronic music. Chopped-up drum break samples make appearances, too.
Ultimately, for the trio, the hope was to weave raw vulnerability and humanity into a synth-heavy album. “There is a dichotomy between the Kraftwerk school of thought and the Brian Eno school of thought, each of which I’ve been drawn to at different points. I’ve read about how Kraftwerk wanted to remove all of the humanity from their music, but Eno often spoke about wanting to make synthesized music that felt distinctly human,” Nation of Language’s Ian Richard Devaney says. “As much as Kraftwerk is a sonically foundational influence, with this record I leaned much more towards the Eno school of thought. In this era quickly being defined by the rise of AI supplanting human creators, I’m focusing more on the human condition, and I need the underlying music to support that… Instead of hopelessness, I want to leave the listener with a feeling of us really seeing one another, that our individual struggles can actually unite us in empathy.”
Dance Called Memory will feature the previously released “Inept Apollo” “I’m Not Ready for the Change,” and the album’s third and latest single, “Under the Water.” Anchored around a minimalist leaning arrangement of an oscillating synth melody paired with Devaney’s achingly yearning delivery, “Under the Water” subtly nods at Kraftwerk while being deeply human, expressing swooning longing and heart-wrenching regret — all while continuing to showcase the trio’s unerring knack for breezy, nostalgia-inducing synth pop.
“This was the last one to make the cut before we turned the record in,” the band’s Ian Richard Devaney says. “We’d always had a lot of enthusiasm for the track, but the studio schedule had gotten a bit unwieldy over the holidays and an arbitrary deadline had been set to be done with LP4 prior to leaving for a January tour in Australia supporting IDLES. As such we’d turned in the final album mixes for mastering before getting on the plane and I’d resigned myself to saving ‘Under the Water’ for some subsequent release down the line. But somewhere over the Pacific Ocean while trying to sequence the album clarity set in that despite our love for rigid adherence to the production calendar, we wanted it on there. So before soundchecks on the other side of the planet we hooked up all the synths we’d brought with us in the greenroom, remotely concocting the version you hear now. If it somehow sounds distinctly of the southern hemisphere, now you’ll all know why.”
New Audio: South of France Teams Up with Little Trips and Grace DeVine on Sugary and Coquettish “Sugar Rush”
Led by Denver-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and creative mastermind Jeff Cormack, South of France is an indie pop project that sees Cormack and collaborators specializing in a groovy, beat-driven take on escapist, vacation pop.
Cormack’s South of France work has been featured in a number of smash-hit TV shows, including Bojack Horseman and Shameless while receiving praise from American Songwriter, NPR, Rolling Stone and others. And adding to a growing profile, Cormack and his collaborators have opened for a growing list of acclaimed acts including, Portugal. The Man, Young The Giant, Flaming Lips, Michigander, Tennis, Zella Day and others.
Cormack’s forthcoming South of France album My Spirit Animal, My Baggage is reportedly one-part solo album and one-part collaborative effort with a series of vocalists, emcees and musicians. I’ve managed to write about four album singles:
- “Universal Order,” a a heady yet accessible synthesis of psych pop, world music and hip-hop that featured The Reminders‘ Big Samir
- “Something That You Said” a lysergic, blissed out bit of Tame Impala-like pop that serves s a lush and woozy bed for Big Samir and CRL CRRLL to trade swaggering bars and dreamily soulful falsetto vocals
- “Weekend Lover” is a blissed-out lysergic tune featuring Little Trips‘ Greg Laut
- The woozy Currents-era Tame Impala-like “Little Thoughts,” arguably one of the more introspective singles of the album
Cormack’s latest South of France single, the Greg Laut co-produced “Sugar Rush” is a saccharine sweet, coquettish and breezy bop that features Grace DeVine’s ethereal cooing floating over a trippy and blissed-out, psych pop-influenced groove. “Sugar Rush” continues a remarkable run of summery and escapist pop that showcases Cormack’s unerring knack for funky grooves and catchy hooks.
News/Announcements: FME Announces 2025 Venue Showcase Lineups
FME announces the venue showcase lineups for the 2025 edition.
New Audio: The Charlatans UK Share Anthemic “We Are Love”
The Charlatans UK — Tim Burgess (vocals), Martin Blunt (bass), Mark Collins (guitar), Tony Rogers (keys) and The Verve co-founder Pete Salisbury (drums) — are arguably one of the best-loved and commercially British bands of the past 40 years or so. Over the course of their lengthy run, the band has released 13 albums, 3 of which earned #1 on the UK Albums Charts with 22 Top 40 UK singles, including “The Only One I Know,” “North Country Boy” and “One to Another.”
The acclaimed British outfit’s long awaited, highly anticipated 14th album, the Dev Hynes, Fred Macpherson and Stephen Street co-produced We Are Love is slated for an October 31, 2025 release through BMG. The first album from the acclaimed outfit in eight years, the longest gap in their history, was a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the individual members’ solo projects and side projects, life’s twists, turns and complexities and the fact that each of the band’s individual members live scattered across Europe. With all of that going on, it took longer than usual to figure out schedules; for the stars to align; and for the right vibe and right time.
Recoded at two places that are almost apocryphal in the band’s history — Wales-based Rockfield Studios and the band’s Middlewich, Chesire-based Big Mushroom, We Are Love reportedly sees the band launching into a bold new era, one that finds them at peace with their past while looking forward to the future. The band’s Tim Burgess cites hauntology and psychogeography as two major concepts that swirled in his head as the band worked on the album.
The band returned to Rockfield Studs for the first time since the recording sessions for the fifth album, 1997’s Tellin’ Stories. As a band, they hadn’t been there since keyboardist Rob Collins’ death, in the middle of that album’s sessions, in a car accident at the bottom of the track leading to the farm surrounding the studio. Reportedly throughout the album, you can hear the band’s awareness of the things that made them — the highs and lows the desire to honor their own legacy, while not being deeply defined by it; and a career-long drive to be innovative and progressive. “The whole idea of hauntology and psychogeography is represented by us going back to Rockfield, where so much history has happened for The Charlatans,” the band’s Tim Burgess says. “That was important as a way of honoring every member who’s played in the band. So we’re honouring ourselves, our past, feeling that energy and reincarnating it, doing something fresh, brand new.”
The album’s introspective creative process, brought home the fact that love has been the glue that has held the band together for so long, and ultimately that’s reflected on the album’s 11, forward-thinking, future-facing songs.
We Are Love‘s first single, album title track “We Are Love” is a defiantly upbeat, road trip-meets-big venue/festival anthem, anchored by a propulsive, motorik groove and rousingly anthemic hooks and choruses. Tim Burgess describes it as “like an open-top car ride in the credits of your favorite movie, driving along the coast to somewhere amazing.”
One of the first tracks to emerge as they were writing material, “We Are Love” became a pathfinder for the record as the band’s Mark Collins explains: “Early on, we thought it felt right. And it turned out that way: first single, title track, second song on the album. And things started forming around ‘We Are Love.’ There was a certain energy to it that drove us forward.”
New Audio: Augu Shares Brooding “Silence”
Augu is a mysterious and emerging Lithuanian electronic music producer, who caught my attention with “Foreigner,” and “Line.“
The Lithuanian producer’s latest single “Silence” is a brooding, club friendly track that seemingly channels Depeche Mode and Blanck Mass while showcasing an unerring knack for crafting forward-thinking material that’s anchored around remarkably catchy hooks.
New Audio: Silver Relics Share Hook-Driven “Same Old Tune”
Founded by singer/songwriter Alex Sepsis back in 2017, the New York-based indie outfit — Sepassi (vocals, guitar), Garrett De Temple (bass) and Hitomi Nakamura (drums) — quickly established a sound that saw them effortlessl blending classic and modern rock influences that included The Beatles, Pink Floyd and Nirvana on their full-length debut, 2019’s Generic.
The trio’s latest single “Same Old Tune” was recently released through Brooklyn-based A Diamond Heart Production. The new single sees the band crating a sound that seemingly draws from and blends the Madchester scene, Nirvana and 90s shoegaze while continuing to showcase a band with an unerring knack for incredibly catchy hooks and rousingly anthemic choruses.