Audio

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Danny Waters Shares Lush and Euphoric “Memories (Radio Mix)”

Danny Waters is a Portuguese DJ, producer and founder and label head of Sonic Frequency Records. As a DJ and producer, Waters has crafted material across a wide range of electronic music genres and subgenres including house, deep house, deep tech, tech house, progressive house and techno — with a deep interest in protest and probing social questions. 

Waters’ latest single “Memories” is a lush bit of melodic, pop-leaning house anchored around euphoria-inducing hooks and choruses and pulsating beats that sounds perfect for the club, the lounge and the rooftop party. But at its core, the song is meant to invite the listener to simultaneously relive old memories and to create new ones that they’ll relive later — hopefully on the dance floor.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: MABLONDE Shares Dance Floor Friendly “1973”

French producer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter MABLONDE‘s career started in earnest back in the 90s as a beatmaker. But since then, his work has gradually morphed to a sound that features elements of electro pop, electronica and synth wave and makes references to the styles and aesthetics of the 1980s and 1990s.

The French artist’s latest single “1973” is a sleek, hook-driven, club banger that’s one-part LCD Soundsystem, one-part indie sleaze, one-part 70s glam rock and one-part 1980s-era Giorgio Moroder.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: st. art Shares Shimmering “Lonely People (Special Edition)”

st. art is a Los Angeles-based collective of self-described “quantum artists.” In a a lengthy statement, the collection writes: “We do not create — we tune the field.

We are synthesizers of probabilities.

Our canvas is the energy field.

We are the Quantum Synthesizer. We assemble reality from probabilities, synthesize worlds from sensations, and create music from fields and meaning. We do not simply play notes — we give birth to new layers of being, shifting the “quantum” states of perception. For us, silence and light are equal oscillators. We are the voice of the Universe, passing through the soul. . . .”

The Los Angeles-based collective’s latest single “Lonely People (Special Edition)” is a sleek, futuristic banger featuring layers of glistening and twinkling synths and a supple and soulful bass line paired with thumping beats and a chopped up sample from The Beatles‘ “Eleanor Rigby.” The result is a song that places a beloved and familiar song within a bold, completely novel and modern context while being accessible.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Calle Mambo and Kumbia Boruka Team Up on Dance Floor Friendly “Acordéon Rebelde”

Formed back in 2013, Valparaiso, Chile-based dectet Calle Mambo blend the richness and diversity of Latin American folkloric music — quena, quenacho, cuatro, charango, tiple, timbal, zampoña, ronroco and more — with urban music and electronic production to create something unique and personal.

Lyon-based octet Kumbia Boruka features musicians from Mexico, Chile, Argentina and France but the band’s roots lie in Monterrey, Mexico, where cumbia is the sound of the streets — and where Mexican cumbia legend Celso Piña was born. Kumbia Boruka bandleader Hernán Cortés learned accordion from the legend and accompanied him on international tours. Fittingly, Kumbia Boruka’s sound is inspired by and reflects the sound of Monterrey and Mexico but they blend the classic cumbia sound with reggae, dub, tropical and psychedelia. The band’s arrangements feature an extensive rhythm section including guacharaca and congas, a brass section, and of course, the accordion.

The result is a bold, new take on cumbia that pairs power, tropical sounds with a fierce energy that embraces Latin American rhythms.

The Chilean dectet and the French octet teamed up for “Acordéon rebelde.” Released last month, the collaboration is a Vulcan mind-meld between the two acts that boldly pushes the boundaries of cumbia with subtle nods to surf rock and tropicalia while showcasing both acts knack for crafting catchy hooks.

“Acordéon rebelde” was written as a tribute to the legendary Celso Piña. Both bands feature members, who have played with him during his “Cumbia Around the World” tour, which gives the song a deeply human connection to its subject while being indebted to him.

Calle Mambo will be embarking on a lengthy European Union tour. Tour dates, as always, will be below.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Plain Mister Smith Teams Up with Tyson Motsenbocker on Lush, Painterly “Lucian & Francis”

Vancouver-based Mark Jowett, the mastermind behind Plain Mister Smith is a Canadian indie scene veteran who has had stints in Moev and Cinderpop, as well as a stint playing cello with the Vancouver Philharmonic Orchestra. 

With Plain Mister Smith, the enigmatic Canadian artist draws influence from an eclectic range of artists including The Beatles, Bryce Dessner, Matt Maltese, Led Zeppelin, The Zombies and 20th-century classical composers like Prokofiev, who subtly influences his string-driven arrangements. The result is a sound that seamlessly blends elements of indie pop, baroque folk and psychedelia. 

The Vancouver-based artist’s new album is slated for release this month and will feature the previously released Forever So-era Husky-like “Dream To Be Free” feat. Jordan Klassen and its latest single “Lucian & Francis.” Released late last month, “Lucian & Francis” feat. Tyson Motsenbocker continues a run of lush and dream-like indie folk.

Inspired by the works of painters Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon, who frequently depicted raw, realistic portrayals of the human body, “Lucian and Francis” is fittingly, a rather painterly track with each sonic layer adding texture, shading and depth to the piece, much like how the painters, who inspired the song would do with color. Interestingly, the lush new single also manages to evoke the colors of early spring after the bleakness of a long winter.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Club 8 Returns With Slow-Burning “There Is A Light That Seems To Go Out”

Since the release of 2024’s A Year With Club 8, Stockholm-based JOVM mainstays Club 8 — Karolina Komstedt (vocals) and electronic music producer, artist and Labrador Records founder and label boss Johan Angergård — the duo spent last year releasing a single a month over the course of last year, including tunes like “ooo,” “None Of This Will Matter When You’re Dead,” “Staying Alive,” “Born The Wrong Time,” “Sneaky Feelings” and “Daydreams.” 

Earlier this year, the duo released “Echoes Of Our Time,” a nostalgia-inducing bop that channeled classic New Order and 80s pop. And late last month, the duo released their latest single “There Is A Light That Seems To Go Out,” a slow-burning and shimmering ballad that nods a bit at The Smiths, anchored around a familiar heartache over broken promises and things left unfulfilled and unresolved.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers Share Swaggering “BATH WATER”

Currently split between Ngunnawal/Canberra and Naarm/Melbourne, the rising Aussie outfit Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers — Anna Ryan they/she, vocals, guitar), Scarlett McKahey (she/her, guitar, vocals), Jaida Stephenson (she/her, bass) and Neve van Boxsel (she/her, drums) — broke out into the national and international scene with 2022’s Pretty Good For A Girl Band EP, which received praise from The Guardian and Teen Vogue, as well as airplay from triple j. 

Pretty Good For a Girl Band EP‘s lead single “Girl Sports” landed at #55 on the triple j Hottest 100 list. Building upon a growing profile, their full-length debut, 2023’s I Love You debuted at #6 on the ARIA Albums Chart and included “I Used To Be Fun,” which landed at #52 on the Hottest 100. Capping off a big year, they opened for Foo Fighters — and were named one of Spotify’s New Noise Artists to Watch for 2024. 

“I Used To Be Fun” earned the band a J Award-nominations for Australian Album of the Year and Song of the Year for “I Used To Be Fun,” an APRA Award-nomination for Emerging Songwriter of the Year and Rolling Stone Australia Award-nominations for Best New Artist and Best New Single. And they won an AIR Award for Best Independent Rock Album or EP, a MusicACT Award for Artist of the Year and the Michael Gudinski Breakthrough Artist ARIA Award. 

2024’s deluxe album, I Love You Too featured standout collaborations with Softcult on “Dull” and the rapidly rising The Linda Lindas on “Please Me.”

While developing a reputation as one of the Australia’s most exciting contemporary acts, the band has also received attention for their political concerns, including advocating for Green Music’s No Music on a Dead Planet, contributing to an Aussie Parliamentary inquiry into live music and being outspoken supporters of AAM’s Michael’s Rule. The rising Aussie outfit has found ways to channel their passion for music and social change into everything that they do. 

Their sophomore album, last year’s Catherine Marks-produced GLORY, which included “BALCONY” debuted at #9 on the ARIA Albums Chart and #2 on the Australian Albums Chart. The album also was a triple jump Feature Album, while receiving airplay from BBC Radio 1, The Needle Drop and SiriusXM while receiving coverage from The Guardian, 10 Magazine Australia, Rolling Stone, ELLE, Cosmopolitan, Sydney Morning Herald, frankie, Ones to Watch and Billboard. They were also a Spotify RADAR artist, with their image on billboards in Melbourne, London, Seoul and New York, as well as cover places on the DSP’s major playlists in multiple countries, including All New Rock, Marrow, Rock Out and New Music Friday. And lastly, “Balcony” landed at #61 on the Hottest 100.

GLORY was an exploration of confidence, disgust, inflation and power set against widescreen indie rock that you can strut to, while showcasing the band’s embrace of a lived-in, messy — and often very fun — era.

Slated for an April 24, 2026 release through Mom + Pop Music, GLORY deluxe is an an extended version of their critically acclaimed sophomore album with two new, previously unreleased songs, “BATH WATER” and “GO WASTE MY TIME,” along with stripped back reworkings of four fan favorites, “TALKING,” “DAYLIGHT,” “MINE,” and “WONDERFUL.”

GLORY deluxe’s latest single “BATH WATER” is a a pub rock-meets-arena rock anthem that showcases the band’s unerring knack for big, catchy hooks and even catchier, shout along worthy choruses delivered with a defiantly swaggering strut. But the song is anchored around a mischievously smirking irony.

“BATH WATER’ is a slutty, drivey, fun song about coming home from a night out,” the rising Aussie band explains. “It’s about when you leave a bar and are actually really excited to hang out by yourself and enjoy your own company, in a Ke$ha way, though.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Choses Sauvages Shares Shimmering “Seul”

Last year, rising Montréal-based outfit Choses Sauvages — La Sécurité‘s Félix Bélisle (vocals, synths), Totalement Sublime‘s Marc-Antoine Barbier (guitar), Theirry Malépart (keys), Tony Bélisle (keys), Philippe Gauthier-Boudreau (drums) and Frais Dispo‘s Charles Primeau (bass) — released their third album, Choses Sauvages III through Audiogram.

The album, which featured album singles “Incendie au paradis,”En joue,” and “Cours toujours” showcased a decidedly post-punk sound that featured elements of post-punk, New Wave and krautrock. Released to praise from critics across Quebec and Europe, Choses Sauavages III landed on the 2025 Polaris Music Prize Long List and received an ADISQ nomination for Album of the Year — Alternative.

The Montréal-based outfit has played in France, Spain, Belgium, the UK, Germany and Mexico. Back in 2023, they toured as the opener for The Bright Light Social Hour‘s 30 date tour, which saw the JOVM mainstays playing across the US and Anglophone Canada that included a stop at Mercury Lounge. And adding to a growing national and international profile, the band has made the run of the international festival circuit with sets at Pitchfork Music Festival Paris, Printemps de Bourges, MaMA, Pete The Monkey, Mad Cool — and earlier this year, The New Colossus Festival.

“Seul,” their first bit of new material since last year’s Choses Sauvages III, continues a run of hook-driven, shimmering post punk — but while showcasing subtle No Wave elements with bursts of funky horns.

“’Seul’ deals with limerence and the romanticization of toxic relationships. This song is a question directed both outward and inward—a moment when the obsession with finding answers to matters of the heart embraces the vulnerability of a lost child in a shopping mall,” Choses Sauvages’ Félix Bélisle explains. “These emotional states unfold against a sonic backdrop that is at once danceable and abrasive, drawing inspiration from the New York No Wave movement.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Rising Aussie Artist Tullara Shares a Lush, Feminist Anthem

Tullara is a Ramornie, Australia-born, Grafton, Australia-based indie pop and folk/roots rocker, whose 2017 debut EP, Better Hold On went on to win a Best EP Award at the 2017 Australian Roots Music Awards. Since then, the rising Aussie artist, who proudly adheres to a DIY ethos, which includes being self-managed, has amassed over 1,700,000 streams on Spotify.

She has opened for acclaimed and beloved Aussie acts like Xavier Rudd, The Waifs, Ocean Alley, Bernard Fanning and Paul Dempsey, Cold Chisel‘s Ian Moss, INXS‘ Andrew Farriss, The Dreggs, Jeff Lang, Troy Cassar-Daley and a lengthy list of others. She has also opened for international acts like Donavon Frankenreiter, Wallis Bird, The East Pointers and a list of others during their respective Australian tours. And adding to a growing profile, the rising Aussie artist has made a run of the global festival circuit, playing sets at Woodford Folk Festival, Queenscliff Music Festival, Goolaholla Festival, Artswell Festival, Robson Valley Music Festival, Cur LeCheile Festival, Umefolk, Floating Castle Festival and a growing list of others.

Building upon a growing national and international profile, Tullara will be releasing her highly anticipated full-length debut, Rebound this year. Recorded and produced in Vancouver, Rebound reportedly showcases a bold, genre-defying evolution of her sound that embraces modern pop and rock, while blending her introspective lyricism with catchy melodies and cutting, world-class, modern production.

Released earlier this year, the forthcoming album’s first single “I Don’t Believe in Giving Up” features looping, reverb-soaked electric banjo paired with lush electronics serving as a supple bed for the Aussie artist’s expressive delivery singing lyrics about self-value and self-determination. Drawing from Celtic folk and contemporary pop, the new single sonically brings rootsier Dido to mind while being a feminist anthem.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Naná Rizinni Teams Up with Mark Cake on Quirky and Off-Kilter “Fifth Life”

Naná Rizinni is a São Paulo-born, London-based drummer, composer and producer, whose musical journey began in the mid-2000s, studying with acclaimed Brazilian drummers Lilian Carmona, Vera Figueiredo, and Duda Neves. Rizinni has been a highly sough-after drummer and producer in her native Brazil ever since, touring and recording with acclaimed Brazilian artists like Tiê, Johnny Hooker, Ana Cañas, Bárbara Eugênia, and Thiago Pethit, while recording and releasing four solo albums.

In her native Brazil, Rizinni was known for her fluid, experimental approach to genre with her work evolving from the post rock and garage rock textures of her earliest work into a hybrid, jazz-forward language rooted in rhythm, texture and improvisation.

Adding to a growing profile in her native Brazil, Rizinni has recorded music for television, film and ad campaigns while also making a run of the international festival circuit with sets at Lollapalooza, Rock in Rio, SXSW and Primavera Sound among others.

In 2020, the São Paulo-born artist relocated to London, where she wrote and recorded her highly-anticipated album, Epiblast. Slated for an April 24, 2026 release through Bridge The Gap, Epiblast was written and co-produced by Rizinni and saxophonist and producer Mark Cake over the course of the Brazilian artist’s last two years in London.

Epiblast reportedly sees Rizinni diving deeper into experimental territory with the album sonically sitting somewhere between the synth-heavy sounds of The Comet Is Coming and the future jazz of corto.alto while also nodding at the progressive fusion of jazz and electronics pioneered by fellow drummer/producers Mark Guilianna and Richard Spaven.

Thematically the album chronicles a full cycle of life in all of its intensity, beginning with the excitement and joy of new parenthood, along with adjusting to the pace of life and the creation of relationships in her new home. But along with that the album was in many ways a companion for Rizinni’s grieving process after the tragic loss of her brother. “The title Epiblast comes from an early embryonic layer from which the entire organism develops,” Rizinni explains. “For me, it represents multiple births and rebirths — new roles, identities, and directions — capturing both fragility and infinite potential.”

The forthcoming album will include the previously released “Familiar Stranger” and “The Right Side of the Escalator,” which have received airplay internationally from BBC Radio 3, Rinse FM, KEXP, PBS-FM, as well as its third and last pre-release single “Fifth Life.” Seemingly drawing from early Hiatus Kaiyote, and Mildlife‘s “How Long Does It Take,” “Fifth Life” is a quirky and playful composition anchored around an off-kilter rhythmic-driven groove that’s one part Afrobeat-inspired, one-part Brazilian music-inspired paired with a soulful saxophone and flute solo.

“’Fifth Life’ is probably my favourite track on the album,” Rizinni explains. “It has a quirky, playful vibe that I really relate to. I wrote it on top of a beat I had been developing, and when I brought it to Mark, the guitars he came up with reminded me of a band I loved in the early 2000s called Screaming Headless Torsos, and guitarist David Fiuczynski in particular — a connection that added an extra spark to the track.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Jerk Shares Meditative “wait”

Prolific Brooklyn-based producer, composer and multi-instrumentalist Joni Kinney is the creative mastermind behind, the rising recording project Jerk. And with Jerk, Kinney has released five albums and several EPs that feature a sound that draws from J. Dilla, Madlib, Patrice Rushen, Earth, Wind & Fire, Louis Cole, Knower, and Roller Trio. Never content with just music as a creative output, Kinney is also an avid writer and video essayist. 

Late last year, the Brooklyn-based producer, composer and multi-instrumentalist released the first part of a two EP narrative cycle, as night falls. The two EP cycle sees Kinney using the project’s sound into new territories, taking listeners on a journey through a fusion of electronic influences, midnight funk and forward-thinking jazz.

as day breaks, the second EP of the narrative cycle is slated for a May 15, 2026 release through DeepMatter Records. as day breaks EP will see a limited vinyl release, alongside last year’s as night falls.

While the first EP of the cycle explored the darker side of human nature through a blend of midnight funk and electronic-tinged jazz, as day breaks, which was created with long-time friend and collaborator Martine Wade, is a journey through daylight anchored around uplifting, soulful, instrumentals paired with house grooves, breakbeats, bird song and the sounds of NYC. “This joint album project is the essence of Jerk — neither day nor night, but something more ethereal,” Kinney explains.

as day breaks EP will include the swaggering, funky “steppin’ out” and the EP’s latest single, “wait.” “wait” is a slow-burning, meditative tune featuring a twinkling Rhodes-driven melody, a supple bass line and a hazy, lo-fit beat paired with a NYC traffic light sample. The composition is a reminder to listeners to stop, slow down and be present,

Composed in a style that Kinney has coined “son-tra,” they share: “Meaning ‘sonic mantra’, ‘son-tra’ is a composition style centered around melody and permutation, and a composition technique I’ve used on tracks like ‘Voices in my Head,’ ‘Father Sky’, ‘Still Searching,’ and ‘First Cup.’ The prevailing feeling of this style feels like a spiral to me, something that somehow stays faithful to a core motif while also continuously evolving as it progresses.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Public Circuit Shares Muscular Remix of “Damager”

Rising New York-based electro punks Public Circuit — Ethan Beaumont (vocals), Sean Holloway (drums) and Nelson Fisher (electronics) — exploded into the scene with 2024’s full-length debut Lamb, which they supported with sold-out shows across 30 states, including a run across the domestic festival circuit with sets at New Colossus Festival, Hopscotch and MACROCK.

The trio’s sophomore album Modern Church was released last September through Á La Carte Records. The album saw the band swapping the pretense of retro-revivalism for something much sharper, darker — and entirely their own. Sonically rooted in the trio’s newfound sense of collaboration between each other, the album’s material features angular electronic instrumentation and raw percussive rhythms bathed with the high gloss ache of sophsitipop. 

Thematically, the material is overtly religious. But it’s used as an analogical tool to explore sexual identity, the fleeting faith of society and the illicit repercussions of unresolved trauma. And much like its immediate predecessor, the new album continues a run of material deeply influenced by New York’s constant feed of noise and relentless energy. 

Today, the New York-based trio announced the April 28, 2026 release of Modern Church R//MIX//S. The trio recruited Brooklyn music scene friends Lip Critic, shower curtain, Grumpy, The Wants, smush, ideasforconversations and Crate to rework Modern Church album tracks. “We wanted to put out the remixes to not only highlight all our amazing friends who make amazing music, but also to revive these songs into all the different worlds we believe they belong to exist in,” the band explains.

Modern Church R//MIX//S‘ first single sees Public Circuit remixing their favorite song off Modern Church, “Damager.” Clocking in at 94 seconds, the original version is a punchy, club friendly bit of industrial synth pop. Their remix gives the song a muscular and swaggering thump that’s one-part old school hip hop-driven 808 and one-part 80s industrial club music.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Los Pulpitos Return with Propulsive and Dubby “Squidler”

Berlin-based electronic duo Los Pulpitos features two acclaimed electronic producers:

  • Lima-born, Berlin-based producer Felipe Salmon, best known for being one-half of Dengue Dengue Dengue, an act known for meshing elements of electronic music, cumbia, reggae and psychedelia. 

  • German electronic innovator Dirk Leyers, known for his solo work, as well as with groups like Africane 808, Closer Musik and Format01. 

The duo released their debut EP Octopean Union last year. Building upon the project’s growing profile, their highly anticipated full-length debut, Tentacletek is slated for an April 17, 2026 release through Crammed Discs. The album will include the previously released “Mola Mola,” and the album’s latest single “Squidler.”

“Squidler” is a dubby club banger that seemingly channels a synthesis of Kraftwerk, Between Two Selves-era Octo Octa and LutchamaK anchored around skittering, reverb-soaked beats and shimmering synth stabs. The new single is playful, propulsive and immersive, evoking an underwater, tropical house club.

According to the duo, the track gallops fluidly on a seahorse down the Aquabahn straight to Detroit.”

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Paris-Born, London-Based Allix Shares Slickly produced, Hook-Driven “Motion”

Alexandre Allix is a Paris-born, London-based singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer, whose work is rooted in retro-inspired textures paired with contemporary production. He is the creative mastermind behind the solo indie electro pop project Allix, which sees him creating music that explores urgency, emotion and intensity.

The Paris-born, London-based artist’s latest single “Motion” is a slick and deftly produced, hook-driven bop that — to my ears, at least — channels the likes of The Weeknd and 80s synth funk while showcasing a seemingly effortless, swaggering pop star delivery.

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

New Audio: Chenzo V Returns with Anthemic “Mechanical Boy”

Chenzo V is an emerging New York-based creative director, producer and artist, whose music sees him drawing from and blending elements of alternative rock, post-punk, New Wave, synth pop and industrial electronica. 

Deeply rooted in classical performance and visual art, the emerging New York-based producer and artist writes, produces and directs every release himself, building immersive multimedia worlds. Thematically, his work touches upon identity, illusion and transformation.

Late last year, he released “Midnight,” an arena friendly ripper that showcases his ability to pair rousingly anthemic hooks and choruses with broodingly cinematic soundscapes and lived-in lyrics.

His latest single “Mechanical Boy” is a woozy blend of industrial electronica, electronic rock, alt rock and synth pop that further cements his growing reputation for crafting remarkably catchy hooks and rousingly anthemic choruses while seemingly drawing from Muse and Radiohead.