What does Emiliana Torrini sound like? Trip-hop Icelandic quirky pop-infused seduction and melancholy. The review of ‘Miss Flower’ by Emiliana Torrini A decade since her last solo album, Emiliana Torrini and her silky dreamy voice returns with one of her more eclectic releases to date. As someone who pendulum swings around folk, trip-hop, electronica, Icelandic pop and classic rock, it’s incredibly difficult to pin Torrini down into one area. This album merges elements from all that and introduces us to the playful and sultry side. That said, this is closer to ‘Love In The Time of Science’ fro ..read more

What does Phebe Starr sound like? An electro-pop anthem collection created from the viewpoint of an indie artist. The review of ‘Dirt’ by Phebe Starr Australian musician Phebe Starr manages to position her music in the electropop genre with alternative edges to it. She brings beat beats, plenty of synths and massively catchy riffs and then she lays them on a bed of alternative rock elements. For her new album ‘Dirt’, Phebe takes her production towards the big bold sounds of the 1980s. It doesn’t sound cliche though. Think Royksopp’s ‘Junior’ and ‘Senior’ era with a disco rock twist and you’ll ..read more

What does Half Waif sound like? Moody indie pop designed to emotionally gut punch. The review of ‘Ephemeral Being’ by Half Waif A year after becoming a mum Half Waif returns with ‘Ephemeral Being’, a 5 track EP as a prelude to a full album to follow. Nandi Rose, the force and creator behind Half Waif says her life is a mixture of kitchen orchestra and choo-choo bath time. She wanted to merge the mother and the creator and doing so felt wonderful and strange. Half Waif Opening with ‘Service’, the album introduces us to an aural side of Half Waif. Organs, drifting musical cloud stream drones and ..read more

Bat For Lashes, aka Natasha Khan, has entered motherhood and her sixth studio album is dedicated to her daughter. ‘The Dream of Delphi’ reflects on early motherhood across ten tracks which Khan calls “song poems”. Whether it’s the devotional and unconditional love you feel for your child or the more everyday juggles of bringing up a child, this album will explore them all and become a guiding hand for Delphi, Natasha’s young daughter. Two singles have been released already and both have a lush, orchestral and majestical warmth to them. After a few albums exploring 80s synthpop and darker B-mov ..read more

Ionnalee, who flits between this title and Iamamiwhoami depending on the project, returns with a brand new dual album concept. ‘Close Your Eyes’ is a direct sequel to Iamamiwhoami’s 2014 album ‘BLUE’. Jonna Lee has said it is an album about learning to dream in dark times, citing getting to a state of hopefulness when the world seems less and less connected. It also marks 20 years for Jonna as an artist. Not only has Jonna been busy getting back to her euphoric side, which arguably was celebrated most with 2014’s ‘BLUE’, she has also been keen to explore her mother tongue. As a result, there w ..read more

What does Mini Trees sound like? Somewhere between St Vincent, Imogen Heap and Mitski when they play with their poppier production sides. The review of Mini Trees – Burn Out EP Following Mini Trees’ debut album ‘Always in Motion’ which was released in 2021, Lexi Vega found herself on a whirlwind tour. However, when she finally got home two years later, she found herself utterly spent, tired and dejected. It’s the age-old problem of musicians and artists who give everything to their work. How can you sustain yourself and not burn out? Mini Trees After taking a break, she returned to the studio ..read more

It’s been almost a decade since the last Birdmask release but alternative chamber pop lovers are in for a treat. Returning back to his solo music, Birdmask has lost none of his original charm and complexity with ‘Tristan’. It’s a succinct and powerful EP crammed with five tracks that sucker-punch you into submission and catharsis. Birdmask The big shock here is that Birdmask’s music has had a gleeful abandon of bedroom pop to its production. This time around, everything sounds polished and of studio quality. Some musicians lose their identity when they make this transition but that isn’t the c ..read more

What does Hydrogen Sea sound like? Indie pop sitting somewhere between Little Dragon, Goldfrapp and Oh Land. The review of Hydrogen Sea – Creature Comforts Belgian duo Hydrogen Sea return with their third album ‘Creature Comforts’, aiming to delve into what offers us physical or mental comfort. Sitting firmly in the indie pop space, this lush and syrupy album merges warm electronics and rhythms with dreamy vocals and a coating of catchy ideas. Hydrogen Sea The opening track ‘Ammonite’ appears with hazy piano, ethereal synths and distant muffled drums. I liken it to fog clearing on a valley as ..read more

Sunna Margrét is an artist after my own heart. Her new single ‘Chocolate’ declares “There’s no need to worry, like chocolate and cheese, my reasons are solid”. Me too girl, me too. Whilst not including two of my favourite foods in a song lyric, Sunna is creating left-field pop that fans of Massive Attack, Jenny Hval and Bjork will all enjoy. The single ‘Chocolate’ starts out like a weird trip-hop spoken word fever dream before odd synths take over. It is an anti-pop song full of quirky ideas but Sunna’s voice and attention to detail keep you drawn in. On first listen, I thought “hmm” then I re ..read more

With what must be a nightmare artist name for search engines, Any Other is the stage name for Italian singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Adele Altro. Continuing the great lineage of songwriters that lay themselves emotionally bare, Any Other makes honest music with creative flair. Balancing acoustic and electronic elements, Any Other reminds me of artists like Mitski, Sufjan Stevens and Sarah Slean who can wildly flip between both sides and still sound consistently themselves. Approaching their third album entitled ‘stillness, stop: you have a right to remember, Adele wanted to tap in ..read more