The punk hyperpop duo celebrate staying in with idiosyncratic style. Photo: Agnes Diaconu | Words: Lloyd Bolton Oxford’s dream phone are back! The DIY punk hyper-pop duo made a sparkling impression with their irreverent and brilliant self-titled party EP last year and we’ve been desperate for more since. ‘fogo’ celebrates being the boring one, rejecting the night out in favour of staying in. As the band put it: “What can we say? We’re older and a pandemic changes you.” The song comes out of the clash between looking after yourself and wanting to go out and see your friends. It’s not a conventi ..read more

With swaggering guitars and languidly paired vocals, it speaks of the hopes and frustrations of Sunshine Coast life. Words: Lloyd Bolton Australian psych-twang duo Big Wheels are back with new single ‘Daydreams.’ Building on a string of singles that have been dropping over the past two years, it comes as the band arrive in the UK to record their debut EP. Swaggering with heavy tremolo’d guitars and Lawson Doyle’s world-weary lead vocals, it is a moodily sultry cut. Relief is found in the vocal counterpoint added by Cass Ford’s, and the twanging Sunshine Coast guitars, which let in the seductiv ..read more

The shoegaze-drenched third release from the London three-piece showcases their most tender work to date. Photo: Sam Gill | Words: Otis Hayes London trio Adele Dazeem have once again hit the bullseye with the release of their latest single, ‘Meridian Water’. The third release from the group in the last six months is a poignant gesture towards the relief that can be felt from vulnerable conversations with the people you love. Produced by Rory Atwell (Palma Violets, TRAAMS, Childhood), the single is a gripping shoegaze number that drifts like a fog, visible only in the distance even while standi ..read more

Taken from her coming EP ‘cloud work,’ it pushes her sound into enchantingly unfamiliar territory. Photo: Genevieve Reeves | Words: Lloyd Bolton Pem is a distinctive voice from Bristol’s musical landscape, combining contemporary production with richly detailed songwriting. Returning with her first new material since her 2022 debut EP ‘songs about hands,’ ‘awe’ and new single ‘grips’ push her sound beyond its bedroom rock beginnings to something enchantingly unfamiliar. ‘grips’ is a beguiling piece, accessing ethereal sonic palettes without sacrificing its human vitality. There is a folk realne ..read more

Pushing post-punk beyond its logical conclusions, the single screams with twisted synths and drowning vocals. Photo: Jacob Swetmore | Words: Lloyd Bolton ‘A Dismount’ is an unforgettable song, disobediently discordant and immersively dense. The second single from Stoke-on-Trent art punks Formal Sppeedwear, it shows a group wilfully imposing their personalities on post-punk touchstones to create something distinctively unique. The mechanical certainty of the drums on this piece bring to mind the industrial experiments of Gary Numan and his Tubeway Army work, though this group are more ready to ..read more

The new single from Bingo Records’ latest signings is a jangling peach. Photo: Alex Panidis | Words: Lloyd Bolton ‘Like Dancers Do’ is the gently jangling new single from Adam Hopper and his majestically named backing band The Wimps, recently signed with the eminent Bingo Records. Taking a laurel of leaves from the Melbourne playbook of the likes of Twerps and Dick Diver, and finding home alongside acts like Tapir! and Baggio from these shores, it rolls along with an ease that belies its intelligently see-sawing duet. Between its two vocal parts, a romantic mismatch is sketched out in the vers ..read more

On the release of new single ‘Bright Yellow’ and ahead of live dates with Honeyblood, the future for Lazy Day looks bright indeed. It’s been a short while since Lazy Day’s washed out, dreamscape-indie goodness has filled space on these pages. News of their long-awaited – coincidently as the sun-kissed days become more frequent – is a real treat. From ‘Weird Cool’ to ‘With My Mind’, the Lazy Day back catalogue is a joy to behold. We got in touch with the brainchild of Lazy Day, London-based songwriter Tilly Scantlebury to get the scoop on their return. You’ve just released the expansive and co ..read more

Ahead of her coming EP, out next week, we catch up with London’s most glamourous talent. Photo: Meadow Florence | Words: Lloyd Bolton Sonically devoted to the sounds and style of the discotheque, and visually able to channel not only the charm and sensuality of that music but also its inherent fun, Vanity Fairy is an irresistible live performer. As a fan recently commented, “Vanity Fairy should be prescribed on the NHS.” No one easily forgets a Vanity Fairy live show, which is routinely unpredictable, but always bound to include some excellently Dadaistic dance moves and improvised haphazard c ..read more

Released on Strong Island Records, ‘The Blonde in Every Film’ is the product of a tasteful eye for detail and poetry. Photo: Freddie Willatt | Words: Lloyd Bolton Shimmering into view, Brighton songwriter Woody Green is back with new single ‘The Blonde in Every Film.’ With a rolling rock fabric, the song exudes a kind of warm timelessness, a winding cello contribution from Nina Winder-Lind guiding it like the thread of a memory. As Green sing-speaks the title, he is evocative not only of the gentle petulance of the Velvet Underground’s earlier efforts but also of the confident mystique of high ..read more

The festival collates a shining array of artists from around the globe for a day of choc-a-block music, swaying from hard-core rap to bucolic fantasy. Photo: uh by Sinead Ferguson | Words: Lois Thomas Fair Play was my introduction to Manchester and what a warm welcome it provided. After a day swanning underneath a sturdily blue sky and wearing sunglasses out of necessity rather than suave, the bottom line from more native scenesters appeared to be, “It’s not usually like this”. How right they were. Whilst the rain did eventually return, the atmosphere around the Northern Quarter was not dimmed ..read more