We've been pretty much there from the start with German / Finnish duo Pihka is my Name, since we covered their debut single 'Binaries' way back in the dark days of 2020. So I was delighted to spot deep in the listings for Manchester Northern Quarter gigs that are playing in Manchester (Aatma) tonight, 22nd July, as part of a UK Tour. Their music has certainly developed since those early releases, but they maintain that hypnotic dynamic electro disco style, as can be heard in

So just a quick diversion over to Finland for a new single I’ve enjoyed listening to this morning, and from a band I haven’t featured before, Pisara, a Finnish four-piece originally from the Oulu area. The new single is entitled ‘Mustaa lunta’ (Black Snow) and they describe it as a song that ‘sits between metal and pop without picking a side’. That actually grabbed my attention, along with a comment they made about releasing it on Midsummers Eve - and judging from the slight

I know it’s really difficult to believe, but I do try and actually research the new Artists and bands I write about. Occasionally however I have to admit defeat, and in the case of The Almost Ghosts I really know nothing, it’s as if they’re erm…. almost ghosts. Nordic Music Review are currently their only follower on Instagram, whilst their website just tells us they craft ‘melancholic indie songs where drifting electronics, understated melodies, and reflective lyrics explor

It would be perfectly acceptable not to have time to cover any new music whilst the World Cup is on, but a new release from This Heel is always worthy of some attention, especially when it’s a curiosity such as ‘Lois Grey’. Of course the question is, who is Lois Grey? Well I've diligently spent a few hours researching this and ChatGPT suggests she’s either a famous economist or an investment banker in London, the artwork suggests Maggie Thatcher whilst the lyrics (‘every day

I’ve always liked Norwegian band Dobbeltgjenger, but I don’t quite recollect them being quite so damn loud and rocking as they are in their latest single ‘Friends (I’m There I’m Gone’, which has become an ‘instant hit’ in my house. They’ve just finished recording their 6th album (which I can’t quite believe), the follow up to their 2025 release ‘Master of Failure’. It doesn't necessarily open in blistering style, but the way it just takes off exactly one minute in elevates

Ghosts on TV have said that “the starting point for ‘Iridescent’ might have been a need to focus a bit more on the quieter and more spacious side of our band.” I couldn’t agree more with that description. And as much as part of me would happily accept endless variations on “I Am Not Dead I Am 55 Today”, I do reluctantly accept that bands need to keep moving, exploring new corners of their sound rather than endlessly retracing old steps. That quieter, more expansive approach

We’ll finish today with a quick mention of Swedish band Kallsup, who we featured a couple of years back and have recently returned with an outstanding new song entitled ‘Kino’ (Cinema). So they’re a 6 piece band fronted by Eline Gustafsson, whose vocals again are excellent on the new track, but I just love the sound the whole band make, a swirling, melodic haze that for sure has shoegaze influences, but is far more powerful and relentlessly driven, whilst always keeping a goo

I was going to write about a lovely new(ish) track from The School Book Depository entitled ‘Rapture’ that I heard in hospital, but inevitably songwriter Fredrik Solfors managed to get a 2nd track out before I had chance, again showing how prolific he is. He describes his newest song ‘Unlearn’ as a song about ‘getting to grips with existentialism’, which I could get way too deep into right now, but instead I’ll just concentrate on the music, a soulful and heartwarming song me

We included Finnish band Drug Store Raid in our 2024 list of Favourite Albums of the year, courtesy of their ‘Background Music For Family Arguments’ release, so it’s great to see them back with new single ‘Apple Junkie Birds’. It’s another release in the post punk space that I’ve featured a lot this week, but the Helsinki 5 piece are certainly far more complex in their musical approach than Green Tea Bitches whom we featured yesterday. ‘Apple Junkie Birds’ is a riotous 2 1/2

I can’t deny that I was slightly disappointed when I finally surfaced from anaesthetic / critical care to discover that the world had, rather selfishly, carried on much as before. I’d been quietly expecting a few developments in my absence: Trump and Farage both serving lengthy prison sentences, and more importantly I assumed that Green Tea Bitches had already been confirmed as Glastonbury headliners for 2027, and that, in a diplomatic initiative aimed at securing interplanet