This weeks selection moves between almost silent ambience, where attention to the soundscape needs to be focused, and then all the way up to needle hits red rock music. In between these extremes there are some more recognisable sounds with new releases from familiar faces.
AUDIO
PLAYLIST
Miss Lava “Dark Tomb Nebula” from Under A Black Sun
Harold Nono “Sketch For Faro” from Faro
TFS “Dunning Kruger's Loser Cruiser” from Fairyland Codex
Factory Acts “Car Crash (Kerbside Mix)” from MANCMADE /// ACTS OF HOPE
Mark Solotroff “Evaporation Of Every Certainty” from In Search Of Total Placelessness
The Royal Dave Graney Show “There's The Royal Troll” from The Brother Who Lived
The Go-Betweens “Right Here” from G Stands For Go-Betweens : The Go-Betweens Volume III
Slamdinistas “Rock ‘n’ Roll Clown” from Wild & Restless
Thee Holy Brothers “Guru Honk” from High In My Balloon
NO HAY BANDA | Steven Kazuo Takasugi “Scene IV : The Tar Pits” from El Teatro Rosso
Danny Short “The Shop Is All Shut Up” from Time Is Time
Moff Skellington “Sputo” from Quandrello Feast
Smoked Salmon “How Ya Gonna Get Back Home?” from Smoked Salmon
Shaw’s Trailer Park “Snakegirl” from Shaw’s Trailer Park
Jason Dea West and the Siskiyou Crest “Stables Down In Naco” from 8 Miles From Rusk
Synesthesia -Ari Joshua, John Medeski & Billy Martin “Blurry Face” from Blurry Face
Michael Sarian - Straight Trash (Edit) - Esquina
AMM - Tune One - Tunes Without Measure Or End
Jukka-Pekka Kervinen & Kevin Miller - can’t escape - Primordial
Niloo - Nessa - Sour Cherry
The Gold Needles - Supernature - Supernature
Movieland - Latin Quarter - Now & Then
Sun Below - Mammoth’s Tundra - Weedian’s 10th Anniversary
NOTES
Miss Lava - the fifth album from the heavy rock merchants was released on Small Stone Records on April 25th. It is the first record with drummer Pedro Gonçalves, bringing a heavier vibe to the band. The release of Under A Black Sun celebrates the band’s longevity, marking their 20th anniversary.
“It has been a hell of a ride since we started rehearsing in a small studio in Lisbon back in 2005,” confirms guitarist K. Raffah. “Having this record come out twenty years later with a partner like Small Stone is the best thing we could wish for. Now we just need to get out there and play these songs live everywhere we can!”
Harold Nono - four instrumental pieces from the enigmatic Harold delivered by the equally enigmatic Bearsuit Records who consistently deliver excellent releases. Released April 30th via Bandcamp.
TFS - another preview track from fourth album which we will have to wait until June for. As each track issues forth you realise they have taken a completely new approach. A typically manic vocal from Gareth Liddiard on this. They are completely unique and rather special. Described in the liner notes as “……in the chaos of a fateful landslide, picking out the characters that litter the impending collapse of society…… Tropical Fuck Storm's command of wordplay, undercut by snarling guitars, pulsing rhythms, and explosive salvos, populates a hinterland between light and dark. The vocal interplay between Liddiard and the soaring harmonies of Kitschin and Dunn creates a teetering balancing act that’s intensified by the frantic narratives that evolve from their collective psyche”.
Factory Acts - Ordsall’s (it’s in Salford) finest proponents of electro alt dance (via Cheshire and Cork) - Car Crash features on MANCMADE /// ACTS OF HOPE an 18 track album created to raise funds for MancSpirit, Greater Manchester’s Mental Wellbeing Charity which came out 2020. A remix of a track on 2014’s Thirst EP. Come on you two it’s about time you put some new music out!
Mark Solotroff - the electronic music veteran, artist, multi-instrumentalist/noise mastermind released his new full-length on April 25th. In Search Of Total Placelessness is an exploration of the transient, the ephemeral, and the interplay of difference that defines our existence. He created this album to dissolve the boundaries of traditional spatial and temporal structures, inviting listeners into a realm where meaning is constantly deferred and redefined. Each track embodies a fluid state of flux, resonating with the raw chill of analogue synthesizers and the atmospheric depth of transmuted location recordings that he made in Chicago, Milan, and Venice. These places, with their distinct sounds and ambiances, weave an intricate tapestry that grounds the music in reality, yet the album's soundscape transcends these origins, creating an otherworldly experience.
The Royal Dave Graney Show - continuing my exploration of this 2003 release. Dave says “A song about an old friend I see sometimes. It was one of my tunes that I seem to write in a "latin" rhythm that sounded sweet when played hard and loud. I laid the harmonica down later”
The Go-Betweens - a delightful acoustic version of the opening track of 1987’s Tallulah album which features “quite the multi-instrumentalist” Mr Forster on Mouth Harp. Another track from the Nachtmix album which number 4 in the box set.
Slamdinistas - Together since 2020, Slamdinistas have been winning fans with their fervent mix of hard rock and pop hooks, delivered by a tight lineup of veteran musicians. The group includes lead vocalist Gabriel Johns (Shelter, FiDo), guitarist Loren Molinare (the Dogs, Little Caesar, Cruzados), guitarist Mike Gavigan (the Blessings), bassist Peter Downing (Adam Sandler Band, Jail Guitar Doors), and drummer Brian Irving (Gilby Clarke, Chris Spedding, Pat Todd & the Rankoutsiders). This is their second album which was released on April 25th.
Thee Holy Brothers - the new single by Los Angeles-based duo Thee Holy Brothers consisting of Marvin Etzioni (Lone Justice) and Willie Aron (The Third Mind featuring Dave Alvin.) The track is the first single from Thee Holy Brothers' highly-anticipated album "High In My Balloon" (released on May 9.) The track includes Rami Jaffee of Foo Fighters on Mellotron and features horns arranged and performed by John Kruth (Patti Smith, John Prine, Violent Femmes.) "Guru Honk" was mastered by Sean Magee (The Beatles' remastered catalog, "The Rolling Stones In Mono" box set) at Abbey Road Studios in London.
NO HAY BANDA | Steven Kazuo Takasugi - Montréal ensemble/ presenter NO HAY BANDA and their partnership with inventive American composer Steven Kazuo Takasugi. The title of the album and the work it contains is Il Teatro Rosso and it's a testament to NO HAY BANDA's collective thirst for adventure as well as Takasugi's singular imagination. This dizzying interdisciplinary piece was composed especially for NO HAY BANDA and was unveiled live in Montreal February 25th and will soon be reprised at this summer's Darmstädter Ferienkurse. Blending chamber composition, video (care of collaborator Huei Lin), otherworldly cabaret theatrics, and trompe-l'oreille electroacoustics, Il Teatro Rosso exudes immersive mystery—even on recording. The seven scenes of music burst with dazzling, restless energy; their refined, hybrid sonorities—befuddling blends of instruments, voice, and pre-recorded sound—unfold in uneasy scurries, swarms and trickles. Takasugi's style is relentless and peculiar, but leaves sufficient room for one to catch their breath and absorb the dense arrangements of sonic pixels, resulting in an intrigue that will beckon curious listeners to return for more.
Some music I am featuring regularly Danny Short from his excellent new EP, Moff Skellington from his new album, the penultimate track from Kim Salmon’s new project Smoked Salmon, and the final track from Shaw’s Trailer Park eponymous debut from 2024.
Jason Dea West and the Siskiyou Crest - Oregon/Arizona-based West has long been a lone troubadour, relentlessly rambling coast to coast for over a decade, forging and delivering his own unique blend of American folk and western music. He is a self-built, independent artist who has gained the attention of many passionate fans all over the world. West handled his own branding, promoting, booking, and recording productions, and his live shows are known for becoming passionate sing-alongs and cowpunk dance parties. As a one man show, playing harmonica, resophonic guitar, and suitcase kickdrum, all while singing his original stories creating a sound comparable to one of a full band. Brilliantly blending vintage country, folk, and blues with timely sensibilities.
This all changed in the summer of 2024. While playing a show in the Rogue Valley of Oregon for a packed house, fellow musician Amie Astelle approached West outside the venue and expressed an interest in playing upright bass for him. Astelle had offered her services to him a few times over the years while attending his shows, and that particular night he accepted her offer and invited her up to the green room forty-five minutes before his set where she quickly learned a wide range of his material. They would perform their first set together for a sold-out audience there at The Haul in Grants Pass, Oregon, thus beginning the first chapter of the band The Siskiyou Crest.
Amie Astelle and her partner, Jessica Curran, ended up staying in Oregon with West for the next two weeks where they lived together working as farm hands by day and playing music all night. One evening, as they’re playing music on the porch, he jokingly suggested that she meet him in Nashville later that month to play on his upcoming record. To his surprise and delight, Astelle accepted. Within the following days, they would be interviewed and perform many of the songs that would later be featured on the Jefferson Public Radio Live Sessions session.
During this time, West also met a young fiddle player, Mason Alexander, during a backyard, fire-lit picking session after a show he played with the Resident Rogues in Menomonie, Wisconsin. Alexander’s character and talent left an impression. On a whim, West would reach out to Alexander, inviting him to Nashville to perform during Americana Fest and to play fiddle on his record. Alexander accepted with no hesitation.
The trio arrived in Nashville in late August, all coming from different corners of the country. Worn and weary from their long travels, they wasted no time getting to work. On the first day of the sessions, they spent hours in producer Dan Emery’s driveway, working out arrangements and the details of each song as a trio. The next day, they recorded nine songs in ten hours, predominantly live with minimal overdubbing, which would become the new album, 8 Miles From Rusk.
The album arrives with ten soulful anthems framed in a lush blend of folk, outlaw country, and Western Americana. The lyrics bleed with authenticity, telling first-hand accounts of personal experiences delivered through West’s bold and poetic vocal approach. With West on vocals, guitar, and harmonica, Mason Alexander on the fiddle, and Amie Astelle on bass, the album features guest contributions from Joe Wunderle (guitar), Sparrow Smith (accordion, vocals, banjo), Charlie Marks (banjo), Annie Ford (viola), Hana Fleur (vocals), Aurelia Anne Cohen (vocals), and Nora Jean O’Dea (vocals).
Synesthesia - Ari Joshua, John Medeski & Billy Martin - a captivating new trio track from Ari Joshua, featuring John Medeski (organ, clavinet) and Billy Martin (drums), legendary members of the groundbreaking jazz-improv group Medeski Martin & Wood. Tracked live in a single take at Applehead Studios, the performance captures the urgency, risk, and connection that define great improvisational music.
Billy Martin, known for his deep groove sensibility and polyrhythmic mastery, has long bridged the worlds of jazz, funk, and experimental percussion. His extensive career includes work with the Lounge Lizards, teaching at Drummers Collective, and decades redefining the role of the drum set in improvised music. His hypnotic loop—first heard in Loops from the Underground—serves as the foundation for the track.
John Medeski, a graduate of the New England Conservatory and veteran of bands with Dewey Redman, Jaco Pastorius, and John Scofield, brings his unmistakable keyboard voice to the session. His clavinet bounces with joyful grit, while his organ swells shimmer with psychedelic warmth and modal depth.
At the heart of it all is Ari Joshua, a versatile guitarist and composer whose background in jazz, psych rock, and avant-garde music shapes his distinctive voice. On “Blurry Face”, his guitar tone is unapologetically phat—equal parts fuzz and finesse—interacting with the rhythm section in a conversation rooted in mutual respect and exploratory spirit.
“You never know when your dreams may come true,” says Joshua. “You plant a seed and it just may bring a great tree.”
“Blurry Face” continues a growing body of work between Joshua, Medeski, Martin, and bassist Jason Fraticelli, with more music slated for release. A follow-up single, “Reversible Submersible”, drops on May 23rd, offering a more produced, experimental studio cut.
Michael Sarian - the bold and expansive new album from trumpeter and composer Michael Sarian, is out now - marking his debut on Greenleaf Music. Recorded, mixed, and mastered by Luis Bacqué at Bacqué Recording in Roselle, NJ, the album showcases Sarian’s adventurous spirit and sonic curiosity. The quartet features Marty Kenney on electric bass, Nathan Ellman-Bell on drums, and Santiago Leibson on a range of keyboards, including Fender Rhodes, Hammond B3, Mini Moog, and Wurlitzer. A standout is the Sarian original “Straight Trash,” the first piece composed for the album. “It’s built around graphic scores and flexible structures that encourage improvisation and collective expression,” Sarian explains. “It’s divided into four movements, and the piece invites the musicians to guide the direction in real time, and create an unpredictable flow.” The featured track, which was issued as a pre-release, is an edited version of the album track.
AMM - Recorded in Glasgow, Scotland May 2000, at the free radiCCAls festival, curated by Evan Parker. First AMM CD since 1996. The set was one continuous 58-minute piece segmented for CD release. On this occasion the line-up was Keith Rowe - guitar, John Tilbury - piano, and, Eddie Prévost - percussion
Jukka-Pekka Kervinen & Kevin Miller - Seasoned improvisors Kervinen (Finland) - electric bass, electric guitar, trumpet, electronics and Miller (USA) - electric guitar, join forces on 'Primordial' for an exquisite display of free improvised guitar / electronic spontaneity. Released May 2 on limited edition CD and digital DL via the wonderful Ramble Records.
Niloo - Niloo Farahzadeh is a musician, singer-songwriter, and visual artist whose work is as captivating as it is genre-defying. Based in Lekwungen Territory (Victoria, BC, Canada), Niloo blends shoegaze, dreampop, folk, and Iranian pop into a soundscape that feels both otherworldly and familiar, like stepping into a dream laced with nostalgia. Her music transcends borders, reflecting her rich cultural heritage as an Iranian-Canadian woman, while exploring themes of ancestry, migration, and diasporic identity. Through her project Niloo, she creates a sonic space that honours her roots, weaving together elements of western psych, dreampop, and shoegaze with the smooth, melodic rhythms of 70s Iranian pop. Her work is deeply personal, offering a bridge between her past and present, and inviting listeners into an intimate exploration of memory and belonging. With every note and brushstroke, Niloo brings her unique perspective to life, creating a tapestry of sound that resonates with anyone who has ever felt the pull between different worlds.
The Gold Needles - The follow up to last autumn’s debut single for Big Stir Records “I Don't Know About That”, the new track slows things down for a lush, cosmic trip bristling with hooks and harmony, and it's a preview of more to come from the band in 2025.
Movieland - The Vancouver shoe-gazers return with Now & Then, a vibrant new collection of songs released May 2, 2025 via 604 Records. Following the acclaimed 2024 release Then & Now—a reissue that introduced their immersive soundscapes to a new generation—Now & Then showcases the band in full creative stride, blending their signature haze-drenched intensity with a renewed sense of exploration and immediacy. When 604’s Jonathan Simkin approached frontman Alan D. Boyd about reissuing the band’s early work through the label’s Decades initiative, Boyd saw an opportunity. “I asked if he’d be interested in me recording a few new tracks for a follow-up release,” says Boyd. “He said yes and gave me a budget for an EP. Of course, I went and recorded an album.”
The result is Now & Then—a collection of songs written across years and continents, recorded between Boyd’s former studio in London and sessions in Edmonton and Vancouver. “The tracks on Now & Then are a selection of songs that came together over the 30 years I’ve been in London,” Boyd explains. “Some were written in basements in the '90s, some were demos that had been waiting for the right time, and a couple came together just days before we hit record.” Boyd laid down the foundation of the record in Kentish Town, London, before bringing in collaborators from both the original lineup and longtime friends from the UK and Canada. Contributors include Rex Roulette (Eagles of Death Metal), Freddie Cowan (The Vaccines), Ev Laroi (Idyl Tea), and Tom Murray (Old Reliable), along with past bandmates John and Clancy, who added drums and bass from afar. “It was the last big project I completed in my studio,” says Boyd. “So it feels pretty special to me.”
Sun Below - With 80 releases in 10 years Weedian has been a steadfast collector and curator of all things heavy rock, doom, psych and more with a comprehensive multi-national study of music from the outer edges. This latest release collates 12 tracks to celebrate meeting this milestone. Sun Below are a “Heavy Sativa Rock Power Trio” from Toronto.