Alexander Laurence's Blog, page 4
September 30, 2025
Charlatans UK Share New Song from Dev Hynes Co-Produced Album Out Oct 31
THE CHARLATANS UK RELEASE NEW SINGLE, "DEEPER AND DEEPER" - LISTEN
SECOND SONG FROM 14TH STUDIO ALBUM, WE ARE LOVE
PRODUCED BY DEV HYNES,
FRED MACPHERSON AND STEPHEN STREET
WE ARE LOVE ARRIVES OCTOBER 31, 2025 VIA BMG
PRE-ORDERS AVAILABLE NOW
Photo Credit: Cat Stevens
Following the announcement of their 14th studio album, We Are Love, out October 31 via BMG, The Charlatans UK return today with their second single, "Deeper and Deeper." A swirling, Hammond organ-driven belter with fat bass and fuzzy guitars, "Deeper and Deeper" channels the band’s trademark psychedelic grooves while charting bold new territory. It’s further proof that The Charlatans UK's commitment to moving forward, even in their fourth decade together, remains as strong as ever.
Tim Burgess says, “It kicks in with a sense of immediacy. It’s Altered States meets Pincher Martin. "The Hammond organ leads the way and hands you over to the irresistible and relentless bassline – a sense of giving in to what surrounds you. Sometimes it’s where you should be going. But you only get the answer once you can’t turn back.”
LISTEN TO "DEEPER AND DEEPER"
PRE-ORDER WE ARE LOVE
We Are Love was heralded with the release of the title track for its first single during the summer. "We Are Love" is a celebratory statement of intent, an urgent, limber, clattering love song to the human race. Propelled forward by driving drums and anthemic guitar, frontman Tim Burgess describes it as "like an open-top car ride in the credits of your favorite movie, driving along the coast to somewhere amazing."
One of the first tracks to emerge as they were writing, it became a pathfinder for the record, as guitarist Mark Collins explains: "Early on, we thought it felt right. And it turned out that way: first single, title track, second song on the album. And things started forming around 'We Are Love.' There was a certain energy to it that drove us forward.”
LISTEN TO "WE ARE LOVE"
# # #
One of the best-loved UK bands of the last four decades, The Charlatans UK's career spans 13 albums, 22 Top 40 UK singles, three Number One UK albums and era-defining anthems like "The Only One I Know," "North Country Boy" and "One to Another" – We Are Love launches a bold new era, one that finds them at peace with their past whilse looking forward to a bright future.
An eight-year gap between albums is the longest ever for one of the UK’s most enduring bands. A combination of covid, solo projects, life’s complexities and the fact that its five members - Tim Burgess (vocals) Martin Blunt (bass), Mark Collins (guitar), Tony Rogers (keyboards) and Pete Salisbury (drums) - live scattered across Europe, meant that it took longer than usual for the stars to align at the right place, right time, right vibe. They took the time to carefully select a recording A-team of production duo Dev Hynes (aka Blood Orange and Lightspeed Champion) and Fred Macpherson (Spector, Rachel Chinouriri, Jessica Winter, Taahliah), plus legendary producer Stephen Street (The Smiths, Blur, The Cranberries), alongside a list of engineers, mixers and collaborators that reads like a who’s who of alt rock greatness. The result has been well worth the wait.
Recorded at two places that are totemic in The Charlatans UK's history - Rockfield in Wales and their own Big Mushroom space in Middlewich, Cheshire - Burgess cites hauntology and psychogeography as two concepts that swirled in his head as the band dug into the album making. For one thing, their return to storied farm studio Rockfield for the first time in almost 30 years, since they made their fifth album Tellin’ Stories, was an important step. As a band, they hadn’t been there since keyboard player Rob Collins was killed, in the middle of that album’s sessions, in a car crash at the bottom of the track leading to the farm. Throughout the record, you can hear The Charlatans UK's awareness of the stuff that’s made them – the highs and the lows; the desire to honor their own mighty legacy, whilst not being defined by it; a career-long drive to be progressive and innovative.
“The whole idea of hauntology and psychogeography is represented by us going back to Rockfield, where so much history has happened for The Charlatans," says Burgess. "That was important as a way of honoring every member who's played in the band. So we’re honouring ourselves, our past, feeling that energy and reincarnating it, doing something fresh, brand new.”
This introspection brought home the fact that love is the glue that has held The Charlatans UK together for so long, and that’s reflected in the 11 tracks that make up this forward-thinking, future-facing album. Alongside the album announcement, The Charlatans UK have also shared plans for a December UK tour, playing headline shows in Leeds, Stoke, Bath, London, Manchester, and Glasgow.
We are The Charlatans.
We Are Love.
THE CHARLATANS UK
WE ARE LOVE
(BMG)
Release Date: October 31, 2025
Tracklist
Kingdom of Ours
We Are Love
Many A Day A Heartache
For The Girls
You Can’t Push The River
Deeper and Deeper
Appetite
Salt Water
Out On Our Own
Glad You Grabbed Me
Now Everything
# # #
THE CHARLATANS - TOUR 2025
DECEMBER
6 - Leeds, O2 Academy
7 - Stoke, Victoria Hall
8 - Bath, Forum
10 - London, Roundhouse
11 - Manchester, Academy
12 - Glasgow, Barrowland
CONNECT WITH THE CHARLATANS UK
Nala Sinephro announces the original motion picture soundtrack for 'The Smashing Machine'
NALA SINEPHRO ANNOUNCES THE ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK FOR BENNY SAFDIE’S THE SMASHING MACHINE
VIA WARP RECORDS / A24 MUSIC
IN THEATRES EVERYWHERE OCTOBER 3RD
SHARES LEAD SINGLE “GRAND PRIX” OUT NOW
Photo credit: Tofjan
“If it is a deep dive into the cycle of existence, not everything it brings back to the surface is straightforwardly beautiful or wonder-inducing. It’s more complicated and interesting than that, and therein lies its strange, entrancing power”
4/5 The Guardian ‘Album of the Week’
“Endlessness is more than a crafty marvel, or even than the sum of its vaunted parts. It feels like a feat of physics”
8.5 ‘Best New Music’ Pitchfork
The Smashing Machine (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
PRE-ORDER:
https://nalasinephro.ffm.to/thesmashingmachine
“Grand Prix”
LISTEN:
https://nalasinephro.ffm.to/thesmashingmachine
(September 30th, 2025) - Today, Nala Sinephro announces her debut film score for the Benny Safdie-directed The Smashing Machine, which stars Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt and tells the story of prolific UFC fighter Mark Kerr. The album will be released digitally on October 3rd via Warp Records / A24 Music and physically on January 23rd, 2026. The film will also be in theatres everywhere on October 3rd. Alongside the announcement, Sinephro shares the lead single “Grand Prix.”
The Smashing Machine premiered this month at the 82nd Venice International Film Festival to a 15-minute standing ovation and saw Benny Safdie pick up the Silver Lion for Best Director.
The film was featured on last Friday’s The Guardian Film & Music cover, read the interview here.
Whereas Sinephro’s compositions are free-flowing, the sounds for The Smashing Machine (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) were collaged by Sinephro playing synthesizers, harp, modular synths, and harmonium. The score was composed, arranged, produced, and mixed by Sinephro. Benny Safdie came to London for a recording session (which Nala described as one of her favourites) with her regular collaborators, such as James Mollison (Saxophone) and Nubya Garcia (Saxophone, Flute), Morgan Simpson (Drums), Sheila Maurice-Grey (Flugelhorn), and Lyle Barton (Rhodes, Synthesiser), Mark Mollison (Guitar), Dwayne Kilvington (Synth Bass) and strings played by Orchestrate. The musicians entered Safdie’s world, and were encouraged to play into the emotions of the film. For the title track, drummers Morgan Simpson and Natcyet Wakili performed drums live along to a fight scene, playing with a bristling, quick-footed aggressiveness as if they themselves were fighting: snares represent hits, a rumbling kick drum like a racing heart.
Although Sinephro’s music - meditative, ethereal, and vast - may seem like a paradoxical choice for a story about a wrestler, Mark’s story really resonated with Sinephro and she picked up on the hidden softnesses and emotions within the story. The score still sounds distinctively like Sinephro - spacious with steady warmth, gorgeous string arrangements, light-touch themes, unhurried harp - but intensified to match the film’s themes: pressure, fear of losing, addiction, pain, volcanic relationships, and feeling the high.
The Smashing Machine (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) follows up Sinephro’s second album Endlessness which was released last year to huge acclaim including being named The Guardian’s #2 ‘best contemporary albums of 2024’ and appearing in end of year lists from Pitchfork (#5), Crack (#3), The Line of Best Fit (#6), Resident Advisor, DJ, Loud and Quiet and many more. Later this year she will perform a number of concert hall shows throughout Europe including at London’s Royal Festival Hall on November 7th as a part of Pitchfork Music Festival London. Full dates and tickets can be found below.
Listen to “Grand Prix” and pre-save the album The Smashing Machine (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) above.
The Smashing Machine (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) cover art
Tour dates:
28 Oct - Berlin, DE @ Kammermusiksaal
4 Nov - Paris, FR @ La Seine Musicale
7 Nov - London @ Royal Festival Hall - TICKETS
8 Nov - Bristol @ Bristol Beacon (Simple Things Festival)
Tickets are available here:
Big Bill Share "Cameras" Single + Video, 'Sick Myth' LP Out November 21st via TODO
Sick Myth LP Out November 21st via TODO
Photo credit: Pooneh GhanaPRE-SAVE & SHARE: Big Bill - Sick Myth LPPresave
WATCH/LISTEN & SHARE: Big Bill - "Cameras"
Stream | YouTube
WATCH/LISTEN & SHARE: Big Bill - "The Money Store"
Stream | YouTube
Austin, TX based-band Big Bill today have shared their new track "Cameras," the second single from their upcoming LP Sick Myth, out November 21st via TODO. The vigorous, captivating track is an impressive blend of catchy post-punk, art rock, and noise rock. "The nervous energy of 'Cameras' evokes the paranoid stress of living under surveillance," the band explains. "The opening lyric came from an article about the modern U.S.-Mexico border-- the phrase 'integrated fixed towers' refers to the cameras that tower over border communities, these noisy ever-present eyeballs watching their every move. The song’s chorus contains maybe the most direct punk-rock sentiment on our new album: 'Inside the mansions, let’s put cameras there too!'"
The track is out alongside an animated visualizer made by Juliette Goyard and follows lead single "The Money Store," which premiered via MXDWN. Big Bill, winner of this years 'Best Punk Band' at the Austin Music Awards, are also set to play their record release show on November 22nd at Radio/East in Austin, TX. The release show will take place at Big Ball 8–the band's raucous, annual event that features performances from other local Austin bands and multiple art installations.
Following the acclaimed Strawberry Seed, Austin art-rock band Big Bill faced a challenge in fall 2024: lead singer Eric Braden's upcoming move to Philadelphia after fourteen years in Austin. Knowing it would soon become harder to get together, the band made plans to record their next album before the year's end. November became a time of intense songwriting, using a brand new method. Parts were crafted in intense brainstorm sessions, then later digitally mixed-and-matched. Once a structure started to arise, the band then "learned" each track live in their practice space, tweaking lyrics along the way. This approach brought a fresh and urgent energy to the process.
Sick Myth explores the spiritual ugliness of America, depicting the sad, desolate, and commodified landscape of the United States. The album addresses themes of death, corporate psychopathy, and the mythology of the country. Through these tracks, Big Bill makes Sick Myth a commentary on the state of America. In an era of countless TikToks evoking the dark ironies of late-stage capitalism, Sick Myth feels like a roller coaster through the wreckage.
"Cameras" by Big Bill is out today via TODO.
Big Bill - "Cameras"
Big Bill - Tour Dates
11/22 - Austin, TX - Radio/East - “Bill Ball 8” (Album Release Show)
Sick Myth - TRACKLISTING1. Sick Myth
2. Still Cold
3. Young Men of the World
4. The Money Store
5. The Terrible Truth
6. Worm Within
7. Celebrate Me
8. When I Die
9. Moat
10. Cameras
11. Unforgiven
12. The Open Door
13. Don’t Tell it to the Queen
Big Bill Bio:
Austin's Big Bill has spent over a decade forging their darkly comedic brand of philosophical art-rock, captivating audiences nationwide with their raucous live shows and evolving sound. Formed in 2012, they quickly gained a following for their raw energy and endlessly catchy punk songs that defied easy categorization. Maximum Rocknroll Magazine praised their early recordings with a resounding "Weird as hell, quirky-ass rock!" "A cacophony of feverish, chaotic punk and absurdist humor," is how The Austin Chronicle described their live shows in 2018. And as Kevin Curtin of The Austin Chronicle aptly noted, "If Big Bill were from Bristol, Brighton, or London, NME would've long ago run articles effusively praising their peculiar strain of punk and proclaiming them the next-big-thing." This critical acclaim extends to their recording output, culminating in their 2024 album Strawberry Seed (their first without co-founder Cody Braden), which earned accolades for its broadened sonic landscape. They were awarded Best Punk Band at the 2025 Austin Music Awards and named KUTX Artist of the Month in July 2024.
Big Bill's distinctive sound draws from early punk bands like Big Boys and Dead Milkmen to New Wave stalwarts Talking Heads and The B-52's, yet remains truly singular. Eric Braden, the band's primary songwriter, contributes vocals once described as sped-up Buddy Holly, coupled with a singularly weird point of view. His lyrics toe the line between smart and dumb, sprayed over manic, fun-house riffs and intricately relentless drums. The evolving lineup features Braden on vocals, Alan Lauer on bass, Alex Riegelman on guitar, and former White Denim drummer Jeff Olson on drums, reflecting a journey from raw outsider punk into much more sonically varied territory. Lindsey Parker of Yahoo! Music described their early sound as "serving Sparks/Dickies realness with their nervy, punky new wave," while Carys Anderson, reviewing Strawberry Seed for The Austin Chronicle, called that album "an ornate, textured project complete with acoustic guitar, glimmering synths, and classical piano.”
The band's legendary live performances are characterized by Braden's unpredictable stage presence. The Austin Chronicle review highlighted this, saying, "Eric Braden leads his bandmates – dressed in matching tracksuits or coordinated primary colors – with a heightened, climbing-up-the-rafters energy." Pop Press International noted after a 2016 SXSW performance, "With their commitment to oddity, Big Bill won't be able to endear themselves to every listener, but no one will be able to forget attending a live performance.” Georgina Cook of 98.9 KUTX Austin also added, "Their quirky, vibrant punk has gained them a loyal following and a reputation as a must-see live act.” Their compelling live show has led them to tour all over the United States and Canada multiple times, including as direct support for Norwegian art-rockers Pom Poko in January 2025 and opening for the acclaimed Japanese punk rock band Tsushimamire in August 2025. They have also shared the stage with an impressive list of acts such as Gustaf, Bodega, Harlem, Being Dead, The Chats, TV Girl, Surfbort, Snooper, Shannon and the Clams, Omni, and Peaches. Their fourth full-length album, Sick Myth, due out November 21st, 2025 on TODO Records, promises to represent Big Bill distilled to its very essence.
BIG BILL LINKS
Instagram | Website | TikTok | Facebook | Bandcamp
MELODY'S ECHO CHAMBER new album 'Unclouded' is coming on Dec 5
I made a new album with the two-headed monster Maestro and Wizard Sven Wunder, I called it "Unclouded". It will be out on December 5th!! It'll be perfect for a cozy winter and I hope it keeps you company throughout the seasons! All the musicians kind of tuned in the key of tenderness and I’m very grateful for that.
PRE-ORDER NOWThe first song 'In The Stars' is out now.
LISTEN / WATCHI'm going on tour in the USA and EU/UK! Pre-sale begins tomorrow at 9am BST. Use the password 'inthestars'. General sale is oct 3rd at 10am local.
TICKETSThank you all for listening and supporting, I hope to give you a hug at a show soon, I will bring some new wonderful musicians along with me. Love, Melody
Her New Knife share club remix of "vesselera" by NY DJ SILICONE VALLEY
HER NEW KNIFE SHARE REMIX OF “VESSELERA”
BY SILICONE VALLEY - LISTEN
NEW YORK DJ TRANSFORMS THE TRACK INTO A HAUNTED, CLUB-READY MIX FOR INCOMING DELUXE EP, CHROME IS LULLABY: RE
ARRIVING ON VINYL, TAPE, CD, AND DIGITALLY
OCTOBER 31, 2025 VIA JULIA’S WAR RECORDINGS
FEATURING REMIXES BY TAGABOW, ANGEL EMOJI (FROST CHILDREN),
GRIMACE, RED RAKES, CERTAIN (SWORD II), AND SILICONE VALLEY
TOUR WITH WATER FROM YOUR EYES CONTINUES TONIGHT
IN MINNEAPOLIS, MN AT 7TH STREET ENTRY
Photo Credit: David Milan Kelly
“Her New Knife crank out brilliantly tense songs that bite with post-hardcore snarl.”
- NME
“Focuses on the beauty found in the weirder, darker, experimental throes of guitar music.”
- THE FADER
“Toes the line between melodic and uneasy.”
- STEREOGUM
“A deeply compelling prospect in their own godless right."
- SO YOUNG MAGAZINE
“Every chance they get, Her New Knife chooses to go darker, bolder, and weirder.”
- POST-TRASH
Philadelphia band Her New Knife are excited to share the latest preview of chrome is lullaby: re, a deluxe version of their 2024 EP featuring remixes from TAGABOW, Angel Emoji (Frost Children), Grimace, Red Rakes, Certain (Sword II), and SILICONE VALLEY, arriving everywhere October 31, 2025 via the tastemaking Philly label Julia’s War Recordings. For the first time ever, the standout EP will be available on vinyl and cassette with the remixes appearing on the B-side; pre-orders are live now.
“vesselera - SILICONE VALLEY: re,” arrives today, subverting the delicate swirls of guitars in the original mix and introducing techno soundscapes to the mix. “Just like your birthday, we’ll do it again,” Edgar Atencio sings over pulsating synths, as sound is pushed to its limit.
"I met Luc [SILICONE VALLEY] shortly after moving to Philly, and I believe he is a musical genius," Atencio explains. "The way he writes and arranges his songs is so dynamic- especially the drums. I think having him work on this remix was a no-brainer. Love him forever 1 million."
“I love songs about keeping secrets & 'vesselera' is my favorite from Her New Knife," says SILICONE VALLEY. "I feel like we both write in the same tone but with different aesthetics. When they sent me the stems to work on, I found all of these beautiful acoustic guitar layers hidden under everything. I made sure to make some room for those in the remix and built around it with the MS-20 (best synth of all time). You can get some really cracked-out tones with the filters on that thing that reminded me a lot of Ben’s guitar in the OG song. I like how the pitched-down vocals sound like they are coming out of a breathing tube, and I can finally play this song in the club. Shout out HNK one time.”
LISTEN TO “VESSELERA - SILICONE VALLEY: RE”
PRE-ORDER CHROME IS LULLABY: RE
The deluxe EP was announced last month with “kittyriff - They Are Gutting A Body Of Water: re” in which Julia’s War labelhead and TAGABOW bandleader Doug Dulgarian contorted the bone-shattering riffage of the original track into a blown-out, drum-heavy track that slinks slowly into the abyss. Atencio’s caressing vocals are sampled with a metallic edge, cutting through the song’s laidback progression with precision. Dulgarian also made an official video for the track, which premiered alongside the release.
WATCH “KITTYRIFF THEY ARE GUTTING A BODY OF WATER: RE)”
This summer, the band shared their version of Björk’s “Pagan Poetry.” A guitar-forward take on the fan-favorite track off Björk’s 2001 record Vespertine, the cover sees the band infuse discordant instrumentation into a deeply emotional soundscape. Her New Knife strives for sonic innovation, turning a familiar track into a completely new experience. Last year, Her New Knife shared their six-song EP, chrome is lullaby, featuring quickly rising songs like “kittyriff” and “vitamin beauty.” The release was widely acclaimed by The FADER, Post-Trash, Stereogum and NME, the latter of which added them to the NME100, declaring the band as one to watch for 2025. The group is currently working on their debut album, expected to be released in 2026.
LISTEN TO “PAGAN POETRY”
LISTEN TO CHROME IS LULLABY
Her New Knife has had a major year of playing shows across North America. From opening for julie, TAGABOW, Frost Children and Midrift to appearing at Nothing.’s Slide Away Festival and playing eleven sets this year at SXSW in Austin, TX, the band has a nonstop touring schedule. It continues this summer as they open for Water From Your Eyes across North America this fall. For more information on upcoming performances, see below and follow the band on Instagram at @hernewknife.
HER NEW KNIFE LIVE 2025
SEPTEMBER
30 - 7th St Entry - Minneapolis, MN #
OCTOBER
1 - High Noon Saloon - Madison, WI #
2 - Sleeping Village - Chicago, IL #
3 - El Club - Detroit, MI #
6 - Bar Le Ritz PDB - Montreal, QC #
7 - The Drake - Amherst, MA #
8 - The Sinclair - Cambridge, MA #
10 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY #
# - w/ Water From Your Eyes
Plantoid Announce New Album 'FLARE' out Jan 30 via Bella Union | "Dozer" Video | UK Tour
Plantoid
Announce New Album FLARE
due out January 30 via Bella Union
Shares " Dozer " Song + Video
Photo credit: Cali Titmas
After the runaway success of their debut album Terrapath, which cemented their status as the stewards of the UK’s prog-rock scene, Plantoid have returned with their sophomore release: the enigmatic, arresting, and at times downright catchy FLARE. Staying true to the band's math-rock roots, the album is awash in heavy, reverberated guitar licks, tempo changes, and mind-altering chord progressions—all while expanding Plantoid’s signature sound towards new horizons, like wall-of-sound shoegaze and vocal-forward rock-pop. It does what all second albums do best; retain the core DNA that set its predecessor apart from the fray, yet evolve enough to excite old fans and new listeners alike.
“While making FLARE, we did knowingly acknowledge that our sound had been very erratic,” explains drummer Louis Bradshaw, who along with vocalist/guitarist Chloe Spence and lead guitarist Tom Coyne make up the nucleus of Plantoid. “We never stayed on anything for too long. Before going into writing this album we wanted to slightly redefine what we were doing—it’s less directly proggy. It strays from that sound a bit, while retaining that character.”
If you’re here for the time changes and jazzy mid-song freakouts, don’t you worry, you’ll still find plenty across the album’s nine sprawling tracks. It’s just that Plantoid have been able to tap into something deeper, more lived-in. With the help of producer/sometimes live member Nathan Ridley, who has helped the band craft their sonic identity since Terrapath, they’ve sought to indulge their groovier side, dissecting their songs further and letting their ingredients properly ferment into something new. “We wanted to sit in the music for a while, make a mood out of it rather than changing it up so quickly,” says Chloe. “We wanted to develop ideas to their fullest extent.”
There was a circumstantial element to this artistic evolution, as well as a creative one. After spending a solid year gigging in support of Terrapath, the band needed time away from the hustle and bustle to properly focus on their next chapter. This refuge came in the form of a writing retreat in Anglesey, Wales, where their label were able to set them up with philosopher/musician Laurie Gane who gave them full use of this converted studio. Under the (actually, quite prog-rock-sounding) Snowdonia mountains, the band were able to fully let loose and reconnect.
“We were at this beautiful place called Penhesgyn Hall,” says Tom. “We didn’t intend to actually record the album there, but we loved it so much. The sound of the barn was amazing.” It’s in this environment where the majority of the songs on FLARE were conceived, during insular jam sessions that went late into the night. “We’d never really done that as a band before,” explains Chloe.” We ended up writing and tracking pretty much a song a day—we’d have so much material.
On tracks like “The Weaver” and album closer “Daisy Chains”, Chloe’s vocals take centre stage like never before, and making space for Chloe’s vocal experimentations was crucial in bringing the universe of FLARE to life. “When we're writing the music comes quite quick and natural for us, but then it can be like, ‘Shit, are you meant to sing over that?” laughs Tom. “A lot of these new songs were shaped around the vocals, which I think is a key feature to the progression of our sound.”
And progress, clearly, is the name of Plantoid’s game. Not just in terms of progressive rock, but leaning into the urge of always pushing forward, always discovering something new, excavating the layers and layers of stratified sediment between them until only a gleaming, polished stone remains. It’s this dedication to the expansion of their craft that makes them both endlessly fascinating and one of those most intensely imaginative rock bands in the UK today.
Plantoid 2026 UK Tour:
17th February – Birmingham – The Hare and Hounds
18th February – Leeds – Oporto
19th February – Edinburgh – Sneaky Pete’s
20th February – Gateshead – The Central
21st February – Hull – The New Adelphi Club
25th February – Bristol – The Croft
26th February – Cardiff – Clwb Ifor Bach
27th February – Portsmouth – Kola
28th February – Ramsgate – Ramsgate Music Hall
4th March – Dublin – The Grand Social
6th March – Brighton – The Hope and Ruin
7th March – Brighton – Green Door Store
12th March – London – Moth Club
13th March – Norwich – Voodoo Daddy’s Showroom
Tortoise share "Works and Days" single
TORTOISE RELEASE "WORKS AND DAYS"
THE LATEST FROM NEW ALBUM TOUCH
OUT OCT 24 ON LP / CD / DIGITAL DOWNLOAD
OUT NOV 11 ON ALL STREAMING PLATFORMS
ADVANCE ALBUM LISTENING PARTIES SCHEDULED AT MORE THAN 150 RECORD STORES WORLDWIDE ON OCTOBER 18
BAND TO PERFORM ORCHESTRAL ARRANGEMENTS OF NEW SONGS & CLASSICS AT SPECIAL CONCERT WITH THE CHICAGO PHILHARMONIC
Photo by Heather CantrellToday, September 30th, Tortoise — the iconic ensemble that "reset the stage for what might fit within indie rock" (MOJO) — share "Works and Days," a patiently unfolding lattice-work of percussive shuffles, beguiling guitar figures, and iridescent synthesizer melodies. The song is the latest preview from Touch, the first new album from the groundbreaking group since 2016, out via International Anthem and Nonesuch Records on LP, CD, and digital download on October 24, 2025, and on streaming services on November 11. The new single also arrives with a perspective-shifting, slightly askew slice-of-life video directed by Alee Peoples.
Listen to “Works and Days” and preorder Touch here .
The band also announces a very special global event on Saturday October 18th, when more than 150 independent record stores around the world will host advance listening parties for Touch in their spaces, and also make the album available for in-person attendees to purchase (a full week before the album’s release). Full details and participating locations are compiled on International Anthem’s website here.
With Touch, the Tortoise band members — Dan Bitney, John Herndon, Douglas McCombs, John McEntire, and Jeff Parker — harness their collectivist songwriting approach, a slightly anarchistic but resolutely egalitarian process where ideas triumph over ego towards an abstracted muscularity. While there are still excursions into the dusky, elegantly gnarled jazz ambience that flourished on landmark works like Millions Now Living Will Never Die and TNT, Touch is perhaps most remarkable for Tortoise's unapologetic embrace of grand gesture. Aerodynamically re-engineered Krautrock, hand-cranked techno rave-ups, and pointillist desert guitar panoramas are all imbued with Tortoise's now-signature internal logic — equally alluring and confounding, a puzzle to be savored rather than solved.
The stylistic diversity is also a reflection of the band's current operating circumstances: With two members now in Los Angeles, another in Portland, and just two remaining in the band's Chicago hometown, their creative process has shifted dramatically from when they lived together in a loft space in the late 1990s, honing their sound over endless hours of collective experimentation. Recorded between the three cities — Los Angeles, Portland, and Chicago — Touch is the result of an intentional effort by these five musicians to reconnect, recenter, and reinvigorate their sound for what is perhaps the group’s most diverse release to date.
(Read more about Tortoise, their ground-breaking sound "informed by everything from jungle to Krautrock and musique concréte," and the creation of Touch in a feature that ran September 19 over at The Guardian.)
A series of special live shows is planned through the end of the year, including The Broad Museum in Los Angeles, a three-night weekend stand at NYC's Bowery Ballroom, and two shows at the Barbican for EFG London Jazz Festival.
On November 11th they collaborate with the Chicago Philharmonic for the first time in a special concert at The Auditorium in Chicago, where they will perform Tortoise songs new and old with arrangements written by Sean O'Hagan (High Llamas), Nate Walcott (Bright Eyes), Paul Von Mertens (Brian Wilson), and the band's own Jeff Parker.
Tortoise will then embark on European tours in early 2026, with more dates to be announced soon. The full list of confirmed dates and ticket links is below.
"Works and Days" is out now, listen to it here.
Touch is out October 24, preorder it here.
Touch cover art
TRACKLIST
Vexations
Layered Presence
Works and Days
Elka
Promenade à deux
Axial Seamount
A Title Comes
Rated OG
Oganesson
Night Gang
CREDITS
All music written and performed by Tortoise
Tortoise is
Dan Bitney
John Herndon
Douglas McCombs
John McEntire
Jeff Parker
Viola on “Promenade à deux” - Marta Sofia Honer
Cello on “Promenade à deux” - Skip VonKuske
Field Recordings on “Works and Days” - Tucker Martine
Recorded at
Flora Recording and Playback, Portland OR;
64 Sound, Los Angeles CA;
Electrical Audio, Chicago IL
Mixed at Soma Electronic Music Studios, Gladstone OR
Recorded and Mixed by John McEntire
Mastered by Dave Cooley
at Elysian Masters, Los Angeles CA
Scorpion Photography - Heather Cantrell
Scorpion Sculpture - Martin McEntire
Collage Image - Paw Grabowski
Layout and Design - Jeremiah Chiu
TOUR DATES
Los Angeles CA - Saturday October 18th - The Broad - tickets
Austin TX - Thursday October 23rd - Radio/East - tickets
Marfa TX - Saturday October 25th - Flying Island - tickets
Chicago IL - Tuesday November 11th - The Auditorium w/ Chicago Philharmonic - tickets
Lexington KY - Wednesday November 12th - Singleton Center for the Arts - tickets
New York NY - Friday November 14th - Bowery Ballroom - SOLD OUT
New York NY - Saturday November 15th - Bowery Ballroom - SOLD OUT
New York NY - Sunday November 16th - Bowery Ballroom - tickets
London UK - Saturday November 22nd - Barbican - 1st show SOLD OUT, matinee show added
Bristol UK - Sunday November 23rd - The Prospect Building - tickets
Leeds UK - Monday November 24th - The Irish Centre - tickets
Helsinki FI - Tuesday January 20th - Tavastia - tickets
Stockholm SE - Wednesday January 21st - Fasching - tickets
Karlsruhe DE - Thursday January 22nd - Tollhaus - tickets
Lille FR - Friday January 23rd - Aeronef - tickets
Brussels BE - Saturday January 24th - Brussels Jazz Festival - tickets
Perugia IT - Sunday January 25th - Teatro del Pavone - tickets
Frankfurt DE - Monday January 26th - Zoom - tickets
Köln DE - Tuesday January 27th - Kantine - tickets
Paris FR - Wednesday January 28th - Le Trabendo - tickets
Berlin DE - Thursday January 29th - Großer Sendesaal des RBB - tickets
Dresden DE - Friday January 30th - Beatpol - tickets
Hamburg DE - Thursday April 9th - Kampnagel - tickets
Den Haag NL - Friday April 10th - Rewire Festival - tickets
Brugge BE - Saturday April 11th - Cactus Club - tickets
München DE - Sunday April 12th - Technikum - tickets
Salzburg AT - Monday April 13th - jazz:it - tickets
Graz AT - Tuesday April 14th - Orpheum - tickets
St. Gallen CH - Wednesday April 15th - Palace - tickets
Fribourg CH - Thursday April 16th - Fri-Son - tickets
Braga PT - Sunday April 19th - Theatro Circo
Lisboa PT - Monday April 20th - Culturgest
Soul Blind share “Mistake to Wonder” from forthcoming LP ‘Red Sky Mourning’ (out 10/10)
Soul Blind share “Mistake to Wonder” from forthcoming Red Sky Mourning LP, out October 10th
See Soul Blind on tour— performing at Furnace Fest this weekend, on the road with Better Lovers in Nov Dec
[image error]Photo by Justin Pietropaoli
Formed in 2018, Soul Blind has been a collaborative effort musically speaking, and their new album Red Sky Mourning album proves no different. The collective result is a magnifying glass into the lives of four discrete individuals coming to terms with their own humanity, growing and progressing as individuals.
When the alt-hard rock favorites took the world and live stages, by storm in the wake of their critically loved and popular 2022 debut Feel It All Around, fans cherished the band’s take on 90s alternative in droves. Now with a new sound and a new lease on life, Soul Blind might be utterly unrecognizable from their previous selves. That is until that unmistakable curtain of guitars starts to engulf like molten hot magma, coupled with subterranean melodies that apply a white-knuckle grip around the throat and don’t let go. In the best way, naturally.
Ahead of Red Sky Mourning's October 10th release and the band's anticipated performance at this year's Furnace Fest, Soul Blind share the album's new single "Mistake to Wonder." They comment: “We had part of this song written for years. We kept circling back to it for ages but rarely had any luck with finishing it, until we started writing for RSM.”
Listen / share new single "Mistake to Wonder"
[image error]To harness the power of their live show, Soul Blind congregated at Animal Farm in Flemington, NJ to record for a month, a space that incubated records by Drug Church, Drain, KOYO and countless others. There the band explored their love for Alice in Chains, Soundgarden, Melvins, mid to late-era Killing Joke, The Cure and all manner of early 90s alternative rock, boiling them down to an essence and passing them through Soul Blind’s hardcore and DIY-inflected sieve. The contained nature of the sessions yielded results that are a pensive, emotional journey through pain, isolation and darkness until eventual redemption and hope could be found with the rising sun.
Pre-order Red Sky Mourning here and see Soul Blind on their last few dates on the road:
Soul Blind, on tour:
Sep 30 San Antonio, TX — Paper Tiger ^
Oct 01 Austin, TX — 29th Street Ballroom ^
Oct 05 Birmingham, AL — Furnace Fest
Oct 11 New York, NY – Rough Trade [RSM Record Release Show]
Nov 13 Greensboro, NC – Hangar 1819 %
Nov 14 Athens, GA – 40 Watt Club %
Nov 15 Jacksonville, FL – Albatross %
Nov 16 Pensacola, FL – Vinyl Music Hall %
Nov 18 New Orleans, LA – Tipitina’s %
Nov 21 Austin, TX – Come and Take It Live %
Nov 22 Houston, TX – Bad Astronaut %
Nov 23 Oklahoma City, OK – Beer City Music Hall %
Nov 26 Colorado Springs, CO – Black Sheep %
Nov 28 Lincoln, NE – Bourbon Theatre %
Nov 29 Des Moines, IA – Wooly’s %
Nov 30 Madison, WI – Majestic Theatre %
Dec 01 Joliet, IL – The Forge %
Dec 02 Grand Rapids, MI – Pyramid Scheme %
Dec 03 Columbus, OH – A&R Bar %
Dec 04 Harrisburg, PA – Capitol City Music Hall %
Dec 05 Amityville, NY – AMH %
Dec 06 Hampton Beach, NH – Wally’s %
^ with End It
% with Better Lovers
Magic Fig Announce Debut LP out Nov 21 via Exploding In Sound Records | Share Title Track Single, “Valerian Tea”
Magic Fig
Announce Debut Album, Valerian Tea
out November 21 via Exploding In Sound Records
Share “ Valerian Tea ” Single
Available across platforms here
"This is lusciously rainbow-hued proggy psychedelia with … plenty of neat-o synth lines and distorted bouncing bass adding a touch of grit to this otherwise stylishly shiny retro-futurist confection."
- Bandcamp Daily, Essential Releases
"With nods to pioneers like Soft Machine, Caravan, and The United States of America, it’s clear that Magic Fig comes from a place of reverence, but the band are playing by their own rules."
- Post Trash, Album of the Week
Credit: Kittie Krivacic
San Francisco’s Magic Fig has announced their debut full length album Valerian Tea due out November 21 via Exploding In Sound Records. A swift follow-up to their 2024 self-titled EP, the new collection is a meticulously arranged sonic voyage with impeccable musicianship, color and creativity. Lead single and title-track “Valerian Tea” is a psych pop Broadcast-esque blend of warmth and detachment. Inna Showalter’s vocals dance alongside a backdrop of shuffling percussion, shifting time signatures and gloriously choppy keys & guitars. “Valerian root extract was a popular remedy for anxiety and insomnia in Eastern Europe where I was born,” Inna explains. “The song is an exploration of how I was shaped and influenced by the experiences of my maternal lineage. This one was really fun and effortless for me and gave me the chance to experiment and take some risks.”
Listen / Share: “Valerian Tea”
Composed of Inna Showalter (vocals/mellotron), Jon Chaney (keys), Muzzy Moskowitz (guitar), Matthew Ferrara (bass) and Taylor Giffin (drums) the psych-pop supergroup features members of The Umbrellas, Healing Potpourri, Almond Joy, Whitney's Playland, Blades of Joy. Built from a swirling mass of sonic exploration and instrumentation, which includes piano, synthesizers, glockenspiel, organ, 12-string acoustic and electric guitar, the new project is the sound of a band building a bold new world.
With lyrics touching on memory, myth, and melancholy, Valerian Tea feels like an unlocking, a deep-dive down the rabbit-hole into a world that feels altogether more vivid and flamboyant. It’s an album of absolute balance, a glowing adventure to get truly lost in – and we probably all need a big dose of that.
Valerian Tea tracklist:
1. Flammarion
2. Walking Shoes
3. At the Garden’s Gate
4. Percolations
5. Valerian Tea
6. Riders at Dawn
7. Sensation Seeker
8. Splinter
9. Goblin
10. Sleep of Reason
September 29, 2025
I'M WITH PULP, ARE YOU? — An Evening with MARK WEBBER of PULP + DEAN WAREHAM @ PRS Mon Sept 29th 2025 // THE PORTABLE INFINITE
All photos taken by Alexander Laurence
