Upchuck: I’m Nice Now (Domino) LP | CD | DL Out now 4.5 out of 5.0 stars4.5 Atlanta’s Upchuck distil all their rage and fury into a pointed, aimed, and razor-sharp critique of the world we are navigating. The political is personal. BUY HERE When your back feels forced against the wall, the fight needs a ferocity that shakes the very foundation of those piling indecency after indecency on you. But, and importantly, it needs community, it needs…
River Westin: Saturnine Self-Released Download/Stream Out Now No third album blues for this one time visual artist and graphic designer, currently based in Upstate New York and moving a little to the side of his previous sound, it’s a fresh take on something very British, writes MK Bennett. Queer pop has a rich and storied history in the culture, dating back to its earliest beginnings. Often closeted…
Honey Smugglers: So Far (UltraMarine Recordings/Bandcamp) Released 10 October 2025 CD | Vinyl | DL | Streaming 4.0 out of 5.0 stars4.0 From 35 years ago, the long-lost debut album by short-lived indie band Honey Smugglers finally gets to see the light of day. They had little in common with their rivals, but that leaves them less tied to the confines of their age. Robert Plummer brings the past to life. “Doctor, I reckon the Tardis is playing…
Album Review Hack Job Hexbridge Youth Crew (Pea Brain / CBRG / DTR / Rip Roaring Shit Storm) 7″ | DL | Streaming Out 3 October 2025 A new offering from grindcore and power violence exponents Hack Job sees them step down a gear slightly to deliver up some prime gnarly metal-tinged punk. Horror fiction mingles with real world reality checks with humour never far away says Nathan Brown. Hack Job are mates of mine and always a…
Ethel CainApollo, Manchester2nd October 2025 The opening night of the Willoughby Tucker Forever European tour is an exercise in emotional ferocity To be in the room on the opening night of Ethel Cain’s biggest European tour to date is to observe an inescapable truth; the paradigms of pop stardom have shifted. Historically, music of the type that Cain makes does not inspire huge teen followings; the 27-year-old takes the standard blueprint for confessional singer-songwriter fare and cloaks it…
Bite Back: Dance Of Death (Skeleton Records)Ltd LP | CD | DLAvailable now Birkenhead’s Bite Back return with their third and long overdue album; across the twelve tracks they maintain their hard, fast, yet melodic style that neatly includes some Heartbreakers swagger.Bite Back are stalwarts of the UK DIY punk scene, born from the ashes of Instant Agony; though they too have reformed in recent years, both bands being fronted by the rasping Hocky as he reflects upon…
Nervous Twitch are back! Freshly signed to Spinout Nuggets, they release their new single, The Day Job Gets In The Way, ahead of a new album of the same name. Louder Than War premieres the video… For more than a decade Leeds based Nervous Twitch have been a staple of the Indie Scene, not only as a hardworking band but also supporting those around them, most notably via their annual Part Time Punks Festival. For their sixth album…
Pamplemousse: Porcelain (A Tant Rêver du Roi) LP | CD | DL Out now French grunge-garage noisniks Pamplemousse return with Porcelain, a fuzz-drenched alt-rock blast that envelops the senses. On their new album, French duo Pamplemousse seem primed to unleash a driving frenzy of grunge-soaked garage-psych, battering your senses right from the off with the visceral opener More Beautiful Than Madonna. It ticks all the right boxes, with its pounding drums and searing guitar wailing through the hot…
iC1s: What Took You So Long? Be Lucky Vinyl / Stream Released 3 October Here at LTW, we love a feel-good story, and the release of iC1’s debut album more than a decade after the band split is just that. iC1s were on the cusp of great things, but as they explain, ‘Just as the music was coming together, the band was falling apart. A long legal battle with their former manager meant the album was shelved indefinitely…
Idlewild – Idlewild (V2) LP | CD | DL 3.5 out of 5.0 stars3.5 Out 3rd October 2025 Ten albums in, rousing Scottish rockers take stock. Sam Lambeth reviews. There’s definitely something in the water – or, to be stereotypical, Irn Bru – in the musical valleys of Scotland. Principally, many acts seem to evolve from punky squalls to melodic majesty. Teenage Fanclub were one of the first purveyors of said shift, while Biffy Clyro and The Xcerts…
Album Review Andy Blade Tiny Specks in a Huge Abyss Munster Records LP/DL Release date: 10 Oct 2025. (4/5) Seventh solo album from punk survivor Blade exploring his signature offbeat themes: identity & mental health, and 70’s icon Karen Carpenter. Scathing, dark and bizarre songs with catchy tunes. But no closer to the mainstream or compromise notes Ged Babey. And there’s a song about Palestine. There’s not an awful lot of hopeBut there’s an awful lotta hate in…
Rufus Wainwright & the BBC PhilharmonicApollo, Manchester26th September 2025 The Canadian polymath brings the sweeping drama of Want One to life with orchestral backing Not every artist can justify presenting their records in their entirety – or with an orchestra, for that matter. Rufus Wainwright has no such concerns on either front; his catalogue is replete with albums that both take the listener on a genuine emotional journey, and are imbued with rich instrumentation, a reflection of the Canadian’s…