If you've been looking for your next R&B addition, put Karabo's 'Only 4 U' at the top of the list. The South African singer-songwriter, known for bridging contemporary R&B and Neo-Soul with African storytelling, delivers a track built entirely around vulnerability and commitment, the kind of honesty that's easy to miss and impossible to ignore once you hear it. It started in the studio with Tinashe, who played Karabo and Tineke a run of beats. They fell for the one that becam

Photo credit: Shawn Poynter Fifteen years is a substantial stretch of life to gather into one album, particularly when the writer’s relationship with its central subject has repeatedly changed. On Christians for Goliath, Adeem the Artist brings together songs and prayers from periods of religious service, estrangement and continued searching. The album’s design acknowledges that those questions remain active. It opens with the title track reduced to an acoustic arrangement, t

Language plays a central role in “Bachke”, the new collaboration between Pakistani rapper Eva B and India’s AGSY. Eva B begins the track in Urdu, using her opening verse to address assumptions made about her identity and the person behind her public image. Later in the song, she moves into Balochi before returning to Urdu, maintaining the connection to her heritage that has characterised much of her career. AGSY approaches the track differently, delivering a tightly construct

A melody heard between sleep and waking became the starting point for Melinda Joy’s new single “Deadly.” The singer-songwriter captured the idea on her phone as soon as it appeared, before completing the lyrics in a single sitting. That spontaneous beginning remains reflected in the track’s light, floating production. Musically, “Deadly” brings together jazz-pop and indie-folk elements, using layered vocals, piano, keyboards, guitar, drums and electric bass to support lyrics

Samsara turns personal transformation into high-impact pop on Swordfight, a bold EP that combines maximalist electronic production, theatrical flair and emotionally direct songwriting. The London-based, Australian-born artist, raised in Hong Kong, continues to carve out a distinctive space in contemporary pop, exploring identity, sexuality and self-discovery through music that balances vulnerability with unapologetic confidence. Focus track ‘Stab ’n Smile’ captures that appro

Technology plays a central role in “Left Right”, the latest release from Madison producer and artist Disco Proof. The single was independently arranged, mixed and mastered after being created in Ableton, but its production also incorporates audio software developed by Disco Proof. Custom plugin Proof Dust was used to add texture and movement, while Proof Prism helped control the low end with club sound systems in mind. Those technical details support a deliberately straightfo

FUET!’s latest single is part of a wider visual story that links directly to their earlier track “Roll With It”. The Madrid five-piece have released “It’s All A Show”, accompanied by a short-film concept created by Pace&Baltasar, the filmmaking partnership of vocalist Rubén and bassist Bob. The film follows Rubén adopting a series of different personas while trying to suppress his own identity. In doing so, it reframes the previously released “Roll With It” video, revealing t

There’s a fine line between writing about darkness and glamorising it, and eranine walks it carefully on “Bear Witness”. The Florida artist’s latest single deals with trauma and lost innocence, but the darkness isn’t the point. It’s the raw material. What eranine is after is truth told without romance, something heavy turned into something another person might recognise themselves in. That takes a lot out of them. “I’ll gut myself from the inside out and end just to begin aga

“Companions of Time” turns the sun and the moon into something to be afraid of. When did you start seeing them that way, and did writing the song change how you feel about time Passing? The sun and moon began to symbolize a race against time for me the past year, as I began to see a lot of my friends moving on to bigger and better things. While I of course was happy for them, and still wish them all the best, the feeling that my life wasn´t really going anywhere began to sett

Mali Mae has returned with “Making Me Cry”, a new song about the emotional weight of trying to meet the expectations of the people you love. The London singer-songwriter describes the track as a reflection on guilt, loneliness and the fear of being seen as a burden, with the writing focused on feelings that are often difficult to say directly. Musically, the song brings together piano, bass and layered guitars, allowing the arrangement to grow alongside the tension in the lyr

Colour theory provides the conceptual starting point for the latest release from Lahore producer MALIK. Created with independent label Silent Roar, ‘IRIDESCENCE’ is a six-track electronic EP that examines how listeners experience sound through both physical sensation and visual association. The record moves rapidly between styles, incorporating UK garage, jungle, dubstep, hardgroove and drum & bass without settling permanently into any single form. MALIK. has described moveme

Columbus Rock Band, Liteweight Champion pairs shoegaze guitars with power-pop hooks and a stubborn will to live. COLUMBUS, OH (October 9, 2026) - The world is ending and everything is on fire. Somewhere on the freeway, you are doing one hundred and ten miles per hour with the Reaper in the passenger seat, both of you wearing matching sunglasses. It is a strange place to find peace, and it is exactly where this record wants to take you. That freeway runs straight through Geron

Penni Layne finds a sweet spot between jazz tradition and contemporary soul on everyday i fall in love, an album built around intimacy, instinct and the chemistry of a close-knit ensemble. Working alongside her husband and longtime collaborator Larry Jackson, the Boston-based vocalist and songwriter brings original material and reimagined standards together in a collection that feels timeless without getting caught in the past. Recorded live at New York’s Sear Sound, the albu

The final preview of vincethealien’s next EP has arrived. “Elongated Time” completes a four-single campaign leading into the Los Angeles artist’s forthcoming project, which is expected in the new year with further unreleased material. The latest song takes a more introspective direction, focusing on the persistence of old relationships and smaller forms of grief that can remain present for longer than expected. vincethealien worked with creative partner MOTTRON on the track,

With his debut album, 'Ex Libris Wayne Banks', landing this November, we asked Banks to talk us through five picks that shaped his softer side. FACEBOOK | INSTAGRAM | SPOTIFY | YOUTUBE If 'World We Share' introduced you to Wayne Banks the community-minded songwriter, 'Cold River', his second single, shows you a different side entirely: quieter, more personal, built around one relationship rather than a whole crowd. It's an acoustic rock ballad shaped by a collaboration with J

Ask Sara Leanne who shaped her as a songwriter and you'll get an unlikely mix… From Carole King and Joni Mitchell for the craft, to Tedeschi Trucks Band and Bros. Landreth for the grit. It's an odd combination on paper, but spend ten minutes with her debut EP, Uprooted - out now and built around family, love, friendship and music - and it makes total sense. WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK | SPOTIFY Ahead of the release, Sara picks five tracks that map out exactly where her sou

'I was missing making music.' That plain line from Alimba's artist statement explains the last twelve months better than any press summary could. Spiros Aliprantis, the Greek-born producer now living in Bedfordshire, took a break from music after releasing '4 Stages of a Journey' on Bandcamp in 2018. By 2025 the gap had become hard to ignore, and he wanted back in. His first move was 'Liminal Keys', an anthology of special versions of songs across ambient, acoustic and piano

Following the release of Jake Pattinson's third single 'Part of Me', we got to chat his top music picks of all time... INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK | YOUTUBE Jumping Jack Flash - The Rolling Stones This might sound dramatic but it’s true - this song changed my life. I was 17 and washing dishes in Pizza Hut in Harrogate before they fired me for not knowing how to make a pizza and someone put this on full blast on the Bluetooth speaker. Obviously I’d heard the song before and I’d heard

Cardinal Black’s next UK and Ireland headline run will finish with consecutive nights at London’s KOKO and Cardiff’s Great Hall. Those April 2027 shows conclude the band’s biggest tour of the region to date, following a third studio album shaped by the experience of performing together. The record, Second Sign of Life, arrives January 29, 2027 through Thirty Tigers. Lead single “Saving Grace” is out now, pairing Chris Buck’s muscular guitar work with Tom Hollister’s soulful v

Attention is often discussed as something to attract, retain or measure. On his new album, Eric Hirshberg approaches it as a limited part of a person’s life, with consequences attached to where it goes. The question running through More Is Not The Answer concerns what deserves that attention in the first place. Released October 16, the ten-song album considers the relationship between digital habits and human priorities. Hirshberg’s perspective comes partly from years spent w

Photo credit: Bee Gutierriez Three-time Grammy-nominated artist and founding member of legendary hip-hop group The Pharcyde, Bootie Brown, returns with his latest solo single, ‘2 Get 2 U’, as he prepares to join Gorillaz for the US leg of their tour. Blending laid-back production with Brown’s unmistakable delivery, the new release explores attraction, seduction and the often elaborate lengths people will go to capture someone’s attention. Playful and character-driven, ‘2 Get

Robert Hinrichs is all about moving forward on ‘The Road’, a synth-pop release that turns personal change into something bright, infectious and full of possibility. Blending funk grooves, electronic textures and big pop melodies, the track has a theatrical edge that brings to mind the colourful energy of Scissor Sisters and the euphoric hooks of Mika, while still leaving plenty of room for Hinrichs’ own creative quirks. There’s a nice shift in mood as the track unfolds, start

If you're building a list of jazz records that reward close, repeated listening this year, put Grégory Privat's Darling near the top of it. Facebook | Instagram | X | YouTube The Martinique-born pianist's third solo album finds him playing every instrument himself, and the title track is where that commitment is most exposed, no collaborators to lean on, just Privat and the space he creates. You'll want to know the backstory too. Privat has spent over fifteen years developing

The title of Ali Handal’s new album carries the weight of experience. Released October 9, Slow Burn reflects a career that has unfolded across decades rather than according to the music industry’s preferred timetable, and its newest video makes that philosophy unexpectedly entertaining. “High Road” pairs Handal with Marc Maron inside a boxing ring, where the two musicians settle their differences with guitar solos. It is a funny visual conceit, but the song underneath it is c