Lemongrab: Another Kind Of Freedom

photo: Ingrid Sofia Hedenström

Garage post-punkers Lemongrab have a not so secret weapon on their new Another Kind Of Freedom u EP: the shared vocals of Gaëlle Cordeau and Léonie Dishaw. They can do really fucking fast (Pay To Play) and detached without a care in the world as well (Necessary Condition). It makes the four tracks on their new EP unpredictable in a good way.

It is fuzzy, decidedly lo-fi music, wherein separation and careful balancing of the instruments is laughed at. Lead single Yoko serves as a well-deserved reappraisal for an artist who has been dragged through the mud for decades. The unrelenting Jaki Liebezeit-inspired backbeat of the final track No Receipt brings a bit of Krautrock to a band who obviously were inspired by X-ray Spex and the Au Pairs.

Things We Built: Daddy's Gone Disco

Melbourne-based Things We Built make a plea for leaving the grind and boredom of a day time job and hit the dance floor instead on their Daddy's Gone Disco single. O, and he is not going back ever.

It starts out plain and simple enough, but once they have reached the middle-eight they chose wisely and kept it going for quite some time for a prolonged adventurous break, before circling back to the safety of the basics to bring the track to a close. What the fuck just happened? Better play it again.

Steven Wilson: "Requiem for a Village" teaser ft. David Tennant

Steven Wilson has posted a short video for his ninth studio album Requiem for a Village. It feaures spoken word by actor David Tennant, with a link to an old school website for the imginary village. It includes this announcement:

The parish clerk reminds residents that the September observance in The Village falls on Friday 11th September this year, as it has on the same date in every year for which the parish holds a record. The Village Hall is booked for the entire day for an unnamed musical act. The event is not listed on the spring fête calendar and is not organised by the parish council. No public programme has been issued. Enquiries to the clerk's office regarding times, locations, or participation have been declined in previous years and will be declined again. Residents who have attended in the past are asked to observe the usual custom. Traffic on Chapel Slope may be heavier than usual after dusk. No further notice will be posted.

The album will be released on November 6th (2LP, CD). Further details TBA.

» stevenwilsonhq.com
» requiemforavillage.com

Dead Sea Apes: Psychic Tension

Mancunian post-rock trio Dead Sea Apes do things differently on their new Psychic Tension, with the drums and bass upfront, as a dare for their guitarist to make himself heard. It is a game of tension and release, well mostly tension in fact, going through the dark back alleys of noise rock with a bit of psych trying finding its way in during a lull in the title track. It will kill the mood at a party within a minute, but those who choose to stay are rewarded with a towering in-your-face excursion that they don't want to end.

Even when they slow down a bit in Ursa Minor, they retain a kind of intensity that is both troublesome and alluring. Amidst all the chaos and subsequent emotional turmoil that reigns supreme in todays politics, the band tries to find a way out, looking fro an escape from the shit storm. They don't have any answers, but their wordless screams of righteous anger and agony will drown out the whispers of one's inner demons for sure.

The Fierce & The Dead: Regional Theatre

English quintet The Fierce & The Dead are gravitating to a blend of shoegaze and metal on their new album Regional Theatre. The post-rock leanings and forays into progressive rock are still there, but not as prominent as before. It makes it a bit easier to digest for people who are not familiar with the history of the band. They started out in 2010 as an all-instrumental experimental trio with the long-form track Part 1. Over the years their sound has shifted slightly with each release. The big surprise came in 2023 when bass player Kevin Feazey stepped up to the mike for the News From The Invisible World album. Textures gave way to "proper" songs albeit with a twist. Start with Hypernormalisation which covers all the bases (caveat: they are a lot of them).

Fast forward to 2026 and the band have found a new common ground for coming up with melodies that can sit comfortably on top of intricate rhythms - a track Somehow may sound radio-friendly, but there is plenty to enjoy for people who can appreciate the layers that are not so obvious. Black Sabbath will love the rumbling Hey Nightmare and their ode to rock 'n' roll The 1234 could be their ticket to long overdue airplay.