REAL GONE GOES OUT: The Utopia Strong – Ramsgate Music Hall, Ramsgate, Kent 18/10/2025

It’s approximately 8:45 on a Saturday night in Ramsgate. A crowd are gathered outside of the Music Hall, and in the venue’s lobby area, various people are milling around in a frighteningly compact space. Even before getting to the gig area, there’s a feeling that this is one of the Music Hall’s busiest nights.

Everyone’s out to see The Utopia Strong – a trio made up of Kavus Torabi (Knifeworld/Gong/Cardiacs), Michael York (Current 93) and 80s snooker legend Steve Davis – who’ve just released a new album. ‘Doperider’ has been well received by those occupying the more “cult” corners of the online press, and those who’ve seen the band before know how special the live experience can be, so this is a night that has a lot riding on it even before the musicians take the stage.

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PERPACITY – Let It Roll EP

In the spring of 2025, electronica duo Perpacity returned with an unexpectedly alternative sounding EP. Not only did some of the music from ‘Lille Flamme’ take on a slightly more angular sound than previous Perpacity tracks, but a decision to present the lyrics in Danish made everything a little more obtuse. Not that it was an entirely inaccessable release: at its best, the three numbers still showcased a musical unit who understood the need for a melody, even if those melodies were sometimes a little cold.

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THE REAL GONE SINGLES BAR #124

Welcome back to the Real Gone Singles Bar, the place where we explore some of the more interesting individal tracks that have appeared in our inbox over the last few weeks. This time out, there are a couple of familiar faces, but their return visit to the SB ensures a genuine variety, genre-wise. Among other things, we’ve got a dance infused banger from a fantastic underground electronica act, a couple of country influenced tunes, and even a slab of metal that takes a rather unexpected turn! As always, we hope you find something new to enjoy.

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PERPACITY – Lille Flamme EP

Taking a side-step from the relatively accessible English language material that filled their 2023 album ‘Discordia’, ‘Lille Flamme’ showcases Perpacity’s multi-national heritage by presenting songs in Danish. The release also feels markedly different in its choice to share a couple of spikier arrangements, which sometimes gives the English-Danish duo’s work a darker and more intense quality. These factors mean the material is possibly geared a little more towards those who are already familiar with Perpacity, but you certainly couldn’t accuse them of merely repeating themselves and adopting a safe and formulaic approach to their art.

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Watch: Max Rael shares new video for ‘Almost’

Max Rael’s ‘The Enemy Is Us’ is one of 2025’s most interesting albums. Its blend of often melodic electronica and synth based sounds with spoken word, confessional lyrics is really striking. It has taken Rael’s experimentalism with Decommisioned Forests somewhere more accessible, but without feeling remotely in tune with the mainstream.

As part of the album’s ongoing promotion — this really is the kind of album that’ll only reach it’s audience through committed word of mouth — Max has shared a new video for one of the record’s more accessible tracks.

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