Back in 2025, Irish synth poppers Tiny Magnetic Pets released ‘Harmonious Grey’, a four track EP that combined some strong songwriting chops with some very familiar sounding 80s and 90s inspired sounds. The lead track, ‘Low Places’ mixed the band’s poppier instincts with a slightly sinister, low sounding synth riff that created a hook that worked even more directly than any of the band’s lyrics.
Love Ghost’s ‘Revolution Evolution’ is a pleasingly chunky affair. The basis of the arrangement has a common root with some of the more industrial sounds from the Metropolis label, but the band uses that heavy, mechanical sound to build something more interesting. In places, a heavy, grinding riff touches upon a Rob Zombie-ish intensity, which coupled with a vocal that sounds like a distant relation of Marilyn Manson, creates something that lovers of 90s sounds will love. The real interest here, though, comes from the track’s quieter elements, in particular, a verse that couples a drawling, almost sneery vocal with a twangy guitar tone that owes more to a cinematic style. With a few of these elements heavily treated to bring a darker mood and with the melodies occasionally underscored by sirens, this creates a brilliantly unsettling listen and a perfect way to kick off the ‘Anarchy and Ashes’ EP, the LA-based act’s seventh release.
On September 18th 2026, The Fierce And The Dead will release their fifth album, ‘Regional Theatre’. The band have always been keen to break down musical barriers and not be beholden to one particular style, but the new record is their boldest yet, with arrangements that explore genres previously not associated with the Fierce/Dead sound.
One of the record’s biggest deviations from the “expected” comes via their brand new single, ‘Somehow’.
Towards the end of 2025, musician Lee Byatt collaborated with a couple of heroes from the punk underground to create Hike The Peak’s ‘Water’ EP, the third release in the band’s ‘Elements’ cycle. The songs featured the band’s now trademark melodic punk and skate punk riffs along with the expected thoughtful lyrical content. Although the results weren’t as immediately exciting as the earlier ‘Air’ EP, the material still gave fans enough to enjoy.
For a band rooted within the northeastern US, The Northern Line adopt a very British sound on parts of their debut EP. The crashy opening of ‘Lightning Strikes’ makes no secret of a love of The Who, and occasionally the number slips into a riff or two that’s reminiscent of early Dodgy. It isn’t a straight up homage to old mod or mod adjacent Britpop sounds, though: the swirling organs and crashing beats that run through the centre of this energised number carry more than a faint echo of old Northern Soul bangers, and a reverbed vocal leans a little more into a garage rock sound. If you’re going to borrow, it might as well be from good stock, of course, and what The Northern Line manage with their spoils here has a genuine spark throughout. With a slight echo applied, the lead vocal takes on a retro sound that is genuinely great, but is soon outshone by a world of lead guitar courtesy of Pete Kitchener, a man clearly able to redress a couple of Dave Davies inspired runs with the power of 90s Britpop to give the track an extra feeling of gusto. It’s all very familiar to say the least, but what this menagerie of sound represents feels far greater than the actual outcome. This is the sound of a band with a lot of energy and a band who are able to recycle bits of the past in a way that feels genuinely exciting.