Charlie Nieland’s ‘Stories From The Borderlines’ was one of 2025’s best albums. Nieland’s willingness to jump between genres and blend styles created an always interesting listen, and whether he was heard channelling 80s goth and indie sounds or paying tribute to 70s glam, the amount of love he applied to the record’s creation was more than clear.
Nilagia McCoy can often be found fronting Boston based garage pop/power pop/alternative band The Jacklights. In the main, their Drive Thru Facelift project couldn’t be any more different, stylistically speaking. Billed as “two humans and a drum machine writing a soundtrack for our dystopian times”, the duo explores a sound that blends industrial loops with deep, goth influenced bass grooves, creating a dark yet danceable sound that has a heart in the very early 90s.
In February 2026, Nevaris will release ‘SoundSession’, a live EP recorded in collaboration with the legendary Bill Laswell. As a preview, a live version of ‘Ninth Sun’ has been shared as a digital single.
On 2024’s ‘Good To Me’, Shannon Curtis delivered ten slabs of synth pop that sounded so authentically 80s, you might even believe a few of the songs were rarities from the era. With the album released at a time where a lot of musicians appeared to be obsessed with the 90s, this even more retro sound hit like a musical ray of sunshine. At the album’s best, the bright sound – heavily reliant on unnatural sounding keys and a strong vocal – showcased some great choruses. The multi-voiced ‘Serenity’ could’ve been culled from an old teen film soundtrack; ‘Sweat & Butterflies’ worked a pulsing heart that had clearly been inspired by OMD’s ‘If You Leave’ and a couple of Fiction Factory numbers, and the title cut showcased a great contrast between big beats and a more sedate voice, ending the record in a slightly more thoughtful manner. Even with a couple of tunes adding slightly more of a light goth/dreampop reverb, this was a record that offered a lot of entertainment for the 80s obsessed listener.
Despite being a prolific artist, singer songwriter Kurt Baker experienced a creative lull in 2025. Due to a change in personal circumstances – spearheaded by a massive change of location and a divorce – over the course of the year, he only released one digital single, before bowing out with a contribution to Wicked Cool Records’ Xmas compilation. Eventually buoyed by new writing partnership, his big return with ‘Undertow Afterglow’ puts the Kurt Baker stamp on a new year – and effectively a new beginning – in record time, appearing barely a week into 2026.