An array of inaudible voices greets the listener at the beginning of this EP, almost as if eavesdropping on a field recording of train station announcements sourced from a damaged cassette. With the arrival of a repeated three note keyboard riff lurking beneath a world of ambient sounds – ranging from something that sounds like the rhythmic clatter of trains on tracks, to noises that evoke imagery of workmen shifting huge piles of rubble – it’s clear that this listening experience will be more about creating a mood than enjoying any “traditional” music.
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MAX RAEL – The Enemy Is Us
Barely three lines into the opening number of his solo debut, experimental musician Max Rael has already embraced differences not being like anyone else and told his audience he feels exhausted. The frankness in which the artist’s neuro divergence is discussed throughout ‘Slightly Less Than Human’ is a signifier of the album’s honest approach as a whole. ‘We Are The Enemy’ isn’t so much a collection of songs; more a world of personal statements, shared with a heart and disarming honesty, but also with the hope that Rael will attract kindred spirits. Obviously, this doesn’t aim for a broad commercial potential, but as albums go, it’s never less than interesting.
THE GYPSY MOTHS – Five By Five From Four EP
On a pair of albums released in 2022 and 2023, The Gypsy Moths served up a very melodic brand of rock pop, with a strong leaning towards influences from jangly 60s sounds and late 70s power pop. Their 2025 EP release ‘Five By Five From Four’ finds the band sticking firmly to what they know, but with a couple of huge choruses found en route and some very natural melodies playing to a very retro crowd, it becomes obvious that taking a familiar path is a wise move.
RAVINE – Chaos And Catastrophes
Labelled “extremely brutal” by Eyehategod guitarist/Down drummer Jimmy Bower, Ravine pull no punches when it comes to delivering a heavy riff. The Oregon band’s brand of sludge/doom and hardcore mightn’t reach the insane levels of heaviness set by Byzanthian Neckbeard or Dopethrone, but the best moments on their 2025 release ‘Chaos and Catastrophes’ are on a par with many a great and muddy sounding, riff wielding act.
DOTSUN MOON – Tiger
By releasing just three albums over a fourteen year span, you could definitely say that Dotsun Moon’s work is an exercise in quality over quantity. The one man band’s third long player,‘Tiger’, comes almost a decade after ‘A Swan’s Song’, but it’s a release that was definitely worth waiting for.