Dry Cleaning by Max Miechowski

Ahead of their upcoming third album Secret Love, out 9 January 2026, Dry Cleaning have today unveiled their third single, ‘Let Me Grow and You’ll See The Fruit’. A softer offering from the record, the track's intricate guitar melodies and spoken delivery provides another exciting taster of what's to come. The track was one of the first songs written for Secret Love and is inspired by 60s folk act Pentangle, 2001: A Space Odyssey, ancient Roman poet Virgil and musician Robyn Rocket. Lyricist Florence Shaw says, “The song is about hyper focus and loneliness. It’s confessional, like a diary entry, written in a stream of consciousness style." Take a listen below. 

 

Alongside this announcement, the band are announcing the rescheduling of their North American tour dates, and have issued a statement about this decision: "Aside from the great pleasure of sharing ‘Let Me Grow…’ with you all today, it is with heavy hearts that we must also share some important news.We have had to make the difficult decision to move our Jan/Feb ‘26 US tour to May. This is due to a number of factors, not least of which the increasingly hostile economic forces that govern touring in the present day. Thankfully we have managed to reschedule the majority of the original shows and all tickets will remain valid, if that suits you, and refunds available if it does not. Regrettably, we have been unable to make this work for all dates due to the shortened routing. Refunds will be available from your place of purchase and we will do everything in our power to play for you as soon as we can. Thank you for your patience and continued support. Love, D.C". 

DRY CLEANING TOUR DATES
3 January – BOGNOR REGIS, UK, Rockaway Beach Festival
9 January – BRIGHTON, UK, Chalk (Resident)
10 January – LONDON, UK, Rough Trade East
13 January – BRISTOL, UK, Strange Brew (Rough Trade)
14 January – LEEDS, UK, Brudenell (Crash)
15 January – NOTTINGHAM, UK, Metronome (Rough Trade)
7 April – BERLIN, GERMANY, Festsaal Kreuzberg
9 April – COPENHAGEN, DENMARK, Vega
10 April – HAMBURG, GERMANY, Mojo Club
11 April – AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS, Melkweg
13 April – BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, AB Box
14 April – PARIS, FRANCE, Le Trianon
17 April – DUBLIN, IRELAND, Vicar Street
18 April – LIMERICK, IRELAND, Dolan’s
20 April – CARDIFF, UK, Tramshed
21 April – BIRMINGHAM, UK, XOYO
22 April – LONDON, UK, O2 Academy Brixton
24 April – GLASGOW, UK, SWG3 TV Studio
25 April – MANCHESTER, UK, New Century Hall
30 April – CHICAGO, IL, USA, Thalia Hall
1 May – TORONTO, CANADA, Concert Hall
2 May – MONTREAL, CANADA, Foufounes Électriques
3 May – HUDSON, NY, USA, Basilica Hudson
5 May – BOSTON, MA, USA, Paradise Rock Club
6 May – PHILADELPHIA, PA, USA, Union Transfer
7 May – BROOKLYN, NY, USA, Brooklyn Steel
8 May – WASHINGTON, DC, USA, Howard Theater
10 May – NASHVILLE, TN, USA, Basement East
12 May – OMAHA, NE, USA, Slowdown
13 May – DENVER, CO, USA, Meow Wolf
15 May – SALT LAKE CITY, UT, USA, Kilby Block Party
16 May – BOISE, ID, USA, Shrine Ballroom
17 May – PORTLAND, OR, USA, Wonder Ballroom
18 May – SEATTLE, WA, USA, Showbox
20 May – SAN FRANCISCO, CA, USA, August Hall
21 May – LOS ANGELES, CA, USA, The Belasco
22 May – SAN DIEGO, CA, USA, Casbah

i: https://www.instagram.com/drycleaningband

Photo credit – Jess Bibby

British singer-songwriter Henry Grace returned ahead of the weekend with “California Rain”, the fourth and final single from his forthcoming second album ‘Things Are Moving All Around Me’, due January 23rd. Painstakingly beautiful, the track’s hushed vocals sit within a solemn atmosphere that slowly stir to life, guided by a delicate, crackling guitar line. “This song has always been a firm favourite of everyone involved in the making of this record,” Grace shares. “It offers a sense of yearning, and a restlessness, that runs like a thread through all the singles on the album.” Take a listen and get lost amongst it for yourselves below. 

i:  https://www.instagram.com/henrygracemusic

Photo Credit: Karolina Wielocha

Released today, London-based artist Gretel returns with her brilliant new single ‘Darkness Be My Friend’, out now via Breadcrumb Records/AWAL. From its gentle, understated opening, the track swells into a cathartic burst of towering pop melody and thunderous percussion. Sharing more detail she explains: “I wrote ‘Darkness Be My Friend’ the day before we went in to start re-recording my next project the new unfamiliar way – I was scared and didn’t know if I had what it takes. It was dark but it was exciting. Recording live in this way challenged me way more as a musician than before, and it’s given me a huge desire to go forward and get better and tricksier with it in future. I feel like I’ve only just been born.” Take a listen for yourselves below. 

i: https://www.instagram.com/gretel

Wet Leg © Alice Backham 2025

Fresh off last month’s trio of Grammy nominations, Alternative Performance (“mangetout”), Alternative Album, and Best Album Cover, Wet Leg have released the video for their new single “pokemon.” The video is directed by Elliott Arndt of Faux Real who are a frequent tour support for Wet Leg and reveals a story of a person (played by Alice Longyu Gao) in an unusual relationship with a giant egg, a fitting entry into the surreal Wet Leg archive. Take a watch of the clip below. 

Upcoming live dates - 2025 
Sun 7th December – Channel 93.3’s Not So Silent Bight @ Mission Ballroom, Denver 
Tues 9th December – Twisted @ Byline Bank Aragon Ballroom, Chicago 
Thurs 11th December – 94/7FM Presents @ McMenamins Crystal Ballroom, Portland 
Sat 13th December – KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas @ Kia Forum, Los Angeles 
Mon 15th December – Grammy Museum, Los Angeles 
Wed 31st December – Hogmanay @ West Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh 

Upcoming live dates - 2026 
Thurs 5th February - Laneway Festival, Auckland 
Sat 7th February – Laneway Festival, Gold Coast 
Sun 8th February – Laneway Festival, Sydney 
Mon 9th February – Roundhouse, Gadigal Land, Sydney 
Tues 10th February – Northcote Theatre, Wurundjeri Land, Melbourne 
Fri 13th February – Laneway Festival, Melbourne 
Sat 14th February – Laneway Festival, Adelaide 
Sun 15th February - Laneway Festival, Perth 
Wed 18th February – Toyosu Pit, Tokyo 
Thurs 19th February – Gorilla Hall, Osaka 
Fri 20th February – Diamond Hall, Nagoya

Sun 12th April – Coachella @ Indio, California 
Sun 19th April – Coachella @ Indio, California

Wed 3rd June – Primavera Sound @ Barcelona 
Fri 19th June – Isle of Wight Festival, Isle of Wight 
Sun 21st June – PinkPop, Landgraaf, NL 
Sun 28th June – La Prima Estate, Italy

Wed 1st July – Trinity College, Dublin 
Wed 8th July – Castlefield Bowl, Manchester 
Thurs 9th July – Millenium Square, Leeds 
Fri 10th July – Alexandra Palace Park, London 
Sat 25th July – Latitude Suffolk 
Sun 26th July – Tramlines, Sheffield

Wed 12th August – Paredes de Coura Festival, Portugal

 i: https://www.instagram.com/wetlegband/

A CMAT headline show in Cardiff was a long time coming. So when Ciara and her very sexy CMAT band finally arrived, they carried the energy of a group who’d been counting down the days. After postponing the original date due to a dental emergency, the return felt like a cathartic release. “We loves you, we do,” she told the crowd, and the room didn’t hesitate to echo it back

Making her entrance on someone’s shoulders from the back of the hall - not surprising in the slightest - she crashed into “Janis Joplining” and “The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station,”, a riotous double opening that set the tone for an evening of high kicks, line dances, birthday serenades, and the kind of physical comedy only she can fold seamlessly between songs about heartbreak. By the time she hit “I Don’t Really Care for You” and “2 Wrecked 2 Care,” the crowd, decked out in boots, tinsel, and neon cowboy hats had fully stepped into her world: part cabaret, part panto, yet full of heart.

Outfits aside, a sign in the audience steered the night even further off-script. A placard with a handmade plea for “Coronation St,” caught CMAT’s eye, and the band switched gears instantly. “We’re going to change the set for you,” she announced, slotting the track into the running order with a grin. Performed with a loose, improvisational thrill, it became an unexpected highlight, especially with it being my favourite track from the recently released album, Euro-Country. 

“California” and “When a Good Man Cries” followed, two songs that pushed the room into softer focus. Their raw honesty landed with particular weight live, carried by Ciara’s unguarded delivery and a band that knows exactly when to lean in.

Her crowd work remained brilliantly loose. The segues seamless. At one point she apologised, unconvincingly, to anyone expecting fresh between-song banter after her much-loved Green Man set. “It’s the same, I’m sorry!” she quipped, though anyone holding out hope for another impromptu Catatonia cover was out of luck.

As the set deepened, CMAT balanced humour with sincerity, shifting between glittering pop and bruised confessionals. The emotion never felt forced, even when she stretched songs until they trembled slightly at the edges. And as she pushed towards the finale with “Iceberg” and “Running/Planning,” the room was already primed for an encore. 

Returning for three songs, the momentum kept steady, beginning with a confident run through of “EURO-COUNTRY” before closing on the communal warmth of “Stay for Something”, Ciara briefly swallowed by a friendly mosh pit at centre stage. 

Even with the curfew looming, CMAT stretched the moment with the ease of a performer completely at home, joking that she could stay all night doing Shirley Bassey covers - a threat the crowd seemed more than willing to test. 

If there was any doubt, tonight confirmed it: the “C” in CMAT stood firmly for Cymru 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 A Celtic love-in, and a long overdue one at that.

CMAT Played:
Janis Joplining 
The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station 
I Don’t Really Care for You 
2 Wrecked 2 Care 
Coronation St. (Audience request) 
California 
When a Good Man Cries 
Tree Six Foive 
Have Fun! 
Take a Sexy Picture of Me 
Iceberg 
Where Are Your Kids Tonight? 
Running/Planning 

Encore: 
EURO-COUNTRY 
I Wanna Be a Cowboy, Baby! 
Stay for Something

*****

Following an impressive year in 2025, Cardiff's Immersed Festival is set to return to Cardiff on Saturday, 7 March 2026 at Tramshed, showcasing an exciting mix of emerging and established talent, set across 4 stages. 

Headlining this year’s festival are genre-defying six-piece CVC, who make their Immersed debut after a run of sold-out shows across the country. They’re set to lead an electrifying bill alongside indie favourites The Pill and Welsh Music Triskel Prize winners Source.

The festival has recently strengthened its reputation as a forward-thinking, industry-shaping initiative by winning the prestigious Teaching Innovation award at the University Alliance Awards - a recognition of its outstanding impact on higher education.

Curated by Creative Industries students at the University of South Wales and supported by Creative Wales, the event also raises vital awareness for Music Declares Emergency, the music industry’s climate-action charity.

This year’s theme, ‘Believe in Magic’, transforms the festival into a month-long celebration of imagination, wonder, and creative possibility. Participants are encouraged to challenge convention, spark curiosity, and use creativity as a force for hope and positive change.

More than thirty artists and bands will perform across four themed stages including the flagship Believe in Magic stage and the community-driven Togetherland stage, which will spotlight homegrown talent from Cardiff’s Sound Progression alongside international artists presented by BBC Horizons.

Huw Stephens, BBC Radio DJ and recipient of an honorary doctorate from the University of South Wales said: “Immersed has become a welcome addition to the live music scene in Wales. Its focus on talent, creativity and production is invaluable, and its work with students in nurturing their community is highly successful. The event itself is professionally delivered, with a special experience for those involved.” 

For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the Immersed Festival website
immersedfestival.co.uk and See Tickets. 

Tickets are priced at £27 for the general public and £13 for students with a
valid NUS cards. (14+, Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult 18+). 

Image credit Holly Whitaker

Taken from their new EP first time listener, out February 6th via PNKSLM, vegas water taxi returns this week with the brilliantly catchy brat summer. Written about a future Orwellian state based on the modern world, the track's playful lyrics and intricate melodies serve up another delightful taster for what's to come. "I’d recently re-read 1984, and set myself the challenge of trying to write a near future dystopia in a song, particularly in relation to the state of the USA," explains frontman Ben Hambro. "It imagines a world where people who had not participated in the/a brat summer were being rounded up by the police, whilst the only things on the radio are Call Her Daddy and The Joe Rogan Podcast. It ends with the protagonist and Matty Healy setting fire to LA. Easy listening stuff." Take a listen below. 

i: www.instagram.com/vegaswatertaxi 

Coinciding with a string of new UK and European live dates, TTSSFU has returned today with the brilliant new effort, Upstairs. The self produced single showcases an experimental side to the Wigan-based artist through its ghostly melodies and stripped back pop aesthetic. TTSSFU shared the following, "This song is about a man I met one time and I become completely obsessed with him, got to a point where I had to zoom into photos of him to find faults." Take a listen for yourselves below.

TTSSFU Live:
27th November – The White Hotel, Manchester
6th December - Old Blue Last’s Xmas Party, London

2026:
15th January - Eurosonic, Groningen
16th January - Le Grand Mix, Tourcoing 
17th January – Esquires, Bedford
23rd March – Trades Club, Hebden Bridge
24th March – Hare and Hounds, Birmingham
26th March – Clwb, Cardiff
27th March – Future Yard, Birkenhead

i: https://www.instagram.com/ttssfu/

Photo: Omero Mumba

Written, recorded, produced and mixed by Annie-Dog, today sees the Irish multifaceted artist making her brilliant return with her latest effort, My Honey. Depicting the breakdown of communication within a relationship, the track's genre hopping sound is led by its pulsating electronic backdrop and soft, chopped up vocals, as all the while distorted guitars and percussion flow in between. Take a listen for yourselves below. Plenty more music is promised for 2026.

Live Dates
26th Nov -IMRO Other Room, Dingle (Other Voices)
28th Nov -The Marina Inn, Strand Street, Dingle (Other Voices)
30th Nov -An Droichead Beag, Main Street, Dingle (Other Voices)
28th Jan -Whelan’s (Upstairs), Dublin 

i: https://www.instagram.com/anniedogmusic/

Photo by Young Ha Kim

Belgian-born, Australian-based singer-songwriter Romanie returned ahead of the weekend with her insatiable new effort, I Won't Yell. Reimagined from an early folk song written years prior, the track's punchy melodies and power-house pop energy delivers a completely new spin on the idea. Speaking about the process, Romanie shares, “We turned this small acoustic song upside down into this powerful statement, keeping basically all the lyrics and giving them a new meaning. The song is about not being heard as a woman: oftentimes we get called ‘too much’ or ‘too loud’ with the result of keeping our emotions to ourselves, or not speaking up about the things that we want to. ‘I Won’t Yell’ was a fun song to make: letting go of my constant self judgement with the nudge of Tom and Adam, who let me yell in the vocal booth.” Take a listen below. ‘I Won’t Yell’ is the third single lifted from Romanie’s forthcoming album, It’s Not That Funny, due out Feb 20 via Community Music.  

i: https://www.instagram.com/romaniemusic