Photo credit: The Buffacow

Coinciding with the news of their second album Resistance, due for release on 22nd May, CQ Wrestling have made their very welcomed return with their latest single, Pacifico. Lifted from the forthcoming record, the track’s charging guitars and towering, infectious melodies offer an exhilarating glimpse of what’s still to come. "As a band, we’ve been through every obstacle going; grief, covid destroying releases and tours, the stop button being forced on, probably everything you could imagine to see a band collapse. But we’ll never stop. 'Pacifico' is the song that epitomises this journey we’ve been on and what it means to us to have music and friendship as our own act of Resistance. It’s our song to find a path to change." 

Continuing about the album, they say: 
"This album is a collection of songs above all about trying to find joy and hope in dark times. We are so proud of this body of work, and have fought incredibly hard to get it done. Over the past two years writing and recording this album, this band has almost broken up from the madness and impossible nature of being an artist in the modern world, the cost of living has plummeted to new lows, mental health issues are impossible, and more conflicts are starting, pulling more people into crisis. Most significantly for us personally was the devastating loss of Jake’s father Gavin, who was a champion and original manager of this band, all the way back when we first met in school.  Resistance is everywhere and it’s the simple explanation to how this album was made. We are so proud of this, and it’s a huge testament to keep the faith, keep the joy, and keep fighting through bleak times." 

Take a listen below. 

Live Dates
March 14 – SXSW: Liift Showcase, Seven Grand
March 16 – SXSW: Rocknite, Hotel Vegas
March 18 – SXSW: BME, Two Palm
April 25 – Beautiful Ones Festival, Concorde 2, Brighton, UK
May 27 – The Crescent, York, UK
May 28 – Boileroom, Guildford, UK 
May 29 – Waterfront Studio, Norwich, UK
May 30 – Cavern, Exeter, UK
June 2 – Rough Trade, Bristol, UK
June 5 – Sidney & Matilda, Sheffield, UK
June 6 – Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh, UK
June 10 – Cluny 2, Newcastle, UK
June 11 – Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham, UK
June 12 – Polar Bear, Hull, UK
June 13 – Rough Trade, Liverpool, UK
Oct 21 – The Dome, London, UK
Oct 22 – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, UK
Oct 26 – G2, Glasgow, UK
Oct 27 – Yes (Pink Room), Manchester, UK
Oct 29 - Bodega, Nottingham, UK 

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

Photo credit: Antony Muse

Following last month’s release of his original version of Campus by Vampire Weekend, GRAMMY-winning artist, songwriter and producer Rostam has today unveiled details of his highly anticipated third studio album, American Stories, arriving May 15. Coinciding with the news is the widescreen epic Like a Spark, a scintillating melodic driven jam packed with character. Speaking about the album Rostam explains, “At some point in making this record I realised the album I wanted to make was one that reflected my identity as both Iranian and American. Pushing the most Iranian elements right up against the most American ones brought me a certain kind of joy. The first time I put microtonal saz melodies over Western guitar chords, I was thrown off by the way the two rubbed together. But the more I listened the more I became drawn to that rub. I became addicted to it.” Take a listen to Like a Spark below. The video is taken from American Stories: A Concert Film, premiering later this spring directed by Antony Muse, shot at the legendary Sound City Studio A.

Tour Dates
May 27th | San Diego, CA - Music Box*
May 30th | Los Angeles, CA - The Ford#*
June 3rd | San Francisco, CA - The Chapel*
June 5th | Vancouver, BC - Fortune Sound Club!
June 6th | Portland, OR - Aladdin Theater!
June 7th | Seattle, WA - The Crocodile!
June 9th | Boise, ID - Neurolux*
June 10th | Salt Lake City, UT - The State Room*
June 11th | Denver, CO - The Gothic Theater*
June 13th | Minneapolis, MN - Fine Line KCMP/Electric Fetus*
June 14th | Chicago, IL - Thalia Hall*
June 15th | Toronto, ON - The Opera House*
June 17th | Cambridge, MA - The Sinclair*
June 18th | New York, NY - Webster Hall#*
June 19th | Philadelphia, PA - Brooklyn Bowl*
June 20th | Washington, DC - 9:30 Club!
June 22nd | Saxapahaw, NC - Haw River Ballroom*
June 23rd | Atlanta, GA - Terminal West*
June 24th | Nashville, TN - Basement East*
June 26th | Austin, TX - Mohawk*
Sept 8th | London, UK - Village Underground^
Sept 9th | Paris, FR - La Maroquinerie^
Sept 12th | Amsterdam, NL - Bitterzoet
Sept 13th | Berlin, DE - Berghain Kantine^
Sept 15th | Stockholm, SE - Nalen Klubb^

# = w/ Zsela
* = w/ Henry Solomon
! = w/ Henry Solomon + Elori Saxl
^ = w/ Bad Actor

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

Photo credit: Maysa Askar

Taken from their forthcoming album, Nude descending staircase headless, due April 17th via Run For Cover Records, Teen Suicide have returned with their brilliant new single, Spiders. There’s a slow, deliberate swell to the band's latest effort with instrumentation that gathers weight beneath it, all before guitars creep in, percussion tightens its grip, until everything finally breaks open. Kitty discussed the new song, saying: "This song was written on a sunny day in Florida, with birds chirping at the sliding glass door. The brightness of the day made me weirdly angry and I needed to release some venom. I wanted to scream about a girl who tied knots in my mind, and I wanted the guitars to do a certain thing, so Sam and I stayed inside and plugged away at it. This is the first song I've written for a full band with a human drummer. I was absolutely terrified to sing it live when we started playing it in 2024--it used to come out of me weak, like a baby goat bleat. Since then the song hurts less and screaming has helped me find my voice. I feel like it turned out pretty cool!" Take a listen below. 

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

Photo Credit: Karolina Wielocha

Ahead of her forthcoming debut album Squish, due April 10 via Breadcrumb Records / AWAL, Gretel returns with her latest single, Fire Blooming Trees. A striking cut, its towering guitar riffs and soaring production offer another thrilling glimpse of what’s still to come. Gretel explains in more detail: “I love this one so much, it's about overconsumption and over-saturation in our world and finding the humanity behind all the algorithms. I think the day I wrote it was the day I heard about the LA forest fires which is where the title of the song came from. That sounds kinda intense, huh?” Take a listen for yourselves below. 

Gretel will be playing a headline show at London’s Oslo on April 14 in celebration of the album release. Tickets are available here: https://gretel.ffm.to/oslopresale

Gretel: Squish

1. Squish
2. Fire Blooming Trees
3. Maybelline
4. Unbloom
5. Laurali
6. Drunk on the ballroom floor
7. Darkness, be my friend
8. Pick your heart up
9. Oh Well
10. Witch hunt
11. Nervous driver
12. The perfect body 

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

Photo Credit: Rachel Winslow

Gia Margaret has today shared her brand new single, Good Friend, taken from the forthcoming album Singing, out April 24th via Jagjaguwar. Reflecting on the track, Margaret says: “I wrote ‘Good Friend’ in late 2019, after my first bigger US tour. I remember that it felt like glimpse of what my next album could be. It was fun and light in a way I hadn’t yet expressed with music. Little did I know, my next album(s) would be a result of cancelled tours and uncertain feelings about the future. I unearthed this song when I needed lightness in my creative process while recording ‘Singing’.  It reminds me of what my good friends bring to my life during the worst of it. (And that music can be a good friend too.) It was produced by Guy Sigsworth and myself and a product of all things nostalgic to me. A little nod to the late 90s and my everlasting appreciation for weaving Gregorian Chant into pop music.” Take a listen below. 



Gia Margaret Live 
Fri. May 1 – New York, NY @ Stone Circle Theatre * 
Sat. May 2 - New York, NY @ Stone Circle Theatre * 
Sun. May 3 – Baltimore, MD @ Current Space * 
Mon. May 4 – Philadelphia, PA @ Ethical Society * 
Thu. May 7 – Atlanta, GA @ Aisle 5 * 
Fri. May 8 – Nashville, TN @ Blue Room * 
Tue. May 12 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall * 
Sat.  June 20 – Seattle, WA @ Fremont Abbey * 
Sun.  June 21 – Portland, OR @ Polaris Hall * 
Tue.  June 23 – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel * 
Fri.  June 26 – Los Angeles, CA @ Sid The Cat Auditorium * 
Sat.  June 27 – Pioneertown, CA @ Pappy & Harriet’s * 
Sun.  June 28 – Tucson, AZ @ La Rosa * 
Tue.  June 30 – Santa Fe, NM @ Meow Wolf * 
Mon. Sep. 7 – Glasgow, UK @ Oran Mor 
Tue. Sep. 8 – Manchester, UK @ Halle at St. Michael’s 
Thu. Sep. 10 – London, UK @ EartH Theatre 
Fri. Sep. 11 – Utrecht, NL @ Jacobikerk 
Sat. Sep. 12 – Paris, FR @ L’Archipel 
Wed. Sep. 16 – Berlin, DE @ Genezarethkirche 

*  w/ Brendan Eder Ensemble 

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

Photo credit: Hannah Bruynzeel

Dutch-based outfit Honey I’m Home recently returned with their dazzling new effort Pretty, a single that wastes no time in trying to introduce itself. Instead, it just slips in, all hazy guitars and loose-limbed rhythm before locking you in to its tightly wound groove. Vocalist and guitarist Thom Schotanus explains: "'Pretty' is about people who have learned to suppress negative emotions by fully focusing on their appearance. The track explores depressive feelings that are hidden behind the search for attention—not because these people are shallow themselves, but because using looks is something that works. After all, people apparently do judge a book by its cover.  The song looks at emptiness and cynicism, and at how being attractive can sometimes become the only thing left of someone’s personality. Eventually, people start to believe in that as a last form of support: “at least I am pretty.” Take a listen below. 

Honey I'm Home 2026 live dates
Feb 20 - Rotown, Rotterdam, NL (supporting Rocket)
Feb 21 - Paradiso, Amsterdam, NL
Feb 23 - Neue Zukunft, Berlin, DE (supporting Rocket)
Feb 24 - Bumann & Sohn, Cologne, DE (supporting Rocket)
March 12 - SXSW, Austin (US)
April 25 - Turmzimmer, Hamburg, DE (supporting Girl Scout)
April 26 - Berghain Kantine, Berlin, DE (supporting Girl Scout)
April 28 - Blue Shell, Cologne, DE (supporting Girl Scout)
April 29 - Le Pop du Label, FR (supporting Girl Scout)
May 01 - Merleyn, Nijmegen, DE (supporting Girl Scout) 

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

Photo credit: Emma Jones

Following its BBC 6 Music Huw Stephens premiere, Isle of Wight risers ugly ozo have this week shared their brilliant new single overkill. Announcing their ‘dive’ EP, set for release May 1st via REX RECS, the track wastes no time stamping its mark with snarling basslines and jagged guitars. Speaking on ‘overkill’, Jessica Baker explained: “‘overkill’ tells the story of loving someone who you know, deep down, doesn’t meet your standards and doesn’t treat you right -but staying anyway. Not for romance or hope, but out of loneliness, laziness, fear, and the comfort of routine. It’s the truth no one wants to admit: sometimes we cling to the wrong person because being alone feels scarier than being unhappy.” Take a listen for yourselves below. 

Live Dates
25 MAR -The Sebright Arms, London (UK)
31 MAR -Exchange, Bristol w/ Feet (UK)
3 MAY -Gold Sounds Festival, Leeds (UK)
7 MAY -Clwb ifor Bach, Cardiff (UK)*
8 MAY -Rat and Pigeon, Manchester (UK)*
10 MAY -SWG3 Poetry Club, Glasgow (UK)*
11 MAY -Sidney and Matilda, Sheffield (UK)*
12 MAY -Rough Trade, Bristol (UK)*
15 MAY -Moth Club, London (UK)*
16 MAY -The Great Escape Festival, Brighton (UK) 
6 MAY -Heartbreakers, Southampton (UK)*
23 MAY -Dot to Dot Festival, Nottingham (UK)
24 MAY -Dot to Dot Festival, Bristol (UK)

*supporting thistle.

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

Photo credit: Fabrice Bourgelle

Ahead of its release this Friday (6th March), Joshua Idehen has shared the latest single from his forthcoming album, I Know You’re Hurting, Everyone Is Hurting, Everyone Is Trying, You Have Got To Try. Arriving just as spring starts to shake off the last of winter’s grey, the track feels made for brighter days with its dance-floor ready beat and soaring house vocal laying the glowing foundations for Idehen’s sharp, poetic delivery. Talking about the track, Joshua said: "We can thank Ludvig’s wife, Ylva, who suggested it as an album closer. And, it found its place". Take a listen below. 

 

Headline Tour 2026
12/03/26 Balzaal Vooruit, Gent, BE
13/03/26 Bittzoet, Amsterdam, NL
14/03/26 Hasard Ludique, Paris, FR
16/03/26 Veedel, Cologne, DE
17/03/26 Berlin, Gretchen, DE
18/03/26 Betty, Hamburg, DE
19/03/26 Feinkostlampe, Hannover, DE
21/03/26 Inkons, Malmo, SE
14/04/26 Chalk, Brighton, UK
15/04/26 The Phoenix, Exeter, UK
16/04/26 Electric Bristol, Bristol, UK
17/04/26 Gorilla, Manchester, UK
18/04/26 Motel Mozaique Festival, NL
20/04/26 Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, UK
21/04/26 Rescue Rooms, Nottingham, UK
22/04/26 MASH, Cambridge, UK
23/04/26 KOKO, London, UK
25/04/25 The Workerman’s Cellar, Dublin, IE
26/04/26 St Lukes, Glasgow
07/05/26 Fasching, Stockholm, SE
09/05/26 Babylon, Istanbul, TR
14/05/26 Sala 3 Razzmatazz, Barcelona, ES
15/05/26 Sala El Sol, Madrid, ES
16/05/26 Casa do Capitão, Lisbon, PT
17/05/26 Socorro, Porto, PT
19/05/26 Lucia, Vienna, Austria

Summer Festivals
28/02/26 Brecht Festival, Augsburg, DE
18/04/26 Motel Mozaique Festival, Rotterdam, NL
24/04/26 Shindig Festival, Malemsbury, UK
01/07/26 Roskilde Festival, DK
24/07/26 Cardiff Castle (supporting Self Esteem), UK
01/08/26 Stowaway Festival, Stowe, UK
21/08/26 We Out Here Festival, Dorset, UK
28/08/26 Shambala Festival, Northampton, UK
29/08/26 Kalorama, Lisbon, PT 

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

Photo credit: Maeve Wong

Following up their debut single The Age of Innocence, London four-piece Tooth have today unveiled their blistering second effort, Medicine. Loaded with a quiet undercurrent of angst, brushed with soft, melodic passages, the track perfectly showcases the band’s knack for shifting tone and dynamics, gliding effortlessly between restraint and release. "We wanted to take the chaos of Sonic Youth but dilute it with a bit more structure and melody, and make it catchier," explains vocalist and guitarist Tom Pollock. "Lyrically, it revealed itself as a love song about an incessant lust for someone. This 'someone' was pretty vague in my mind, but it has a rawness of emotion I was fond of." Take a listen for yourselves below. 

Tour dates:
Mar 4th | London, UK - Brixton Windmill
Mar 5th | Birmingham, UK - O2 Institute w/ Keo
Mar 6th | Leeds, UK - Stylus w/ Keo
Mar 7th | Manchester, UK - O2 Ritz w/ Keo
May 3rd | Leeds, UK - Gold Sounds Festival
May 13th-16th | Brighton, UK - The Great Escape Festival
May 23rd | Bristol, UK - Dot to Dot Festival
May 24th | Nottingham, UK - Dot to Dot Festival
July 9th | Cheltenham, UK - 2000 Trees Festival 

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

Photo credit: Adam Powell

Following last month's return with Seven Degrees, Friko have today unveiled their propulsive new effort, Choo Choo. Taken from the band's much anticipated second album, Something Worth Waiting For, out April 24th, the track's charging melodies and energetic choruses give an exciting taste of what's to come. “I’ve always had a thing with the magic of trains, and when I was writing that song I started singing ‘choo choo’ and it made me laugh,” Kapetan recalls. “It always feels good to play live, with all the slowdowns and speed-ups, but it’s also a very emotional homage to the band and how they feel like home to me.” Take a listen for yourselves below. 

Tour dates: 
Apr 25th | Chicago, IL - Metro [Release Show]
May 5th | Philadelphia, PA - WXPN NON-COMMvention
July 26th | Tokyo, JP - Fuji Rock Festival
Aug 6th | Haldern-Rees, DE - Haldern Pop Festival
Aug 8th | Sicily, IT - Ypsigrock Festival
Aug 12th–Aug 15th | Parades De Coura, PT - Parades De Coura Festival

i: https://www.instagram.com/friko4u/