Leicester musician Neil Hill launched Shopfires in late 2023 with Summer Bruises, a homespun jangly-pop gem that immediately caught the attention of Subjangle’s Darrin Lee and led to the release of…

In the Evening Light (video still) Vetchinsky Settings is the quiet meeting point between two longtime maestros of British indie pop: James Hackett, the unmistakable voice of The Orchids, and Mark …

The Melody Chamber The Melody Chamber are from Richmond, Virginia, but they sound like they hail from early 80’s Manchester and/or Athens, Georgia. Little is known about the background of the band …

Fran Carlyon (©Julia Chouffot) Fran Carlyon is a songwriter from Southend-on-Sea, England, crafting quiet, home-recorded lo-fi “folk for ages”. Since beginning his musical project in 2023, Fran has…

Assistant/Goodbye Wudaokou Assistant is a Brighton-based indie-pop band formed in 2001. The band, which has experienced lineup changes, reunited in 2020 after a long hiatus and has since released m…

Assistant/Goodbye Wudaokou Assistant is a Brighton-based indie-pop band formed in 2001. The band, which has experienced lineup changes, reunited in 2020 after a long hiatus and has since released m…

Glo-Worm (©Pat Graham) Glo-worm formed in Washington D.C. in 1993, “or it might have been sometime in ’92, no one can remember”. Previously, singer Pam Berry had been in Black Tambourin…

Whitney’s Playland After making their debut in 2023 with Sunset Sea Breeze (Meritorio / Paisley Shirt), Whitney’s Playland, the duo of Inna Showalter (Magic Fig, Blades of Joy, Modern C…

The Royal Landscaping Society The Royal Landscaping Society started in Seville (Spain) in 2012 as a solo project, then expanded into a band and eventually shrunk again into a duo with Cris Romero (…

Francesco Giordani per TRISTE© Mentre tutti ci interroghiamo su quale possa essere oggigiorno il senso di compilare una classifica delle migliori pubblicazioni musicali dell’anno -lo avete notato? Mai come oggi abbiamo la sensazione di ascoltare tantissima musica, mai come oggi abbiamo la sensazione di non riuscire ad ascoltare tutta la musica che vorremmo…- non avendo in tasca risposte particolarmente brillanti alla pur legittima domanda, mi limito a segnalare gli album che, fra le “novità”, più ho ascoltato con sincera emozione nel corso dell’ultimo anno e ai quali si legherà la gran parte dei miei ricordi datati 2024.

Francesco Amoroso per TRISTE© In this long (and frankly, somewhat pointless) list of the 100 albums that shaped my musical 2024, you’ll find albums that I truly appreciated, albums I think are important, albums I loved, and those that moved me to tears.I don’t believe this list holds any critical value, and I’m sure there are many more albums that could have made the cut (I listened to nearly a thousand records in 2024).

Francesco giordani per TRISTE© Il notevole videoclip di Mind’s A Lie dei londinesi High Vis pare a tratti raccontare il sequel  delle imprese del giovanissimo protagonista di un altro videoclip, ovvero This Can’t Go On di Bill Ryder-Jones, che tanto avevamo amato nei primi mesi di quest’anno. Nella staffetta tra il primo e il secondo tempo del racconto, esaurita la spinta idealistica della prima giovinezza, l’ex adolescente ormai adulto continua la sua folle corsa a testa bassa, che appare improvvisamente come priva di una meta, più simile allo sbattere d’ali di un uccello in gabbia o allo smanacciare di un pugile che prende a pugni la sua ombra, tenuto in vita solo dal vibrare della propria rabbia.

Trust Fund (©James Hankins) Trust Fund is the musical project of singer-songwriter Ellis Jones. The band, which featured a rotating lineup of musicians, self-released an EP titled I've Been Ages in 2012, followed, one year later, by a second, Don't Let Them Begin, and a split EP with the Welsh band Joanna Gruesome in 2014. In early 2015, Trust Fund signed to Turnstile Records for the release of the first full-length album, 

The Gentle Spring (©Philippe Dufour) The Gentle Spring are a new group, formed by Michael Hiscock, Emilie Guillaumot and Jérémie Orsel. Michael has an illustrious pop history, having been a founder member of The Field Mice, possibly the most beloved band on Sarah Records in the 1990s. When Michael and his friend Bobby Wratten formed The Field Mice, the two of them very quickly created a set of songs whose emotional honesty, raw guitars and perfect pop melodies pierced the hearts of a generation of indiepop fans, kids who were unmoved by the posturing of mainstream indie, and who didn’t want to spend time in fields dancing at 24-hour raves. 

Francesco Giordani per TRISTE© Nei coriandoli di tempo disponibili, ahimè sempre più rari e microscopici, continuo a seguire con sincero interesse le vicende di alcuni reduci dei cosiddetti anni Zero a cui si legano tanti piacevolissimi ricordi della mia prima giovinezza. Se i Libertines, alle soglie dei una mezza età splendidamente portata, si sono concessi il lusso di firmare…

Songs Of Green Pheasant is the work of Duncan Sumpner, an artist / teacher from Oughtibridge in Sheffield. His self-titled debut album was released on FatCat in August 2005, and drew widespread praise. Fragile, yet coherent and utterly charming songs with a warm cloudy depth, sweet melodies and some gorgeous vocal harmonising, beautifully sung and played. In the following couple of years, Songs Of Green Pheasant had two more records on FatCat: …

Rocky Lorelei Rocky Lorelei represents the solo lo fi musical work of Rachel Taylor (also memeber of Slipper), who was born and raised beside Lake Ontario in Toronto, and is currently set up in Berlin. Her musical processes run parallel to her psychic processes; writing and recording songs is her most vital means of cultivating an understanding of her inner and outer life experiences, bringing a symmetry to her music and her sense of self.

Peppe Trotta per TRISTE© Se mi venisse chiesto quale è stato l’ultimo disco di debutto ad avermi folgorato fin dal primo ascolto senza mai cedere una briciola in intensità nel corso degli anni, non avrei alcun dubbio su cosa rispondere. Lovetune For Vacuum fu amore puro al primo ascolto, rapimento ed estasi che nel tempo si sono rinnovati, anche se con forza minore, nei lavori successivi firmati Soap&Skin.

The Ladybug Transistor in Prospect Park (Photo by Erick Schonfeld) The Ladybug Transistor were a Brooklyn-based indie pop group associated with The Elephant Six Collective. Started in 1995 by Gary Olson, Edward Powers and Javier Villegas, the band quickly released Marlborough Farms on Park N' Ride Records. With Jeff Baron and Jennifer Baron added to the lineup, they released Beverley Atonale…

Capitol Capitol is a Hamilton, Ontario quintet made up of brothers, RJ and Josh Kemp, Matt and Wes Lintott, and Chris McLaughlin. Over seven years since their debut, they have released one full-length album, Dream Noise, out in 2019 via Meritorio Records, a four-song E.P, All The Rest Of My Heads (2021), an instrumental film score (Light Between Us…