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Review: The world lost one of the all-time great indie songwriters when The Chills leader Martin Phillipps passed away in 2024. The New Zealand jangle-pop pioneers started out in the 80s, writing memorable melodies and beautiful harmonies and went on to have a career lasting more than 40 years. They helped coin the 'Dunedin sound' - a catch-all name given to the indie scene in the university city of Dunedin in the remote east coast of the South Island of New Zealand - a place that punched way above its weight in terms of cultural relevance and great indie music for its size. This release comes as a reminder of their greatness and includes a whopping 20 songs (it's a double LP and on gold(!)) from the band's early years revisited. As is often the case with tireless creatives, there's a vault of unfinished work that often never gets completed. Philipps dedicated moments at the end part of his life to fleshing out these song ideas, resulting in their completion nearly 40 years after they were written. 'If This World Was Made For Me' is the first song to be unearthed from this collection and is as beautiful as indie psychedelia gets with Philipps' vocal harmonies transcendent in their splendour.

Review: This special The 35th-anniversary reissue of Come Away with ESG celebrates the groundbreaking debut album by the Bronx sisters. It's a proper genre-defying classic that shaped hip-hop, house, and post-punk with its signature minimalist funk. ESG's stripped-down sound is built on raw drumbeats and hypnotic bass lines and defies traditional labels with a more groove-driven, horn and organ-free alternative to funk. Their influence spans decades and has inspires artists across several genres which is why Come Away remains a classic and one that proves that true rhythm lies in the spaces between the beats.

Review: To celebrate the 35th anniversary of this iconic album, it has been reissued on vinyl in various colours including this organ neon sizzler. Come Away with ESG was the groundbreaking debut from the Bronx-based sister group and is recognised as a genre-defying classic that played a pivotal role in shaping hip-hop, house and post-punk. ESG's minimalist funk, stripped of horns and heavy organ, offered a fresh take on the genre. Decades later, their impact is undeniable, influencing artists across multiple styles. This album is a testament to the power of rhythm-not just in the beats, but in the spaces between them.

Review: To mark the 35th birthday of this album it has been reissued on vinyl in different colours, so take your pick. As any funk lovers will know, Come Away with ESG is the Bronx sisters' pioneering debut album and a genre-blurring masterpiece that is accepted to have very much helped shape hip-hop, house, and post-punk with its signature minimalist funk. ESG's raw, stripped-down approach offered a fresh alternative to traditional funk in that it was free of horns and heavy organ. Decades later, their influence remains undeniable and has inspired countless artists across multiple genres. This record is all the proof you need that the magic of rhythm isn't just in the beats-it thrives in the spaces between them.

Review: Sometimes, Record Store Day releases really do come through, and this is one of them as it unearths extremely rare 1988 demo recordings from alt-rock trailblazers Royal Trux, previously only circulated on a handful of cassettes in 1998. Now available for the first time on wax, the collection captures the raw, unfiltered energy that preceded their breakthrough Twin Infinitives and features early versions of 'Walkin' Machine,' 'Cut You Loose,' 'Gold Dust' and a cover of Neil Young's 'Time Fades Away,' These demos really give you a window into the band's formative chaos and brilliance and highlight the uncompromising vision that made Royal Trux such favourites.

Review: Alternative rock pioneers Throwing Muses are one of the earliest allies of Pixies, touring together as some of 4AD's few American bands. They were outperformed by Pixies commercially, but that's not what Throwing Muses are about: they continue to be much loved and continue to provide us with earnest, deeply artful songs. This new album, out on the brilliant Fire Records, was largely written by the band's Kristin Hersch on Moonlight Beach in Encinitas, California - hence the title. The songs were then taken to Steve Rizzo's Stable Sound Studio in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, where beautiful cello parts from Pete Harvey were fused in with acoustic guitars. Hersh might call Harvey the star of the show, but the haunting melodies of her voice, particularly on 'Summer of Love', are achingly beautiful. Throwing Muses remain a beacon of light.