The Predatory Wasp
The bones of ØXN’s folk-horror lament are still visible in this expansive remix – Radie Peat’s (also of Lankum) voice remains spectral and clear – but Frost drags the track into darker terrain, stretching and fraying its edges until it feels less like a song and more like a summoning.
Fantologia I is a 17-track compilation curated by Quixosis and DJ +1, bringing together experimental electronic artists from across Latin America. The release explores themes of uncertainty and instability in the region, focusing on the idea of hauntology and the disappearance of promised futures. The music ranges from ambient and textured soundscapes to more rhythmic, club-influenced tracks, tied together by a shared sense of tension. Arriving at around the midpoint of the VA, Peruvian artist Orieta Chrem’s track KON blends Aphex Twin-esque disquieting synth lines with haunting vocals and clipped drums.
Unbelievably good, taken from her recent Can’s Gone Warm EP. Sits somewhere between John Glacier and Kate Bush. Ridiculous.
Maiya Blaney describes her second album A Room With A Door That Closes as “a love letter to her blue,” an emotional state that she defines as “a kinetic, intense, and dark energy that needs to be expressed as soon as it is felt.” The eleven songs on the album span radioactive kiss offs, sorrowful meditations on yearning, and gossamer reveries about self image, with the stand-out And moving through pitch-shifted drone, majestic strings and soft guitar over the course of its 6+ minutes.
https://maiyablaney.bandcamp.com/album/a-room-with-a-door-that-closes
On her debut album Desert Window, Lucy Gooch stays true to her electronic foundations, while incorporating more acoustic instrumentation and digging deeper into her folk roots through songwriting. At the heart of Lucy’s music is her rapturous, at times operatic vocal, with which she bring to the fore more than with previous releases. The result is described as “an atmospheric balance between Kate Bush and Cocteau Twins harmonies” which is risky ground with which to invite comparison; the fact that I’m not mad about it shows just how good this album is.
Rainy Miller’s Joseph, What Have You Done? is a stark, atmospheric dive into fractured memories and Northern Gothic landscapes. Rooted in Lancashire’s grit, Miller blurs grime, ambient, and spoken word with raw, confessional storytelling while voice notes and field recordings trace threads of trauma, estrangement, and resilience. It’s by turns sad, bleak, furious and nihilistic, but never less than completely engaging.
https://rainymiller.bandcamp.com/album/joseph-what-have-you-done
I’m really enjoying Kara-Lis Coverdale’s new album From Where You Came, although starting your bio with the line “Kara-Lis Coverdale creates music that transcends reality” is a bit much tbh. It’s a minor gripe when the music is this engaging though, especially Offload Flip which has just the right amount of low end wallop to perfectly offset all the dreamy, spectral synths.
https://kara-liscoverdale.bandcamp.com/album/from-where-you-came-2
Multi-instrumentalist and producer Lindsay Olsen aka Salami Rose Joe Louis released her new album Lorings on Flying Lotus’s Brainfeeder label last week and it’s excellent. Produced almost entirely on her Roland MV8800 workstation, for a couple of songs, SRJL invited a handful of talented friends to collaborate: guitarist/producer Flanafi (with whom Olsen partnered for the collaborative album ‘Sarah’ in 2024); Omari Jazz (Black Decelerant); Luke Titus and Sergio Machado Plim. The result is satisfyingly dreamy bedroom pop and occasionally glitchy electronica that drifts and tugs in perfect harmony.
Ludicrous amounts of fun stuff out this week which I’ll be highlighting in the coming days, starting with Sibel Koçer’aka JakoJako’s new LP Tết 41, her debut for Mute. Recorded during a trip to Vietnam and bookended by field recordings from Tết Lunar New Year celebrations, the album is a sonic nod to Koçer’s heritage, with the melodic palette breaking away from traditional Western scales, drawing instead from the tonal intricacies of the Vietnamese language, inspired by overheard conversations. Produced with a minimalist setup consisting of a Eurorack and Waldorf Iridium Core, Tết 41 reflects on notions of rebirth, and the pursuit of a sonic core.
The Predatory Wasp 