The Predatory Wasp
Ericka De Casier mines 00s r&b to incredibly convincing effect on her latest, entirely self-produced album Lifetime, and it might very well be her best yet. The title track is the final on the LP, with drums emerging from a billowing cloud of synths before shimmering keys and her yearning vocal take centre stage. For fans of Sade, Janet Jackson and being very romantic.
This is taken from Under a Familiar Sun, the new album from The Vernon Spring and the solo project of British composer and producer Sam Beste. Over twelve elegant songs, Beste’s beautiful, expansive compositions centre around a graceful and deliberate approach to piano, accented by vocal collaborations, spoken word, and a gently compelling mix of electronic and acoustic instrumentation.
https://thevernonspring.bandcamp.com/album/under-a-familiar-sun
Thee modern masters of sweet soul return with We Don’t Have to Be Alone: a gorgeous, floaty ballad that deals with two folks coming to terms with the fact that it’s ok to find comfort and joy in love at a provisional level. Happy Friday y’all.
https://theesacredsouls.bandcamp.com/track/we-dont-have-to-be-alone
Divine Shadow is one of the standout tracks from Surgeon’s Shell Wave, an album released on Tresor that sees the veteran producer leaning into a murky, atmospheric sound palette. Built on a thick, juddering rhythm and streaked with misty, fragmented melodies, the track maintains tension without ever tipping into total chaos.
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
There’s so little information out there about 18 DAYS’ latest vaporwave album Miracles – it’s not even been added to their official Bandcamp page – that I’m not sure what to say about it, other than it is astonishing that music of this lofi beauty gets produced and released without anyone really paying attention.
Jenny Hval opens her new album Iris Silver Mist with Lay Down, a track that floats in slowly, all soft synths and whispered intimacy. She sings about lying in the dark with a scythe in her hand, which sounds ominous, but lands more reflective than threatening. There’s a quiet jazziness to the arrangement, loungey and fluid, making it feel like something half-heard through a hotel wall.
Xenia Reaper’s new album Gambling had me at “a requiem to noughties trance-euphoria”, scratching an itch that only 36’s Cold Ecstasy had previously been able to reach.
The Predatory Wasp 