On May 15th comes the debut long-player Woke Up In Hollywood by the UK’s It’s Karma It’s Cool. A stylish, and enjoyable piece of work.

Les Easterby’s latest writings from a once-shut-out heart are perfect sympathies for the physically shut-in masses.

German based Vlimmer release their latest Ep Pulmo. A recording of dark musings in a nightmare landscape

Brandi Ediss releases the unique Bees And Bees And Bees, a sultry, soulful, and jazz-inspired work of brilliance

The Piano Equation lives up to its name, not only as a great example of a modern solo piano record, but as a distillation of ideas from one of the instrument’s foremost contemporary architects.

A well-traveled Texas troubadour offers reassurance in tough times.

Combining highlife guitar lines with a swinging rhythm section playing in a difficult time signature, Lionel Loueke’s “Têkê” functions almost as the bible by which the group will adhere.

Oranssi Pazuzu is a Finnish quintet of blackened metallurgists who’ve little interest in blast beats, lo-fi shred, Satanism, corpse paint, or any of the other trappings of their chosen genre.

SPYGENIUS release the new single “Spite” on April 24, all proceeds will be donated to the Matthew Seligman Tribute Fund

Australian quartet RVG proved themselves expert practitioners of explosive, melodic rock & roll on their remarkable debut A Quality of Mercy in 2017. Three years later, Feral picks up exactly where its predecessor left off.

On Complications, the band’s third album, E explores the nooks and crannies of high volume guitar rock, rarely reducing themselves to mere butt-kicking.

Leeds trio back with Love, Blood & Monsters on Trash Wax

The New Fools sophomore release Mershmellow, offers nostalgia through a number of enjoyable stylistic changes.

If the music wasn’t so clearly sun-baked, we might think this was a long-lost artifact from the Germanic seventies.

A supergroup of sorts, Human Impact consists of Spencer, bassist Chris Pravdica (Swans), drummer Phil Puleo (also Swans, as well as Cop Shoot Cop) and electronicist Jim Coleman (Cop Shoot Cop).

Christina Schneider takes a journey to the center of the mind.

On April 28th, Cherie Currie releases her solo album Blvds of Splendor on streaming platforms, including an updated rendition of “Queens Of Noise”

Konrad Wert, a.k.a. Possessed By Paul James, returns with his first album in seven years,

Musician Iwan Gronow completes a hat trick of excellence with his latest single “Highest Symbol”

A brash Chicago quartet turns modern anxiety into snappy entertainment.

Joined by two drummers and two electric guitarists, Cohen draws from rock, pop, funk, electronica and ambient music for a blend that casts a net outside jazz while remaining firmly inside its value set – like a trip-hop take on seventies fusion.

The three-piece Castle Ruins are certainly not going to set the world on fire with musical evolution, rather their latest EP, You’re the Curse, is of the post-hardcore, late-period grunge style and that works well for me.

Portland’s Sellwoods offer dynamite instrumentals, more on new Chaputa 10”.

“This 69-song edition showcases artists from 10 different countries, doing just about every sub-genre of pop music, including power pop, pop/rock, folk/pop, psychedelic pop, garage, indie-rock, and so forth.”

The Well Wishers along with Big Stir Records stand up to the mark, and raise money for the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic.

the black watch return with Brilliant Failures, an album which is anything but what the title suggests

Gigaton by Pearl Jam is a politically inspired, personally driven piece of mature, middle-aged grunge and it sways and erupts with a needed hopefulness

Katie Crutchfield delivers emotional shock therapy with devastating efficiency.

Trans-Atlantic supergroup Professor And The Madman drop the title track “Séance” from their upcoming album, summoning up the old school sounds of our youth

Memphis singer-songwriter Dan Montgomery returns with a concept album about his drug-fueled past in 1980s South Jersey.

Due for release April 3rd, Dolph Chaney manages to captivate once again with the stylish Rebuilding Permit.

Today Super 8 release Head Sounds. The feel good vibes that society needs today to lift spirits from the virus abyss

Jonny Polonsky’s latest Kingdom Of Sleep raises more questions than its thirty-two minutes can answer

Jackson Price acknowledges his debts to his musical heroes, and focuses on simply playing the blues as best he knows how.

Morrissey has returned less than a year after the uneven Californian Son with a much more refined effort titled I Am Not A Dog On A Chain.

Backwards Compatible by Chris Church acts as a mixed tape of old-school sounds, forming a soundtrack to our youth.

On May 8th, Glass Records Modern release the excellent Mercurial 1978-2018, a celebration of Alec Novak, The Venus Flytrap and his lesser known projects

Moments and Fragments_ is easily one of the most ambitious and daring albums in the genre in ages, and it comes out on Instru Dash Mental March 27th.

For casual listeners, the years between Bay Area unique psych/prog/power pop combo Game Theory’s final album Two Steps From the Middle Ages and the debut of bandleader Scott Miller’s more overtly psychedelic combo The Loud Family seem barren, save the usual “greatest hits” compilation (Tinker to Evers to Chance). In reality, the band hadn’t stopped working – it had merely reconfigured itself into what would now be called an indie rock supergroup.

On April 3rd The Lovely Eggs release I Am Moron, an album which sums up the global mood perfectly

Prior to the April 11th album launch, I take a look at the complex but enjoyable Two Chairs, One Day by Welsh act The Jesus Fairies

Angelic singing plus timeless songs spells heavenly grace.

On Friday March 20th, Bobby Conn releases the aptly titled Recovery, brave, ambitious and delicious with attitude

Sophomore release from Mayflower Madame offers low creativity from high expectations.

The gap of 36 years between albums, does not help the Boomtown Rats to create something great.

There have been a number of bands in recent years who have begun playing with this style once again, but Ptolemea are among the few who dare to explore and stretch the genre to its breaking point.

This March 27, Elektrafied- The Elektra Years 1979-1982 brings together the three albums recorded for Elektra by historic power pop outfit Shoes

Fontaines D.C are the subject of a new documentary Sold For Parts, a fly on the wall view into the recording of their debut masterwork Dogrel.

From Big Stir Records comes a new compilation in the digital singles series. The Fifth Wave brings the best of global power pop bands and labels together.