review
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On her debut album, the Northern-Irish-Ghanaian artist moves confidently through soul, disco, electronic pop and folk, creating a record about desire, identity, community and choosing light without denying the darkness. Artist: Winnie AmaAlbum: DEKALabel: WAMA MusicRating: ★★★★½ There is something quietly defiant about an artist refusing to choose between the different parts of herself. The…
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On her exhilarating second album, Nia Archives tears down the walls between jungle, indie-pop and confessional songwriting, proving that emotional vulnerability and ferocious breakbeats belong in the same room. Artist: Nia ArchivesAlbum: Emotional JunglistLabel: Hijinxx/Island RecordsRating: ★★★★½ The music industry is fond of celebrating women who break through barriers, provided they remain grateful, marketable and…
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Katy Perry Watch It Burn Watch It Burn After a period of intense public scrutiny, Katy Perry returns with Watch It Burn, a single that feels less like a comeback and more like a statement of intent. Rather than chasing trends, she leans into a darker, more cinematic sound, pairing brooding production with a vocal…
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This week’s selection spans powerful songwriting, bold artistic reinvention, viral momentum and socially conscious storytelling. From Ireland to the international stage, these are the songs that have caught our ear and sparked conversation across the industry. Lola Young – “From Down Here” Fresh from a remarkable period of professional success and a well-earned rest, Lola…
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In an era where electronic music often leans heavily towards escapism, spectacle and algorithm-friendly singles, Swedish producer Fred Rydén is taking a different route. His latest album, The Way To The Good Life, is not simply a collection of dance tracks designed to fill playlists or soundtrack late-night club sets. Instead, it is a sixteen-track…
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8/10 Wallis Bird has never sounded particularly interested in perfection, and thank Christ for that. “Hold Tight!” works precisely because it feels alive. Messy in places. Urgent. Warm. Full of movement and breath and friction. In an era where so much contemporary folk-pop arrives vacuum-sealed and emotionally overmanaged, Wallis continues to sound gloriously human. Released…
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7/10 A Must-Watch, Must Listen To, and Must See Live Band! Akrobat’s new single “Dirty Gathering” arrives like a slow leak of tension through concrete. Nothing about it rushes to impress you. Instead, it coils itself gradually around atmosphere, restraint and unease, revealing a band increasingly comfortable in mood, texture and ambiguity rather than obvious…
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9/10 *Part of our throwback album review series. With Blindness, The Murder Capital have delivered the strongest and most fully realised record of their career so far. Not because it is cleaner or more commercially accessible, but because the band finally sound completely unconcerned with fitting neatly inside the increasingly exhausted “post-punk revival” label that…
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8/10 *Part of our throwback album review series. With Open Wide, Inhaler finally sound less concerned with escaping the shadow hanging over them and more focused on becoming the band they were probably always heading towards. For years, lazy discourse around the Dublin four-piece revolved around lineage rather than music. But by the time Open…
The Industry Review 