introvertbackbone – joseph turner & the dudes of hazard
The verdict
“joseph turner & the dudes of hazard dig into dusty americana grit on 'backbone', a stomping work-song anthem with serious heart”
'backbone' opens with the sound of a shovel hitting dirt, and that rhythm never lets up. built around acoustic guitar, foot stomps, handclaps and driving gang vocals, the track sits somewhere between americana, acoustic blues and southern roots rock, with a whole lot of spirit that recalls colter wall at his most grounded. there's lovely guitar work, and the vocal line definitely shines. but best of all, the whole thing moves like a crew working through the heat. lyrically it's about digging deeper, sweating through the hard stuff, finding the push to keep moving. it's a well-crafted song that knows exactly what it wants to be; a playful, hard-working anthem you can feel in your bones.
joseph turner & the dudes of hazard are a brand new indie outfit from hellville, netherlands, built around acoustic guitars, sharp songwriting and a love for atmosphere. turner writes from the dutch delta and records much of the material himself, drawing on a background in rock bands while keeping one foot planted in acoustic songwriting. the dudes of hazard are a rotating group of friends who show up when they're needed, adding character to recordings and live shows. that loose setup gives the project its personality: unpredictable, honest, a little reckless. a great introduction.
thank u for making this joseph turner & the dudes of hazard ⛏️
star – arms & armour
The verdict
“arms & armour forge doom, post-punk and industrial into something stunning and brilliantly vast”
arms & armour's have a lovely new record called 'the hunted'. it opens with a track called 'star' that starts low and goes lower. guitars groan beneath layers of synth fog while drum machines pound out something closer to ritual than rhythm. there's a bit of doom's low-end crush into the same space as post-punk's spiky edges and a bit of industrial. on top of all that, there's a stunning vocal performance, a kind of soaring quality that cuts through the murk. and it's central refrain really lands. it's a heavy, hypnotic piece of work.
arms & armour are a cleveland duo who have been building this particular corner of the underground for fifteen years. lauren voss handles vocals, guitar and synths while john panza works drum machines, acoustic drums, guitar and synths alongside her. they self-produce everything out of a studio housed in a 140-year-old drill bit factory, which feels about right. they've toured the us playing bills that range from acoustic to death metal, fitting in wherever they land. that kind of versatility takes real confidence, and you can hear it here. we love this, and will definitely be checking out the rest of this album.
thank u for making this arms & armour 🏭
drinkin' blue – bloodkin
The verdict
“bloodkin craft something stunning on 'drinkin' blue', a pedal steel-laced meditation on memory that captures your heart”
'drinkin' blue' carries the weight of its origin story in every note. eric carter wrote it after entering rehab in 2008, when daniel hutchens drove him to treatment, picked him up seven weeks later, and opened his home while carter rebuilt his life. the song sat unfinished for nearly two decades, its imagery of old photographs, notebooks and letters waiting for the right moment. betsy franck joins carter on vocals, and john neff's pedal steel pulls the deep country thread that has always run through bloodkin's sound right to the surface. the sound world is stunning, and there's a wonderful dire straits-esque phrasing to the vocals. it's warm, weathered and wonderful.
bloodkin are an athens, georgia based band four decades into a story that keeps finding new chapters. founding member eric carter marks his 60th year with this album, the first bloodkin project since the passing of his lifelong songwriting partner daniel hutchens in 2021. rather than replace an irreplaceable collaborator, carter wove hutchens' spirit through every track. that bond still drives everything here. a beauty.
thank u for making this bloodkin 🛻
madreselvas (dios y la condena del paria) (feat. cristina di... – evil maracas
The verdict
“evil maracas craft something stunning on 'madreselvas', a slow-burning alt-rock single where devotion curdles into gorgeous, unsettling obsession”
'madreselvas' opens like a dark prayer that you shouldn't be hearting. the verses build on dark ambient textures, guitars cutting through while the vocal traces a line between tenderness and threat. then the chorus arrives, and this is clearly alt-rock that's bright and difficult to shake. guest vocalist cristina díaz brings something luminous and fragile to the track, her voice threading those verses beautifully. the production is pretty direct, and the big shifts in mood land with full weight. a gorgeous, unsettling listen.
evil maracas are a four-piece from l'hospitalet de llobregat, spain, built around vocalist and guitarist albert boguñá, lead guitarist miguel gil, bassist anna casaña and drummer jesús linares. the band has been playing live for years, but since 2025 they've sharpened their focus, shifting toward songs in spanish that sit closer to today's spanish pop rock scene while keeping their own identity intact: dark pop, classic arrangements, rawness over polish. that balance is paying off here, a great track.
thank u for making this evil maracas 🥀