Prata releases April 5th via Fuzz Club Records.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/11821760

Following their perfectly appetizing (and as far as i can make out, completely vanished off the face of the internet by now) Black Box EP in 2022, we get this group's debut full-length courtesey of Dirtnap Records and this time around, there's actually some tangible background info available. No wonder these folks sounded familiar the first time around, since we're dealing with a duo consisting of US garage punk royalty Mark Ryan (most notably of Radioactivity, Mind Spiders and Marked Men) and Micah Why, whose previous bands i don't think i've ever come across. Their minimalist synth punk certainly has retained some of that Mind Spiders vibe although this shit is a lot darker, more stripped-down and abrasive, having a certain oldschool vibe to it wich echoes of Minimal Man, Nervous Gender, Screamers, Units or Visitors but you might just as well compare them to more recent phenomena like Powerplant, Pow!, Spyroids or a somewhat less spikey version of Lost Packages crossbred with the digital insanity of Nubot555, the more minimalist moments of Digital Leather.

Read The Air releases March 22nd via Summer Shade.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/11821329

https://nocoastrecordings.bandcamp.com/track/dust

Turquoise Window releases February 15th via Swimming Faith Records.

Angeltape releases April 5th via Captured Tracks.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/11820474

A dense and noisy post punk spectacle unfolds on this Richmond, Virginia group's debut EP, its four elaborately constructed songs making a fully mature and confident impression already. At times this has a curious vibe of, say, Straw Man Army plus a subtle trace of Poison Ruïn while in other places this shit reminds me a lot of some of the past decade's more melancholy and song-oriented post punk acts in the vein of early Estranged, Public Eye, Criminal Code, Bruised, VHS, Waste Man as well as Atlanta heavyweights Wymyns Prysyn and Institute/Mothers's Milk.

Few groups have exemplified the Berlin post punk vibe boiled down to such a pure and defining form as Aus, of whom we're getting the first new tunes in almost four years on this new 7". On this one, the previous two records' rather purist, suffocating bleakness gets opened up just a bit by way of a newfound sense of groove, a much needed propellant and change of pace revealing a plausible way forward for a group that could, at times, feel a bit averse to change.

Hard Copy releases March 22nd via Dais Records.

Conditions II releases March 1st via Nice Swan Records.

When Brussels group Warm Exit toured Germany last year few of us, myself included, had anticipated the kind of surprise we'd gonna be in for, although their 2022 TV / Ultra Violence single already hinted at their sound morphing into more of a classic post punk direction. On stage though, it immediately became clear what a radical transformation this group had gone through with barely a speck to be found of their initial sound more in line the current generation of quirky garage-/synth-/eggpunk acts, now replaced by an intense and pitch-black abyss of atmospheric post punk, which is now also reflected on their full length debut, calling to mind a illustrous and diverse array of groups like Rank Xerox, Criminal Code, Diät, Girls In Synthesis, Sievehead or Negative Space.

Cleveland's Knowso for sure have been among the most idiosyncratic and memorable groups of the past couple years. Their newest full length shows them at the height of their strength once again, their amalgamation of post punk, noise- and math rock still coming across just as quirky and whimsical as it is tight, rigid and angular all the same, combining a seemingly procedural and efficient, mathematical approach with an amount of fun and catchyness you wouldn't really expect inside these rough parameters. At this point, their sound is pretty much their own thing but if you absoiutely must compare them to other groups, you might find some similarities to stuff such as Brandy, Landowner, Big Bopper or maybe Nag in their more approachable moments.

Uppercat releases January 26th via Hidden Bay Records.

Levitate releases March 8th via PNKSLM Recordings.

Night Thoughts releases February 2nd via Dirt Cult Records.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/9104309

Following a thoroughly enticing debut EP last year, Bergen, Norway group Sklitakling present an even stronger first LP, retaining the strummy, quirky charm of the debut while expanding and branching out stylistically. Their songwriting has won a lot of contour since then, their idiosyncratic arrangements coming across much crisper now. Despite their norwegian origin, i can't help but feel reminded of the danish scene of the past decade - the Copenhagen approach to post punk you might say - with the likes of Iceage, Melting Walkmen, Spines and, just recently, Pleaser coming to mind at various points as having a similar sense of melancholy and melody. In addition, there's a distinct cowpunk vibe at play here, kinda like an LSD-soaked early Angst, Gun Club and, especially, the more recent hallucinogenic existential nightmare of Murderer.

(…) as focused as they haven't been in a long while (…) i wrote about their previous album Smile Building's Exit. Tempe, Arizona group Soft Shoulder then be like: "Hold my beer…" and come around the corner with yet another LP, recorded around the same time as its predecessor and presenting their sound in an even more snappy and compelling light. Their unique blend consisting of both contemporary and ancient post punk magic tricks, oldschool noise rock and distinctly no wave- and '80s The Fall-informed noise experiments has never had more catchy appeal and sparkle than on this record.

Thrilling post punk shit from NYC balancing out a classic Joy Division-/Bauhaus/early Interpol vibe with an unexpectedly playful and melodic power pop sensibility more reminiscent of the likes of Woolen Men, The Estranged, or Radar Eyes… also some hints of Wipers and Television can be found in there. Rather than just another standard genre pastiche, everything here is well thought-out and robustly constructed, every track on this EP is anchored by some sound and solid songcraft.