Leon Blanchard, a name perhaps faintly echoing from the mid-noughties indie surge, returns not with fanfare, but with a solitary signal flare titled "Astronaut". Hailing from Grimsby, a town known more for its fishing heritage than its celestial aspirations, Blanchard's new song does not really feel like a return, but more like a personal gearbox picked up after years of chatter. In 2007, his old band,...

Apex4X. Right, let's dive in. "The Fire Within", an album with thirteen tracks; feels like peering into someone's journal, but one that's written in neon ink and scrawled across a storm-ridden sky. It’s not a straight path, this emotional rollercoaster, more like a particularly scenic, but also slightly terrifying, cliffside drive. The whole thing drips with this fascinating paradox - personal pain delivered with...