North Star Union has released "Echoes of decay", a slice of melodic heavy metal that feels less like a standard studio tracking and more like something dug out of the permafrost. There is a curious quality to Icelandic composer Myrmann’s work here; because he handles all the instrumentation and composition himself at Midgard Studio, the track possesses a singular, frighteningly cohesive nervous system. It...

Block’s ‘Whitecaps On The Hudson ’ arrives not so much as a pristine reissue but more like a rediscovered journal, its pages softened by time and emotional humidity. Here’s Block, a name practically synonymous with anti-folk’s charmingly crooked spine, revisiting a period where the Hudson’s currents mirrored a life in turbulent flux – sobriety found, marriage lost. https://open.spotify.com/album/4qw8Zz28Ld5xptsA2O87CH The quest for 'home' beats like a tell-tale...