Those already familiar with Scott Lavene will know his terrain: pin-sharp, kitchen-sink observations, rites-of-passage vignettes, musical snapshots of a lost – if fondly remembered – Essex youth.
Our gnarled protagonist’s daydreams may be of girls, glitz and glamour – see the brilliant Sadly I’m Not Steve McQueen, from 2024’s Disneyland in Dagenham – but his heart belongs firmly to the A13: the DNA that snaps him like an emotional bungee cord back to memories of cars, girls, budget booze, and mad-cap adventures. Three albums deep and the novelty of Lavene’s comic-tinged schtick could easily have started to lose its appeal. It’s testament to his talent – and co-producers Stew Jackson and Ryan Rogers’ sympathetic approach – that the ten…
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…Ostensibly tied to the ongoing reunion tour, Complete Studio Album Collection is exactly what it says: the band’s seven studio albums issued between 1994 and 2008, plus 1998 B-sides collection The Masterplan.
London’s 
With a 30-day window to return gear bought with a “borrowed” credit card, young wannabe rock stars Jeff Whalen and Dan Kern were on a mission in 1998 to record the songs they had been kicking around for a few months. Those tunes were a winning mixture of shimmering power pop, strutting glam rock, and non-clichéd alternative rock that eventually became the basis of Tsar’s self-titled debut album. The two guys called in favors from friends for more gear as needed while fighting off a faltering 8-track recorder and racing to the finish line with one goal in mind: scoring a record deal. These tapes have circulated before in less official channels, but Omnivore’s 2025 release of The Drugboy Tapes is their official coming out party, and it’s a blast to hear…
Royel Otis have gone from strength to strength in the past couple of years. They’ve locked in slots at festivals like Glastonbury, won over a legion of fans with their 
GUSH refers to a rapid, plentiful flow and enthusiastic affection. 
Anand Wilder released his solo debut album 
Special 20 track 2LP is released to coincide with and celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Howard Jones’ iconic and best-selling album 
On the album 
Japanese legends 
Sombr has New York City under his spell. The 20-year-old had jusr stepped onto a stage assembled on Canal Street to the sound of piercing screams. His debut album I Barely Know Her was scheduled for release in a few hours, but the musician wanted the first introduction of these songs to happen on the same streets that exist within them. There were people perched on fire escapes, others watching from the ledge of wide open windows. Behind the provisional stage, cars passed by and buses trudged along to their next stop while passengers glanced curiously at the impromptu rock show that shut the street down. The scene was everything that the album is — enamored, uninhibited, steeped in sonder.
Jobber to the Stars is the debut full length of the quartet known as 
If Meg Duffy’s 
As 
Previously unreleased in full, this celebrated live performance recorded live in 1977 for WCOZ that originally appeared on “The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads” is available as a 2LP collection. Cut at 45rpm and featuring fourteen tracks (seven are previously unheard from the original two-track tapes) recorded at Northern Studios on November 17, 1977, this blistering performances includes “Psycho Killer”, “Pulled Up”, “Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town”, “A Clean Break (Let’s Work)” and more.
Following their self-released fourth album, I Feel Alive, which, ironically, arrived a couple weeks into COVID-19 shutdowns in 2020, Montreal experimental pop darlings 
The World Is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die return with