Marking 35 years of boundary-shattering existence, Japanese avant-garde metal pioneers Sigh returned with I Saw the World’s End (Hangman’s Hymn MMXXV) – a fully re-recorded, reimagined version of their 2007 cult opus. Released last Friday via Peaceville, the album arrives alongside a brand-new video for the blistering track ‘Me-Devil,’ produced by Matt Vickerstaff.
AA
Unsounds – 4th July 2025
Christopher Nosnibor
Oops. It seems I let things slide a bit. Just over two years ago, I provided coverage for the first ‘Handmade’ volume, and now, here we are, faced with the third instalment of a four-single series. And for those who mat be wondering, ‘A physical album of the collection will be released with volume 4’.
As the accompanying text outlines, ‘The Handmade series is an homage to craftsmanship through an exploration of the lexicons specific to traditional metiers. It unfolds over the course of 4 thematic volumes. With guest Yannis Kyriakides on electronics they create works where abstract notions mix with tangible ones by linking the arts of the hand with sound and poetry.’
Before we delve into the single’s two tracks, it’s worth relaying the contextual blurb, as it might as it might be to paraphrase, I always worry about missing something pivotal ad looking lame, so I prefer instead to lay it out as given: ‘Equipped with the “Method of Cutting and Assembling for Women’s Dresses, Children’s Clothes, Trousseau and Layette” by Mrs. G. Schérer, a work duly authorized and distributed in state normal schools and municipal schools at the end of the nineteenth century, Anne-James Chaton imagined a contemporary dance choreography in which « grand battement » and « pas chassé » were performed by following the instructions for the construction of a bodice with basques, a frock coat, a little boy’s jacket. Then he cuts, pleats and sews together a few letters of the alphabet – a, e, i, l, n, o, p, s, t, u – and writes a sentence that he borrows from the French poet Jean-Marie Gleize. In Tailles, the art of couture thus reveals its affinity with dance and literature.” Are you all on board?
Here, ‘The trio push the boundaries of traditional rock music incorporating spoken word, electronics with experimental angular guitar riffs to produce unconventional but infectious, beat driven music that embraces dissonance and distortion.’
And yes, a lot happens a mere nine and a bit minutes: ‘Pas De Danse’ for a start, being a dark stark whir and clank and chank and clatter of electronica which intimates an industrial edge. It’s the whipcrack of a vintage drum machine that provides the spine for ‘Pas de Danse’ – the sound of a Roland TR606 or thereabouts delivering a crisp, relentless snap that keeps metronomic time for a spoken word narrative, delivered in French, in a muttering monotone ., there are swipes of distortion and squalls of disruptive noise which interrupt this, intrude on the relentless swell of sound.
The five-minute ‘Ecrire un Phrase’ (that’s ‘write a sentence’ in translation) brings jagged drones shards odd angular noise – including shards of dissonant guitar reminiscent of Gang of Four. There’s something of a DAF vibe about this relentless, dissonant, drone attack.
Immediate it is not. Droney and difficult, it is. Just the way we like it.
Legendary bass player and vocalist Jah Wobble presents ‘Tyson Dub Remix’, a song dedicated to his dear departed Staffordshire bull terrier. This heralds his new exclusive dub album Dub Volume 1, a solo effort that sees him write, play and arrange everything. The album features full-colour outer and inner sleeves based on paintings by Wobble himself, with the Limited Edition vinyl edition being clear with yellow and red colours dropped in to reflect the artwork.
‘Dub Volume 1′ marks Wobble’s first solo release via Peckham-based label Dimple Discs, although he had earlier participated in other collaborative releases put out by the label with Telefís (Cathal Coughlan and Jacknife Lee), and also The Ukrainians, along with former Siouxsie & The Banshees and Specimen member Jon Klein.
Expertly mastered by Anthony Chapman (Collapsed Lung) and cut to achieve maximum clarity and volume, this record boasts astounding top layer sonics, This solo deep dive into dub is guided by the influence of sonic pioneers like Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry and King Tubby, the result being a rich, immersive listen, full of low-end weight and intricately layered textures.
AA
“Tyson was a very stalwart, typical staffy and very, very resolute. Yeah, he was, the governor, but full of love, full of fun. And he was a rescue dog. We got him from Battersea Dogs Home, and we knew who we wanted. We’d seen him online. I said, “He’s—” and they said, “Well, nice. He’s not dangerous or anything, but he’s just absolutely sort of delinquent, you know, like you have to be. You have to be a very experienced dog handler." But we held out and held out. We were there all day. I had an Uber waiting, we were coming back up north—me, the missus, and me boys. And in the end we got him. My missus and her dad used to just get strays off the street in Liverpool. You don’t really have stray dogs now, but he used to love strays —and he loved Tyson, you know. So that swung it,” says Jah Wobble.
“I’d walk 10–12 miles some days up the hills, and he’d come with me. He’s the family dog, but he was just with me all the time, you know. When I went on tour he couldn’t wait for me to get back. He was lovely. So he had a serious kidney thing. And then a year later, he got sick again. Staffies are so tough. So it turned out he was riddled with cancer. Within a week or two, he had to get put down. And when he had to go, he just went to sleep in my lap. So that was it.”
AA
The Norwegian–Swedish collective Orsak:Oslo returns with Silt and Static, their most emotionally intense and musically ambitious record to date. Set to be released on September 5, 2025 via Vinter Records, the album marks a profound new chapter for a band long celebrated for their introspective blend of psychedelic haze and dystopian post-rock.
Recorded spontaneously, Silt and Static captures the band at their most stripped-down and unfiltered, balancing atmospheric fragility with crushing depth. With tape rolling and no roadmap, the album emerged naturally, giving shape to a sound that’s both deeply personal and bleak yet beautiful.
“This is the most honest and emotionally charged record we’ve made to date,” says the band. “Silt and Static is not a concept album, but it still carries a distinct atmosphere that sticks with you. It maintains a fragile balance between friction and flow, born in this session that at times felt like it was on the verge of collapse, yet somehow kept enough momentum to find a winding way forward. None of the songs were written with a specific audience or genre in mind, they simply emerged while the tape was rolling. The entire album came about spontaneously, and we did our best not to get in the way of where it wanted to go. It’s not meant to be perfect, but it is meant to be real.”
“We hope there’s something, somewhere, in the space between the ugly, the fragile, the beautiful, and the unbreakable that stays with the listener as the needle approaches the runout groove on the final side of this double vinyl.”
Following the album’s gripping first single, ‘084 Salt Stains’, the band now unveils the second single, ‘083 Petals’, a brooding and hypnotic track that reveals the emotional tension at the heart of the new album. A track built on contrast and collapse, it begins with a sense of control before slowly disintegrating into distortion and desperation.
“For us, ‘083 Petals’ was an exercise in contrasts,” the band explains. “It began with confidence but quickly unraveled — a mask slipping, dignity hanging by a thread. It had to almost fall apart before it could come back together. Somewhere between muted cries and atonal screams lies this track.”
From the slow-burn psychedelia of their earlier work to the more introspective and improvisational textures of Silt and Static, Orsak:Oslo has never sounded more cohesive or more exposed.
Formed between Norway and Sweden, Orsak:Oslo has firmly built a loyal following over the years, with a sound that channels post-rock, krautrock, doom, and ambient psychedelia into captivating sonic landscapes. Their ability to stay unpredictable, while always sounding unmistakably like themselves has set them apart in the post-rock underground.
Silt and Static is a culmination of that journey: a double LP that breathes, fractures, mourns, and moves forward.
Industrial Sludge Metal Band WORST ONES Unleashes New EP Cold Case Against Institutions Carrying Out Cruelty.
Philadelphia’s industrial sludge metallers WORST ONES are ready to come back with a new EP, after releasing the single ‘Vex’ in March this year. The new effort is called ‘Cold Case’ and it is composed by the title-track and a remix version of the same.
AA
‘Cold Case’ is a searing indictment of power, complicity, and the violence hidden in plain sight. Built on punishing industrial grooves, a 303 bassline, and layers of moody textures and noise scorched guitars, the track hits with a menacing, high energy momentum that channels the raw intensity of Twitch era Ministry and Skinny Puppy, the gritty pulse of Die Warzau, and the impactful aggression of The Prodigy.
Lyrically, it exposes how institutions carry out cruelty with precision while society turns away, pretending not to see the blood on its hands. The phrase “just another cold case” becomes a symbol of willful ignorance, where injustice is not buried because it is unsolvable, but because it is inconvenient. The chorusʼ imagery – “up against the wall / going in for the kill” – evokes violent repression and execution, while the line “every sick and nightmare reason comes to life” suggests how dark motives are brought to the surface and acted upon. Even in the face of horror, the masses “rally in their fervor,” a reference to mob mentality and blind nationalism. Violence is not just permitted; it is ritualized. Power is the culture, and the aftermath is “a feast for vultures.”
But at its heart, ‘Cold Case’ is a protest. It ends not just in defiance with “I wonʼt fall in fear,” but with a warning: “Now you’re sick, their eyes can see it.” The mask has slipped. Itʼs a refusal to be complicit and a demand to confront the truth, even when it burns.
‘Cold Case’ was written and recorded by Drew Ew. Mixed and mastered by Jared Birdseye. Promo Photography by Luz Karolina Sanchez. Live photography by Vinny Barreras. Cover and logo by Drew Ew except “deathmetallogo” by Darren Adcock. Music Video by Drew Ew.
WORST ONES is:
Drew Ew – Vocals, Guitar, Programming
Doppleganga – Drums, Programming
AA
Canada-born and LA-based singer-songwriter Andy Stochansky makes a heartfelt return with his new single, ‘500 Symphonies,’ a moving preview of his forthcoming solo album, Poetry of Birds. Known for his evocative lyrics and organic instrumentation, Stochansky once again weaves emotional vulnerability with poetic clarity.
“’500 Symphonies’ is about telling somebody that someone is interested in them, when they do not know about it,” says Stochansky. "If they feel the same way, then I am telling this person that it will feel so real and magical—just like 500 symphonies."
Poetry of Birds marks a return to introspection, shaped by Andy’s deepening connection with nature and a longing to quiet the chaos of modern life. The album invites listeners into a reflective sonic space—where small moments become epic, and stillness carries weight.
With a career that spans decades, Stochansky’s journey has taken him from the stage — touring for seven years with Ani DiFranco —to the studio, writing hits like Shannon Noll’s chart-topping ‘Shine’ and collaborating with artists such as Goo Goo Dolls, Dragonette, and Lola Lennox. His music has graced major film and TV soundtracks, including The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 1.
In 2020, he launched the acclaimed experimental project White Elephant Orchestra, earning a spotlight from NPR’s World Café. Now, he returns to his solo roots with Poetry of Birds—an album inspired by poetry, film, everyday people, and the natural world.
Other standout tracks include’“Beautiful Sky,” a tender meditation on digital fatigue, and ‘Champion,’ a tribute to the quiet strength of a diner waitress.
“I want people to walk away with a sense of hopefulness,” Andy shares. “I put a lot of care into these stories, and I’m excited to finally share them.”
AA
Heddlu is the new musical project by Rhodri Daniel. The Ceredigion native was a founding member of renowned Welsh band Estrons who had a major impact on the industry having gained rave reviews from the likes of NME, Vice, DIY and Clash to BBC Radio, Radio X, Ultimate Guitar, The Guardian and Independent.
After finishing the band in 2019, Rhodri became aware that his hearing was severely damaged. Years of touring the live circuit had taken their toll, Rhodri ultimately being diagnosed with hearing loss, tinnitus and severe sensitivity to noise. The effects were so acute, Rhodri was unable to play live music, leading to him composing his critically acclaimed debut album (Cantref, 2022) in his head whilst completing the entirety of the Wales Coastal Path (900 miles). His family and namely his sister, were great sources of comfort and hope during this difficult period. Serendipity led Rhodri back to music, and heddlu was born. Meaning ‘Police’ in Welsh, from the words ‘peace-force’, heddlu’s music has been true to its’ name, offering a force of peace to the songwriter.
Rhodri spent the next few years writing and experimenting with new sounds and instruments as his hearing slowly recovered. Whilst writing and recording his 2nd album, life found a way of both disrupting and influencing the creative process, leading to multiple re-writes and an entire album being erased. Eventually, despite the interruptions, heddlu’s 2nd album, Tramor – was completed.
Meaning ‘Overseas’ in Welsh, Tramor is series of intimate and volatile songs, detailing years of loss, estrangement, trauma and hope.
‘Wish You Were Her’ is the 2nd single from heddlu’s 2nd album Tramor, it is a raw emotionally charged track that pleads for someone close to grow into a better version of themselves—driven by equal parts frustration and love. Both confrontational and compassionate, it’s a self-aware lament that blurs the line between calling someone out and looking inward, capturing the messy beauty of caring deeply and hurting honestly.
‘Wish You Were Her’ is out 12th June 2025 on Zawn Records.
Futureless – 13th June 2025
Christopher Nosnibor
Formed in Brooklyn in 2019, Cash Bribe have released a couple of previous EPs, showcasing a sound that brings together a number of elements, but above all brings the riffs. And they’ve really turned things up a way for their latest offering, a few tracks from which we’ve already aired here at Aural Aggravation.
While it’s something of a vogue right now for bands of heavy, and particularly a metal, persuasion, to open an EP with a short intro track that’s delicate and atmospheric, and eases the listener in before hitting the pedals, Cash Bribe aren’t here to piss about with pleasantries or conventions, and the minute-and-a-half long opening track, ‘Feral’ arrives in a ferocious wall of feedback and hammers in hard and fast, a frenetic blast of raw and raucous hardcore punk that’s nothing short of savage.
Single cut ‘Bay of Pigs’ powers in before the feedback’s faded, and it’s propelled by some mighty drumming: Larry Koch is a hard-hitter, but what’s more, the drums are up in the mix and drive the track hard.
These are dark and difficult times globally, but America… America, WTF? Where to begin? It’s hard to articulate, and this is precisely why this EP is perfect, a spitting, savage roar, equal parts rage and nihilism. More often than not, I would unpack the social or political context, and perhaps explore my own reaction to the material in a reflective fashion. But sometimes, the task feel too great, and what’s more, the material speaks for itself. It’s positively explosive, and bludgeons the listener without mercy..
The title track is the longest, clocking in at exactly four minutes, and is maintains a hundred-mile-per-hour pace for its duration. There is no let-up on this EP: it is truly relentless, and the fury flames unabated. It’s all killer, alright.
AA
Beloved Australian ensemble Hand To Earth will release their album Ŋurru Wäŋa (pronounced Wooroo Wanga) via Room40 on 22nd August.
“Ŋurru Wäŋa is an album which traces notions of home, belonging, and displacement. The title translates as ‘the scent of home’, and as we travel, we long for that fragrance, passing the bee, guku, making the bush honey while the crow circles calling overhead.”
Today, the band share the album opener, ‘Bush Honey (guku)’.
In the two parts of the title track, Sunny Kim intones the words of Korean poet Yoon Dong Ju’s poem, ‘Another Home’, in counterpoint to Daniel Wilfred’s song, sung in the Wáglilak language.
This theme – this search for a sense of belonging – is at the heart of what drives Hand to Earth, a group of five people, who come together from different backgrounds, different birthplaces, and different musical approaches to share their songs, and by doing that to create something new.
AA
Photo credit: Emma Luker
9th June 2025
Christopher Nosnibor
Sledges are described as ‘a four piece Alt-metal/Heavy-shoegaze band that blends genres like grunge, metal, shoegaze, emo/post-hardcore, and alternative to craft songs with catchy hooks and big riffs,’ and while this is true, it fails to convey the way the various elements melt into one another to conjure something quite special.
Take the first track, ‘Stumbling as I Fall’: the guitars bend and pixelate in a way that evokes the essence of My Bloody Valentine, but it’s grunged up and beefy, and at the same time the melodic vocals contrast with that thick overdrive, capturing the spirit and sound of ’94, and in particular, Smashing Pumpkins circa Siamese Dream. The title track is harder, heavier, with loping drums melded to a tight, chugging bass underpinning some hefty overdriven guitars that provide the backdrop for vocals that ae by turns breezy and gnarly, offering one of the most overtly metal moments on the EP. I find myself momentarily thinking of Troublegum by Therapy? – a classic example of solid tunes brimming with melody played with hard distortion and some raw aggression – but then Soundgarden also poke their way into my cognisance. If it sounds like I’m simply pulling bands out of the air, it’s very much not the case: Losing Pace simply has that much going on, although the fact that many of the touchstones I’ve referenced thus far are of a 90s vintage does also serve position the various elements which contribute to the Sledges sound.
‘Weightless’ is – ironically – pretty heavy, and it’s not (believe it or not) a criticism to stand it alongside Linkin Park, in that it brings nu-metal heft and a strong emotive hue to a song that’s both riffy and rich with a palpably sincere feeling of angst. It matters because this is no cheap stab at commercialism, and nor it is just another song that tries to alternative by hauling all of the tropes into the mix: there’s a sincerity to this which lends it an indefinable power, and it hits hard.
After a soft acoustic intro, ‘June is Better than July’ goes widescreen, a cinematic burst of post-rock, post-grunge, alt-rock riffcentric extravaganza. There’s a nagging sense that it’s a but emo, a bit ‘things we’re not supposed to like’… but bollocks to those strictures of convention. It’s pure quality, and that’s ultimately what it all boils down to.
Losing Pace was originally released as a four-track twelve-inch, but this new edition, which also marks its first digital release, offers a brace of bonus tracks, in the form of ‘Fading’ and ‘Letters’. The former is the weakest and most overtly emo song of the set, but it’s bathed in reverb and the guitars are bold and overdriven and grungy, and it’s impossible to deny that it’s well-executed. Rounding it off, bonus cut ‘Letters’ is both dreamy and dynamic, melding elements of early Ride and MBV and Chapterhouse with later exponents of shoegaze / nu-gaze like The Early Years as swirling guitars conjure cathedrals of sound around a pumping drum machine.
On Losing Pace, Sledges successfully combine classic and contemporary, and do so with an aptitude and energy, and a keen sense of dynamics. It’s quality all the way.
[bandcamp width=400 height=340 album=244179070 size=large bgcol=ffffff linkcol=0687f5 artwork=small]
AA
Aural Aggravation 