Back catalogue: Post Rock/Experimental

Review: Cited by Pitchfork as one of the best shoegaze albums of all time, the self-titled debut LP from Brooklyn's Lawrence Chandler and Martha Schwendener (better known as Bowery Electric) marked a significant turning point in mid-90s indie rock, as several acts began to approach the genre with much more brazen experimentation and a sonic disregard for accessibility. Fusing elements of trip-hop, ambient soundscapes, harsh drone and walls of impenetrable fuzz, into a muted seance of deceptively inviting yet hypnotic post-rock, this long overdue reissue serves to refill a vacant spot on many an avid collector's shelf, whilst hopefully educating newcomers to an outfit as pioneering as Slowdive and overlooked as Codeine. If you're a studious observer of the Numero Group output and you've yet to encounter Bowery Electric, you could run the risk of having your shoegaze card revoked.

Review: Clinic Stars' debut album Only Hinting is a melancholic swirl of downer-pop and shoegaze, crafted by Detroit duo Giovanna Lenski and Christian Molik. Having spent 2022 and 2023 recording at their home studio, they layered each track with dense FX and deep reverbs, creating an emotional undertow that envelops every song. Tracks like 'I Am The Dancer' spiral with strummed guitar swells, while 'Remain' pulses with gated reverb, and the greyscale melancholy of 'Isn't It' drips with dreamy, aching nostalgia. The album is as much about escape as it is about longing. Though the duo cite their industrial surroundings as a key influence, the songs themselves feel as if they're trying to transcend these confines, soaking in the romance of distance and detachment. Previous EPs 10,000 Dreams and April's Past offered a similar slowcore haze, but Only Hinting takes this aesthetic further, blending melody and ambience until they become indistinguishable. There's a delicate balance between lightness and weight, a constant tug-of-war between floating and sinking. The guitars drift, vocals melt into the background, and the production feels both expansive and intimate, stretching across shadowy cityscapes. With this debut, Clinic Stars have created a deeply immersive sonic landscape that lingers long after it fades out. Available to pre-order now, Only Hinting will be released on LP format later this year.