For the past few months, the Los Angeles indie band Sister Gemini have been rolling out their debut album Screaming Crying Laughing Sighing. It’s out this Friday, and it merits your attention.
The post Sister Gemini – “Silver Ladder” appeared first on Stereogum.
It’s the middle of the day, the calm wind carries the warm sun onto your skin with an invitation to forget your every thought. Then it hits, like a swift strike of lightning that explodes with enough energy to carry you off your feet and into your head. This is where the idea is born, and where you strive to shape it into something that can soon be set free into the world. Something that will carry with it the very essence of that energy it was born with, and connect to someone with the same spark that swept you off your feet.
As an artist, this feeling is all too familiar, but as with such a gift, so too does it carry an unrelenting curse. The curse of trying to build an idea with tools you might be unfamiliar with. Whether you’re a songwriter who can’t quite shape the song how you see fit, or a large company who needs to rebrand a stale website from the ground up, this curse knows no bounds when it comes to creative roadblocks. While tutorials are more available than ever these days, true artistry is more rooted in connection, and collaboration.
Collaboration, at its heart, is the process of letting another perspective help guide your own. While that might seem counterintuitive to some, anyone looking to elevate their work often finds that another set of skills can unlock a door they never knew how to open. That is precisely where my strength in the studio shines, and why I’m opening my own door to artists who share the same passion for the process.
Whether it’s the smaller songwriter or the larger corporation, I’ve spent the past two decades helping people solve their own creative puzzle no matter the shape, size, or scope. It’s more of an analog element of effort that no TikTok tutorial, YouTube clip, or AI instruction can replicate. The little details built from years of experience that contribute to instinct, guidance, and perspective. All areas of creative focus that will help shape your idea in a way that’s both honest and unique to your own vision.
My own creative door into this field was opened with Autumns Eyes, a musical project I’ve grown over the years under the guise of heavy music born in the woods and bathed in darkness. Throughout my days creating with Autumns Eyes, I spent a lot of time helping other artists behind the scenes. Eventually it got to the point where, for business purposes, it needed a name. That’s where Beneath the Woods came from, a studio that carries the same love of nature that always found its way into my work.
If at any point you feel like your idea just isn’t getting off the ground in the way you want it to, don’t hesitate to reach out. I’m always up for a chat, even if it’s just to brainstorm some different ideas and see if something sparks another strike of lightning. Whether your project needs refinement, direction, or another set of skills to help bring it into focus, that is what Beneath the Woods was built for. If your idea is ready to take root, let’s see where it can grow.
The post Where Creativity Finds Its Roots appeared first on Autumns Eyes.
On July 24th, NYHC icons Madball will return with their tenth studio album, Not Your Kingdom, via Nuclear Blast. Seamlessly bridging the gap between old-school grit and the modern heavy music landscape, Madball remains an unrivaled force. Not Your Kingdom pairs the band’s trademark tales of street survival with a deeper, introspective edge, cementing the fact that hardcore still runs deep in their veins.
Madball has unleashed their second single, “Tethered”. The track serves as an unapologetic, deeply personal reflection on everything the band represents. Dissecting pivotal moments from both past and present, frontman Freddy Cricien proclaims: “I’m bound to all the things / That I’ve done and seen / Tethered to everything / All the good the bad / That made me.” Delivering the classic, high-octane groove that serves as the genre’s lifeblood, the track is paired with a music video directed by Freddy Cricien and Dave Causa who handled filming—a visual love letter to the streets of New York City where the band first took root.
Madball‘s Freddy Cricien comments: “‘Tethered’ is the opening song on the record and that’s ironic because it’s one of the last ones written for the album. I love the vibe, very bouncy groovy NYHC that really transported me back to the 90’s – hence the lyrics/theme. To my ears, it has a ‘nostalgic’ feel but still manages to come across as something new for us! Made sense for it to be the second single to demonstrate the diversity of the album – the whole thing is a story, a ride of sorts and this one as the opener really sets a good pace sonically and lyrically.”
Not Your Kindgom is available for pre-order here, in the following formats:
Not Your Kingdom was tracked at The Boneyard Studios in Nashville, TN, with additional interludes recorded by Jeff “Stress” Davis and Chuck Treece at Chop Shop Studios. The album was produced and engineered by the team of Andrew Baylis, Aiden Thompson, and Grady Saxman, with final mixing and mastering by Lee Rouse. The striking cover art features photography by the legendary Cornell Capa, courtesy of Magnum Photos and the Cornell Capa Estate.
Decades in, Madball remains the gold standard of New York Hardcore—proving they are not just survivors, but masters of the craft. Their live performances are a masterclass in controlled chaos, dripping with a ferocity and raw integrity that most bands can only hope to emulate. They’ve stayed sincere, stayed dangerous, and stayed at the top. Ain’t nothing changed.
The post MADBALL Returns To Their Roots On New Single “Tethered” appeared first on Sonic Perspectives.
This summer, Alexandra Drewchin unleashes the new Eartheater album Heavenly Body: If I’m The Bottle You’re The Message. So far we’ve heard “Nova” and “Paradise Rains,” and now the experimental electronic star is back with the celestial single “Crown Jewel.”
The post Eartheater – “Crown Jewel” appeared first on Stereogum.
Time & Tide: The Songs Of Big Big Train by Andrew Wild and R. Douglas Helvering will be published on September 11, 2026.
Following the publication by Kingmaker of a number of critically acclaimed books including Mario Giammetti’s authoritative two volume history of Genesis and biography of Tony Banks, Joe Banks’ peerless biography of Van der Graaf Generator leader Peter Hammill and candid autobiographies by Jakko Jakszyk (King Crimson) and Mark Kelly (Marillion), Time & Tide is the definitive exploration of Big Big Train’s songs.
Through exclusive interviews with past and present band members, rare archival material and illuminating musical analysis, authors Andrew Wild and R. Douglas Helvering uncover the origins and meaning behind each of the band’s songs — from tales of steam locomotives, lost rivers and ancient landscapes to reflections on love, identity, mortality and belonging.
Time & Tide also opens the door to the band’s creative process: songwriting, arrangements, production techniques and the collaborative spirit that shaped albums including The Underfall Yard, English Electric, Folklore and Woodcut. Alongside the music lies the moving story of the band’s evolution through triumph, loss and reinvention.
At almost 550 pages, and illustrated with around 200 images, including several commissioned artworks and many photographs which have been previously unpublished, Time & Tide has been written for devoted fans, musicians and newcomers alike. The book serves as both a celebration of artistic ambition and an intimate portrait of a band whose music continues to delight fans of progressive rock.
Gregory Spawton, co-founder of Big Big Train and co-owner of Kingmaker Publishing, comments:
“Andrew Wild and Doug Helvering have done an extraordinary job exploring every corner of the Big Big Train musical catalogue. Andrew undertook an enormous amount of research to write about well over 200 Big Big Train songs, while Doug’s musicological analyses of more than 40 of our songs are extremely insightful, including to the writers of those songs! We’re very grateful to Andrew and Doug for writing this book with such care and attention to detail. I’m also delighted that one of my BBT co-founders Andy Poole co-edited the book alongside Professor Geoff Parks.”
ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Andrew Wild is the author of over 25 books, the majority of which focus on rock and pop music. He has previously written the official biographies of progressive rock artists Twelfth Night, Galahad and Geoff Mann. Following two books about the 1980s progressive rock music revival (A Mirror Of Dreams and A Playground Of Broken Hearts), Time & Tide – The Songs Of Big Big Train is Andrew’s third book published by Kingmaker. Alongside his writing, Andrew maintains the official archive of Big Big Train.
Dr R. Douglas Helvering is an active composer, arranger, conductor and educator. In 2021, he created The Daily Doug, which has grown into a prominent web series that celebrates the art of music and its creators, leading discussions of rock, prog and jazz with the same vigour and respect as the classical masters of old. Dr Helvering has served as Adjunct Associate Professor at the prestigious Westminster Choir College in Princeton, New Jersey, USA.
Time & Tide: The Songs Of Big Big Train is available for pre-order here:
https://burningshed.com/store/kingmaker
https://thebandwagonusa.com/collections/kingmaker-publishing
All Burning Shed pre-orders received by 24 August will be signed by Andrew Wild.
All Band Wagon USA pre-orders received by 24 August will be signed by Doug Helvering.
The post New book exploring the songs of Big Big Train to be released in September appeared first on The Prog Report.
Twin Tribes and Windhand have landed the opening duties.
The post Acid Bath & Ministry Announce Red Rocks & Chicago Shows appeared first on Theprp.com.
Actual fact: Italy doesn’t have any true deserts. They have some sand dunes and dry badlands in the south, but whatever “arcane desert rituals” stoner doom trio King Potenaz are performing on their latest full length, Arcane Desert Rituals Vol. 2, are merely symbolic. But, hey these dudes—Giuseppe Guarini (vocals/guitars), Francesco Pensato (bass), Piero Schiavone (drums/synths)—do a damn fine job invoking the desert rock vibe of Kyuss and that Southern California Palm Desert scene on their sprawling new psychedelic four-tracker we’re streaming here. Things really get scorching on second cut, “Lord of the Rust,” but it’s a dry heat.
Arcane Desert Rituals Vol. 2 was recorded at Stefano Manca’s Sudest Studio and mixed and mastered by Marc Urselli. It’s set for release digitally via Magic Mountain Records on June 12. Place your preorder here.
This is what the band had to say about its latest release:
“Arcane Desert Rituals Vol. 2 is finally here. One year after the first chapter began its journey across the desert wastes, the circle is complete. This record represents the final step in a vision that has grown with us through every riff, every ritual, and every mile travelled. The gates are open once more. Join us for one last voyage to the furthest reaches of the cosmos and beyond.”
The post Full Album Stream: King Potenaz –<em>Arcane Desert Rituals Vol. 2</em> appeared first on Decibel Magazine.