On her fifth album as SPELLLING, Bay Area artist Chrystia Cabral holds up a mirror to her own emotions. ‘Portrait of My Heart’ abandons the allegorical distance of her earlier avant pop for lyrics that confront love, intimacy, anxiety, and alienation head on. Musically, the arrangements follow suit – this is SPELLLING at its most incisive and immediate.

Averse to the stereotypical tropes of progressive music, Istanbul-hailed Siyah Tavsan delivers instead a succinct and fresh outlook of how they visualise progressive music to be. While fans of Western post-punk and progressive rock will find familiar elements, ‘Metropolites’ offers a distinct lens of where Turkish underground music is headed – globally aware, genre-fluid, and emotionally fearless, this is a voice speaking from the overlooked alleys of Istanbul, but resonating far beyond.

After the polarising brightness of their last project, Deafheaven’s sixth album sees the California post-metal collective return to the volatile, skyward force that first defined them – yet this is no simple reversion. ‘Lonely People with Power’ reclaims their foundational sound with ferocity, while hinting at sonic futures still ahead.

Throughout his decorated career, David Lynch has provided a unique timbre within the all-encompassing field of cinematic sound. But in order to tap into his idiosyncratic brilliance, one must pay attention to the music.

While their previous albums followed grand, concept-driven structures, clipping.’s latest project feels more like a mixtape – an expertly assembled collection of tracks, each one paying tribute to a potential present. ‘Dead Channel Sky’ feels sharp and timeless, evoking a sense of déjà vu for both the past and the future. This tension between the digital and the physical lies at the heart of the album, questioning whether virtual worlds are any less real than our own. With that, clipping. constructs a vision of a present-future that’s loud, tense, and impossible to ignore.

Armed with scars and lessons learned, Countown demonstrate that resilience and raw emotion can drive both artistic and personal evolution. ‘Chairekakia’ proves to be a testament to their unwavering identity and refusal to conform. As they carve their place in the Greek underground pantheon, their unrelenting energy and authenticity ensure that their voice – loud, impassioned, and distinctly their own – will continue to be heard.

Marking their long-awaited debut in Greece, Touché Amoré delivered a performance that was both emotionally charged and sonically relentless in the heart of Athens. This wasn’t just an ordinary gig; it was a long-overdue moment of communion, proving that Greece’s punk and hardcore scene is very much alive and thriving.

Hawthorne Heights commemorate two decades of emo and post-hardcore influence, reaffirming their ability to evolve while staying true to their roots. To that end, ‘Sandpaper & Silk’ serves a greater purpose than just being a retrospective – it’s a celebration of growth, resilience, and keeps an eye on a promising future ahead.

Eight years and several line-up changes later, US hardcore titans NAILS return with an unapologetically primal take on the band’s signature sound while introducing fresh ideas that push their artistic vision forward. Where some might say it doesn’t hit in the same way as their earlier material, ‘Every Bridge Burning’ finds newfound purpose in identifying different ways to inflict pain. A statement of intent from one of the scene’s legacy acts.

In their most accessible release yet, Fontaines D.C. enters a new phase with their captivating fourth album, showcasing their most thoughtful and intricately crafted work to date. 'Romance' serves as an unreliable encyclopedia of love, exploring themes of sensuality, identity crisis, and ideological decay - all while finding solace in surrendering oneself into the unknown as long as their passion for love remains. A pop hook for a punk heart.