new music – Page 2

June 3, 2026

June 3, 2026June 3, 2026 amy771937

Threads Rewoven: Virak’s Final Album Shines in the Wake of Loss

Virak’s debut album Threads was reissued on May 29 via Forward Backwards Recordings, available digitally and on vinyl. The release is now posthumous for frontman, guitarist, and songwriter Martin Ejlertsen, who was diagnosed with ALS in 2022 and died on May 23, 2026, at 49. Threads was his final musical project. Ejlertsen lived in Lund, Sweden, and is survived by his wife and two children.

He founded Black Light White Light in 2009 and released four studio albums between 2011 and 2022. The band toured the UK and US, received coverage in CLASH Magazine, Louder Than War, Drowned in Sound, Guitar World, and Artrocker, and had airplay on BBC Radio 6 Music with Lauren Laverne, Absolute Radio, and DR.DK. On their latest album The Admirer, the track ‘Epilepsy’ stands out as Ejlertsen wrote it for his daughter, who has the condition, and it is supported by a powerful music video. The album was mixed by Grammy-winning engineer Kennie Takahashi (The Black Keys, Gnarls Barkley, Broken Bells), mastered by Matt Colton (Arctic Monkeys, Depeche Mode, Thom Yorke), and features composer Davide Rossi (Coldplay, The Verve).

Between 2002 and 2009, Virak’s original lineup featured Martin Ejlertsen on vocals, guitar, and keys, Christian Kühne on bass and keys, and Peter Dyring Olsen on drums. Influenced by Mogwai, Spiritualized, Low, Elbow, and Sophia, the trio developed a sound that merged instrumental post-rock, slowcore, progressive rock, and seventies acid rock.

Beneath the surface, ‘Where It All Begins,’ pulses with a quiet, hard-won resilience, channeling a profound personal intensity that turns every jagged guitar line and soaring vocal into a testament to creativity forged in the midst of overwhelming darkness. The music carries an undercurrent of finality and catharsis, as if each note is an act of defiance and reclamation, making the most of fleeting time by pouring light into what could easily have remained unresolved. Those unconventional guitars twist and fracture like fragmented memories, while the haunting vocals rise with a fragile beauty that speaks to the ache of confronting life’s limits, transforming private struggles into something universally moving and luminous.

Critics have praised how Threads (and its companion EP) captures Virak at their most emotionally naked, blending alt-rock introspection with cinematic swells that feel both nostalgic and urgently alive. The result is a stirring, deeply human message: music that doesn’t just echo influences but transcends them, offering listeners a shared sense of solace.

Martin Ejlertsen had this to say: “I have been very private about my illness… it has been like a long waking nightmare. But now I probably only have a few months left to live, so it’s about making the best of the last. Having this album project has given me some light in an otherwise completely dark and very depressing time.”

Stream Threads:

Threads Album Tracklist:

1. Little Creeps
2. Souls
3. Who I Am = You
4. Something Strange Happened As We Stood By The Lake
5. Arms Raised
6. Desert Storm
7. Butterfly
8. Violence
9. Melancholia
10. Song Of Everything
11. Where It All Begins

Follow Virak:

Bandcamp – Facebook – Soundcloud

May 29, 2026

May 29, 2026May 29, 2026 amy771937

Chloe Star Releases ‘fairytale,’ a Captivating New Single Reflecting on Love’s Realities

(Chloe Star / Image credit: Kai Dickson)

Today, May 29 2026, Chloe Star released her new single ‘fairytale‘ via Chloe Star Records. The 28-year-old Persian and Indigenous singer-songwriter, visual artist and tribal advocate grew up moving between her family’s reservation in San Bernardino and Los Angeles. She began writing and making art as a pre-teen to process her emotions, drawing heavily from the musical traditions of her Persian and Indigenous roots. Just three years after breaking through in 2023, the artist has built a fast-growing career rooted in raw honesty and emotional directness. Tastemakers have taken notice: Rolling Stone placed her track ‘Bad Habit‘ in its 2025 Best New Music feature, while CLASH Magazine, 1883 Magazine, EUPHORIA and EARMILK have all championed her work. On stage she has already commanded main-stage headliners at London Pride, New York Pride Festival, Back Lot Bash in Chicago, Out & Abt in New York and The Dinah in California.

On ‘fairytale‘ her voice carries the song’s emotional range, moving from quiet, velvety verses into a full-throated, impassioned peak without forcing the drama. The production keeps the alternative spirit alive through its arrangements, anchored by warm distorted guitars and a strong piano melody that gives the track its distinct sound

Chloe Star had this to say: “My song ‘fairytale‘ is about longing for a kind of love that feels whimsical and almost unreal. But it also reflects the realization that, in chasing that kind of love, I sometimes become the monster—sabotaging the very things I care about most. It raises questions too: does fairytale love really last the way movies say it does? Do stories like Beauty and the Beast actually end in lasting happiness, or do we just stop watching before things get complicated? I guess we’ll never really know.”

Chloe Star’s Upcoming Shows:

May 30 – London, UK @ The Grace
June 5 – Viper Room LA (headlining)
June 6 – LA Pride, She Ent @ the Andaz Hotel on Sunset (Key live performance)
June 18 -Toronto @ The Horseshoe Tavern

Stream ‘fairytale’:

Follow Chloe Star:

Linktree – Instagram – Facebook – Soundcloud – TikTok – Youtube – Spotify

May 20, 2026

May 20, 2026May 20, 2026 Mew Zikwryder

Melodic Techno Meets Afro Rhythms in Hevi Levi’s Latest Release

Unleashed this past weekend on tN1! Records, ‘I Dominate The Dancefloor’ brings together Israeli producer Hevi Levi and Amay’e, marking another bold chapter in Levi’s creative resurgence after his stroke. With more than 33 million streams and a globe-trotting tour history that includes legendary venues and festivals like Tomorrowland, Ministry Of Sound, and Pacha, Levi’s relentless passion for music pulses through every new release.

Amay’e’s signature mix of Afro-inspired rhythms and melodic techno collides with Hevi Levi’s dynamic production, creating a track whose hypnotic groove seizes the listener from the very first beat. Pulsing basslines and razor-sharp percussion drive the nearly five-minute journey, each sound crafted for maximum dancefloor impact. Echoes of Faithless, Depeche Mode, and Rüfüs Du Sol ripple through the track, making it a must-hear for fans of ARTBAT, Kevin de Vries, and Mind Against.

Hevi Levi had this to say: “When I was teaching djing, I used to have a lesson about the unpopular girl. It’s easy to make the most beautiful girl dance because she has a lot of confidence, but if you see the unpopular girl dancing and dominating the floor, you know that you have won the crowd’s heart. This track is dedicated to all unpopular girls who dominate the floor.”

Stream ‘I Dominate The Dancefloor’:

Follow Hevi Levi:

Website – Instagram – Facebook – Soundcloud – Youtube – Spotify

Follow Amay’e:

Instagram – Facebook – Soundcloud – TikTok – Youtube – Spotify

May 19, 2026

May 19, 2026May 19, 2026 Mew Zikwryder

Vaast Releases ‘Remember These Days’, Merging Tradition and Innovation

French electronic music once helped define global pop through names like Daft Punk, DJ Snake and David Guetta, yet sustained song-driven work in that lane has grown rarer at home. Vaast addresses the gap with ‘Remember These Days’, released May 1, 2026. Previously active as a ghost producer and ghostwriter, he now fronts his own project after the 2022 single ‘Who I Am’. The step follows years of writing and producing for others and draws on a listening foundation that mixes French pop staples with American pop and the electronic developments he encountered growing up. His approach keeps the textural and rhythmic habits of French electronic music while prioritising the melodic and emotional shapes of older pop forms.

‘Remember These Days’ is built from electronic sources only. Synthesizers operate in stacked layers, a marimba-inspired figure supplies the main melodic hook, synthesized African vocal textures sit inside the arrangement, and a strong bassline handles the drive. Vaast mixes current French electronic methods, including those linked to Hugel, with vocal writing that follows more conventional pop patterns. The track therefore joins the immediacy of recent French dance production to the narrative clarity of classic song structures. It holds the energy of the present French scene while referencing the broader reach French-associated work achieved in earlier global cycles, all without leaving the electronic framework.

The lyrics and mood centre on hindsight after a win that carried heavy losses. The single operates as an entry point to Vaast’s thinking and shows an artist working to keep French electronic music in active dialogue with wider pop. In that sense the release sketches one route forward for producers who want both local roots and international melodic reach.

“Remember These Days is an introduction to my world. It tells the story of a Pyrrhic victory. This is a moment when you lose everything while believing you have won. The song invites us to learn from the past so we do not repeat the same mistakes”, Vaast explains.

Stream ‘Remember These Days’: