There is a certain air of innocence here, with Laura Sea independently releasing a song where she expresses herself with very simple production. It’s a cute song about what it feels like to fall in love, and it somehow captures that nostalgic 2000s romcom sound, whether intentional or not. The production keeps things lean – bright melodic guitars, a strong drum section that stays out of the way, and vocals that carry the emotional weight without overselling it. The chorus opens up in all the right ways for the genre, and the sassy attitude in the verses keeps it from going anywhere too earnest or saccharine.

“Falling For You” is a good indicator of where the sophomore album might be headed – same foundation as the debut, but with a lighter touch on the subject matter. For fans of the early 2000s pop-punk era who’ve been waiting for someone to do it without the ironic distance and with the unmistakable fingerprint of genuine expression, then this here is definitely an artist that’s for you.

Recorded entirely in his bedroom studio in a small village near Tunbridge Wells, the track carries a refreshing sense of authenticity. Working independently, VENTIA approached the recording process with curiosity and freedom, turning his home setup into a creative workshop. Different sounds, plugins, and production ideas were explored until the song began to take on a life of its own, evolving from an experiment into something deeply memorable.

The release reflects on the painful realization that sometimes love does not end the way we expect. The song explores the moment when clarity arrives after heartbreak, the understanding that you were not the lasting love in someone’s story, but rather the experience that helped them move forward. Through reflective imagery and emotionally candid lines, the narrative captures the quiet process of acceptance that follows disappointment.

The single blends alt-rock, emo pop, and pop-punk elements, drawing inspiration from the dramatic energy of rock icons such as Ozzy Osbourne while also channeling the expressive edge of contemporary artists like Yungblud. The arrangement balances intensity with vulnerability, allowing the emotional weight of the lyrics to remain front and center.

A particularly distinctive feature is VENTIA’s use of higher-pitched tones, which adds a unique emotional texture to the performance; creating a sense of urgency that amplifies the song’s themes of realization and self-discovery. It is a bold stylistic choice that gives the track a character rarely heard in rock songs of this style.

The story behind the music makes the release even more compelling. Growing up without strong industry connections and with limited access to professional studios, VENTIA built his creative path largely on his own. That independent spirit echoes throughout the song, from its experimental production to its deeply personal narrative.

With an upcoming performance at The Forum in Tunbridge Wells, a venue that played an important role in shaping his musical influences, the journey behind the song is now moving toward the stage.

VENTIA’s “Lesson” stands as a powerful reflection on heartbreak, growth, and the unexpected insights that emerge from difficult experiences..

Overtime takes its title from the sudden-death hockey period, used here as an extended metaphor for pressure, consequence, and the moment when everything sharpens. The EP leans heavier and more focused than the band’s debut, pairing Pytel’s gravel-edged vocals with punchy, direct arrangements that waste zero time. The lyrics widen their scope too. Politics surface naturally, filtered through experience rather than slogans. As Pytel puts it, “I made it all the way through side A without a single song about a breakup.” The shift is subtle but intentional, and it gives the record real weight.

The EP was recorded by John Raham at Afterlife, formerly Mushroom Studios, a room steeped in Canadian music history. Raham’s resume includes work with Frazey Ford, Dan Mangan, Tanya Tagaq, Destroyer, and Pharis, and his approach here keeps the performances immediate while giving the songs room to move. Mixing duties were handled by Dave Ogilvie of Skinny Puppy, whose touch adds grit and tension without sanding off the edges. Overtime was mastered by Ronan Chris Murphy, whose work spans artists such as King Crimson, Ulver, and Gwar, bringing clarity and punch while preserving the EP’s raw, guitar-forward bite.

⇒ Order SLIP~ons’ Music and Merchandise

The roots of SLIP~ons stretch back decades. Pytel first emerged in the late 1980s as the singing drummer of Montreal pop-punks Doughboys, releasing two acclaimed LPs and touring North America alongside bands like Descendents and ALL. At the height of that momentum, he stepped away entirely, traveling to Igarpuri, India to practice Vipassana meditation and study Pāli. “I had a habit of going to extremes,” Pytel recalls. “At the time it never occurred to me that I could deepen my practice of meditation and play in a touring punk rock band. It was just, ‘I’m going to shave my head and become a monk.’” SLIP~ons later took shape when Pytel and Minato began collaborating in 2012, eventually solidifying into a four-piece with the addition of Matharu and Wilson.

That long road shows. SLIP~ons formed as a straightforward rock and roll project built around chemistry and feel, and Overtime captures a band that knows exactly what it wants to say and how long it needs to say it. No excess. No filler. Just songs that move with purpose. That confidence is backed by momentum. The band’s previous EP Heavy Machinery landed with impact, generating more than sixty international press hits, premieres with Scene Point Blank and New Noise Magazine, and widespread support across college, indie, and mainstream radio. The release saw airplay across CBC, SiriusXM, and major Canadian commercial stations, alongside coverage from Exclaim!, Spill Magazine, Global News, The Big Takeover, and dozens of international tastemakers. Overtime builds directly on that foundation, pushing harder, sounding sharper, and proving the band isn’t slowing down any time soon.

The chemistry between the band members and the different sonic components of this song is unreal. The way the drums interact with the rest of the rhythm section is masterful, and the vocals are executed with the exact amount of power the song needed. The song’s composition is exceptionally heavy, and the choice of tones for all its moving parts is impeccably grimy. There is zero fat on this song from a songwriting and structural perspective; no section goes on for too long or without purpose. This is a perfect song, and Abnorm do their job of enveloping the listener with its electrifying aura amazingly well.

Abnorm supported ARXX and EEVAH last year, headlined The Cluny and ZEROX, and they’re hitting Sign Of The Times and Lindisfarne this summer. Based on “Rats,” those shows are going to be intense.

Produced by Mike Midura and co-written with Kate J. Brink, the track started from a restless instrumental that matched the chaos Sabina was feeling. The result pulls from the brooding intensity of Evanescence and Deftones while keeping things grounded in alt-pop-rock territory that fans of Paramore and Maggie Lindemann will recognize. Publications like Parade Magazine and Refinery29 have been paying attention, and it’s not hard to see why.

Dramatic is the keyword that first came to mind. With string layers and glitch drum fills and distorted guitars driving the chorus, this feels like an Avril Lavigne song in the best way possible. Sabina Beyli‘s vocal performance is full of power when needed and vulnerability when needed. It’s a nuanced performance that just makes the song, because such a loaded subject of self-destructive cycles absolutely requires that kind of care, attention, and artistic integrity.

“Bad Habits” works because Beyli isn’t trying to make the mess pretty or tie everything up with a neat conclusion. The song sits in that uncomfortable space where you know what you’re doing is wrong, but you do it anyway, and there’s something cathartic about hearing someone else admit to that. The production gives her vocals room to shift between fragile and forceful without feeling overdone. With two more singles coming in early 2026, it’s clear Sabina Beyli is building something consistent here. If you’re drawn to alternative pop-rock that doesn’t sugarcoat the harder parts of being human, this will be right up your alley.

The EP is named after the first card in the tarot deck, and Sarina uses that idea to explore different sides of herself: the villain, the jester, the one who’s been fooled. It’s the perfect symbol for an artist discovering new sounds because “The Fool” in the tarot deck represents new beginnings. On a side note, the production here has some star power; it was handled by Kevin Thrasher (Panic! At The Disco, Blink-182) and mastered by Maor Appelbaum. It really gives these songs an incredible sheen.

​The EP kicks off with “Toast to the Broken,” probably the most punk-influenced song on the record. It’s an anthem that bursts in with rebellious energy. There is a meticulous balance of raw energy and carefully crafted hooks. It checks all the boxes of a hit song. I can see why this is the song with the most listens on the EP, probably because most people who listen to it put it on repeat, as I have.

Another highlight is “Race with no end”. Here, Sarina shifts towards a more mellow, hopeful vibe. It really reminded me of Avril Lavigne’s songs (the more recent releases, not the sk8ter boi era). Sarina described it as fighting on even when it feels pointless, and you can really feel that determination in both the lyrics and the energy of the music.

The single “If you need me to be the villain (Then maybe I am)” is easily one of the highlights here. The melody is mind-blowing, to be honest, and I really personally enjoyed the guitar tone that drives the chorus. The drum sound on this song specifically is incredible; you can feel every hit, and it makes the intended angst of the song hit much harder.​

The final track, “Fools Gold,” brings the EP to its dramatic conclusion. “Fools Gold” is drenched in gothic theatricality with symphonic rock elements. Sarina’s vocals really shine in this one with a breathtaking performance that oozes drama. It’s about (as Sarina puts it) “The smoke and mirrors of glamour and the rot that hides beneath” It is after all the fool’s gold. It’s not real, it’s a facade. A shiny layer that covers a world of pain and the lies we tell ourselves.​

“The Fool” represents a successful artistic risk for Sarina. It’s rawer and more aggressive than her previous work, but also more personal and emotionally complex. She moves from fury to vulnerability to theatrical grandeur, but it all feels like different facets of the same complex identity. The artist’s journey is about exploring the self, and Sarina absolutely understands that, and I am glad I am along for the ride as a listener.

What stands out most is the duality: the song aches with heartbreak, yet it carries itself like an anthem. The verses hover in fragile introspection before the walls of sound crash in, guitars chiming with a post-punk edge, drums pushing the pulse forward, and RIOT SON’s layered vocals breaking between distance and urgency. The lyric “save your breath, you pretend it’s ok” hits like a gut punch: soft in delivery but brutal in implication, exposing the quiet fractures that undo relationships.

The production leans heavy on atmosphere, but never at the cost of immediacy. It’s raw, yet widescreen, a sound that feels born of the mist-soaked Boone streets but ready for much larger stages. There are echoes of Brand New, The Cure, and The Smiths, but RIOT SON isn’t recycling—he’s reframing. What could have been pure nostalgia instead becomes catharsis, a sonic exorcism of heartbreak that lands squarely in the now.

With an EP on the horizon and a growing cult-like following online, RIOT SON steps into the scene not as a throwback, but as a torchbearer. Loneliest at Best proves that even in the thick of heartbreak, there’s indeed power in saying the unsaid and beauty in sounding completely undone!

Out August 15, “Concrete Wave” is a sonic gut-punch: a surge of blistering guitars, crashing drums, and cathartic gang vocals that hurl the listener into a world of inner struggle and hard-won resilience. Griffey handles nearly every element himself: vocals, bass, guitar, backing and gang vocals, while drummer Andrew Standley and vocalist Kristin Carlson round out the sound. Produced by Scott Robinson and mastered by Doug Van Sloan, the track is polished yet packed with an unfiltered edge.

Lyrically, the song confronts personal trauma and transformation without flinching. It’s the kind of track that turns pain into propulsion, threading melodic hooks through gritty textures in a way that feels both nostalgic and new. Fans of Yellowcard, Mayday Parade, or A Day to Remember will feel instantly at home, but Griffey’s voice and perspective are distinctly his own.

“Concrete Wave” isn’t just built for summer playlists; it’s built for survival, release, and late-night drives with the windows down. It’s a debut that announces EverWill not as a tribute act, but as a bold, emotionally charged force ready to carve his own space in the pop-rock landscape.

“Live Today” feels like a nudge toward changing your life. A motivational punk anthem to push you in the right direction. The song starts energetic and gradually the tempo gets faster till we reach the chorus and then they unleash raw energy while chanting “Live today/don’t be afraid / not tomorrow.” The song is pushy and urgent, calling the fans to actually live their life today instead of waiting or being afraid. 

The music video matches the song perfectly, starting with a couple hanging out in a dirt racetrack arena. The couple is invested in the races but they are always afraid to participate.  A feeling that we can all relate to, we all have this one fear that prevents us from going after what we really want, something that could be life-changing.

The couple faces their fears and the woman decides to actually take the risk and participate in the race. Unlike the expected happy ending, She doesn’t win but that is exactly what the message is about. Live your life even if you are not going to win every race and every game. Life is both winning and losing, happiness and sadness, banes, and blessings, so live today. 

The message of the video and the song are both inspiring and encouraging. After watching the video I felt a bit hopeful and filled with energy.  The couple were played by the beloved New Zealand star Kate Simmonds and comedian Tom Sainsbury. They both gave a nostalgic and wholesome vibe to the video. 

The song is part of the Transits‘ upcoming album, and they are planning to release it later this year. You can enjoy the video here. You can check the song here.

Some collaborations truly elevate the music to a surprising new dimension. SPIKY teams up with London’s vibrant vocalist Kris Kiss for their latest single, “SMILE.” Let’s explore more details below.