The Sophs

The Sophs are a six-piece from LA made up of Ethan Ramon (vocals), Sam Yuh (keyboards), Austin Parker Jones (electric guitar), Seth Smades (acoustic guitar), Devin Russ (drums), and Cole Bobbitt (bass).

They recently signed to Rough Trade Records, having been personally courted by Geoff Travis himself.

*banner image credit: Eric Daniels

Let’s see what they have been up to:

Sweat

The lo-fi indie of Grandaddy and Electric Soft Parade’s debut ‘Holes in the Wall’ trips along, joyously aimlessly, until the explosive rage-fuelled climax.

Death in the Family

Tinged with EMO and Grunge, they lean into the melodic howls of Weezer. Parker-Jones’ guitars shed the lyrical pain with almost euphoric blasts.

For The First Time

Their most urgent song. The guitars flitter from the innocence of The Libertines to the wayward souls of Pavement, but it is frontman Ramon’s vocals that steal the show. Bedding in between Hull’s Matt Edible and Seafood’s David Line. His raw but poetic delivery strikes a powerful coming of age tone with which to legions of fans will soon go into battle for!

 Click the image to buy the hit debut novel from Wrestletalk’s Oli Davis.

Lydons

Lydons formed in Midlands in 2023 and consist of Finlee, Liam, Dyan, Joshua, and Sonny.

They’ve been championed by John Kennedy and members of Wunderhorse, and were recently supported by Pastel in Birmingham.

Let’s check out the debut single produced by the legendary Gavin Monaghan (The Twang / MOSES / Rosa Caelum) at the Magic Garden Studio in Wolverhampton.

Tongue

A guttural beast of a single! The brutal vocals range from gut-wrenching howls to intense spoken words; both are blessed with the essence of ‘4 Real’ that most bands profess but lack.

The gothic tinges of the guitar lines cut through the angst-ridden fog with an adroitness of touch that’s way beyond their fledgling status.

Masi Masi

Masi Masi is a Bradford-based solo artist. On his latest single ‘The Rain’, he was joined by James Kirk on drums and Adrian Padilla on guitars and producer duties.

*image courtesy of CDP Radio PR

Last month, he took the Isle of Wight Festival by storm on the This Feeling stage and is set to do the same at this month's Beat-Herder Festival.

Let’s see what he has been up to:

The Rain

Brooding with attitude, they take indie classicism down a warped path fraught with danger and eerie encounters.

She’s Trouble

Lo-fi but luscious. introspective but welcoming. The dual vocals intertwining themselves as one with the ease of the first throes of falling in love with the the one.

Marketplace

Marketplace are a five-piece band from Hartlepool. They’re made up of Evie Rhodes (vocals/guitar), Joel O’Beirne (vocals/bass), Jack Purcell (guitar), Matthew Short (synth/vocals), and Ross Dixon (drums).

*Photo Credit Rob Irish

In May, they completed a UK tour which included The Great Escape festival and in July, they made their way to Y Not Festival.

Let’s see what they have been up to:,

Gooey Eyes

The lush sun-kissed indie joy of Camera Obscura is given an injection of urgency to conjure a sound worthy of everyone's attention this summer!

Ethereal guitars chime alongside Rhodes’ heart-crushing vocals to announce Marketplace as indie-pop's next stars.

Contact Sports

Taken from the same EP as ‘Gooey Sports’, this offering soars like Desperate Journalist and tumbles like Fightmilk, but instead of punk and gothic-tinged guitars, they use joyous pop.

Standard Sound Project

The former Institute's frontman and melody maker, Reid Currie, is back with his new band Standard Sound Project. The band are based in Coventry and consists of Reid (vocals & guitar), Ryan (guitars), Danny (bass), and Ben (drums).

*banner image courtesy of the band

They’ve supported The Rifles and Marseille in their short time together, so let's check them out:

Demon Mind

As urgent a guitar record as you’ll hear in 2025. Reid Currie’s vocals are blessed with great drama; he allows the weight of the world to come crashing down before his and Ryan’s guitars begin to fight back.

The solo, a mammoth release of emotion, pulls from the forlorn intoxication of War on Drugs and the ecstatic defiance of All The Young.

Forever Now

Their debut single was a natural bridge from Currie’s work with The Institutes. Big breezy vocals search for euphoria whilst the guitars kiss the sun. Tinges of Blossoms’ pop sensibilities infiltrate their expansive sound, providing a joyous clash of styles.

An Gof

An Gof are a four-piece from the Cornish town of Penzance. They’re made up of Jamie (drums), Rave (bass), Joe (guitar/words), and Jack (words/guitar).

*image credit: Iris Tanner

With punk's DIY ethos coursing through their veins, this band boasts, without question, the best Spotify bio out there.

Let’s see what they have been up to:

Heath/Cliff

The thudding basslines and stomping drums of Soft Play’s (Slaves) are contrasted with the melodic howls of Shame’s debut album. Playful yet bullish, punk blends with rock ‘n’ roll, as An Gof obliterate two seemingly separate scenes into one, theirs!

Hello, World!

Crying the Neck

The purity of Mick Jones’ Carbon/Silicon oozes from this stripped-back opening before they launch into a riotous affray. The haunting backing vocals signal a band yearning to be more than just another post-punk band. There’s a sense of destiny to An Gof’s musicality. The kind that knows it belongs on main stages.

Acetate

Acetate are a four-piece band from Leeds. They’re made up of Ryan Megson (vocals & lyrics), Oscar Bigger (guitars), Ethan Faulkner (bass), and Luke Burgess (drums).

*image credit: Char Bartle

Last week they released their new single ‘Know Best’ and b-side ‘Mine For The Take’, let’s check them out:

Known Best

A furious blast of raw uncompromising indie-punk indebted to power of the Arctic Monkeys debut album. ‘I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor’ may loom large, it's Faulkner’s crunching basslines and Megson’s ability to take his vocal from venomous to wayward in a couplet that leaves the lasting impression.

Mine For The Take

A defiant struggle to break free from melancholy to euphoria. Megson’s vocal lands between Hutch Harris (The Thermals) and Jamie Boyle (The K’s) and carries you from the dark to light with a deftness way beyond his years.

Formal Sppeedwear

Formal Sppeedwear are a three-piece hailing from Stoke-on-Trent. They consist of Beck Clewlow (bass, vocals, & synthesisers), Charlie Ball (guitar & synthesisers), and Connor Wells (Drums, guitar, & synthesisers).

*image credit: Jacob Sweetmore. Courtesy of Melodic Records.

Let’s see what they have been up to:

A Dismount

The glory days of Yeasayer and Little Comets reimagined through the warped prism of Gary Numan.

Awkward and awry, but like MGMT, they make it cool af and something the mainstream is going yearn to be a part of sooner rather than later!

Bunto

Slick basslines build the foundation for Clewlow to unfurl a divine David Byrne-esque vocal. Meanwhile, Ball and Wells drums have a bowed muscularity, which makes Mick Ronson sound like he was in Devo.

The Good Water

The Good Water are a three-piece 60s tinged psyche band from the Midlands made up of Rob Clements (lead vocals/guitar) Tom Fisher (vocals/ drums) Stuart Webb (vocals/keyboards).

*banner image credit: Emma Jones

They released ‘Set It On Fire’ and ‘Firmament’ in 2024, let’s see why 6music icon Steve Lamacq has been championing them:

Set It On Fire

Clements vocals strike a chord with the melodic psychedelia of James Skelly of The Coral and the robust defiance of Tom Meighan circa ‘Empire’ and ‘West Pauper Lunatic Asylum’. His delivery.

The heavy fog of the Kasabian era and the charm of The Pretty Things swell with a potency that Clements’ devil blows away, sent solo. The bluesy licks preceding walk a tightrope straight into a Black Keys themed hell.

Firmament

Janes Addiction’s confrontation and Hendrix’s flair ooze from Clements alongside Webb’s spellbinding ode to Ray Manzarek conjure a startling foray into psychedelia in 2024.

Muscular, abrasive, and dripping with machismo are not words all male bands have longed for in recent years. However, through their sprawling exploration it’s impossible not to yearn for rock stars clouded in smoke once again.

Sunwheel

Sunwheel are a five-piece made up of Mark Gould (vocals & percussion), Bobby Manners (lead guitar & backing vocals), Andy Richardson (guitar & backing vocals), Matt Shaw (bass guitar), and John Middleton (drums & Percussion).

*image courtesy of the band.

Although not new as such, they were initially formed in the 1990s, the band went on hiatus and after twenty-four years, returned last summer.

Let’s see what they have been up to:

Ocean Dust

If Thousand Yard Stare were to be fronted by Miles Hunt, then this folk-tinged spirally psychedelic beauty would be its sumptuous offspring.

Subtle psyche and hints of grebo soar with integrity and tumble with infectious delight.

Northern Lights

The enriching innocence of The Real People’s early days links arms with The Wonder Stuff’s carefree abandon to reimagine the heady days of ‘88 to ‘92 for the modern world.

Casino Club

The Casino Club is a four-piece band from Wigan, comprising Marcus Grimshaw (vocals, rhythm guitar), Alex Porter (lead guitar), Mike Grimshaw (bass), and Stee Grimshaw (drums).

*banner image credit: Jen Cliff-Wilcock (@lens_of_a_wool).

To date, they have recorded with Gareth Nuttall (The K’s / The Rolling People / Rolla) and played the Y Not and Isle of Wight festivals. Let’s see why:

Begging You

Porter’s guitars are so desperate to escape, it's enough to make you quit the day job and give him a lift!

Marcus Grimshaw’s vocals deliver one of indie’s finest pop hooks of recent memory. The rapid-fire ‘begging you / begging you’ summons almost forgotten memories of bands gatecrashing the singles charts and amassing legions of fans.

Lose Control

The band's tone is more reflective. They are searching for life's bigger answers. In doing so, they’ve allowed each other space to breathe and proved that indie classism is still something worth striving for.

The ‘ooooo’s give instant appeal, Grimshaw’s vocal building their mystique with its brooding intensity, and Porter’s solo the righteous pay-off it richly deserves.

Beverly Kills

Beverly Kills are a four-piece band from Gothenburg in Sweden. They’re made up of Alma Westerlund (vocals, synths), John Jonsén (guitar), Viggo Mattsson (bass guitar), and Hampus Höggren (drums)

John, Hampus, and Viggo have played together in different bands since 2011. Then came the sliding-door moment. Jonsén met Westerlund in her hometown of Umeå, and when she moved to Gothenburg, they formed Beverley Kills and the rest, as they say, is history.

Before the release of their debut album ‘Wishing Well’, let’s see what they have been up to:

Eyes Wide Open

Breathtaking vocal!

Pulling from the cuteness of Tracyanne Campbell (Camera Obscura) and Maria Eriksson (The Concretes) and the urgency of Roxanne Clifford (Veronica Falls), Westerlund steps out in 2025 as a supreme talent.

Sonically, the atmospheric coming-of-age sounds of Bloc Party’s first two records combine with the poignancy of Big Moon’s spatial indie, creating something decisive yet reflective and, above all, great!

Marigold

The wayward guitar hook and Westerlund folding Stevie Knicks’ steeliness to her vocal range bolster the evidence that Beverley Kills are destined for great things creatively and commercially!

Dreamwave

Dreamwave are a four-piece from Bristol via Brighton made up of Benjamin Harry (guitar, synths, & vocals), Hester Battin (keys, percussion, vocals, bass), Cam Grant Organ (bass & vocals), and Alex Andrews (drums & percussion)

Image credit: Sam W. Andrews

Let’s see what they have been up to:

Hidden Sun

Dreamy soundscapes akin to Beach House’s early records effortlessly float on by. Gentle in tone, huge in spirit!

Bungle in the Psyche Jungle

Hypnotic psyche with nodes of freakbeat pushes Tame Impala, Pond, and Unknown Mortal Orchestra's work to new levels of excellence.

Lukey B

Lukey B, aka Luke Barrat will be familiar to you via his band Rapturous. His solo venture began last summer with his debut single ‘Bella’s Song’ which he followed up on with ‘My Love Is Haunted’ last October.

*image courtesy of The Songbird PR

Let’s check them out:

My Love Is Haunted

Kasabian’s ability to hypnotise unites with Oasis and Ocean Colour Scene circa ’96 on this hedonistic anthem!

Bella’s Song

Lennon-esque acoustic guitars and Barret’s smoky vocals build great anticipation in the early stages. On an ode to a loved one, the temptation to explode the song into howling guitars to convey his pain must have been tempting.

Instead, dream pop guitars and keys melt away the brashness as Barrett serves up a eulogy mid-song. This is authentic heartbreak songwriting from a considerable talent.

Monday’s Problem

Monday’s Problem is a five-piece rock ‘n’ roll band from Manchester. They comprise Josh Smith (vocals), Joe Hart (guitarist), Reuben Drake-Horn (guitarist), Sam Overell  (bass), and Cassian Newsome (drums).

*banner image credit: Gracie Hall

This band of brothers met at college, let’s check out their first two singles:

Black and White

Hell, fire and brimstone rock ‘n’ roll! Guitars that fire out into the night sky like debauched rockets of joy.

Hart and Drake-Horn’s resounding guitars seek danger out with the reckless thrill-seeking of Jack O’Connell’s portrayal of Cook in Skins.

18

The raw licks igniting this banger come via The Libertines’ debut and the underrated 22-20s. The jagged licks sometimes roll into the Arctic Monkeys’ debut, but through Smith, they have a frontman who has a broader, more euphoric delivery, which takes their brashness to a more harmonious realm.

Aqualine

Aqualine are a five-piece band from Guilford. They’re made up of Ben (vocals & guitar), PJ (lead guitar), Will (guitar), Gray (bass guitar) and Sam (drums).  

*imgae courtesy of the band.

Ben and PJ’s friendship dates to primary school, with their musical relationship beginning in secondary.

Let’s see what they have been up to:

Softly Going

What meanders experimentally finds great focus mid-way and launches into a lo-fi exploration of alt-rock with joyously rewarding results.

Overthinker

Overthinker finds the band in riff-making mode. Big-hitting licks bed alongside their warped sense of play, conjuring a realm where Mogwai and Bends-era Radiohead are as one.

Florentenes

Florentenes are a four-piece from Bolton. They’re made up of Liam Fiddy (drums), Harry Stubbs (bass), Luke Holding (lead guitar), and William Smith (lead vocals).

*image courtesy of the band.

Will and Luke met at school aged 12 and have been writing and jamming ever since. Their debut EP ’14:17’ was released in 2024 and was recorded at the iconic Rockfield Studios with legendary producer Dave Eringa (Idlewild / Ocean Colour Scene / Manic Street Preachers). To date, they have also supported The Royston Club and Jamie Webster; let’s see why:

Death While Standing

Spangled’s playful sense of punk-psyche links arms with math rock, Hadouken, and the devil on this gloriously bizarre breakthrough single.

Glue

An intro that makes the Arctic Monkeys sound like Real Estate eventually stomps into life via The Strokes and The Undertones. Smith’s feral vocal will evoke your favourite small vocal being shaken to its core among fellow sweat-ridden fans losing their minds!

Jonny Blade

Jonny Blade comes Sherburn, a small town in North Yorkshire. His musical journey began when The Lottery Winners shared a video of him covering their song ‘Favourite Flavour’ on the ukelele and then invited him on stage to recreate it at the Gorilla Beer Hall in Mexborough.

*image credit: Dan Crosfield (Crosfield Content)

From then on, his love of Gerry Cinnamon and Pablo Carizo drove him into guitar music, and, recently, he has been rewarded with a slot on tour with The Lilacs.

Let’s see what he has been up to:

Repeat Offender

Straddling the line between artist and rock star, Blade pivots from excess to introspective with an ease that could blur the lines of rock ‘n’ roll forever more.

There is an excellent sense of drama and theatre in his guitar playing. Blade nods to the likes of Cinnamon and Dylan John Thomas on the acoustic guitar, but it’s dystopian howl on the electric guitar, which connects with his haunted vocal to provide the real intrigue.

Electric Sheep Inc.

Electric Sheep Inc. are a five-piece hailing from Rhyl. They’re made up of Cameron Kelly (guitar), Christian Pimley (vocals) Jacks Jones (guitar) Josh Jones (bass), and Dan Howard (drums).

After wowing a packed Inn on the Green at last year’s Shiiine On, their 2025 looks destined to go on to bigger and better things. Let’s see what they have been up to:

Queen’s Nose

Breathtaking defiance set to the grooves of Happy Mondays with hints of Lou Reed! Frontman Pimley’s gravel-tinged Ryder vocal is beset with rage and angst that will breed an uprising of fans!

Taste of It

The Rhyl outfit give ‘Bummed’ a raw injection of aggression and makes the baggy sound ready to fight 2025 and win!

The Optimists

The Optimists are a four-piece indie rock band from the Isle of Wight. They include frontman Matt Read, lead guitarist Aaron Meakin, drummer Jacob Cass, and bassist Henry Bolton.

To date, they have supported indie royalty in Rosellas, The K’s and The Kairos, so let’s see what they have been up to:

Chase The Sun

The brashness of early Idlewild and the feral melodies of Seafood emerge alongside a unifying hopefulness. It allows the underground to emerge from the shadows and the mainstream to retake a step towards credibility.

The relentlessness of The Silver Lines comes alive in this startling single. Vibrant and poignant, The Optimists are blessed with the intense joy and melancholy that all great coming-of-age bands possess.