The Cure - Songs of a Lost World (2024)

I'm two years late for reviewing this one, even if The Cure is likely the band I listened to the most in my life (daily when I was a teen), no, not even if but because! And never easy to review a band nearly 50 years old and which had such a big impact in music. But what helps is that Songs of a Lost World is an excellent album. Not as good as their old classics, but might be their best one since... Wild Moods Swings? the overall atmosphre reminds me a bit Disintegration, not as good, but nice anyway, and it's not just a recall of what they have done before, The Cure have always tried to push the boundaries of their music and try different things, and Songs of a Lost World isn't an exception in that regard. Especially in Warsong, Drone:no Drone and Ensong. Probably the most interesting tracks. But if your more into their "easier" pop side, they also delivered the nice signle A Fragile Thing. So Songs of a Lost World isn't as memorable and won't have the lasting ifnluence of their classics, but it's definitely a good album and I think it proves that The Cure is still absolutely relevant today.

 

The Cure.com

 

Hateful Abandon - Threat (2025)

Hateful Abandon is a band from Bristol, existing since 2004, their fourth album Threat (released by Sentient Ruin) is the first in ten years, with songs from 2014-2024. Their most obvious influence is Godflesh (which can't be bad) but bands like Ramleh or Killing Joke can also be evoked, and more generally they draw from all the history of post-punk and industrial music. But Threat can't be reduced to just its influences and is filled with excellent and diverse songs. Recommended !  

 

The BC page. 

 

Buñuel - Mansuetude (2024)

Buñuel, the other band with Eugene S. Robinson, seems to be more than a one shot, since there is now (well, I'm a bit late here, it's been released two years ago, sorry) a second album called Mansuetude (I also recommend the first one Killers Like Us). No big surprise we're into noise rock territory, and as expected we get great screamed/spoken vocals. But maybe more diverse than Oxbow, sometimes heavier, sometimes more melodic, sometimes groovier, more rocking, sometimes a post-punk feel, a touch of math rock. Maybe progressive noise rock would fit. In any case great songwriting, a formidable singer backed by really talented musicians. Awesome!

 

 The BC page. 

 

Soft Kill - Escape Forever (2024)

Escape Forever (released in 2024) isn't the most recent Soft Kill release, but I'll review this one because I think it's the most remarkable of the recent Soft Kill stuff (and the guy doing Soft Kill is too prolific to review everything he does). It saw an important shift for Soft Kill, basically it's when it got quite happy. Could have been a disaster for the inspiration and the music, but no. It's not so much a change of style than a change of mood. It still reminds The Cure a lot (the sound, the singing), just now it reminds The Cure happier songs... And it turns out to be one of the best Soft Kill releases. Recommended!

 

The BC page. 

 

Fine Lame - Vivre comme on éclarerait (2025)

Fine Lame is a French band playing a kind of "poetic rock". On their new album Vivre comme on éclaterait the music can be described as post-rock (guitars, drums and keys), with bits of post-punk and noise-rock, and the vocals are spoken/declamatory (and in French). It's different and well done, and should appeal to people into Oiseaux Tempêtes and Hubert Félix Thiéfaine. I really recommend it!

 

The Bandcamp page. 

 

UNDER 45 - Stonewalled (2024)

I discovered UNDER 45 (from Lyon, France, but with an English singer) while they were opening for another band at Les Passagers du Zinc in Besançon and they were excellent. I also recommend their latest album, Stonewalled (released last year). They play some post-punk with a drum machine, a kind of post-punk that have a good melodic feel (great riffs and basslines), but still sounds actually punk. And the excellent vocals and lyrics is the cherry on the top.

The Bandcamp page. 

 

 

Floating - Hesitating lights (2025)

Before listening to Floating I did not know prog/tech death-metal blended with post-punk was a thing, but in the form of their second album Hesitating Lights not only it exists, but it's also one of the best and most interesting album I listened to in at least a couple of years. Those typical post-punk basslines and riffs actually combines very well with a prog/tech and dissonant kind of death metal. A nice surprise that I really recommend!

The BC page.

 

Viagra Boys - Viagr aboys (2025)

Viagr aboys isn't my favourite Viagra Boys album, but I listened to it a lot and really enjoy it nevertheless. Not big evolution, but pure Viagra Boys music, funny and sarcastic smart lyrics, excellent vocals, sharp post-punk riffs, the saxophone, and excellent songwriting full of inventivity. Excellent stuff again.

 

Bad Breeding - Contempt (2024)

Contempt is the fifth album from UK band Bad Breeding. Raw hadcore including noise rock, sludge and post-punk elements, evoking bands like Black Flag, Unsane, Eyehategod or Idles. If you like your hardcore dirty and noisy this is definitely for you. I also recommend you check their more recent release, the Blood Manifest Ep, showcasing in four tracks both their more aggressive and slower and noisier sides. Recommended!

 

The BC page. 

 

Bambara - Birthmarks (2025)

If you're into bands like Algiers, Ice Age, or, if we go back in time The Cure or Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds (I know all are still active, but the classics from the latter ones are not their recent albums), then Bambara should be also one of your favourite bands, and their new album, Birthmarks should be among your favourite 2025 albums. In the same vein as their excellent previous albums, the trio from New York managed to vary the pleasures with some female vocals on a couple of songs, some sax parts, new beats, etc., making each song a memorable one. And the vocalist has once again done a tremendous job. Highly recommended!

 

The BC page. 

 

Wailin Storms - The Silver Snake Unfolds (2022)

Wailin Storms is a band I've been following for ten years, so it's due time I review one of their album, even if a bit late, since The Silver Snake Unfolds was released in 2022. Their music is a kind of modern take on the post-punk/swamp rock/gothic americana thing, reminding Joy Division, Gun Club, Birthday Party or Slug Guts, but blending it with heavier doom/Neurosis elements. Good stuff.

 

The BC page. 

 

Grave Pleasures - Plagueboys (2023)

After two albums that were good, but not as memorable as I expected from people coming from Beatsmilk/Hexvessel (singer Mat MacNerney, and for Beastmilk bassist Valtteri Arino) and Oranssi Pazuzu (guitarist Juho Vanhanen), Grave Pleasures released last year Plagueboys, which this time lived up to my expectations, even exceeding it. Plagueboys is less gothic rock and more post-punk/new-wave, in terms of writing and sound. Stripped-out songwriting, and sharp and/or echoing guitars, basslines pushed forwrad, simple and catchy beats.It reminds The Cure/Joy Division more than previously. But the main point, the key tot he improvement is the songs, they are more memorable, and just better. Highly recommended!

The BC page.

 

Algiers - Shook (2023)

Shook, released last year, is Algiers' fourth album. They still deliver some kind of soul infused post-punk but they brought many people to collaborate with them (Zach de la Rocha, Backxwash, billy woods, Mark Cisneros, Patrick Shiroishi, among others) and as could be expected Shook is the most versatile album they have done, gaining in diversity what it loses in cohesiveness. The many hip-hop and spoken words elements give the album a kind of ambient / soundtrack feel. But describing it is a bit pointless, you have to experience it. I really recommend you do (and check their previous albums as well!).

The Bandcamp page.

 

Blacklisters - Fantastic Man (2020)

Hardcore? Yes, kind of. Noise rock and post-punk, definitely. Blacklisters from Leeds (UK) is all that. But maybe the best way to describe their latest album Fantasic Man (released in 2020, due time for another one guys!) is that the band it reminds me the most is Nirvana, not bad isn't it? Check it!

The BC page.

 

Ultra Razzia - Jusqu'au bout de la nuit (2022)

I'm not usually interested a lot in the street/oi! side of punk, but Jusqu'au bout de la nuit from Ultra Razzia grabbed my attention and I really like it. The band from Montréal (they sing in French) manage to bring extra dimensions to oi!/street punk by mixing it with speed rock/metal (Motörhead comes to mind, especially with the powerfull and catchy basslines) and a post-punk feel (the darker atmosphere and, again, the basslines). Give it a try!

 

The BC page. 

 

Kill The Thrill - Autophagie (2024)

If Kill The Thrill first appear on Blasting Days, it's just because their previous album was before my blog existed (Tellurique was in 2005, Blasting Days started in 2012). Kill The Thrill is among my favourite French band. They can loosely be classified as industrial rock/metal, but on the more atmospheric side of industrial, closer to bands like Jesu, The Young Gods, Einstürzende Neubauten, or Swans than to Minsitry. And their new album Autophagie is maybe their less heavy one. I think I preferred Tellurique, but I also really enjoy the new one as well. The singing, now nearly entirely in French is again excellent.

The Bandcamp page.

 

Soft Kill - Metta World Peace (2023)

Soft Kill is a post-punk / shoegaze one man project from Chicago. I enjoyed its previous releases and often considered reviewing one of them, but felt maybe it was a bit too generic. But Metta World Peace is a different beast. The post-punk / shoagaze with a prevalent The Cure influence is still the core of the music, but this time the songs are also built around hip-hop beats (with a few MCs as guests) and it works extremely well, making it the most memorable Soft Kill album. We already knew hip-hop producer sampling shoeagaze worked fine, Metta World Peace is proof shoegaze/post-punk artist using hip-hop beats and samples can produce great results too. Really addictive album that I can't recommend warmly enough!

The Bandcamp page.

 

No Negative - The Last Offices (2020)

No Negative if a band from Montreal (Québec) and with their second album The Last Offices (and the rest of their discography) they deliver some excellent music on the psych/noise side of post-punk. Or is it on the noise-punk side of psych rock? Well, you get the idea! If not, maybe you can also imagine a mix of Ice Age, The black Angels, The Stooges, and Black Flag, or Brainbombs... Even better : just listen to their music! Worth your time, I tell you... The epic final track is something.

The Bandcamp page.

 

Circle of Ouroborus - Thurisa (2022)

Circle of Ouroborus keeps on releasing new stuff very fast, and this one called Thurisa, is one of the three he released last year. While on Aavikon Varjo he experimented with short keyboard /ambient oriented songs, and Autuala was closer than his usual to "normal" black metal with a focus on epic atmospheres, Thurisa sits somewhat in the middle, sounding between a drugged and depressed Emperor and a black metal tribute to The Cure (expect it's sung in Finnish!). And I think it's the most interesting and convincing album of the three. Good and singular stuff as usual from Circle of Ouroborus.

Viagra Boys - Cave World (2022)

Welfare Jazz, the previous Viagra Boys album, has probably been one of the three albums I listened the most to during the last two years. The new one, Cave World, is on its way to follow the same path... They seem to be dropping awesome albums like others go fishing. I mean, they make it look like it's easy. And they don't just follow a formula, many songs in Cave World will surprise you even if you know their music. It's another delivery of sharp guitars, sarcasms, groove, howling sax and Suicide beats, but  with a different twist. And as addictive. You've been warned.

Their website.