Diving into the Pounding Noise and Dancefloor Alt-Rock of the Band Ashnymph and the Week's Best Fresh Music
Hailing from London and Brighton
If you enjoy Underworld, MGMT, Animal Collective
On the horizon A new EP planned for 2026, currently without a title
The pair of releases released to date by the group Ashnymph defy easy classification: their own description of the sound as “subconscioussion” leaves listeners guessing. Their initial track Saltspreader blended a heavy mechanical drumming – guitarist Will Wiffen has at times appeared on stage in a tee that features the symbol of the trailblazing band Godflesh – with retro-style synths and a guitar line that subtly echoes the classic Stooges track I Wanna Be Your Dog, before transforming into a wall of disquieting noise. The desired impact, the group has mentioned, was to conjure highway journeys, “the ceaseless flow of vehicles 24-hours a day over huge distances … nighttime orange glows”.
Its follow-up, the song Mr Invisible, occupies a space between dance music and left-field alt-rock. For one thing, the song's beat, layers of hypnotic electronics, and lyrics that appear either hallucinogenically distorted or spellbindingly cyclical in a way that recalls Underworld's Dubnobasswithmyheadman period all suggest the club floor. Alternatively, its forceful live-sounding dynamics, near-anarchic character and overdrive – “getting that crisp distortion is a lifelong ambition,” Wiffen has said – mark it out as very much the work of a band rather than a lone electronic artist. They've performed around south London’s DIY scene for under a year, “any spot with loud speakers”.
But both are exciting and different enough – from each other and other current music – to prompt questions about Ashnymph's upcoming moves. No matter what it is, on the evidence of Saltspreader and Mr Invisible, it’s probably not dull.
The Week's Fresh Highlights
Dry Cleaning – Hit My Head All Day
“I simply must have experiences”, vocalist Florence Shaw states on her band’s beguiling return, but over six minutes – with exhales setting the pace – you feel that she can’t work out why.
Azimuth by Danny L Harle with Caroline Polachek
Combining Evanescence's dark flair to peak 90s trance – right down to the lyric “and I ask the rain” – Azimuth hints at dusting off your best Cyberdog wear and dancing the night away, stat.
Acne Studios mix by Robyn
The music by Robyn for the Swedish designer’s SS26 show teases her upcoming ninth album, including driving guitar parts à la Soulwax, energetic beats like Benny Benassi and the lyrics “my body’s a spaceship with the ovaries on hyperdrive”.
Jordana's Like That
We loved her soft rock album Lively Premonition last year and the US singer-songwriter further demonstrates her remarkable skill with choruses as she expresses unrequited feelings.
Molly Nilsson's Get a Life
The independent Swedish artist put out her new album Amateur this week, and this song is extraordinary: a synthetic guitar line jerks forward at hardcore punk pace as the singer urges we grab life by the scruff of the neck.
Artemas' Superstar
After documenting jaded love and sex on his hit single I Like the Way You Kiss Me and its accompanying release Yustyna, the British-Cypriot star is completely captivated by his current partner amid driving coldwave beats.
Jennifer Walton's Miss America
From one of the year’s standout debuts, a soft synth lament about Walton learning of her father’s death in an airport hotel, describing her eerie environment in softly sung lines: “Shopping plaza, illegal trade, anxiety episodes.”