DIY Magazine • 14th December 2020 Review: Taylor Swift - evermore There are lyricists and there are storytellers, and in a year of uncertainty and inconsistency, Taylor Swift has emerged as the most assured songwriter of a generation.
DIY Magazine • 30th October 2020 Review: Nothing - The Great Dismal On a record that outwardly calls for the end of us, there’s plenty to live for, even if it’s simply the subtle beauty of Nothing.
DIY Magazine • 30th October 2020 Review: MOURN – Self Worth MOURN have embraced the uncontrollable chaos in order to find their own relief, as messy as that may be.
DIY Magazine • 8th October 2020 Review: Touché Amoré - Lament With the clouds lifted even a little, there’s a new world ready to explore; one with as many ups and downs as before, but one in which Jeremy and band feel more resilient and less restrained than ever.
DIY Magazine • 28th September 2020 Review: Sufjan Stevens - The Ascension Not so much a call to arms as an exploration of the individual’s ability to disassociate from the norm.
DIY Magazine • 24th September 2020 Review: Pillow Queens - In Waiting Pillow Queens are outwardly frustrated but comfortable in themselves, and their sound succeeds in finding the often-untapped ground between the two.
DIY Magazine • 24th September 2020 Review: Deftones - Ohms If any of Deftones’ previous records are guilty of lacking focus, ‘Ohms’ is certainly safe from future vitriol.
DIY Magazine • 19th September 2020 Review: Into it. Over It. - Figure This sombre self-reflection runs throughout ‘Figures’, a record that doesn’t quite let go of the past but provides the blueprint to do so.
DIY Magazine • 20th August 2020 Review: Bully - SUGAREGG “I’m not angry anymore,” Alicia Bognanno exhales on ‘Hours and Hours’, “I’m not holding onto that.” It’s a far cry from the visceral rage of her band’s previous albums, now replaced by a more optimistic outlook and melodies to match.
DIY Magazine • 7th August 2020 Review: Tkay Maidza - Last Year Was Weird, Vol. 2 When Australian-Zimbabwean singer and rapper Tkay Maidza penned the first volume of her ‘Last Year Was Weird’ trilogy, she had no idea what 2020 was about to serve up.
DIY Magazine • 9th July 2020 Review: The Beths - Jump Rope Gazers Although far from a discovery of confidence, it rounds out ‘Jump Rope Gazers’ as a cathartic acceptance of doubt. With it, The Beths find their most focused sound yet in the midst of uncertainty.
DIY Magazine • 26th June 2020 Review: HAIM - Women In Music Pt. III While perfectly capturing the current zeitgeist, HAIM carry the passion, creativity and joy to also cement ‘Women In Music Pt. III’ as a timeless classic.
DIY Magazine • 18th June 2020 Review: Phoebe Bridgers - Punisher As the record builds to a final cathartic hushed scream, ‘Punisher’ marks a clear step forward, but one that remains as fundamentally graceful as all that has come before.
DIY Magazine • 11th June 2020 Review: Orlando Weeks - A Quickening A collection of observations building up to the birth of his son in 2008, ‘A Quickening’ takes The Maccabees at their most ethereal, all-but stripping out the guitar to create a swirling escapist dreamscape.
DIY Magazne • 8th June 2020 Review: Katie Malco - Failures Her long-awaited debut captures the zeitgeist of a generation lost somewhere between opportunity and fear.
DIY Magazine • 15th May 2020 Review: Josef Salvat - modern anxiety ‘modern anxiety’ wrestles with the realities of troubled relationships and the lessons learned, ultimately questioning whether for those living in the shadows, anything will ever be enough.
DIY Magazine • 1st May 2020 Review: Ghostpoet - I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep Social despondency and visceral frustration run throughout ‘I Grow Tired But Dare Not Fall Asleep’, a masterful soundtrack to a failing society – one that carries even more weight as we redefine community, connection and togetherness.
Ticketmaster UK • 17th April 2020 Review: Rina Sawayama - SAWAYAMA Its drudging guitars harked back to turn-of-the-century nu-metal, not dissimilar to the characteristic drawl of KoRn’s defining Follow The Leader. It was a far cry from the experimental pop of her Rina EP and breakthrough track Cherry, itself a more...
DIY Magazine • 10th April 2020 Review: Laura Marling - Song For Our Daughter “I won’t write a woman with a man on my mind”, she sings on ‘Only The Strong’, “hope that doesn’t’ sound too unkind”. This caveat quickly proves to be unfounded. With all the understated power of the record, it feels far from unkind. Instead it’s an...
DIY Magazine • 21st February 2020 Review: Banoffee - Look At Us Now Dad Predominately written following a move from Melbourne to LA, ‘Look At Us Now Dad’ is filled with conversational anecdotes of hard-fought affirmation.