Derby Motoreta’s Burrito Kachimba – Bolsa Amarilla y Piedra Potente
A band with names like Dandy Piranha and Machete Carrasco deliver a record far richer than their goofy alter egos let on — flamenco-rock, punk and Greek choruses included.
Radar de Novetats Discogràfiques
Amarok – Hope
Polish art-rock band Amarok’s fifth album: gentle, beautifully arranged music, best enjoyed on days that call for something that won’t disturb your zen.
Magic Brother & Mystic Sister – Tarot, Part I
Barcelona duo Magic Brother & Mystic Sister open a tarot-themed song cycle steeped in prog-jazz, psychedelia and folk — and leave us wanting Part II.
Wheel – Charismatic Leaders
Finnish trio Wheel’s densest, heaviest album to date: a dark, polyrhythmic record built on contrast between restraint and force.
Haishen – Awaken the Endless Deep
Haishen’s debut full-length, built around Chinese mythology, is one of the most thrilling metal/prog debuts of the year — a trio that earns every one of its wild genre shifts.
Devin Townsend – PowerNerd
Devin Townsend’s PowerNerd swings from ’80s-metal empowerment anthems to Ziltoid-adjacent electronics — an emotional record about grief, loss and getting older.
Opeth – The Last Will and Testament
Opeth return to growled vocals on The Last Will and Testament: a dark, baroque, cinematic concept album that rewards repeat listens.
The Overview – Steven Wilson
Steven Wilson’s The Overview promises a concept album but delivers a scattered, unfinished-feeling double CD — even at his worst, still essential.
Ølyp – I(m)MORTAL
Debut instrumental album from French duo Ølyp: atmospheric post-metal about ecological crisis without a single sung word, with a guest string quartet.
SUBMASQ – Spirit Animal
SUBMASQ’s (formerly Subterranean Masquerade) seventh album: Israeli progressive metal with oud, bouzouki and a guest solo from Ron «Bumblefoot» Thal.
Lonely Robot – An Ending
John Mitchell closes the Lonely Robot cycle with «An Ending», sixth and last album of the Astronaut saga, with Craig Blundell on drums.
Russian Circles – Nine
Russian Circles’ ninth album, «Nine», produced by Kurt Ballou: deliberate instrumental post-metal, no surprises but no cracks either.
This Is Lorelei – The Singer in My Band
Nate Amos (Water From Your Eyes) releases «The Singer in My Band» as This Is Lorelei: American pop written in fragments, from a tour van.
Boy Harsher – Get Mean
Boy Harsher’s first album for Atlantic Records turns their own break-up into twelve tracks that swing from dark synth-pop to western.