Alex Pester - Yours

 

We are long time fans of Alex Pester, a young prodigy with a fantastic back catalogue and Boy remains one of the best albums you will ever hear. It is sad reading the album notes that he has been struggling recently. The decision to go back home appears to be a good one.

The result of this is this new album and what an incredible listen it is. It is very different to what has gone before, incredibly inventive and very hard to label, which makes the album so wonderful. It really is all over the place, a myriad of ideas, all self recorded.

I really don't want to go into individual songs, this is an album to discover yourself. I'll embed my three current favourites, note the word current as these will change and your choices may be very different. It is heartfelt and beguiling.

At times, it is incredibly gentle and fragile, yet it can be chaotic and noisy. You will hear Folk that can be straight ahead or something acoustic that is twisted. There are changes in direction that are completely unexpected next to straight ahead charming.

I like it most when it gets a little twisted and you will have already heard the Psych Pop joy that is Pearl And Dean on a Listening To This Week Playlist. But Yours is an absolutely intoxicating listen. This is an album that has the promise to be looked back on in the future as something to constantly to recommend. So damn inventive!

You can listen to and buy the album here.

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Heavy Water - Sundown

 

After adding two songs to recent Listening To This Week Playlists, I felt it worth investigating the mini album from which they came and the six songs are a cracking listen. Heavy Water is the project of Lubbock Texas's Mitch Rambo.

Just as those two LTTW selections varied, the album does two. Split into two directions, both work really well. The default is heavier Power Pop that edges towards Rockier AOR. These songs hit my sensibilities most. They Rock without ever losing the melodic joy. 

High School, Never Be A Saint and Lithium Of That all fit that template and are great listens that will certainly be enjoyed by longstanding members here. But the other directions taken are beguiling and work equally well.

Forget It is a little more 90s Rock, but also sounds a little Classic Rock. The male / female vocal blends beautifully. Pain gets into Pop Punk, built around an hypnotic riff. Of Sound Mind still sounds as good as it did on my first listen. It broods and the Country Guitar sound complements a slowed down song. It is very different to what has gone before.

This type of album was everyday a decade ago, but too few attempt this type of Melodic Rock these days. AOR seems to be left in the past. Being able to mix this with the current noisier new breed of Power Pop is an admiral skill. The production is top notch and the album is a fine listen.

You can listen to and buy the album here. 

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Listening To This Week Playlist 2 February

   

Normal Service is resumed this week with 26 songs. Would we dare to open with a 16 minute song? Yes we would. You can educate your musical sensibilities or move on to song 2, big faves of ours, with something off their upcoming album.

Elsewhere, there are returning heroes with Nick Piunti, the black watch, He's Dead Jim, Dave Cope, Guv and Marc Valentine. PLUS all the great new sounds that you have come to expect. 2026 has officially begun in these parts.

The weekly playlist is largely for submissions, not just the usual stuff that we dig out ourselves. The song order is not about song preference, but how the playlist flows.  All embeds open in new windows to aid scrolling. Links to the artists will also appear on I Don't Hear A Single Social Media sites over the next 24 hours. This will help you to discover more about the artists who appear here. 

Sykofant - Heart Of The Woods

Log Flume - Necessary Evil

He's Dead Jim - The Process

The 425's - Beautiful Mistake

Dave Cope - Funny Thing Love

Prism Shores - Kid Gloves

Nick Piunti - Big In Madrid

Living Too Late - Starting To Be

Marc Valentine - NY UAP

Guv - Blue Jade

Joe Glass - Man Who Lost His Diamond

the black watch - some people will believe

You Filthy Dog - Shared Universe

Hard To Miss - Pick Up The Phone

Muo Duo - After The End

Muo Duo · After The End

Nollvision - Orolig Sijal

Vehicle - You Are Not A Cowboy

Hedge - Hey Dude

Rock Berg - Stop Drop And Roll

ROCK BERG · Stop Drop and Roll

Miracle Finds - Miss You, My Friends

Dewey - Outside Of The Lines

Mirrorglass - Better Off Dead

Heavy Water - Of Sound Mind

Joe Doonan - Before You Leave

Kamikaze - X Me Out

LANPE - Findsine

LANPE · Findsine

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February Is On Its Way

 

The 2026 Reviews finally got underway, but there are lots to come. January is always about our Best Of The Previous Year. The changes this year seemed to work well. Let focus on the countdown posts, but a much Busier Blog as readers / listeners went off to the original Reviews.

It did start too late though. The end of January is a bit late to start 2026 Reviews and so the plan will be to put everything up in the first ten days of next January and maybe gibe the Listening To This Week Playlist a rest for that one week. We are also thinking of going Alphabetical for our Best 100. Still posting in 10s and just naming an Album Of The Year numerically.

There are so many Reviews to come that February will simply be about Reviews and the 4 LTWW Playlists. See you there!

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He's Dead Jim - These Men, These Monsters

 

Welcome to the new album from one of our favourites. I love what these three do, it comes from unusual angles, but is wonderfully inventive. Guitar Pop that is all over the place, but essential listening, a little Art Rock at times and a tad 70s feel mixes with the UK New Wave and Power Pop.

The recent cover of Avenues And Alleyways is inspired and not even on the album. Instead they offer up a wonderfully chaotic version of Art For Arts Sake. I've known Neil Christie for a good while due to him being an Emperor Penguin and his fellow Penguin Nigel Winfield adds guitar to two songs.

It may only be January, but we already have a contender for the Best Album Of 2026. The whole thing is exhilarating, tons of variety. You can sit back and admire the inventiveness it all or find yourself helplessly singing along. I can think of no there band that could write a better song than The Process. It is gobsmackingly great.

Under A Rock is very different. Almost Noise Rock, but so damn catchy, part Glam Rock, part Power Pop.Human Zoo gets all Garage Rock and Negative Vibes is a cross between Pun and the New Wave that followed it, wonderfully messy and noisy. 

Living In Memory is top notch Power Pop, a little reminiscent of The Motors and yet has memorable 70s Pop Rock vibes. Dragonsfiels starts the album off and shows the album means business, great Brit Pop at a rapid pace.

I was delighted that He's Dead Jim returned, but could not have imagined how explosive their return was. No living on past glows, These Men, These Monsters are of the now, the past was the past. What an incredible album. Every phase the band takes just gets better and better.

You can listen to and buy the album here. It is available on CD and as a download. The CD is on the Kool Kat label and can also be ordered here.

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The 425's - Monday In Disguise

Amongst the tumbleweed that is the UK scene at present, there are small shoots of recovery. The UK is so London based, yet all the happening music seems to be far away in the regions. One thing that London has provided is the debut album from this lot.

The 425's are very 60s, wonderfully so. You imagine them to live in Carnaby Street. The music is all UK Beat and melodic Psych Pop that is definitely on the Pop side. Monday In Disguise is a cracking foot tapping affair, catchy as catchy can be.

Beautiful Mistake is very Monkees, but equally like a popped up version of The Coral and wonderfully Jangly. Yet Devil You Like is more like Garage Rock, melodic Garage Rock mind you. Don't Feel Like I Should starts all Surf morphs into UK Beat and closes with glorious Psych Pop. It is a cracking listen.

Super Daydream is very much of the groovy side, but also fits Brit Pop and Psych, at times it is a little early Kula Shaker without the pomposity. Things We Share is the ideal opener, a great sampler of what is to come and what does come is excellent.

As you might expect, it is the Psych Pop has the biggest appeal to these ears, but this is really an exceptional Guitar Pop album. The biggest testament to it is that I could have chosen any of 12 songs to embed. I've chosen my 3, but your choices might be very different.

You can listen to and buy the album here.  

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Sykofant - Leaves EP

 

The beauty of I Don't Hear A Single is that I can add in the unexpected. Our base camp is largely Guitar Pop, but I listen to much different sounds when I have time, which isn't that often. I know many of you know that I am a big Prog and Psych fan, I have been for a long time. The joy of IDHAS is that I can introduce the odd thing and it gets listened to.

Some may not take to it, but more than I ever expected to do. This has been proven by the reception that Custard Flux get, culminating in a Top 10 from the Best Of 2025. Oslo's Sykofant have been the other big like from listeners. 

Red Sun dominated our ten most popular posts of the previous 30 days until it has been washed away by The Best Of stuff as most will be for the next few weeks popularity wise. Leaves follows rapidly and again it is described as an EP due to having 3 songs when at 23 minutes it is as long as some of the Power Pop albums that we cover.

There is a more mellow feel to the opening two songs, more laidback, but just as enjoyable and at times chilling. A bit more instrumental, but all that changes with the magnificent, Heart Of The Woods. This is the prime example of what Sykofant do, all 16 minutes of it is an essential album.

A wonderfully noisy Guitar fest that at times sounds like 70s Pink Floyd at times, but a much heavier sound within. Built on massive riffs. At times, it gets a little early Rush, but the song seems to conflict with its length. It is over way too soon.

This for me shows the wonder of Prog, often made fun of buy those who have never listened. The closing part is awesome as it switches to something more choral. Again, for this EP, a fourth track is added which is a continuous mix and this is the best way to listen. Sykofant may be my favourite band at the moment. What they do is mind-blowing.

You can listen to and buy the EP here.

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