Pure Noise R

Slow Crush have announced their new album, Thirst, on which the dynamic four piece further cement themselves at the forefront of rock and shoegaze. On Thirst, Slow Crush’s dynamic textures, propulsive rhythms and gauzy riffs glow bright as ever, but this time with more grit. Thirst’s overarching theme is what Isa describes as “the romance of being with a loved one”. Although being away from someone close for long periods might strain that bond at times, the return can feel glorious, the connection sparkling new again for a while. Slow Crush set out to capture the feeling of being tethered yet feeling weightless, absorbed in the surreal beauty of the quiet moments with someone.

The cover of Spite House’s sophomore full-length, Desertion, is a piece of visual art that was constructed, then destroyed, then re-constructed and destroyed several times over. Its final form is just as dependent on the carnage it is the restoration. This deeply deliberate image was created to present 11 songs that wouldn’t be possible without immense pain or hardearned growth. Desertion is post-hardcore at its most visceral and moving, a concept album that explores loss so vulnerably and unsparingly that it’s sure to inspire catharsis and stagedives in equal measure.

Bloom: The Light We Chase [CD]