SOULWAX – Belgian Electro-Spiked Brothers Drop Brand New Brainbreaker ‘PERFECT WE ARE NOT’
Daily electricity to load your batteries
25 March 2026
SOULWAX, the Belgian brothers David and Stephen Dewaele‘s main project for 30 years now, released their 6th longplayer, called All Systems Are Lying, last year in October.
After the promo tour it got a bit silent until now, and how!
The bros wrote and recorded a new track in just 24 hours
in the iconic Abbey Road Studios in London.
They baptized it PERFECT WE ARE NOT.
Courtesy Soulwax
It’s a nearly 8-minute electro-spiked brainbreaker echoeing, both New Order and
LCD Soundstem with its motorik beeps and bleeps perseverance and nerve-racking constancy. The siblings throw some nonchalant vocals in the mix, before storming
towards an orgastic techno finale. Perfect.
Press play here.
THE RATS – Belgian Punk Dogs Show Their Teeth On Bloodcurdling Debut LP ‘BOXING DAYS’
25 March 2026
Band: THE RATS
Who: Post-punk dogs from
Ghent, Belgium ready to attack.
Album: BOXING DAYS
Their debut.
Press info: While the first releases focused on mechanical grooves, their debut
album, Boxing Days, has become a distinct guitar album. The nonconformist approach
to songwriting, however, remained: in eight tracks clocking in at just over half an hour,
it ranges from raw, back-to-the-roots punk to the closest they’ve ever come to a ballad.
There are echoes of Wire and Gang Of Four, alongside contemporary references like IDLES, Shame, and Viagra Boys, but The Rats never resort to imitation. What prevails is a radically unique identity: that of a band that never chooses the easy way out and doesn’t follow trends.”
The cover artwork features Albert Laperre, the great-grandfather of the album’s
graphic designer Stan Tijtgat, an amateur boxer who went down often but always
came back fighting.
Emile Dekeyser (frontman) adds: “It’s a fitting image for an album that, despite its title,
isn’t about fighting or winning. Boxing Days is about survival, about learning how to remain standing, even when you can’t quite keep up with the punches.”
TUTV: The rat race is on, folks. Time to get up, stand up, and fight for your right to start
a moshpit whenever and wherever you are, the moment Boxing Days torpedoes your ears. This debut is, without a shadow of a doubt, a longplayer that will last for a long time. For its sharp-teethed punkiness (British Racing Green / Won’t Stand For It / Muck And Bullets and the flabbergasting The Wrong Day), for its bloodcurdling execution, and for its overall KO horsepower in 8 rounds.
But it’s not only about the stupefying noizzz
and the turbulent spit-and-sneer excorcism.
The Rats, led by vim and vigour by motormouth Emile Dekeyser, offer barbed-wire songs with body and balls, with heart and soul, with vivacity and a jagged joie de vivre. Every uppercut stands loud and proud on its own feet.
A striking example is Boxing Day. A burning torch that moves like a snake chases
her helpless prey, slowly and viciously, until the fatal attack. Goosebumps.
Another standout, according to my enthusiastic ears, is the bone-chilling closer, called Stomper. A sort of aftermath meditation on what the fuck happened here, what
did we do, where will we go. Its ominous pace and out-of-your-Emile-mind finale is no
less than startling.
The Rats are a well-oiled rock machine wasting no time on arty-farty superfluity
and/or bombastic overproduction. 32 minutes of brutal honesty is what we get.
Great debut albums are the ones everybody remembers long after their release,
no matter how many followed, because of their uncalculated directness, their
primal, innocent discharge, and their everlasting tunes. Boxing Days undeniably
belongs to this coveted category
The Rats‘ message is crystal clear.
They’re here to stay. Join them.
STREAM/BUY ALBUM HERE
FUTURE ISLANDS – Effervescent Electro Pop Vets Announce A Double 20th Anniversary Album And Share 2 Cuts
25 March 2026
Press photo by Shawn Bracknell
Baltimore‘s shiny synth-pop team FUTURE ISLANDS led by supple frontman
Samuel T. Herring celebrate their 20th anniversary as a band this year.
To mark the event, they have planned a double album, titled
FROM A HOLE IN THE FLOOR TO A FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH,
for release on May 22.
It will feature no less than 20 tracks. Alternate hits, rarities, and fan
favourites, some of which have never appeared on streaming services.
Album artwork
William Cashion (bassist): “The hole in the floor is the everyday, but the fountain
is the magic that happens when the life you dreamed about actually becomes the one you’re living. It’s the dream and the reality existing in the same room. “This is for everyone who has carried these songs with them, from the first house parties to the rooms we’re playing today.”
Tracklist and pre-order info HERE.
We get two previews to start the celebrations.
FIND LOVE is a tune that appeared on
7″ single ‘Before the Bridge’ from 2011.
Vintage FI pop bliss.
And the 2nd one, named SAIL is
a 2025 number originally released
on a VIP tour-only 7”.
Romanticism in motion.
PIXIES In 5 Magazine Covers
Black Francis has been looking for his mind for 40 years now.
The band will trace it on their 40th-year milestone tour around
the world.
All dates HERE.
Let’s have a look back.
MELODY MAKER
1988
ROCKPOOL
1989
NME
1991
NME
2004
LOUDER THAN WAR
2019
WU-TANG Just Can’t Stop Touring… In The US
24 March 2026
Hip-rap-hop icons WU-TANG CLAN started their badass career back in 1992.
They were not exactly a productive team with only 7 LPs in 34 years, but their
impact was huge.
As fans know, they started their last stand last June with The Final Chamber
tour, which brought them to the US, Europe, UK, Australia, and will hit Japan.
soon.
We already knew that they planned to return to the US during June/July, but
now the rap gang have added more dates, from August to October (see below)
ANNA CALVI Who Released Her 4th Album About The Art Of Singing
24 March 2026
Do-re-mi.
New album ‘Is This All There Is’.
JUKEBOX 2026 – WEEK 13 – Five New Rad Tracks Added Twice A Week
Hello, music junkies.
Another batch of 5 new, stellar tracks have
been added to Turn Up The Volume’s Jukebox.
Listen up.
ALL TOGETHER
.
TRACK BY TRACK
Artists: LIFELOOSE
Who: Aldi Ho and Josie Silverman, two friends who met at London’s Guildhall Middle School . Together, they make throbbing, hedonistic dance tracks with murmuring deadpan vocals.
Track: LIFELOOSE
“‘Lifeloose’ is our dark and hypnotic satirical take on self-importance. Mixing irony
and seduction, the floaty vocals flirts with a crusty breakbeat and DIY wacky electronics.
The party’s only just begun.”
TUTV: This is wham-bam awesome. Booming bass beats hit your bones relentlessly and put your mind in a trance while delirious peek-a-boo voices cause a twilight ambiance for some shadowdancing. Tricky trip hop stuff. Transcendent vibrations!
Linktree
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Photo Credit: Riles Martinez
Band: BOYR!OT
Who: Boisterous Los Angeles-based duo. Their journey began with a fateful meeting on Tinder in 2017, bound by a shared passion for emo and pop-punk music. They craft a nostalgic yet contemporary soundscape akin to Good Charlotte, 3OH!3, and My Chemical Romance, all viewed through their distinctive queer, outsider perspective.
Track: HOLLYWOOD NIGHTMARE
Press info: “It’s an escapist anthem about partying through an emotional crashout. Fueled by recession-pop attitude and the chaos of early-2000s tabloid culture, BOYR!OT cranks up the emo angst with punchy guitars and scream-it-back hooks.”
TUTV: Electro-cuting drones hammer your skull in non-stop, while hopped-up voices accelerate the blitzkrieg ride you’re on, from the get-go. When the traumatic chorus
kicks in, it’s time to go completely ballistic. WTF! Yes, that’s the feeling.
Instagram – Spotify
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Band: THE N.S.O.
Who: A Yorkshire (UK) four-piece who mix various influences and genres into their work resulting in a sound that is enticingly fresh and exciting. They combine dark and gritty vocals with light hearted melodies making for a winning combo at every turn.
Track: COUNSELLORS CALL
“Counsellors Call is a conversation with yourself, your partner, your boss, your friends or your ‘counsellor’. It’s realisation and contradiction in one, to a familiar rhythm in a humorous way, just like life itself.”
TUTV: Take up the phone and shake-swing-sway along to the strumming
Coral-esque guitar swagger at work here. Counsellors Calls is a jumpy, frisky,
and pop-juiced tune that will bounce in your head for the rest of the day. Bingo.
.
Linktree
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📷 Gareth Harwood and B. Kayla Bell
Band: SEADOG
Who: Dream-pop outfit from the mystic shores of Brighton.
They have 2 albums under their belts. Cabin Fever Blues (2018)
and Internal Noise (2024).
Track: AGAINST THE GRAIN
Press info: “An indie anthem for the underdog. A celebration of the ones who carve their own path, rather than follow the herd. The song embraces that raw authenticity and the care-free energy of youth.
Sleeve artwork by B. Kayla Bell
TUTV: Against The Grain balances somewhere between smooth Dinosaur Jr moments
and guitar-layered fuzziness by Band Of Horses, invigorated with rigid drum/bass pulsations and spacey melodiousness. On top, silvery vocals float along, bringing Sparklehorse‘s hallucinatory vocals to mind. Splendiferous stroke.
Linktree
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Band: MATT JONES AND THE BOBS
Who: Indies from Southwest Virginia, who have woven a tapestry of raw emotion and timeless storytelling since their formation in 2011. They have released their debut album Brother’s Hymn in 2014.
Track: WICKED WAYS
Matt Jones: “The song is our nod to family, forgiveness, and the strength it takes to become better men. It’s about looking back without shame and owning where we came from, but also who we’ve grown into. It celebrates brotherhood and grace during a period of outgrowing our past without forgetting it.”
TUTV: When sonic sepia-colored melancholia, sparkly guitar maudlinism, and heartrending vocals come together in a song like the way it happens here, your ears will get enthralled with a touching, don’t look back in anger, reverie that makes you feel good about the place you’re in with your loved ones. Electrifying nostalgia for all of us.
Instagram – Facebook
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TURN UP THE VOLUME
Image Of The Day – THROWING MUSES’ Tour Poster
Last year KRISTIN HERSH and her THROWING MUSES shared their 11th longplayer,
called Moonlight Concessions with the world, and started touring the UK, Europe
and the US.
At the end of this month, the band return to the US for a 2nd string of dates
and announced this on their socials with this eye-catching tour poster.
MOONLIGHT CONCESSIONS
MUSE – British Rock Giants Announce Album #10 And Share First Single ‘BE WITH YOU’
Vitaziling tunes that work faster than a stream of caffeine
24 March 2026
British rock giants MUSE, fronted by the emo-loaded Matt Bellamy
started their triumphant odyssey back in 1994. WTF! That’s 32 years
ago. Stop the clocks.
It’s been 4 years since their latest album Will Of The People, hit planet Earth.
Now the wait is over for all MUSE fanatics.
Album #10, named The Wow! Single First comes out on June 26th.
More info here.
Press info: “Muse are a culturally-attuned, genre-defying band who channel the anxieties of each era—technology, power, rebellion, and identity—into maximalist, stadium-ready rock that evolves with the times while staying unmistakably Muse.”
Along with the news, the band dropped the first single, titled BE WITH YOU.
Pure MUSE. Another bombast-fueled nugget powered by booming synths, Bellamy‘s hysterical guitar entering the room midway, and his melodramatic vocals.