Neu Bulletin The Neu Bulletin (Folly Group, Benét, urika’s bedroom and more!)

Following their debut EP, ‘Awake and Hungry’, and last year’s follow-up ‘Human And Kind’, Folly Group’s latest single ‘Strange Neighbour’ is the first taster from a series of recording sessions that took place earlier this year. Bizarre yet incredibly catchy, the track feels not too far away from the sound introduced on the band’s debut. ‘Strange Neighbour’ invites listeners to recognise their strangeness, and that of their peers, because there’s no real way of knowing who’s really ‘normal’. The single arrives ahead of Folly Group’s stint supporting New York’s Geese across the UK this September. (Katie Macbeth)

‘Junkie’ is a curious thing; simultaneously lo-fi and complex, it’s an intensely layered soundscape that nevertheless has order to it. The self-produced, debut solo single from LA-based multi-instrumentalist urika’s bedroom, the track creeps along, heavy with distortion through which urika’s whispered, intentional vocals cut. Besides music, urika’s interests encompass creative direction, modelling, and styling, and this multi-hyphenate approach to art is evident in the intriguing magpie touches on ‘Junkie’. (Daisy Carter)

There’s something pleasingly incongruous about ‘overdrive’ - the fourth single from Hull duo, Cutty. On one hand you have the sort of pleasingly ‘throw everything at the wall’ approach to sound creation that’ll take your ears several listens to pick out the pieces, of which include string samples, driving indie bass, possibly a cowbell, woozy synths and some subtle bleep bloops in the back. On the other, vocalist Amy Precious has the sort of early ‘00s nonchalance that sounds like she’s probably got a mic in one hand, cig in the other whilst recording. Neither ingredient would likely work on its own, but together ‘overdrive’ makes for an intriguing whole. (Lisa Wright)

Having showcased the riffler side of his talents with ‘Insensitive’, the newest track to come from Virginia’s Benét - and the second to be taken from his forthcoming debut LP - is an altogether more loungey affair, complete with swooning saxophone and just enough enticing grit in his vocals. Telling a story of realising your self-worth in the wake of an unhealthy relationship (“I was working on a better me / Until you intervened”), ‘Overpowering’ is an insight into an artist who clearly knows their value. (Sarah Jamieson)

Where the slightly lighter components of Joy Division’s back catalogue (see: ‘Disorder’) and the beginnings of New Order meet lies ‘At Moment’s Edge’ - the latest from New Yorkers, Lathe of Heaven. Swaddled in sky high, reverby guitar lines that offset vocalist Gage Allison’s doomy baritone, it is, say the band, the “poppy departure” from their usual depressive fare. Needless to say, Swifty probably shouldn’t be too worried, but much like The Horrors achieved on second LP ‘Primary Colours’, ‘At Moment’s Edge’ balances the darkness and light with something like joy. (Lisa Wright)

Floating, atmospheric vocals anchored by a reverb-heavy drumbeat is a formula characteristic of Ari Abdul’s catalogue: a curation of moody, dancefloor-ready alt pop. True to form, the melancholic, sobering strings that open her latest single – a collaboration with fellow New York artist Deadbeat Girl – are promptly interrupted by the crunching, glitching beat that drives the rest of the track. Contrary to its lyrics, which pine shamelessly after a lover, the song manages to feel effortlessly cool, with Deadbeat Girl settling into Abdul’s soundscape so seamlessly it’s as if they were a permanent duo. (Caitlin Chatterton)

Tags: Ari Abdul, Benet, Cutty, Deadbeat Girl, Folly Group, Lathe of Heaven, Urika’s Bedroom, Listen, Features, Neu, Neu Bulletin