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Talkhouse

Through the exhaustion, it persists. Gnaw’s glowing power-pop draws deep from a tired tension: a perpetually shifting negotiation between ‘90s alt-rock romanticism, fuzzed out upon machine-gun drumming; pummeling riffs mangled through digital processing and noise; tales traversing lingering memory and motion, mesmerized by hypergaze-influenced joy rushes. Brandishing a heavy palette of power pop immediacy — equally indebted to indie rock contemporaries like Momma and Slow Pulp and ‘90s grit a la Hole and Smashing Pumpkins — the EP’s four serrated songs thrill through life’s pushes and pulls. 
On their debut EP, Inside a Machine That’s Glistening, the three-piece draws from that weighty palette to weave four songs that glow amidst the grit. There’s a curious, yet never overbearing darkness to them: confessionals channeled through Daniel Lim’s serrated guitar work, dancing between Tara Tan’s cautious, whispery vocals. Navigating a spectrum from sheer wonder (“Star”) to fear (“Gash”) and fatigue (“This Is My Life”), Tan’s personal stories shift from dreamy to dramatic. Meanwhile, drummer Zakhran Khan’s fine-tuned rhythms rip into these sincere questions, at times accelerating to torrents of catharsis, while at others simply adding to moments triumphant.

Gnaw

Music

Mood Board: Gnaw’s Inside a Machine That’s Glistening

Accessory is the solo recording project of Chicago based Jason Balla (Dehd, Earring). The debut Accessory record, Dust, is out now.

Accessory

Mood Board: Accessory’s Dust

Over the course of the last two decades, Detroit&#8217;s ADULT. (Nicola Kuperus and Adam Lee Miller) have been perhaps one of the most fervent proponents of a dark, dance aesthetic that harnesses the perverse aspects of the late &#8217;70s analog dystopian post-modernism.

ADULT.

Mood Board: ADULT.’s Kissing Luck Goodbye

For decades, Spencer Zahn and Will Graefe have traced similar journeys. They grew up in Massachusetts and relocated to New York City in the 2010s. Performing in kindred groups, such as Star Rover and Father Figures, the duo first crossed paths in the Brooklyn indie scene. They now reside in Los Angeles, contributing to California’s underground and relishing the fresh tempo of West Coast living.
From this rumination emerges Sudden Quarterly. Zahn’s new label, dedicated to supporting the material of friends and exploring a fresh mode of productivity. It focuses on genre-defying instrumental music and improvisation. “Each year will have a theme and an album comes out every quarter based on that theme,” Zahn elaborates. “2026 will be all duet pairings.”
This prompt yielded Zahn and Graefe’s collaborative debut, I Envy Light.

Will Graefe and Spencer Zahn

Mood Board: Will Graefe & Spencer Zahn’s I Envy Light

Otracami is the project of Brooklyn-based artist Camila Ortiz. Her latest record, Runoff, is out now via Figure &amp; Ground.

Otracami

Mood Board: Otracami’s Runoff

Melodi Ghazal is a Copenhagen-based, Iranian singer, composer and producer. Her debut record, Idol Melodies, is out now on Anyines.

Melodi Ghazal

Mood Board: Melodi Ghazal’s Idol Melodies

Ora Cogan&#8216;s approach to songwriting melds traditional, experimental, and psychedelic into something wholly unique. Cogan is known for her singular voice and cinematic compositions. She has collaborated with a multitude of artists while touring extensively throughout Europe and North America, sharing the stage with the likes of Grouper and Mazzy Star. Her latest record, Hard-Hearted Woman, is out now on Sacred Bones.

Ora Cogan

Mood Board: Ora Cogan’s Hard-Hearted Woman

Maria BC is an ambient artist based in Oakland. Their latest record Marathon is out now on Sacred Bones.

Maria BC

Mood Board: Maria BC’s Marathon

Blackwater Holylight is a rock band from Portland, OR, now based in LA. Their latest record, Not Here Not Gone, is out now on Suicide Squeeze.

Blackwater Holylight

Mood Board: Blackwater Holylight’s Not Here Not Gone

Silver Liz is the New York-based project of Carrie and Matt Wagner. Their latest record, III, is out now via Extremely Pure.

Silver Liz

Role Models: Silver Liz Bonded Over Beach House

Sam Wenc is a Philadelphia-based composer and pedal steel guitarist. For over a decade, he released music as Post Moves, and now performs solo under his own name. His latest record, Language At An Angle, is out January 30, 2026, via Lobby Art Editions.

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