Browsing Tag

Spoken Word

Methyl Orange Fixed a Krautrock Gaze on the Sick Collective Psyche in ‘Important Things’

Posted on 30 March 2026
Important Things EP by Methyl Orange

Methyl Orange has launched a synthwave meditation with Important Things that, if everyone got caught in the tides simultaneously, tomorrow would be a very different day. The Manchester project of sonic architect Nick Wall has spent years building immersive instrumental worlds, and this release sharpens that vision into something pointedly humanistic. Since 2017, Wall has steadily grown a dedicated following through a prolific catalogue, with 2025’s Lost for Words drawing strong praise, before 2026 opened with a top-three placing in the Radio Wigwam Awards’ Best Electro Act category. Important Things feels like another decisive step forward.

Advocating for empathy, equality, and compassion rarely translates into a hypnotically stylised sonic experience that leaves you increasingly arrested, but this cinematic feat of expansively stylised electronica is no ordinary strain of synthesised fare.

The cinematic scope is panoramic as Methyl Orange delivers spoken-word mantras over cold cosmic synths that nod to krautrock’s pioneers while keeping their gaze fixed on rectifying the sick collective psyche of the present, an individualised navel-gazing downward spiral race to the top. There’s power in the softly spoken repetition, in the slow unfurling tension, in the way the track holds its nerve and lets the message land without dressing it up in cheap sentiment. John Cooper Clarke and Kraftwerk alike would approve of this message.

Important Things is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify and Bandcamp.
Review by Amelia Vandergast

Lady Poetic revived sneaker soul culture in the poetic hip-hop hit ‘Kicks’

Posted on 14 January 2026

Lady Poetic delivered a sonic synergy of hip-hop, RnB, and spoken word in her latest single and music video, Kicks. Each element brings its own distinct energy, building into a track that has the potential to put the independent artist from Columbia, Missouri on the map.

Kicks plays like a love letter to the cornerstone of aesthetic identity — a nostalgic timeline of how we’ve evolved alongside the changing face of trending trainers. It’s enough to stir a sentimental ache as it rekindles affection for styles we hope to see make their way back around.

The way Lady Poetic approached the concept proves her lyrical ingenuity. She may have created a thematic anchor in Kicks, but the way she waxes lyrical makes it feel expansive, unrestricted. The track becomes a parable as she explores how footwear can become emblematic of who we are. More than just style statements, the kicks become vessels — almost as if they’ve got a soul, rather than soles.

Instrumentally, Kicks is the perfect match for Lady Poetic’s mood, keeping it light, bright, and as airtight as a bubble on a pair of Airmax. Around a steady tempo, blissfully temperate hues of RnB drift around the 808s, letting the message breathe while reinforcing her sonic signature.

Kicks is now available on all major streaming platforms. For the full experience, stream the official video on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Anou – So Much Better: Mind-Slowing Spoken-Word Poetry

Posted on 23 December 2025

ANOU slowed the world right down on So Much Better, a spoken-word revelation that treats language as both shelter and mirror. For fans of the poignant introspection of Kae Tempest and George the Poet, this freshly penned invitation by the Beirut-based artist encourages listeners to lose themselves in imagery as it spirals gently against ambient neo-classical motifs. There’s a deliberate unhurriedness here, a conscious stepping away from noise, urgency, and performance for performance’s sake.

So Much Better moves at a meditative tempo, allowing space for words to land, linger, and settle. Anou homes in on gratitude as a cleanser for the mind, body, and soul, delivering lines that feel quietly deliberate rather than theatrically projected. It’s within the ambiently artful embrace of the track that a subtle realisation creeps in. Your own thoughts have likely been sprinting between past, present, and future, rarely pausing long enough to allow love or light any breathing room. This release offers that pause. It asks nothing more than attention, and in return, it offers grounding.

The production remains intentionally restrained, letting the spoken-word core guide the emotional gravity. Neo-classical textures hum softly in the background, acting as a supportive undercurrent rather than a distraction. So Much Better feels like a guided meditation without instruction, a space where cracks are acknowledged, glossed over gently, and left open to healing rather than scrutiny.

So Much Better is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Mimi Satanistá Poured Napalm Over Neurodivergent Fury in the Industrial Glitch Sermon ‘RAGE IS A RITUAL’

Posted on 10 May 2025
Mimi Satanistá

RAGE IS A RITUAL by Mimi Satanistá is a caustic cut above the rest of the plastic posturing of industrial pop. Raw nerves were threaded through the glitched-out waves in the progressions as the spoken word poetry sees venom cascade over the frenetic pulse of the adrenaline in the track. If you love artists in the same vein as Poppy, ANGELSPIT, and Vicious Precious, RAGE IS A RITUAL will dig into your desire to unchain your rage, allow it to tear through your skin and reach an outlet as it flows through the fervour of the rhythmic volition.

As a Mancunian, I can’t help but adore the way Preston’s Mimi Satanistá allows her North West roots to pull through in the cadence of her spoken word verses; there’s no pretence or assimilation here—just one unreckonable force moving to the vanguard of the industrial glitchwave scene with her refusal to contort herself for commercial potential to the expense of her authentic expression.

The centrepiece of the upcoming TRANSMISSION_FROM_THE_VOID EP plays out like a signal to the deviant and displaced. After surviving a psychosis diagnosis in 2022, Mimi found her voice in the chaos and tore through the static to build a lifeline for anyone still submerged in white noise. This is outsider music at its most confrontational and redemptive.

RAGE IS A RITUAL is now available to stream on all major platforms; discover your preferred way to listen via the artist’s official website. 

Review by Amelia Vandergast.

Hamilton Hound Spun ‘White Noise’ into a Jazz-Wired Sucker Punch for Fans of The Streets-Esque Urban Realism

Posted on 9 May 2025

White Noise by Hamilton Hound is far from what it says on the titular tin. The gospel of Motown flows through the single that vocally reminds you of the era that The Streets reigned supreme in the UK. At the same time, jazzy motifs enmesh with a frenetic beat, creating a chaotic whirling dervish beneath the measured spoken word cadence that draws you into the emotive centre of the track. John Cooper Clarke levels of cheeky wit ripple through the exhilarant rhythms that rush past, daring you to keep pace with them. For fans of Argh Kid, White Noise will feel like a kindred echo—charged with the same urban realism and wired with poetic electricity.

Hamilton Hound—spoken word artist Ian Hamilton and multi-instrumentalist James Mason—don’t waste breath or instrumentation. Together, they summon soul-stirring soundscapes built to make the mundane transcendent. With every release, they sharpen the blade of their observational storytelling. White Noise lands as their latest incision—a track that peels back the surface of the everyday to expose raw truths and quiet chaos.

Following previous BBC Introducing-supported tracks like The Distance, Graves, and You Don’t Have to Hide, White Noise is another example of how Hamilton Hound carve out a space where grit and groove coexist. It’s a head rush with heart and an anthem for anyone tuning into the frequencies of modern discontent.

White Noise is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Narcissist Cookbook is the ultimate artisan of raw acoustic punk spoken word poetry in ‘The Library at the Very Bottom of This Place’

Posted on 29 January 2025
MYTH: Side Two by The Narcissist Cookbook

On The Library at the Very Bottom of This Place, from MYTH: Side Two, the Stirling-hailing troubadour of raw rancour, The Narcissist Cookbook (Matt Johnston) delivered an acoustic punk sermon that cuts right to the core.

Opening with ragged, chopped guitar chords, the track clears a barren stage for Johnston’s raw spoken-word poetry to take centre stage. Each word furls like smoke above the sparse instrumentation, leaving space for the jagged lyricism to pierce through and embed itself in the listener’s psyche.

Marked with defiance and rage, Johnston’s delivery ensures every ounce of sentiment lands with weight, echoing the poetic intensity of Neutral Milk Hotel, Amigo the Devil, and ROAR. Stripped back to its raw bones, the track’s minimalist instrumentation heightens the visceral connection, proving that less can be infinitely more when the narrative is this evocative.

Johnston may have only developed their histrionic half-spoken vocal style after losing their singing voice, but even away from traditional semblances of harmony, the track leaves nothing to be desired in the way of euphony.

With nearly 100 sold-out headline tour dates across the US and Europe, 30 million+ streams, and acclaim as one of Scotland’s most successful cult artists, Johnston’s ability to create art that defies expectation is unparalleled.

Stream and purchase The Library at the Very Bottom of This Place on Bandcamp now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Go Metric USA entered a new alt-folk chapter with the archaic reverie in ‘Old Books No One Remembers’

Posted on 18 June 2024

The scent of bibliosmia drifts throughout the poetry of the anachronistic reverie in Old Books No One Remembers by the irreplicable artist, Go Metric USA. You almost get the sense that you will stumble into Oscar Wilde between the chapters of the beguiling alt-folk progressions which resound as though they have been conjured, not created in the formulaic fashion through which most modern music unravels.

The traditional folk instrumentation gives the single an authentically organic aura which sends sparks through the imagination when working in synergy with the abstract whispers of narrative enchantment. Old Books No One Remembers is a single that bores into the soul, tantalising it gently with timbres that will stir the most primal facets of your being.

This unique blend emerges from the heart of the Texas independent and experimental music community, from an artist which revels in exploring the space between spoken word and jangle music, resulting in a confluence of folk traditions, adventurous soundscapes and masterful songwriting.

Old Books No One Remembers is the perfect introduction to Go Metric USA and their ability to create matrimony between the past and present while ensuring the memories of their sound endures long after the final note.

Old Books No One Remembers was officially released on June 2nd; stream the single on Soundcloud and YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Manchester’s LIVO Navigated the Duality of Pride and Pain with her Debut Spoken Word Single, Queer Joy

Posted on 6 May 2024

Having already proven her mettle in the Manchester spoken word scene and received plaudits from Guy Garvey and Tony Walsh, LIVO has spread ‘Queer Joy’ in her debut single, which puts a serene backdrop of 90s hip-hop nostalgia behind her wordplay that permeates the soul.

Tenderly vulnerable yet assertively euphoric candour lies at the core of Queer Joy, which celebrates the experience of living authentically and unapologetically hedonistically outside of the heteronormative hegemony and living vicariously.

Eloquently hitting a few raw nerves through the lyrical vignette which also touches on the most painful aspects of navigating a society which may have progressed in recent decades but still makes it difficult for queer people to find pride, in spite of the vibrant pageantry of Pride flags and events, Queer Joy leaves you sinking into LIVO’s presence, hanging off every syllable so articulately delivered.

Together with producer and composer Stanley Penrose, LIVO made an affecting debut with Queer Joy, which dropped ahead of her debut LP, The Age of Joy.

Queer Joy was officially released on April 12; stream the single on Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

KAotik waxed lyrical on the tragedy of wasted potential in his old-school hip-hop track, Fascinate

Posted on 23 March 2024

KAotik (AKA Bruce Reign) kept old-school hip-hop fresh with his latest track, Fascinate, which strips the instrumentals right back to their fundamentals, allowing his killer canter to take the spotlight in the mid-tempo release.

Following a mellow, almost transcendentally toned intro, the spoken-word verses wax lyrical on everything from the tragedy of wasted potential to accepting fate without consigning yourself to it. By finding plenty of room to assert wordplay, clever cultural references and his ethos on putting lyrics to the forefront of his productions, the Washington-born, Laurel MD-residing artist of Nigerian descent used Fascinate to not only do what the single says on the titular tin, but to inspire, and he hit a home run in doing so.

If KRS One, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, and Black Thought feature heavily on your playlists, make room for this profound hit.

Stream Fascinate on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

trueandtrue dialled up the rancour with their seductively clever post-hardcore single, Blindfold

Posted on 11 November 2023
trueandtrue

After a prelude of grungy no-wave with a spoken-word delivery of deadpan poetry, the latest single, Blindfold, from the post-hardcore outfit, trueandtrue, dials up the rancorous momentum that hits with the same impact as some of the most seminally unforgettable singles from Alexisonfire and At the Drive-In. The visceralism is one thing, the seductive way the instrumentals overlay their progressively exhilarant melodicism between the stripped-back interludes and tumultuous crescendos is another entirely.

Blindfold will officially release on November 10th ahead of the forthcoming debut EP, Back Into the Quiet. If the rest of the EP shares the intricately clever juggernautic volatility of Blindfold, trueandtrue has exactly what it takes to hold dominion over the post-hardcore scene.

The Norwegian post-hardcore powerhouse said:

“Blindfold is a catchy yet energetic song that has continually grown during recording and production. Here, instrumentals and vocals go hand in hand to guide you through an emotionally charged lyric about getting people or situations right up your throat. From emotional lines like ‘How do I keep up when it’s empathy I lack?’ to the aggressive chorus ‘Drown me in your words,’ you are taken through the narrator’s emotions and mood swings.“

Stream Blindfold on Spotify, and follow the band on Facebook and Instagram to stay up to date with the drop of the EP.

Review by Amelia Vandergast