Somewhere between the DIY pop of the 1980s to today (Marine Girls, Sarah Records, The Gentle Waves) and Swedish indie pop of the late 2000s (Sambassadeur, Alpaca Sports), the Stuttgart-based, female-led band collective The Simple Present can be quite comfortably placed. Cathrin (vocals, guitar) and Sabine (backing vocals, keyboard) started out as a lo-fi living room project, initially without any intention of making the results accessible beyond their circle of friends. In 2024, however, a demo recording of I’ll Take That With Me ended up in the hands of Ronny Pinkau (Kleine Untergrund Schallplatten), who enthusiastically exclaimed: “Let’s make a record immediately!!!” (and how can you blame him?).
Even before releasing a single track, the band attracted the attention of various concert promoters after their first performance in early 2025. This led, among other things, to an invitation to Cologne Popfest in April 2025. For Cologne Popfest, the band released a strictly limited lathe-cut 7″ single featuring exclusive pre-release versions of two songs (one of them, I’ll Take That With Me, was premiered here), which sold out within minutes and received very positive feedback from international indie blogs and online radio shows. This, in turn, caught the attention of the established indie pop label Shelflife Records, ultimately leading to a joint international release of their wonderful debut mini-album, Early Days which will be out on 23 May 2026. I Found Something, the album’s first single, will be out on Sunday, April 12th, but we’re streaming it now in exclusive premiere on TRISTE© ahead of its official release.

Norwegian indie-pop group Nansy return with their long-awaited debut album, arriving 25 years after the band first formed in Oslo around 2000. Originally a promising indie act, the band disbanded after releasing just one EP. Now, a quarter-century later, they reunite to finally complete their full-length debut. “We stayed friends but never really talked about reuniting. Then I got a message from Børge. He was sunbathing in Mallorca, listening to old demos, and wondered if I’d be up for recording something new. ‘Fun! I’m in!’ was my immediate response,” says vocalist Anita. Less than three years after that message was sent, Nansy return with a full album — with the same lineup as when they first parted ways: Anita Nansy Valderhaug on vocals, Børge Sildnes (aka Dylan Mondegreen) on guitars, bass, keyboards, production, Matias Hilmar Iversen on guitars, Thomas Hvammen Nicholson on bass and Trond Slåke on drums. Need You Around will be released on 29 May 2026 via Saiko and Fastcut Records (Japan). All ten tracks are written and produced by Børge Sildnes. In Nansy, however, he steps away from lead vocals, allowing Anita Nansy Valderhaug’s clear, intimate, and emotionally resonant voice to take center stage, giving the music a distinct softness and warmth. Running Into You, the album’s second single, a lighthearted, upbeat reflection on unexpectedly meeting an old friend and the rush of memories that follows, will be out tomorrow, but we’re streaming it now in exclusive premiere on TRISTE© ahead of its official release on Friday.