Blueboy were among the finest bands to emerge from the Sarah Records roster. Formed in Reading in the early ’90s by Keith Girdler and Paul Stewart after their time in Feverfew, the group was later joined by Mark Cousens (bass), Gemma Townley (cello, vocals), Harvey Williams (guitar), Lloyd Haggar -and, later, Martin Rose- (drums). Their debut, If Wishes Were Horses (1992, Sarah Records), distilled childhood nostalgia into just twenty-six minutes- what childhood might sound like, if it were an album, a dreamlike whisper amid jangly guitars, cello, and hushed voices. They followed with Unisex (1994), a quietly daring exploration of identity and emotion, still shimmering with fragile honesty. Their final record of the period, The Bank of England (1998, Shinkansen), felt like a farewell—gentle, bittersweet, and true. In all, they released eight 7-inches and three LPs on Sarah and Shinkansen. Keith Girdler’s passing in May 2007 seemed to close the story. Yet in 2024 Paul, Gemma, Mark and Martin reunited to play live and record new material. That year brought two singles (One and Deux), followed by a return to the stage—culminating in November, when they headlined Jakarta’s Joyland Festival before 10,000 fans alongside Air, St. Vincent and Bombay Bicycle Club. On September 5th they released A Life In Numbers, their first album in twenty-seven years.

Peaceful Faces is the singer-songwriter vehicle of multiinstrumentalist and composer Tree Palmedo, who also leads the instrumental unit Drinking Bird, and—as a trumpet player—has worked with Fleet Foxes, The World Is A Beautiful Place and I Am No Longer Afraid To Die, Office Culture, and others. Since transplanting from the genre-flouting indie-rock scene of Boston to NYC in 2018, Palmedo has gained increasing recognition for his ambitious work as bandleader of a six-or-more-piece live band, working in the hallowed post-Beatles songwriting tradition furthered by Elliott Smith, Harry Nilsson, Sufjan Stevens, and more. Inevitably, Peaceful Faces’s cinema-scale pop songs are built on disarmingly earnest lyrics, gorgeous brass and synth-orchestral instrumental sections, and triumphant vocal hooks that morph and grow in significance throughout the duration of the song. His lush debut album, Letters From Late Adolescence was out in 2020, followed, one year later, by the EP Staring at the Damage. In 2023 the sprawling second album, Sifting Through The Goo, Reaching For The Candlelight, came out. Without a Single Fight, Peaceful Faces’ new album, came out in June on Glamour Gowns and features production contributions from Nate Mendelsohn (Market, Katie von Schleicher, Frankie Cosmos, Office Culture) and Dylan McKinstry (Taylor Ashton). In shadowy vignettes, Without a Single Fight’s lyrics address loss, anxiety, aging, and righteous frustration with the empty cadences of modern life.

While some artists thrive on collaboration, Few Border is proof that sometimes one person is more than enough. The French one-man band is the brainchild of Olivier Boutry (also part of Tales Of The Moon trio). Armed with jangly guitars, delicate bells, and even the occasional “fake trumpet”, Olivier crafts DIY indie pop songs that feel both intimate and expansive. There’s something charmingly homespun about Few Border’s music—crystal-clear melodies float over gently layered arrangements, giving each track the feel of a hazy postcard sent from somewhere both familiar and far away. Whether it’s the breezy melancholy of his first EP Blue Coast Weather (out in June 2024) or Copenhagen (out in July 2024) or the wistful shimmer of Bye Bye Brighton (August 2024) or Ready To Call (December 2024), every release has the air of a solo traveler capturing fleeting moments in song. The sweet and shiny Flavors & Feelings is his latest Ep, out in June, and now, with the compilation In the Twilight, out in September 2025 via Subjangle, listeners will finally be able to hold this dreamy world in their hands—a physical collection of twenty tracks collecting his four past EPs.

Bubblegum Lemonade is the exciting indie-pop solo project of Laz (Lawrence “Laz” McCluskey), based in Glasgow, Scotland. Since forming around 2007, Laz has cultivated a sound that fuses jangly 12-string Rickenbacker guitars with fuzzy, melodic hooks—anchored in the tradition of 1960s pop yet blooming with modern indie flair. Drawing inspiration from iconic bands like The Byrds, The Monkees, The Beach Boys, and The Jesus and Mary Chain, Bubblegum Lemonade channels a timeless “jangly indiepop” vibe filled with bright melodies and wistful undertones. A prolific artist on the Matinée Recordings label, Bubblegum Lemonade has released a string of great albums and EPs: Doubleplusgood (2008), Sophomore Release (2010), Some Like It Pop (2013), The Great Leap Backward (2016) and Desperately Seeking Sunshine (2019), all showcasing effervescent songwriting and fuzzy pop textures. In 2024, Laz unveiled Lawrence of Suburbia, his sixth album, an expertly crafted blend of jangly and psychedelic indie pop. Suburban Singles Club, out earlier this year, collects the four singles out of the album, along with eight exclusive b-sides. A new EP titled Where The Light Hits The Shade is out now, offering a glimpse into Laz’s evolving sound—surf-and-shoegaze-inspired textures, inventive percussion (even sampled scissors!), and playful vocal interplay with Sandra, her partner in his other project, Strawberry Whiplash.