Manchester’s Mat Mills makes heartfelt lofi indie and dream pop, with hints of shoegaze and 90s alt rock, touching on themes of lost love, lost youth, legacy, and the beauty and danger of living in the past. His first album, Mirror Skies, was released in June 2024 and his music compared to The Wedding Present, The Smiths and The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart. His forthcoming sophomore album, out on 24 August on Subjangle, sees Mat explore further his poppy dreamy universe across eleven heartfelt tracks, taking in influences from the Field Mice, New Order and The Railway Children to late 80s and 90s US indie, such as Yo La Tengo, Dinosaur Jr, REM, Nada Surf, Sebadoh and Sonic Youth, in addition to more recent Bay Area jangle pop. Unashamedly pop and proudly lofi, the new album recorded in Mat’s bedroom, feels slightly more urgent and grittier than the first record. While it doesn’t have an overarching theme, one sense which comes through is that of the different types of love one can experience throughout a life – the fizziness of new love, the fleeting love that still leaves a mark, unrequited love and the complexities of love and life in a long-term relationship.

The Perfect English Weather are Simon and Wendy Pickles, a duo from East Sussex taking time out from The Popguns to create a melodic web of electro acoustic pop and chamber-pop. Their first record, Isobar Blues, was out in 2016 via Matinée Records, followed, in 2018 by Don’t You Wanna Feel The Rain? (“The shocking new concept album on suburban adulthood. Love, work, travel, parenthood…” in their own words). After almost seven years they are back with a new album, again via Matinée Records. Just Beyond The Lights, preceded by a couple of wonderful singles, reflects on Wendy and Simon’s move away from the “big, bad city” of Brighton to the edge of the Sussex Cuckmere Valley; and perhaps is a small nod to their commercial appeal being just a little outside the mainstream. The album aims for a natural musical feel with acoustically recorded piano, viola, drums and guitars across most tracks. It was recorded at Church Road Studios in Hove, with contributions from talented local musicians. A new single from the album, Preston Street is out now, including a special bonus track, an alternate mix of the song “with a prominent piano melody and an extra dose of atmosphere“.

Dag och Natt is a band from Stockholm, Sweden, whose music strikes a delicate balance between dense and airy. Their melodies are intricately layered, often weaving together with a sense of fluidity, with vocals split between Elia Mårtensson Almegård, Sara Engström and Maja Zetterberg. The name Dag och Natt, which translates to Day and Night, was chosen with intention, reflecting the band’s desire to explore both the light and dark aspects of life through their music. Initially, the band entertained the idea of forming two separate projects – one light and one dark – with the same members. However, they soon abandoned this concept in favour of bringing everything together under the name Dag och Natt. The result is an album that embodies both joy and struggle, brightness and shadows, mirroring the interplay between day and night. The band’s creative process is both collaborative and intuitive. Writing sessions often take place in a secluded cabin in the woods, where the focus is solely on the music. The band explores themes of duality – the contrasts between love and loneliness, strength and vulnerability, connection and isolation. Their debut album, Years And Years out on August 15th via Labrador Records, reflects these themes, presenting a sonic landscape where light and darkness coexist. Rather than offering answers, Dag och Natt seeks to create space for listeners to reflect on their own experiences, embracing both the challenges and the beauty of life.