A Greek, an Aussie, a German and a Briton walked into a bar. Said the German, “LFG!”. Voilà, this month’s edition of Extreme Measures was born — this time with more Sput guests, more “makes you scream at your screen” bad takes, more words, more… everything. What will be Night’s final jams before he goes on intermittent hiatus? Who is the handsome fella photobombing our special guest? Will Tool superfan JotW be able to endure the pedestrian guitar music perfidiously thrown at him in an act of backstabbery by people he once considered decent chaps? Who is going to taste the forbidden angular-aural-abrasive-aesthetic fruits first? (Spoiler: It’s gonna be May.) Questions upon questions — let’s get digging for some home truths.
Representing Sput this month are two staffers and a fool:
NightOnDrunkMountain, lo-fi glutton
JohnnyoftheWell, Thesaurus rex
Yours truly, naked host
Oh, you’re here for our surprise guests, aren’t you? That would be…
Brendan Sloan (Convulsing) and some bearded bloke (back to front)
Hi. Did you miss Sputnik? Did you miss music? I missed Sputnik. I missed music. Where are the new artists? Not on Sputnik, at least for the moment. Look forward to the fabled one-entry Weekly post coming soon™. In the meantime, here’s new music — while supplies last.
– List of Releases: May 2nd, 2025 –
A Flock Named Murder – Incendiary Sanctum Genre: Black Metal / Post-Metal Label: Hypaethral
Anthony Naples – Scanners Genre: Tech House / Deep House Label: ANS
Bleed – Bleed Genre: Alternative Metal / Nu Metal Label: 20 Buck Spin
Blondshell – If You Asked For a Picture Genre: Indie Rock / Alternative Rock Label: Partisan
Car Seat Headrest – The Scholars Genre: Indie Rock / Rock Opera Label: Matador
Crematory – Destination Genre: Gothic Metal / Industrial Metal/ Melodic Death Metal Label: Napalm
Eli Keszler – Eli Keszler Genre: Electroacoustic / Nu Jazz / Ambient / Avant-Garde Jazz Label: LuckyMe
Enji – Sonor Genre: Vocal Jazz / Contemporary Folk / Urtiin duu Label: Squama
Esther Rose – Want Genre: Singer-Songwriter / Americana Label: New West
The Flower Kings – Love Genre: Progressive Rock / Symphonic Prog Label: InsideOut
Flume & JPEGMAFIA – We Live in a Society Genre: Future Bass / Hip Hop …
Welcome, denizens of Sputnik, to the seventeenth edition of A diagnosis from a (faux) Doctor, a series where I run through a band or artist’s albums and give a diagnosis on their work. By popular vote, the people of Sputnik wanted the King of Pop, Michael Jackson, on the analysis table, and who am I to refuse them? MJ’s contributions to music are the stuff of legend and see a lot of interesting moments throughout his career, good and.. iffy. So, shamone, let’s grab a white glove and get into this.
Band/Artist: Michael Jackson
Origins: Los Angeles, California, USA
Founded: 1971
Members: Michael Joseph Jackson
Studio albums: 12 (2 posthumous)
Active: No
Got to Be There (1972)
The Doctor’s rating: 3/5
Analysis: While this debut feels a bit Jackson 5 lite at times, Got to Be There is still a solid foundation for Michael Jackson, allowing him to get his foot in the door as a solo artist and build what would become his world-dominating success. It’s pretty staggering how good Michael sounds on this thing when you consider he was only 13/14 years old, but right out of the gate, his impressive talents ooze out of these smooth Motown numbers. Got to Be There is…
Five years on from his untimely death on April 24, 2020, we reflect on the legacy and music of the late Mike Huckaby.
“…some of us remember how much Mike contributed with no money mindset. Dude went to libraries to teach kids how to make beats. show me who else put that back in. ill wait.” – Discogs user Horizontal71
Mike Huckaby’s contribution to the underground dance music sound and culture of Detroit cannot be overstated. Whether through his work at legendary record store & music hub Record Time, his organizing efforts for the Detroit Electronic Music Festival (now known globally as Movement), or his unceasing dedication to the musical mentorship of Detroit’s youth, Huckaby spent his life in service to those around him.
As if all that wasn’t enough, the dude was an incredible and highly influential producer, remixer, and DJ, leaving behind a rich catalog of deep house and techno music for us to enjoy. Keep scrolling for a selection of tracks from Mike Huckaby’s discography, handpicked by Sputnikmusic’s favorite polygon. Bandcamp and YouTube links in the comments.
Harmonie Park Classics Volume 1(2002, Deep Transportation)
“Radiance”
This EP was essentially a repress of “Disco Time” and “Luv Time” from Huckaby’s first Harmonie Park release with the added bonus of a previously unreleased track. “Radiance” would come to be considered an all-time deep house classic, featuring subtle yet powerful builds of tension & release, capped off by sublime…
Ayup, and welcome to your weekly dose of… ok hold on, let’s address the elephant in the room here first. Provided you have an internet connection fit for the year of our lord 2025, and our server hasn’t crapped itself too badly today, you may have noticed that this page is rather long. That’s because this week we have no less than, read it and weep (I know I did), 70 releases! Mad isn’t it? I don’t want any of you complaining about a lack of good music coming out, because there’s some tasty stuff in here. Sput’s deep house cult hero Stimming has a new one out, Swedish anarcho-conformist pseudo-punks Viagra Boys seem to be going all in on dance-punk revivalism, there’s a surprise Adrianne Lenker live album to have your heart and soul broken to, late ’70s-idolizing soft rock duo Tennis are set to (softly) rock our socks off for one last time, and many, many more. As usual, post below what tickles your fancy this week – and at least something bloody well should, as I make a mental note to trim the list down next time so I’m not two days late again. ‘Til next week!
Fame is a difficult thing to manage. Done wrong, you’re on top of the world and at the bottom of a trench at the exact same time. And a lot of artists did it wrong from the 70s to the 90s. Disillusionment with the rockstar lifestyle, alienation from fans and loved ones, substance abuse, all common stories that we have heard a million times over. And, in many cases, that dissatisfaction has been poured into music. The Wall, In Utero, even Radiohead’s Kid A, to an extent, are all shining examples of that strife turned into art. But there’s one album that stands above them all in terms of its anger and jaded outlook. An album so abrasive, that when its mastermind sent it in, he apologized.
Welcome back to The Look Back, a look at the classic albums of old through modern ears. Today, we’re covering the sophomore album from industrial act Nine Inch Nails, 1994’s The Downward Spiral.
WHY IS THIS A CLASSIC?
Nine Inch Nails, in general, have always flirted with fame throughout their career. Their debut, Pretty Hate Machine, was a breakout hit that seriously helped to bring industrial into the mainstream eye. However, that album was far lighter in tone and sound, more dance-y and poppy, almost like an industrial successor to Depeche Mode. Downward Spiral, on the other hand, was unthinkably abrasive, making heavy use of…
It probably has been dark outside for a couple of hours already. I haven’t really been paying much attention to the outside conditions. Not much daylight filters through the plastic covered windows anyway. The only source of light I have is a construction lamp placed in one corner of the room and the only source of heat available is a small heating fan I’ve placed on the floor on the opposite side of the room. If the frequency with which the fan starts and the prolonged periods it stays on is anything to go by, it’s probably getting below zero (that’s Celsius for ya, you Americans) outside.
I’ve recently bought a house in the middle of nowhere, originally built in 1876 and judging by the state it’s in, that’s about the last time someone took care of it. I have taken two weeks off from work to get some things done around the house. It’s late, I’m tired and this is the last Sunday before I’m supposed to be back at work. I haven’t gotten as much done around the house these past two weeks as I initially hoped I would. But before I call it a day, I’d really like to get the roof painted in the nursery.
I decide it’s time to listen to Goldstar. I’ve been wanting to do that for the last week, but I haven’t really been in the mood for what I imagine is…
Welcome, metal afficionados, inquisitive readers and everyone in between, to the premiere of Extreme Measures, a new monthly format where Sputnik users and artists come together to take a long, hard lo-, ahem, briefly check overlooked (and some overly looked at) extreme metal and adjacent releases that came out in the previous month and offer their thoughts on select songs. This has been a long time in the making, and we’re excited to finally share our findings with you. For this first edition, some very, very special guests did themselves the honor of joining in. We hope you’ll have as much fun jamming and reading as we did crafting this. Let’s dive in.
Sput jammers (spammers?) this month:
evilford, DM hypeman extraordinaire
Yours truly, humble host
And our surprise guests for this episode are:
Vaughn, Jacob, Josh and Lille (Defeated Sanity, left to right)
– Calendar week 10 –
Innermost Intestinal Exposure by Chordoma — Josh’s pick
Easter is right around the corner, and you can finally spend your hard-earned dineros on overpriced molded chocolate to your heart’s content — we won’t judge. Alternatively, here’s some music for your consideration. Wait a second… How did all that exquisite metal get in there? Don’t give me that look! As always, please feel free to use the comment section to request reviews, let us know us what we missed, link to photos of your home-cooked rabbit stew (or plant-based equivalents) and/or tell everyone what you’re hyped for.
– List of Releases: April 18th, 2025 –
Ancient Death – Ego Dissolution Genre: Death Metal / Death Doom / Prog Label: Profound Lore
Beirut – A Study of Losses Genre: Indie Pop / Indie Folk Label: Pompeii
Charles Mingus – In Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts Genre: Post-Bop / Avant-Garde Jazz Label: Resonance
Crypts of Despair – We Belong in the Grave Genre: Deathcore / Death Metal Label: Transcending Obscurity
Dormant Ordeal – Tooth and Nail Genre: Death Metal / Black Metal Label: Willowtip
Iron Lung – Adapting // Crawling Genre: Powerviolence Label: Self-released
Julien Baker & TORRES – Send a Prayer My Way Genre: Singer-Songwriter / Indie Rock Label: Matador
Karg – Marodeur Genre: Blackgaze / Atmospheric Black Metal Label: AOP
Back in the early-to-mid 2000s, Earshot were key players in spearheading the American alt-rock movement, releasing massive hits like “Get Away”, “Not Afraid” and “Wait” respectively, with their influence and success getting them significant radio airplay, as well as being featured on a number of video games including Madden ’05, MX vs. ATV Unleashed, and Project Gotham Racing 2. However, despite all the success of 2002’s Letting Go and 2004’s Two, the band would go through several line-up changes and their momentum would gradually wane, not releasing their third LP, The Silver Lining, until 2008. After this, the band would recede into the shadows for over a decade, releasing only a 4-track EP in 2015 and a couple of singles during Covid. Thankfully, all of that is about to change: with a brand-new line-up that includes ex-Breaking Benjamin guitarist, Aaron Fink, Earshot are set to make a massive comeback in 2025 with their first new album in 17 years. The band’s first single “Where Were You?” recently dropped to a strong reception from fans, and the band are currently in the throes of planning their next moves. I recently caught up with the band’s founding member and frontman, Wil Martin, who candidly discusses the band’s history, its tribulations, and the bright future that lies ahead of them, so I hope you enjoy it. (Please note: the transcript from this interview was edited and some of the wording changed for a more concise reading experience. For the definitive version of this…
Greetings sputnikers and welcome to your weekly reminder that there are people out there with the audacity to release new albums despite music peaking with Jane Doe in 2001. I know, kinda cringe. Big hitters this week include a load of metal bands I vaguely recognise and the second half of that Bon Iver project that dropped last year, plus the new Ken Carson album that will definitely release on time. For sure. No doubt in my mind. Oh and Wu-Tang apparently, although the chances of that being real give Bigfoot some competition. Anywho, as usual let us know what you are hyping and why we all should definitely check the new Neptunian Maximalism album – those genre tags look tasty. Feel free to sample a few of these releases in the playlist below. ‘Til next week!
– List of Releases: April 11th, 2025 –
AIR & Vegyn – Blue Moon Safari Genre: Downtempo / IDM Label: Warner Music France
It’s incredible how the most groundbreaking movements can be started from the smallest sparks. Take, for instance, a young guitar player who lost his fingertips in an accident at a sheet metal factory. Despite being told he would never play again, he found a way, melting down plastic bottles to create homemade thimbles, and tuning down his guitar to make the strings easier to hold down. I’m sure you can guess where this is going: that guitarist was none other than Tony Iommi, and that one accident would inevitably lead to the birth of a whole new genre of rock music: heavy metal.
Welcome to The Look Back (title still somewhat in progress), a look at the classic albums of old through modern ears. This is a little project I’m embarking on to see how albums that are held up as classics in their genres fare in the modern day, when so much has built on their foundations, all through the ears of a Gen Z kid who listened to plenty of these newer albums before checking out the classics. And for the inaugural installment, I felt it was only right to look at the album that indirectly inspired so many of Sputnik’s favorite albums, the progenitor of heavy metal, Black Sabbath’s self-titled debut album.
WHY IS THIS A CLASSIC?
I mean… do I really even have to ask this? While other bands such as Led Zeppelin are sometimes…
What’s up everyone! Welcome to my first interview that I’ve done for Sputnik, and hopefully the first of many. This week, I was able to sit down on a Zoom call with Jackal Twins to discuss their debut record, Cuzco. These guy were absolutely amazing to talk with, they all had great senses of humor, and they all genuinely love the work they have done with Jackal Twins. If you haven’t listened to their debut album yet, or this is the first time you’ve heard their name, let me give you a quick introduction.
Jackal Twins is a three-piece band based out of the New England area, with Ben Trussell on drums and vocals, Mike Palumbo on guitars and vocals, and Dante Lamusta on bass. Their Bandcamp profile describes their music as “psychedelic noisy tunes for the hopeless romantic.” Good luck trying to pin a particular genre down, though. They tend to focus on the mathcore side of their music, and lean into the aggressive style. However, there are numerous genre influences that shine throughout, with a great balance of heaviness with melodic songwriting.
But I’m not here to explain the band myself. No, I’m here to let you guys hear from the band themselves. Please, enjoy this interview with the Jackal Twins! You can either read the interview, listen to the recording, or follow along with both.
NOTE: The transcript below was edited for brevity. Some of the wording has been changed or…
Welcome to my first time doing the weekly releases! Feel free to give my performance a rating on a scale from 1 to 10, comment every single release not here that I didn’t even know existed, and let everyone know what you’re jamming to this week. As always, feel free to request reviews from staff and/or contributors, be sure to skim the release playlist for any songs that catch your eye, and have a great week!
– List of Releases: March 21st, 2025 –
Arch Enemy – Blood Dynasty Genre: Melodic Death Metal Label: Century Media
The Darkness – Dreams on Toast Genre: Hard Rock / Glam Rock Label: Cooking Vinyl
Deafheaven – Lonely People with Power Genre: Black Metal / Blackgaze Label: Roadrunner
Dean Wareham – That’s the Price of Loving Me Genre: Indie Rock / Dream Pop Label: Carpark
Destroyer – Dan’s Boogie Genre: Indie Rock Label: Merge
Decrepisy – Deific Mourning Genre: Death Metal / Doom Metal Label: Carbonized
Envy of None – Stygian Wavz Genre: Alternative Rock / Electronic Label: KSCOPE
girlpuppy – Sweetness Genre: Indie Rock Label: Captured Tracks
Great Grandpa – Patience, Moonbeam Genre: Indie Rock / Alternative Rock Label: Run for Cover
Invent Animate x Silent Planet – Bloom in Heaven Genre: Progressive Metalcore Label: UNFD
I hadn’t heard of this band until now, but definitely a strong relative new-comer to the brutal death metal…
