DIY’s essential guide to the best new music.

Neu Bulletins are DIY’s guide to the best and freshest new music. Your one stop shop for buzzy new bands and red hot emerging stars, this roundup features some choice words from our esteemed contributors on just a few of the tracks we’ve been rinsing at full volume over the last week or so.

We’ve also got a handy playlist where you can find the full slate of Neu tracks we’ve been loving, so you can listen to all our tips in one place! Dive in…

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Modern Woman — Dashboard Mary

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Marking the start of their partnership with a new label, London art-rock four-piece Modern Woman are back with their first song in almost three years – and what a song it is! ​’Dashboard Mary’ (taken from the band’s eagerly anticipated debut album, ​‘Johnny’s Dreamworld’) builds from a quiet morning-after contemplation of the decisions made during the night before into a raging climax where frontwoman Sophie Harris and co. let it all out. Edgy, gritty and exhilarating, the track is one hell of a return. (Attila Peter)

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Chalk — I.D.C.

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A coarse, EBM-inspired cut from Belfast experimentalists Chalk, ​‘I.D.C.’ is a barbed six inch stiletto of atonal sequencing and distorted pop writing. Built off industrial samples, 303 acid squelches, and bitcrushed vocals, underneath its metallic exterior ​‘I.D.C.’ shines as an uplifting and driving call for individuality and identity in the face of bad actors. As varied and technicolour in its arrangement and production as it is teeth-grindingly fierce, this is a striking statement from Ireland’s most innovative creatives. (A. L. Noonan)

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waterbaby — Memory Be A Blade

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The title track of her upcoming debut album, ​‘Memory Be a Blade’ finds Swedish R&B artist waterbaby understated and wistful, her voice floating above sparse drums and a delicate piano line as strings weave in and out. The arrangement is rich but still leaves lots of space, which gives a shimmering clarity to the sound; especially to waterbaby’s vocals, as she ruminates on bittersweet nostalgia. There’s also a secret edge to the single, which hides in its gently off-kilter groove and the occasional stutters and dissonance of the piano, hinting at the dangers of living too long in the past. (David Addison)

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Pem — milk, blue

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In the new single from her upcoming EP ​‘other ways of landing’, multidisciplinary artist Pem​’s singular voice meanders across the green gardens of her life, building momentum through intricate, finger-picked guitar and strings that are somehow both broad and gentle. The grand sound of ​‘milk, blue’ then draws back to a more understated profile towards its end, as though the listener is waking from a dream. Intimate and arresting, at once trembling and sure of itself, the track is, Pem says, written about the moon — something we all know intimately, nightly, and yet mostly have no experience of. And it’s this kind of mystery, glowing and particular, that is shared by the sounds of Pem’s expansive musical world. (Eva Karl)

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ladylike — Rome (in progress)

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Built on a delicate, folk-leaning guitar arpeggio and minimalist lyrics, ​‘Rome (in progress)’ captures a fragile yet insistent sense of community, and the quiet weight that comes with it. Here, Brighton quartet ladylike open their debut EP ​‘It’s A Pleasure Of Mine, To Know You’re Fine’ with a song that refuses stasis. Vocalist Georgia Butler sings against the idea of relationships fixed in time, pushing instead toward movement and evolution: ​“Rome wasn’t built with retired lungs / And heavy holding on to friends’ old words.” Fittingly, that sense of becoming is written into the song’s very title — it is, like all things, still in motion. (Lorène Bienvenu)

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TURNSPIT — HAVE A HEART

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Leeds duo TURNSPIT continue their quiet ascent with ​‘HAVE A HEART’, a track built on skittering break-led rhythms, trance-infused synths and an intimate, close-mic vocal that pulls the listener in while still landing with tangible impact on the dancefloor. Carrying a sense of tension that unfolds gradually rather than all at once, the track wouldn’t feel out of place dropped deep into an underground club night — a space that reflects the energy of the duo’s live shows, where they flow seamlessly between moments of intimate electronica and propulsive intensity. (Gemma Cockrell)

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**Olive Jones — Kingdom **

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London-based singer Olive Jones channels emotional frustration into her newest track ​’Kingdom’, transforming political upset into a richly melodic piece of music. Blending indie, alt-folk, and blues, it operates as a subtle social commentary while remaining warm and captivating. Lifted from her upcoming EP ​‘Mary’, ​’Kingdom’ reflects feelings of restlessness and dissimilarity, capturing a desire for something beyond the present moment. Jones leans into these ideas through a mellow, amiable sound and lyrical reprise, and across its three-minute runtime, the track balances emotional depth with easy listening, allowing her powerful vocals to shine. Grounded in quiet optimism, she closes with a note of hope: ​“we can make it our own”. (Izabella Draczkowska)

** Tags: Neu, Neu Bulletin, Chalk, ladylike, Listen, Modern Woman, Olive Jones, Pem, TURNSPIT, Watch, waterbaby

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