Single Review by William Ruben HelmsAug 27, 202622:30

New Audio: Sassy 009 Shares Club Banging Jam City Remix of “Tell Me” feat. Blood Orange

Oslo-based producer and singer/songwriter Sunniva Lingård is the creative mastermind behind the acclaimed, shape-shifting electronic music project Sassy 009. The Norwegian artist found early acclaim with 2017’s Do You Mind EP? and 2021’s sultry, bass-driven Heart Ego Mixtape. Adding to a growing profile, Lingård has collaborated with Clairo on 2018’s “Lara” while remixing tracks by Empress Of, Lolo Zouaï, MØ, Agar Agar, and a lengthy list of others.

Released earlier this year, Dreamer+ is Lingård’s true Sassy 009 debut — a concept album pieced together from nearly four years of studio work and an ambitious attempt to take complete control of her art. Built with distorted vocals beneath a soundscape with elements of grunge, shoegaze, 90s beatronica and gauzy hyper pop, the album is a grim fairytale in which dreams and emotions are processed through a landscape of shapeshifting characters, dark forces and moral responsibilities. Thematically, the album touches upon identity, memory and the shifting boundaries of the self, in which the dreamer is the only witness/the only one who remembers.

The album features guest spots from Blood Orange, yunè pinku, and BEA1991.

The past year has been a whirlwind for the Sassay 009 creative mastermind: She appeared on the over of NME. She played a sold-out show at London’s Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) and while in the UK, recorded and then released Live at BBC Maida Vale, a live session that features a cover of Limp Bizkit‘s “My Way,” along with “Tell Me and Someone.”

The acclaimed and rising Oslo-based artist will be releasing the Dreamer+ Deluxe album on October 16, 2026 through HEAVEN-SENT/[PIAS]. The deluxe edition of Dreamer+ will feature some of Lingård’s closest friends and musical collaborations — and few surprises for fans. Dreamer + Deluxe‘s latest single sees Jam City giving album track “Tell Me” feat. Blood Orange the remix treatment. “Tell Me” feat. Blood Orange is a brooding and atmospheric, trip-hop meets-grunge-tune that features the Norwegian artist’s smokey delivery over thumping boom bap-like drums, gauzy electronics and shoegazer-like textures. The Jam City remix pushes the tempo up, turning the song into a woozily euphoric, footwork-like banger anchored around skittering triplets, glistening synths and chopped up vocal samples.

Single Review by William Ruben HelmsAug 27, 202620:30

New Audio: Skinshape Returns with Summery “Take It As It Is”

Will Dorey is a London-based producer, singer/songwriter, producer and creative mastermind behind the solo recording project, Skinshape. And with Skinshape, the London-based artist has established himself as a master of understated soundscapes, blending rich textures with an array of eclectic influences from around the world. Dorey’s work is known for being imbued with warmth, depth and a timeless character.

Every Skinshape effort reflects the London-based artist’s meticulous approach to composition and production, rooted in the distinct sonic identity made possible by the vintage analog recording equipment he uses.

The London-based artist’s 11th Skinshape album, Chapman’s Pool is slated for an October 30, 2026 release through Lewis Recordings. Deriving its title from a secluded bay on Dorset’s Jurassic Coast, near Dorey’s childhood home, the album draws from the landscapes that have remained a constant source of inspiration throughout his career.

Written, self-produced and self-recorded at Dorey’s Finsubry Park-based studio with minimal Chapman’s Pool covers a variety of styles and sounds and sees Dorey revisiting his first two Skinshape albums to some degree while featuring more Mellotron and glockenspiel. Most of the album’s instrumentation — guitar, bass, piano, keys, synths, drum machines and the like — was played by Dorey, with the exception of drums, which were played by Tom Blind and Dan Hale. Various field recordings were captured outside the studio. including the sound of waves lapping the shore close to Chapman’s Pool and a car driving past.

Chapman’s Pool will include the previously released “The Blade of a Knife” and its latest single, “Take It As It Is.” Built around a swaggering and strutting groove that seemingly channels Bobby Oroza, the Daptone Records crew and Moscow‘s The Diasonics, “Take It As It Is” is a summery and escapist tune rooted in a blend of old-fashioned British stoicism and Zen calm that feels — well, remarkably necessary as our world burn down and descends into chaos. The song’s narrator implores the listener to do as the old British saying “keep calm and carry on.” “It’s about how we should accept life as it is, with its ups and downs,” Dorey explains. “It focuses on the mental troubles we all face and some reflections on how we may deal with this.”

Video by William Ruben HelmsAug 27, 202618:30

New Video: J. Bernardt Returns with Swaggering and Strutting “Love Is On My Mind”

Jinte Deprez is an acclaimed singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger, programmer and producer, best known as being one-half of the songwriting duo behind the acclaimed Belgian JOVM mainstays Balthazar. Over the course of their two-plus decades together, the acclaimed Belgian outfit has played across the global festival circuit with sets at All Points East, British Summer Time, and others — while selling over 600,000 albums globally. And during that same period of time, Deprez has firmly cemented a reputation for being a wildly talented generalist: Along with his songwriting partner and bandmate Maarten Devoldere, Deprez has co-produced three of Balthazar’s five albums to date.

Deprez is also the creative mastermind behind the acclaimed solo recording project J. Bernardt, With J. Bernardt, Deprez has released two albums, 2016’s self-produced Running Days and 2024’s Tobie Speleman and Deprez co-produced Contigo. His third J. Bernardt album, the Paul Butler-produced Wild Swim is slated for a November 13, 2026 release through Play It Again Sam.

Unlike his previously released work, Deprez chose to step outside of anything familiar in his creative process. He travelled alone to Los Angeles, where he leaned hard into a caricature of himself: a washed-up European musician landing in America to reinvent his life and his carer. He learned so hard into the caricature that it was as though Jinte Deprez didn’t get on the plane; but rather, J. Bernardt.

Recorded at Los Angeles-based 64 Sound Studio, Wild Swim‘s producer Paul Butler created an initiative environment in which Deprez found what may arguably be the most liberated vocal performance of his entire career to date. “On my third solo record, I truly felt for the first time what singing can feel like.” he says. Los Angeles itself also left its mark on both Deprez an the recording sessions. The city’s uncompromising and frenetic energy collided head-on with the acclaimed Belgian artist’s West Flemish instinct for restraint “In the US, there is no time for subtlety. You surrender to your impulses,”

Many of the songs were recorded in fiery one-take performances with Alabama Shakes‘ Lewis Wright (drums), Adele‘s Peter Randall (bass) and Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros’ Mitchell Yoshida (keys). The result is a more ope and expansive sound that retains the project’s signature but expands into a retro-modernist sound with smoldering rhythms and sprawling melodies. The Motown-like backing vocals of Lex Noblitt, Isabel Whelan and Dasha Chadwick are woven throughout the album’s material, acting as a counterpart to Deprez’s vibrato. And Butler’s kaleidoscopic production makes the album’s material feel as though every window in the Belgian artist’s mind has been thrown open at once. The result is album that’s euphoric and reckless.

Thematically, Wild Swim sees Deprez take a new direction. Whereas his previously released albums were fairly autobiographical, the new album features a more universal perspective, embracing a manic celebration of life’s randomness. The song’s aren’t anchored in reason, but rather in feeling with the album being a balancing act between lust for life and a sort of euphoric nihilism. “After the wreckage of a breakup, eventually you reach the point where you can see the humor in life again,” Deprez says.

Wild Swim will include the previously released “Four In The Morning” and the album’s latest single “Love Is On My Mind.” The new single is a strutting and soulful pop tune that showcases Deprez’s uncanny knack for remarkably catchy hooks — but while arguably being among the most euphoric, playful tunes of his growing catalog.

“’Love Is on My Mind’ is a guitar-driven song I wrote on an old piano, while feeling watched by the stars,” Deprez explains. “It’s about a new, unintentional starting point — ‘I hear it coughing around the corner, ready to cause a scene, how the hell did love get in my mind.’ Who knows when or how, but you always seem to pick yourself back up one day, right when you weren’t paying attention.”

Directed by SJ Spreng, the accompanying video is a cinematically shot GQ-like visual sho tin Los Angeles earlier this year and features the Belgian artist in some snazzy outfits, strutting and vamping in the hills.

women who kick ass by William Ruben HelmsAug 27, 202614:30

Throwback: Happy 89th Birthday, Alice Coltrane!

JOVM’s WIlliam Ruben Helms celebrates the 89th anniversary of the birth of Alice Coltrane.

Video by William Ruben HelmsAug 27, 202609:30

Throwback: Happy 73rd Birthday, Alex Lifeson!

JOVM’s William Ruben Helms celebrates Rush co-founder and guitarist Alex Lifeson’s 73rd birthday.

Single Review by William Ruben HelmsAug 27, 202601:30

New Audio: Nouvelle Vague’s Breezy Take on Depeche Mode’s “Only When I Lose Myself” feat. Mélanie Pain

Founded by Marc Collins and the late Olivier Libaux back in 2003, Nouvelle Vague was initially conceived as a one-off tribute to post-punk songwriting in a Bossa nova style. 2004’s self-titled debut, which saw them establish their unique fusion of melancholy post-punk, Bossa nova and French re-interpretational approach, unexpectedly achieved global acclaim. Since then, Nouveau Vague has become a global phenomenon.

Their 10th album, A Date with Depeche Mode is slated for an October 30, 2026 release through Kwaidan Records/[PIAS] Recordings. And as you can probably tell, the album sees the French outfit tackling the work of pioneering British electronic outfit Depeche Mode.

A Date with Depeche Mode will include the previously released “Never Let Me Down Again” feat. Brazilian artist Flavia Coehlo, and the album’s latest single, “Only When I Lose Myself” feat. Mélanie Pain. Originally released on 1998’s compilation The Singles 86>98 “Only When I Lose Myself” is a brooding song full of desperate, aching longing. The Nouvelle Vague rendition, which features one of the act’s long-time collaborators retains the longing at the heart of the song but now paired with a breezy Quincy Jones and Herb Alpert-like arrangement featuring Bossa nova rhythms, strummed guitar and soulful brass. The result is a take that gives the song a sultriness rooted in desperate need and a little bit of lust while being incredibly cinematic.

Video by William Ruben HelmsAug 26, 202623:30

New Video: Tokyo Tea Room Returns with Breezy “Hypnotised”

Last year’s full-length debut, No Rush saw the rising Margate, UK-based outfit Tokyo Tea Room — Daniel James Elliot, Beth Dunn, Ben Marshall, Sam Teather and Sam Ewens — quickly establishing a sound and approach that takes listeners on a journey within a tender, comfortable bubble. Their music is inspired by lived-in, human emotions while thematically exploring longing and the ephemeral nature of existence. The album eventually led to millions of monthly listeners across the DSPs and a sold-out North American tour, helping the band amass a rapidly growing global audience.

The Margate-based quintet’s highly anticipated sophomore album, the Daniel James Elliot and Kristofer Harris co-produced Feel Forever is slated for a September 18, 2026 release through Nice Guys. The album, which marks the first time Elliot has worked with a producer, reportedly sees the rising taking a bold step forward with their sound. And while being a decided evolution, the material remains rooted in the emotional depth that they’ve begun to be known for. “We took a yacht rock approach to the recording, taking our time to smooth all the edges and make something that felt more polished than the last record,” Elliot says of Feel Forever‘s recording process. “Both of us spent hours obsessing over the smallest detail, which felt very apt for this album. The result is something that we are all very proud of, it’s a different kind of Tokyo Tea Room that has come out the other side of it, but it feels right and I hope people enjoy listening.”

Feel Forever will include the previously released “Eyes Off You” “Always In The Sun” and album’s fourth and latest single “Hypnotised.” Featuring glistening synth stabs, a sinuous and strutting disco groove beneath Beth Dunn’s yearning, ethereal delivery, “Hypnotised” is a hook-driven and breezy tune that’s seemingly one-part yacht rock, one-part Yumi Zouma — and wholly escapist fantasy of eloping to balmier climates with a lover or love interest. But beneath the laid-back two-step including groove and beach club-meets-lounge vibes, “Hypnotised” captures the woozy and euphoric glee of madly obsessive love.

“‘Hypnotised’ is about that feeling of being completely drawn in, when everything else around you seems to blur,” says the band’s Daniel James Elliot. “It’s the uncertainty and fantasy that contribute to the excitement of something new, and I wanted to reflect that in this song, kinda like a soundtrack to your mind wandering into a daydream.”

Directed and animated by CC Mulligan, the accompanying video for “Hypnotised,” features some mind-bending, brightly colored and downright trippy imagery.

The rising British act will return to North America for a fall tour, supporting their new material. The tour includes two NYC area dates — October 13, 2026 at Music Hall of Williamsburg and October 14, 2026 at Bowery Ballroom. Check out the rest of the tour dates below.

Single Review by William Ruben HelmsAug 26, 202621:30

New Audio: Yeisy Rojas Returns with Hopeful “¿Dónde está el amor?”

JOVM mainstay Yeisy Rojas is a Grammy Award-nominated and Latin Grammy Award-nominated Cuban-born, Oslo-based, classically trained, jazz violinist, singer/songwriter and composer.

Her recently released album Inmigrante features the previously released “LATINO” and the album’s latest single “¿Dónde está el amor?” “¿Dónde está el amor?” begins with a cinematic jazz pop introduction in which the JOVM mainstay’s excessive vocal is accompanied with piano and subtly Latin percussion before morphing to a decidedly upbeat soul and gospel-influenced — with the song moving from heartbreak to joy and hope.

“The song grew out of a question that kept coming back to me as I looked at the world around us: Why do we treat each other this way? Where is the love?” The Oslo-based artist says. ” I wrote it sitting at the piano, moved by the sadness and helplessness I felt watching a world becoming increasingly divided—shaped by conflict, persecution, raids, hatred, and a growing lack of empathy. But I didn’t want to write a song rooted in hopelessness. I wanted to turn those feelings into something that could remind us of what still connects us. Musically, “¿Dónde está el amor?” begins as an intimate, vulnerable ballad, gradually weaving in Afro-Cuban rhythms through the tumbadoras. It continues to build until it opens into a powerful gospel choir, where gospel and Afro-Cuban rhythms come together in a call for unity, hope, and love. What begins as a deeply personal question ultimately becomes a collective voice—an invitation to rediscover our empathy and remember the humanity we share, especially in times of profound division. Rather than trying to provide an answer, I hope the song leaves one question lingering long after the music ends: amid everything that separates us today, where is the love?”