Diving into the Jackhammer Noise and Dancefloor Alternative Rock of Ashnymph and the Week's Best Fresh Music

Based in London and Brighton
For fans of artists like Underworld, MGMT, or Animal Collective
On the horizon A new EP planned for 2026, currently without a title

The two singles shared so far by the group Ashnymph resist simple labeling: the band's own tag of their work as “subconscioussion” doesn’t offer many clues. Their initial track Saltspreader married a jackhammer industrial beat – bandmember Will Wiffen has sometimes been seen on stage wearing a T-shirt that displays the emblem of the trailblazing band Godflesh – with vintage-sounding synthesisers and a guitar riff that vaguely recalls the enduring garage rock anthem I Wanna Be Your Dog, before dissolving into a mass of eerie audio. The planned result, the group has mentioned, was to evoke motorway travel, “the endless movement of vehicles around the clock over vast spans … nighttime orange glows”.

The subsequent track, the song Mr Invisible, falls between nightclub tunes and experimental rock. Firstly, the cut's tempo, multiple entrancing electronic parts, and singing that comes either trippily blurred or mesmerizingly repeated in a way that recalls the classic Underworld album era all suggest the dancefloor. Alternatively, its forceful live-sounding dynamics, near-anarchic character and fuzz – “getting that crisp distortion is a personal mission,” Wiffen has said – set it apart as very much the work of a band rather than a bedroom-bound producer. They've performed around south London’s DIY scene for under a year, “anywhere that will turn the PA up loud”.

But both are exciting and different enough – mutually and contemporary releases – to spark curiosity about what Ashnymph might do next. Regardless of the form, on the evidence of Saltspreader and Mr Invisible, it’s sure to be engaging.

The Week's Fresh Highlights

Hit My Head All Day by Dry Cleaning
“I absolutely need experiences”​, vocalist Florence Shaw states on their enchanting new track, but over six minutes – with human breath marking time – you feel that she can’t work out why.

Azimuth by Danny L Harle with Caroline Polachek
Combining Evanescence's dark flair to classic 90s trance – even the words “and I ask the rain” – the track implies digging out your Cyberdog attire and making your way to a rave, right away.

Robyn's Acne Studios mix
The music by Robyn for the the fashion brand's latest show hints at her next record, including driving guitar parts à la Soulwax, Benny Benassi-style thrust and the verse “my body’s a spaceship with the ovaries on hyperdrive”.

Like That by Jordana
Listeners adored her soft rock album Lively Premonition last year and the US singer-songwriter continues to show off her remarkable skill with choruses as she sings about a futile crush.

Molly Nilsson – Get a Life
The solo Swedish pop act released her latest album Amateur this week, and this cut is incredible: a synthetic guitar line surges ahead with punk speed as Nilsson insists we seize the day.

Artemas – Superstar
Following tales of weary romance on his smash I Like the Way You Kiss Me and its accompanying release Yustyna, the British-Cypriot star is completely captivated by his latest lover amid pulsating coldwave production.

Jennifer Walton – Miss America
From one of the year’s standout debuts, a crushed synth hymnal about the artist hearing of her father's passing in an airport hotel, describing her eerie environment in softly sung lines: “Retail area, shady transaction, nervous fits.”

Michael Cox
Michael Cox

A passionate fashion enthusiast and writer, sharing insights on style and self-expression.