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Soul-Psych-Funk Nonet The Sh-Booms Drop First New Music in Six Years With “This Is a Test”

Eric Alper
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Soul-Psych-Funk Nonet The Sh-Booms Drop First New Music in Six Years With “This Is a Test”

Six years is a long time to wait. The Sh-Booms have ended it with “This Is a Test,” the title track from their new EP ‘This Is a Test,’ out now digitally and on limited 12″ vinyl. It’s the Orlando nine-piece’s first recorded music since 2019, and it lands with a sound that’s moved well past where they left off.

The single runs over six and a half minutes. Bandleader and bassist Alfred Ruiz describes it as “a sci-fi vision of two astronauts on a collision course in the cosmic ocean,” where euphoric intergalactic love collides with a mission that threatens everything. It’s a premise that sounds ambitious on paper, and the track earns it.

New Wave textures, post-punk lock-grooves, funk-driven vocoder passages, and widescreen space-rock builds all share space inside one song. There’s dancefloor urgency running underneath cinematic scale, and the combination works. Flood Magazine put it plainly, drawing comparisons to Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, Amy Winehouse, and Alabama Shakes.

Production came from Grammy-nominated engineer Alan Armitage (Boyz II Men) at his Orlando studio The Snake Arcade. Grammy Award-winner Emily Lazar (Beck, Vampire Weekend, Minus the Bear) handled mastering at The Lodge in New York. The technical pedigree behind this record is serious.

The Sh-Booms formed out of Orlando’s underground scene with Ruiz pushing the band toward a sound built around movement and communal energy. Vocalist Brenda Radney, previously signed to Justin Timberlake’s Tennman Records, joined in 2015 and shifted the band’s trajectory sharply upward. Festival appearances followed, along with shared stages with The Roots, Of Montreal, KRS-One, and a mini-tour with The B-52’s.

When 2020 shut everything down, the band regrouped at The Snake Arcade and went deeper. Soul foundations got layered with psychedelia, post-punk, New Wave, synth textures, and art-pop experimentation. ‘This Is a Test’ is what came out of that process, and it reflects every bit of that stretch.

The EP is out now digitally. The limited 12″ vinyl is available now everywhere. Pre-save and streaming at https://thesh-booms.hearnow.com

‘This Is a Test’ EP Track Listing:

Side A

  1. Love of a Ghost (Shivvvers)
  2. This Is a Test

Side B

  1. Broken Open
  2. Sin & The City (Heavy Weather)

Indie-Emo Favorites Time Spent Driving Reissue ‘Just Enough Bright’ With a Long-Lost Track

Eric Alper
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Indie-Emo Favorites Time Spent Driving Reissue ‘Just Enough Bright’ With a Long-Lost Track

Twenty-four years after its original release, ‘Just Enough Bright’ gets the treatment it always deserved. Time Spent Driving’s 2002 album arrives April 10 on vinyl through Thirty Something Records, newly remixed by original producer J. Robbins and remastered by Dan Coutant at Sun Room Audio.

Robbins recorded the original ten tracks at Tiny Telephone Studios in San Francisco in January 2002, and he’s returned to remix every one of them specifically for this reissue. Coutant’s mastering work restores depth and balance without pulling the record away from what it originally was. The bones are intact. The sound is sharper.

The reissue adds an eleventh track, “What It Should Be Like,” written during the original album sessions but never completed at the time. It was recorded in 2024 at Compound Recording by Olav Tabatabai. That’s a song sitting unfinished for over two decades, now finally released as part of the record it was always meant to join.

“Angel and I” (Remastered) is streaming now on No Echo, offering a direct listen to what Robbins and Coutant have done with the source material. It’s a precise, considered reissue from a band whose catalog has earned this level of attention.

Time Spent Driving formed in 1998 out of the San Francisco Bay Area punk and hardcore scene. Their emotive, indie-leaning approach stood apart from regional trends from the start. Over more than 150 shows across the U.S. and Europe, they built a following that never really left. Music landed on national television and video game soundtracks. Labels worldwide put out their releases.

The band signed with Thirty Something Records in 2025 to reissue their back catalog, with new music also on the way in 2026. ‘Just Enough Bright’ is the right place to start. It’s the record that defined what Time Spent Driving could do, and this version makes the case all over again.

The vinyl comes in two first-press variants: Corona White x Green (100 copies, TSR/Band Exclusive) and Yellowish Green (100 copies). Pre-orders are open now through Thirty Something Records for EU/World and Steadfast Records for the U.S.

Tracklisting:

Angel and I

Sleepyhead

Not Yet

Faking

Drive

Slow Down

More Than This

Running

Holding On

Just Enough Bright

What It Should Be Like

The Browning Rebuild Their 2011 Electronicore Blueprint on ‘Burn This World (EVOLVED)’

Eric Alper
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The Browning Rebuild Their 2011 Electronicore Blueprint on ‘Burn This World (EVOLVED)’

The Browning have done something most heavy acts wouldn’t dare attempt. They’ve gone back to the beginning and rebuilt it completely. ‘Burn This World [EVOLVED]’ is a full ground-up reconstruction of their 2011 debut, and the result is a record that hits harder, sounds bigger, and makes the original feel like a rough draft.

Jonny McBee launched The Browning as a solo project in 2005, and it was the 2011 debut ‘Burn This World’ that put the band’s electronicore signature on the map. Fusing punishing deathcore with the relentless pulse of electronic dance music, the record established a sound few others could replicate. Fifteen years later, McBee has gone back in with modern production and an entirely new lens.

“15 years of Evolution has led me to fully recreating Burn This World from scratch,” McBee says. “Heavier breakdowns, higher energy techno, better vocals. It’s been a long 15 years for me, and I appreciate your support every step of the way. This is for you.”

The digital release is out now on FiXT, with vinyl also available. Every track on ‘Burn This World [EVOLVED]’ has been re-recorded from scratch, preserving the raw ferocity of the original while pushing each element into a sharper, more aggressive space. This isn’t a remaster. It’s a reimagining.

Leading the album is “BLOODLUST” [EVOLVED], a complete reworking of one of The Browning’s most recognized singles. The track delivers thrashing guitars, mechanical synths, and a darker, more cinematic edge. The accompanying red-and-black music video leans into a sinister vampire aesthetic, with one ominous throughline: “We will never die.” It’s a strong, visceral entry that sets the tone for the full record.

The Browning’s catalog runs deep. ‘Hypernova’ (2013) was named Album of the Week by Revolver. “Bloodlust” crossed 2.6 million views. ‘Isolation’ (2016) generated millions of views on tracks like “Dragon” and “Disconnect.” Their 2024 album ‘OMNI’, followed by ‘OMNI [ULTRA]’ in 2025, kept the momentum rolling through a relentless touring schedule that covered the US, Canada, and Europe.

The current lineup of McBee and guitarist Hardcore Keem, a heavy music influencer with over 300K in social reach, brings a sharp creative focus to the band’s next phase. McBee also hosts the “Burn This World Podcast” and streams his creative process live with fans in The Browning Discord. The band’s reach is wide, and it’s growing.

Acid-Punk Cult Legends Clinic Get the Archival Treatment They Deserve on Domino Vault

Eric Alper
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Acid-Punk Cult Legends Clinic Get the Archival Treatment They Deserve on Domino Vault

Clinic’s earliest recordings deserve to be heard properly. Domino Vault, the archival imprint dedicated to long out-of-print cult classics, has announced the Liverpool outfit’s self-titled EP compilation as the next release in their carefully curated series, pressing 300 hand-numbered copies on heavyweight vinyl. Listen here and order it here.

The compilation brings together Clinic’s first three EPs, originally released when the band signed to Domino in 1999. Equal parts acid-punk heroes and pop legends, those early recordings drew from 60s pop, psych, dub, and classic US-flavoured punk, delivering something that felt genuinely unlike anything else happening at the time.

Frontman Ade Blackburn frames the band’s early philosophy simply: “With the early EPs, we wanted to set our stall out as being into pop music and rhythm playing a large part in the songs. Above all, for the music to be fun and entertaining.” That spirit runs through every track, from the guitar-heavy “Cement Mixer” to the lilting grooves of closer “Voot,” with churning organ lines and locked-in drums underpinning Blackburn’s distinctively detached vocal delivery throughout.

These recordings aren’t just historical artefacts. They’re the foundational DNA from which Clinic’s later explorations of psychedelia, minimalism, and warped pop would grow. From ‘Internal Wrangler’ through to ‘Fantasy Island’, every step of their remarkable discography traces back to these seminal early EPs.

The compilation is available now exclusively via Domino Mart, limited to 300 hand-numbered copies. Once they’re gone, they’re gone.

Danish Composer and Pop Visionary Hannah Schneider Blurs Every Boundary on Hypnotic New Single “Membrane”

Eric Alper
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Danish Composer and Pop Visionary Hannah Schneider Blurs Every Boundary on Hypnotic New Single “Membrane”

Hannah Schneider operates in a space entirely her own. “Membrane,” the new single from the Danish pop and alternative composer, is out now on Midnight Confessions, a hypnotic, deeply expressive track that moves between experimental neoclassical textures and strong melodic hooks with total assurance.

Built around a bass clarinet motif and driven by restrained, almost hip-hop-like drums, the track unfolds with subtle intensity, letting atmosphere and emotion carry everything. Schneider’s voice sits in close dialogue with the instrument’s dark, breathing pulse, reflecting on emotional shields, distance, and the fragile barriers that form when understanding begins to fade. It’s minimal and deeply affecting.

“Membrane” is taken from her album ‘In This Room’, out now. To make it, Schneider invited a carefully chosen group of musicians to her residency at Thorvaldsens Museum in Copenhagen, turning the historic space into a laboratory where composition and recording were approached from entirely new angles. The central question driving the project: what happens when acoustic instruments become the starting point for modern electronic music?

Produced with longtime collaborator Christian Balvig (When Saints Go Machine, BBC Proms arranger) and featuring Efterklang frontman Caspar Clausen, ‘In This Room’ marks a new creative lane for an artist already celebrated as one of Denmark’s strongest voices. In 2023 and 2024 she won the Danish composers prize Carl Prisen alongside contemporary jazz duo Kaleiido for her work on “Elements” and “Places.”

Her broader creative footprint is remarkable. As one half of electronic duo AyOwA, she earned BBC Radio 1 and BBC 6 Music airplay alongside international press acclaim. As a composer, she’s created commissioned pieces for essential museums and cultural institutions across Denmark. As part of performance duo Philip Schneider, she explores the boundaries between music and art through seductive spatial compositions and installations.

Irish Nu-Metalcore Contenders Following The Signs Smash Through Limitations on New Single “Break The Frame”

Eric Alper
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Irish Nu-Metalcore Contenders Following The Signs Smash Through Limitations on New Single “Break The Frame”

Following The Signs mean every word they play. The Cork-based five-piece are back with “Break The Frame,” the latest single from their EP ‘Evolve’, out now, and it’s their most direct and ferocious statement yet.

Built around pummeling riffs, thunderous breakdowns, and soaring yet abrasive vocal dynamics, the track confronts restriction, expectation, and the invisible structures that confine identity and ambition. The band frame it with a sharp conceptual edge: “Break The Frame is written with the idea of living in a simulation connected to a machine, the mainframe. Upon waking you realise the simulated world is not what it seems, so you fight to break free to live in the real world.” Heavy subject matter handled with total commitment.

Formed in Cork in 2018, Following The Signs have spent years building a reputation for combining groove-heavy nu-metal influences with the precision and aggression of modern metalcore. ‘Evolve’ is their most cohesive and focused body of work to date, a five-track narrative exploring survival, resistance, societal pressure, and transformation. Where previous single “Call To Rise” stood as a rallying cry against oppression, “Break The Frame” turns inward, targeting the psychological barriers that prevent growth.

Recent headline shows in Warsaw and Kraków, their largest international performances to date, have demonstrated clearly that their momentum is building well beyond Ireland’s borders. A rising force in modern heavy music, Following The Signs are moving fast and hitting harder with every release.

‘Evolve’ Tracklist:

Stuck In Place

Call To Rise

Break The Frame

Evolve

Infectious

Donegal Singer-Songwriter Seán Feeny Charts Migration, Memory, and Belonging on Debut Album “Galactic Tides”

Eric Alper
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Donegal Singer-Songwriter Seán Feeny Charts Migration, Memory, and Belonging on Debut Album “Galactic Tides”

Seán Feeny arrives fully formed. The Donegal singer-songwriter’s debut album “Galactic Tides” is out now, a ten-track collection that moves between intimate folk reflections and expansive cinematic arrangements with the confidence of an artist who knows exactly what he’s making and why.

The album builds on the momentum of his first two singles, “1969” and “Western Roads,” which earned national and regional radio play and coverage across Ireland, the UK, Europe, the US, and Canada. The title track followed in January, a sweeping, atmospheric folk-pop piece about displacement, discovery, and belonging that set the tone for everything the album delivers.

Produced by longtime collaborator Orri McBrearty, with performances from Ruairí Friel, Sarah Cullen, Tommy Callaghan, and cellist Laura McFadden, “Galactic Tides” draws on family history, historical record, and the universal search for home. Feeny puts it plainly: “So much of this album is about movement, across countries, across generations, across the inner world. The more I wrote, the more I realised these songs weren’t just about my family or Irish history, they were about anyone who’s ever felt uprooted or unanchored but kept going anyway.”

Structured in two parts, Low Tide and High Tide, the album maps both emotional ebb and flow. Tracks like “Tír Mór,” “Wild Geese,” and “Bairneach” continue Feeny’s exploration of diaspora, nature, and the quiet internal landscapes we navigate in times of change. The closing track “Human” lands with quiet resolution, a reminder that regardless of origin or identity, connection runs deeper than distance.

Donegal filmmaker Charlie Joe Doherty, who directed the videos for “1969,” “Western Roads,” and “Galactic Tides,” traces the album’s arc across both real and symbolic landscapes with real visual sensitivity.

Nuclear Messiah Unite 36 Rock and Metal Legends on Thunderous All-Star Album ‘Black Flame’

Eric Alper
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Nuclear Messiah Unite 36 Rock and Metal Legends on Thunderous All-Star Album ‘Black Flame’

Nothing quite like ‘Black Flame’ has been attempted before. Nuclear Messiah’s thunderous all-star concept album, out now via Cleopatra Records, unites 36 of the most iconic musicians in rock and metal history across five decades, built around the visionary guitar mastery of former Megadeth guitarist Chris Poland.

Poland’s melodic fluidity, experimental phrasing, and sheer command of tone have made him one of the most distinctive voices in metal since ‘Peace Sells… But Who’s Buying?’ Cleopatra founder Brian Perera frames the project perfectly: “Chris isn’t just a guitarist, he’s a spirit of sound. Nuclear Messiah was built around his brilliance and brought to life by an army of legends who share his passion and precision.”

The latest single “Electric Burn” is a monster closing statement. Featuring fellow Megadeth alumni Marty Friedman and Chris Adler alongside Blue Öyster Cult bassist Joe Bouchard and Marc Lopes, it’s a soul-searing slice of molten metal that closes the album at full throttle. Poland doesn’t undersell it: “‘Electric Burn’ is just that, this song is on fire. Chris Adler is smokin’ hot and the rest of the band follows suit. I mean, come on, freakin’ Marty Friedman is on this track.”

The album opens with William Shatner’s commanding spoken introduction before blazing through new material and eye-opening covers, including a killer take on Uriah Heep’s “Look At Yourself” and tracks drawn from Lucifer’s Friend, May Blitz, and NWOBHM heroes Holocaust. Every song was composed by the lineup that performs on it, making ‘Black Flame’ a genuine living timeline of hard rock, prog, and metal from the pioneers of the past to the trailblazers of today.

Produced by Brian Perera, Derek Hughes, and Jürgen Engler, with A&R direction from John Lappen, this is more than a collaboration. It’s a metal summit, and it delivers on every level.

‘Black Flame’ is out now via Cleopatra Records.

‘Black Flame’ Tracklist:

The Prophet Of Fallout feat. Chris Poland & William Shatner

Devil Won’t Let Go feat. Chris Poland, Ronnie Romero, Vinnie Moore, Vinny Appice, Don Airey, Steve Di Giorgio

Death Or Glory feat. Chris Poland, Thor, Bob Daisley, Glen Drover, Fred Aching

Ride The Sky feat. Chris Poland, Arthur Brown, Vinny Appice, Alan Davey

Dice And Thunder feat. Chris Poland, Rick Wakeman, Ronnie Romero, Bumblefoot, Steve Di Giorgio, Fred Aching

For Mad Men Only feat. Chris Poland, Pat Travers, Joe Lynn Turner, Alan Davey, Shawn Drover

Nuclear Messiah feat. Chris Poland, Lance Lopez, Greg Walker, Tim “Ripper” Owens, Vinny Appice, Don Airey

Look At Yourself feat. Chris Poland, Sebastian Bach, Derek Sherinian, Bob Daisley, Mick Box, Carmine Appice

She’s So Evil feat. Chris Poland, Joel Hoekstra, David Ellefson, Don Airey, Andrew Freeman, Simon Wright

Black Flame feat. Chris Poland, Ronnie Romero, Jonathan Cain, Phil Soussan, Glen Drover, Chris Adler

Electric Burn feat. Chris Poland, Marty Friedman, Joe Bouchard, Marc Lopes, Chris Adler

The Numbers Behind the Music: What the Highest-Grossing Concert Tours of All Time Tell Us (Updated For May, 2026)

Eric Alper
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The Numbers Behind the Music: What the Highest-Grossing Concert Tours of All Time Tell Us (Updated For May, 2026)

There is a thread that runs through almost every entry on the list of the highest-grossing concert tours of all time, and it goes deeper than talent or fame. It is longevity, reinvention, and an almost stubborn refusal to stop connecting with audiences. Look closely and you will notice that the artists who dominate this list, from The Rolling Stones to U2 to Taylor Swift, all share something that does not show up in the spreadsheets: they built communities, not fanbases. The Stones set the all-time touring record three separate times across three different decades, a testament to how a live show can evolve while staying absolutely true to its core. U2 and the Stones are tied at eight years each as the top-grossing tour of the year, a stat that would genuinely surprise most casual music fans.

Something else worth noting for those of us who live inside this industry: the shift from records to revenue happened right here on this list. Michael Jackson and Pink Floyd were the first acts to crack the $100 million barrier back in 1987 to 1989, at a time when album sales were still king. Fast forward to the 2020s and Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour closed out at $2.07 billion from just 149 shows. That is a fundamental redefinition of what a concert tour can be. Coldplay, meanwhile, has been quietly building the second-highest-grossing tour in history across 223 shows, proving that consistency and sustainability can rival spectacle every single time.

As of May 2026, here are the top 10 highest-grossing concert tours of all time:

1. Taylor Swift, The Eras Tour (2023 to 2024) $2.07 billion. 149 shows. An average of nearly $14 million per night. Nothing in the history of live music comes close.

2. Coldplay, Music of the Spheres World Tour (2022 to 2025) $1.52 billion across 223 shows. Still ongoing and already the most-toured entry in the top ten by number of dates.

3. Elton John, Farewell Yellow Brick Road (2018 to 2023) $939 million over 330 shows across five years, making it the longest run in the top 20.

4. Ed Sheeran, Plus Minus Equals Divide Multiply Tour (2022 to 2025) $875.7 million from 169 shows, surpassing his own Divide Tour record and cementing him as the greatest touring machine of his generation.

5. Ed Sheeran, Divide Tour (2017 to 2019) $776.2 million from 255 shows, making Sheeran the only artist to hold two spots in the all-time top five.

6. U2, 360 Degrees Tour (2009 to 2011) $736.4 million from just 110 shows. The production required its own structural engineering team for the stage and redefined what a stadium concert could look and feel like.

7. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, 2023 to 2025 Tour $729.7 million and one of the most remarkable late-career commercial achievements in rock history, fueled by a fanbase that has followed The Boss for five decades.

8. The Weeknd, After Hours til Dawn Tour (2022 to 2026) $693.2 million reported to Pollstar, though Live Nation has reported over $1 billion when including all 153 dates. Still ongoing as of this writing.

9. Harry Styles, Love On Tour (2021 to 2023) $617.3 million from 169 shows, a stunning figure for an artist only a few years into his solo career and a sign of how powerfully he converted a global fanbase into a live music force.

10. Pink, Summer Carnival (2023 to 2024) $584.7 million from 97 shows. Pink remains one of the most extraordinary live draws in the entire industry, and this number makes the case louder than any ticket sale figure ever could.

What ties all of these together is something the music business has known for a long time: in a world where streaming has made music nearly free to consume, the live experience has become more valuable than ever. People are buying memories. And the artists on this list figured that out before almost everyone else.

Black Orchid Empire Tap Into Dark Japanese Folklore for Ferocious New Single “Scissormouth”

Eric Alper
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Black Orchid Empire Tap Into Dark Japanese Folklore for Ferocious New Single “Scissormouth”

Black Orchid Empire have never done anything halfway. “Scissormouth,” the fifth single from their forthcoming album ‘Lore’, is out now on Year Of The Rat Records, and it’s exactly the kind of heavy, hook-driven rock track that reminds you why this band has built such a fierce and loyal following.

The song draws from the Japanese folklore myth of Kuchisake-Onna, the Slit-Mouthed Woman, a scissor-carrying demon who asks “do you think I’m beautiful?” with no safe answer available. Vocalist Paul Visser breaks it down: “The myth of Kuchisake-Onna is so dark and unsettling we immediately knew it had to be a song. There is no answer that doesn’t result in horror. We love this tune and had so much fun with the imagery. The ending is especially brutal.”

That instinct for dark, narratively rich material is what separates Black Orchid Empire from the pack. Their sound combines heavy-hitting savagery with intense melodic beauty, technical grooves and gigantic sing-along choruses working together rather than against each other. It’s a genuinely difficult balance to strike, and they nail it every time.

The band arrives at ‘Lore’, due May 8th, with serious momentum behind them. Supported by BBC Radio 1, Spotify, Apple Music, Knotfest, PROG, and Kerrang, and with previous album releases on Long Branch Records and Season Of Mist, their new home at Year Of The Rat Records feels like the right platform for their biggest move yet. Live, they’ve shared stages with Skunk Anansie, HED P.E, INME, and played festivals including Download, Tech Fest, and Planet Rockstock.

A UK headline run kicks off later this month. All dates are worth catching.

UK Tour Dates:

May 21 – Derby – The Victoria Inn

May 22 – Leeds – Boom

May 23 – Birmingham – Scruffy Murphys

May 24 – Cheltenham – Frog and Fiddle

May 28 – Cardiff – Fuel

May 29 – Guildford – The Star

May 30 – Bournemouth – Bear Cave

May 31 – London – New Cross Inn

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That Eric Alper

Eric Alper is a 6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week and has overseen the publicity campaigns for over 183 JUNO Award-nominated albums (and 16 in 2025), 45 Grammy-nominated albums, including 47 JUNO Award, 58 Canadian Folk Music Award, 126 Maple Blues Award-winning albums and is also truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.

Contact me: eric@thatericalper.com

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