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John Shambles Brings His Debut Solo Album ‘Cabin Fever’ to Life on the Road

Eric Alper
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John Shambles Brings His Debut Solo Album ‘Cabin Fever’ to Life on the Road

Brett Emmons has a new name, a new record, and zero interest in playing by anyone else’s rules. Under the moniker John Shambles, the JUNO Award-winning frontman of The Glorious Sons steps out with his debut solo album, ‘Cabin Fever,’ out April 30. It’s a record steeped in nostalgia, washed guitars, and a well-worn feel that sounds like it was earned, not engineered.

‘Cabin Fever’ pulls from lo-fi alternative, folk, and garage rock, weaving them into something that feels simultaneously fresh and deeply lived-in. Emmons’ raw, introspective storytelling is front and center throughout, and it lands hard. The album is relatable, disarming, and genuinely captivating from start to finish.

The singles paint a vivid picture of what’s ahead. “Fool In The Woods” is a melodic dreamscape. “Landmines” drifts into the unsettling feeling of being perceived. “Try Not To Freak Out” is sharp and self-aware. “New Friends” turns a character study into something quietly devastating. Together, they make a compelling case for Shambles as a fully formed solo identity.

Emmons is candid about where he’s at. “I asked for one thing out of life from an early age and it happened,” he says. “Almost 15 years ago now, I started this for real. I’m not a pop star. I’m not a fashion icon. I don’t believe in almost anything except for one thing: create. That’s it.”

He continues: “It got confusing. Really confusing. But I decided after that, that this, right here, is all I wanted. Fuck money. Fuck stars. Fuck sub-genres. Fuck politicians. Fuck fashion. Movies. News. Movements. It’s all beyond my control. In fact, it gets more beyond my control with every passing year. So, I’m gonna do what I do. That’s it. I’m gonna do it relentlessly, and with a little help I’m gonna do it right from my front porch. The rest is for the birds.”

Supporting the record, Shambles is heading out on the “Spring Fever Tour,” hitting Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta, and Saskatchewan through May. This is the full live rollout of ‘Cabin Fever,’ and it’s worth showing up for.

‘Cabin Fever’ Track Listing:

  1. Concrete Cowboys
  2. Landmines
  3. Try Not Too Freak Out
  4. Gameshow
  5. Fool In The Woods
  6. New Friends
  7. Tin Man Time Machine
  8. Back On The Gas
  9. Making Sense (B-Side)
  10. Hail (B-Side)

2026 “Spring Fever Tour” Dates:

May 7 – Hamilton, ON – Bridgeworks

May 8 – Waterloo, ON – Maxwell’s

May 9 – London, ON – London Music Hall

May 11 – Thunder Bay, ON – Magnus Theatre

May 12 – Winnipeg, MB – The Park Theatre

May 14 – Calgary, AB – Commonwealth Bar

May 15 – Edmonton, AB – Midway Music Hall

May 16 – Saskatoon, SK – Coors Event Centre

Holly Humberstone Brings the “Cruel World Tour” to North America This Summer Behind Sophomore Album

Eric Alper
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Holly Humberstone Brings the “Cruel World Tour” to North America This Summer Behind Sophomore Album

Holly Humberstone’s sophomore album ‘Cruel World’ is out now via Interscope Records, and the North American tour supporting it is one of the more compelling indie pop runs of the summer. Kicking off June 3 in Boston and running through June 28 in San Francisco, the “Cruel World Tour” hits headline rooms across the continent alongside major festival appearances at Coachella, Bonnaroo, Governors Ball, and All Things Go Toronto.

‘Cruel World’ was built through daily studio sessions with collaborator Rob Milton and explores the tension between pain and pleasure, chaos and acceptance, anchored in stability and recollection after the turbulence of her debut. Where ‘Paint My Bedroom Black’ was marked by longing and unease, this record reaches toward something more grounded, drawing on childhood memories, gothic fairytales, feminine solidarity, and the strange comfort of digging through your own past.

Visually, Humberstone built the album’s world with her sister Eleri and creative director Silken, inspired by childhood trinkets uncovered while leaving the house she grew up in, ballet shoes, Alice in Wonderland books, and films like Edward Scissorhands and James and the Giant Peach. That imaginative richness runs through every corner of the record, and the live show promises to match it.

“Cruel World” North American Tour Dates:

June 3 — Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club

June 4 — Montreal, QC @ Beanfield Theatre

June 6 — Toronto, ON @ All Things Go Toronto

June 7 — Queens, NY @ Governors Ball Music Festival

June 9 — Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of The Living Arts

June 10 — Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club

June 12 — Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse

June 13 — Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival

June 15 — Detroit, MI @ Saint Andrew’s Hall

June 16 — Chicago, IL @ The Vic Theatre

June 19 — Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity Theater

June 21 — Englewood, CO @ Gothic Theatre

June 22 — Salt Lake City, UT @ The Complex

June 24 — Seattle, WA @ The Showbox

June 25 — Vancouver, BC @ The Commodore Ballroom

June 26 — Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater

June 28 — San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore

San Jose Political Punks Last Ditch Effort Take on Violent Femmes Classic “Blister in the Sun”

Eric Alper
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San Jose Political Punks Last Ditch Effort Take on Violent Femmes Classic “Blister in the Sun”

Last Ditch Effort have released a cover of the Violent Femmes’ “Blister in the Sun,” and it’s exactly the kind of move you’d expect from a San Jose political punk outfit whose stated mission is bringing back the social fury of punk’s most charged decades. The band formed in 2023 with charged lyrics and heavy rhythms built to inspire dissent, and their most recent EP ‘Twenty-25’ earned genuine critical praise. Their new EP ‘Imminent Demise’ is out now, and this cover makes a fine entry point into what Last Ditch Effort are building.

“Blister in the Sun” and ‘Imminent Demise’ are both out now.

Colorado Springs Alternative Rock Trio Mindless Vitality Go Deep on Raw New Single “Broken Minds”

Eric Alper
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Colorado Springs Alternative Rock Trio Mindless Vitality Go Deep on Raw New Single “Broken Minds”

Mindless Vitality are starting 2026 with a statement. The Colorado Springs alternative rock trio, Joseph Nutter on vocals and guitar, Max Thornton on vocals and bass, and Hayden Wyatt on drums, have released “Broken Minds,” a track that goes directly at the psychological weight of internal struggle, emotional burnout, and the exhausting work of holding yourself together when everything feels like it’s unraveling.

The band puts it plainly: “‘Broken Minds’ is about the mental and emotional struggles people go through but don’t always talk about. It’s that feeling of being stuck in your own head, fighting thoughts that won’t slow down, and trying to find clarity in the chaos. We wanted the song to feel intense but also honest, because nobody’s mind is unbreakable.”

That honesty is what separates Mindless Vitality from the pack. Their grunge-rooted foundation gives “Broken Minds” real grit, while a sharper modern alternative edge keeps it from sitting still. It’s emotionally charged and musically direct, which is exactly what this kind of subject matter demands.

The band is expanding its 2026 performance schedule with regional and out-of-state dates in the works. “Broken Minds” is out now.

London Psychedelic Space Rock Duo Nook & Cranny Release Improvised Debut Album ‘Karma Waters’

Eric Alper
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London Psychedelic Space Rock Duo Nook & Cranny Release Improvised Debut Album ‘Karma Waters’

Nook & Cranny’s debut album ‘Karma Waters’ is out now, and the story of how it came together is as interesting as the music itself. London-based psychedelic space rock duo Dean Cass and Matt Sullivan recorded all guitars and drums across four improvised jam sessions over a couple of weekends at Bally Studios in London in early 2024, with no prior writing or rehearsing. Some of those jams ran over 30 minutes. The best parts were kept, trimmed, and shaped into something cohesive, with bass, synth, and samples added later at Matt’s home studio Flighthouse.

The two first met in Fremantle, Australia in 2009 and have been making music together ever since, through Silent Republic, Moon, and Astral Lynx before landing here. Nook & Cranny started as a low-pressure side project, just two musicians going into a rehearsal room to jam for the fun of it. That loose, instinctive foundation is audible throughout ‘Karma Waters,’ a record that breathes and moves like something discovered rather than constructed.

The album name came from a boat moored on the canal next to the studio. The polaroid cover artwork was shot around the studio and in Soho, the lo-fi immediacy of the images mirroring the improvised sessions that built the record. Mixed and mastered by the band themselves, ‘Karma Waters’ is entirely their own from start to finish.

Réunion Island Thrash Force Lomor Confront the Legacy of Slavery on Ferocious New Album ‘Sabouk Rouge’

Eric Alper
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Réunion Island Thrash Force Lomor Confront the Legacy of Slavery on Ferocious New Album ‘Sabouk Rouge’

Lomor are back with ‘Sabouk Rouge,’ their second album and most narratively ambitious statement yet. Four years after their debut ‘Perseverance of Sickness,’ the Réunion Island thrash trio have returned with a record that confronts the brutal history of slavery on their island with old-school thrash intensity, punk urgency, and a fierce Creole identity that makes this record unlike anything else in the genre right now.

The album’s title is drawn from the “sabouk,” the name given to the whip used against enslaved people, a symbol of the violence and dehumanization that marked Réunion’s history. The cover reinforces that with blood-red imagery against a cold white background, a visual statement as uncompromising as the music itself. The themes range wide, from religious critique on “La Haine” to human cruelty on “Panzram,” with Creole-language track “Tantine Lo Clou” bringing a darkly humorous contrast that shows Lomor’s range.

Drawing from Slayer, Testament, and Kreator, the band delivers percussive riffs, relentless tempos, and raw vocal aggression across the full record. Their live reputation is equally formidable, built through opening slots for Pamplemousse and Mass Hysteria and a Kanyar Tour across France, with shared stages alongside Akiavel further cementing their standing in the European thrash scene.

‘Sabouk Rouge’ is out now.

Ghanaian Star Lamisi and Wanlov the Kubolor Celebrate the Power of Music on Joyful New Single “Painkiller”

Eric Alper
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Ghanaian Star Lamisi and Wanlov the Kubolor Celebrate the Power of Music on Joyful New Single “Painkiller”

Lamisi has shared “Painkiller,” the second single from her forthcoming album ‘Let Us Clap,’ out now via Real World Records, and it arrives as a full-throated celebration of what music can do. The track grew organically in the studio when collaborator Sowah began playing xylophone and Lamisi started chanting “Music is a painkiller.” From that spontaneous moment, the song built itself. “Then Lamisi joined right in and started clapping along,” says producer and musical director Wanlov the Kubolor. That clapping became the album’s foundation.

‘Let Us Clap’ is a collaboration between Lamisi, one of Ghana’s most beloved artists and a fierce advocate for the rights of women and girls, and Wanlov the Kubolor, the Ghanaian-Romanian artist, activist, and filmmaker whose presence in Accra is so well known he stops traffic. Together they’ve built something that bridges the clapping patterns of northern Ghana with the digital textures of contemporary African music, treating Lamisi’s vocals electronically while keeping the acoustic instruments at the core.

The album carries real social purpose. Lamisi’s advocacy is rooted in lived experience. “I was raised with girls from northern Ghana who would drop out of school to get married and have children,” she shares. “I want to champion their unheard voices.” Wanlov brings his own fearless activism to the project, having consistently pushed back against homophobia in Ghana alongside his sibling Sister Deborah and Angel Maxine, the first openly transgender Ghanaian musician.

‘Let Us Clap’ is out now via Real World Records, available on CD and LP.

‘Let Us Clap’ Tracklist:

  1. Agol
  2. Zane Ya Kinkin
  3. No Orgasm In Heaven
  4. Tumsum
  5. Come
  6. Salma Daka
  7. Nisaal
  8. Unity
  9. Painkiller

Cambridgeshire Folk Artist Luke James Williams Announces Album ‘Limes Hotel’ and Releases Moving New Single “Hollows and Branches”

Eric Alper
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Cambridgeshire Folk Artist Luke James Williams Announces Album ‘Limes Hotel’ and Releases Moving New Single “Hollows and Branches”

Luke James Williams has announced his second album ‘Limes Hotel,’ due this April, alongside the release of new single “Hollows and Branches,” and both arrive carrying real emotional weight. The Cambridgeshire folk artist wrote the single in memory of a close friend, a tribute to someone who shaped his relationship with the natural world in ways that clearly never left him. Listen here.

“I wrote this song remembering an old friend who is sadly no longer with us,” Williams shares. “She instilled in me a profound love of nature and the idea that we are all one with the natural world around us.” The track reflects that deeply, built on spare, atmospheric instrumentation and Williams’ unmistakably English vocal, rising slowly and letting its emotional core find the surface on its own terms. It’s quietly arresting in the best possible way.

‘Limes Hotel’ was shaped by an intense period of grief following the loss of two close friends. Across eleven tracks, Williams moves through mortality, belief, and connection, but the record ultimately reaches toward renewal. “New shoots reaching up towards the sun,” as he puts it. “The hope and promise of new life rising from the darkness.” For an album born in darkness, that instinct toward light is what makes it worth leaning into.

“Hollows and Branches” is the third single from the album, following “Seeds” and “Ends,” and has already earned airplay from BBC Radio 6 Music, BBC Introducing, and Amazing Radio. Williams’ debut album ‘Our Blood Is Red’ earned Bandcamp’s New & Notable recognition and support from Tom Robinson, Lauren Laverne, Steve Lamacq, and Tom Ravenscroft. ‘Limes Hotel’ builds on that foundation with something deeper and more fully realized.

A UK tour follows the album’s release, with dates running through July.

Luke James Williams 2026 Tour Dates:

May 6 — London @ The Harrison

May 8 — Sheffield @ Mary Street Live

May 14 — Coventry @ LTB Showrooms

May 15 — Bury @ Wax and Beans

June 12 — Cambridge @ Junction J3

July 23 — Bishops Stortford @ South Mill Arts

Manchester Post-Rock Trio Shaking Hand Are Touring the UK Behind Their Critically Acclaimed Debut Album

Eric Alper
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0
Manchester Post-Rock Trio Shaking Hand Are Touring the UK Behind Their Critically Acclaimed Debut Album

Shaking Hand have arrived. The Manchester three-piece released their self-titled debut album on Melodic to immediate critical acclaim, with NPR naming it Album of the Week, Stereogum praising its “spindly riffs and rugged post-hardcore rhythms,” MOJO awarding four stars, and Hard of Hearing calling it “the first great album of 2026.” That kind of consensus doesn’t happen by accident. Listen here.

The record was produced by David Pye (Wild Beasts, Teenage Fanclub) at Nave Studios in Leeds, a converted church with a live room big enough to capture the band’s full sonic weight. Tracked largely live, with Soviet-era microphones, unconventional placements, and phone-recorded demos woven into the mix, the album sounds like a band committed to capturing something real rather than something polished. It pulls from Slint, Sonic Youth, Pavement, and Women while carrying the melodic warmth of Big Thief and Yo La Tengo into its own Northwest-emo territory.

“The best ideas are when it feels like it’s just about to fall apart and we’re only just holding on,” says Freddie. That tension is the record’s engine, quiets that stretch, louds that overwhelm, rhythms that destabilize and hypnotize in equal measure. Shaking Hand’s debut is out now on Melodic, and with two UK dates still ahead, there’s still time to catch this live.

Shaking Hand UK Tour Dates:

April 25 — Nottingham @ The Carousel

September 6 — Manchester @ Manchester Psych Fest

Leicester-Nottingham Indie Rockers BilloBuckers Tackle Male Depression Head-On With “It’s Okay Not To Be Okay”

Eric Alper
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0
Leicester-Nottingham Indie Rockers BilloBuckers Tackle Male Depression Head-On With “It’s Okay Not To Be Okay”

BilloBuckers have released “It’s Okay Not To Be Okay,” a poignant new single on Deadly Records that takes on male depression with empathy, directness, and a real understanding of how men mask what they’re carrying. It’s the kind of track that has a message and the musical weight to carry it, which is precisely what this five-piece does best.

The Leicester-Nottingham outfit have been building steadily, with their debut EP ‘Eloquently Common’ and three subsequent singles clocking over 60,000 streams combined. “It’s Okay Not To Be Okay” is already drawing attention from BBC Introducing, adding to a momentum that feels genuine and earned.

Their sound sits at the intersection of indie rock introspection and straight-up rock grit, drawing from Arctic Monkeys, Kasabian, The Stone Roses, The Libertines, and The Jam while developing something that reads as distinctly their own. Rich guitar riffs, dynamic rhythms, and soul-driven vocals from Billy Buckler anchor every track in something real.

“It’s Okay Not To Be Okay” is out now on Deadly Records.

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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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