After three well received solo albums, Jamie Hutchings breaks ranks and returns to the fold with new outfit Infinity Broke. Comprising of members Reuben Wills (bass), Jared Harrison (drums) and Hutching’s brother Scott also providing drums and percussive duties in addition to his creative eye for the band’s photography, the resulting process is an eight-track album conceived in a disused shearing shed in the middle of the NSW Australian outback. While this new line up presents a fresh challenge for Jamie Hutchings, the outlook of ‘River Mirrors’ throws up a few reminders of his former band Bluebottle Kiss, with influences plucked from a variety of sources ranging from Afghan Whigs, Tom Waits, Sonic Youth, Captain Beefheart et al. In fact, it’s the excellent and drawn-out ‘Monsoon’ that really pricks at the senses first, as it harks back (surprisingly) to his former band’s first album ‘Higher Up The Firetrails’ with its near freefall into oblivion of guitar experimentation midway through before finally reappearing the other side and regaining its composure. The doom-laden feel of former single ‘Swing A Kitten’ is expertly handled with its faster, faster, faster approach in the hopeful event that an escape plan will reveal itself before this dream becomes a reality. The pots and pans entry and subsequent rhythm of ‘Gallows Queue’ offers a quieter tone and possibly an offshoot from Hutching’s solo pursuits, only a return to former grounds resurfaces during a brief tetchy moment via the guitar. The final nod to the past is the reinterpretation of ‘Let The Termites Eat Our Riches’ now reduced to ‘Termites’ but making up for it in sound as it takes in a variety of moods of sonic experimentation; swinging from irritable guitar bursts, pounding repetitive drum patterns and fleeting high-pitched vocals. Worryingly, the realisation dawns that ‘River Mirrors’ could be the final chapter in the career of Jamie Hutchings because there are several clues between the layers that point to such a fate. Any such decision would be a great injustice as ‘River Mirrors’ is a stirring return to former glories, and one that equally matches in terms of consistency but also keeps a tighter rein on the experimental endeavours that only experience can bring.

Barnstaple is home for indie grunge and punk trio Pretend Happy and the likely source responsible for the majority of songs making up current EP ‘MMXIII: A Collection Of Old Songs’, due to reflecting a plethora of emotions that are all too common when it comes to residing in such a sheltered environment. In spite of this, there is a feeling of transition regarding the entire EP, in both title and sound, as the six songs represented here are a collection of the band’s first two EPs, offering something of a mixed bag ranging from the energetic ‘Innocence’ with its insightful observations, “Another fault of mine, I’ve fallen further behind, my innocence still lives inside of me…” to a more ponderous ‘I Remember’ that despite its honesty, especially by way of a couple of expletives, pales in comparison. ‘Stability’ brings order once more with its taut rhythm, and nicely complimented by the crushed emotions of ‘Torture’ only to fall back on old habits with the generic ‘Purity’.  While ‘MMXIII: A Collection Of Old Songs’ possesses one or two shortcomings, there is more than enough material here to suggest a positive outcome regarding future endeavours for Pretend Happy.

Denmark’s Sleep Party People return with a new single ahead of a full album release planned for the end of May 2014. ‘Floating Blood Of Mine’ reprises the long overdue return musically of 90s shoegaze, and one of the pioneers of this particular sound The Cocteau Twins, as Brian Batz – the man behind the moniker – dreams up an instantly memorable soundscape full of drifting and soaring guitars complete with a thin veil of vocals that greatly compliments the vapour trails of sound left suspended in the atmosphere long after this song has ceased spinning. With two critically acclaimed albums behind Sleep Party People, the third chapter looks set to continue this trend considering the emotive sounds emanating from ‘Floating Blood Of Mine’.

Emilie Nicolas takes a bow with the first instalment from her forthcoming long player due this year. The song causing a bit of a commotion is the wonderful slow burner that is ‘Grown Up’, which sounds as if it’s coming from a small remote corner of the Norwegian landscape such is the sparseness of the ingredients used. The lack of instrumentation compliments the beguiling fragility of the vocal held in ‘Grown Up’, as the song recounts a coming-of-age tale that could easily be mistaken for a separating of the ways after a troublesome relationship. Either way, Emilie Nicolas’ debut album should be one to savour judging by the qualities shown of ‘Grown Up’.

Resembling nothing in relation to her personal record collection during her late teens with Sonic Youth and Black Flag particular favourites, Danish artist Mø (Karen Marie Ørsted) breezes in with a debut album that is full of electro-pop and moody electronica that is ‘No Mythologies To Follow’. There is a cool, mid-tempo pulse to ‘Maiden’, complete with a vocal that seems to spend its duration in the shade and remains full of curiosity. All the clocks stop during ‘Never Wanna Know’; a deeply touching ballad that resonates due to the hollow effect created by its use of percussion and giving a real sense of loss that is reminiscent of Scott Walker when in such a frame of mind. Much as has been said of Mø’s vocal capabilities and pop leanings which certainly come to the fore during the infectious ‘Red In The Grey’ and even more persuasive ‘Pilgrim’ that will certainly appease fans of both pop and indie music. Looks like Denmark has an imminent star on their books as ‘No Mythologies To Follow’ is tapping into a number of genres yet shaping a path that is distinctly Mø.

Sounding as if they just stepped out of a northern town in England (and Wales – see below) rather than the more idyllic surroundings of their native Sweden, Side Effects release their first album ‘A Walk InThe Space Between Us’. The close resemblance to the musical scenes emanating from the upper regions of the British landscape from the ’90s onwards is all too evident in sound, but minus the attitude, as Side Effects follow similar paths to those mined by The Coral, Super Furry Animals and a latter-day CAST, judging by the Swedes penchant for a dash of psychedelia with their afternoon tea in terms of what’s on offer here. This is all great stuff, of course, as ‘A Walk In The Space Between Us’ is an accomplished achievement and something to do with the fact that the band have been together since Sixth Form College and showing no signs of days idly wasted considering the dynamic thrust of opener ‘The Space Between Us’. The persuasive charm of ‘Feel Flows’, however, was built for lazy summer days and is followed in similar hazy fashion, before picking up a second wind, by the beguiling curiosity that is ‘Monster And The Bird’ with its suggestion of trying to be two sides of a personality that is all too much. There’s a robust edge to ‘Month Of Mist’ that becomes drowned out by its successor ‘Absence Of Control with its heady psychedelic indie rock and flashes of near feedback yet managing to hold itself together despite the implications of its song title. ‘A Walk In The Space Between Us’ is a confident debut that will have you gripped from the off, and one that comes as a pleasant surprise in terms of its appeal considering the short distance in time when bands of a similar ilk were hogging the front pages on a regular basis.