Diving into this Jackhammer Sound and Dancefloor Alt-Rock of Ashnymph and This Week's Best New Tracks

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

The pair of releases released to date by the group Ashnymph defy easy classification: the band's own tag of their music as “subconscioussion” doesn’t offer many clues. Debut Saltspreader combined a heavy mechanical drumming – guitarist Will Wiffen has occasionally been spotted on stage wearing a T-shirt that features the symbol of industrial metal pioneers Godflesh – with retro-style synths and a guitar line that vaguely recalls the enduring garage rock anthem I Wanna Be Your Dog, before melting into a wall of disquieting noise. The desired impact, the band has indicated, was to suggest road trips, “the grinding circulation of vehicles all day long over huge distances … nighttime orange glows”.

The subsequent track, Mr Invisible, falls between club music and left-field alt-rock. On one hand, the cut's tempo, layers of hypnotic electronics, and lyrics that appear either trippily blurred or hypnotically looped in a way that recalls Dubnobasswithmyheadman-era Underworld all indicate the dance space. Alternatively, its powerful concert-like energy, edge-of-chaos quality and fuzz – “achieving a crunchy texture is a personal mission,” Wiffen has said – distinguish it as very much the work of a band rather than a solitary home producer. They've gigged around the self-made music community of south London for less than a year, “any spot with loud speakers”.

But the two tracks are vibrant and distinct – from one another and contemporary releases – to spark curiosity about what Ashnymph might do next. No matter what it is, on the evidence of Saltspreader and Mr Invisible, it’s unlikely to be boring.

This Week’s Best New Tracks

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

Danny L Harle – Azimuth (ft Caroline Polachek)
Combining Evanescence's dark flair to peak 90s trance – right down to the lyric “and I ask the rain” – Azimuth suggests dusting off your best Cyberdog wear and heading south west to rave, right away.

Acne Studios mix by Robyn
Robyn’s soundtrack for the the fashion brand's latest show previews her TBA ninth album, including gritty guitars reminiscent of Soulwax, Benny Benassi-style thrust and the words “my body’s a spaceship with the ovaries on hyperdrive”.

Like That by Jordana
We loved her album Lively Premonition last year and the US singer-songwriter continues to show off her impressive hook-crafting ability as she expresses unrequited feelings.

Molly Nilsson – Get a Life
The solo Swedish pop act put out her new album Amateur this week, and this song is extraordinary: a synthetic guitar line surges ahead with punk speed as the singer urges we seize the day.

Artemas – Superstar
Post explorations of tired relationships on his hit single I Like the Way You Kiss Me and its underrated parent mixtape Yustyna, the British-Cypriot star is completely captivated by his current partner amid icy synth-driven sound.

Jennifer Walton – Miss America
Off an impressive first record, a delicate electronic ballad about Walton learning of her father’s death in an hotel near an airport, tracing her uncanny surroundings in tender incantations: “Shopping plaza, illegal trade, anxiety episodes.”

Tamara Martinez
Tamara Martinez

A tech enthusiast and writer with a passion for demystifying complex innovations and sharing actionable insights.