SLEAFORD MODS FT. SUE TOMPKINS – NO TOUCH

No Touch is colourful and steeped in heavy realism, a kitchen sink drama. It’s a song about isolation, loneliness, and crushing self-harm, and the ways we try to navigate these feelings under the rigid structures of conformity. The song explores the murkier edges of drug use and the exhibitionism that can accompany it and Andrea Arnold was a perfect match for its soft-nightmare atmosphere. It couldn’t have been captured by anyone else. She took us back to her old neighbourhood, which felt strangely familiar to me. Like her films, the video doesn’t fade to complete darkness, it trails a thread of hope too. But Mr Biscuits is the real star.

www.sleafordmods.com

SHUNGU – DID YOU HEAR THE NEWS

ShunGu has long been a boundary-pusher, known for weaving jazz-inflected samples, skilfully constructed textures, and MPC-driven grooves into production that feels timeless yet untethered. With Faith in the Unknown he pushes further still: a project as much about collective energy as it is about personal vision. It’s a leap into uncertainty, carried by trust in the process and the people involved.

From the lo-fi beat tapes that first won him a cult following, to collaborations that span the globe, Shungu has forged a body of work rooted in exploration and community. Faith in the Unknown crystallises those qualities into his most ambitious statement yet; a record that doesn’t just blur boundaries between genres, but asks what happens when vulnerability and experimentation are treated as shared ground.

lexrecords.com