Release Roundup: Baby Zionov, Bic Runga, Harper Finn, AW, Cuticles, Sentient Mud, Borrowed cs, Mercedes Cambridge

Revisit this week's coverage of Dick Move, Alphabethead, Joe Kaptein, Late to Chelsea and Castlegarden, read our interviews with King Missile (Dog Fly Religion) on tour this week, Drunk Mums, and The Fadeaways, then scroll downwards for more new / recent Aotearoa release highlights from Baby Zionov, Bic Runga, Harper Finn, AW, Cuticles, Sentient Mud, Borrowed cs, and Mercedes Cambridge.

Scope out the UTR Roundup Playlist below, a rolling weekly playlist keeping you in the loop with every new release we've featured on the site over the past month. Only including tracks available on streaming services of course, which has been an increasingly hot topic this year.

Are you an Aotearoa artist / imprint releasing something new soon? Let us know — send your info including links to editor@undertheradar.co.nz.

Consistently one of Aotearoa's most imaginative electronic producers (and live performers) with now seven years of exceptional releases under her belt, local listeners have been celebrating today's new album from Baby Zionov. Out today via Sunreturn, the kart racer soundtrack comparisons with Raceways Of My Heart are undeniable. The eleven track collection expresses such irresistible exuberance and dancefloor-friendly bounce, you could put on the limited compact disc at home and before you know it, you'll have magically done all the housework. "Raceways Of My Heart is the soundtrack to an arcade racing game that only exists in my head. Funnily enough, I don’t actually like to play racing games very much — when I walk into an arcade I lock into the nearest DDR machine like a homing missile – but I think their soundtracks are often uniquely amazing. I think this is because the songs have to convey a strong sense of place and atmosphere to match the theme of the level — while also being exciting and energetic to push you to wanna win. It means the vocabulary of dance music gets used in creative ways to express all kinds of moods and ideas and places, often going to unusual places that ‘normal’ club music doesn’t. It inspires me because I love the idea that the entire world can be expressed through bangers."

Aotearoa music icon Bic Runga's new single 'It's Like Summertime' gestures to the near future while reminding these ears of the sublime psych-pop of her 2016 album Close Your Eyes, which was also recorded and produced with partner Kody Nielson (Silicon, UMO, The Mint Chicks). Experience both the studio version plus a lux live take, recorded with the Auckland Philharmonia and band.

Aotearoa music royal Harper Finn strides further into arena pop-rock-bop territory on new single 'Satellite', prepping fans for the launch of his first ever studio long player Silo Park — "a coming-of-age journey through change, isolation, and self-discovery set against the backdrop of Harper’s time spent in New York." Finn will be playing Silo Park Live headline events at Tāmaki Makaurau's Double Whammy and Te Whanganui-a-Tara's Meow this November.

Die! Die! Die! frontman Andrew Wilson's new project with Stefan Neville (Pumice) on drums / production, AW stakes out fresh ground in pared-back post-punk on 'THIEF OF JOY' — the lead cut from AW's forthcoming debut album THE NERVE, out in full 5th December via She Said Records.

Also connoisseurs of noisy guitars and arresting turns of phrase, Ōamaru's Cuticles teamed up with director Martin Sagadin for a metal detecting adventure at Kaitorete Spit, footage from which handily doubles as the official video for the title track from their typically fab new Howling Moons EP.

In a way we are all Sentient Mud, amirite? The Ōtautahi punk group that sports that very same moniker unleashed their debut EP All Going To Plan late last week, five ripping tracks adorned with some equally sick painted cover artwork by Alex Wilcock.

Timed perfectly for Bandcamp Friday (which starts 8pm this evening in Aotearoa New Zealand), Process Knowledge is a new five track EP of "high spirited deep techno, acid, and beats" from master percussionist, producer and arranger Borrowed cs, one of a few concurrent projects from the incredibly multi-talented Cory Champion (Clear Path Ensemble).

Also a legend on the drumkit, Ōtautahi's Nick Hart (Shocking Pinks, Moider Mother) recently shared with the world The Portrait of a Rabie, delving even deeper into charred, yet strangely beautiful post-industrial soundscape zones on the second album from his project Mercedes Cambridge. "It’s only taken me four years to complete this solo excursion, but today I unveil the second Mercedes Cambridge album, The Portrait of a Rabie. This 45 minute, 6 track digital release is available through UK label Opal Tapes’ Bandcamp.