Release Radar: Void Waves ft. AW, Dictaphone Blues, RARU, Karl Sölve Steven x Instant Fantasy, Louis Baker, Alien Eye + More

While we collectively ponder which direction Aotearoa's general election will take us, we can at least celebrate the sustained excellence of our music community in 2026. Revisit our double interview with Bunchy’s Big Score and Dolly Possum about the new 2EPs split collection from DUN Records, plus visiting Norwegian legend Mortiis chatting with Lucy Beeler (Mercury Feng) HERE, then dip into our selection of new / recent highlights below from Void Waves ft. AW, Dictaphone Blues, RARU, Alien Eye, Lucola, Louis Baker, Karl Sölve Steven x Instant Fantasy, Thagomizer, Masc/Femme, and Moon Unit.

Void Waves reunites with guitarist Andrew Wilson of Die! Die Die & AW fame for a second superb collaborative release — sounding simultaneously ice cold and red hot on no-wave / post-punk mantra 'Hold tight'. "Recorded and mixed Sep/Oct ‘26 in the void waves basement."

Playing a headline gig at Public Bar next month, as part of the sonic sprawl that is Strange Universe: Summer Edition, Tāmaki Makaurau's ever-resourceful Dictaphone Blues aka Edward Castelow bounds back with his first new single in three years. Castelow rips out an exuberant heavy psych stomper, while presciently suggesting to all listeners: "When I’m ruminating on a negative, I try to tell myself IOU."

Unleashing explosive guitar / drums energy at the sold out CHIPFEST 3, Tāmaki Makaurau duo RARU's debut EP mangles together urgent reo rua hardcore punk with breakbeat fury. Closing with a wild voter-friendly reimagining of Mareko's 'Stop, Drop & Roll', PATUA! is out in full now as a Bandcamp exclusive, ahead of its official digital release on 5th November.

An otherworldly force of freaked-out, twilight zone, psych-surf / garage punk, Tāmaki Makaurau's Alien Eye have snuck out three feral tunes during the past month, with no doubt more on the way. This gig-goer can confirm they're equally ginchy live.

Evidence of a hectic few weeks for this music writer (and probably everyone else), we've only just gotten around to covering the ace new tune from Tāmaki Makaurau synth stylist Lucola. Currently a hit on SRN airwaves, sink into the luxurious spoken word electronica of 'Drift'. "Everyday’s a gift and you’re the prize."

Likewise (see above), you've probably already succumbed to Aotearoa soul star Louis Baker's Trouble, but here's a useful prompt if you haven't yet investigated his immaculately crafted, open-hearted latest album. Recorded with such fellow local greats as Cory Champion and Riki Gooch, using vintage and contemporary gear, Baker's new record feels like a career high, reflecting on "love, resilience and the work of confronting himself."

Recently half a world away in the Corsican agricultural site of Providenza, helping to realise new works commissioned by Warp and Unsound, Karl Sölve Steven reimagined Instant Fantasy's 'Wake Up With Bruises' — featuring on the forthcoming The Wet EP Remixes, out on 4th December via Sunreturn.

One of the most majestic (and unexpected) microgenres of contemporary times, Thagomizer puts a raved-up spin on their thunderous dino synth sound, with their dancefloor friendly new Thagomizer 3000AD EP. "Ever since the first live Thagomizer set, I have been struck by the industrial nature of the dinosaur footsteps within the songs. The grinding precision of the drums sent me down a rabbit hole of remixing Thagomizer for a whole new dance context... There is a whole world of synth to be explored, and this is Thagomizer remixed and upgraded for the 30th century."

Dino synth traditionalists (if they exist) need not panic about Thagomizer's new direction, as the Aotearoa audio archaeologist has also unearthed an era-traversing four track collection entitled 252 Million Years of Synth. "This release spans the Triassic period up until the T-J extinction 201 mya. The supercontinent Pangea had not yet split; the dinosaurs were on the rise to dominance, but dino synth remains eternal."

Regulars on stages about Tāmaki Makaurau, Masc/Femme are Lam Jey Min, Georgina Gabriella Alexandra Boentaran, Dane Yang and Trey Kumara — "hailing from across Southeast Asia to Aotearoa." They reveal three sides to their emotive jangle / dream-pop / squalling alt-rock universe on Weaving, out now via Misheard.

Moon Unit have nearly achieved their stated goal of releasing six EPs in one year, not quite as ambitious as Troy Kingi's famed 10/10/10 project, but impressive in their own right — plus what's up with comparisons anyhow? A dedicated studio project and "highest PDGA rated band in the world" (this is in fact true), Moon Unit welcome on board special guests Chris Sinai, Mitch Innes, Jacob Moore and Michael Ellis on 5x, six tracks where possibility feels limitless and scruffy, guitar-driven catchiness unfolds in infinite abundance. There are gems to be found within, such as the Clean-adjacent boogie of 'Fruits'. "Only one more chapter to go!"