The fortnightly five - 29 September 2026

A rundown of five fresh items on my headphones from the last fortnight

Ha the Unclear - Astigmatic! (Official Site)
An anagram of Nuclear Heath, it is unsurprising that Ha the Unclear live in a land wry navel-gazing and sideways observations. Forming in the little smoke of Ōtepoti but now residing in the big smoke of Tāmaki Makaurau, they still carry the DNA of their version of the Dunedin Sound, which is prominently coded throughout their latest EP 'Astigmatic!'. It's hard not to sing along. They wriggle under your skin with jingly, shoe-gaze versions of almost pub anthems. Their live energy is worth catching, and luckily they are launching 'Astigmatic!' with an Aotearoa-wide tour in November and December.

Boy Harsher - Get Mean (Band Camp)
Massachusetts based duo Boy Harsher deliver wall-to-wall cinematic dark-wave on their latest album 'Get Mean'. The lore/ gossip around this release is that though originally a couple, they split in 2024 and have been working through it since. 'Get Mean' is the baby of that process. No surprises, the album goes down some rabbit holes of grief, loss, growth and redemption. Tonally it's soft bass, hushed vocals, danceable beats and glowering 80's synth. Very gorgeously dark.

Leon Bridge – Happiness Anytime (Linktr.ee)
A welcome panacea for these troublesome times, 'Happiness Anytime' is a full album of fluffy soul. Made in collaboration with British outfit Jungle, who bring deft grooves to exotic beats to offset Bridges treacle-like vocals, it's a little trip to forget about the harshness of life. With everything feeling so dark these days, it's nice to escape into some laid-back, sunny, neo-soul.

Beck – Ride Lonesome (Official Site)
I'm placing this here as the album to keep up your sleeve and hopefully, it's never needed. Beck's 2002 album, 'Sea Change', is probably the definitive break-up album of the early aughts. I personally remember the buckets of tears I cried to the opening track, 'The Golden Age". Beck released 'Morning Phase' in 2014 and explored this melancholic genre further. Having not released any albums since 2019, and breaking up with his wife in 2021, it's not surprising we have a third addition to the sad-boy indie trope. Haunting, beautiful and aching; musically it's very similar to the previous two, we just have new lyrics to process those deep feelings.

Hänsel - Bock auf Bass (ich hab kein Geld) (Linktr.ee)
To finish today's list, I'm gifting you all a little banger that is far too relatable. A lo-fi 165bpm of flipping the bird at your boss. Hang in there until the weekend kids, and remember 'boss = booo!', 'bass = jaaa!'

Thank you again to all my readers. Remember that listening to new music is good for the brain and soul. If you have a fresh tune you wish to share, please email me: waxonandonandon@gmail.com.