Shades of Noir

A shaven-headed chanteuse hiding the voice of a soul legend beneath her fluffy bear hood, Sharon Kovacs is an enigmatic phenomenon. Emerging from the music college and improvised open mike nights of Eindhoven in the Netherlands, she has forged her own unique path through life's devious twists and tangles, and entranced the globe with her wicked allure. The Bond-like tango noir of her 2013 EP 'My Love', partly recorded in Cuba, was an instant European hit, even reaching Number One in Greece, and in 2015 her debut album 'Shades Of Black' charted in 36 countries, making the Top Ten in Germany and hitting Number One in her Dutch homeland. Sixty million YouTube views, a modelling contract with Viva Paris, a clutch of awards and high-profile sets at major festivals and a Robbie Williams support slot later, Kovacs' dark, raw, bare-hearted soul with distinct touches of the greats (Holliday, Simone, Bassey, Winehouse, Portishead's Beth Gibbons) is on the verge of making her a sultry superstar. Child Of Sin is the brand new 2023 album.

The Murky World of Barry Adamson collects the best of the former Bad Seed's solo recordings. Adamson's moody, filmic songs mix sex and menace with impenetrable cool, especially on "The Vibes Ain't Nothing But the Vibes" and "Something Wicked This Way Comes," both from his 1996 album Oedipus Schmoedipus. Along with selected tracks from every album from Moss Side Story to As Above, So Below, The Murky World of Barry Adamson also includes three previously unreleased tracks: "Walk the Last Mile," "Mitch & Andy," and "Saturn in the Summertime." Murky World is a delectable sampler of Adamson's dark musical talents.

After six long years, the wait is nearly over: Norway’s Aura Noir will release their sixth full-length album on April 27 via Indie Recordings! Entitled simply Aura Noire — no, the ‘e’ at the end isn’t a typo! — the record offers just the sort of devious, potent, no-bullshit blackened thrash for which the band is known.

Alexandra Savior is a newly discovered gem. When I found out about her, I was completely hooked with her new single 'Shades', doing more research about her, found out that she is Alex Turner's new muse. Last summer, a demo of a song called ‘Risk’ started getting played on True Detective’s second series. In the Discogs credits on the True Detective soundtrack, ‘Risk’ lists its composers as Savior and Alex Turner, with the Arctic Monkeys and Last Shadow Puppets man apparently playing drums, keyboards and guitar on the track, as well as engineering it.

It might be surprising that the Oscar and Grammy nominated gentleman behind massive inescapable hits for Miley Cyrus, The Weeknd, and Celine Dion is a classically trained impresario. However, for producer, songwriter, composer and musician STEPHAN MOCCIO, bringing a timeless aesthetic into the modern musical landscape comes naturally.