Every week the team individually pick tracks that make up the listening post but there are always “ones that got away”.

These are the alternative picks and some words by our moderators on each one. You can find the tracks in one playlist here.

Artists featured this week:

SOMEDAY, SKY
IDLE SKIES
OUR MAN IN THE FIELD
King TPS X RONIN
KNOTS
CHARTS AND GRAPHS
DR J
THE PINK DIAMOND REVUE
BEAR BEAT
DEE ZEE & MRB
EYE WITH AN EYE
DURANGO BLUE
ADERYN
SNUGGLE NINJA

ALAN DREEZER:

SOMEDAY, SKY – YELLOW BIRD

There’s a quiet beauty running through Yellow Bird that makes it impossible to rush. Built on a foundation of lush, cinematic production and expressive vocals, the song gently draws you into its world without ever demanding your attention. It’s thoughtful, atmospheric and effortlessly evocative—a track that proves subtlety can often be the most powerful approach. A beautifully crafted piece of modern electronica.

IDLE SKIES – COAST

A beautifully crafted contemporary folk track that evokes the warmth and introspection of Ben Howard without losing its own identity. Coast is rich with poetic imagery, using the shoreline as a metaphor for healing and letting go, while the unforgettable line “there’s a payphone for your ghost” perfectly captures the song’s emotional heart. Honest songwriting, understated musicianship and a quietly captivating performance make this a track well worth discovering.

DEL OSEI-OWUSU/PLATINUMMIND:

OUR MAN IN THE FIELD – Wall Of Sound

This track has quite the pedigree, having been recorded in Mark Knopfler’s studio and produced by Dire Straits’ keyboard player Guy Fletcher. This has a distinctly bluesy feel,

KingTPE X RONIN What’s Safe and Saved

This is a solid hip hop track, I really I like the way that it’s got an old school beat behind it,

JOHN MICHIE:

KNOTS – The Boring Twenties

This is a blast of wiry indie rock filled with driving guitars and the kind of immediate, infectious pop vibe that seems to have been lost since the late 1970s. Every element lands with purpose, while the band’s theatrical flair gives the track an extra shot of personality.

CHARTS AND GRAPHS – Isolation

Similarly, this pick carries the melodic confidence and purpose that defined the very best British guitar music of the late 1970s. It fuses the urgency of new wave with the tuneful precision of classic pop, creating something that feels both restless and remarkably assured. Lean, direct and endlessly repayable.

NEIL MARCH:

DR J – Cinematic Soul Music

We usually associate the likeable Dr J with intelligent, politically-infused Hip Hop but this track sees him making music that could easily be the soundtrack to a futuristic crime drama or something involving late nights and dark back streets. There are some lovely retro funk sounds and vibes that underline that feeling too.

THE PINK DIAMOND REVUE – She Is

It is some five years since I put Tim Lane and his band The Pink Diamond Revue on at a gig at the Amersham Arms and this takes me back in the sense of the driving electro-punk intensity, sampled spliced up voices and lovely little Numanoid synth riffs. It even uses an iconic Sex Pistols moment. Great fun.

SHARON PEARCE:

BEAR BEAT – The Last Dance Part 2

The Last Dance Part 2 embraces repetition as a strength rather than a weakness. Its minimal vocal lines are complemented by evolving textures and an almost robotic, mechanical sound that gives the track a futuristic feel. The changing effects and layers keep things interesting without sacrificing the simplicity at the heart of the song.

DEE ZEE & MRB – Temple Of The Rokh

What I like most about this instrumental is the contrast. There’s an eerie atmosphere throughout, but it still feels peaceful and calming. The instruments never compete with each other, and that space lets the music breathe and makes the whole piece feel atmospheric.

SHERRY SAHAYARAJ:

EYE WITH AN EYE – Flow

I love the eerie vibe of this track. The vocals are powerful and instantly draw you in. It has the kind of haunting, cinematic atmosphere that would fit perfectly as the soundtrack to a vampire film, with a melody that’s both mysterious and incredibly captivating.

DURANGO BLUE – Waiting

The vocals feel raw and full of emotion, and the beautiful acoustic arrangement gives the song a timeless quality that makes you want to keep listening. The vocals have such a warmth to them, and the guitar complements them beautifully throughout the track. I really love the Nordic folk vibe.

TONY HARDY:

ADERYN – Please

Sacred imagery abounds in this emotive paean to obsessive love from Welsh indie songstress, Aderyn. Her devotion in this song though is acknowledged as a thoroughly bad religion; a fixation taken to extremes. There is a sad beauty to her realisations, echoed by hollow, slacker guitar and the singer’s softly confessional vocals. The splashes of keyboards near the end add colour to cement her acceptance of what might have been obvious.

SNUGGLE NINJA – Destiny

The looping synth instantly draws you into this track, wrapping its circular melody round your ears like aural balm. The vocals get a little submerged in the loveliness of it all so I am not absolutely sure of the ‘destiny’ of travel. It’s really all about the journey with dream pop stylings you can absolutely lose yourself in and feel refreshed from the experience. Snuggle up.