We Speak Music
The Here And Now Share New Song “Riptide”
Brixton’s The Here And Now have just released “Riptide”, and it’s worth talking about where this track sits in their trajectory. Having built their reputation through consistent gigging around London since 2020, there’s a sense they’re reaching for something more defined here.
The track wastes no time getting started. Jason Bond’s guitar comes in with immediate purpose, setting up the heavier framework that carries through the whole thing. Cherry Terzza’s vocals do interesting work here, moving between more vulnerable moments and full throttle intensity. It’s not groundbreaking as a technique, but there’s enough authenticity in the delivery that it doesn’t feel like a box being ticked.
Thematically, “Riptide” explores that familiar pull toward something you know isn’t good for you. The metaphor is pretty direct, which might feel a bit obvious on first listen, but sometimes that directness connects better than trying to be overly clever about it. Most people have experienced that feeling of being drawn into something destructive, so there’s relatability there even if the approach isn’t particularly subtle.
The rhythm section deserves mention. Rich Sackey Addo keeps the drums purposeful without overplaying, while Callum Lowe’s bass provides solid grounding that lets the other elements breathe when they need to. The production strikes a reasonable balance between polish and grit, though it leans slightly more toward the cleaner side than some might expect.
You’ll hear echoes of Paramore, Queens Of The Stone Age, and Royal Blood throughout, which the band isn’t really hiding. They’re pulling from those influences and trying to shape them into something that feels like their own. Whether they’ve fully arrived at a completely distinctive sound is debatable, but “Riptide” suggests they’re moving in that direction.
The track’s strength is its focus. It knows what it wants to be and commits to that vision. At the same time, it’s not reinventing the wheel. This feels like a band getting clearer on their identity rather than making a dramatic leap into new territory.
You can listen here.
We Speak Music
Phoebe June Traces Love, Distance and Heartbreak on New EP ‘Kiss Me Over The Garden Gate’
For Phoebe June, some stories are easier to tell through music.
Her new EP, ‘Kiss Me Over The Garden Gate’, is an intimate collection that traces the emotional journey of a relationship from the exhilaration of falling in love to distance, uncertainty, heartbreak and, ultimately, learning to let go.
Inspired by artists including Gracie Abrams, Taylor Swift and Phoebe Bridgers, Phoebe June combines diary-like lyricism with melancholic ballads, subtle uptempo moments and an understated, emotionally honest production style.
At the centre of the project is ‘Thursday’, a bittersweet track about loving someone from a distance and holding onto the hope that the connection might survive.
Written after Phoebe left a country that held deep personal meaning, and left someone she cared about behind, the song looks back at the relationship from its beginning. Even its title is personal: the two first met on a Thursday.
The song captures the complicated feeling of walking away from something meaningful without believing that it necessarily has to be over. It’s about distance, memory and the possibility of finding your way back to someone, while recognising that hope only works when it goes both ways.
Across six tracks, the EP develops that story in sequence.
‘Everything You Are’ opens the project with the warmth of new love, while ‘Dead Sea’ explores the security of finding someone who helps you stay afloat through difficult times. As the story progresses, ‘Thursday’ introduces separation before ‘Getaway Car’ moves into the aftermath; unanswered questions, lingering attachment and the realisation that someone can profoundly affect your life while still being unhealthy for you.
‘One Day’ leaves the door open to the possibility of a future reunion, balancing hope with the understanding that some relationships may only exist in memory.
The EP closes with ‘Ophelia’, its emotional breaking point. Inspired in part by Friedrich Heyser’s painting of the same name, the track confronts the pain of feeling manipulated and unappreciated after giving everything to someone else.
The result is a project that deliberately moves from light to dark. Phoebe June considered not only the narrative but the emotional progression when sequencing the EP, allowing the brightness of its opening to gradually give way to the heartbreak of its closing moments.
Even the title reflects that feeling.
‘Kiss Me Over The Garden Gate’ takes its name from a flower, with the image of a gate separating two people becoming a metaphor for a love that remains beautiful but just out of reach. To reach over it requires effort, just as maintaining a connection across distance, uncertainty and changing circumstances does.
Ultimately, Phoebe June isn’t interested in simply documenting her own heartbreak.
She wants listeners to recognise themselves in it.
‘Kiss Me Over The Garden Gate’ is a collection about love, nostalgia, hope and regret and about what remains when something beautiful ends up on the other side of the gate.
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