Happening Again #52

Back, back, back again

Hello!

Can you still say Happy New Year on the second of February? Happy New Year regardless. I hope you all had a great Christmas and joyous break. 2026 is now in full-swing and so is Happening Again.

You might see a few changes around here this year. I’m going to try a couple of things out - some way work, others might not. But that’s all part of the fun!

Anyway, here’s what I’ve been spinning recently…

Are you a musician? Do you have a certain band or artist you think I should be listening to? Drop them into the Happening Again inbox: wearehappeningagain@gmail.com

If you like what I do and enjoy reading these little send-outs, you can drop me a few quid in my ko-fi jar:
ko-fi.com/happeningagain

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James Adrian Brown
FOREVER NEON LIGHTS
Castles In Space

There seems to be no stopping the notorious JAB. The ex-Pulled Apart By Horses guitarist is now equipped with an arsenal that includes analogue synths and tape machines. Last year he toured the UK and Ireland with fellow electronic knob-twiddler Thomas Ragsdale (who performed under his Sulk Rooms moniker), and in October he released his single ‘Generator’ taken from this, his debut solo venture ‘Forever Neon Lights’. Inspired by visiting the Blackpool Illuminations as a child (all northerners likely recoiling instinctively at “leaving the big light on”) ‘Forever Neon Lights’ is Brown at his most vulnerable. “This album is me laying everything out,” he says. “The things I’ve carried since being a child, the hopes, dreams, and doubts I’ve felt as an adult, and the stubbornness to see things through.” Sirens blink and fade around a metallic rumble on the opening title track, like a haunted fun fair, before everything spirals into a carousel of synthesised mania. There’s a gentleness to ‘Promenade’, that builds to a crescendo with a shuddering, visceral intensity, before petering out into cavernous chords and clicks. And I can’t get enough of ‘Somewhere I’m Not’, a haunting sci-fi soundscape; Blackpool as an alien world (not entirely hard to imagine). It’s been a joy to watch Brown shed the guitar and embrace the synth. When you’ve got a debut solo effort as good as this, it shows it was a worthwhile exchange.

Kayla Painter
TECTONIC PARTICLES
quiet details

Kayla Painter’s upwards trajectory has been a joy to witness. Where to even begin? There’s her ‘Ambient Owl Core’ series, so far three volumes of night-themed soundscapes that use field recordings of urban and rural owls. Last year she joined forces with Jilk bandmate Jon Worsley for their barnstorming self-titled ‘Sarno Ultra’ record. And at the end of 2025 she joined Thomas Ragsdale and James Adrian Brown for the Irish leg of their tour - two nights of electronic excellence. And that’s not mentioning her workshops, radio shows, and lectures at the University of South Wales. Her latest record sees her on Alex Gold’s quiet details, and it couldn’t be a more perfect fit. ‘Tectonic Particles’ is eight tracks of delicate ambient soundscapes, combining field recordings with Painter’s luminous melodies. ‘Forest Floor’ cascades with crackles and chirrups, a muted electronic loop occasionally joined by bright, frantic ripples. I’m a big fan of ‘Star Stuff’, and how Painter uses a range of singular tones that coalesce into a dynamic minimalist sound world; like sonic rainfall hitting the surface of a pond. The diversity of her sound palette has always been a joy, and maybe best exemplified by ‘Lesu Mai’, those sonorous horns yawning alongside rumbling atmospherics. It’s all gorgeous stuff, and really shows an artist who truly understands sound design. More of this please.

Kuedo
INFINITE WINDOW
Brainfeeder

It was one Gavin Miller, known around these parts as worriedaboutsatan, that switched me onto this record and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head since. Kuedo is London-born, Berlin-based electronic producer Jamie Teasdale, and ‘Infinite Window’ is his third long-player, released on Brainfeeder back in 2022. Thanks for the recommendation Gavin, I’ll be checking out his back catalogue very soon. ‘Infinite Window’ spans 11 tracks and combines Tangerine Dream-esque panoramas with jungle-adjacent percussion. Not the first two genres I’d combine, but boy does it work well. Highlights include the sprawling ‘Harlequin Hallway’ that moves spider-like from bombastic garage rhythms to panicked, glitchy textures; the unrelenting cyclical synthesis of ‘Skybleed Magic’, that ominously swells into futurist atmospherics reminiscent of Vangelis; and the club-ready ‘Shadow Dance’, oscillating with groovy synthlines that’ll get your head nodding. Right, I’ve got some catching up to do. Now, where to start…

Kareen Lomax
IDEA OF YOU
Music Is Fun

While it was on the fourth self-titled Diplo record that Kareen Lomax was first introduced to the wider masses, readers around these parts may have originally found her via Kavinsky. The French synthwave pioneer featured Lomax on his song ‘Cameo’, taken from his second album ‘Reborn’. Lomax, originally a dog groomer from Atlanta, Georgia has since gone onto release a string of her own material, and I’ve been particularly taken with recent single ‘Idea Of You’. There’s something about her rich, androgynous vocals, as they weave around an 80s-inflected synth melody, that just hit the spot. “Alt R&B” is how her music is described, but that label does a disservice to what’s going on here I think. And when you chuck in that gnarly funky guitar, you’re onto a winner. I can also highly recommend ‘Apartment’, the single Lomax put out towards the end of last year. Here the funk is augmented with a lick of bass guitar, propelled by blasts of cymbal, with Lomax evoking Frank Ocean. It’s buoyant, it’s catchy, and I hope we won’t have to wait too long for a debut solo record.

The Protomen
ACT III: THIS CITY MADE US
Sound Machine

Please don’t adjust your monitors, smartphones, or whatever else you might be reading this on. Yes, a whole 17 years after releasing ‘Act II: The Father Of Death’, The Protomen have finally blessed us with the third act of their rock opera epic. For the uninitiated (strap yourselves in), The Protomen are an American rock eight-piece from Nashville, Tennessee whose members include Commander B. Hawkins, Shock Magnum, Gambler Kirkdouglas, and K. I. L. R. O. Y. They’re best known for their series of rock opera concept albums that started back in 2005 with their self-titled debut (retrospectively referred to as ‘Act I’). In a nutshell, the rock opera chronicles the continued rebellion against Dr. Wily, the fascist ruler of an Orwellian city who controls an army of robots. ‘Act I’ charts the failure to take down Wily, ‘Act II’ serves as a prequel showing Wily’s rise to power, while this record ‘This City Made Us’ acts as a last stand against our nefarious dictator. Those well-versed in video games will have already clocked that this entire saga is inspired by the ‘Megaman’ series (with the titular hero making several appearances). And if you’ve been following so far then congratulations, we can now get onto the music. This is a proper musical in every sense, and for the cynics reading please let it be stated for the record that I normally despise musicals. Narratives don’t need singing, unless it really works, like here. ‘This City Made Us’ straddles chiptune and prog, glam rock and new wave, hair metal and synthwave. I’m struggling to choose some favourite tracks - take your pick from ‘No Way Back’ (the way the vocal morphs into the guitar solo?!), ‘Buried In Red’ with its frantic krautrock-edged percussion, ‘Calling Out’, that could only be more 1980s camp if it was wearing neon leg warmers, ‘A Show Of Force’ which is like if Ennio Morricone scored the ‘Terminator’ films… Honestly, the list goes on. It won’t be for everyone, but it was worth the 17-year wait.

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That’s it for this time. As always you can find my ramblings elsewhere in both print and online in Electronic Sound. I am going to tentatively dip into the world of microblogging again, so follow me on Bluesky if that’s your sort of thing.

But before I go, here are some things from across the internet that have caught my eye…

Some Stray Thoughts

// God only knows why anyone would feel nostalgic, never mind romanticise, 2016 but I’ve been observing a bizarre phenomena occurring among certain folk who seem to be trying to portray the year as further away than it was. We had PS4s and 4K tellies. I don’t know why you’re posting a grainy video that looks like it was shot in 2003.

// My good friend Neil Mason’s Moonbuilding is back in action for 2026, and thing are changing somewhat. You can read all about it in the new issue, out now. And if you aren’t already subscribed, well, why not? Chop chop.

// They’ve been featured in this newsletter pretty much since its inception, but I want to give props to 404 Media. They’ve been doing some excellent reporting on what’s going on with ICE in the USA and how they’re using AI to kidnap people. There’s also more light-hearted reporting, like whatever is going on with Meta’s AI-generated women. Maybe '“light-hearted” was the wrong word.

// If you’re looking for something to watch, but not quite sure what (a modern problem if there ever was one), I was quite taken with Role Call. Making writers the focal point and using your favourite TV shows as a starting point, it allows you to discover other projects the writers of your favourite programmes have been involved in. It’s nice to see the spotlight shone on writers for a change, often the unsung heroes of truly great television.

// Ethel Cain started the new year by releasing a handful of demos from her fantastic ‘Willoughby Tucker, I’ll Always Love You’ album. I’m particularly fond of the pared-back ‘Shrug’, which would eventually become ‘Janie’, as well as the more experimental versions of ‘Tempest’ included here.

// Carpenter Brut has revealed that ‘Leather Temple’ will be released on 27th February. There’s a joyous snippet of what’s to come included in this announcement trailer: