**HUMDRUM** — a five-piece band crafting an evolving fusion of experimental rock, jazzy rhythms and poetic surrealism. Their music moves fluidly between genres, balancing vulnerability and volatility with polished chaos, jagged rhythms and stirring melodies. **SUNDAUGHTER** — a four-piece “mercurial shoegaze” group based in Reading and London. Weaving dreamy textures with delicate Eastern influences, their sound is both expansive and intimate, drawing on artists such as Khruangbin, The Smiths and Angel Olsen, with shimmering guitars, airy vocals and a hypnotic atmosphere. **PALING** — most *\[adverb\]*: to the greatest degree or extent; guitar + drum discourse.