Labyrinthine Oceans live at The Grove, Newcastle, 30/05/2026

Heat wave, malaise, shoegaze. Labyrinthine Oceans, a band name that reads as hard as it looks, has finished up their hot new 2026 spring tour to promote their latest EP “for the flesh and the machine”, performing their unique “Grunge-gaze” sound at cities like Glasgow, Manchester, and London. This five-track EP shows a growing discography for the band, with the lyrics cultivating a sense of autonomous longing matched with a nostalgic shoegaze tone that we all know and love. I was lucky enough to catch them front row at their final show in Newcastle’s The Grove, excited to see the extra energy they would bring to their hometown performance, and I’m here to tell you that they truly showed up to give the fans what they wanted.

“For the flesh and the machine” gives us a much-needed explosive yet attentive soundscape, reminiscent of a 2000s Paramore crossed with the reverberated gritty guitar tone of Deftones and Love Machine. This is a band truly loved by the local alternative scene, and this EP seems like just the start of the exciting, innovative sound the four-piece is exploring.

It’s hard to pick the stand-outs of this EP as all the tracks have their own unique qualities and personalities that make the album feel like a new listen every time. If I had to pick, songs like “Automata” and the EP’s title track are my true favourites and ones I constantly go back to listen to. “Automata” shows us the versatility of the vocalist Julia, delivering an emotional vocal cascade, soft-spoken verses that later turn into haunting yet melodic screams that show the band’s growing capabilities.

And how could I not give praise to the title track of this EP, which truly shows the immense talent that the rhythm section is capable o

f. The drummer, Patrick, shows us that there is always time to sneak in some metric modulation to catch us off guard, and Ellie at lead guitar utilises delay and reverb perfectly, making the song truly immersive. It was also great to see the band’s own interpretations of much-loved songs in the scene, playing Paramore’s “Decode” and ending with “When the sun hits” by Slowdive, as the fans had much asked for an encore.

To sum up my experiences, the only thing I would be unhappy about is not getting myself to listen to Labyrinthine Oceans sooner. Truly a band to check out and to stay in anticipation to see what is next up for them to show us.

Written by Jack Henderson