The collection masterfully curates a blend of sounds from across the alternative music scene as the label marks its tenth birthday.

Slow Dance Records’ annual compilation has become a benchmark for taste, and the newest edition is true to form. Part reflection, part premonition, the compilation is a mixtape of the sounds rising to the surface of the UK underground music scene and beyond. The series also allows artists to push against the confines of typical release schedules and expectations, giving new acts a space to debut while more established artists have the chance to share deep cuts and latest tracks. Previous editions have featured outings by members of acts like black midi, Black Country New Road and Sorry as well as debut releases by the likes of wing!, Platonica Erotica and The New Eves. The project is the epitome of ‘you heard it here first’. This newest release (marking the tenth anniversary of the label) sees the featured artists carrying forward the innovation and dissonance that have become synonymous with the compilation. 

Slow Dance’s own Marco Pini (RIP Magic, Sorry, Dorothy) and actress Eloise Thomas (Steal) collaborate as Jet Blonde for standout track ‘Uh’– murky electronica, soft vocals, and UK bass influences. It sets a fun tone straight off the bat, upheld by Tony Martin’s ‘GENET’, a confident and uplifting track with a videogame beat. Ex Family keep the mood going on ‘Take Me’, bringing a hint of nostalgia with their instant-classic indie guitar sound. The song was recorded in a South London bedroom mid-lockdown but is only just getting its airing. ‘Acetone’ by Spiritbone, – the solo project of Finn Billingham (Sunken, Highschool) – has its own form of steady, plodding hope, one of the tracks that keeps the collection from ever sinking into too deep of a gloom.

There remains, however, an angst to the collection, particularly where Selthe cuts in for ‘Graves of Ice’. The song is pensive and complete in its sound, building soft, wandering electric guitar and drums to drag you in like sleep. This moody ‘90s edge is sustained with ‘THE BLANKS’ by London-based artist TV, a strong solo follow-up to their production work with acts including gglum, notdvr, and Jadu Heart. Meanwhile, the classic Slow Dance ear for noise music is nurtured in Hani Hooper’s ‘Surely’, where indeterminable sounds – a persistent clicking set against noises that feel at times animal-like, at others perhaps culinary– layer up before the entrance of a melodic but distorted voice.

Where the downtempo angle of this year’s selection really shines is in Platonica Erotica’s ‘Pawnshop’. Having first debuted on Slow Dance’s 2018 compilation, the lightly gothic singer-songwriter brings dreamy synths that line up perfectly for fans of Weyes Blood. The track falls into perfect synergy with an offering from Mimiko – also of London duo Bell Practice – who contributes equal parts comfort and dirge on ‘please take me home (i’m not having fun)’. On that tune, vocals that evoke Lana Del Rey sit atop a backing of fuzzy guitar and whistling, giving an effect not unlike sitting back in an armchair after a long day. The sleepy melancholy doesn’t stop there: fervid fingerpicking and resonant bass help Mry’s ‘anything 2 u’ to stand out in a mournful, delicate track that ties the tone together.

Simple lyricism with layered, plodding instrumentals dominate the track list, and Slow Dance’s classic dysregulation finds its way in. Overall, it leans less electronic than previous iterations; some tracks are inclined towards a more classic indie sound, but the compilation maintains a forever freshness. It’s the ultimate appeal to playlist curation culture, subverting the common outsourcing of the task to AI and algorithms by refocusing on dedicated hand selection.

While the outside world has grown steadily bleaker, the past year of underground and alternative indie has taken on a tone of optimism – at least sonically if not lyrically. This lineup parallels that everything-might-just-be-alright-ness, but it also has a stillness to it. With a darker, at times sadder tone than previous years, some tracks mirror the political distress that has become otherwise eclipsing. Slow Dance wants you settled in someone’s dimly-lit kitchen as the late hour settles into your body, or basking in the quiet moment after you shut the front door behind you and are finally alone. It wants to see you through a cloud of smoke. It wants you on the dancefloor. Whatever it is, it’s about connection, and it’s working: Slow Dance ‘25 reinforces the label’s status as a who’s who of musicians to watch in the coming years.