Dr Sure’s Unusual Practice, the prolific post-punk project of Dr Sure aka Dougal Shaw (from Melbourne, Australia), released the Blue tape last week, and I can’t get enough of it. The EP contains four songs that were recorded—solo—on a hard drive in a creative week in December 2024, but are far too good to stay there.

A lot happens in less than ten minutes—a raw but addictive mix of noisy garage rock and catchy power pop, carried by playful energy and spontaneous feels. Sound-wise it’s a lo-fi love letter to pink bubblegum chiseled in dark gray grit, but the theme is clearly in a different color (“Everywhere I look blue // Everywhere I’ve been blue”). Strange but true, unpolished but infectious.

Blue—written/recorded/mixed by Dougal Shaw, mastered by Mikey Young—can’t be listened to via streaming services, but is available digitally and on cassette through Marthouse Records.

Add to wantlist: Bandcamp