Matt Finucane - Ruination (2026) Hi-Res

Brighton-based artist Matt Finucane returns with Ruination, a new album released digitally on 30 October, with a physical edition to follow on Eyeless Records. A musician who has spent well over two decades exploring the darker, more unsettling corners of the underground, Finucane has carved out a singular musical territory, one that has occasionally drawn comparisons to the likes of David Bowie, Mark E Smith and Lou Reed, yet remains unmistakably his own.

Across a succession of albums and EPs, Finucane has developed a raw, introspective and frequently confrontational sound, where angular guitar work, brooding atmospherics and abrasive noise collide. His music has always seemed more interested in probing the uncomfortable spaces of the human condition than offering easy answers, excavating themes of alienation, jealousy, despair and the strange contradictions of everyday existence.

With Ruination, he pushes further into these shadowy territories, taking his feedback-saturated approach somewhere altogether weirder. He says he “doesn’t want to be your friend. He doesn’t care about smashing that Like button. He just wants to show you the power of unholy noise.”

Reflecting on the album’s creation, Finucane explains: “This album was recorded in glamorous Portslade with the avowed intent of mashing together layers and layers and layers of very loud guitars.” He continues “The guitar as an instrument is a fossilised yawn from a cave of death, but the noise it creates, the rapturous uncontrollable noise… that’s the whole point. Not the songs, not the words. Just the noise they are a carrier for. Noise has no gods, no morals, no gender. I’ve probably been listening to too much acid techno from the early 2000’s.”

From the album opener Like A Psychopath, there’s an unsettling post-punk edge to Ruination. From the twanging, unsettlingly bitey guitar tones to the half-spoken vocals and the witty, dark humour of the lyricism, the album quickly establishes a pointed, edgy feel. Its sound draws as much from Talking Heads and Ian Dury as it does from more contemporary acts such as Squid and shame.

Murder Pillow immediately announces itself as one of the album’s highlights, with its relentless, repeated riff and compelling mix of buoyancy and pointed intensity. Tight, boxy, angsty and yet undeniably fun and vibrant, the track bounces along with confidence and a bombastic grit.

Elsewhere across the ten tracks, Judex brings a ska-inflected, The Specials-esque twang, offset by theatrical flourishes and atmospheric reverb. ‘It Made Sense At The Time’ introduces a more 80s new-wave feel, its pulsing electronic bass contrasting with the spiky guitar tones and Finucane’s Bowie-esque vocal vibrato, while Ghost Girl delivers a simplistic yet affecting, pointed sense of angst and wit with shades of Elvis Costello.

Dead Artform offers perhaps the most immediate and radio-friendly highlight on the album. Fizzing guitar tones, wailing feedback and infectious, brilliantly constructed vocals deliver a pointed grit that perfectly matches the track’s garage rock and punk aesthetic. At just 2.33 minutes, it’s simplistic, concise and brilliantly balanced, packing a punch while allowing Finucane’s natural melodic flair to shine through.

The moody and otherworldly Fleet Foot offers a more atmospheric side to the album’s sound, before Trauma Water closes proceedings in fittingly angsty and brooding fashion, leaving us with one final buzz and howl of fuzz-soaked guitar.

Ruination is an album that revels in its own unruliness, finding plenty of character in its jagged guitar work, dark humour and unapologetic embrace of noise. There’s a wonderful balance between its abrasive post-punk sensibilities and an underlying melodic instinct that keeps the songs engaging and memorable. While the DIY, unpolished production does leave something to be desired, there’s no denying there’s something wonderfully off-kilter and simple yet effective about the album.