Ulrika Spacek

Citing influences that include Sonic Youth, Deerhunter, and My Bloody Valentine, England’s Ulrika Spacek deliver spectral sonic soundscapes via a decisive triple-guitar attack. Formed in 2014 around the talents of guitarist Rhys Williams, drummer Callum Brown, guitarist/keyboardist Joseph Stone, bassist Ben White, and singer/guitarist Rhys Edwards (the latter three of whom had previously performed with U.K. rockers Tripwires), the band made their live debut in London in May 2015. Recorded at the group’s KEN studio/HQ in East London, The Album Paranoia arrived in 2016 on Tough Love Records. The band’s sophomore outing, Modern English Decoration, was released the following year, with the Suggestive Listening EP appearing in 2018. Ulrika Spacek lost their KEN studio space in 2019, and interband tensions ran high ahead of the unveiling of album number three. 2023′s Compact Trauma, which added psych, noise, and Krautrock elements to their sound, featured a lineup consisting of Edwards, Brown, Stone, bassist Syd Kemp, and guitarist Adam Beach. ~ James Christopher Monger