The Sick Man of Europe
The Intermittent Signal
The Leaf Label
London’s The Sick Man of Europe debuted just last year with a self-titled LP and a couple of cassette releases, establishing a solid identity for himself in the crowded world of post-punk. 2026’s follow-up record The Intermittent Signal retains the same mix of pulsing minimal electronics, gravel-voiced singing and sturdy bass and guitar, but features a more fully fleshed out suite of songs and atmospherics, recalling early Agent Side Grinder and Sixth June.
One important aspect of the record is how propulsive the songs are, with movement and smooth transitions as the emphasis. “The Cadogan Gate” is nearly seven minutes long, and features a nearly unchanging synth bassline as its foundation, but never feels repetitive thanks to its snappy tempo, the carefully arranged layers of keys and synths that are draped over the rhythm programming, and the spidery guitar that dips in and out as required. Alternately, “Eyeless/Mindless” sets up a rattly drum machine groove and a skeletal synth sequence as its foundation and then lets the vocal and the massive amount of reverb it’s soaked in take up most of the mix, an efficient and brutalist setup that allows for the song to grow in intensity without needing to add much in the way of instrumentation.
It’s notable that The Sick Man of Europe rarely goes for a standard pop structure in his compositions, preferring a more freeform and evolving structure. “Chromophobia” has a shift from its bass-led verses into a bigger and more emphatic section that seems initially like a chorus, but that ends up being the song’s whole mode across its backhalf, never returning to the former verse section. Indeed, while the synth arp on “Apathy” is catchy, it’s used more as a foundation than a hook, holding the song together through a lengthy drum break that it never totally resolves.
Ironically, for an artist who has chosen to remain anonymous, his own voice proves crucial to the record’s identity. Sounding laidback, morose, darkly cynical, desperate and sorrowful as required, his phrasing and control play well off of the tight rhythms that drive The Intermittent Signal. As the lurch of “A Love Song” closes the record out, he takes on a glazed over, slow motion delivery that perfectly suits the instrumentation, a kind of counterpoint to all the characterful work that preceded it, a fine little moment of personality in a record that has no shortage of it.
