"Necessary but against your better judgement" Matt Flegel drones in the typically unsettling opening to 'Memory'. The Calgary four are gearing-up towards the release of their self-titled record - due 16 September via Jagjaguar - and this eleven minute epic gives an idea of what we can expect. A Joy Division-esque darkness develops into something of an unusually catchy refrain that nevertheless maintains the gothic, punk-driven aesthetic. Taking their relentless live show on an enormous run in the coming months, Preoccupations are anything but a 'Memory', they are completely necessary. -G.O'B