Techno Maestro Blawan Announces New Album
On Friday 10 October 2025, Blawan - aka Jamie Roberts - will release his long-awaited debut XL Recordings album, SickElixir. Crafted between Berlin, Leeds, Paris, and Lisbon, the 14-track record is his most personal work to date; a manifesto for the way he sees music and himself. Channeling grief, family trauma, and seismic life shifts, SickElixir expands on the sounds of his recent EPs - BouQ, Dismantled Into Juice, and Woke Up Right Handed - plunging listeners into a chaotic yet meticulous sonic world that reflects on the past while projecting a bold vision for the future. The project launches today - 2 September - with the first single “NOS”, a track revealing the intensity and introspection that runs throughout the record.
Jamie Roberts has been revered in electronic circles for years as an artist with a fastidious approach to creating his own sound, relentlessly drawing from his teenage influences growing up in Barnsley, a post-industrial town in South Yorkshire. At 14, he started working on a maggot farm and credits the clanging sound of the farm’s industrial mincer as an early influence on his music. After playing in various metal bands, Roberts’ musical horizons began to expand through visits to the West Indian Centre in Leeds, where he was introduced to the full spectrum of electronic music.
He first emerged as Blawan at the turn of the 2010s with EPs on cult labels such as Hinge Finger and Hessle Audio, earning widespread critical acclaim. He’s consistently experimented, pushing boundaries in his solo projects while collaborating closely with British producer Pariah on several projects – the live techno act Karenn, the metal-inspired band Persher, and the label Voam.
SickExlixir marks the next step in solidifying his position as one of contemporary music's unique, pioneering artists, operating firmly in a lane of his own.
SickElixir is available pre-order now as a CD, Black LP and Lemon LP (exclusive shared by BIG LOVE and Rough Trade) and to pre-save on all digital platforms. Out Friday 10 October, worldwide.
Dry July: Thousands Set To Go Alcohol Free This July As Cancer Diagnoses Continue To Rise Across Aotearoa
New Zealand College of Midwives: Celebrating Midwives Across Aotearoa This International Day Of The Midwife
PPTA Te Wehengarua: Building The Secondary Curriculum On Broken Drafts Is A Serious Risk
Whanganui Regional Museum: Whanganui Makers Bring Textile Traditions To Life During Symposium Weekend
Palmerston North Hospital Foundation: Fundraising For Publicly-Owned Surgical Robot Hits $2 Million Milestone In Less Than Three Months
Otago Shore And Land Trust: Hīkoi O Te Taoka - Larger Than Life Hoiho Statues Go To Auction For Charity