01 October 2025

LEOLIPS – Unsane Inside (2025, Digital/Bandcamp, Self Released)

RELEASE INFO:

Label: Self Released

Format: Digital/Bandcamp

Release Date: 4 Sep 2025

From the foggy backstreets of Pisa to the far edges of the inner mind, Leolips – a.k.a. Leonardo Panelli – returns with “Unsane Inside”, a third full-length statement carved from distortion, dream logic, and tormented beauty. Following the multi-Psych shimmer of ISTHMUS (check my review here:) and the soft shadows of his recent singles, this new self-released album trades clarity for atmosphere, melody for mood. It’s not noise, he insists—but it burns like it. A haunted, slow-burning dive into post-punk minimalism, psych-laced balladry, and art-damaged introspection. The title, as long as the whole “music” here is probably inspired by Leonardo’s fav New York noise rock band, Unsane. And, yes, it is quite different from his previous “Isthmus” album, but without losing its “psych krauty” aura. So, let’s have a closer view/listen to the 10 tracks of the album…

The opener “Iron In The Mouth” has a motorik pulse that drives this guitar-heavy instrumental deep into kraut-infused post-punk territory. Think NEU! getting tangled in barbed wire and distortion, a danceable fever dream from the factory floor. “Get Lost” is a loose, abstract, and beautifully off-kilter. Two guitars drift under a Krauty grey sky, one holding down a pulse, the other sketching distant mirages. A meditative wander through the fog. The dark, slow, and oddly intimate “Plants” follows, New Wave tension blends with acid folk murk, creating a haunted bedroom anthem that blooms into something heavy by the end. “Moon Desert” is a psych-laced ballad with its feet in the dust and eyes on another planet. Melancholy vocals melt into a Paisley-hued outro that feels like floating through a neon desert. Minimal and hypnotic, “Lushness” acts like a futuristic lullaby for insomniacs. Spoken stoned lyrics drift over slow-motion soundscapes — part sci-fi, part cinema, all weird… Post-punk decay at its finest with the next one, “Support”. Blurred vocals, skeletal drums, and a bassline that could’ve crawled out of an old Joy Division demo tape… “The Monkey” is short, sad, and strangely sweet. A loner anthem built on a gorgeous guitar melody, soaked in nostalgia and soft psych haze. What follows is a funeral-paced masterpiece. “Night Dance” has whispered words, droning guitars, and a creeping sense of dread — like Nick Cave reciting curses in a forgotten chapel, a track destined for cult status… “Velvet Chain” is sharp, driving, and cryptic. With its “I’m Velvet, you are Chain” hook, it channels early Cure and New Model Army into something cold, catchy, and delightfully off… The album comes to an end with “(M)”, a bare-boned closer. Just voice and haunted keys, soaked in fragile psych and late-night sorrow. Feels like reading a lost letter from someone you’ll never meet again… In conclusion, if “Isthmus” was a cosmic drift through acid folk, motorik grooves, and sun-bleached experimentalism, then “Unsane Inside” feels like its shadow — colder, darker, more intimate. Where Isthmus gazed outward, Unsane turns inward… “Unsane Inside” is an effort by Leo to retreat deeper into his own unsane world, and dares you to follow… Will you? TimeLord Michalis