Black Marble - Life in Small Spaces [Clear Orange]

Black Marble's Life in Small Spaces is Chris Stewart's most guitar-driven record yet, a 2026 album pressed on clear orange vinyl that finds clarity in limitation.

Stewart has always built Black Marble records alone, hunched over temperamental synths and drum machines, writing, recording and delivering every note himself. After It's Immaterial, Bigger Than Life and Fast Idol, this album takes a reflective turn, looking at the music industry, his place within it and how underground music has changed over the years. The cover, Stewart alone in a sparse room under a burst of confetti, captures the idea neatly: a small, cluttered world that is entirely his own.

Walls of synths give way to chiming, staccato guitar lines inspired by left-of-the-dial American college radio, with nods to Pylon and the metronomic simplicity of Wire. Stewart was chasing a hypnotic quality, like a radio dial caught between two stations. "It Always Comes to Me" opens the record, while "Jim Carol New Year," "Panopticon Calls" and closer "Sonny Boy" wrap introspective lyrics in his trademark radiant, melodic glow.

It is coldwave with an open heart, small in scale but rich in feeling and quietly defiant. Late-night drives, rainy afternoons and a good pair of headphones are strongly recommended.