Helicon x Al Lover - Arise

Glasgow’s Helicon and Los Angeles–based producer and DJ Al Lover join forces on Arise, a bold collaborative album set for release on February 13th, 2026 via Fuzz Club. Conceived as a response to a culture shaped by individualism and opportunism, the record champions empathy, compassion, and authenticity as conscious choices. Sonically, Arise delivers a maximalist yet uplifting sound, driven by a baggy, hypnotic pulse that fuses Helicon’s signature psychedelia with Al Lover’s genre-blurring electronic sensibility.

Produced by Tony Doogan (Mogwai, The Jesus & Mary Chain) at Castle Of Doom Studios in Glasgow, the album is dense, visceral, and fiercely rhythmic, weaving trip-hop breaks, deep low-end and dub-inflected textures into a powerful call to reclaim meaning from the chaos. Born from an extended transatlantic exchange of demos, the project took shape in the studio with Helicon’s eight-piece lineup — including a guest appearance from Belle & Sebastian’s Chris Geddes — before Al Lover joined in person to reshape the material with drum machines, synths, and samplers. For John-Paul Hughes, the collaboration pushes psychedelia into new territory, while Al Lover emphasizes the joy of human connection, inviting listeners to feel like active participants rather than passive observers.