
Blur announced some massive Wembley gigs and that was that, right? Wrong. They have surprised everyone by announcing a new album! It’s called The Ballad of Darren and is out July 21 via Parlophone. Their first since ‘The Magic Whip’. And there’s a new song too, called ‘The Narcissist.’ Damon Albarn: “This is an aftershock record, reflection and…

Donald Trump’s use of ‘YMCA’ (and to a lesser degree, ‘Macho Man’) by the Village People has been a curious thing. For someone who is, and represents everything virulently homophobic and a whole other bunch of phobics in the US, it’s particularly strange that he’d plump for a song that is not only very camp,…

You’ve invariably picked up a Beatle LP, seen that famous green apple, got an emorous sense of well-being, and got on with your day (unless you’re one of those terrible hipsters who think it’s fashionable to hate The Beatles – you do you, boo). Anyway, the famous split apple across two sides of a Beatle…

The late Japanese composer and Yellow Magic Orchestra founder Ryuichi Sakamoto’s management have shared the last playlist compiled by the late, great musician. Calling it ‘Ryuichi’s Last Playlist’, they wrote: “We would like to share the playlist that Ryuichi had been privately compiling to be played at his own funeral to accompany his passing. He…

Let’s not mess around here – if you’re reading about Fonteyn on these pages, we’re going to go absolutely over the top about her. She’s brilliant. She is making exactly the kind of yearning, swoonsome ’70s pop that makes us tick. Previous outings have shown us the joys of sweet pop, huge soaring hooks and…

Kate Bush is great. What a treasure she is to have around. This was probably meant as an advert for Record Store Day (which is the Valentine’s Day for vinyl lovers, for better or worse), and the reissue of a Kate Bush track, which of course, we’ll talk about – but we’re more interested in…

Everyone’s favourite cosmic cowboys, The Hanging Stars, are coming back with a new LP and that’s always great news. While many Nu Country outfits wander past the gorgeous, ethereal nature of much of country music, not this lot. The new album is called ‘On A Golden Shore’ and you’ll be able to get your hands…

There’s a book coming out real soon that looks super interesting. We’re always in the market for learning something new, because who on earth can possibly know everything when it comes to music? The book looks at the pioneers of electronic music who were Latin American women, and it’s available to pre-order through Contingent Sounds…
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