The Pop Corporation

WORDS ABOUT MUSIC + POP CULTURE

  • OLDIES ARE STRANGLING NEW BANDS

    People are listening to more music than ever, which is great isn’t it? And we told you vinyl sales are up too. Interestingly, looking at the sales and graphs, 2023 saw women at the front, with huge sales from Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Ice Spice, and more. In the weeds of all the data, there’s…

    Read more

  • REST EASY, LES MCCANN

    Jazz legend and fusion pioneer Les McCann, has left the building. Jazzers loved him, and so to did hip hop royalty, being sampled by some of the greats on numerous famous works. He was 88 years old, so we’ll raise a glass and share some of his music so you can pay the greatest of…

    Read more

  • JUSTICE BACK WITH SKUZZ

    French house is great isn’t it? Rubbery filtered funk and head-mashing skuzz daftness! Well, if Indie Sleaze is threatening a comeback, and all things being cyclical, here come Justice right on cue and there’s going to be new music from the pair this year! We know this because we were looking at their social media,…

    Read more

  • HOPE FOR 2024?

    We’ve waved goodbye to 2023. It was weird. Now we’ve got 2024, which is shaping up to be just as weird and war torn. What does that all mean for pop culture and music? We’re hopeful. See, if anything, we’re all getting acclimatised to just how bleak everything is. That’s not to say there won’t…

    Read more

  • 2023/2024

    Goodbye to 2023, and hello 2024. It’s vital that you try and have a good time tonight, whatever that looks like. The world can be an impenetrably dark place at times, but there’s always a good record to lift the spirits. If you’re partying at home, going to a club, cosying up on the sofa,…

    Read more

  • VINYL / STILL GROWING

    In the UK, sales of vinyl just keeps on growing. That’s the 16th consecutive year that this has happened, and now we’re hitting the levels we saw in the early ’90s, which is great news. People just getting into vinyl are in for a lifelong love affair, and have just become the easiest person to…

    Read more

  • WATCH // SOVIET RAVE AS THE IRON CURTAIN FELL

    We’ve been trying to have a Christmas and it’s nearly NYE time, which means recreational things and good music. Speaking of raves, the mighty Bandsplaining channel have made a killer video about the ‘final party’ of the Soviet Union. Illegal raves, acid house music, fringe art and intellectuals, and amazing footage of the scene in…

    Read more

  • MERRY XMAS

    We’re having some time off now. It’s Christmas. You should have some time off too, hopefully. Get some presents. Eat well. Be merry. Raise a glass to those who can’t be with us. Give a squeeze to those we’re with. There may be some sporadic posts. There might not. This is not a slick operation.…

    Read more

  • BEST SONGS OF 2023 [AND MORE]

    A great song doesn’t necessarily appear on a great album. A great song might not be on any album at all. So with that, we’re rounding up our favourite songs of the year and there’s a variety of ways you can consume these. If you don’t like turning the volume up on your phone under…

    Read more

  • REST EASY, AMP FIDDLER

    One of the finest to do it, one of Detroit’s finest musicians, Amp Fiddler has sadly passed away, aged 65. He’s been described as “the king of the new era of Detroit soul”, and his music incorporated a number of influences and styles, from honey-dipped electronics, to hard funk, to soul, hip hop, house, collaborating…

    Read more




STOP HOARDING TUNES


  • ZOH AMBA’S SPIRITUAL JAZZ

    Jazz never died, but it did feel harder to find since major music publications effectively turned their back on it some time in the ’70s. Jazz is of course, in rude health and as disparate as it ever was. With that, we were super thrilled while listening to baritone sax’er Zoh Amba’s new one, which…

  • COOL ISLAND RECORDS BOOK

    Island Records is one of the most legendary record labels in the history of rock, pop, reggae and more. Especially iconic is the ‘Island pink’ years, where the records sported a gorgeous baby pink label and was home to some of the finest records ever cut on the lathe. With that, following first volume, there’s…

  • CHE NOIR WITH THE NU BOOM BAP

    It certainly seems there’s a quiet revival of boom bap rap in recent years, underlined obviously, by the all-conquering Doechii LP released last year. Of course, she’s not the only one putting a fresh twist on golden era hip hop, and now we look to the new one from prodigious talent Che Noir. Hailing from…

  • JEFF PARKER IVTET TINY DESK

    We wrote a very glowing review of the wonderful album by Tortoise cohort Jeff Parker and his IVtet, being one of the best jazz LPs we’ve bought in years. In case you missed, Parker and his band did a blissfully wonderful and super invigorating set for the always great NPR Tiny Desk. Watch it here.

Search for a Topic
Categories
Posted Recently
Submissions

THERE’S NO MONEY IN THIS GAME ANYMORE, BUT IF YOU WANT TO WRITE SOMETHING FOR THE POP CORPS, YOU ARE WELCOME TO GET IN TOUCH. HAPPY HUNTING.