ALBUM REVIEW – CONVERGE: LOVE IS NOT ENOUGH

Converge. Possibly the most legendary and revered hardcore band of all time, an institution of no-frills brutality and absolute commitment to the craft. Well into their fourth decade as a band, Love Is Not Enough is the newest entry in their flawless discography, and it’s a worthy offering.  Converge have a reputation, no pretention, no egos, no holier than thous. This record is one of the gnarliest they’ve produced in their […]
“Thank you Manchester, for rejecting fascism last night.” Stuart Brathwaite – guitarist and vocalist for Mogwai – stands in front of a Palestine flag and celebrates the outbreak of common sense that brought Hannah Spencer of the Green Party the Gorton and Denton seat in this week’s by-election, beating Reform. He is met by a […]

LIVE REVIEW – MOGWAI: MANCHESTER APOLLO – 27/02/2026

BOOK REVIEW: PENNY KILEY – ATYPICAL GIRL: PUNK ROCK, LIVERPOOL AND TRYING TO BE NORMAL

The Liverpool punk and post-punk scene centring around legendary club Eric’s has been celebrated in a number of books. Performers whose names are indelibly linked with the venue have offered memorable recollections, starting with Julian Cope’s Head On and followed more recently by Will Sergeant’s Bunnyman and Paul Simpson’s Revolutionary Spirit. As a scene whose […]
Peter Gabriel, the mastermind behind Genesis, and the procurer of a great solo career afterwards, has returned in all of his Progressive Rock glory. He has gifted us with a new live album from arguably one of the best times in his music career. The date was November 23rd, 2003, and Gabriel had decided to […]

ALBUM REVIEW – PETER GABRIEL: IN THE BIG ROOM

ALBUM ROUNDUP WEEK ENDING 27 FEBRUARY 2026

By far the busiest week of 2026 for new releases so far, plenty of high quality as well. Deathcrash       Somersaults     London-based slowcore quartet. Thematically, ‘Somersaults’ began to deal with a more discreet, more complicated, second “coming of age” period. Buck Meek       The Mirror         Conceptually, The Mirror emerged from the idea to combine Meek’s band’s live, […]
Willy Vlautin is a master world builder. Over the course of half a dozen albums with The Delines, he has created the equivalent of an intricate portmanteau movie with recurring themes and characters making return appearances. In his other career as an author, his most recent novel ‘The Horse’ was about an old musician riddled […]

ALBUM REVIEW – THE DELINES: THE SET UP

ALBUM REVIEW – BIBI CLUB: AMARO

There is a strong thread of death running through Quebec duo Bibi Club’s third album. Rather than a self-indulgent, goth teenage wallowing in mortality, it is a heartfelt response to the passing of two loved ones in the past year. It is a recurrent theme throughout ‘Amaro’, many of the eleven songs including variations on […]
At long last! Nearly three years since I first went to see an act there – Manchester group Mandy, Indiana, who put on a rollicking show and who have a new album out that’s apparently well worth a listen – I returned to The White Hotel on Wednesday to catch a particularly dreamy double bill. […]

LIVE REVIEW – FINE, MARIA SOMERVILLE & NASHPAINTS: THE WHITE HOTEL – 18/02/2026

LIVE REVIEW – HOT WAX: MANCHESTER GORILLA – 12/02/2026

The first time I saw Hot Wax was at All Points East in 2023, I was 17 and they were opening the second stage. I immediately fell in love with them, and thought they were the coolest band I’d ever seen. Since then, I’ve seen them support bands like Deap Valley and The Libertines, so […]
The Sixties are back in, and The Dream Machine are navigating the waters on their third album ‘Fort Perch Rock.   New Brighton natives whose evocative lyricism is evident on every release, embody The Beach Boys on this album as insight is given by vocalist Zak McDonnell, “‘Things That Make Us Cry’ is me doing […]

ALBUM REVIEW – THE DREAM MACHINE: FORT PERCH ROCK