– Ritz, Manchester – I usually hate those pretentious types, those fans who believe that the unreleased stuff is better than the released stuff, but for tonight at least I’m my own worst enemy. As someone who only listens to Alex G’s unreleased music I have no idea how I will fare at an Alex […]
There are certain bands whose music has the power to transport you back to a particular point in your life, all it takes is a few notes, and your mind drifts into nostalgia, the days and nights out, friends you knew back then. Listening to ‘The Complete Singles’ by Inspiral Carpets I’m instantly back in […]
A first post-pandemic album by the group avoids market rollouts and a concept-heavy narrative in favour of showcasing the band’s effect on pop’s today and tomorrow, to include a strong new future. I finally won! I finally did it! I listened to a Gorillaz album and absolutely loved it. Involving nuance features that arguably differ […]
Habibi Funk is a German-based record label that has been dedicated to releasing an eclectic range of high-quality unknown or neglected music from the Arab world since 2015. Their latest excellent release marks a departure for Habibi Funk as the acts they featured previously experimented with soul or funk for a couple of tracks before […]
It might be glib to suggest that anyone apart from government sponsored purveyors of dodgy PPE had a good pandemic but Ajay Saggar definitely used the time productively. Between January 2021 and June 2022, he spent most days at his Soundation Studios recording and mixing music aided by a top team of collaborators, the result […]
– Castle Hotel, Manchester – I came across Sophie Jamieson’s astonishing, raw debut album at the very start of the year. Gold Flake Paint, one of the best music blogs around, has a knack of presenting albums to me in their end of year roundup that I’ve never heard of, but because of their brilliant […]
A psychedelic twist on electronic music is what Gnoomes have been carefully crafting over their four albums, now having fled their home country of Russia, and relocated elsewhere, their latest album is awash with hypnotic electronica. Opening track ‘Ural Sun’ sounds like a dystopian dream, with deep rumbling sounds which build into a mountainous soundscape […]
It takes bravado to open an album with a track that feels like a close sibling to an all-time classic symphonic pop song, ‘I Saw The Light’. With its piano line echoing Todd Rundgren’s melody, indulging in jigs with dual saxes, a brilliant dip as most the instrumentation temporarily drops out leaving a solitary piano […]
Jen Cloher’s latest album is an unashamedly political record but that should not conjure images of angry, shouty music. Thankfully, what is on offer is a warm collection of songs which celebrates community and acknowledges creating art as an act of resistance, The opening track on ‘I Am The River, The River is Me‘ evolved […]
It’s testament to the musical ambition of Mogwai that more than twenty-five years years after they started they can now sell out Manchester’s Albert Hall so fast a second date had to be added. Not bad for a band whose spellbinding tunes mostly consist of epic instrumentals with minimal vocals. Having recently spoken to Stuart […]
GIG GUIDE
Our gig guide is handpicked and every act has been listened to before making it onto the list.
See this month's guide
LIVE REVIEW - GORILLAZ: MANCHESTER CO-OP LIVE - 21/03/2026
ALBUM ROUNDUP WEEK ENDING 10 APRIL 2026
ALBUM REVIEW - HOLLY HUMBERSTONE: CRUEL WORLD
LIVE REVIEW - KRIS DREVER + ANNIE DRESSNER: LIVERPOOL PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOMS - 08/04/2026
ALBUM REVIEW - ULTRABOMB: THE BRIDGES THAT WE BURN
ALBUM REVIEW - SUNN 0))): SUNN O)))
INTERVIEW - FAUNA
ALBUM REVIEW - FAUNA: TAIGA TRANS
ALBUM REVIEW - ARLO PARKS: AMBIGUOUS DESIRE
ALBUM REVIEW - JARBOE: SIGHTINGS
