ALBUM REVIEW

Sad and Beautiful World

Mavis Staples

In acknowledging the world’s sadness and beauty on this deeply felt album, Mavis Staples somehow finds hope too.

by David Rea

4 November 2025

THE WEEKLY MIX

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NEWS

Shapes Like People tease new single ‘Supergirl’

The husband-and-wife jangle pop duo have a new single out at the end of the month, and a new studio album next year.

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NEWS

Singer-songwriter Emma Swift in a red dress surrounded by falling flowers.

Emma Swift to record an album of Lou Reed covers

Five years after the release of her brilliant album of Bob Dylan covers, Blonde on the Tracks, Emma Swift is putting together another.

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THE ONE TO WATCH INTERVIEW

Balloon: ‘I know people who rate Gravity among their favourites. There was trepidation about the new LP’

Their 1992 debut, Gravity, was widely heralded and they seemed set for glory. And then years of silence. Balloon’s Ian Bickerton tells us what happened, and why it took three decades to make their follow-up.

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LYRIC OF THE WEEK

‘Your music’s shite, it keeps me up all night’

Read out anniversary review of Oasis’ debut album here.

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PLAYLIST

Secret friends: the September Collection

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PLAYLIST

Chrome: the October Collection

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INTERVIEW

London singer-songwriter Paul Garside on how giving up set him free

Tom Waits, Jack Kerouac and the heart of Saturday night

ESSAY

Neither Tom Waits nor Jack Kerouac could find the heart of Saturday night. We look at how the novelist influenced the songwriter, discovering a semi-mythological America where it is always nighttime.

by David Rea

1 November 2024

FEATURES

Interviews, opinions, rankings, playlists

OPINION

THE REMAKING OF NICK DRAKE: Is the complex artist finally stepping out from behind the ‘doomed genius’?

The new box set The Making of Five Leaves Left illuminates a focused and forthright artist at his genesis, and further undermines the idea he was an isolated, haunted romantic.

by David Rea

25 October 2025

‘People rate Gravity in their favourite records. There was trepidation’

INTERVIEW

Balloon talks about making their first LP, decades after their sublime debut.

PLAYLIST

A playlist curated by Sleaford Mods

At nearly 16 hours long, the collection includes singer-songwriters, 1960s British folk, ska, New York punk, Billy Nomates, Grace Jones, Cate Le Bon and David Bowie.

MORE FEATURES

NEWS

All the latest from the world of music and beyond

NEWS

Brian Eno and Beatie Wolfe release new album, Liminal

Just four months after the release of their two debut albums, the duo release a third.

NEWS

Shapes Like People tease new single ‘Supergirl’

Emma Swift to record album of Lou Reed covers

NEWS

Sleaford Mods release new single and announce UK tour

NEWS

Jeff Tweedy asks fans to write alternative lyrics for new song

NEWS

David Byrne shares wedding playlist

NEWS

THE BIG IDEA

Born to Run: Could Bruce Springsteen run for president in 2028?

In the age of celebrity politicians, is Bruce Springsteen better placed than Reagan, Schwarzenegger or Trump to run for office?

by David Rea

6 September 2025

ESSAYS

Cultural connections, historical perspectives

MAKING A MASTERPIECE

‘It took a unique kind of courage’: how Son House beat the odds to make a masterpiece

On the 60th anniversary of its original release, we look at how Son House made Father of Folk Blues for white America.

By David Rea

18 October 2025

Paul McCartney and Linda McCartney in Scotland looking into the distance with a dog,

ESSAY

How the Beatles regenerated after the split

Around the time of the break up, Lennon, McCartney and Harrison moved closer to the countryside. We look at how their new homes impacted their album artwork and wonder how far they influenced their solo music.

ESSAY

How the Jam invented Britpop’s ethos

Critics couldn't take the Jam seriously at first, claiming they were just a bunch of gimmicks. But their ‘hail your heroes’ ethos was entirely authentic, setting the blueprint for Britpop two decades later.

REVIEWS

Independent opinion, informed criticism

ALBUM REVIEW

All is Love and Pain in the Mouse Parade

Of Monsters and Men

After their electro-pop LP Fever Dream, OMAM explore cinematic folk rock, but fail to find real inspiration.

by David Rea

4 October 2025

Album cover of All is Love and Pain in the Mouse Parade by Of Monsters and Men

Emerge, Return

The Bookshop Band

The Resurrection Game

Robyn Hitchcock at the EartH theatre in London.

REGULARS

Series about the music that matters

COMING SOON

HOW THEY WROTE THE SONG

YOUNG HEARTS RUN FREE, CANDI STATON

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COMING SOON

LIFE-CHANGING ALBUMS

THE STONE ROSES

MAKING A MASTERPIECE

FATHER OF FOLK BLUES, SON HOUSE

Sad and Beautiful World

THE WEEKLY MIX

Balloon: ‘I know people who rate Gravity among their favourites. There was trepidation about the new LP’

Tom Waits, Jack Kerouac and the heart of Saturday night

FEATURES

THE REMAKING OF NICK DRAKE: Is the complex artist finally stepping out from behind the ‘doomed genius’?

NEWS

Brian Eno and Beatie Wolfe release new album, Liminal

Born to Run: Could Bruce Springsteen run for president in 2028?

ESSAYS

‘It took a unique kind of courage’: how Son House beat the odds to make a masterpiece

REVIEWS

All is Love and Pain in the Mouse Parade

REGULARS

MOST POPULAR

Born to Run: Could Bruce Springsteen run for president in 2028?

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Will Spotify finally be forced into fairer artist payouts?

2.

Mother nature’s sons: how the Beatles regenerated after the split

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Bob Dylan’s The Times They Are a-Changin' at 60

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David Byrne shares wedding playlist

5.

Shapes Like People: ‘I almost decapitated Kylie Minogue with a scissor kick’

6.

The Resurrection Game, Emma Swift

7.

Oasis’ Definitely Maybe at 30

8.

Robyn Hitchcock: Blissful transcendence in East London

9.

Ticking Haze, Shapes Like People

10.

A new issue every Saturday morning…