University of LiverpoolThe Dubliners burst brilliantly back on stage with literary-hearted rock that’s up there with the Smiths or the PoguesThe pandemic meant Fontaines DC never got to tour 2020’s bleak masterpiece A Hero’s Death, which – following 20…
One to watch: John
This London punk duo honed their ferocious sound during lockdown and ended up on BBC 6 Music’s playlistHaving met at university, south London-based John Newton (drums and vocals) and Johnny Healey (guitar) were initially part of a trio before realising…
Greg Gilbert, frontman with indie band Delays, dies aged 44
Singer, whose band reached UK Top 20 with debut 2004 album, had documented illness due to bowel cancer in visual art and poetryGreg Gilbert, frontman with British indie rock band Delays, has died of bowel cancer at the age of 44.He had been diagnosed i…
Dave Grohl: The Storyteller review – rock’n’roll raconteur riffs with profanity and positivity
Savoy theatre, LondonNirvana and Foo Fighters man’s memoir inspires a sparkling monologue on success, suicide and scrambled-egg sarniesSpringsteen on Broadway aside, few musicians would step away from the cocoon of their band to deliver an exhaustive, …
‘Racism is rampant’: Alien Weaponry, the metal band standing up for Māori culture
The New Zealand trio have gone global thanks to their forthright Māori-language songs, which confront colonial history and ongoing inequalityNew Zealand was a war zone in the mid-1800s. On one side were the British and the colonial government, craving …
‘If I hate a song I’ll just change the station’: William Shatner’s honest playlist
The Star Trek star and occasional singer reveals how un-musical he is – and what he really listens toOne of thesongs I’ve performed on television was Fuck You by Cee-Lo Green. It went over well. I’d do that one. Continue reading…
‘I’m angry, I’m raging’: how Raye took on her record label – and won
After Polydor refused to release her album, the rising pop star spoke out. Now, newly independent, she’s ready for a fresh startTowards the end of June, while waiting to be interviewed on Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch, Raye found herself desperately trying…
‘We’re like Mork and Mindy!’ Robert Plant and Alison Krauss, music’s odd couple
Fourteen years after their Grammy-winning debut, the roots duo have reunited – facing high expectations. They explain how they left their comfort zones with a ‘nuts but tasteful’ all-star bandMore than half a century since arriving to play his first sh…
Indie pop star Connie Constance: ‘People play with your career as if it’s not your entire life’
She was on a major label, hanging out with Dua Lipa – but being sidelined behind the scenes. Now independent and thriving, the UK musician has a cautionary tale for women in the music industryThe pandemic temporarily spelled game over for emerging pop …
Nao: And Then Life Was Beautiful review – joy and hope amid the pandemic
(Little Tokyo Recordings/Sony Music)Plenty of new albums are considering life with Covid, but few of them are as sensual and gorgeous as thisNo sooner had lockdown begun than the musical responses came. Over the last 18 months, we’ve had everything fro…