• Themes/Playlists
  • New Songs
  • Albums
  • Word!
  • Index
  • Donate!
  • Animals
  • About/FAQs
  • Contact
Menu

Song Bar

Street Address
City, State, Zip
Phone Number
Music, words, playlists

Your Custom Text Here

Song Bar

  • Themes/Playlists
  • New Songs
  • Albums
  • Word!
  • Index
  • Donate!
  • Animals
  • About/FAQs
  • Contact

Other Lives: Volume V

October 15, 2025 Peter Kimpton

Other Lives: Volume V

New album: A fifth LP, but also the first in a decade by the band from Stillwater, Oklahoma, of multi-instrumentalists Jesse Tabish, Jonathon Mooney and Josh Onstott and co, with impressive, stirring, grandiose, cinematic, dynamic, orchestra-layered indie rock

Read more
In alternative, albums, baroque pop, chamber pop, indie, rock Tags Other Lives, PIAS, Play It Again Sam, albums, new albums, new releases
Comment

Courting: Lust For Life, Or ‘How To Thread The Needle And Come Out The Other Side To Tell The Story'

March 19, 2025 Peter Kimpton

Courting: Lust For Life …

New album: A lengthy title for a short, snappy, cleverly interwoven eclectic indie-dancefloor-postpunk experimental third LP by the Liverpool band with a theme of duality, a cyclical intro and outro, and each song paired with a balanced counterpart, sharing specific sonic elements.

Read more
In alternative, albums, dance, dance music, experimental, grunge, indie, industrial, pop, post-rock, post-punk Tags Courting, Lower Third, albums, new albums, new releases, PIAS
Comment

Saint Etienne: 'The Night'

December 18, 2024 Peter Kimpton

Saint Etienne: 'The Night'

New album: The London trio of Sarah Cracknell, Bob Stanley and Pete Wiggs returrn with an strange, dream-like, ambient ‘headphones’ release, one that hovers across their career as if perceived through rain-soaked glass, designed to capture the essence of the after-hours

Read more
In alternative, albums, ambient, electronica, experimental, pop Tags Saint Etienne, PIAS, albums, new albums, new releases
Comment

Favourite albums of 2023 Part 2: Anohni to Blur to Mitski, Ren to Sufjan Stevens

December 29, 2023 Peter Kimpton

Favourite LPs of 2023, Part 2.

Welcome once again to the annual tradition of Song Bar’s favourite album releases of 2023. This is Part 2, and Part 1 was yesterday. There’s no such thing as a chart rundown or ‘best of’ here, and these come in no particular order …

Read more
In African, albums, alternative, ambient, Americana, avant garde, bluegrass, blues, classical, country, dance, dance music, disco, drum n bass, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, fusion, garage, gospel, grunge, gypsy, hip hop, hip-hop, indie, jazz, krautrock, musical theatre, new wave, poetry, pop, post-punk, prog-rock, psychedelia, punk, R&B, reggae, rock, rocksteady, shoegaze, ska, soul, spoken word, theatrical, traditional, trip-hop Tags Mokoomba, OutHere Records, Blur, Damon Albarn, Graham Coxon, Parlophone, Palehound, Polyvinyl, El Kempner, Anohni, Rough Trade, PJ Harvey, Partisan Records, Do Nothing, Exact Truth Records, Bonnie Prince Billy, Domino Records, Dot Allison, Any Bell, Corinne Bailey Rae, Black Rainbows Music, Thirty Tigers, CLT DRP, Venn Records, Roisin Murphy, Ninja Tune, DJ Koze, Yussef Dayes, Slowdive, Dead Oceans, Emma Grankvist, Future Classic Records, Danger Mouse, Brian Burton, Jemini The Gifted One, The Pretenders, Mitski, Nitin Sawhney, Warner Bros, Hak Baker, Natacha Atlas, Jazzi Sirius, I Am Roze, The Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Polydor, Ren, Ren Gill, The Other Songs, CMAT, Ciara Mary Alice Thompson, AWAL, Goat, Rocket Recordings, Creation Rebel, On-U Sound Records, Adrian Sherwood, Prince Far I, Hania Rani, Gondwana Records, Sufjan Stevens, Asthmatic Kitty, Anjimile, 4AD, Beirut, Zach Condon, Pompeii Records, David Holmes, Raven Violet, Heavenly Recordings, King Creosote, Kenny Anderson, Lol Tolhurst, Budgie, Jacknife Lee, James Murphy, LCD Soundsystem, The Edge, U2, Play It Again Sam, PIAS, FIZZ, Orla Gartland, Dodie, Greta Isaac, Martin Luke Brown, Decca, Black Pumas, ATO Records, Adrian Quesada, Eric Burton, Sofia Kourtesis, Bas Jan, Serafina Steer, Fire Records, Soema Montenegro, Leo Martinelli, Peter Gabriel, Brian Eno, Real World, Soweto Gospel Choir, albums, new albums, new releases
Comment

Favourite albums of 2023 Part 1: Anna B Savage to Young Fathers

December 28, 2023 Peter Kimpton

Part 1 selection of 2023 favourite albums

Welcome once again to the annual tradition of Song Bar’s favourite album releases of 2023. This is Part 1, and Part 2 is also out here. There’s no such thing as a chart rundown or ‘best of’ here, and these come in no particular order. This is all about quality and innovation …

Read more
In African, albums, alternative, ambient, Americana, avant garde, blues, classical, country, dance, dance music, disco, electronica, dub, experimental, folk, funk, fusion, garage, gospel, grime, grunge, gypsy, hip hop, hip-hop, indie, jazz, krautrock, metal, new wave, poetry, pop, post-punk, prog-rock, psychedelia, punk, R&B, reggae, rock, rocksteady, shoegaze, ska, soul Tags albums, new albums, new releases, Anna B Savage, Rozi Plain, Caroline Polachek, Young Fathers, Fever Ray, favourites of the year, Technology + Teamwork, Lana Del Rey, Depeche Mode, Lucinda Chua, Boygenius, Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, A Certain Ratio, Jen Cloher, Desire Marea, Billie Marten, Feist, Dave Okumu, The Bloodstreams, Jessie Ware, The National, Susanne Sundfør, BC Camplight, Tinariwen, Brix Smith, Sparks, Water From Your Eyes, WITCH, The Extranauts, This Is The Kit, Kate Stables, Hak Baker, Queens of the Stone Age, Sigur Rós, Killer Mike, Ursa Major Moving Group, Geese, LYR, Simon Armitage, Grian Chatten, Dan Carey, Memphis Industries, Perpetual Novice, City Slang, Ninja Tune, Rabid Records, PIAS, Milk! Records, Mute Records, 4AD, Columbia Records, Polydor, Good Way Records, Transgressive Records, Universal Island, Fiction Records, Bella Union, EMI, Desert Daze Sound, Matador Records, Island Records, Asthmatic Kitty, Grit Over Glamour, Wedge Records, Partisan Records, Clue Records, Play It Again Sam, Faith And Industry Records, Loma Vista, Von Dur, BMG, Because Music, Hak Attack Records, AWAL, Rough Trade
Comment

Baxter Dury: I Thought I Was Better Than You

June 8, 2023 Peter Kimpton

Baxter Dury: I Thought I Was Better Than You

New album: Droll, dark, crisply phrased, downbeat, self-deprecating, sleazy and funky? It can only be the West London artist, in a candid, unflinching sixth solo album that draws on his strange childhood as son of famous Ian, echoing his brilliantly funny and painful 2022 memoir Chaise Longue

Read more
In albums, alternative, spoken word, pop, poetry, funk, experimental, indie Tags Baxter Dury, Heavenly Recordings, PIAS, albums, new releases, new albums
Comment

Fever Ray: Radical Romantics

March 12, 2023 Peter Kimpton

Fever Ray’s third LP, Radical Romantics

New album: Sweden’s Karin Dreijer returns with her first Fever Ray LP since 2017’s Plunge, this third packed with rich, eerie, complex, multifarious songs about the bewilderment of love

Read more
In albums, alternative, electronica, experimental, pop Tags albums, new releases, Fever Ray, Karin Dreijer, Rabid Records, PIAS
Comment

dEUS: How To Replace It

February 21, 2023 Peter Kimpton

dEUS: How To Replace It

New album: The Belgian rock band who formed in 1991 return with their first for 10 years, an LP feels refreshed and re-energised, frontman Tom Barman and co’s songs with a spring in their step

Read more
In albums, pop, rock, indie Tags dEUS, albums, new releases, PIAS
Comment

Unloved: The Pink Album

September 5, 2022 Peter Kimpton

Unloved’s third album, The Pink Album

New album: This third LP by trio behind the soundtrack to TV series Killing Eve, Belfast producer David Holmes alongside singer Jade Vincent and musician Keefus Ciancia, is a huge, sprawling cinematic 22-tracker filled with alluringly oddball, woozy, dark pop, electronica, 60s French noir and psychedelia

Read more
In albums, avant garde, ambient, electronica, experimental, pop, psychedelia Tags albums, new releases, Unloved, David Holmes, Jade Vincent, Keefus Clancia, Jarvis Cocker, Jon Spencer, Raven Violet, Heavenly Recordings, PIAS
Comment

Public Service Broadcasting: Bright Magic

September 29, 2021 Peter Kimpton
Public Service Broadcasting’s Berlin album

Public Service Broadcasting’s Berlin album

New album: The historical archive-inspired band’s fourth LP is entirely centred around the city of Berlin, and is a far more impressionist and instrumental than previous, with German language vocals and a nod to Weimar era and David Bowie’s Low album

Read more
In albums, ambient, electronica, experimental, prog-rock, soundtracks, spoken word Tags albums, new releases, Public Service Broadcasting, PIAS
Comment

New albums: Bob Dylan, Jehnny Beth, Wesley Gonzalez, White Denim, Drab City, Larkin Poe, Orlando Weeks, GoGo Penguin, Blanco White

June 17, 2020 Peter Kimpton
This week’s album picks, beginnig with GoGo Penguin (top right)

This week’s album picks, beginnig with GoGo Penguin (top right)

One of the best from Bob in years leads out this week’s team of releases, alongside some outstanding work from former lead singers from other bands, including from Savages, The Macabees and Let’s Wrestle, among others

Read more
In albums, ambient, blues, classical, dance music, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, hip hop, indie, jazz, pop, post-punk, prog-rock, psychedelia, punk, rock, soul, soundtracks Tags albums, new releases, Bob Dylan, Jehnny Beth, Wesley Gonzalez, White Denim, Drab City, Larkin Poe, Orlando Weeks, GoGo Penguin, Blanco White, Columbia Records, 20L07 Music, Moshi Moshi, Radio Milk Records, Bella Union, Tricki-Woo Records, PIAS, Blue Note, Yucatan Records
Comment

New albums: Run The Jewels, The Nightingales, Sports Team, Rolling Blackouts CF, Brigid Dawson, Brigid Mae Power, LA Priest, The Stroppies, Westerman

June 9, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Nine more delights to peruse

Nine more delights to peruse

As well as a powerful Run The Jewels release raising funds for protester legal rights, this week’s selection is packed with excellent independent bands’ work, especially The Nightingales, plus Brigid Dawson, Sports Team, The Stroppies and more

Read more
In albums, ambient, dance music, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, hip hop, indie, jazz, pop, post-punk, punk, rock, soul, traditional Tags albums, new releases, Run The Jewels, The Nightingales, Sports Team, Brigid Dawson and the Mothers Network, Brigid Mae Power, Rolling BlackOuts Coastal Fever, LA Priest, The Stroppies, Westerman, RBC, BMG, Bandcamp, Island Records, Sub Pop, Castle Face, Fire Records, Domino Records, PIAS, Partisan Records
Comment

New albums: Mark Lanegan, Moses Sumney, Hayley Williams, Blake Mills, I Break Horses, Watkins Family Hour, Modern Studies, Kavus Torabi, Ecuador various

May 12, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Mark Lanegan

Mark Lanegan

This week’s roundup includes a gritty but musical journey to accompany Mark Lanegan’s memoirs, a solo album the the Paramore singer, and Part Two of Moses Sumney’s extraordinary funk/jazz falsetto album

Read more
In albums, ambient, country, dance music, electronica, experimental, folk, indie, jazz, pop, post-punk, psychedelia, rock, soul Tags albums, new releases, Mark Lanegan, Moses Sumney, Hayley Williams, Paramore, Blake Mills, I Break Horses, Watkins Family Hour, Modern Studies, Kavus Torabi, Various, Heavenly Recordings, Jagjaguwar, Atlantic Records, New Deal, PIAS, Bella Union, Family Hour, Thirty Tigers, Fire Records, Bandcamp, Air Texture
Comment

New albums: Car Seat Headrest, Damien Jurado, Ghostpoet, Happyness, Michael J Sheehy, Lavinia Blackwall, The Soft Pink Truth, Rose McGowan, Ben Lukas Boysen, Various for NHS

May 6, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Lavinia Blackwall, formerly of Trembling Bells, releases her debut LP Muggington Lane End

Lavinia Blackwall, formerly of Trembling Bells, releases her debut LP Muggington Lane End

This week’s roundup includes some new music self-definition from Car Seat Headrest and Happyness, an eclectic mix from Ghostpoet, and two wonderful solo albums by Michael J Sheehy and Lavinia Blackwall

Read more
In albums, ambient, blues, electronica, experimental, folk, hip hop, indie, jazz, pop, post-punk, psychedelia, rock, soul, traditional Tags albums, new releases, Car Seat Headrest, Will Toledo, Damien Jurado, Ghostpoet, Happyness, Michael J Sheehy, Miraculous Mule, Lavinia Blackwall, Trembling Bells, The Soft Pink Truth, Drew Daniel, Matmos, Rose McGowan, Ben Lukas Boysen, Various, NHS, Foals, The Vaccines, The Big Moon, Sports Team, Wolf Alice, Baxter Dury, The Wombats, The Magic Gang, Nilüfer Yanya, Spector, Swim Deep, The Orielles, Pixx, Jessica Winter, Oscar Lang, Alfie Templeton, Matador Records, Loose Music, PIAS, Infinit Suds, Bandcamp, Thrill Jockey, Erased Tapes
Comment

New albums: The Strokes, Laura Marling, Jackie Lynn, Pokey LaFarge, Flat Worms, Margaret Glaspy, Irma Vep, Hailu Mergia, Denzel Curry + Kenny Beats, DJ Python

April 15, 2020 Peter Kimpton
The Strokes

The Strokes

Strong new LPs from The Strokes and Laura Marling reflect signs of the times, while eclectic records from Jackie Lynn and Pokey LaFarge, and excellent postpunk from Flat Worms and Irma Vep are also among this week’s 10 picks

Read more
In African, albums, ambient, blues, classical, country, dance music, dub, electronica, folk, experimental, funk, grime, garage, hip hop, hip-hop, indie, jazz, metal, musical theatre, pop, post-punk, prog-rock, psychedelia, punk, rock, soul, traditional Tags albums, new releases, The Strokes, Laura Marling, Jackie Lynn, Haley Fohr, Pokey LaFarge, Flat Worms, Margaret Glaspy, Irma Vep, Hailu Mergia, Denzel Curry, Kenny Beats, DJ Python, Cult Records, Columbia Records, Partisan Records, Chrysalis, Drag City, New West Records, God? Records, PIAS, ATO Records, Gringo Records, Awesome Tapes From Africa, Loma Vista, Incensio
Comment

New albums: Dana Gavanski, Waxahatchee, Sorry, Dua Lipa, Sufjan Stevens, Pearl Jam, Stephen Malkmus, Wu Fei, Abigail Washburn, The Chats, Shabaka Hutchings, Daniel Avery, Brian Fallon

March 31, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Dana Gavanski, from the video for Yesterday is Gone

Dana Gavanski, from the video for Yesterday is Gone

This week’s huge roundup includes a wide range of the soft and loud, the traditional and the experimental, from beautiful songwriting by Dana Gavanski and Waxahatchee, Aussie punks The Chats, and ambient music from Sufjan Stevens

Read more
In albums, ambient, country, classical, dance music, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, indie, jazz, metal, pop, post-punk, psychedelia, punk, rock, soul, traditional, grunge Tags albums, new releases, Dana Gavanski, Waxahatchee, Sorry, Dua Lipa, Sufjan Stevens, Lowell Brams, Pearl Jam, Stephen Malkmus, Wu Fei, Abigail Washburn, The Chats, Shabaka Hutchings, Shabaka and the Ancestors, The Comet Is Coming, Sons of Kemet, Daniel Avery, Alessandro Cortini, Brian Fallon, Mike Lindsay, Nine Inch Nails, Full Time Hobby, Merge Records, Domino Records, Warner Bros, Asthmatic Kitty, Smithsonian Folkways, Bargain Bin, Republic, Impulse Records, Phantasy Sound, PIAS, Lesser Known Records
Comment

New albums: Grimes, Agnes Obel, King Krule, Pictish Trail, Lanterns on the Lake, Douglas Dare, Peggy Sue, Best Coast

February 24, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Grimes

Grimes

A truly eclectic lineup characterises this week’s roundup with a concept album from Grimes, a work of ethereal beauty from Agnes Obel, space electronic-folk from The Pictish Trail, and much more …

Read more
In albums, ambient, dance music, electronica, experimental, folk, hip hop, indie, jazz, pop, rock, soul Tags albums, new releases, Grimes, Agnes Obel, King Krule, The Pictish Trail, Lanterns of the Lake, Douglas Dare, Peggy Sue, Best Coast, Deutsche Grammophon, 4AD, Fire Records, XL Recordings, Matador Records, Bella Union, PIAS, Erased Tapes, Concord Records
Comment

New albums: Algiers, Halsey, Courteeners, Eminem, Mura Masa, Mac Miller, Keeley Forsyth, Alice Boman, Bill Fay, Bombay Bicycle Club, Pinegrove, Whyte Horses (with John Grant), Ivor Cutler tribute

January 21, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Halsey

Halsey

A mixture of dark and light, hope and hopelessness decorate this week’s huge roundup of releases across many genres, including oddities and eccentricities, passions and playfulness from Emimen to Ivor Cutler, Halsey to Keeley Forsyth

Read more
In albums, ambient, dance music, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, garage, grime, hip hop, hip-hop, indie, jazz, metal, pop, post-punk, prog-rock, psychedelia, punk, rock, soul, traditional Tags albums, new releases, Algiers, Halsey, Courteeners, Eminem, Mura Masa, Mac Miller, Keeley Forsyth, Alice Boman, Bill Fay, Bombay Bicycle Club, Pinegrove, Whyte Horses, John Grant, Gruff Rhys, La Roux, Ivor Cutler, Citizen Bravo, Raymond MacDonald, Matador Records, Ignition, Interscope, Aftermath Entertainment, Polydor, Warner Bros, Capitol Records, The Leaf Label, PIAS, Dead Oceans, Mmm…Records, Rough Trade, CRC Music, Chemikal Underground
Comment

Billie Eilish to FKA twigs to Weyes Blood: favourite albums of 2019 – part 2

December 31, 2019 Peter Kimpton
FKA twigs

FKA twigs

The second part of this year’s LP favourites again includes several superb female artists. Also check out the first part published yesterday

Read more
In African, albums, ambient, blues, classical, country, dance music, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, garage, grime, hip hop, indie, jazz, musical theatre, pop, post-punk, prog-rock, psychedelia, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, soul, traditional, trip-hop Tags albums, favourites of the year, FKA Twigs, Nilüfer Yanya, Shana Cleveland, Kim Gordon, Lana Del Rey, Slowthai, Tindersticks, Divine Comedy, Gruff Rhys, Ebony Street Band, The Futureheads, Holly Herndon, Dave, Purple Mountains, David Berman, Cate Le Bon, black midi, Fat White Family, Bill Callahan, Snapped Ankles, Warmduscher, Leonard Cohen, Vanishing Twin, Kate Tempest, Weyes Blood, The Comet Is Coming, Clinic, Solange, Billie Eilish, Deerhunter, 4AD, Darkroom, Interscope, Columbia Records, Domino Records, Impulse Records, Sub Pop, Fiction Records, Fire Records, The Leaf Label, Drag City, Rough Trade, Mexican Summer, Neighbourhood Records, Nul Records, OM Swagger Music, City Slang, Method Records, Polydor, Matador Records, Hardly Art, ATO Records, PIAS, Young Turks
Comment

Aldous Harding to Richard Dawson to Michael Kiwanuka: favourite albums of 2019 – part 1

December 30, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Aldous Harding wins the prize for most unusual moves for her song, The Barrel

Aldous Harding wins the prize for most unusual moves for her song, The Barrel

The first part of our selection of the pick of albums from 2019 by Song Bar readers and the Landlord editor, in alphabetical order by title, not a ‘best of’ or countdown. The second part is here.

Read more
In African, albums, ambient, blues, classical, country, dance music, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, garage, grime, hip hop, indie, jazz, pop, musical theatre, metal, post-punk, prog-rock, psychedelia, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, soul, soundtracks, traditional, trip-hop Tags albums, favourites of the year, Richard Dawson, Chali 2na, Krafty Kuts, Angel Olsen, Amyl and the Sniffers, Marika Hackman, Sudan Archives, Edwyn Collins, Pom Poko, Self Esteem, Rebecca Taylor, Lizzo, Julia Jacklin, Beck, Aldous Harding, Fontaines D.C., Minyo Crusaders, WaqWaq Kingdom, Sleaford Mods, Vampire Weekend, Anna Meredith, Shura, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Peter Perrett, Little Simz, Bonnie Prince Billy, Nilüfer Yanya, International Teachers of Pop, Brittany Howard, Alabama Shakes, Michael Kiwanuka, Polydor, Columbia Records, Desolate Spools Records, ATO Records, PIAS, Domino Records, AGE 101, Secretly Canadian, Moshi Moshi, Black Prince Fury, Extreme Eating Records, Phantom Limb, Mais Um, Partisan Records, 4AD, Capitol Records, Transgressive, Nice Life, Atlantic Records, Fiction Records, Bella Union, AED, Stones Throw, EMI, Rough Trade, Jagjaguwar, Manphibian Music
Comment
Older Posts →
music_declares_emergency_logo.png

Sing out, act on CLIMATE CHANGE

Black Lives Matter.jpg

CONDEMN RACISM, EMBRACE EQUALITY


Donate
Song Bar spinning.gif

DRINK OF THE WEEK

Napue dark gin


SNACK OF THE WEEK

crudités platter


New Albums …

Featured
Melody's Echo Chamber - Unclouded.jpeg
Dec 5, 2025
Melody's Echo Chamber: Unclouded
Dec 5, 2025

New album: A fourth album, here full of delicious uplifting, dreamily chic, psychedelic soul pop by the French musician Melody Prochet, with bright, upbeat, optimistic numbers and a title lifted from a quote by the acclaimed Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki, about achieving equilibrium

Dec 5, 2025
Devotion & The Black Divine by anaiis.jpeg
Dec 2, 2025
anaiis: Devotion & The Black Divine
Dec 2, 2025

New album: Following a summer Song of the Day - Deus Deus, a review of the autumn release and third LP by the London-based French-Senegalese singer-songwriter of resonantly beautiful, dynamic, sensual soul, gospel, R&B and experimental and chamber pop, with themes of new motherhood, uncertainty, religion, self-love and acceptance

Dec 2, 2025
De La Soul - Cabin In The Sky.jpeg
Nov 26, 2025
De La Soul: Cabin In The Sky
Nov 26, 2025

New album: The hip-hop veterans return with their first without, yet including the voice of, and a tribute to, founding member Trugoy the Dove, AKA Dave Jolicoeur who passed away in 2023, alongside many hip-hop luminary guests, with trademark playful skits, and all themed around the afterlife

Nov 26, 2025
The Mountain Goats- Through This Fire Across From Peter Balkan.jpeg
Nov 26, 2025
The Mountain Goats: Through This Fire Across From Peter Balkan
Nov 26, 2025

New album: An evocative musical journey of a concept album by the indie-folk band from Claremont, California, fronted by singer-songwriter John Darnielle, based on a dream of his in 2023 about a voyage to a fictional island by the titular captain, charting adventure, wonder and tragedy

Nov 26, 2025
Allie X - Happiness Is Going To Get You.jpeg
Nov 26, 2025
Allie X: Happiness Is Going To Get You
Nov 26, 2025

New album: A hugely entertaining, witty, droll, inventive, chamber and synth-pop fourth LP with a goth twist by the charismatic and theatrical Canadian artist Alexandra Hughes, who brings paradox and dark themes through sounds that include string quartet, harpsichord, classical and pure pop piano with killer lyrics

Nov 26, 2025
Tortoise - Touch.jpeg
Nov 25, 2025
Tortoise: Touch
Nov 25, 2025

New album: A welcome return with a cinematic and mesmeric groove-filled first studio LP in nine years, and the eighth over all by the eclectic Chicago post-rock/jazz/krautrock multi-instrumentalists Dan Bitney, John Herndon, Douglas McCombs, John McEntire and Jeff Parker

Nov 25, 2025
What of Our Nature by Haley Heynderickx, Max García Conover.jpeg
Nov 24, 2025
Haley Heynderickx and Max García Conover: What of Our Nature
Nov 24, 2025

New album: Beautiful, precise, poignant and poetic new folk numbers inspired by the life and music style of Woody Guthrie as the Portland, Oregon and New Yorker, now Portland, Maine-based singer-songwriters bring a delicious duet album, alternating and sharing songs covering a variety of forever topical social issues

Nov 24, 2025
Tranquilizer by Oneohtrix Point Never.jpeg
Nov 24, 2025
Oneohtrix Point Never: Tranquilizer
Nov 24, 2025

New album: Ambient, otherworldly, cinematic, mesmeric, and at times very odd, the Brooklyn-based electronic artist and producer Daniel Lopatin returns with a new nostalgia-based concept – constructing tracks from lost-then-refound Y2K CDs of 1990s and early 2000s royalty-free sample electronic sounds

Nov 24, 2025
Iona Zajac - Bang.jpeg
Nov 24, 2025
Iona Zajac: Bang
Nov 24, 2025

New album: A powerful, stirring, passionate and mature debut LP by the 29-year-old Glasgow-based Scottish singer with Polish and Ukrainian heritage who has toured as the new Pogues singer, and whose alternative folk songs capture raw emotions and the experience of modern womanhood, with echoes of PJ Harvey, Patti Smith, Aldous Harding and Lankum

Nov 24, 2025
Austra - Chin Up Buttercup.jpeg
Nov 19, 2025
Austra: Chin Up Buttercup
Nov 19, 2025

New album: This fifth studio LP as Austra by the Canadian classically trained vocalist and composer Katie Stelmanis brings beautiful electronica-pop and dance music, and has a bittersweet ironic title – a caustically witty reference to societal pressure to keep smiling despite a devastating breakup

Nov 19, 2025
Mavis Staples - Sad and Beautiful World.jpeg
Nov 18, 2025
Mavis Staples: Sad and Beautiful World
Nov 18, 2025

New album: A timelessly classy release by the veteran soul, blues and gospel singer and social activist from the Staples Singers, in a release of wonderfully moving and poignant cover versions, beautifully interpreting works by artists including Tom Waits, Curtis Mayfield, Leonard Cohen, and Gillian Welch

Nov 18, 2025
Stella Donnelly - Love and Fortune 2.jpeg
Nov 18, 2025
Stella Donnelly: Love and Fortune
Nov 18, 2025

New album: Finely crafted, stripped back musical simplicity combined with complex melancholic emotions mark out this beautiful, poetic, and deeply personal third folk-pop LP by the Australian singer-songwriter reflecting on the past and present

Nov 18, 2025
picture-parlour-the-parlour-album.jpeg
Nov 17, 2025
Picture Parlour: The Parlour
Nov 17, 2025

New album: Following last year’s EP Face in the Picture, a fabulously stylish, smart, swaggering glam-rock-pop debut LP by the Manchester-formed, London-based band fronted by the impressively raspy, gritty, vibratro delivery of Liverpudlian vocalist and guitarist Katherine Parlour and distinctive riffs from North Yorkshire-born guitar Ella Risi

Nov 17, 2025
FKA twigs - Eusexua Afterglow.jpeg
Nov 16, 2025
FKA twigs: EUSEXUA Afterglow
Nov 16, 2025

New album: Springing from her much lauded third LP Eusexua, out in January this year, and following a hugely successful and spectacular tour, the innovative British experimental pop artist, dancer and producer extends her palette of ethereal, otherworldly and sensual creations in this new, more carnal, harder, beat-filled parallel release

Nov 16, 2025

new songs …

Featured
The Lemon Twigs - I've Got A Broken Heart.jpeg
Dec 4, 2025
Song of the Day: The Lemon Twigs - I've Got A Broken Heart
Dec 4, 2025

Song of the Day: Despite the title, this new double-A single (with Friday I’m Gonna Love You) has a wonderfully uplifting guitar-jangling beauty, with echoes of The Byrds and Stone Roses, but is of course the brilliant 60s and 70s retro sound of the Long Island brothers Brian and Michael D'Addario, out on Captured Tracks

Dec 4, 2025
Alewya - Night Drive.jpeg
Dec 3, 2025
Song of the Day: Alewya - Night Drive (featuring Dagmawit Ameha)
Dec 3, 2025

Song of the Day: A sensual, stylish, dreamy electro-pop single by the striking British singer-songwriter, producer, multidisciplinary artist and model Alewya Demmisse, musically influenced by her rich Ethiopian-Egyptian heritage and early childhood upbringings in Saudi Arabia and Sudan

Dec 3, 2025
Rule 31 Single Artwork.jpg
Dec 2, 2025
Song of the Day: Radio Free Alice - Rule 31
Dec 2, 2025

Song of the Day: Stirring, passionate indie postpunk by the band based in Melbourne, Australia, with echoes of The Cure’s core sound, new wave, and 90s indie-rock influences, and out on Double Drummer

Dec 2, 2025
Sailor Honeymoon - Armchair.jpeg
Dec 1, 2025
Song of the Day: Sailor Honeymoon - Armchair
Dec 1, 2025

Song of the Day: Catchy, punchy, fuzz-guitar indie rock with a droll lyrical delivery and some echoes of Wet Leg come in this new single by the trio from Seoul, South Korea, out on Good Good Records

Dec 1, 2025
Ellie O'Neill.jpeg
Nov 30, 2025
Song of the Day: Ellie O'Neill - Bohemia
Nov 30, 2025

Song of the Day: A beautiful, poetic finger-picking debut folk single with a mystical, distantly stormy twist by the Dublin-based Irish singer-songwriter from County Meath, out now on St Itch Records

Nov 30, 2025
Danalogue.jpeg
Nov 29, 2025
Song of the Day: Danalogue - Sonic Hypnosis
Nov 29, 2025

Song of the Day: A full flavour of future-past with mesmeric, euphoric retro acid house and electronica in this new single by Daniel Leavers, producer and the founding member of The Comet Is Coming and Soccer96, out now on Castles In Space

Nov 29, 2025
Cardinals band.jpeg
Nov 28, 2025
Song of the Day: Cardinals - Barbed Wire
Nov 28, 2025

Song of the Day: Another striking, passionate, punchy, catchy single by the Irish postpunk/indie-folk-rock band from Cork, heralding their upcoming debut album, Masquerade, out on 13 February via So Young Records

Nov 28, 2025
Frank-Popp-Ensemble and Paul Weller.jpeg
Nov 27, 2025
Song of the Day: Frank Popp Ensemble (with Paul Weller) - Right Before My Eyes
Nov 27, 2025

Song of the Day: A strong, soaring, emotive, soulful release by the German artist co-written by British singer and former Jam frontman who here sings and plays guitar, the lyrics about witnessing the increasing injustices and demise of the world, out on Unique Records / Schubert Music Europe

Nov 27, 2025
Tessa Rose Jackson - Fear Bangs The Drum 2.jpeg
Nov 26, 2025
Song of the Day: Tessa Rose Jackson - Fear Bangs The Drum
Nov 26, 2025

Song of the Day: Using a musical metaphor, beautiful, crisply rhythmical, soaring piano and atmospheric indie-pop-folk about facing your fears by the Dutch/British singer-songwriter, heralding her forthcoming new album The Lighthouse, out on 23 January 2026 on Tiny Tiger Records

Nov 26, 2025
Melanie Baker - Sad Clown.jpeg
Nov 25, 2025
Song of the Day: Melanie Baker - Sad Clown
Nov 25, 2025

Song of the Day: Catchy, candid, cathartic indie-grunge-pop by the British singer-songwriter from Cumbria in a melancholy but oddly uplifting emotional work-through of depression, love and exhaustion, out now on TAMBOURHINOCEROS

Nov 25, 2025
Holly Humberstone - Die Happy.jpeg
Nov 24, 2025
Song of the Day: Holly Humberstone - Die Happy
Nov 24, 2025

Song of the Day: Luxuriant, breathy, femme-fatale dream pop with a dark, southern gothic, Lana del Rey-inspired, live-fast-die-young theme, and stylish video by the 25-year-old British singer-songwriter from Grantham, out on Polydor/Universal

Nov 24, 2025
These New Puritans brothers.jpg
Nov 23, 2025
Song of the Day: These New Puritans - The Other Side
Nov 23, 2025

Song of the Day: A delicate, tender, and unusually minimalist single, their first since this year’s acclaimed album Crooked Wing, by the Southend-on-Sea-born Barnett twins, here with Jack on improvised piano and George on drums and a soprano register wordless vocal, out on Domino Records

Nov 23, 2025

Word of the week

Featured
Hangover.jpeg
Dec 4, 2025
Word of the week: crapulence
Dec 4, 2025

Word of the week: A term that may apply regularly during Xmas party season, from the from the Latin crapula, in turn from the Greek kraipálē meaning "drunkenness" or "headache" pertains to sickness symptoms caused by excess in eating or drinking, or general intemperance and overindulgence

Dec 4, 2025
Running shoes and barefoot.jpeg
Nov 20, 2025
Word of the week: discalceate
Nov 20, 2025

Word of the week: A rarely used, but often practised verb, especially when arriving home, it means to take off your shoes, but is also a slightly more common adjective meaning barefoot or unshod, particularly for certain religious orders that wear sandals instead of shoes. But in what context does this come up in song?

Nov 20, 2025
autumn-red-leaves.jpeg
Nov 6, 2025
Word of the week: erythrophyll
Nov 6, 2025

Word of the week: A seasonally topical word relating to the the red pigment of tree leaves, fruits and flowers, that appears particularly when changing in autumn, as opposed to the green effect of chlorophyll, from the Greek erythros for red, and phyll for leaves. But what of songs about this?

Nov 6, 2025
Fennec fox 2.jpeg
Oct 22, 2025
Word of the week: fennec
Oct 22, 2025

Word of the week: It’s a small pale-fawn nocturnal fox with unusually large, highly sensitive ears, that inhabits from African and Arab deserts areas from Western Sahara and Mauritania to the Sinai Peninsula. But has it ever been seen in a song?

Oct 22, 2025
Narrowboat.jpeg
Oct 9, 2025
Word of the week: gongoozler
Oct 9, 2025

Word of the week: A fabulous old English slang term for someone who tends to stand or sit for long periods staring at the passing of boats on canals, sometimes with a derogatory or at least ironic use for someone who is useless or lazy. But what of songs about this activity and culture?

Oct 9, 2025

Song Bar spinning.gif