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It's that time again: songs about tradition

December 16, 2021 Peter Kimpton

Santa’s scary helpers: Krampus procession in Austria

From the ceremonious to the cerebral, the wonderful to the weird, the historical to the hysterical, let’s explore the world of traditions through all spheres and societies, from religion to culture, relationships and death, and of course, Christmas

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Tags songs, playlists, tradition, Christmas, festivals, religion, politics, society, Laura Greenwood, Woody Allen, Carlos Fuentes, William Shakespeare, Gustav Mahler, Mahler, Shakespeare, Warren Ellis, Marty Rubin, Lars Svendsen, GK Chesterton, Henry James, Somerset Maugham, India, China, Austria, Italy, Spain, Yung Chang, The Netherlands, Mummers, Bruce Springsteen, Irvine Welsh, Arlo Guthrie, Bonfire Night, Japan, James Baldwin, Richard Dawkins, Charles Dickens
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A whole heap of dreams: songs about Hollywood

April 16, 2020 Peter Kimpton
Hollywood Sign.jpg
Hollywood sign in reverse.jpg

It’s the most famous town in the world. This week our songs are about the place itself – its famous streets, landmarks, studios as well as the fascias, finery, or fakery of its people – their hopes, dreams, triumphs, failures, feuds and fantasies

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, jazz, metal, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, showtime, rocksteady, ska, songs, soul, soundtracks Tags songs, playlists, Film, film soundtrack, Hollywood, John Huston, Marilyn Monroe, Kevin Bacon, Dorothy Parker, Bernardo Bertolucci, Lionel Barrymore, Groucho Marx, Alistair Cooke, John Schlesinger, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monic Boulevard, Paramount Pictures, Capital Records, history, Christopher Ames, Max Lerner, Marlon Brando, Alan Arkin, Kimball King, Raymond Chandler, Angela Carter, La La Land, Erica Jong, Kris Kidd, WC Fields, Johnny Carson, James Baldwin, Billy Wilder, William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Buster Keaton, Cecil B. DeMille, Erich Von Stroheim, The Artist, Robert Altman, The Player, Tim Robbins, L.A. Confidential, James Ellroy, David Lynch, Mulholland Drive, Ethel Barrymore, Lily Amis, Andy Warhol, Fred Allen, Kermit, Kermit The Frog, The Muppets, Hollywood Walk of Fame, Rita Rudner, William Goldman, William Faulkner, Michael Houbrick, Sophie Kinsella, Rachel Weisz, Lana Turner, Ben Hecht, Woody Allen, A.K. Kuykendall, Paul Newman, George A Romero, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Thomas Pynchon, Eric Cantona, Coen Brothers, Barton Fink, David Mamet, Caroline Kepnes, Bill Cosby, Donald Trump, Julia Phillips, Me Cheeta, John Waters, Terry Gilliam
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I know why the caged bird sings: songs about or expressing empathy

August 15, 2019 Peter Kimpton
Maya Angelou: “I think we all have empathy. We may not have enough courage to display it.”

Maya Angelou: “I think we all have empathy. We may not have enough courage to display it.”

I feel for you. Reach out and I’ll be there. This week we’re seeking song-related understanding and connection the form of songs about empathy, and though it’s different perhaps also little secondary sympathy, in form or content

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In avant-garde, blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, experimental, folk, funk, gospel, hip hop, indie, metal, jazz, music, musical hall, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, prog, punk, reggae, rock, rocksteady, songs, ska, soul, traditional Tags songs, playlists, empathy, sympathy, relationships, Maya Angelou, William Blake, Leslie Jamison, Brené Brown, RIchard Louv, science, neurology, psychology, music, Brian Eno, Jay Griffiths, Gloria Steinem, Conor Oberst, Mary Gauthier, Viv Albertine, Anohni, Antony and the Johnsons, politics, Nathan Englander, Theodore Roosevelt, Mahatma Gandhi, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Ben Harper, Steve Martin, Black Mirror, Charlie Brooker, Margaret Atwood, Marty Rubin, Yann Martel, Morgan Neville, Film, books, Justin Simien, Roger Ebert, Harper Lee, Joseph Conrad, Martin Sheen, Marlon Brando, Sterling K. Brown, James Baldwin, Mehmet Oz, John Connolly, Mohsin Hamid, Neil Gaiman, Rumaan Alam, Terry Pratchett, Nitya Prakash, Elizabeth Goudge, Paul Auster, Eric Micha'el Leventhal, Gustave Flaubert, Elizabeth Bowen, Walt Whitman, Jorge Luis Borges, William Shakespeare
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Valentine's Day? Reveal your songs about secret admirers

February 14, 2019 Peter Kimpton
He nose, but does she? Cyrano de Bergerac

He nose, but does she? Cyrano de Bergerac

Clandestine cravings and crushes? To spice up a romantic tradition, this week’s topic is all about secret love longings expressed through song, here inspired by real-life examples of musicians, alongside film, books and theatre

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In blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, disco, dub, electronica, folk, gospel, hip hop, indie, jazz, metal, music, musicals, playlists, pop, postpunk, punk, reggae, rock, songs, soul Tags songs, playlists, St Valentine's Day, martyrs, romance, relationships, Edmond Rostand, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Steven Tyler, Lulu, Smokey Robinson, Linda Ronstadt, Amy Winehouse, Jane Austen, books, Emily Bronte, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Charles Dickens, James Baldwin, George Harrison, Pattie Boyd, Eric Clapton, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Marianne Faithfull, Fleetwood Mac, Film, Audrey Tatou, Gérard Depardieu
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Foul play? Songs about conspiracy theories and paranoia

June 21, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Meeting of metaphor or the literal? Well, it's all a question of scale …

Meeting of metaphor or the literal? Well, it's all a question of scale …

No, it’s not the World Cup. Or is it? This week let’s delve into music’s interpretation of the murky world of imagined or otherwise undercover plots from Roswell to JFK, 9/11 to Russian interference, and er … lizards

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In blues, classical, comedy, country, dance, hip hop, indie, instrumentals, metal, music, playlists, pop, postpunk, punk, rock, showtime, ska, songs Tags Songs, playlists, conspiracy theories, paranoia, politics, aliens, John F Kennedy, Howard Hughes, Hunter S. Thompson, John Buchan, Danny Bhoy, Comedy, Roswell incident, 9/11, Flat Earth Society, Paul McCartney, McCarthy era, Yuval Noah Harari, Jeff Greenfield, Peter Bergen, journalism, Felix Dennis, Marin Amis, David Icke, George HW Bush, The Queen, Kris Kristofferson, Theresa May, Michael Gove, Russia, Vladimir Putin, US presidential election, US presidents, Kardashians, science fiction, television, CIA, spying, smoking, cancer, James Baldwin, John le Carre, JD Salinger, William Burroughs, Mordecai Richler, Molly Ivins, Andy Grove, Thom Yorke, Ty Segall, David Sylvian, Cher, Billy Joel, Donald Trump, Louis Theroux, Kim Jong-un, Braindead (TV series), Star Trek, The Simpsons
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CONDEMN RACISM, EMBRACE EQUALITY

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DRINK OF THE WEEK

Mahou Clásica


SNACK OF THE WEEK

pincho de tortilla de patatas


New Albums …

Featured
Jim Ghedi - the death of robin hood soundtrack.jpeg
June 23, 2026
Jim Ghedi: The Death of Robin Hood (Original Soundtrack)
June 23, 2026

New album: Beautiful, evocative, darkly visceral and elegiac, thi folk-based soundtrack by the Sheffield singer-singer and composer captures the deeply unromantic and violent new feature film depicting Hood as a criminal non-hero from writer/director Michael Sarnoski and starring Hugh Jackman, very much stands on its own as album

June 23, 2026
Castle Park by Graham Coxon.jpeg
June 22, 2026
Graham Coxon: Castle Park
June 22, 2026

New album: With delightful echoes of the The Jam, The Kinks, The Bees, Small Faces and other classic 60s pop and mod influences, the Blur guitarist’s resurfaced and unreleased solo LP was actually recorded in 2011 at the time of his 2012 album A+E, and made with producer Ben Hillie

June 22, 2026
The Landfill by Fruit Bats.jpeg
June 17, 2026
Fruit Bats: The Landfill
June 17, 2026

New album: Written as usual with his first-thing-in-the-morning, stream-of-consciousness technique, the singer-songwriter Eric D. Johnson, also one-third of the folk trio Bonny Light Horseman, returns with a new collection of melodic, often beautiful, and profound, reflective, gentle, folky rock now 30 years since the first album

June 17, 2026
Demand to Be Taken to Heaven Alive! by Horse Lords.jpeg
June 17, 2026
Horse Lords: Demand to Be Taken to Heaven Alive!
June 17, 2026

New album: The Berlin-based, Baltimore quartet return with their special brand of mesmeric, experimental rock, weaving a rich maze of African polyrhythmic patterns and fascinating tessellations of percussion, guitar, bass, saxophone, microtones, electronic and voice loops

June 17, 2026
Roses by WIDOWSPEAK.jpeg
June 17, 2026
Widowspeak: Roses
June 17, 2026

New album: Deliciously gentle-paced and languid, warmly twangy and romantically nostalgic, poetic indie-country-rock by the New York band of spouses vocalist Molly Hamilton and guitarist Robert Earl Thomas, with delicate musical echoes of Tom Petty, Rolling Stones, REM, Neil Young, Yo La Tengo and Cat Power in this finely crafted seventh LP

June 17, 2026
Olivia Rodrigo - You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love.jpeg
June 16, 2026
Olivia Rodrigo: you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love
June 16, 2026

New album: The 23-year-old American singer-songwriter, actress, and evidently big fan of The Cure returns with consummately crafted, smart, witty pop and indie rock, featuring an appearance by Robert Smith, and charting the arc of a romantic relationship from unbridled joy to bitter aftermath in her third LP

June 16, 2026
Bingo! by La Sécurité.jpeg
June 15, 2026
La Sécurité: Bingo!
June 15, 2026

New album: Fabulously fun, vibrant, feisty, catchy, wittily droll post-punk, new wave and art-punk in this pacy, vivacious sophomore LP by the Montréal collective with themes from mental health, dysfunctional relationships, food to enjoyable elderly activities, with styles reminiscent of The B-52s and Devo

June 15, 2026
So Help Me God by Kelsey Lu.jpeg
June 13, 2026
Kelsey Lu: So Help Me God
June 13, 2026

New album: Luxuriant, ethereal, dramatic and passionate experimental and chamber dream pop by the American singer-songwriter and cellist, with their second LP, seven years since 2019 debut Blood, with guests including Sampha, Kamasi Washington, Kim Gordon, and co-producer Jack Antonoff

June 13, 2026
Cry Baby by Vince Staples.jpeg
June 10, 2026
Vince Staples: Cry Baby
June 10, 2026

New album: The Compton/ Long Beach, Californian rapper returns with a potent, punchy, overtly political rock-hip hop seventh LP that heavily critiques American society and power, racism, police violence, gun culture, media and the music industry, largely accompanied by a tight, riff-heavy electric guitars, bass and drums

June 10, 2026
Liz Lawrence - Vespers.jpeg
June 9, 2026
Liz Lawrence: Vespers
June 9, 2026

New album: More acoustic, stripped back and lo-fi than her previous four albums, yet with deeply powerful and moving songwriting and performance, the British artist’s latest is suffused with grief, reflection and devotion for the premature loss of her sister Jessie, capturing life and death, poetically expressing devotion and reflection

June 9, 2026
Neon Summer Skin by Bedouine.jpeg
June 9, 2026
Bedouine: Neon Summer Skin
June 9, 2026

New album: A serenely beautiful, but also nostalgically sorrowful fourth LP by American singer-songwriter Azniv Korkejian who has Armenian-Syrian heritage, with songs about displacement and identity, very mindful of Middle Eastern conflicts, atrocities and her family history, while broadening her sound into the lush mould of 1970s Carole King and Laurel Canyon

June 9, 2026
Spatial, No Problem. by Lee %22Scratch%22 Perry & Mouse on Mars.jpeg
June 8, 2026
Lee "Scratch" Perry and Mouse on Mars: Spatial, No Problem
June 8, 2026

New album: This wondrously eclectic and entertaining final official album project by the legendary Jamaican producer and artist, made before his passing in 2021, is a collaboration with the German electronic duo Jan St. Werner and Andi Toma, mixing reggae, krautrock, ambient, dub, jazz, New Orleans brass and more, alongside Perry’s distinctive voice

June 8, 2026
Doctrine of Love by Jalen Ngonda.jpeg
June 7, 2026
Jalen Ngonda: Doctrine of Love
June 7, 2026

New album: Following his acclaimed 2023 debut Come Around And Love Me, the American UK-based impressive soul singer’s second LP is another classy collection of beautifully uplifting, sublime Northern soul and Motown-era love songs

June 7, 2026
Death Cab For Cutie - I Built You A Tower.jpeg
June 7, 2026
Death Cab For Cutie: I Built You A Tower
June 7, 2026

New album: Elegantly expressed emotional turmoil unfolds across 11 cleverly crafted songs in this 11th album by the Seattle indie rock band fronted by Ben Gibbard and produced by the brilliant John Congleton around a metaphor for post-marriage grief

June 7, 2026

new songs …

Featured
Jim James.jpg
June 27, 2026
Song of the Day: Jim James - Come Again
June 27, 2026

Song of the Day: A strident, stirring, shuffle-rhythm, kaleidoscopic indie-rock meditation on resilience in the face of chaotic instability by the three-times Grammy nominated Kentucky-based singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist and founding member of My Morning Jacket, heralding his new solo album, Wowed Out, due out 28 August via ATO Records

June 27, 2026
Phoebe Bridgers  - Lost Boys video.jpeg
June 26, 2026
Song of the Day: Phoebe Bridgers - Lost Boys
June 26, 2026

Song of the Day: Gloriously uplifting indie-folk dream-pop the the acclaimed American singer-songwriter, joined on backing by her Boygenius friends Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker, and a charming medieval fantasy video also starring actor Skyler Gisondo, from the upcoming third LP Lost Weekend, out on 14 August via Dead Oceans

June 26, 2026
Cinder Well.jpeg
June 25, 2026
Song of the Day: Cinder Well - Beyond The Pale
June 25, 2026

Song of the Day: Beautiful, poetic, vivid folk and Americana about uncertainty and guilt by the LA–based songwriter, composer, and multi-instrumentalist Amelia Baker, heralding her upcoming album A Blooming Body, out on 17 July via Hen House Studios

June 25, 2026
Julia Holter.jpeg
June 24, 2026
Song of the Day: Julia Holter - Fantasy
June 24, 2026

Song of the Day: A beautiful, sensual, dream-like, ethereal new track by the acclaimed Los Angeles composer and songwriter, heralding her upcoming new album Materia, out on 21 August, a seven-track companion album to her superb 2024 release Something in the Room She Moves, also out on Domino Records

June 24, 2026
Bodega band - All Inside Aquarium.png
June 23, 2026
Song of the Day: BODEGA - All Inside Aquarium
June 23, 2026

Song of the Day: Moving away from of their post-punk sound into more of a meaty, guitar-driven melodic rock, the New York band return with a catchy, witty, singalong title track, , an existential anthem influenced by Jane’s Addiction, from their upcoming album, out on 9 October via Chrysalis Records

June 23, 2026
Eels - Cap In Hand.jpeg
June 22, 2026
Song of the Day: EELS - Cap In Hand
June 22, 2026

Song of the Day: A pointed, subtle but also catchy number about making mistakes, regret and social division, US artist Mark Oliver Everett and band return with the lead single from the upcoming album out on 16 October via E Works / Play It Again Sam

June 22, 2026
The Knife, The Needle by Elanor Moss.jpeg
June 21, 2026
Song of the Day: Elanor Moss - Sarah Waiting in the Car
June 21, 2026

Song of the Day: Gorgeously delicate, finger-picking folk by the British singer-songwriter from York, heralding her upcoming debut album The Knife, The Needle, out on 21 August via Merge Records

June 21, 2026
Pan Amsterdam.jpg
June 20, 2026
Song of the Day: Pan Amsterdam & The 1FS - Szechuan Beef
June 20, 2026

Song of the Day: Themed around his favourite subject of food, but also going to many other places, American jazz trumpeter, composer and vocalist Leron Thomas returns with the New York composer and visual artist in an eclectic, eccentric fusion of jazz and hip-hop

June 20, 2026
Julia Jacklin - The Gem.jpg
June 19, 2026
Song of the Day: Julia Jacklin - Get Away From Me (I Think I'll Love You Soon)
June 19, 2026

Song of the Day: A cleverly nuanced, emotionally ambiguous beautifully stirring indie-pop love song by the Australian singer-songwriter, in this first single heralding her upcoming fourth album The Gem, out on 25 September via 4AD

June 19, 2026
Paycheque by Paycheque.jpeg
June 18, 2026
Song of the Day: Paycheque - Heatwave
June 18, 2026

Song of the Day: Stylishly solemn, 80s-influenced synth and scything guitar indie pop with big drums by the Los Angeles duo of Allison Goldfarb and Jackson MacIntosh, from their recently released self-titled debut album, out on Mansions and Millions

June 18, 2026
Hanna Tuulikki.jpeg
June 17, 2026
Song of the Day: Hanna Tuulikki and Tommy Perman - We Came Out (Lesser Horseshoe bat)
June 17, 2026

Song of the Day: A pair of wondrously striking experimental electronica tracks infused with field recordings of the nocturnal winged mammal by the experimental artists and designer based in Scotland

June 17, 2026
Surusinghe 2.jpeg
June 16, 2026
Song of the Day: Surusinghe - FRIED
June 16, 2026

Song of the Day: A mesmeric, eclectic opening track by the Naarm/Melbourne-raised, London-based electronic artist, DJ and producer aka Suze Gurusinghe, from her recently released EP, Cutting Thread, out on Dh2

June 16, 2026

Word of the week

Featured
Flying saucer.jpeg
June 11, 2026
Word of the week: phialiform
June 11, 2026

Word of the week: This rare but oddly beautiful rare adjective means "saucer-shaped" or having the form of a small, shallow cup or vessel, from the Latin root phiala (a shallow bowl or phial) and the suffix -iform, meaning shape

June 11, 2026
Cypress vine.jpg
June 4, 2026
Word of the week: quamoclit
June 4, 2026

Word of the week: Also known as cypress vine, cardinal creeper, cardinal vine, star glory, star of Bethlehem or hummingbird vine, this striking climbing flower, Ipomoea quamoclit, is native tropical regions of the Americas and has a distinctive trumpet with five-point star-shaped petals

June 4, 2026
Riqq 1.jpeg
May 21, 2026
Word of the week: riqq
May 21, 2026

Word of the week: An appropriately onomatopoeic noun for name for Middle Eastern tambourine, able to produce a range of percussive sounds, and commonly heard in traditional Egyptian, Arab, Greek and Turkish music

May 21, 2026
Man-blowing-a-salpinx.jpg
May 7, 2026
Word of the week: salpinx
May 7, 2026

Word of the week: This very imposing, loud, resonant noun is an ancient Greek, trumpet-like instrument used as a tactical signal on the battle field, as well as to signal the beginnings of gatherings, or of races in sport

May 7, 2026
Song thrush 2.jpeg
April 23, 2026
Word of the week: throstle
April 23, 2026

Word of the week: An archaic, evocative noun with two connected meanings, originally for the song thrush, then later a textiles industrial frame for spinning, twisting and winding machine for cotton, wool, and other fibres simultaneously

April 23, 2026

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