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Arctic Monkeys – When The Sun Goes Down

April 22, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Arctic Monkeys in 2006

Arctic Monkeys in 2006

Song of the Day: Following the Libertines and the Strokes, this Anglo-American sequence now brings us to the young Sheffield quartet's second single from their debut album of 2006: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not

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In 2006, rock, pop, indie Tags song of the day, songs, Arctic Monkeys, Alex Turner, Sheffield, prostitution, The Libertines, The Strokes
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The Strokes – Hard To Explain

April 21, 2018 Peter Kimpton
The Strokes

The Strokes

Song of the Day: After yesterday's sun-related song by the Libertines, we move to the Strokes - but the connection is less a play on words, more of a musical one, and how influential the New York band on their contemporaries with this first single from 2001

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In 2001, rock, pop, indie Tags songs, song of the day, The Strokes
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The Libertines – Don't Look Back Into the Sun

April 20, 2018 Peter Kimpton
The Libertines in 2003

The Libertines in 2003

Song of the Day: Possibly the shining pinnacle of the indie rock quartet's repertoire this 2003 never appeared on an album, but a searing anthem to a refreshing new postpunk English sound

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In 2003, indie, post-punk, rock Tags songs, song of the day, The Libertines, Carl Barât, Pete Doherty, Bernard Butler, Suede, Mick Jones, The Clash, drugs, Oasis, The Velvet Underground
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I Am Kloot – Northern Skies

April 3, 2018 Peter Kimpton
I Am Kloot, featuring frontman John Bramwell (centre)

I Am Kloot, featuring frontman John Bramwell (centre)

Song of the Day: A sublimely reflective and beautiful song that finds clarity and beauty beyond the foggy nebula of dark cloud cover, written and sung by John Bramwell for the 2010 album Sky At Night

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In 2010, folk, indie Tags songs, song of the day, I Am Kloot, John Bramwell, Elbow, Craig Potter, Guy Garvey
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Morrissey – Everyday Is Like Sunday

April 1, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Welcome to paradise

Welcome to paradise

Song of the Day: Perhaps the ultimate number for an absurdly cold, cloudy British Easter Sunday, also this year falling on April Fool's Day, therefore so ironically and self-destructively bleak it's almost uplifting

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In rock, pop, indie, 1988 Tags songs, song of the day, Morrissey, The Smiths, Stephen Street
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Cake – The Distance

March 23, 2018 Peter Kimpton
The Distance comes from Cake's second album, Fashion Nugget (1996)

The Distance comes from Cake's second album, Fashion Nugget (1996)

Song of the Day: Following Kraftwerk and Yello, we return to the road. Or do we? Is this classic by the Sacramento rock band about an obsessive racing driver, or something else entirely?

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In 1996, indie, rock Tags songs, song of the day, Cake, John McCrea, Vince DiFiore, Greg Brown, cars, car racing, relationships
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The Magnetic Fields – Love Is Like A Bottle of Gin

March 17, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Stephin Merritt and friend

Stephin Merritt and friend

Song of the Day: 'Love is ...' here perhaps less a song, more a poetic, wry, extended metaphor, but still a lugubrious bit of loveliness from The Magnetic Fields' 1999 triple album 69 Love Songs

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In 1999, pop, indie, folk Tags songs, love songs, song of the day, The Magnetic Fields, Stephin Merritt
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Cat Power (with Iggy Pop) – Nothin' But Time

February 25, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Cat Power aka Chan Marshall

Cat Power aka Chan Marshall

Song of the Day: Following Go-Kart Mozart's wonderfully chirpy songs about doleful poverty and adult depression, we turn to a aka Chan Marshall's song addressed at a teenager feeling down from online bullying

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In 2012, pop, indie Tags songs, song of the day, Cat Power, Chan Marshall, Iggy Pop, bullying, mental health, depression
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Go-Kart Mozart - When You're Depressed / Relative Poverty

February 23, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Go-Kart Mozart's Lawrence, a genius at upbeat-downbeat indie pop

Go-Kart Mozart's Lawrence, a genius at upbeat-downbeat indie pop

Song of the Day returns with two gloriously upbeat numbers with downbeat titles by Lawrence, formerly of Felt and Denim, from his brand new 17-track album Mozart's Mini Mart

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In 2018, indie, pop Tags songs, song of the day, Go-Kart Mozart, Lawrence, Felt, Denim
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David Byrne – Everybody's Coming to My House / Talking Heads – Once In A Lifetime

February 9, 2018 Peter Kimpton
David Byrne

David Byrne

Song of the Day: That's not my beautiful house! Or is it? Today we may find ourselves comparing two sublime songs, two houses, one brand new and a classic from the Talking Heads Remain in Light album of 1980

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In 1980, 1981, 2018, indie, pop, post-punk Tags songs, song of the day, David Byrne, Brian Eno, Chris Frantz, Jerry Harrison, Tina Weymouth
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Ezra Furman – Love You So Bad

February 8, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Ezra Furman never fails to be entertaining on stage

Ezra Furman never fails to be entertaining on stage

A beautifully upbeat, mischievous, wistful, passionate number from the new album, Transangelic Exodus by the Chicago indie rock singer-songwriter, in which "the past is the past, but the present's nothing without it"

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In rock, pop, indie, 2017, 2018 Tags songs, song of the day, Ezra Furman
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Field Music – Count It Up

February 5, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Field Music's 2018 album Open Here

Field Music's 2018 album Open Here

Song of the Day: How to create a value system for modern life? Just as this is hard to quantify, it is equally difficult to categorise the musical style of the Sunderland band, whose latest, sixth album, Open Here, addresses a variety of contemporary issues

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In 2018, indie, pop, electronica Tags songs, song of the day, Field Music, David Brewis, Peter Brewis, David Byrne, Memphis Industries
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Ty Segall / Hot Chocolate – Every 1's A Winner

February 2, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Ty Segall's new album, Freedom's Goblin

Ty Segall's new album, Freedom's Goblin

Song of the Day: It's time for an upbeat number for Friday, and so let's enjoy a great new cover version by the American garage rocker that stands up the original, but also resulting in a situation where everyone is indeed a winner

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In 1978, funk, indie, pop, 2018 Tags songs, song of the day, Ty Segall, Hot Chocolate, Errol Brown, The Freedom Band, White Denim
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Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band – Moonlight On Vermont / Tropical Hot Dog Night

January 26, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Captain Beefheart, aka Don Van Vliet – musician, artist, visionary.

Captain Beefheart, aka Don Van Vliet – musician, artist, visionary.

Song of the Day: With the recent passing of The Fall's Mark E Smith, and all the songs, tributes and stories that have followed, it now seems only appropriate to follow up with music Smith loved by one of his major influences

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In 1969, 1978, psychedelia, prog rock, krautrock, jazz, indie, blues, avant garde Tags songs, song of the day, Captain Beefheart, The Magic Band, Don Van Vliet, Mark E Smith, The Fall, jazz, blues, avant garde, indie, punk
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The Fall – Blindness (and farewell Mark E Smith)

January 24, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Mark E Smith 1957-2018

Mark E Smith 1957-2018

Song of the Day: With the sudden news of the passing of Mark E Smith, how can we choose a song to exemplify this force of nature, this difficult genius, this guttural great, this prince of post-punk lyricists inspired by HP Lovecraft, William Blake, Wyndham Lewis, Gene Vincent and krautrock

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In 2005, indie, post-punk, punk Tags songs, song of the day, The Fall, Mark E Smith, HP Lovecraft, William Blake, Wyndham Lewis, Gene Vincent, The Monks, krautrock, punk, postpunk
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Super Furry Animals – Northern Lites

January 22, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Super Furry Animals single cover for Northern Lites

Super Furry Animals single cover for Northern Lites

Song of the Day: After Renaissance, let's turn to the innovative Welsh band, here adding a catchy dash of Caribbean calypso, steel drums and brass into a song written years earlier by frontman Gruff Rhys

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In 1999, pop, indie, reggae Tags songs, song of the day, Super Furry Animals, Gruff Rhys, El Nino, northern lights, aurora borealis
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Laura Gibson – Empire Builder / Two Kids

January 19, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Laura Gibson

Laura Gibson

Song of the Day: Continuing from our last entry, by Aldous Harding, another vocalist with a special form of melancholy, with work from the American artist's fourth solo album, Empire Builder, 2016

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In indie, folk, country, 2016 Tags songs, song of the day, Laura Gibson, indie, folk, country
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Aldous Harding – Elation / Imagining My Man

January 17, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Aldous Harding

Aldous Harding

Song of the Day: Another sublime voice, and here two songs from the New Zealander, whose voice coils out in a still, acoustic guitar and piano, and reveals raw, intimate emotions awash with melancholic black humour

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In 2017, folk, indie Tags songs, song of the day, Aldous Harding, acoustic guitar, folk, Nico, Joanna Newsom, 4AD
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The Cranberries - Zombie

January 16, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Dolores O'Riordan

Dolores O'Riordan

Song of the Day: Another music star death prompts today's choice, and a shock one at that – the 46-year-old Dolores O'Riordan, whose passion shines out in this 1994 number from the album No Need To Argue

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In 1994, 1993, indie Tags songs, song of the day, The Cranberries, Dolores O'Riordan
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Jeff Buckley – Grace

January 15, 2018 Peter Kimpton
Jeff Buckley in full swing

Jeff Buckley in full swing

Song of the Day: Following yesterday's Massive Attack song Teardrop, sung by Elizabeth Fraser, another work of soaring power and passion, and also tragic portent, by the man with whom she had an intense relationship

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In 1994, rock, indie Tags songs, song of the day, Jeff Buckley, Gary Lucas, Elizabeth Fraser
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DRINK OF THE WEEK

Napue dark gin


SNACK OF THE WEEK

crudités platter


New Albums …

Featured
Favourite Albums of 2025 - Part 3.jpeg
Dec 18, 2025
Favourite albums of 2025 - Part Three
Dec 18, 2025

Welcome to the third and final part of Song Bar favourite albums of 2025. There is also Part One, and Part Two. There is no countdown nor describing these necessarily as “best” albums of the year, but they are chosen by their quality, originality and reader popularity

Dec 18, 2025
Favourite albums of 2025 - Part Two.jpeg
Dec 17, 2025
Favourite albums of 2025 - Part Two
Dec 17, 2025

Welcome to the second part of Song Bar favourite albums of 2025. There is also a first part and a third part this week. There is no countdown nor describing these necessarily as “best” albums of the year, but they are chosen by their quality, originality and reader popularity

Dec 17, 2025
Favourite albums of 2025 - Part 1 updated.jpg
Dec 16, 2025
Favourite albums of 2025 - Part One
Dec 16, 2025

Welcome to the first part of Song Bar favourite albums of 2025. There will also be a second and third part this week. There is no countdown nor describing these necessarily as “best” albums of the year, but they are chosen by their quality, originality and reader popularity

Dec 16, 2025
Juliana Hatfield.jpeg
Dec 16, 2025
Juliana Hatfield: Lightning Might Strike
Dec 16, 2025

New album: Personal upheaval, grief, powerlessness, trauma, sudden change inform the title and colour the lyrics of this latest LP by the seasoned Boston indie artist but her songs are packed with brutally honest, candid, concise reflections and warm, catchy, stirring riffs and melodies

Dec 16, 2025
Dove Ellis - Blizzard.jpeg
Dec 9, 2025
Dove Ellis: Blizzard
Dec 9, 2025

New album: An extraordinarily mature, passionate, poetic, and outstandingly powerful debut by the Manchester-based Galway-born singer-songwriter, whose soaring delivery has instant echoes of Jeff Buckley and lyrics that go above and beyond

Dec 9, 2025
Spíra by Ólöf Arnalds.jpeg
Dec 5, 2025
Ólöf Arnalds: Spíra
Dec 5, 2025

New album: A gorgeous, delicate, ethereal first release in a decade by the Icelandic singer-songwriter, acoustic instruments and her gentle, high, pure voice, all in her native language, caressing this listening experience like pure waters of some slowly trickling glacial stream

Dec 5, 2025
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

new songs …

Featured
Deadletter - To The Brim.jpeg
Dec 19, 2025
Song of the Day: DEADLETTER - To The Brim
Dec 19, 2025

Song of the Day: A moody, mysterious minute-long intro with gentle bursts of brass and woodwind veils what becomes a punchy new lead single by the Leeds post-punk band heralding their second LP - Existence is Bliss out on 27 February via SO Recordings

Dec 19, 2025
Greentea Peng - Prisoners Round.jpeg
Dec 18, 2025
Song of the Day: Greentea Peng - Prisoners Round
Dec 18, 2025

Song of the Day: Following March 2025’s acclaimed album, Tell Dem It’s Sunny, the south-east London artist (aka Aria Wells) returns with another smoky, dark, track with hues of blues, dub and soul and Portishead-esque trip-hop, focusing on the trappings and challenges of modern life

Dec 18, 2025
Kaitlyn Aurela Smith - I Miss The Way You Swim.jpg
Dec 17, 2025
Song of the Day: Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith - I Miss the Way You Swim
Dec 17, 2025

Song of the Day: Beautiful modular synths and intermingling orchestral sounds ripple in this work by the American composer, performer and producer in a piece shaped by loss of someone loved, taken from an upcoming instrumental album Thoughts On The Future, out on Nettwerk Music

Dec 17, 2025
The Paper Kites - If You Go There.jpeg
Dec 16, 2025
Song of the Day: The Paper Kites - Change Of The Wind
Dec 16, 2025

Song of the Day: A beautiful, reflective number by the alternative folk-rock band from Melbourne fronted by Sam Bentley, heralding their seventh studio album If You Go There, I Hope You Find It, out on 23 January via Nettwerk Music Group

Dec 16, 2025
Courtney Marie Andrews - Valentine.jpeg
Dec 15, 2025
Song of the Day: Courtney Marie Andrews - Little Picture Of A Butterfly
Dec 15, 2025

Song of the Day: Beautiful, delicate, fluttering, eclectic, heartbreak folk and Americana by the singer-songwriter from Phoenix, Arizona, heralding her forthcoming new album, Valentine, out on 16 January via Loose Future

Dec 15, 2025
Peter Perrett - Proud To Be Self-Hating.jpeg
Dec 12, 2025
Song of the Day: Peter Perrett - PROUD TO BE SELF-HATING (irony and provocation)
Dec 12, 2025

Song of the Day: The veteran British artist, originally frontman of The Only Ones, and now with three solo albums, who actually has Jewish heritage, releases a gently powerful, nuanced, pro-Palestine acoustic number as a response to ongoing genocide by the Israeli government, out on Domino Records

Dec 12, 2025
Maddie Ashman - Jaded.jpeg
Dec 11, 2025
Song of the Day: Maddie Ashman - Jaded
Dec 11, 2025

Song of the Day: Magical, delicate, eclectic, intricate, experimental microtonal music by the London musician and singer, released alongside a longer track, In Autumn My Heart Breaks

Dec 11, 2025
Ye Vagabonds.jpeg
Dec 10, 2025
Song of the Day: Ye Vagabonds - The Flood
Dec 10, 2025

Song of the Day: Wonderfully warm, rich, lively fiddle-driven Irish folk by the award-winning band fronted by Carlow brothers Brían and Diarmuid Mac Gloinn with a heartbreaking number about the housing crisis, heralding their upcoming new album, All Tied Together, out on Rough Trade’s River Lea Recordings on 30 January

Dec 10, 2025
DBA! band.jpeg
Dec 9, 2025
Song of the Day: DBA! A Poet And A Clown
Dec 9, 2025

Song of the Day: Catchy fuzz-guitar indie rock with a swagger by the Liverpool-formed trio of Sam Warren, James Lindberg and Joshua Grant in a song described as “a confessional story of desire tangled with religious guilt”

Dec 9, 2025
Puma Blue - Croak Dream.jpeg
Dec 8, 2025
Song of the Day: Puma Blue - Croak Dream
Dec 8, 2025

Song of the Day: A dark, esoteric, mysterious and stylish title track with a hint of Radiohead and playing with the idea of knowing your future death, from the experimental indie/goth/ambient London artist Jacob Allen’s forthcoming album out on 6 February via Play It Again Sam

Dec 8, 2025
ELIZA - Anyone Else.jpeg
Dec 7, 2025
Song of the Day: ELIZA - Anyone Else
Dec 7, 2025

Song of the Day: Stripped-back, bluesy, fuzzy funk with slight echoes of Prince and alt-R&B are conjured up in this love song by the London-based singer-songwriter Eliza Caird, her first single for two years, now off the mainstream and out on Log Off Records

Dec 7, 2025
SILK SCARF by Tiga & Fcukers.jpg
Dec 6, 2025
Song of the Day: Tiga (featuring Fcukers) - Silk Scarf
Dec 6, 2025

Song of the Day: A fun, sensual, quirkily oddball electronica dance single with a slick, fetish-flirtatious ode to a favourite smooth material by the Montreal musician (Tiga James Sontag) joined here with vocals by the New York band (Shanny Wise and Jackson Walker Lewis), and heralding Tiga’s upcoming album Hotlife, out in April on Secret City Records

Dec 6, 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

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