Pop
The sermons poked out of the songs like busted bed springs: Van Morrison livestream reviewed
Over the decades, Van Morrison’s role within the tower of song has shifted from chief visionary officer to head of…
Watch kids go giddy in Niamey: Mdou Moctar live in Niger reviewed
The other week someone posted on Twitter a link to a YouTube clip titled ‘Family Lotus and D.J. Cookin’ at…
A redemption song, conventionally sung: Sky's Tina reviewed
It has never been easy for women in the music industry. Once upon a time the evidence was largely anecdotal.…
Moments of pure wonder: Folk Weekend Oxford reviewed
Has any musical moment extended its tendrils in so many unexpected directions as the English folk revival of the mid-1960s?…
The songs are still as fresh and appetising as a hot loaf: The Lightning Seeds livestream reviewed
One thing about a streamed festival is that the toilets are better than at the real thing. The other thing,…
Reminiscent of Roxy Music’s cocktail sound: The Weather Station reviewed
One of the unforeseen consequences of the rise of streaming was a change in the very structure of the pop…
Revelatory and grubby: Framing Britney Spears reviewed
The most headline-grabbing of these three pop docs was Framing Britney Spears, part of the New York Times Presents documentary…
The death of the mainstream band: Black Country, New Road reviewed
Twitter was awash with mockery last week, after Adam Levine, the singer of the American group Maroon 5, was interviewed…
Epic prog rock without the widdly-woo solos: Mogwai at the Tramway reviewed
You very possibly know the music of the Glaswegian band Mogwai, even if you don’t think you do. You might…
Makes me nostalgic for an era when music was more than a click away: Teenage Superstars reviewed
In Teenage Superstars, a long and slightly exhausting documentary about the Scottish indie scene of the 1980s and ’90s, there…
One of the few genuine British visionaries at work today: Richard Dawson at the Barbican reviewed
How hard must it be to make music that sounds like no one else? And how unrewarding, often, as well?…
There’s a magic to hearing music in such small audiences: Divine Comedy reviewed
Three shows in a week! Why, it was just like the first week of March. There was, however, little of…
Spiky, sticky, silly: interviewing Van Morrison
Q: ‘How would you define transcendence?’ A: ‘Well, how would you define it?’ I interviewed Van Morrison last year. (I’m…
The people who were idiots at gigs in early March are still idiots
Is the world ready for the return of live rock music? On the evidence of the first gig in London…
The problem with livestreaming heavy metal? No moshpits
There was only so long anyone could put up with the live musical performances of the early days of lockdown:…
Dysfunctional music for dysfunctional people: The Public Image is Rotten reviewed
A star is born, but instead of emerging into the world beaming for the cameras, he spits and snarls and…
In defence of Prince’s late style
In 1992 Prince released a single called ‘My Name Is Prince’. On first hearing it seemed appropriately regal. Cocky, even.…
Joyous and very, very funny: Beastie Boys Story reviewed
The music of the Beastie Boys was entirely an expression of their personalities, a chance to delightedly splurge out on…
Livestream-hopping is just as irritating as being at a real festival
The ghost of Samuel Beckett oversaw the Hip Hop Loves NY livestream last Thursday night. Time and time again its…
Felt longer than the lockdown itself: BBC1's One World – Together At Home reviewed
You have to admire the spirit of the organisers of last weekend’s One World: Together at Home concert. To put…
Taylor Swift is fascinating – but you really wouldn't want to be her
There had been some question about whether Taylor Swift’s Netflix special would actually appear. Last year it seemed that the…
The magic of Bryan Ferry
The accepted line about Bryan Ferry is that his is one of the greatest reinventions in English pop culture: Peter…
Grimly compelling: The Whitney Houston Hologram Tour reviewed
‘No matter what they take from me,’ sang Whitney Houston towards the end of a peculiar evening in Hammersmith, ‘they…
Dazzling and nonsensical in equal measure: Madonna at the London Palladium reviewed
You might have thought Madonna was not a singer but a professional footballer judging by the talk before she took…
You have to be a terrific snob not to see the appeal of Slipknot
Every development in heavy music is derided by mainstream critics. When Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin emerged in the late…
