Too often, the shorthand for 80s pop is a few lazy pointers like frizzy perms, shoulder pads and cheap Casio preset production line hits. But when you dig underneath the anthemic choruses and tinny synth […]
Azealia Banks: If you’ve run out of celebrities to troll, just troll half a country
It takes some serious effort to be the most controversial person on the cesspit of humanity that is Twitter, but Azealia Banks has been there, done that, and she’s been racking up the troll points […]
Yes we Can: Tronik Youth – Moreish
In a recent interview with Bandcamp Daily, Tronik Youth aka Berlin-based producer Neil Parnell addressed his label Nein’s prolific output, admitting: “I keep saying, ‘I’m going to slow down, I’m going to slow down… but […]
Anything’s Humanly Possible: Stratis – New Face (1983)
For the last 10 years, San Francisco label Dark Entries has been unearthing rusty and out of circulation cult electronic records and giving them a new life outside their few hundred plays on YouTube or […]
Fucked Up: Stretching hardcore to the limit
Toronto act Fucked Up have transcended their hardcore punk roots without selling out in the slightest – on their 80-minute concept album Dose Your Dreams last year. Loosely, it’s a story of a factory worker […]
Enjoy the silence: Laibach ‘cover’ John Cage’s 4’33”
Mute Records has just announced a box set with 50 acts ‘performing’ John Cage’s infamous 1952 avant-garde composition 4’33” – which directs musicians not to play any instruments. It’s just the kind of high-concept piece […]
DJ Stingray is always the sound of the future
A key figure in the Detroit techno underground, Sherard Ingram aka Stingray has been DJing for over 25 years, as well as producing futuristic hyper-speed electro and conceptual ambient and downtempo works – the latter […]
Longform industrial dread on Vatican Shadow – Opium Crop Airstrikes
Musicians often talk about random flashes of inspiration, or ‘a sign’ – but Dominick Fernow was compelled into his latest Vatican Shadow project by a moment of almost supernatural gravity. After hearing of the serious […]
Rainforest Spiritual Enslavement’s Digital field ecologies
Dominick Fernow hits the jungle once more in his ritual ambient dub form as Rainforest Spiritual Enslavement – this time with a more ecological message than the usual voodoo undertones. He says it’s “a turning […]
‘Black medieval grind’ on this Prurient / Autoerotichrist split – Blizzard
January is bleak enough, without its soundtrack oozing from the mind of Dominick Fernow, the prolific New Yorker behind some of the most arresting productions of the last two decades – from dark, ritualistic ambience […]
Throwing darts in lovers’ eyes: David Bowie in 20 songs
The last time I checked there were 50-odd David Bowie compilations, and they’re piling up at an even greater rate since his death. But even as record companies pick at his bones releasing 200 quid […]
Planet Earth is blue: Dublin Bowie Fest returns
Now that it’s been three years since David Bowie’s death, festivals and tributes have become more of a celebration rather than the genuine loss felt in the direct aftermath. Like the passing of Prince a […]
‘Art is one of the vital things that makes us human’: Interview with Tony Wright (VerseChorusVerse)
The gift wrapping has been scrunched up into the recycling bin, the Christmas tree is hanging around like a hungover mate at a rollover party and you’re allergic scrolling through inspirational quotes and pictures of […]
Hibernate with Elizabeth Veldon’s 16-hour minimal drone piece, A Night In Winter
Elizabeth Veldon is a sound artist who works in “long form drone, minimalism and improvisation” according to her Bandcamp bio – and she’s taking the long form aspect to new levels in her latest project. […]
Get in there a day early – Open Ear jumps the gun on NYE
With much of the summer taken up by blockbuster festivals that simply hoover up all the biggest buzz bands to sell tickets, or a big race to the middle of road, Open Ear is a […]
Moo Kid 