Music

A report has discovered that the Grime4Corbyn campaign led to an unexpected surge in the youth vote for the Labour party. Over half of grime music fans voted for Labour, after Theresa May called the snap election. One in four voted labour simply due to the grassroots music campaign. Stormzy was very vocal, and still is, in favour of the Labour leader. The MCs huge following obviously trust his political opinion and also backed Corbyn. This was the first ever...

Like any man of a certain age, from the North, I hold Liam Gallagher in high esteem. He was the man we all wanted to be, but our mum's wouldn't let us. But I never thought Liam would make the most sense over Brexit than pretty much anyone about at the moment. He was speaking to in NME's free magazine last week when he made the comment. Lucky for his fans that his new album, As You Were, is earning...

As part of the British Tinnitus Association’s (BTA) Share Your Sound campaign which launches this week, the charity is encouraging people to share their tinnitus stories and seek support when they’re struggling. Here, Stephen Holt, original front man of the famous 90s Manchester band the Inspiral Carpets, explains his personal connection to tinnitus and why it is so important for people to talk about the condition to ensure no one suffers alone. When I re-joined Inspiral Carpets in 2011 I...

The next installment of Rant + Rave is heading to London this weekend to hep raise money for charity, helping to prevent male suicide. The Rant + Rave team have partnered up with Basement Sate, Soho for a charity night in aid of CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), a charity dedicated to preventing male suicide, the single biggest killer of men under the age of 45 in the UK. The night will include DJ sets covering an eclectic mix of...

Is September too early to start buying Christmas presents? The last 30 days has provided us with enough bangers to stuff several festive stockings. After a slow start the month really took off, dropping some of the best releases of the year so far. As you can probably tell we're very excited for Jamie Lenman's Devolver (out 27th October on Big Scary Monsters, be there or be square) and 'Hardbeat' is a total tune. This month's cover star Moses Sumney is a...

Jaws Support: Colouring, Fizzy Blood Kamio, London 22.9.17 Tonight's acts offer a real mixed bag of tones. First up are Fizzy Blood, bringing a bag of riffs and a glorious case of guitar-face. New cuts from their Summer of Luv EP sound ace. Colouring are more understated, shooting for synth-edged emo pop. It feels smart but cold. Which can't be said for headliner's JAWS, who warrant emphatic reaction from the crowd but keep things simple with their mix of shoegaze and indie....

A sitar owned and played by George Harrison has sold for £46,581 ($62,500) at an auction in the United States. The Indian string instrument, purchased from a shop in London’s Oxford Street in 1965, was used in the recording of Beatles song Norwegian Wood in 1965. It launched ‘The Great Sitar Explosion’ in rock n roll and marked the beginning of Harrison’s lifelong relationship with Indian music, its culture and Hinduism. Indian musicians were used in two later Harrison songs...

On 29th September, 80s legends Blancmange are set to release a new album written and recorded by Neil Arthur and co-produced by Benge (Wrangler/John Foxx & The Maths and Gazelle Twin co-producer). It’s been a fantastically creative period for both of them, releasing their debut album as a new electronic duo – Fader’s First Light - in June 2017 and then the final sessions for Unfurnished Rooms followed immediately in the summer. For the new Blancmange album, all the songs...

Festivals follow many formats. The large outdoor type is arguably the most familiar, covering meadows, farms and abandoned complexes outside of the smog and strains of the city. There are the micro events that shrink into one building or room for a day or less, often referred to as one or half-dayers, and linked to scenes surrounding noise, punk and free improv. Then there are the fiery, post-apocalyptic deserts and beach-side palm forests shading hordes of dayglo psytrance devotees. The...