“Who even listens to guitar music anymore?” Dude, I hear you. After years of aggressively romantic twenty-somethings in white T-shirts, I was ready to throw in the towel on indie-rock. What more can these guys really do? Another Alex Turner wannabe? Lovely. Can we stick on BBC2 for a change?

It was getting a bit samey, as can be the nature of a genre if you only half-listen to what’s playing. But that’s not to say there aren’t a few remaining flowers in the muddy field of indie-rock: Glasgow-bred Declan Welsh has teamed up with The Decadent West to prove us all wrong. Their sound is varied, the music delicately composed; familiar, yes, but with just enough flare to set them apart. Put your synths away, sir, kindly pick up a Fender.

Gritty in parts, seductive in others, the band’s first album, Cheaply Bought, Expensively Sold, is a testament to the indie-rock we fell in love with before it all got too much. Sitting comfortably as the pendulum swings from upbeat to down-tempo, showcase anthem to bedroom overture, I’ll come right out and say it: it’s a joy to listen to...

August is upon us: summer has passed her prime; normality and routine loom just beyond the corner of our calendars. And just as we feel like the best of the season is over, Bon Iver graces us with something truly worth falling for.

Expectations were high for i,i, Bon Iver’s fourth album to-be, which was originally set for release at the end of this month. Instead, the group surprised us all across streaming platforms last Friday morning (9 August 2019), gradually dripping in each of the LP’s remaining tracks. Almost three years since their last album, i,i brings the project round in full circle, according to the band itself: “from the winter of For Emma, Forever Ago came the frenetic spring of Bon Iver, Bon Iver, and the unhinged summer of 22, A Million. Now, fall arrives early with i,i.”

What once began forever ago as the solo project of a heartbroken Justin Vernon has since evolved into one of the most exquisite collaborative works around – a progression which is almost palpable. Without ever overdoing it, the production on i,i is simply formidable; breaking even further away from the raw, folksy sound of For Emma, Forever Ago, Vernon & co. opt instead for a fuller, more layered composition...

​Crumb - Fall Down
In a gooey trip of psychedelic bliss, Crumb returns with ‘Fall Down’. But we don’t so much ‘fall’ as we do ‘sink’ into this new release, easing into a dreamy haze led by the title track. A mellow start that eventually uncovers a short, sweet glimpse into the bands more up-tempo potential.

"Spanning fifteen venues with over 100 acts, NBHD is back, slamming Manchester with another belter of a line-up. Just picture it: the attitudes, the guitars, the blazers. It’s almost too much. So, who made this year’s cut? The results are in.

Most Likely To Break A Bone On Stage: Sports Team
There is nothing more epic than an enthusiastic frontman. Alas, there is also nothing more dangerous. Sports Team’s Alex Rice is the perfect example, his footwork alone from is like something from a 60s rock n roll gig: gloriously groovy, but prime opportunity for a twisted ankle. We hope not, of course, so… break a leg?"

"I grew up with old-school Disney Channel but sadly, my generation was the last to bask in its final golden years. Kids today will never know the frantic run downstairs to the TV as the theme song started: the beat, the guitar, the limo out front. If Hannah Montana was the Queen of after-school telly, my brother and I were her peasant followers, watching in awe.

​But now a decade has passed and the wig is off - Miley Cyrus is back again. Long gone are the preteen bops, mini-album SHE IS COMING, is a whole frickin' mood..."

​"Everyone has something they revisit each Christmas. What is it, Love Actually? The Muppet Christmas Carol? It’s A Wonderful Life? (very original, well done you). All valid answers, but all wrong. Christmas is a time for Gavin and Stacey.
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Its Christmas special has sparked annual joy since it was first broadcast in 2008. Now – almost a decade later – Christmas has come early, as co-writers James Corden and Ruth Jones announce a one-off Christmas special, due to hit the BBC on Christmas Day 2019. Fuck. Yes. 

SO, as the good news settles in, let’s look back on some of the most iconic scenes from G&S in the only way we know how: with its soundtrack..."