Ten From 2014 #7: Pop

Pop is a big word, and one that tends to offend as much as it excites these days, but that’s part of the fun, isn’t it? Here are 10 records that fitted the bill for us in 2014, ranging from piano confessionals to the glitziest Polaroid collection in history.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 17 December 2014

Ten (+10) From 2014 #6: The Best Of Noise Not Music

Photo: YOB/James Rexroad As you may have gathered from the packed, if not exactly consistently available (my apologies, readers) Noise Not Music column over the last 12 months, it's been a brilliant year for all forms of sonic violence. This top 20 is far from definitive, and the rankings are largely arbitrary, but may it serve as an introductory guide to some of the year's very finest releases. See you in 2015…

Written by: Ben Bland | Date: Tuesday, 16 December 2014

Ten From 2014 #5: Punk

It’s perhaps easier to judge how good a year’s been by what doesn’t make your top 10 at the end of it. In another time, Apologies I Have None, Chumped, Punch, Andrew Jackson Jihad, La Dispute, I Am The Avalanche or a different Joanna Gruesome release could have made the cut for this punk countdown, but instead they have to make do with standing outside making obscene gestures at the bands on the other side of the rope. Or something like that.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Monday, 15 December 2014

Ten From 2014 #4: Rock

Picking the best rock albums of 2014 has been about as easy as threading a zeppelin through the eye of a particularly small needle.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Friday, 12 December 2014

Ten From 2014 #3: Indie/Electronica

Twelve months on from a list that doffed its cap to some of indie’s true heavyweights,the rundown for 2014 has a slightly more grubby, DIY feel. It’s home to a couple of notable bows, the odd comeback and a few bands finding their feet and flourishing.

Written by: Tom Seymour | Date: Thursday, 11 December 2014

Ten From 2014 #2: Metal

The year's been mighty kind to us headbanging folk, hasn't it? Almost all of the big hitters have delivered, with Slipknot and Machine Head unleashing neck-threateningly brilliant records and bands like Septicflesh, Nightbringer and Voices doing a superb job of keeping the cult alive.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Wednesday, 10 December 2014

Ten From 2014 #1: Labels

Great labels often go under-appreciated at this time of year as countless records are arranged into lists, debated and rearranged, so in the first part of our year in review series we’ve picked out 10 that have excelled in the last 12 months, outlined their best releases and delved into why they deserve their place in the mix…

Written by: Ben Bland | Date: Tuesday, 09 December 2014

Pink Floyd: Many Happy Returns To 'The Wall'

‘The Wall’ is a cultural giant, but a record that’s often overshadowed by a couple of Pink Floyd’s mid-’70s masterworks, ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon’ and ‘Wish You Were Here’.

Written by: Graeme Marsh | Date: Thursday, 04 December 2014

No Guilty Pleasures #3: Electric Six's 'Senor Smoke'

Everybody knows Danger! High Voltage and everybody knows Gay Bar. They are two songs that have been rubber stamped as pop culture curios thanks to radio overkill, bad karaoke and those music videos. What most people haven’t noticed, though, is that since releasing 'Fire' back in 2003, Electric Six have bashed out a further nine (yes, nine) studio albums.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Wednesday, 26 November 2014

Left Turn Ahead: Gaslight Anthem's 'Get Hurt' Reinvention Continues A Rock Tradition

It takes a brave rock band to change their sound, especially when it's endeared them to legions of fans around the world. While some acts elicit a flair for sonic reinvention, others have fallen flat on their faces and swiftly retreated to familiar territory.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Monday, 17 November 2014

Bryan Adams: Still Reckless After All These Years

Long before Bryan Adams drove everyone insane with his ubiquitous chart topper Everything I Do (I Do It For You), he unleashed a premium-grade, denim-clad rock ‘n' roll record that catapulted him towards fame, fortune and a credibility sapping date with Robin Hood. The year was 1984 and, should you need reminding, the album was 'Reckless'.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Friday, 14 November 2014

PREMIERE: Honeymilk Dial Up The Fuzz On A Scene In Between

Honeymilk are a band weaned on rock classics old and new. The Swedish power trio wear influences from the Strokes and the Velvet Underground on their collective sleeve, with their sound neatly wrapped up in a psych-rock bow.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Wednesday, 12 November 2014

Time And Place: A Summer Spent Waiting And Live's 'Throwing Copper'

As Live prepare to hit the UK for a show at London's KOKO - with new vocalist Chris Shinn in tow - Simon Ramsay rewinds the clock to a time when he was wrapped up in the band's 'Throwing Copper' album, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Tuesday, 04 November 2014

No Guilty Pleasures #2: Machine Head's 'Supercharger'

In part two of No Guilty Pleasures, our feature celebrating records maligned by the masses, Alec Chillingworth takes a look at Machine Head's post-millennial stumble, 'Supercharger'.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Tuesday, 04 November 2014

Suede: Many Happy Returns To 'Dog Man Star'

While Oasis and Blur publicly battled it out at the height of Britpop in 1995, the foundation stones became harder to make out as the music was overtaken by the cultural flood.

Written by: Graeme Marsh | Date: Thursday, 30 October 2014

Support Network: The Power Of A Killer Opening Band

Support bands are, broadly speaking, there to get a crowd warmed up, provide extra value for money and, occasionally, even bore the audience to the point where they're salivating for the main attraction.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Tuesday, 28 October 2014

Interrogating Devin Townsend Part 2: The Return Of Ziltoid

Part one of this interrogation found Devin Townsend spilling his guts about 'Sky Blue', the 'nice' side of his new double album, 'Z²'. In the second half of our glimpse inside the progmeister's brain, we scoop information from his skull on the return of Ziltoid for 'Dark Matters'.

Written by: Alec Chillingworth | Date: Friday, 24 October 2014

Farewell To Firefest: The Bands To Carry The AOR Torch

It's set to be a bittersweet occasion at Nottingham's Rock City this weekend when cult melodic rock show Firefest bows out after almost a decade at the forefront of a forgotten genre.

Written by: Simon Ramsay | Date: Wednesday, 22 October 2014

PREMIERE: AvaGrace Shoot For The Stars With II Years

There’s nothing easy about forcing your way into a crowded scene, but that’s just what Kent quintet AvaGrace are backing themselves to do in the next few months.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Monday, 20 October 2014

PREMIERE: Joey Fourr Teams Up With Plastic Fish Records For Boyz II Girlz

Plastic Fish have been delivering the indie goods for a couple of years now and the label will return on October 27 with a new compilation, the aptly-titled ‘American Sole’.

Written by: Huw Baines | Date: Thursday, 16 October 2014