Category: Music
Surya Botofasina: Ashram Sun review – Alice Coltrane-inspired expression of nature’s glory
When Surya Botofasina was growing up on an ashram in California, he had no idea that his mentor, a woman he knew as Swamini Turiyasangitananda, [more…]
‘It’s like, wow. I was really deranged’: stars and repentant stans on the terror of toxic fandom
This summer, norms of pop flipped when musicians started telling off their fans. Leading the pack was Chappell Roan, the 26-year-old breakout star of 2024. [more…]
The Book of Abba by Jan Gradvall review – dark backstories and new revelations
It comes as something of a surprise, 22 pages into The Book of ABBA, to find yourself reading about Heinrich Himmler. But there he is, in [more…]
Charli xcx: Brat and It’s Completely Different But Also Still Brat review – her lime-green imperial phase is unstoppable
On Brat, Charli xcx’s zeitgeist-lassoing sixth album, its creator brooded on her chronically underrated status. Over the sickly sweet deconstructed UK garage of Rewind, she [more…]
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs sex-trafficking trial to start in May, judge decides
Sean “Diddy” Combs’s sex-trafficking trial is scheduled to start on 5 May, the judge presiding over his case decided during a proceeding on Thursday. Combs’s [more…]
In Restless Dreams: The Music of Paul Simon review – heartfelt portrait of a generational talent
Alex Gibney’s docu-celebration of Paul Simon unfolds over an epic three-and-a-half hours, but he persuades you that this is exactly how much time was needed. [more…]
Jelly Roll: Beautifully Broken review – country’s newest superstar grapples with fame and addiction
Just past the halfway mark on country artist Jelly Roll’s new 22-track album lies a sequence of songs in which he grapples with his celebrity. [more…]
‘Synthesisers can convey emotion too’: Zaho de Sagazan reinvents the French love song despite never falling in love
From Édith Piaf to Serge Gainsbourg, France is fiercely protective of the chanson tradition of character-driven French-language love songs. So it’s not often that someone [more…]
Underground rapper Lemfreck wins 2024 Welsh music prize
The underground rapper Lemfreck has beaten established stars such as Skindred and Gruff Rhys to win the 2024 Welsh music prize. The 30-year-old from Newport, [more…]
John Chowning, godfather of digital pop: ‘My wife told me: I didn’t think I’d have to compete with a computer’
For 90 years, John Chowning has lived in constant motion. From his youth as a globetrotting music savant through a heyday of radical computing that [more…]
