A debut single can be a tricky thing. You are a young artist ready to set the world of culture on fire and share your talent, so hitting the ground running is important to set you on your way to fame and fortune. Of course, many bands that have become huge, started off somewhat slowly, often both commercially and critically, while a few are off with a bang! So, there are all sorts of musical beginnings; some go downhill from a good start; some get better and better over years

This review of Mark Lanegan's 2020 memoir Sing Backwards And Weep will read more like a straight synopsis of his life than a critique of his writing style. If you were ever thinking of reading this, then be warned, there are spoilers - having said that, if you know anything much of the man and his life story already, then nothing in here should surprise you all that much. To begin with, in some ways it seems a little odd perhaps that the first seventeen or eighteen years of L

It's less than a week since we had an official announcement letting us know that Jennifer Finch had been diagnosed with brain cancer. The great and good of the American music scene rallied round her and a Go Fund Me was established. It was clear that she was obviously no longer going to be a part of L7s Last Hurrah 2026 tour, but she gave it the go-ahead with her blessing. Then, yesterday we found out that she had died aged 59... "We are shattered by the loss of our beloved b

Ian Curtis would have been 70 today (15 July), which is possibly a ridiculous statement given that he didn't even see 24; but even in such a brief moment, his star shone brightly enough to influence just about every British (and more than a fair few American ones) guitar band, directly or indirectly, for the next... well, 46 years. It is a strange (or maybe not) impact that a man noted for his intense, fixed stare while singing, and dark, emotionally isolated lyrics, would be

Here we are with another playlist, and it's time to tap into the seemingly bottomless well of interesting and unusual cover versions. Ten more tunes - you might be familiar with some of these versions, but I'm guessing in a few cases, you may not even be aware of the original. 1. Weezer: Africa Photo: NHL While Africa may be considered by many to be a soft rock 'classic', few would have thought it coverable material for cool indie hipsters, Weezer, some 35 years later. Steve

The Paisley Underground sounds like a movement that might have been from the free love west coast of the 1960s - tune in, drop out, and all that. It wasn't, but it was another west coast thing, and very much rooted in some of those earlier sounds, especially the electro-folk guitar and garage rock sounds of bands like Love and the Byrds. Where, What, Who & When Image from PowerPop blog The movement centred on Los Angeles, and while its roots were back in sixties L.A., the soi

I thought for a change, and to challenge myself a little to stay up to date, that I would start dropping in the odd playlist of new songs! These could be from brand new bands, older bands you've still never heard of, and a few old pros that you will definitely know. All these tunes have been released in the last few months, and cover a few different genres, so hopefully something for everyone... 1. Kurt Vile: Zoom 97 Photo: Tore Saetra Here we have the opening track from Phil