Music
How Germany’s rap scene is uniting a divided country
Change of tune — Grappling with societal fractures and a far-right surge, young Germans have discovered a new way of building bridges in the face of disunity: hip hop.
Written by: Alice Austin
Yellow Days festival and the power of community
‘It’s love that’s key’ — This year, the grassroots ‘festival without borders’ came to Athens – uniting locals, refugees, and citizens from all over the world.
Written by: Alex King
‘Politics is a complete fucking shit show’
An interview with David Holmes — The acclaimed film composer discusses his recent work on the Killing Eve soundtrack, political detachment, and growing up in the troubles.
Written by: Jeremy Allen
Real Lies reflect on how London shaped their new song
Downward spirals — Ahead of the band’s first hometown headline show in three years, lyricist Kev Kharas explores the English capital in its current incarnation – a cruel dystopia, where it’s impossible to live a carefree life.
Written by: Kev Kharas
‘Narcissism is at the foundation of most artists’
An interview with SebastiAn — After an eight-year wait, the French producer is back with his second album. He tells us why it took so long – and why he sees his musical role as that of a ‘midwife’.
Written by: Jeremy Allen
Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy would take a nuclear attack pretty well
Good in a crisis — Following the release of his first album in almost a decade, Will Oldham – the man behind Billy – talks songwriting, seclusion and what happened when he received a text telling him that a ballistic missile was about to hit the island he was staying on.
Written by: Jeremy Allen
The radical sounds of Black Belt Eagle Scout
At The Party — A self-identifying queer, indigenous, feminist musician, Katherine Paul burst out of Portland’s underground scene. Now, operating on a much larger platform, she’s determined to make a positive difference for marginalised voices.
Written by: Katie Goh
How hip hop magazines shaped UK rap as we know it
Living large — Hip Hop Connection, which ran from 1988 to 2009, gave MCs in the UK a platform to discover their voice.
Written by: Eric Thorp
Remembering the terror and mayhem of Woodstock ’99
Bad times — Violence, fires and price gouging: two decades on, photographer Mike Schreiber unearths his archive from the festival, revealing a portrait of Gen X at its worst.
Written by: Miss Rosen
Mica Levi’s wild soundscapes are reshaping film scores
Chopped and screwed — Whether making pioneering art-pop or composing Oscar-nominated scores, the British artist has one rule: disrupt. With a haunting new composition for a feverish new film, she’s back doing what she does best – smashing boundaries, breaking new ground.
Written by: Dhruva Balram
