Features

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Emma Warren on the death of the youth club

Erin Cobby mourns the death of the youth club with Emma Warren, whose new book explores the now jeopardised role these venues have played in fostering musical talent

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Letters to the Future: a collaborative call to imagine – and shape – a better world

Emily Stabell finds out about a grand project bringing together musicians and writers to imagine a better future

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Dispatch: a dance revival in the Netherlands

Charis McGowan hears of a diasporic dance revival bubbling up in western Netherlands

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Live: Au Tour de Cordes (Saint-Louis, Senegal, October 31–November 2)

Simon Broughton untangles a West African celebration of string instruments, with electrified gimbri and a dozen-deep kora corpus among the global buffet

Thursday, December 11, 2025

A conversation with Alice Gerrard: “That was just the way it was back then, I mean, it was definitely a man’s world”

A pivotal and pioneering figure in the history of US old-time and bluegrass, Alice Gerrard sits down with Devon Léger for a career-spanning chat through her highs and lows and how she blazed a trail for other female performers

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Kneecap: reclaiming the narrative

Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap found themselves at the centre of several media storms this year, clashing with authorities while selling out shows worldwide. In an exclusive interview, they tell Erin Cobby that their upcoming third album is a push to refocus attention on what they stand for: promoting the Irish language and fighting colonial injustice

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Martyn Bennett: A Beginner's Guide

Billy Rough surveys influential sides by the late-great multi-instrumentalist, one of Scottish traditional music’s most vital contemporary figures

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Beyond the myths: Iceland Airwaves reveals the real sound of Iceland

Charis McGowan visits Reykjavik, where Iceland Airwaves is showcasing the many layers of Icelandic music. “It’s such a young culture”, she discovers

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Guitari Baro: the shape of African jazz to come

Robin Denselow speaks with Guitari Baro’s balafon virtuoso Lassana Diabaté and the the trio’s co-producer Lucy Durán about their innovative all-instrumental debut

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Yiddishkeit Futures

The klezmer revival began in the US half a century ago. Musicians from marginalised communities delved deeper into klezmer’s European roots while adopting contemporary, open-minded approaches to play the music. Celeste Cantor-Stephens speaks to three musicians whose work carries on traditions of ‘klezmer’ in different ways, asking if the klezmer revival is experiencing a new wave, or whether that initial revival ever really stopped

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Songbook: ‘El Cant de la Sibil·la’ (Júlia Colom's Mallorcan Christmas Eve Tradition)

Charis McGowan hears how an ancient song survived centuries to become a Mallorcan Xmas tradition, and a core influence to Júlia Colom’s Balearic folk

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Songlines Music Awards 2025: Africa

Our favourite Africa albums of the year, featuring Amadou & Mariam, Cheikh Lô, Salif Keita, Trio Da Kali, and MC Yallah & Debmaster

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Songlines Music Awards 2025: Asia & Pacific

The Best Asia & Pacific albums of 2025, as chosen by our writers and editors. Featuring Anoushka Shankar, Park Jiha, Rizwan-Muazzam Qawwali, Ichiko Aoba and Hand to Earth

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Songlines Music Awards 2025: Europe

The best albums from Europe in 2025: Adrian Raso & Fanfare Ciocărlia, Duo Ruut, Raphael Rogiński & Ružičnjak Tajni, Sílvia Pérez Cruz & Salvador Sobral and Söndörgő