Reviews
Vision & Revision: The First 80 Years of Topic Records
Topic Records grew out of the Workers' Music Association and over eight decades has consistently championed music made by working...
Reviewed by Julian May in issue: July/2019
We’ve Got a Groovy Thing Going
‘Dig it, baby, dig it!’ Profound, this ain’t – but groovy it sure is. Focusing on a golden era of...
Reviewed by Mark Sampson in issue: December/2024
Hand on the Plow
The Tillers claim they once played in hardcore punk bands, and in their speed and dynamics you can hear the...
Reviewed by Garth Cartwright in issue: Nov/Dec/2013
The Salmon
This is a Franco-Jamaican reggae compilation, spiced up with shots of blues, country and soul. The Salmon’s members each boast...
Reviewed by Huw Hennessy in issue: December/2024
Weaving Gold in Broken Places
Named after the Greek Gorgon feared by society for her ugliness, this Canadian quartet aims to “redefine what is beautiful”....
Reviewed by Fiona Talkington in issue: May/2026
1970s Algerian Proto-Rai Underground
A pair of fascinating albums mining a fruitful seam of musical esoterica – the Algerian 45rpm vinyl releases of the...
Reviewed by Philip Sweeney in issue: Nov/Dec/2014
Avenging & Bright
O’Kane's Areas of High Traffic album, a revelatory reworking of traditional Irish songs with a very contemporary punch, was just...
Reviewed by Kevin Bourke in issue: April/2018
Rags & Robes
Twenty four-year-old Scottish folk singer Ewan McLennan's star is very much on the rise. In February, he won the Horizon...
Reviewed by Nathaniel Handy in issue: July/2011
A Celtic Celebration
The Bookends with The Stratford Symphony Orchestra
Like The Siskin Quartet, The Bookends are a quartet formed by the bringing together of two couples. Hailing from Stratford,...
Reviewed by Tony Gillam in issue: May/2023
Tales of Orisas
The Nigerian-born jazz percussionist Lekan Babalola and British clarinettist Kate Luxmoore formed the Sacred Funk Quartet ‘following a commission by...
Reviewed by Nigel Williamson in issue: August/2024
