Music

Beyond litter and emissions: The environmental costs of loud sound at music festivals

The music festivals of the summer have packed up and moved on. Stages and sound systems have been dismantled, litter cleared, and land reseeded.

Why ‘No Bad Memories’ is my album of the year

I didn't expect how perfectly my personal happiness would fit an album so preoccupied with the sounds of old advertisements and obsolete electronics, filled with the relentless optimism of a world that believed the future could only get better. 

CUSP’s Dan Stock on the memories behind ‘English Country’

On Friday, CUSP, a Milton Keynes-based indie rock band, released their debut album, English...

The rise of the pop girlie: Marketing mediocrity or feminism in action?  

“GIRLS INVENTED PUNK ROCK, NOT ENGLAND”: so reads the iconic green T-shirt of Sonic Youth legend Kim Gordon. The slogan stands in defiance of an unfortunate truth in the music industry: femininity and credibility often exist in contention with one another.

Lily Allen’s No Shame Refusing Remorse

A review of Lily Allen's latest album

Cage the Elephant: Social Cues

Since forming in 2006, Cage the Elephant have managed to dance from one end of the rock spectrum to the other with little hesitation,...

James Blake: Finding Himself In Someone Else

He has candidly burst from the shell of self-doubt, willing to share his emotions with us, the fans, and his love with his significant other.

Lady Gaga is not a receptacle for your pain

It's been almost two years since the release of Chris Moukarbel's documentary about the pop icon super-star Lady Gaga, a.k.a. Stefani Germanotta. Gaga: Five...

Talkin’ ’bout a Revolution: The Sound of Protest Art

Tracy Chapman’s appearance at the 1988 Nelson Mandela tribute concert transformed her career. The political turmoil surrounding Apartheid was transposed onto Chapman’s performance; songs...

Coldplay heating up

The death of being embarrassed about playing Coldplay in the shower

Lust for Life: Lana Del Rey

A genre in herself, Lana’s sleepy Hollywood aesthetic and tragic love songs have earned her success in the indie pop scene. Under her...

NoFriendz: “Show up next time Oxford, you bastards”

Meet NoFriendz - they may not be your favourite band yet, but they probably deserve to be.

August’s Here Already

Newly formed supergroup August Greene use their music to bring to life the African American experience.

Cambridge carnage creators conquer Oxford

Cellar continues to be a goldmine of underground musical talent

David Bowie: The art of getting on a bit

The life of Ziggy defied expectation.

Death and the maiden

An exploration of Verdi and the orchestra

Listening to Music on Repeat

Why shuffle is simply no longer an option

Math Roberts discusses his new song cycle ‘What Comes After’

How did 'What Comes After' come about, is it a new piece or have you had it in the pipeline for a while? The idea...

Fame, fortune and failure

Debunking the Unk: the curious tale of Curtis Adams

Music and the Comeback Kids

Molly Innes discusses the art of the comeback, the “reunion” cash cow, and throwback culture

The rise of lo-fi

What makes imperfections so attractive?

Review: Shostakovich 7 with the Oxford University Orchestra

Peter Stark conducts a moving performance of Shostakovich 7 with the Oxford University Orchestra

Interview: renowned opera singer Iestyn Davies

Cambridge, choirs, colleges and everything else

Classical music’s illusions

Lauren Hill discusses the captivating, and yet illusory effects of performing music at a point where music education is under threat

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