CATEGORIES

Take a Beau

At the height of Beatlemania, San Francisco quintet The Beau Brummels crashed the British invasion party with a chart-busting sound that shifted from beat pop to embryonic country rock and psychedelia. But as their creativity grew, sales and label backing fell away. Richie Unterberger recounts their story with help from some of the original California dreamers.

Ian Shirley is 007 "The man with the Golden Ton"

So, now you know which £100 records to buy. But what if you want more than one disc for your dosh? Ian Shirley, licensed to chill and a secret agent when it comes to tracking down rarities, shows how to spend the whopping £100 he got given as his leaving gift from RC as he heads off to work as Production Manager for Ace Records.

Electric Dreams

Brit-rock veterans galvanise their comeback momentum with amped-up anthems.

Lamont Dozier 1941-2022

I’d always written,” Lamont Dozier told this writer in 2018. “It started with poems at 11, then by the time I was 15 it was songs for The Romeos.

Perfect Circle

Across nine studio albums, Orbital have remained at the forefront of dance music trends. On their new compilation, 30 Something, the Hartnoll brothers trace a three-decade path as electronica trailblazers in typically inventive - and re-inventive - style. Younger sibling Paul takes Lois Wilson on a trip through their long-playing history.

davidquanticklikes

...to write a column for Record Collector. Yay What’s in a name? Everything and nothing

maconblack

Ian McCann wonders if we are willing to waive the flaws of our heroes

33 1/3 minutes with... Scott Gorham

Thin Lizzy, and their charismatic frontman Phil Lynott, are today held in higher regard than during the original band’s latter days.

MoFi - do you dig?

US record manufacturer Mobile Fidelity in vinyl mastering controversy

Voices Of The People

Quality kitchen sink vignettes from the Marvin & Tammi of miserablism.

In The Affirmative

New York trio get their mojo back on album five.

musictovisit

Bob Stanley carries pop’s baggage everywhere When Frankie went to Hollywood

“WE WERE DOING A LOT OF DRUGS AND A LOT OF DEEP READING”

In the 32 years since leaving The Stranglers, the group he founded in 1974, Hugh Cornwell has built an eclectic solo career, full of the melody and pin-sharp observations he displayed in his years as co-frontman of The Meninblack. Cornwell’s 10th solo studio album, Moments Of Madness, offers a raw, guitar-led sound, written and conceived during the pandemic, showcasing Cornwell’s perfect balance of optimism, vitriol, despair and passion. On the eve of its release, and forthcoming tour, Daryl Easlea finds him in sparkling form, invigorated by life, music, and film.

Lari Basilio

THE BRAZILIAN GUITAR ACE HELPS LISTENERS CUT THROUGH PANDEMIC-FUELED DEPRESSION WITH HOPEFUL TUNES AND HER CUSTOMARY KICKASS GUITAR PLAYING

THE problem CHILD

WILLIE ADLER AND MARK MORTON, LAMB OF GOD'S YIN-AND-YANG GUITAR DUO, TAKE YOU BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE BAND'S "COMBATIVE," "CONFRONTATIONAL" (AND LIVE-IN-THE-STUDIO) NEW ALBUM

Boulder United States

Jeremy Pound admires both the mountains and the plains as he explores the various delights of this year’s Colorado Music Festival

Nikolai Medtner

Admired by Rachmaninov and outstanding as a pianist, Medtner had a subtle yet hauntingly distinct compositional style, says Francis Pott

Live choice

Paul Riley picks the month’s best concert and opera highlights in the UK

Leprous

GW CATCHES UP WITH TOR ODDMUND SUHRKE, A PROVEN PROG MASTER (WHO'S ALSO A PROFESSIONAL PHYSIOTHERAPIST)

Billy Howerdel

THE A PERFECT CIRCLE GUITARIST UNVEILS HIS SOLO DEBUT, WHAT NORMAL WAS, WHICH TAKES HIS SYNTH ROCK AND SHOEGAZE INFLUENCES TO NEW LIMITS

Gore Obsessed, Old-School Death Metal

INTRIGUED? LET BLOODBATH GUITARIST TOMAS ÅKVIK FILL YOU IN

Man on a mission

In conversation with Michael Church, the pianist Evgeny Kissin speaks out about the invasion of Ukraine and how this relates to his experiences of anti-Semitism while growing up in the USSR

Findingflow

With a new Warner Classics recording contract and a year-long residency at London's Southbank Centre to his name, Abel Selaocoe's star is in the ascendant. But as the South African cellist tells Charlotte Smith, he has a higher mission - to bridge the divide between African and Western music

Sonic Reaction

LINE 6 CATALYST 100

Dark and Stormy

ESP GUITARS LTD DELUXE SN-1000HT FIRE BLAST

LOW TRANSMISSION

OUT OF THE DARKNESS, THE WONDER YEARS HAVE CRAFTED THE MOST HEARTBREAKING, HOPEFUL RECORD OF THEIR CAREER SO FAR. DAN CAMPBELL REVEALS ALL THE ELEMENTS THAT MADE IT POSSIBLE...

S.G. Goodman

THIS KENTUCKIAN'S GUITAR-LADEN NEW ALBUM HAS PLENTY OF BITE — COURTESY OF HER UNIQUE PERSPECTIVE AND VINTAGE GUILDS

A CHUNK OF change

MESHUGGAH'S MÅRTEN HAGSTRÖM TAKES YOU INSIDE THE MAKING OF THE SWEDISH DEATH METAL MASTERS' UNRELENTING NEW ALBUM, IMMUTABLE, HIS WEAKNESS FOR SIMON & GARFUNKEL AND THE RETURN OF CO-FOUNDING GUITARIST FREDRIK THORDENDAL

Still a Ball of Fire

U.K. STRAT LEGEND ROBIN TROWER TALKS NEW MUSIC, THE SECRETS TO STELLAR TONE AND WHY HE'LL ALWAYS HAVE A SOFT SPOT FOR AMERICAN FANS

Passing the test

Forget tweedy examiners behind desks, bland pieces and those dreaded aural tests. Graded exams are not what they used to be, as Clare Stevens explains