CATEGORIES
Crazy Like A Fox
Whatever happened to ROBIN PECKNOLD and FLEET FOXES? In Seattle, Uncut’s Stephen Deusner gatecrashes the band’s first rehearsal in five years, and gets the exclusive story on the making of their astonishing comeback album, Crack-Up: a tale of university, F Scott Fitzgerald, surfing, Zen retreats and “mental nightmares” in the studio. “There are times on the record,” admits Skyler Skjelset, “when you can hear Robin losing it…”
Why Try To Change Me Now?
As Bob Dylan begins his latest European tour, Nick Hasted goes native with the Bobcats in Stockholm. There are many war stories to share, and new perspectives on an enduringly provocative Nobel Laureate… What should we make of the extended American Songbook phase? Has the Never Ending Tour secretly ended? And what does his Greenwich Village mentor make of Dylan in 2017?
Laura Marling
Camden roundhouse, London,March 21, 2017
Yo La Tengo
Town Hall, New York, March 23, 2017
The Idiots Really Were Running the Asylum
An audience with Peter Hook.
Hard As A Rock
Malcolm Young | 1953-2017
U Got The Look!
The young PRINCE’s first photo session: “It's before an icon becomes an icon.”
Is There Room To Improvise? Of Course. That's The Blues
JOHN MAYALL is an early riser. Despite the cold morning in his adopted home of California – where he has lived since the late 1960's – Mayall is already up and busy preparing for his forthcoming live shows when Uncut calls. Mayall, who is 83, is in sprightly form. “We do 100 shows every year all over the world,” he says. “It keeps us active!”
The Magnetic Fields
Stephin Merritt has 50 identical sets of underwear and a latent ambition to be Walt Disney. He has written an album of 69 Love Songs and, now, 50 Song Memoir - one for each year of his life. Artpop genius? Conceptual prankster? “I am,” he admits, “a questionable narrator...”
Making Time
Inspired by a football chant, the freakbeat classic that pioneered the violin bow and feedback in rock:“No, no, this is how it’s supposed to be!”
Mick Harvey
The Bad Seed, “music maker” and solo artist surveys some of his best work
Forget Punk. That Was Amateur Hour
1977. Lou Reed exists on a steady diet of whisky and speed. His fractious relationship is going off the rails. His studio is filled with eerie heads. And he is rising, heroically, to the challenge of showing rock’s young rebels the true meaning of debauchery. Damien Love uncovers the harrowing tale of an “offensive” masterpiece, Street Hassle.
The Magic Number
Gathering inspiration from Mickey Mouse and Multiplication Rock, the NY trio crafted a hit manifesto.
Somebody's Watching You!
A filmmaker’s epic pursuit of Sly Stone. “Fame attracts wonderful people. Fame also attracts guns and dogs…”
Randy Newman
Dark MatterNONESUCH8/10Uniting sardonic gospel songs with complex orchestral scores.
The War On Drugs
A Deeper UnderstandingATLANTIC8/10 Granduciel admits a little more light.
Rod Stewart O2 Arena, London, February 27, 2017
“Enjoy yourself!” Rod The Mod’s surreal soul revue turns the O2 into a “giant pub”
“I'm In This Up To My Neck”
The Konrads, The King Bees, The Manish Boys. The Lower Third, The Buzz. The Riot Squad and The Hype. A baseball team called the Dulwich Bluejays, and a mime about the Chinese invasion of Tibet. Fifty years on from the release of David Bowie’s debut album, Michael Bonner takes a very close look at Bowie’s quietly momentous 1960s, and learns from many friends, lovers and accomplices how David Jones became Rainbowman, and invented the majestic creature mythologised as David Bowie. As his former girlfriend says, “Everything David did in the ’60s led up to the ’70s…”
Never A Dull Moment
Scion of brit comedy royalty. swinging london scenester. rod confidant. French superstar. Womble... the eventful career of Robin Le Mesurier.
Kiss
O2 Arena, London, May 31, 2017The crazy, crazy genius of Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley: it’s all about the smoke and mirrors…
Afghan Whigs
Koko, London, May 30, 2017“Let’s get it on!” Greg Dulli gets hot under the collar once again
Night of the Living Dead
June 27, 2015: the reunited members of The Grateful Dead begin their last run of shows. In Northern California, Uncut goes native with the Deadheads to celebrate the bands 50-year adventure, and explores the seismic impact they have made on hundreds of thousands of lives. How will the Dead sound without Jerry Garcia? What happens next? And how do you score some really good LSD? Shall we go, you and I/While we can?..."
Won't Stop Rockin'
They've survived splits, breakdowns and the unsolved murder of DJ Jam Master Jay, but Run-DMC are still causing hard times for sucker MCs
The Grateful Dead
An unlikely proto-punk classic.
If You Want A Partner, Take My Hand…
The enduring consolations of Leonard Cohen: Uncut marks the departure of rock’s pre-eminent poet. David Cavanagh examines the life and work of a dapper master of his craft, while Cohen’s closest collaborators share their intimate memories: “When I awoke, there was Leonard, crouching at the foot of my bed, looking directly into my face with the utmost compassion.”
A Song For You
A celebration of one of rock’s most storied careers. Uncut remembers Leon Russell with a previously unpublished interview in which he looks back at his extraordinary life with Phil Spector, The Byrds, Joe Cocker, Eric Clapton, George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson and Frank Sinatra. “My songs are tributes, a lot of the time, to things that are important in my life.”
Jonathan Demme | 1944–2017
SHORTLY after Jonathan Demme died – on April 26, aged 73 – David Byrne wrote an extensive eulogy for the film director on his blog. reflecting on their first collaboration together, the 1984 talking heads’ concert film, Stop Making Sense, Byrne praised Demme’s singular approach to the project.
Let Me Come Back Over
Buffalo Tom revisit their masterpiece: “There’s some real emotional turmoil to that period of life…”
How Many Holes Does It Really Take To Fill The Albert Hall?
Yep, they’d love to turn you on: The Bootleg Beatles bring Sgt Pepper to life.
Julia Jacklin
Recommended this month: how a Blue Mountains girl was inspired by Britney, but ended up like Emmylou.