Austin band MIEN invoke the psychedelic sixties with this new album, which feels more like a homage than pushing the genre forward. It’s not clear why it exists really, but what it does, it does well. There’s a slice of Silver Apples in opener ‘Evil People’ and ‘Mirror’, but it’s more interesting when it goesContinue reading “Album Review: MIEN- MIIEN”
Category Archives: 2025
My Favourite Tree
This is not my tree, but the weeping willow outside my window is. If I take a picture it will reveal where I’m sequestered. There’s something about a weeping willow that soothes me. It’s fragile looking, all drooping, distended, delicate leaves like fingertips framing the town. For me, it’s a reminder of nature’s resilience, aContinue reading “My Favourite Tree”
Album Review: LA Witch- DOGGOD
Los Angeles trio LA Witch have been casting sonic spells since their debut album, which came out eight years ago.. Since then, their reputation as a formidable live act has endured. Their doomy, punkish music is as tender as a bruise. This “don’t mess” badass swagger sees them frequently getting a comparison to fellow SuicideContinue reading “Album Review: LA Witch- DOGGOD”
Album Review: SPELLING- Portrait Of My Heart
How you perceive this album will very much depend on your liking for eighties nostalgia. Still only in her thirties, Californian artist Chrystia ‘Tia’ Cabral mines the era, despite not having grown up then. Cabral has an incredible, beautifully soulful voice,and the production quality is undoubtedly high. However, tracks like ‘Alibi’ feel like the worstContinue reading “Album Review: SPELLING- Portrait Of My Heart”
Blossom, Dearie
Blossom bursting into life always symbolises hope for me. It’s nature awakening after her winter slumber. Right now, it’s blossom season in Japan, but since I can’t afford the plane ticket, I’ll simply make the most of this Scottish display. Look at that light. It’s perfect. The sky is paintbox blue today. It rained almostContinue reading “Blossom, Dearie”
Anxiety
There was no name for it, the first time it happened. To be honest, I’m not even sure how old I was, or even the catalyst. There was only the feeling, like the floor moving away from me and the churning, like a rending machine in my guts. It was only later that I reallyContinue reading “Anxiety”
Goodbye Glesga… For a bit.
Glasgow is a glorious city, full of contrasts: it’s the “Dear Green Place”; yet struggles with violence and gangland beefs. It’s modern, yet can be reactionary as hell. People can be wonderful, and I lived there over two decades. The buzz, bands, dance and theatre on my doorstep and the multiculturalism were glorious. However, theContinue reading “Goodbye Glesga… For a bit.”
Packing
Why is moving house so emotional? Perhaps it’s being confronted with the amount of crap you’ve accumulated over the years. Or maybe it’s the simple nostalgia of so much time passing. The unknown is also overwhelming, the giant leap towards who knows what. When I first moved here, it was as part of a couple.Continue reading “Packing”
Three Film Satires For the Second Trump Administration
President Donald J Trump’s second swing into politics has already seen deportations, trade wars and a complete lack of remorse for a plane and helicopter crash that could have been prevented. Then there is the farcical inauguration itself, with more than a tilt towards oligarchy: tech billionaires placed front and centre, right in front ofContinue reading “Three Film Satires For the Second Trump Administration”
So Long, Marianne
Marianne Faithfull has passed away, aged 78. She had long battled various health conditions, and was a battler right up until the end. They broke the mould when they made Marianne, a member of the Austrian aristocracy whose career was as complex as she was. Few singers can boast both a career in their teensContinue reading “So Long, Marianne”
Hit The North 