new music reviews, news & interviews
Tom Carr |

Jose Gonzales is one of those musicians who is well known without many recognising it. Until that is, someone plays his most known track “Heartbeats”, which was unavoidable after it released in the early noughties. Since then, the Swedish solo artist hasn’t pierced through the zeitgeist in quite the same way, but he has been more than successful enough.

Kieron Tyler |

Blackpool Cool is the third and last album by Glasgow’s Head. Issued in 1977 on the band’s own Head Records label, it was preceded by 1973’s GTF and 1975’s Red Dwarf.

Ibi Keita
Tom Misch’s Full Circle is an easy, pleasant listen, but it tends to drift by without leaving much of a lasting impression. He leans into a softer,…
Jonathan Geddes
Years have passed since the early days of Gorillaz, when the real musicians behind the cartoon band remained hidden from view onstage. Yet some…
Tom Carr
The premise of a four-piece rock band hailing from Bedford sounds very unassuming when compared to the reality of the eclectic rockers, Don Broco.…

Subscribe to theartsdesk.com

Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.

To take a subscription now simply click here.

And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?

Joe Muggs
While some synth pop queens fade, the Swede seems to burn ever brighter
Sebastian Scotney
Raye’s moment has definitely arrived, and this is an inspirational album
Guy Oddy
Red Hot Chilli Pepper’s solo album is a great success that strays far from the day job
Kieron Tyler
A one-stop showcase for the fabulous
Joe Muggs
The youthful grandaddies of K-pop are as cyborg-slick as ever
Mark Kidel
Risk-taking flights of musical imagination
Katie Colombus
Life after burnout and bad decisions for the Buenos Aires duo
Liz Thomson
Sing out, sisters
Kieron Tyler
Former member of múm musically reclaims herself
Thomas H. Green
In memory of the legendary band's riffing heartbeat for more than 30 years, we revisit this 2013 interview in which he talks Johnny Cash, Hawkwind and, of course, Lemmy
Jonathan Geddes
The trio have recently returned after a hiatus of more than a decade
Guy Oddy
A love letter from Portland’s favourites to the songs and bands that inspire them
Thomas H. Green
Much-talked-about divorce album is better as theatre
Kieron Tyler
First-ever collection dedicated to the musical polymath’s latterly defined golden years
Thomas H. Green
Now a trio, the synth-poppers' sound takes a trip to Ibiza, long ago, with mixed results
Kieron Tyler
Sell-out show suggests embracing difficult music won’t impede an upwards trajectory
Thomas H. Green
Heavy riffin', punk rock, food poisoning, snark and moshpit mayhem
Guy Oddy
The brothers Robinson pay tribute to Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Rolling Stones again
Joe Muggs
The godmother of punk takes a leap into the unknown but doesn't quite stick the landing
Guy Oddy
Beautiful chaos that blends hardcore punk and spacious dub sounds
Jonathan Geddes
The former Talking Heads singer mixed old and new alike in a compelling show.
Tim Cumming
An assured third album from the acclaimed singer songwriter
Kieron Tyler
Significant box-set examination of an important strand of America’s pre-grunge musical landscape
Ellie Roberts
A muted approach that will likely age well

the future of arts journalism

You can stop theartsdesk.com closing! 

We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d

And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.

latest in today

We are bowled over! We knew that theartsdesk.com had plenty of supporters out there – we’ve always had a loyal readership of arts…
Blackpool Cool is the third and last album by Glasgow’s Head. Issued in 1977 on the band’s own Head Records label, it was preceded by 1973’…
Jose Gonzales is one of those musicians who is well known without many recognising it. Until that is, someone plays his most known track “…
The vertigo of lawlessness in Stalin’s Russia carries contemporary resonance in Sergei Loznitsa’s latest Soviet parable. As a Russian…
“Fear death by water,” says the fortune-teller in TS Eliot’s The Waste Land. There were a few moments in Natalie Abrahami’s new production…
Was it a risk to attend a third Irish Baroque Orchestra Matthew Passion in as many years, given that previous indelible interpretations had…
If it were true, as Timothée Chalamet has said, that ballet as an art form has become a museum, the job of running a national ballet…
Brahms: Trio Op. 114, Robert & Clara Schumann: Romances. Joachim: Hebrew Melodies Tabea Zimmermann (viola), Javier Perianes (piano)…
Tom Misch’s Full Circle is an easy, pleasant listen, but it tends to drift by without leaving much of a lasting impression. He leans into a…
Years have passed since the early days of Gorillaz, when the real musicians behind the cartoon band remained hidden from view onstage. Yet…

Most read

Playwright David Hare is on a West End roll. Not only is his new play, Grace Pervades, about super thespians Henry Irving and Ellen Terry,…
Are Seán O'Casey's Dublin plays good for theatre today, or just for the history of Irish drama? My limited recent experience makes it hard…
The title is, of course, typically British understatement. This Music May Contain Hope has not just irresistible confidence and optimism…
“Fear death by water,” says the fortune-teller in TS Eliot’s The Waste Land. There were a few moments in Natalie Abrahami’s new production…
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) revived Thirties adventure serials’ simple thrills, a George Lucas notion adrenalised by Spielberg. Its hero…
When the joyful energy at the final curtain - love briefly triumphant in the power-dominated world of Wagner's Ring - is as insanely high…
If it were true, as Timothée Chalamet has said, that ballet as an art form has become a museum, the job of running a national ballet…
Tom Misch’s Full Circle is an easy, pleasant listen, but it tends to drift by without leaving much of a lasting impression. He leans into a…
Tamerlano, tyrannical Emperor of the Tartars, is a burger-munching boor with a golf-habit, a bulbous belly and a crashing disdain for other…
So here in Paris, as at Salzburg in 2022, it’s no longer “Puccini’s Trittico” but “the Asmik Grigorian Trittico 3-1-2”. Which would be a…