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Spooling through the world’s best tapes
Among drone-folk trips and joyously messed up noise jazz, Daryl Worthington finds the cassette scene has taken a political turn, whether immersive electronics fighting for free time, nostalgia-busting collages, or colonialism attacking text-sound compositions
Daryl Worthington speaks to a tape label expanding the possibilities of footwork, and reviews some of the most intriguing tapes of the Autumn, from world-building electronics to light triggered synthesis and a trumpet/cello/drums power trio
Daryl Worthington speaks to Constellation Tatsu about a decade of releasing music on tape, and looks at some of the most exciting music on cassette this month, from Paraguayan harp to paranormal cut-ups, four track riots to glistening synths and brutal electronics
The Paraorchestra is a collaboration between disabled and non-disabled musicians, composer Charles Hazlewood and singers including Brett Anderson and Nadine Shah. Anderson, Hazlewood and Paraorchestra members speak to Jude Rogers about the strange joy in singing songs about death. Photos by Kirsten McTernan
From Rock's Backpages this month, an infamous NME pop summit from 1989. James Brown and Sean O'Hagan took Mark E Smith, Nick Cave & Shane MacGowan to the Montague Arms (RIP) in New Cross. Great merriment ensued... (republished 24th January 2018)
As they release their first studio album for decades and prepare to play the London Scala, Luke Turner talks to Benin's Orchestre Poly-Rythmo de Cotonou about their religious differences, James Brown, playing with Fela Kuti, and their remarkable return
At the start of the 90s the astounding noise rock band Silverfish were everywhere – their shows nearly as ubiquitous as their Hips Tits Lips Power T-shirts – but since then they seem to have fallen irrevocably (and unfairly) down the memory hole. Keith Kahn-Harris catches up with band members today and asks: What happened?