The Drop Cord: Thou on one of 2024’s Best Metal LPs, Umbilical

Thou’s new album takes a brutal back-to-basics approach, all under the ruthless glare of frontman Bryan Funck. Dan Franklin speaks to him and guitarist Andy Gibbs about holding their feet to the fire, roughly dispensing with melody and, most surprisingly, The Mighty Boosh. Main picture of Thou live by Mae Cravotta

Revenge Of The Synth: Benge Interviewed & Synth Porn Photo Gallery

Ben 'Benge' Edwards has recorded a beguiling album in Twenty Systems which traces the history of the analogue synthesizer. John Doran chats to him and Lucy Johnston creates a gallery of vintage synthesizer porn.

Liturgy

The Ark Work

Man Of God: Jim James Of My Morning Jacket Interviewed

INTERVIEW: Sandunes On Different Trains 1947

Sanaya Ardeshir, aka Sandunes speaks to tQ about her involvement with the Different Trains 1947 project, which marks 70 years since The Partition of India, and how she drew on her own family's history

Peer Review: Against Art On Autopilot – Jeff Jackson Interviewed

Speaking to Eric Obenauf, his publisher and editor at Two Dollar Radio, Jeff Jackson discusses conservativeness and convention in fiction-writing, pop-culture consumption and his LA Times Book Prize-finalist novel Mira Corpora

LHF

Keepers Of The Light

Paul Morley Interviewed: The Rise Of Zang Tuum Tumb, And The Fall Of ZTT

In an extensive interview, Paul Morley tells David McNamee a personal history of his involvement Zang Tuum Tumb label

“We Are Quite Savage Islanders” – Ben Wheatley Interviewed

Ben Wheatley chats to Stephen Dalton about the savagery of modern Britain, soundtrack choices and his blackly comic third feature Sightseers, which goes on nationwide theatrical release at the end of this month

Life After Brainiac: John Schmersal Of Vertical Scratchers Interviewed

Master Of The Dough, Stevie Chick talks to John Schmersal of Brainiac and Enon about keeping busy with Caribou, Crooks On Tape and Vertical Scratchers

Harmonic Worlds: Colin Newman’s 13 Favourite Albums

The Immersion, Wire and Githead founder member chooses a list that goes from minimalism to maximalism, via Steve Reich, LFO and Todd Rundgren, and tells Ben Graham how Britpop was rubbish but The Beatles have never sounded better

Sunken Disco: Maria Minerva Talks Downloads, DJing & Dance Music

London's producer of slinky, submerged club tunes chats to Rory Gibb about her label Not Not Fun, collaborating with LA Vampires and dance music crossovers

Into The Wilderness: An Interview With Ariel Kalma

With an archive release of his music out last month on RVNG, the Paris-born musician talks to Russell Cuzner about his label Music Mosaic, music therapy and his transglobal experiments in sound

Genius Of Hitchcock: The Lodger Revisited

Stephen Martin enjoys the Master of Suspense's 'story of the London fog', which has been fitted with a new soundtrack by Nitin Sawhney and restored by the British Film Institute for a nationwide theatrical re-release

LISTEN: Walls – Urals

From forthcoming limited edition 12" out next month

Bottled Moonlight: Anni Hogan Interviewed

The Zelig-like Anni Hogan has worked with everyone from Marc Almond and Nick Cave to The The and Nico but don't forget she's also a strong musician in her own right, as her new album Lost In Blue attests. Feature by Cathi Unsworth. All portraits courtesy of Peter Ashworth