On Pop
Best behaviour can be “rock ’n’ roll”
Is it the music that makes bands great — or the “situations”?
The delicate art of sampling
Every reference you pick up on opens a new horizon
The brilliance of Richard Thompson
What sounds like two guitars overlaid in the studio is all coming from him
Lady Gaga’s new album is a blast
Until now, she’s never been as much fun as she was in the noughties
Roy Orbison in Blue Velvet
A pop song can be transformed by use, or it can split the world open
Play Misty for me
Father John Misty has faked his way into a kind of blazing honesty
When I talked over Franz Ferdinand
The only band I’ve seen and wish I’d been paying attention to
Charli’s carefree bratitude
This is music for people who are tired of being careful
One of the greats
Bathos, fatalism, heartbreak: these are the pillars of a MacColl song
Oasis: the good boys of rock and roll
For guitar bands since punk, there’s been a tension between credibility and success
