Scott Matthews - cinnamon, 2018

"The pain and self revelations that he captures in this single are shared in an incredibly beautiful way with the audience, and the feelings that he sings are shared by way of bittersweet memory. The piano and guitar are slow and played as a ballad, which highlights his empowering vocals."

Isobel Campbell - four three one six, 2024

"Isobel Campbell was partly responsible for many of the best moments on early Belle And Sebastian records. She left that band in 2002, and she’s put together a pretty great solo career, often working with her late collaborator Mark Lanegan."

Real Estate - somebody new, 2024

"The first four songs are absolute vintage RE, with sunny melodies and intricate, polished guitar lines. The lyrics are whimsical ('Flowers inside my head / Everywhere, all the time'), meandering (Water Underground; Somebody New), with just a hint of darkness under the cheery veneer ('The sun is shining through the world / This haunted world is killing me')."

Simon And Garfunkel - america, 1968

"Many other empty, aching, and lost souls are on the highway, each on their own journey alone even if someone is traveling with them."

Fleet Foxes - in the morning solstice version cover live, 2021

"Despite its billing – “a very lonely solstice” – this live stream doesn’t start lonely at all. Dressed all in white, a masked, socially distanced choir fills the pews of this gothic-arched New York church. These angelic figures are members of the Resistance Revival Chorus – female and non-binary singers whose aim is to motivate and uplift."

Mike Oldfield - moonlight shadow, 1983

"It was originally inspired by a film I loved – Houdini, starring Tony Curtis, which was about attempts to contact Houdini after he'd died, through spiritualism... it was originally a song influenced by that, but a lot of other things must have crept in there without me realising it."

Khruangbin - may ninth, 2024

"a funky short story about the circle of life and the interconnectedness of all things"

Bear's Den - hiding bottles, 2019

"Lead singer Andrew Davie spent time at Al-Anon meetings following experiences of addiction within his own family, and needed to speak to others from a similar background. Al-Anon is a charity that helps to support family and friends who have experienced the struggle of addiction, and these meetings form the spine of 'Hiding Bottles'."

Neil Young And Crazy Horse - broken circle over and over, 2024

"In the spirit it’s offered, we made this for the Horse lovers. I can’t stop it. The Horse is runnin’. What a ride we have. I don’t want to mess with the vibe, and I am so happy to have this to share.”

Robert Wyatt - the age of self, 1985

 

"the targets he has chosen are slippery, ambiguous ones; the treacherous duplicity of political language, the lies that democracy depends on, the so-called plurality of thought that Western culture contains and the infectious spread of cultural amnesia. Behind this array of inter-related topics lurks the spirit of Marxist writer Noam Chomsky, that most mischievous disseminator of Western capitalist mores and guiding light in Wyatt's current way of seeing." 

"They say the working class is dead, we're all consumers now

They say that we have moved ahead – we're all just people now

There's people doing 'frightfully well' there's others on the shelf

But never mind the second kind this is the age of self

And it seems to me if we forget our roots and where we stand

The movement will disintegrate like castles built on sand

They say we need new images to help our movement grow

They say that life is broader based as if we didn't know

While Martin Jacques and Robert Maxwell play with printer's ink

The workers 'round the world still die for Rio Tinto zinc

And it seems to me if we forget our roots and where we stand

The movement will disintegrate like castles built on sand

Castles built on sand"

Genesis - the carpet crawlers, 1974

"The Genesis song, whose lyrics were written by Peter Gabriel, has a dense, religious imagery leading to considerable discussion over the years as to what is the meaning of the The Carpet Crawlers lyrics. Here I’ll offer an interpretation that it is, at heart, addressing a terrible truth: that our world is hellish and those whom we believe we are following out of our own choice are keeping us trapped in illusion."

Spain - you and i, 2014

"the album marks an artistic departure for the band and is arguably their finest work since 1995's The Blue Moods of Spain."

The Flaming Lips - after the gold rush cover, 1989

"The Bridge: A Tribute To Neil Young is a 1989 tribute album that features alternative rock bands covering songs written by Neil Young."

Mia Loucks - body, 2024

"In “Body,” Mia Loucks confronts the complexities of living with a rare connective tissue disease. With hauntingly delicate vocals, she sings, “It’s weird how my body feels like a boulder.” The song serves as an ode to her body before everything changed."

Au Revoir Simone - all or nothing live, 2009

"Borrowing their name from a minor character in the Tim Burton comedy Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, the Casio-centric group came together in late 2003, when Forster and Hart befriended one another while traveling by train from Vermont to New York."

The Mountain Goats - andrew eldritch is moving back to leeds, 2017

"First single “Andrew Eldritch Is Moving Back To Leeds” is a sort of story-song about the frontman of goth overlords the Sisters Of Mercy."

Daniel b - driving, 2024

"Following on from the rousing response to his much-loved debut EP 'tidal wave' back in 2021, Slovakian singer-songwriter daniel b is now looking to cement his vibrant legacy to date as he releases his eagerly-awaited debut album 'songs of youth & innocence'."

Bright Eyes And Neva Dinova - poison, 2004

"One Jug of Wine, Two Vessels is a collaborative split EP by Bright Eyes and Neva Dinova. It was released in 2004 on Crank! Records. It was also reissued on CD/LP/Digital by Saddle Creek Records on March 23, 2010, with four newly recorded bonus tracks not included on the original release, which were written/recorded in late 2009."

Arcade Fire - everything now, 2017

"Arcade Fire insists that even the frothiest pop can still reach deep and perhaps even save lives. Arcade Fire has always been acutely conscious of music history, using stylistic allusions to underline or tease against its messages."

Paul Weller - i'm where i should be live, 2015

"Saturn’s Pattern features a “kazoo through a fuzzbox” and was recorded with his usual bandmates Steve Cradock and Andy Lewis, and members of psychedelic jazz group Syd Arthur."