Music
On tour with Fat White Family: A photo diary
Bar hopping, party crashing ...and jammin' with Lady Gaga — Photography student Alec Castillo asked if he could shoot one of the most unpredictable groups in the world: London's Fat White Family. But when they let him join their US tour, the experience proved a lot more than he bargained for.
Written by: Alec Castillo
Outspoken Electronica: An interview with Fatima Al Qadiri
Brute force mentality — Channelling her childhood in Kuwait, Fatima Al Qadiri has made a captivating record about power, freedom, anger and fear – a statement of protest that shatters illusions of freedom in the West.
Written by: Jake Hulyer
How Music Dies: Aristocracy is killing artistry
From where I stand — Grammy-winning producer Ian Brennan has built a career out of capturing raw material. Now that pop culture has been overtaken by corporations, he explains why voices on the outer edges are more important than ever.
Written by: Ian Brennan
Lauryn Hill’s ten most memorable statements
Wise words, fighting talk and Fugee philosophy — After telling pissed concertgoers she was two hours late because of needing to 'align her energies’, we celebrate the most profound, combative and sometimes baffling things Lauryn Hill has said during her career.
Written by: Alex King
Ash Koosha: The Iranian artist building sound sculptures from magnified waveforms
Future shock — After fleeing Iran, Ash Koosha’s future-focussed productions blur the lines between music, film and virtual reality.
Written by: Alex King
Theft or inspiration: the epic surf film that Beyoncé ripped off for Lemonade
Johnce Knowles Surfbort — A look at whether Beyoncé ripped off the epic, John John Florence-fronted, View From A Blue Moon for Lemonade.
Written by: Gabriela Helfet
Charles Bradley is still searching for love
Never give up — Charles Bradley has lived a life of suffering and pain but, at 67, he’s still sharing the hard-won lessons he picked up along the way.
Written by: Alex King
Misfit City: The renaissance riot grrrls of Tacoma
Forever punk — In the shadow of music meccas Seattle, Olympia and Portland, a new wave of all-inclusive, female-led punk is bursting out of small-town, blue-collar Tacoma.
Written by: HUCK HQ
The actors turning Guantanamo Bay torture techniques into theatre
Welcome to a dystopian paradise — Theatre company 2Magpies are no strangers to tackling controversial subjects, but their latest project - exploring music and torture at Guantanamo Bay - may well be their boldest performance yet, showing us the songs used for torture at Guantanamo Bay, and asking questions about how we react to terror.
Written by: Natasha Turner
Jazz legend Gregory Porter on the art of the protest song
Fighting to be heard — Breakout star Gregory Porter explains how jazz and soul’s history of protest informed his new album, Take Me To The Alley.
Written by: Alex King