By Isabella Wimmer In a world where social inequalities and asymmetrical power structures come to the forefront of our awareness as a society, Beyoncé chooses the right moment for the release of her new album Black Is King. The visual album, a concept pioneered by Beyoncé in her 2013 self-titled surprise album, was released on…
Category: Music, Film & TV
Classical music has seen a huge revival of late, but not in the way you might expect
I’m a bit of snob when it comes to music, probably to my detriment rather than success. I stick comfortably to my preconceived genres, rarely straying into the world of new releases or pop. One of these genres happens to be that of classical music – a genre I was encouraged to engage with from…
Ultra Mono sees Idles at their most politically provocative, cutting through the chaos to deliver an album that’s strong in both message and sound
Idles’ third album Ultra Mono is knowingly sincere. Its anti-war, sexual harassment, and racist sentiments are, (like the album artwork), aggressively hurtled towards you like a giant pink inflatable ball. Even the album title itself Ultra Mono (which refers to a mix that has equal volumes in both channels) reinforces Idles’ head-strong, unwavering message on…
ENERGY: Disclosure’s unlikely affinity for West Africa takes centre stage
The two brothers, known synonymously as Disclosure, have a success story that seems fantastical. Their debut album Settle (2013) almost immediately established their status as a driving force in UK house music. They didn’t need to climb ranks, they jumped into the upper echelon of critically acclaimed and huge mainstream success, gaining membership to an exclusive…
Candid Orange Mix Series | CONE
In our next instalment of the Candid Orange Mix Series, CONE, a member of Manchester-based electronic music collective Great Danes, brings us a mix of tunes ranging from IDM, UKG, Hard Drum, Bass Music, Breaks, Electro and various Left-field sounds. Track list Yre Den – silk evade Two Shell – Missing in Action Afro B…
‘Des’ | A Focus on the Victims, not the Killer
By Isobel Warner ITV’s latest drama Des successfully tells the victims’ stories, whilst simultaneously avoiding the glamorisation of a serial killer and his crimes. “True Crime” as a genre of entertainment has skyrocketed in the past five years. With hugely successful Netflix documentaries such as Making A Murderer putting the genre on the map, there seems to be an…
If we’re talking about female rap, we can’t forget about Eve
Before Nicki Minaj sported patent pink Dr Martens and expressed her burning passion for his ‘Super Bass’, and after Lil’ Kim appointed herself the Queen Bee on ‘Crush on You’, there was one woman who bridged the gap between these two phases of rap music. She is a central part of the ancestral line of…
The Ammonite backlash: Queer narratives in film finally given centre stage
A trailer was recently released for the film Ammonite, a biopic of famed palaeontologist Mary Anning, starring Kate Winslet as the lead role. Written and directed by Francis Lee, who previously penned the 2016 queer drama God’s Own Country, it is both a critical and financial hit that is very worth seeing. The trailer for…
Tenet review: Can Nolan save cinema?
The weight of the film industry sits heavy on Christopher Nolan’s shoulders. Tenet, originally scheduled for a lucratively-timed July release, was delayed, indefinitely postponed and eventually opened on Wednesday 26th August. In the whirlwind of corona, the film has been dealt with the task of filling socially distanced seats in cinemas across the globe. If…
Candid Orange Mix Series | Loz Barker
Loz Barker continues our mix series with an eclectic blend of tasters from his upcoming album, With Sweet Tenderness. Manchester artist, Loz Barker, continues our mix series with a compilation of original tracks sampled from his upcoming album With Sweet Tenderness. Expect electronica, garage, drum and bass and house from this compilation on Soundcloud.