Rock

Celebrating an iconic album by Milton Nascimento and Lô Borges that holds a special place in the history of MPB.

Nirvana’s lead singer never hid his influences and, more than that, he spent his life promoting all the bands and artists who’d inspired him.

A loathsome character but a genius producer who revolutionized pop with his “wall of sound” studio technique, working with the Ronettes, the Beatles, Leonard Cohen and the Ramones, among others.

Colombian Eblis Àlvarez douses cumbia and salsa with LSD to generate some blistering hot psychedelia. South American music subsequently developed into a bit of a hobby for him, much like the blues for Captain Beefheart or pop for The Residents. 

Peaceful songs to help you journey through time and music, and into slumber.

Ariel Pink never wanted to be famous. Yet he is the master of writing hits that never existed. Is he simply a plagiarist? Or is it that more and more people are copying him these days?

Bowie’s death on 10th January 2016 was a shared moment of trauma for every music lover. But some musicians are keeping the legend alive through vaulting covers.

The stress of the compulsory Christmas parties, childhood dreams turned to dust, the anxiety of one’s family, the lack of interest in a holiday devoid of values...For some, Christmas is like a nightmare that comes back to haunt them every year. They shouldn’t feel alone, as there’s plenty of music that would also like to throw Santa’s presents back in his face. A guaranteed Mariah Carey-free zone.

The story of how a piece of software intended to correct voices was transformed into an essential part of a record producer’s toolkit and a playful way to add effects.

Part 2 takes us on a trip to the land of fuzz guitar and farfisas, bang in the middle of the psychedelic boom. This time the direction is due east, from California to New York.²

Part one in our Garage Rock series details a great journey west – from garage rock’s beginnings in England, all the way to California, via the Big Apple.

The majority of independent labels are linked to musical trends. Much rarer are those embracing a wider range of genres. Mute Records belongs to this latter category, reflecting the diversity of British, European and global new-wave for over forty years.

For twenty years the American John Dwyer has applied himself with Herculean effort to the resurrection of 70s psychedelic rock.

Take the effectiveness of a well-written pop song and the straightforwardness of punk mixed together in a snappy format and you’ve got the recipe for a musical trend that’s never been fashionable, but is ultimately more lasting than other passing fads.

Immerse yourself into the wild back catalog of Thomas Jenkinson, the ingenious one man band behind the Warp label.

Starting life as a DIY hardcore punk label, SST went on to define the sound of US alternative rock for the 80s and beyond. We look back on their history and extensive back catalog.

Is this the best album by the best band of all time? We’ll leave it to everyone’s individual taste to answer that thorny question. In the meantime, The Beatles aka ‘the white album’ is an iconic double-album whose influence has reigned supreme over the record world since 1968.

La Tropicália (also known as Tropicalismo) was an iconoclastic vision of Brazilian society in the late 1960s, and two of its heroes are still making headlines: Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil.

The story of Talk Talk is the story of one of the most fascinating transformations in British pop music, beginning just over 40 years ago. Or it’s the story of how fake Duran Duran clones turned into post-rock heralds.

The recent passing of Charlie Watts, aged 80, provides us with an opportunity to look at his background and examine his role in the alchemy of the Stones. Who was this gentleman with the elusive personality?

Songs written for some, production done for others, rare tracks and star duos. Here we discover the (more or less) hidden side to the career of the former Beatle.

A chronological exploration for one of the most influential bands of the last century.

Praising the value of demo tapes and original recordings from bands, exploring how they provide an insight into the creative process behind legendary songs.

Music for the bedroom – for lovers, poets and kings. Featuring Purcell, Verdi, Léo Ferré, Depeche Mode, Monteverdi, Charles Trenet, Mel Bonis, Gérard Manset and Prokofiev.

Tracing the porous lines separating Bowie, Miles Davis and Stravinsky from leading figures in the world of modern art like Picasso, Warhol and Dali.

Jimi Hendrix, a Room Full Of Covers, a selection inviting you to rediscover the great composer behind the famous guitarist.

No, the guitar is not dead and buried under the exhausting pyrotechnics of Guitar Hero. Other geniuses with a six string are developing subtle, intimate and meditative approaches to the instrument, opening up new paths.

Our latest night time journey will take you far from the realms of human existence and is best listened to somewhere between midnight and 5am.

Charting the formation and history of the yacht rock genre. Including some of its best and lesser known tracks. 

Someone once said that blues is "the melody of a wounded heart looking for a way to heal". With no limits on where the music comes from, this playlist is a series of sad songs, intended to exorcise our pain.

A cult figure for generations of samplers weaned on his sounds and celebrated by lovers of the cinemascope format, producer and arranger David Axelrod is still a name that too few have heard.

The fourth and final installment, in which we take a chronological look at the career of one of the most influential artists of pop (and avant-garde) music.

Part three, in which we take a chronological look at the career of one of the most influential artists of pop (and avant-garde) music.  

Part two. Dive into the work of one of the most influential artists of pop (and avant-garde). 

Part one. Dive into the work of one of the most influential artists of pop (and avant-garde).

One might feel guilty at enjoying Prince covers, as he openly despised the idea of it and having no say to prevent them. Defying any eternal damnation, here’s a carefully selected bunch of guilty pleasures. 

Prince penned, gave or/and contributed, openly, incognito or under a moniker, songs to an impressive and eclectic list of fellow artists. Here’s a joyful playlist to reveal the tip of that iceberg. 

Psychedelic music doesn’t only exist under a clear, benevolent sky. It also invokes the dark night of the soul, where our deepest anguish is revealed.

Zappa wasn’t only a genius composer, he was also one of the most incredible guitarists. So, to paraphrase one of his albums, ‘shut up and listen to his guitar’!

1966 is a watershed year in music history. A huge amount of songs were big sellers on both sides of the Atlantic and somehow still seep into our bones.
 

Through his various bands, the mixed metal singer Max Cavalera has never stopped moving in and out of his native Brazil. 
 

Away from major labels and the flavours of the month that rule over them, Chicago’s Numero Group are flying the flag for unsung artists and musical oddities. 

The eargasm: a feeling of euphoria brought about by listening to sensual music...
 

The iconic indie label Stiff Records was home to some of the great music of the 70s and 80s. It gave us Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello, Ian Dury, Madness, and others.
 

Out with the truckers and the kickers and the cowboy angels. Hear the story of the infamous Gram Parsons from his tangy fingerprint on music’s biggest icons to his fiery desert burial in the sands of Joshua Tree.

March, the month of flowers budding, of returning light. For the Romans it was the month of war, and of a mysterious world little known to us humans.
 

The second part of ‘krautrock’ – a jokey name given to one of the most fantastic pop music movements of the end of the 20th century.

The first part of ‘krautrock’ – a jokey name given to one of the most fantastic pop music movements of the end of the 20th century. 

Entwined in the history of hardcore, the group Sick Of It All (or SOIA to their friends) is a beacon, the cornerstone of the scene. On the circuit for 34 years the Koller brothers, Craig Ahead and Armand Majidi continue to run the effortless marathon that is hardcore in New York.

From 1978 to 1983, Italian new wave was undoubtedly influenced by the likes of Bowie, Gary Numan, Japan, Ultravox and Kraftwerk, but filtered all these through a Mediterranean pop vein.

In the late 60s, Italian Beat morphed into Psichedelica. Although very short-lived, Italian psychedelia is still distinctively unique.

The story of the 1960s Italian music and cultural beat revolution, when teenagers grew their hair long, hitchhiked like Kerouac’s characters, set up hundreds of guitar bands and Rome Piper Club became the Mecca of a generation of beatniks.

Our three-playlist series ‘Birdsong’ is a journey following the many influences of birds throughout the history of music. This is the third and last episode: From inspiration to freedom.

Our three-playlist series ‘Birdsong’ is a journey following the many influences of birds throughout the history of music. This is the second episode: From ornithology to Absolute.

Our three-playlist series ‘Birdsong’ is a journey following the many influences of birds throughout the history of music. This is the first episode: From love to death.

Rain-soaked classics are undoubtedly fewer in number than those celebrating the sun, but there are still some famous ones. The rain doesn’t only make things hazy – it carries clouds of sound along with it.

 As well as dwelling at night, the moon – a celestial being and a symbol of liberty – dwells in pop music’s most introspective moments.

Somewhere between euphoric trips and contemplative strolls, tales of the desert can be told in music – from contemporary light pop to arid rock and feverish psychedelia...

Is Christmas cancelled this year? Hopefully not!

Between 1974 and 1989, The Residents, a band whose members have remained anonymous until today, have accumulated the most delirious of musical experiments ever in popular music.

From Al Green to Fela Kuti via Miles Davis, Ray Baretto and Jorge Ben, let’s take a glimpse at 1972’s musical landscape – the rhythm & soul edition.

A love letter to Brigitte Fontaine, an eternal figure of the French underground with a focus on her Saravah years.

A musical travelogue through London, a city that I love and that has been my home for 7 years. Mind the gap!

During the ‘80s, a bunch of bands focusing on macabre and dark romanticism repainted rock all black. The soundtrack to vampire movies and B-side horror films has an important place in music history.

Werewolves, vampires, monsters of the lagoon – your delicious transformation will take place step by step as you discover the golden age of demonic rock’n’roll.

Welcome to an imaginary radio show with The Clash at the (complete) controls. We have cover versions from all over the world, songs that inspired the band, artists that collaborated with them as well as a few Clash originals here and there.

A self-taught guitarist, the Nigerien Mdou Moctar is redefining the boundaries of Tuareg music.

Beyond its sticky sweet pop and more traditional sounds, a powerful alternative music scene is thriving in Lebanon.

The guide to post-metal from the early 2000s onwards.

Hard rock is still alive and well and is a genre that the whole family can enjoy.

D-beat, ultra-streamlined pop, and Space Disco. In Portland there’s more than 1 indie band per 1000 inhabitants. Welcome to Portlandia, America's musical exception.

A familiar reminder that happiness can be found anytime, even when the sky is grey.

A pop icon and music legend who has influenced artists such as David Bowie, Thom Yorke, and Leonard Cohen.

There is only one ELVIS (always spelt in capital letters).

A collection of songs which celebrate summer in perhaps the two most cinematic cities in the world, New York and London.

The band formed by irascible and unpredictable Mark E Smith in 1976 has become a Manchester post-punk institution. A playlist for both the beginners and the fans.

We look at the artists who left their mark on Blur without whom their pop may not have tasted quite so delicious.

A guide to the obsessive British producer behind some of the most memorable records of the punk and post-punk era.

U.S. punk rock on a silver platter.

The music that shaped Autechre.

Not one of the major metal acts have missed out on the influence of Black Sab’, particularly by the band’s first three albums.

The perfect playlist to help your kids develop the same impeccable taste in punk and alternative rock as you.

One of the greatest rock bands of all time draws its inspiration from blues as much as folk and the psychedelic scene. Sometimes, the influence was subtle, sometimes it was more obvious…

Decca’s offshoot label showcased some of Britain’s most happening pop, psychedelic and progressive artists of the late 60s. 

Why it is wrong to describe Frank Zappa as a brainiac and cynical musician...

The guide to psychedelic music over the world.

How the group who knew best how to harness the energy of rock became one of the most important names in the history of rap.

1979 marks the beginning of what one will call ‘post-punk’. Don’t expect to hear hits in this playlist as great as they all are, but very minor singles or album tracks.

With their first five albums and an early Peel session in a period of just over three years, Roxy Music shaped the future of music.

A bittersweet selection of songs of love, loss, longing, and self loathing.

1981 bookmarked the transition into a new world. Listen to the future's foreshadowing while immersing yourself in the Dionysian sweat of a discotheque for a wild ride.

With the embryonic stirrings of house, the global wave of the so called world music, the disco/funk turning into hip-hop, 1981 was a year that changed everything. 

Ian Dury was a hero, a mad performer, a pantomime villain, a sharp lyricist, a cripple, a lover and a rocker all rolled into one person.

Legendary, unknown, or unexpected, hear some of the musicians who have inspired David Bowie all along his incredible journey.

DEVO produced hits to make us dance, but also to dismantle mankind’s pretentiousness, which the band pointed out as being the source of all the violence we are able to commit.

The legendary producer has creatively guided the likes of Johnny Cash, the Beastie Boys, Adele, and Kanye West over the last three decades.

Welcome to the Church of Little Richard aka the Innovator, the Originator and the Architect of rock and roll.

How Tim Armstrong, the lead singer of Rancid and a figurehead of Californian punk, proved to be perfect Artistic Director for Hellcat Records, a subsidiary of Epitaph.

This playlist focuses on composers' final works: complete or not, abandoned or interrupted by the very death of their authors.

The English group established itself as one of the most important groups to have come out of the punk movement.

1968 was a year of phenomenal music, a year when the album really begins to become regarded as important for an artist to be able to make a statement.

Long drives can easily become a nightmare if the kids get bored…

The rise and fall of the Hippie movement following the common stages of an acid trip.

The rock 'n' roll revolution began with a small independent Memphis record label. It truly changed the world.

Songs to walk home to in the early morning.

The golden days of autumn are now over, the leaves have turned brown and summer is but a distant memory.

1968 continues to resonate as a landmark year for rock, pop and soul. Discover our best singles of the year.

Was 1975 that a bad year for pop and a dead zone for new music like the great Bob Stanley says?

New Order have never been so sincere as in the melancholy of their ballads, when slowness gave them time to strip down

1966 proved to be such a wonderful year for music that it is worth documenting these great tracks that somehow avoided the radar.

The rise and fall of the hippie movement... on stage.

A ticket to the Clube da Esquina.

Seriously, Britain? Come on…

In the winter, nature goes to sleep, and it’s the perfect time to dive into a sea of lively, yet sad songs.

Pulp were the band of the underdog: the student, the misfit, the quiet, the shy, the bored.