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Madonna: I Feel So Free review – album teaser offers hypnotic glimpse of a return to her club scene roots

The ‘Queen of Pop’ conjures the heady vibes of a small hours dancefloor with this exceptionally crafted single

Sean Shibe: Vesper album review – ever-imaginative guitar virtuoso brings mind-expanding flights of fancy

This thoughtfully curated programme of work by three British composers explores the guitar’s expressive potential, and new arrangements of Harrison Birtwistle’s piano originals are a revelation

The Flying Dutchman review – delusion, torment and menace in detailed and finely sung Wagner

Jack Furness’s unconventional staging for Welsh National Opera sees the orchestra play up a storm under Tomáš Hanus in Wagner’s legend of the man condemned to sail the oceans for eternity

Olivia Rodrigo: Drop Dead review – a maximalist rush of infatuation that’s just a bauble short of festive

On this giddy first taste of the US pop star’s third album, she sets aside her rock bona fides to revel in the opulent flush of a crush-come-true. But why does it seem so doomed?

Jessie Ware: Superbloom review – Table Manners host dishes up more disco – but where are the bangers?

The podcaster’s third sequin-festooned album in a row is her most retro, with its slightly cringe moments balanced by unerring quality control and opulent arrangements

Massive Attack: Boots on the Ground (ft Tom Waits) review – first single in a decade is a dark hymn for our times

Unsettling breathing, arrhythmic clatter, gloomy piano and military snares underpin a Beefheartian portrayal of a boorish warmonger on the band’s ominous return

Karol G at Coachella review – electrifying set destined for festival’s hall of fame

With dazzling choreography and head-spinning set pieces, the Colombian star delivered a victorious statement of Latin pride

Justin Bieber at Coachella review – pop’s troubled prince mostly hits right notes in low-energy set

For a reportedly record-breaking amount of money, the increasingly reclusive star proves his voice is still golden in a headliner performance light on enthusiasm

The xx at Coachella review – indie trio reunites for spellbinding, rangy set

The English band’s first festival set in eight years hypnotized with their atmospheric dance sound

Tori Amos review – fans hang on every note of this dramatic deep dive into her back catalogue

The masterful performer previews her allegorical new album about the ‘fight for democracy over tyranny’ amid a set full of immaculate musicianship

Holly Humberstone: Cruel World review – Taylor Swift fave trades gothic melancholy for pop glow-up

The British singer-songwriter replaces introspection with euphoric choruses, 80s synths and even happy hardcore on her vivid second LP

Mahler Symphonies 1–9 album review – Bychkov’s set earns a place in a starry pantheon

Semyon Bychkov’s Mahler symphony cycle with the Czech Philharmonic is meticulous, imaginative and deserves to be placed alongside the very best sets

My New Band Believe review – beautiful ideas burst from ex-Black Midi man’s lovable debut album

Smoothing out the jump-cut chaos of his previous band, Cameron Picton brings entirely acoustic instrumentation to bear on these lovely, beguiling songs

Belle and Sebastian review – joyful anniversary tour makes debut album brighter than ever

On a tour playing Tigermilk and If You’re Feeling Sinister in full on alternate nights, Stuart Murdoch and co wittily reanimate their world of aesthetes and misfits

Suzi Quatro review – at 75, her signature scream is still thrilling

There is something eternally teenage about the trailblazing rocker, who can still deliver at her glam-era best – but her rambling reminiscences are a bit Alan Partridge

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← Older posts
  • David Bowie: You’re Not Alone review – Ziggy glam and Berlin grime in a bum-shaking yet sanitised immersion
  • LSO/ Pappano: The Dream of Gerontius review – full-throttle rendering of Elgar’s operatic finest
  • Madonna: I Feel So Free review – album teaser offers hypnotic glimpse of a return to her club scene roots
  • LSO/Frang/Pappano review – tragic and thrilling Shostakovich and silky and spiky Korngold
  • Sean Shibe: Vesper album review – ever-imaginative guitar virtuoso brings mind-expanding flights of fancy
  • The Flying Dutchman review – delusion, torment and menace in detailed and finely sung Wagner
  • Olivia Rodrigo: Drop Dead review – a maximalist rush of infatuation that’s just a bauble short of festive
  • Lucy Liyou: Mr Cobra review – an arresting trip through the volatile emotions of a predatory relationship
  • Various artists: Asili ya Mama review – Tanzanian field recordings tell women’s stories with an energetic trill
  • Samuel Hasselhorn: Schubert Hoffnung review – timbral and emotional flexibility is in ample supply
  • Jessie Ware: Superbloom review – Table Manners host dishes up more disco – but where are the bangers?
  • Massive Attack: Boots on the Ground (ft Tom Waits) review – first single in a decade is a dark hymn for our times
  • Brodsky Quartet / William Barton review – two hemispheres meet in winning didgeridoo collaboration
  • Leeds Song festival review – from haiku to hauntings in evening that thinks outside the box
  • Karol G at Coachella review – electrifying set destined for festival’s hall of fame
  • Dido and Aeneas review – young Welsh talent shines bright in Purcell
  • Justin Bieber at Coachella review – pop’s troubled prince mostly hits right notes in low-energy set
  • National Youth Orchestra/ Chauhan: Collide review – surging energy and remarkable intensity
  • Salome review – righteous fury and dynamic clarity give Regents Opera its head
  • The xx at Coachella review – indie trio reunites for spellbinding, rangy set
  • Sabrina Carpenter at Coachella review – madcap maximalism from pop savant
  • Tori Amos review – fans hang on every note of this dramatic deep dive into her back catalogue
  • Reckonwrong: How Long Has It Been? review – wonky delight with shades of Arthur Russell and Robert Wyatt
  • Holly Humberstone: Cruel World review – Taylor Swift fave trades gothic melancholy for pop glow-up
  • Reich: The Sextets album review – Colin Currie celebrates the minimalist master’s joy of six
  • Mahler Symphonies 1–9 album review – Bychkov’s set earns a place in a starry pantheon
  • My New Band Believe review – beautiful ideas burst from ex-Black Midi man’s lovable debut album
  • Belle and Sebastian review – joyful anniversary tour makes debut album brighter than ever
  • Suzi Quatro review – at 75, her signature scream is still thrilling
  • Pet Shop Boys review – no hits? No problem on first night of a masterful obscurities run

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