Corbin Shaw has been working with flags for years, taking objects often seen as symbols of belligerent nationalism and subverting them with humour, emotion and vulnerability. After a year in which flags have dominated our discourse, how does he feel about them today? ✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social

Had my lunch at a proper proper old school boozer today. Pint of local ale, sandwich and crisps: £5.40. 🤌🏻

Always a joy to be blasted by My Bloody Valentine. Last night was also a tribute to Mani and for @thequietus.com I dug into the idea of extreme noise as a vehicle for calm and tranquility. thequietus.com/quietus-revi...

Also put together a bit of an accompanying playlist for the book. 30 tracks is peanuts in the grand scheme of things to reflect 60+ years, and a few bits also not on Spotify, but hopefully a nice taster and one that I may expand upon a bit over the coming months.

Didn’t get chance to properly post yesterday, as a bit full on, but I have written a book. On the history of music in Sheffield. Out in May via the excellent @whiterabbitbks.bsky.social. Pre-order available now and full PR spiel here. Thanks for the love so far www.thebookseller.com/rights/white...

An incredible effort from @danieldylanwray.bsky.social on this. 150+ interviews, covering nearly 70 years, this is THE book on one of THE great cities for music. Very proud to be Dan's publisher 👊 #SHEFFIELD

Brilliantly researched and spanning almost seven decades, GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY features over 150 new interviews with the likes of Richard Hawley, Arctic Monkeys, Pulp, Self Esteem, The Human League, Toddla T, Def Leppard, ABC and Cabaret Voltaire – along with countless others.

This - finally - is the definitive musical history Sheffield so richly deserves. GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY is @danieldylanwray.bsky.social's authoritative and hugely entertaining story of the city, told through its independent artists, scenes and spirit. Coming May 2026 geni.us/GroovyLaidba...

Please read, listen, and share widely. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/n...

Andrew absolutely coming up with the goods here!

Big up Ben Wheatley, who has been creating and building a giant YouTube playlist of all the various BBC Arena documentaries from back in the day. It’s now featuring over 100 films. Loads of gold in here. youtube.com/playlist?lis...

On Saturday, Stephen Mallinder and Chris Watson played together as Cabaret Voltaire for the first time in 44 years. I was genuinely knocked out by it. Was an outrageously good show that felt like a real privilege to witness. Reviewed for @thequietus.com. thequietus.com/quietus-revi...

I like articles that plunge into world's so unknown, alien, confusing and eye-opening, to me, that it feels like you're genuinely speaking a different language / living on a different planet. This very engaging and utterly depressing piece manages to tick all those boxes. harpers.org/archive/2025...

As a founder member of Cabaret Voltaire, you might think nothing could match Chris Watson’s first act. However, he went on to become one of the best sound recordists in the world, travelling the globe with David Attenborough and working on hit shows like Chernobyl. ✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social

I’ve managed to squeeze in a fair bit of niche music into the pages of the Guardian over the years, but especially chuffed with getting to cover the waltzer sound system wars of Hull Fair. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/o...

Did you know that we have two world-leading environmental investigative journalists living in Sheffield? Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor, a married couple, made their names reporting on wildlife crime in Africa and now front hit podcasts such as Buried and Boy Wasted. ✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social

Tales From A Hard City is a remarkable, v v funny and overlooked documentary. Celebrating its 30th anniversary, I look at how it's a useful accompanying document to tracing the origins of another Sheffield landmark turning 30 this month: Pulp's Different Class. thequietus.com/culture/film...

“It’s become this indelible thing for Sheffield people now. It’s in the city’s blood.” Love Threads? If so, you’ll definitely enjoy this piece by @danieldylanwray.bsky.social about new doc Survivors: The Spectre of Threads ahead of its world premiere at the Sheffield Film Festival next weekend.

A quick update on #JDTwitch -- a new separate fund to raise money for care for others at the hospice he is at has been started by the family, with some of the Crowdfunder proceeds helping to start things there. Full details are here -- JD continues to want to give back to others.

there's almost nobody in This Thing Of Ours who doesn't owe something to Keith in one way or another, so let's all chip in a few quid when he needs it most... very glad to hear he's comfortable at last

I love the documentary American Movie very deeply. I wrote the latest entry in the my feelgood movie series on it about how inspiring I find the purity and heart of it on top of the lols. www.theguardian.com/film/2025/ju...

It's here! The Quietus Albums of the Year So Far 2025. What's at Number One? How many have you heard? buff.ly/h3osP6p @normanrecords.com

Hearts of Darkness - a doc on the making of Apocalypse Now - is back in cinemas this week. I spoke with its director, along with a couple of cast and crew from the original film, to dig into a troubled production that produced a landmark despite the chaos. www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...

After 45 years, The Leadmill closes this week. It's been a bitter, messy, battle – personal and legal – until the end. It's sad for many people but I wanted to use it as an opportunity to celebrate Sheffield's bountiful ongoing independent spirit elsewhere. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...

"In Sheffield you let your music and your art do the talking. You leave your ego at the door. Everything else doesn’t matter. The song is king." @danieldylanwray.bsky.social catches up with the legendary Richard Hawley to talk dreams, dogs, and why he’ll never set foot in The Leadmill ever again.

"House music demands that we all have a space at the table.” Ahead of its UK premiere at Sheffield DocFest, @danieldylanwray.bsky.social‬ speaks to house pioneer Vince Lawrence and filmmaker Elegance Bratton about Move Ya Body: The Birth of House djmag.com/features/new...

This is such a wonderful record. Drink it up.

Did this week’s readers interview with John C Reilly, who was a total sweetheart and answered various Qs on everything from Tom Waits to Magnolia via his new musical project and his buttocks. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...

good gear.

My FT profile of the wonderful Peter De Rome, gay film pioneer (not using the other p-word as prudish Bluesky gets upset) is now up online. One of the gay and bisexual men whose lives were changed forever by their experiences of WWII & the state of the UK afterwards... www.ft.com/content/f981...

‘You can't live in a museum. I'm a great believer in moving forward’ Pete Hill made his name shooting the rising stars of 80s Sheffield He now documents the city’s rapidly disappearing past 📸 ✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social

The mighty Cabaret Voltaire are back to play a small run of 50th anniversary shows this year. I sat down with Chris Watson and Stephen Mallinder for their first return interview. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...

I was really surprised by just how effective and successful the Radiohead / Hamlet production was. Pretty remarkable stuff at times. I dug into the Radiohead/music side of things in a little more detail after last night's world premiere. pitchfork.com/thepitch/rad...

And was also fun to get stuck into the story and history of bassline and how it's gone from a genre that police once outlawed to a celebratory and family-friendly part of Bradford City of Culture. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/m...

Enjoyed catching up with Swamp Dogg, who is a wonderful character and has lived a hell of a life, much of which is explored in a new documentary doing the rounds at the mo. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/m...

... and @danieldylanwray.bsky.social will be in conversation with two very special guests. I'll be spinning Cabs-related tunes in the intervals! Check the details here: performancevenues.group.shef.ac.uk/event/50-yea...

The Bee Magazine launches TODAY. It has been created to redress the class imbalance in literature, and features an array of writing talent. Big respect to editors Richard Benson, Claire Malcolm and all at @newwritingnorth.bsky.social. Please support it if you can. Go to TheBeeMagazine.com.

I had a really beautiful chat about films with Richard Dawson for @thequietus.com. He's picked 13 favourites that share the same theme of family/home as his latest record, End of the Middle. A really thoughtful, and hugely knowledgable, selection. Joy to do this one. thequietus.com/interviews/b...

OK, who fancies popping over to #Sheffield next month to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first #CabaretVoltaire gig (13 May 1975) #RussellHaswell, #Prangers, #SynthClub, and @danieldylanwray.bsky.social in conversation with special guests. I'll be spinning Cabs-related tunes as well.

Big fan of Carol Morley's doc The Alcohol Years. 25 years on from its release, we had a really good chat about it and the beautiful role it plays in telling a unique story about Manchester and its music, people, culture and history. manchestermill.co.uk/carol-morley...

Hi everyone! I am so excited to share this with you!!! In the freshly re-launched Loud and Quiet, I have been given a column to discuss my favourite weird, out-there and experimental music. Check out the first volume here, and consider subscribing...! loudandquiet.substack.com/p/the-drift-...

Did a little piece on the boom of DIY lathe cut vinyl makers and labels, of which Jon here - via @doitthissen.bsky.social - has been doing prolifically in recent years. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/f...

Was a pleasure to do this piece. 13 lots of memories, reflections, life lessons, and killer records that people most fondly remember Weatherall for. From the importance of a good haircut, to tunes that send Berlin K-heads into a wobble, via his endless generosity. djmag.com/features/wha...

New Factory Floor x 2. A brand new single out today, along with their 2024 return live set - first in five years - from @mutek.bsky.social now streaming. I was there and it’s a real beauty.

Absolute peach of a cover here, for this Lynch tribute issue. I had a lovely chat with Chris Isaak for it about his decades-long relationship with Lynch, from having his mind fried watching Eraserhead through to paintballing with Lynch on the set of Fire Walk With Me.

One of the incredible - and incredibly rare - things about Lynch was that he produced era-defining (often generation-defining) work at least once every decade from the 1970s onwards. Absolutely unreal run to be able to do that time and time again across such a shifting cinematic landscape.

There’s a hugely in depth new book out on the making of The Shining, featuring hundreds of never before seen pics, new interviews, and documents. Ten years in the making from someone who has been obsessed with the film since they were 12. Had a chat with him here. www.anothermag.com/art-photogra...

“It was a call to action. Basically saying: get off your arse and do something.” Absolutely love this piece by @danieldylanwray.bsky.social on the Sheffield fanzine scene of the 70s and 80s 📄 To read the piece in full, join @sheffieldtribune.bsky.social 🔒 www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/p/gun-rubber...

Christmas party season is upon us and so I spent some time in the high demand world of people who make a living as comedy character lookalikes. Which resulted in me going to a landlord conference in Birmingham with David Brent. www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio...