Interesting to read this 1935 Sinclair Lewis novel in which a fascist dictator is elected President of the USA. Startling to see little details that parallel contemporary events.

"It is storytelling at its finest, the characters are often betrayed by their actions but retain the listener’s sympathies. The musical arrangements... give ‘The Set Up’ a magnificently cinematic scope. @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews #Delines www.silentradio.co.uk/02/23/album-...

"Musically, it takes from darkwave, freak folk, avant pop, electronic and baroque music to produce a tapestry of sounds that are emotional and have a slightly twisted beauty." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews Bibi Club's Amaro: www.silentradio.co.uk/02/22/album-...

#5DebutAlbums0509 Self titled debut from band who would prove to be the most consistently excellent group of the following 20 years. At this stage, their sound was a mix of post-punk's shifting energy with baroque pop.

"Their music has always been colourful but this sees them operating with an even wider palette. ‘Garip’ is their best album yet." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews the new album from Altın Gün www.silentradio.co.uk/02/16/album-...

#5DebutAlbums0509 Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - s/t Terrible name, great record.

#5DebutAlbums0509 Trembling Bells - Carbeth An epic but experimental debut & a great introduction to the spiralling vocals of Lavinia Blackwall.

#5DebutAlbums0509 My sadness over The Delgados splitting up was eased by this. An entire album with their best vocalist singing. Great lyrics & melodies too. A definite for my top five.

Fascinated by the Netflix documentary, Queen of Chess, about Judit Polgar, long-running number one player who even beat Garry Kasparov. Bonus music buff fans for the film's use of music by Girls At Our Best & Delta 5 to accompany sexist comments by male players.

RIP the mighty Ebo Taylor.

"anyone listening to ‘The Mission’ will come away with a clear idea of John Donaldson’s political views, as well as his cultural heroes and what makes him tick emotionally." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews JD Meatyard's The Mission: www.silentradio.co.uk/02/04/album-...

"Yamila makes cello and electronics seem natural bedfellows, a combination of light and shade, fire and ice, beauty and terror." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews Yamila's Noor. www.silentradio.co.uk/02/04/album-...

"it is all deeply contemplative and touching, a piece of understated loveliness." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews the new single from Pippa Blundell www.silentradio.co.uk/02/03/single...

"an absolute blast, 37 minutes of concentrated energy. It is a colourful record, full of manic creativity." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews congratulations Join Hands @bellaunion.bsky.social www.silentradio.co.uk/02/02/album-...

"The music draws on 20th Century black music heritage with great sophistication and versatility, sharing the spirit of mighty predecessors like Curtis Mayfield and Stevie Wonder." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews 1783 by @aquakultre.bsky.social www.silentradio.co.uk/01/29/album-...

"There is a rare selfless generosity of spirit to the words, a revolutionary kindness that should be an essential part of navigating an increasingly unjust and strife-riven world." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews Beverly Glenn-Copeland's Laughter In Summer www.silentradio.co.uk/01/26/album-...

#5DebutAlbums9094 Lambchop - I Hope You're Sitting Down Following on from Tindersticks, another introspective record with a wide range of instrumentation which expanded my horizons. Revisited it today for the first time in years & it sounds great.

"With its cornucopia of tempo shifts, it is a thrilling jolt to the system where it is impossible to predict what will happen next." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews Normal Service - Songs For Swinging Lovers: www.silentradio.co.uk/01/23/ep-rev...

#5DebutAlbums9094 Tindersticks - s/t In an era where my listening was dominated by noisy guitar bands hearing this for the first time with its exquisite arrangements played a significant role in broadening my musical horizons.

#5DebutAlbums9094 That Dog s/t The harmonies & violin stand out in this excellent collection of fragile, wonky indie pop songs.

"The immediate reaction to hearing Tyler Ballgame for the first time must be to marvel at his voice." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews Tyler Ballgame - For the First Time, Again www.silentradio.co.uk/01/21/album-...

#5DebutAlbums9094 Pavement - Slanted and Enchanted Indisputably their finest album & still retains its original sparkle. Will definitely be high up in my top five.

The Ballad of Wallis Island is a delight. Melancholic, sometimes excruciating, pun-filled with an impressive, original modern folk soundtrack & bonus points for mentioning the guvnor himself, Gideon Coe.

#5DebutAlbums9094 Moonshake - Eva Luna The combination of Dave Callahan's snarly narratives & Margaret Fiedler's oblique, whispered vocals, together with Motorik rhythms, dub bass, samples & abrasive guitars made this a standout debut.

"While still highly technical, it shows that precision and invention can still be compatible with emotion." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews Plantoid - Flare on @bellaunion.bsky.social www.silentradio.co.uk/01/19/album-...

#5DebutAlbums9094 Sidi Bou Said - Broooches A strong debut, though their 2nd & 3rd albums really developed their sound - betwixt Cardiacs & Throwing Muses with overlapping harmonies.

#5DebutAlbums9094 PJ Harvey - Dry Probably the most shy person I interviewed (after she'd supported Family Cat at the Duchess of York in Leeds). It was great seeing at close quarters the songs that would form her debut develop. Those early days marked her out as a special talent.

#5DebutAlbums9094 Self-titled only Spoonfed Hybrid album. A project from Ian Masters (Pale Saints) & Chris Trout (AC Temple) mixing lovely dream pop & post-rock. While it won't make my top five, it was well-worth revisiting.

#5DebutAlbums9094 Levellers 5 - Springtime At the time, I was disappointed it didn't capture the power of their incredible live shows powered by John Donaldson's spiky vocals & Ian Almond's massive African drum but it has stood up better than I expected with the guitars surprisingly abrasive.

#5DebutAlbums9094 Arson Garden - Under Towers An overlooked gem. April Combs's Natalie Merchant adjacent voice is the star alongside twisting indie folk rock tunes.

#5DebutAlbums9094 Guaranteed to be in my top five. A raucous blend of chaos & precision. Favourite track - Well Nigh Dusk. Have fond memories of them allowing me to join them on stage for some inaccurate approximation of its vocal yelps.

Mark Hoyle's Swerve is an excellent account of his role in the Manchester indie noise scene of the 1980s but greater resonance comes in the description of a childhood in & out of the care system & the impact on his adult self.

#5DebutAlbums9094 Polvo - Cor Crane Secret Sorely underrated band. Their weird guitar tunings still sound fresh over 30 years on.

#5debutalbums9094 Rodan - Rusty One of the most blistering live bands I saw. Went to 4 shows of their week long only UK tour & suspect I saw them more than anyone else in the country. Their only album hints at what made them special live - post rock but with so much else going on.

"a giant mixing pot of sounds which whilst it could be termed chamber pop takes influence from jazz, folk, Brazilian music, 90s alt-rock, krautrock and disco." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews Powder Keg by Clementine March. www.silentradio.co.uk/01/05/album-...

The Sleeping Party by pStan Batcow. A book that I proofread. Look out for luts of typso 😀

What a joy this is. A feast for the imagination, full of the generous humour, wit and wordplay that is the trademark of @benmoor.bsky.social

I naturally think of librarians as heroes and this documentary reinforces that impression. www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/epis...

Absolutely loved season 1 of Pluribus. Fascinating concept about contented hive mind. Beautifully shot & acted, giving the audience the opportunity to ruminate about whether it would be desirable, albeit while focusing upon a character resisting it.

#5albums25 Patrick Watson For a record with different vocalists on each track, this is remarkably coherent. The duet with Martha Wainwright, House on Fire, is a particular favourite.

This should have had the #5albums25 tag.

#5albums25 An enchanting combination of Anatolian folk, psychedelia, soul & pop. This is sure to be in my top five.

A great listen.

Emma Pollock's voice getting richer & better with age. This sumptuous album is every bit as good as anything she did with Delgados.

#5albums25 Likely to be my number one choice. Imaginative, hyper melodic with lyrics that range from heartbreaking to laugh out loud funny. Continues BC Camplight's run of astonishing albums.

Superb imaginings of Klaus Kinski's mind in 1971 when performing a play about Jesus. There is an intermission where the writer discusses the process of writing a book about him. Especially enjoyed the description of writing as "just lonely people typing, punctuated by biscuits."

One of my favourites of 2025.

I really haven't shouted enough about how much I love this album.

"a prime example of how sparse musical backing can highlight the intimacy, fragility and unique qualities of the human voice, even more so when the voice is as special as Arnalds’." @andrewneal66.bsky.social reviews Ólöf Arnalds: Spíra www.silentradio.co.uk/11/26/album-...

Excellent "not quite a memoir" - lots of nourishing reflections on aging and memory.