On August 30, 2026, the venerable Royal Albert Hall hosted a landmark event of the classical music calendar: a rare, period-instrument realization of Hector Berlioz’s idiosyncratic dramatic legend, La Damnation de Faust. Performed by the acclaimed French period-instrument ensemble Les Siècles, under the baton of guest conductor Jakob Lehmann, the concert brought a distinctive, timbrally … Read more
By Ieuan Holland It is a common refrain among the purists who caught the original shockwaves of 1977: "It’s just karaoke without Rotten." Yet, as any historian of rock and roll will note, commercial and cultural institutions rarely survive on strict adherence to original line-ups alone. Half a century after the release of Never Mind … Read more
In a bold gambit that bridges the gap between historical restoration-era performance practice and contemporary fringe theatre, Vache Baroque—in collaboration with the physical theatre company Out of Chaos—recently mounted a striking, highly physical production of The Tempest. Reviewed on September 6, 2026, at The Vache, the production sought to breathe new life into the notoriously … Read more
LONDON — In an era dominated by relentless digital single drops and algorithmic virality, true cultural monuments are exceedingly rare. Yet, on Friday, September 4, 2026, Shawn Corey Carter—universally known as JAY-Z—proved once and for all that his legacy occupies a stratospheric tier of its own. Selling out London’s sprawling 60,000-capacity Tottenham Hotspur Stadium without … Read more
In the hyper-optimized landscape of modern electronic music production, efficiency is frequently championed as the ultimate virtue. Producers are routinely armed with algorithmic templates, pre-packaged preset banks, and rigid structural blueprints designed to fast-track tracks from concept to commercial release. While this streamlined methodology guarantees meeting tight deadlines and catering to predictable market demands, it … Read more
In the ever-expanding landscape of contemporary guitar music, it is exceedingly rare to encounter an album that genuinely challenges and expands the perceived mechanical limitations of the instrument. Swedish guitarist and composer Finn Loxbo has achieved precisely this with his latest solo acoustic release, Lummernikt. Comprising eight intricate, boundary-pushing pieces, the album steps entirely outside … Read more
In Late Fame, director Kent Jones crafts a poignant, wry, and impeccably observed cinematic eulogy for a vanished bohemia. The film serves as a delicate, multi-layered meditation on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s famous, unsparing dictum: “There are no second acts in American lives.” At the emotional center of this atmospheric character study is Ed Saxberger, played … Read more
On September 5, 2026, the London Irish Centre played host to a landmark event in contemporary avant-garde music: the premiere of Here Comes Everybody: an overture to Finnegans Wake. Composed by Alastair White and produced in collaboration with his wife, Gemma Williams, the nearly hour-long work marks the grand opening salvo of a staggering 13-year … Read more
The upcoming year 2026 marks a profound milestone in the annals of European classical music, commemorating a significant double anniversary for one of Germany’s most endearing yet paradoxically overlooked theatrical minds: the composer, librettist, actor, and conductor Albert Lortzing. Two hundred and twenty-five years have passed since Lortzing’s birth in Berlin on October 18, 1801, … Read more
In the fast-evolving landscape of contemporary jazz, few imprints maintain the curatorial integrity, familial warmth, and rigorous artistic vision of Anzic Records. Founded in 2005 by clarinetist Anat Cohen and arranger-producer Oded Lev-Ari, the New York-based label has spent over two decades cultivating a cross-pollinated trans-Atlantic community of artists. What began as a bootstrap operation … Read more
