16. November 2010 16:53
by
Rob
Today’s announcement that The Beatles are on sale at iTunes ends one of the great sagas of the download age. From today customers can either buy albums or cherry pick tracks, no doubt causing betting shops the length and breadth of the country to hurriedly dust off their old books and offer odds on ...
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13. October 2010 11:12
by
Rob
The signs are already here. Garish tinsel is beginning to adorn shopping emporiums across the nation. Glove and scarf wearing has become mandatory rather than a mere fashion choice. X-Factor has reached the live finals. Yes, it’s almost – whisper it – Christmas.
Ok, so it’s only the middle of O...
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8. September 2010 09:58
by
Rob
While the rather nebulous aim of the Mercury Prize is a bit of a sticking point for some industry commentators (complaints can usually be filed under the heading ‘What Exactly Is It Rewarding?’), I’ve never personally had too much of a problem with it. And neither, I suspect, have any of this year’s...
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18. August 2010 17:03
by
Rob
This week sees the release of a new album by Iron Maiden, The Final Frontier. It is the band’s 15th studio album in a career that has now lasted – since its earliest incarnation – an incredible 35 years. Although existing outside what many would define as ‘the mainstream’ they have sold an estimated...
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20. July 2010 14:39
by
Rob
Bemoaning what hasn’t made the shortlist of the Mercury Prize is now almost as much of an annual tradition as having a punt on the Grand National. However, the fact that so many feel almost personally affronted that one of their favourite albums has been overlooked is testament to the healthy passio...
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6. July 2010 11:21
by
Rob
Another Glastonbury has been and gone and, thanks to the BBC’s comprehensive coverage, those of us too wedded to home comforts to brave the real thing could again indulge in watercooler conversations about who we did and didn’t ‘see’. The small matter of a certain national team crashing out of a cer...
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28. June 2010 11:58
by
Rob
British Urban music has – so the received wisdom goes – always suffered from comparisons with the masters of the genre, the Americans. While us plucky Brits were spottily capable of throwing up an international star here or a raft of promising new acts there, our transatlantic cousins were effortles...
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