Art triumphed over commerce at the 20th Mercury Awards, with PJ Harvey's turbulent, intense album about the state of Britain taking home a prize which aims to sum up the state of British music... more
Singer-songwriter PJ Harvey could become the first act to win the Mercury Prize twice if she proves the bookies right and picks up the coveted award ... more
Like a cooler Meltdown festival, the bill for I'll Be Your Mirror London was handed over to a band to curate - Bristol trip hop survivors Portishead... more
Boutique festivals are well known for approaching the usual 3-dayer format in a slightly different way from more mainstream music events, and 2011 will see yet another innovation from The Big Chill... more
Four Brit nominations for Tinie Tempah, three for Plan B — British urban music has never been so vibrant, or so popular. So how did our rappers step out of the shadow of America?... more
When the dust has settled, 2009 has still been the year of Florence Welch and her trusty Machine and Lungs its finest, if most unsettling, album... more
Tori Amos may hardly bother the charts these days, but her provocative gig at the Hammersmith Apollo proved that live, the kooky performer is on fire.... more
Sound check: German industrial metal band Rammstein literally play with fire in their live performances - and now they are about to unleash their singeing spectacle on London. Watch out for your eyebrows