In the latest edition of The Wire magazine, I've reviewed Paul Beaudoin's 'signal loss', and Alex Zhang Hungtai's 'Orion/Mother' and 'Dras' albums. The magazine is available online now and in stores from today. It's the one with the mighty Space Afrika on the cover.

Oxbow and Buñuel frontman Eugene Robinson has suffered a severe stroke that's robbed him of the ability to write, read or speak. So his wife Kasia has launched a crowdfunder to help cover his medical bills. www.decibelmagazine.com/2026/07/20/h...

Help Buñuel Frontman and Decibel Columnist Eugene Robinson Get His Voice Back - Decibel Magazine

Legendary underground musician and author Eugene Robinson suffers stoke, GoFundMe campaign to offset medical expenses launched.

decibelmagazine.com

My latest for The Art Journal takes a look at Corsica's Biennale Bonifacio. Check it here ⤵️ www.theartjournal.com/articles/in-...

A Biennale Finds Politics on the Dancefloor| The Art Journal | The Art Journal

From deserted nightclubs to former military barracks, Nimu Dormi examines how celebration has shaped the island's social and political identity

theartjournal.com

For the latest issue of The Wire magazine, I reviewed new albums from Petrozavodsk (Forest Fire) and Anti-Soul Organization (First Biennial Report on Studies & Research in Textures & Rhythm). On sale now in store and online🎚️

An exhibition of album covers from the early days of the Greensleeves record label is coming to London. Free entry 💥

New Mondo Times: Mexican Institute of Sound & Meridian Brothers, New Radio Alhara mix, Primavera Sound Festival review, Alvarius B.,Ibrahim Alfa Jnr, Hannah Peel & BeiBei Wang, Damaged Bug, a new playlist and more.. Subscribe pls! undomondo.substack.com/p/malarial-d...

Malarial Dream

Mexican Institute of Sound & Meridian Brothers, New Radio Alhara mix, Primavera Sound Festival, Alvarius B.,Ibrahim Alfa Jnr, Hannah Peel & BeiBei Wang, Damaged Bug, a new playlist and more..

undomondo.substack.com

Writing for Art UK last year, I featured David Hockney in an article on how drawing is a form of disruption. Gifted, mercurial and absolutely a class-A disruptor, may the great man rest in peace. @artukdotorg.bsky.social artuk.org/discover/sto...

Drawing as disruption: twentieth-century artists who used drawing as a protest

Explore 1 million artworks from 70,000 artists and 3,500 places for free. Art UK is the leading digital space to discover the UK’s public art collections.

artuk.org

Odd short doc looking at the mighty Jah Shaka through the eyes of an early 2000s Spanish TV channel. Good to hear the great man take the mic, though, as most think he just spun records. www.youtube.com/watch?v=UH6G...

My first for The Art Journal looks at how the ICA's 1968 exhibition, Cybernetic Serendipity, set the template for the use of AI in contemporary art. Check it here 👇 www.theartjournal.com/articles/cyb...

The Forgotten Origins of AI Artworks | The Art Journal | The Art Journal

A little-seen show at London’s ICA introduced many of the ideas now driving a multibillion-dollar market

theartjournal.com

I wrote an article on how small and medium-sized music venues can harness AI to their advantage for Live DMA, the European network of national live music associations. Read it here ⤵️ live-dma.eu/magazine/how...

How can small and medium-sized music venues harness AI? - Live DMA

Independent music spaces often lack the budget and manpower to spend time working out ways to use AI. How can they harness these tools while maintaining their environmental integrity and unique cultur...

live-dma.eu

Crucial dub maker recreates a crucial dub album. Following his appearance at this year's Le Guess Who? festival, Scientist is coming to the UK in early 2027.

In light of the critical mauling Jack White is getting for his first solo art exhibition, I wrote something for the New York Observer that looks at whether or not the art rock stars make is worth collecting. Read it here 👇

Can Rock Royalty Really Make Art Worth Owning?

Less partisan collectors shouldn’t automatically shy away from paintings and sculpture crafted by big-name musicians, though caution is advised.

observer.com

Incredibly sad to hear from Adrian Sherwood that reggae archivist and the force behind the Blood & Fire label, Steve Barrow, has died. This is a loss that will be felt deeply across the music world.

Ijahman Levi and Earl 'Chinna' Smith 📷 Arlene Green-Bromfield

Bristol massive: Jah Tubbys World System alongside Fatman Sound System at the Trinity Centre on Fri, June 12. Jah Tubbys is celebrating 55 years as a sound system, and has been building sound equipment since 1971.

Legendary saxophonist Sonny Rollins passed away yesterday, aged 95. He was the last remaining musician from Art Kane's 1958 photo, A Great Day In Harlem, that captured 58 jazz legends, including Count Basie, Thelonious Monk and Dizzy Gillespie.

Italy's Real Rock Records label is reissuing early 90s UK dub album, Earthquake Studio's 'Dub Harder Than Steel'. A rare and sought-after record. realrockrecords.bandcamp.com/merch/rcklp0...

RCKLP010 Earthquake Studio - Dub Harder Than Steel from Real Rock Records

RCKLP010 Earthquake Studio - Dub Harder Than Steel from Real Rock Records

realrockrecords.bandcamp.com

London - a celebration of Sun Ra. Exhibition & music with talks from Thurston Moore & Paul Smith (founder of Blast First) & DJ set by Peter Dennet (Art Yard). 22 May, 18:00. Free Entry.

Absolutely Simon. I still find it surprising when you read the credits to records and Sly and Robbie pop up. Such a talented duo and individuals too.

A good bit of validation if ever there was some. And on days like today god knows it’s needed. Adhering to the adage of ‘what would Weatherall do?’ In these situations is not a bad way to go about living either. Plus, I think that in my music collection his stuff is the most represented.

Really enjoyed writing this one, and am very glad we included Alan Parry and Brian Behlendorf's Intelligent Dance Music List as a definition reference for IDM.

Discogs@discogsofficial.bsky.social · 3mo ago

These IDM records pushed the limits of studio-based experimentation. https://disc.gs/3M8oMiz

One of my career highlights was when Mr Weatherall played a few of the tracks I produced on his NTS radio show. The man was truly a one-off, and I'm really pleased to know that Disco Pogo are paying tribute with this book. store.discopogo.co/products/a-d...

A Disco Pogo Tribute To Andrew Weatherall

'A Disco Pogo Tribute To Andrew Weatherall' is the fourth in our hardback Tribute series — following Daft Punk, Aphex Twin and LCD Soundsystem — and the long-overdue successor to the now hard-to-find ...

store.discopogo.co

Respect to Hot Press for running this new interview with the reggae master Horace Andy www.hotpress.com/music/horace...

Horace Andy: "Look at the war in the Middle East. No one is listening. This must be hell" | Hotpress

Ahead of his first Irish show in nearly two decades – at Beyond The Pale this June – reggae legend and regular Massive Attack collaborator Horace Andy re...

hotpress.com

Lubaina Himid representing the UK at this year's Venice Biennale gives me a chance to post the interview I did with her in 2022 for (another) defunct platform. It's on my Medium site here 👇 medium.com/@SimonCoates...

Lubaina Himid Interview

Lubaina Himid is an artist whose achievements demand to be measured as much in terms of determined activism as in dazzling bodies of work…

medium.com

Happy birthday to the Royal Festival Hall, which opened it's doors 75 years ago today as part of the Festival of Britain. To mark the anniversary we asked people to share their memories of the festival, and I rescued a few more from our archives too... www.southbankcentre.co.uk/magazine/mem...

Memories of the Festival of Britain | Southbank Centre

Enjoy a collection of personal memories from the celebration that gave birth to the Southbank Centre.

southbankcentre.co.uk

We’re proud to launch the third and final volume in our Echoes for Palestine series on Bandcamp Friday - every penny you donate today by buying the album goes to the charity Hope and Play and their amazing work with children in Palestine & Gaza. 🇵🇸❤️🖤💚 citiesandmemory.bandcamp.com/album/echoes...

Echoes for Palestine vol. 3, by Cities and Memory and Deep Dive Sound

25 track album

citiesandmemory.bandcamp.com

We would love to know what you think of Art UK 💭 This survey will take 15 minutes to complete, and your responses will help us focus our work on your needs 👉 https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GSLW9T2 You will also have a chance to win one of twenty £25 Amazon vouchers. Thank you!

In honour of the Oxford English Dictionary recently adding the Caribbean phrase "carry-go-bring-come" (meaning gossip), here's Justin Hinds and the Dominoes ⤵️ www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5_G...

Justin Hinds & The Dominoes 'Carry Go Bring Come' (official audio)

YouTube video by Trojan Records Official

youtube.com

Today is #InternationalJazzDay, so why not have a look at the article I wrote for @discogsofficial.bsky.social about the rich world of Japanese jazz? 👇https://www.discogs.com/digs/music/essential-japanese-jazz-records

Essential Jazz Albums from Japan, 1953-Present

Japan has a rich history of producing fantastic jazz artists. From bebop to fusion to avant-garde, dig into some of the best Japanese Jazz albums.

discogs.com

If you don't believe Vaporwave, exists you won't need to watch this documentary about the genre 👇https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kNqw7UdENg

Nobody Here | 'The Story Of Vaporwave' [2026] - Full Movie

YouTube video by My Pet Flamingo

youtube.com