Features

Inside Afflecks Palace: The subcultural heart of Manchester

Since the early '80s, Afflecks Palace has been an institution of Manchester's alternative scene – finding itself as the go-to spot for Madchester, nu-metal, emo and beyond. We travel to the iconic marketplace to find out how it's stood the test of time and why it's still so vital to the city today...

The 20 greatest Smashing Pumpkins songs – ranked

From Gish to Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness and beyond, we rank the Chicagoan alt. legends’ greatest tracks...

Alone Together: How solo artists shook up rock music

From grandson to KennyHoopla, Cassyette to NOAHFINNCE, solo artists are proving that rock isn’t just reserved for bands anymore…

Why now is the perfect time for Paramore’s return

The wheels are in motion and Paramore are likely looking at a 2022 comeback. And they couldn’t have picked a better time to make their triumphant return…

Tom Morello: My life in 10 songs

From Rage Against The Machine to Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band to The Atlas Underground, game-changing guitar hero Tom Morello takes us through 10 pivotal tracks from his career…

Now Hear This: Pupil Slicer's Kate Davies on the best new hardcore, tech-metal and cyber-grind

Pupil Slicer's Kate Davies brings you the new bands you need to check out now, including THØTCRIME, Burner and 156/Silence.

Rancid’s Lars Frederiksen: “The way people are being coddled is why the pendulum is swinging so much. Just because you showed up doesn’t mean you get a f*cking trophy”

Lars Frederiksen on three decades of punk rock, getting over "petty sh*t", going solo, and what's next for Rancid…

How the vinyl shortage is affecting the grassroots music scene

Changing timelines, new formats and delayed tours… here's how and why the vinyl shortage is having such an impact on smaller scenes.

Bill Bailey: The 10 songs that changed my life

From Rainbow to Behemoth, beloved comedian and musician Bill Bailey sure loves his rock and metal. So much so, in fact, that excessive air-guitaring once caused an ironing board accident…

My Chemical Romance’s Danger Days was the ultimate act of rebellion

A new dawn was on the horizon, but it would take an abandoned album, a trip to the desert and a comic book for My Chemical Romance to be galvanised again…

Jacob Bannon and Chelsea Wolfe take you inside Bloodmoon

Following a handful shows in 2016, Converge's Bloodmoon project has now been fully realised with a superbly powerful record featuring Chelsea Wolfe, Ben Chisholm, and Stephen Brodsky. Here, Chelsea and Converge vocalist Jacob Bannon take us through the record's inception and what we can expect going forward...

The Darkness’ Justin Hawkins: My life in 10 songs

The falsetto-inclined leader of The Darkness reflects on the music that made him the flamboyant troubadour we know and love…

Religion, horror and Van Halen?! Inside the catharsis of MØL’s Diorama

After breaking through with magnificent debut Jord, Danish soundscapists MØL have returned with an even more daring record, which channels the pain and confusion of vocalist Kim Song Sternkopf’s upbringing…

“I was going insane”: Korn’s Jonathan Davis looks back on Issues, the first album he made sober

Korn frontman Jonathan Davis reflects on making Issues, the first album he made after quitting the drugs…

Lil Lotus on the new wave of emo and pop-punk: “The SoundCloud scene started all this”

As a lover of all things emo, Lil Lotus has used his debut LP ERRØR BØY to showcase all that is great about the scene he adores. But as the genre undergoes a rebirth in the mainstream, Lotus is keen to highlight where the origin of pop-punk’s current moment in the sun truly lies…

The 11 most instantly recognisable drummers

A 21-drum salute to 11 tub-thumpers whose playing you can recognise from a mile away – from Joey Jordison to Travis Barker and beyond…

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