From being able to switch from tattoo drenched, blue-collar anthems to Stones-y balladeering and even calling on the tropes of traditional Irish music, Ricky Warwick delivers on all fronts. A ten song set that includes appearances from Phil Collen (Def Leppard), Doug Aldrich (Whitesnake/The Dead Daisies), Charlie Starr (Blackberry Smoke) and Darren Holden (The High Kings) Fire & Vengeance finds him at his, erm, fiery best, channeling the energy he brings to Black Star Riders and The Almighty, driven by raw guitars and his unmistakable voice.

Songs that capture the spirit of resilience and rebellion (how long before he’s singing about “no remorse”?) that has defined his career and match the ambition of making “an album that captures everything I love about rock’n’roll .” That might include the slow burn ballad When The King Calls and the more uptempo acoustic jangle as The Angels’ Share induces an easy sway. And is that a banjo in Sweet County Down? And why not!?

Of course, the twin guitar sound that’s become the signature of many along the road, is never far from the surface. As one of his songs says, Ricky Warwick might be the one who is hellbent and heaven sent.

Along with Jo Quail, Raphael Weinroth-Browne  has become an ambassador for what the cello can be in the 21st century. His Lifeblood album was a surprising, but well deserved entry in our 2025 albums of the year.

Expectation for Empyrean is naturally high and doesn’t disappoint in a collection of compositions and arrangements that range from haunting and evocative Bach-inspirations to ambitious creations with thudding dance beats. Speed Of Light conjures up visions of silhouetted figures twisting and cavorting around a bonfire.

Chamber elements feature highly, as the organic sound of the cello flows regally to create both listless and lullaby moods. The more expansive Dissolution almost drifts into industrial territory and acts as a reminder of the cinematic scale of much of Empyrean that could easily make for a dramatic soundtrack. The title track itself delivers a soothing coup de grace and underlines how an instrumental album of pieces with the cello at the core could be so powerful.

At its core Raphael says “Empyrean is about the search for the sublime.” He’s very possibly found it.

Back in May, Richard Neuberg made his reappearance after a 16 year gap. The Vine is a touching and often romantic return that often references his wife Emma and an overarching warmth in their journey.

With a Why I Love feature on Nick Drake under his belt, the connection with his own subtlety and some luscious arrangements that bring to mind the marvelous soothing quality of Richard Hawley. What he calls the ability to “hold melancholy within light, sweet melodies.” There may be some vein of melancholy fed by personal circumstances running through The Vine, yet the sumptuous

The acoustic / nylon core of the songs comes decorated with washes and breaths of strings and textures that fold and envelop. Hide And Seek is built on deft and increasingly urgent acoustic picking while the finale of Weed Out The Vine comes in a more stark draft with an added reverb that takes the vocal into Guy Garvey territory.

A wonderfully poignant set of reflections that can’t fail to touch even the hardest of hearts. An artist who’s made it through the flame of the fever and emerged with a dignified and significant achievement.

Who? Sometimes that’s the joy of being part the tight-knit community of ATB, in that lesser known names get to hang along in beside their better known peers. Tolman is a rock’n’roll lifer, with a pedigree stretching back into the days of ‘The Paisley Underground’, that vibrant micro-climate around downtown LA in the mid-80’s.

And it is the Paisley trademark of garage band psychedelia, fusing into a mesh of country and blues, that continues to underwrite his muse. In these ten taut songs, he brings his battered baritone, a blend of Bill Callahan and Lambchop’s Kurt Wagner, to a well-honed band of equivalent reprobates, led by the guitar and steel of veteran sideman, Tom Heyman.

Back To Yesterday, the opener, is the perfect introduction, all twang and tremulous vocal, a song that sticks fast to the lugs, putting a smile on the face. There is a languid and louche sense of retro that ebbs in and out of delicate croons like Hello Rising Sun and Our Love, whereas Stray and It’s Because are rockier beasts, the latter straying into Long Ryder’s alt.country. Completing the ride, If It’s Really Got To Be This Way, is a pure Nashville kitsch, as the cowboys were just beginning to discover the joy of a sequin, which is then amplified by the hooky Streets Of Denim, hokey bvs and all. Lovely stuff.

Album number two, from the uncompromising Dublin based singer, and it is very much an album of two parts, as the two sides of an (often) unaccompanied singer fight for supremacy. So, alongside the bleak and barrenly beautiful presentation of songs long overlooked, there are also some pub sing around favourites of a somewhat different appeal.

Undeniably a master of holding the floor in late night singarounds, it is actually the former, unearthing broadsheets long forgotten, where he excels, there being a good deal more subtlety to his delivery than is often portrayed. Helpfully, or not, the production allows a differentiation, with the crowd pleasers affecting a live background, with background chatter. Such is the opener, The Lucan Dairy, and a couple more. He tends to sing unaccompanied for these.

Far more successful, to my mind, are the remaining tracks, where there is less sense of having to keep audience attention. The 7 minute Matt Hyland would be the prime example, where, with the most residual of guitar accompaniment , with Yeates’ voice soaring, clear and confident. Hiring Time follows a similar trajectory, as does the sensational closer, tis Whiskey I Adore, set solely to prolonged squeezebox drones.

Between these two separates come livelier romps, such as De May Bush, awash with some of the best Dublin doggerel vocalese you’ll hear all year, marred only by the background claps and hoots. Maybe keep these on a live album next time, and concentrate more on the gaunt majesty of studio performance? Still, it is a good taste into the work of this self-confessed barroom historian.

And, in a flash, she’s back! So where has Miss Beehive, London 1982, been all these years? The answer, as always, is that she has never been away, making plenty enough living, thank you, from jazz and musicals. And now, sans beehive, now is as good a time as any to revive her brand and fizzy, frothy classic pop.

Opener, Good News, bursts out the grooves in an explosion of hooks, all held together by the singer’s smooth contralto. Track by track elements culled from all eras and identities of commerciality appear; a touch of Motown for Love Letters, quickly becoming disco for Lost On The Dance Floor. Darker hues seep in from black and white spy film OST territory, Man About Town and the very Bacharach-y Spellbound.

Elsewhere she finds some Southern soul and even some ersatz psychedelia, for Spellbound and Kaleidoscope respectively. Tomatoes In The Fridge channels full sandbox era Brian Wilson, before closing with the best track Kylie never done, Come On Out.

Pop music and neither ashamed nor afraid to be so.

Wigan-born, Manchester-based, singer-songwriter Zoe Unsworth releases her debut EP. Six songs throw the spotlight on what’s been termed “Old Time Country Soul” and indeed gives the EP its title.

The EP features key co-writes with established UK and US songwriters including Jenn Bostic, Neeve Zahra, Becky Tate, and Rob Jones and explores signature themes of love, heartbreak, vulnerability yet adds a polished pop sensibility.

Bless Your Heart at one end of the spectrum is pure Nashville, all slide, shuffle and primed for a well choreographed line dance. Daisy finds the mood reflective and wistful while Tell Tales goes punchy, modern country-pop.

The slide guitar is a strong presence adds a touch of melancholy here and there although Solo (yes Zoe, you are indeed “flying solo“) earns the award for chorus with the best hook on the set.

Bringing what she calls “music of a different time” right up to date, you know, Wigan might have just found itself a new type of Soul.

Aside from taxes and death the only other certainty in life is that we’re never too far from the chance to celebratesome sort of anniversary of Levelling The Land. On this occasion, The Levellers’ landmark album hits 35.

The latest version comes remixed with a shedload of demos, B-sides and outtakes (check the psychedelic haze of The Boatman which we now know well from the gigs). The story of what has earned its status as a classic album is a familiar one. One that regularly plays out as The Levs continue their rolling anarchy across the concert halls around Europe and the UK with the sets heavily populated by these songs.

The problems of the world might not be solved by their guitars but the defiance remains the same. Anthems which have grown and been sung in communal gatherings for 35 years. See you at 40.

From the ashes of Western Sand, Black Water Redemption emerged back in 2022 with a renewed sense of purpose and a fresh creative direction. The dynamic duo of Tyler Haines and Dan de Vries taking care of their own butt kicking and doing what they say on the opening cut to Stand Up For Something.

An album that deals unashamedly with proper hard rock. Big riffs, scorching guitar solos, huge choruses that verge on the anthemic and the occasional patented Rock scream from Adam Chambers.

I Gave It All is the shortest burst of swaggering energy yet with tracks like Lightning Strikes and Walk beside You, they dare to let their muse take them into different areas. The former sounds like it might be chanelling the spirit of the Zep’s Good Times Bad Times yet with an added menace while the latter comes on all anguished ballad.

Inbetween we get the opportunity to chill with a piano -led Fly Like The Crow and return to the bucking rodeo pair of bruisers Ride Or Die and All Guns Blazing. The Wild West analogy is aided and abetted by the album art of four horsemen of the Hard Rock apocalypse on an all or nothing mission.