When I first heard Roy Orbison I dismissed him as an old crooner singing overwrought ballads of no relevance to me with my cool musical tastes.

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I’ve always loved those Nick Cave songs where he takes the listener on a journey; those long narrative songs like The Mercy Seat and Higgs Bosun Blues. I was sad when he said he’d given up on that kind of songwriting. So I’m overjoyed that he has returned to it for his new song with the Bad Seeds.

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Perfect Days – Film Review

German director Wim Wenders’ almost wordless drama about a Tokyo toilet cleaner is one of the year’s great surprises – a joyfully uplifting film about the small pleasures in life.

This hypnotic slice of desert blues will resonate with anyone who likes the music of Tinariwen or Imarhan. It comes with a powerful back story too.

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When I first saw and heard Fontaines D.C. they were the most exciting new guitar band I’d seen in decades. I wasn’t the biggest fan of their second album but Dave Clarke’s remix transforms the song into a dancefloor banger.

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When I first heard this joyful celebration of Africa and freedom, on a mixtape made by Polly Harvey, I thought it must be by an African group. In fact it’s an entirely home-grown affair – a collaboration between the British neo-soul collective Sault and the British singer Michael Kiwanuka.

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Even though The Velvet Underground are my favourite band I think I’ve only listened to their fifth album once. Maybe not even once. Until now.

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I can’t pretend I was an early adopter of hip-hop and I can’t remember whether I heard this landmark song when it came out in 1983.

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This is, and always has been since I first heard it, my favourite song of all time. It’s just perfect in its simplicity: wistful, dreamy, mournful and melancholic.

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This sweaty, soulful, stripped-back take on one of Jimi’s biggest tunes is by his first group – a few years after he left.

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