Oisin

Forty years later, it is still important to commemorate the Soweto uprising. We need to remember both the events themselves and the attitudes that led to them. Although society has thankfully somewhat moved on, it still has far to go: many of the issues that contributed to the Soweto uprising are still present today, most notably […]

The choices this week include some more challenging tracks as artists grapple with difficult concepts. ‘4 Degrees’ – ANOHNI This is a single off ANOHNI’s recently released album, HOPELESSNESS. It sees ANOHNI deliver haunting vocals over a grand backdrop which uses both electronic and orchestral influences. ‘4 Degrees’ is a song about climate change, and how […]

It’s been three years since the release of James Blake’s Mercury Music Prize-winning second album Overgrown. James Blake’s third album builds on this success. The Colour in Anything is an amazing album that drives Blake’s introspective electronica even further away from imitations; if anything, Blake’s style has become even more minimalistic. The Colour in Anything […]

Rapper 50 Cent has done it again, and landed himself in a load of controversy. When in Cincinnati International Airport over the weekend, he approached Andrew Farrell, who has autism, and accused him of being high before posting a video of him to Twitter. This isn’t the first time that 50 Cent has faced criticism […]

Following their recent online disappearance, band Radiohead have released a new single titled ‘Burn The Witch’. The announcement follows the band updating their Facebook and Twitter accounts, which were previously blank, to now look like this: The band has also updated their website, but it is still cryptic. Now it simply reads ‘DEAD AIR SPACE’ and […]

Some huge releases and one cover make up the picks for this week! ‘I (feat. Dylan Brady)’ – vōx LA-based artist vōx’s reinterpretation of Kendrick Lamar’s ‘i’ is one of the best covers I have ever heard. Vōx teams up with producer Dylan Brady to completely transform the track from top to bottom, creating a […]

Radiohead have (almost) disappeared from the internet, leaving a blank website and empty social media accounts. On Sunday night, some fans noticed that the Radiohead website was ‘shrinking’ until all that was left was this blank white page: After this, all of the band’s Facebook posts and Tweets were deleted, leaving the two pages, with […]

Beyoncé is not holding back, despite being accused of spreading ‘anti-police’ messages. On the first night of her Formation World Tour, Bey responded to the controversy by selling official merchandise, including black iPhone cases and black t-shirts, with the phrase ‘Boycott Beyoncé’ on. The controversy first started when B released the music video for her single […]

Drake has been busy promoting his new album Views From The 6, which is due to be released on April 29th, this Friday. Unfortunately, for the first week after its release, Views From The 6 will be available exclusively through Apple Music, so the rest of the world will have to wait until May 6th […]

Everything You’ve Come To Expect is the The Last Shadow Puppets’ second album. For those of you who don’t know, The Last Shadow Puppets is the name of the side project from the Arctic Monkeys’ frontman Alex Turner and his indie-rocker friend Miles Kane. Both artists are successful in their own rights, and have developed […]

Flawes is a new London-based trio, with a sound reminiscent of Bastille, back when they were at their best – a comparison which is helped as singer Josh Curruthers’s voice sounds so similar to Dan Smith’s. Bastille fell down when they produced their own material, but as Ctrl demonstrates, Flawes are perfectly capable songwriters. The […]

Gallant’s debut LP showcases a talent, which with a little time could become formidable. Ology is one of those few albums with more than a few singles worth listening to; almost every track stands on its own. There is huge variety between the tracks: there’s the synthesizer heavy ‘Open Up’, the orchestral orientated ‘Chandra’, and […]

For this week’s picks we have an eclectic mix: from rap, to tropical house, to reggae: ‘Pop Style’ – Drake, The Throne Drake released ‘Pop Style’ recently, just before he released ‘One Dance’. ‘Pop Style’ is a rap orientated track, with a minimalistic beat, that mainly consists of a deep bassline. The Throne (the name […]

Back to university to a face-full of deadlines? Or else busy trying to cram for your GCSEs? Here are some motivational tunes to get you through your revision: ‘Rambo’ – Bryson Tiller I first came across a remix of ‘Rambo’ on Soundcloud and this led me to the original. ‘Rambo’ is one of the few tracks […]

Released a year later to the day from the moment ZAYN left One Direction, his debut album Mind of Mine showcases his new adult-friendly sound which we first heard on the single ‘PILLOWTALK’. The album is decent, with ZAYN drawing on a number of different influences: Frank Ocean, The Weeknd, and Justin Bieber. However, rather than […]

Last week, the first advert in Apple Music’s latest campaign was released. It is a collaborative effort with Taylor Swift, and admittedly the advert is funny: it sees Swift falling off a treadmill because she is too busy rapping along to Drake and Future’s ‘Jumpman’. It is pretty ironic that Taylor Swift, who once campaigned […]

‘untitled 07 levitate’ – Kendrick Lamar This track is the first (and only) song that has been named off Kendrick Lamar’s latest album untitled unmastered. It was originally part of a seven minute track, but ‘untitled 07 levitate’ is only two minutes long and is a lot more radio-friendly. You can read our full review […]

NGHTMRE’s self-titled EP follows in the footsteps of other successful dance music artists (such as Skrillex and Diplo); it combines familiar sounds across multiple different genres in an unfamiliar new way. The EP opens with ‘Prelude’, a solo piano piece which feels slightly unnecessary as it only really serves as an introduction to ‘Burn Out’. […]

It seems that Kanye West has changed his mind (for now at least!) and has released his latest album The Life Of Pablo on streaming services other than Tidal. Kanye is a notorious perfectionist: once, he even claimed to have spent 10,000 hours on a single song. However, The Life Of Pablo could be seen to […]

Following their recent European tour, Little Triggers returned home to play a couple of shows in Liverpool, including at the Cavern Club on Wednesday. The original Cavern Club hosted many famous bands, most notably The Beatles, and so is key to Liverpool’s music scene. Little Triggers performed as part of the night organised by BBC […]

Bonzai’s genreless sound has earned her comparisons to FKA Twigs and Grimes. Last year, two of her tracks, ‘Doses’ and ‘Nikka’, were featured on Annie Mac’s Hottest Record in the World, and now Bonzai has released her debut EP. Sleepy Hungry sees her combining and crossing over different influences, in a similar way to Kendrick […]

‘Sublimation’ – NEO FRESCO This is a brand new track. NEO FRESCO posted it to his Soundcloud 6 days ago and it’s been reposted since by Diplo’s Mad Decent record label. With its chest-shaking heavy bassline and techno beat, it’s deserving of the attention it’s getting. As NEO FRESCO’s Soundcloud says, this is music to […]

It’s been a long time coming, but Irish producer Jack Colleran (who goes under the moniker MMOTHS) has released his debut album Luneworks. Luneworks is full of experimental electronica, complete with indecipherable lyrics, robotic synths, and fuzzy shoegaze influence. The music within Luneworks flows like an entity, straying from and then returning to its core: […]

Finally, two years after his breakthrough success ‘Harlem Shake’, comes Baauer’s debut album Aa. The album doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be, but nevertheless it contains some good tunes. Aa opens with ‘Church’, an ambient track teasing that Baauer’s music has changed direction. However ‘GoGo!’ quickly discards this notion, as it showcases […]

untitled unmastered. is a collection of songs that didn’t quite make it on to Kendrick’s other albums. Some are post-project afterthoughts, while others contain verses that Kendrick spontaneously performed, such as his performance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. As the album name suggests, all of the tracks are rough cuts: they have not […]

Last week, trio HÆLOS released their debut album Full Circle – an album filled with industrial beats, sensual harmonies, and a range of different influences. The first five tracks of Full Circle are of remarkable quality. ‘Intro/Spectrum’ introduces us to the HÆLOS ‘experience’ via excerpts from an Alan Watts’s Spectrum of Love Lecture before it beautifully […]

After a short break, I’m back writing for b**p, starting with a few reviews of albums that I’ve been listening to recently. The first one up is Kiiara’s EP, which was released two days ago: low kii savage. low kii savage incorporates pop, R&B, and electronic elements, with a sound similar to Drake or The […]

This past week has been a good one for grime! Instead of celebrating, or going to any after-parties after his performance at the Brit Awards with Rihanna, hip-hop superstar Drake went on to a tiny venue to perform with the group Section Boyz. Shortly afterwards, Drake and Skepta took to Instagram, posting that Drake is ‘The First […]

Last Monday, the Kerrang Tour came to Newcastle. The line-up featured four bands: Biters, ROAM, Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, and headliners Sum 41. After mediocre performances from Biters and ROAM, Frank Carter shocked the night to life. The music was heavy and the Frank’s performance was relentless. During ‘Juggernaughts’, he began to crowdsurf, until […]

Newcastle University Theatre Society’s (NUTS) spring programme is well underway, with the surprise gem of the season being Mike Leigh’s Abigail’s Party, directed by Matthew Harper. The premise of the play is simple: Beverly and Lawrence invite their neighbours, Angela, Tony and Sue over for drinks, while Sue’s 15-year old daughter has a party of […]

The picks this week are all Grammy winners from some of the biggest artists right now. If you have somehow not heard them yet, then it’s about time you did. ‘Alright’ – Kendrick Lamar This track was a single off Lamar’s album To Pimp a Butterfly which won the ‘Best Rap Album’ Grammy. ‘Alright’ won […]

One of my favourite books of all time is Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time. The book follows Christopher Boone, a fifteen year old boy with the psychological disorder Asperger’s Syndrome, as he tries to work out who killed Wellington, his next door neighbour’s dog. However, as Chris starts […]

This week’s tunes are mostly electronic. However, at the forefront, we have Beyoncé’s latest release: ‘Formation’ – Beyoncé Beyoncé debuted ‘Formation’ at the Superbowl with an exceptional, political performance. ‘Formation’ was the perfect track for Beyoncé to come out in support of the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement: it is unapologetically black with Beyoncé “slaying” over […]

When Kanye said his album, the name of which has been changed once more to The Life of Pablo, was being released on the February 11th, what he actually meant was that he was going to play it during his fashion show and not release it afterwards! As it turns out, Kanye is extending the album […]

Eminem’s classic ballad Stan is heralded as one of his best songs of all time. The song follows an obsessed fan as he repeatedly tries to contact Slim Shady, becoming angrier and angrier with each verse at Shady’s lack of communication. Eminem alternates between two personas: the first three verses are delivered from Stan’s point […]

I seem to be fairly susceptible to getting ill; maybe it’s just my poor student lifestyle. Being ill sucks, but being ill away from home sucks even more. You don’t have an unlimited supply of remedies and your parents aren’t around to wait on you hand and foot. You get all the negatives but none […]

Our picks this week feature new artists, new sounds, electro-soul and electronica. ‘Singlewave’ – SONDAR Brand new SONDAR’s debut single has garnered a lot of internet attention, gaining number one spot on Indie Shuffle. ‘Singlewave’ is interesting and constantly progresses: harmonies are added to ethereal vocals, and the track builds pace from the slow opening. […]

Brand new duo Opia have burst onto the scene, with a sound reminiscent of The Weeknd’s early work, or like a really happy James Blake decided to experiment with swing. Recorded from a kitchen floor, reaching number three on Hypemachine and over 100,000 plays within a week on Soundcloud, comes Opia’s impressive debut track Falling. […]

Like many other Western viewers, I found Hayao Miyazaki’s Spirited Away opening my eyes to the potential of anime. Earning comparisons to Alice in Wonderland, Spirited Away follows the journey of ten-year-old Chihiro. Her parents accidentally lead her through a magical tunnel into a supernatural plane before they are turned into pigs. Chihiro is then […]

Exams are over and so ‘Tunes of the Week’ is back! This week’s picks are from some musical heavyweights. 2016 is shaping up to be a good year for music! ‘Say You Do (feat. Imani and DJ Fresh)’ – Sigala Due to be released on March 18th, Sigala’s latest track will fight off any remaining […]

  Last week was an eventful week for Kanye West, which saw him trending online almost daily. So what exactly happened? Here is our summary. On Sunday, Kanye released the track list for SWISH as previously reported here. On Tuesday Ye went on to announce that SWISH was being renamed WAVES and would be the […]

  Kanye has released the final track list for his upcoming album SWISH. Just after midnight on Sunday, Kanye took to Twitter to post the handwritten list, signed by Kylie Jenner, his sister-in-law. None of the singles from 2015 will be on the album, except for ‘Wolves feat. Sia and Vic Mensa’ which was previewed […]

11 years later, Macklemore has released the sequel to ‘White Privilege’: ‘White Privilege II’. Featuring Ryan Lewis’s sleek production, ‘White Privilege II’ is mature and complex, with Macklemore tackling the relevant and controversial issues of racism and cultural appropriation. These issues are extremely relevant today (perhaps more so than in 2005 when ‘White Privilege’ was […]

David Bowie, a truly cross-generational artist, died on Monday, a few days after turning 69 and releasing his final album, Blackstar. Bowie’s talents spanned across art forms at various points throughout his career. He was a producer, painter, film actor and art critic, not to mention the constant evolution of his music through the use of […]

Free music! And of course new music is also making up the song picks this week: ‘Angels (feat. Saba)’ – Chance The Rapper, Saba Chance shared his latest track on Soundcloud and iTunes as a free download and it’s definitely worth getting. It’s an upbeat song which sees Chance flowing, in his unique style, over […]

I am returning home, back to the Wirral, tomorrow and I am looking forward to home comforts: homemade food, my own bed, central heating! Not to mention some time to chill out. Student life is fun but very full on, and after 12 weeks I’m beginning to feel the strain! As probably none of you […]

The Incredible True Story builds on Logic’s Under Pressure with more solid tracks interspersed with various skits. Like in Under Pressure, Logic uses few guest artists, preferring to leave the rapping to himself. However, this time, Logic is more involved with producing the tracks, being credited with ten of the beats. As well as new […]

It was in May when Kanye gave the original title of his forthcoming seventh album, at the time So Help me God. Yet here we are, at the end of 2015, and the album has not been released. In fairness, Kanye has been busy: from declaring that he will be running for president, to making […]