FIFTY3FRIDAYS: TO BE TAKEN WEEKLY
FRESH ON THE NET It will come as little surprise that I have Fresh On The Net to thank for introducing me to many of the acts featured in these columns. Each week, artists of all styles and genres upload songs to the platform founded by Tom Robinson in 2009 to be heard by a team of moderators now led by the remarkable Del Osei-Owusu . Each week we listen to up to 200 new tracks and democratically choose 25 of them to form the week’s Listening Post. Readers in turn lend thei
4 days ago
FIFTY3FRIDAYS: BE MY VALENTINE
So, before the local garage runs out of flowers, let me gently remind you that tomorrow is Valentine’s Day. While you may think that the cheap jibe above should be rightly consigned to the 1970s, male panic buying of red roses from street vendors to supermarkets remains an annual event. The association between St Valentine and romance though goes back considerably further and it has also been suggested that the feast day’s true origins may be in the Roman festival of Luperc
Feb 13
FIFTY3FRIDAYS: REASONS TO BE CHEERFUL?
So, January has come and gone while, to date, February has brought little cheer: Epstein’s never-ending files, Trump, Mandelson’s shame, Russia’s renewed energy infrastructure strikes in Ukraine, UK flood warnings, more Trump. Reasons to be cheerful? Well, music may bring some relief whether to simply entertain or to provide just cause for reflection. Along with the return of our monthly Spotify Playlist, I hope this week’s choice of music will do both. Indie-electro artist a
Feb 6
FIFTY3FRIDAYS: YOU’RE GORGEOUS
It seems every band who had a reasonable hit or two in the past 50-odd years is finding it increasingly easy to come out of the woodwork, reform or reissue, or simply celebrate an anniversary. The cute ones then get to appear on The One Show, sell out their tour and get booked for a summer festival or two. This phenomenon appears to happen almost weekly and it is no surprise in that nostalgia is always in vogue. It may explain why boy bands of yore resurface with a brand-new
Jan 30
FIFTY3FRIDAYS: A TRIUMPH OF FRAGILE CREATURES
Ever been to a gig where you can come away with a reading list? Wednesday night with Hannah Rose Platt at The Other Palace, London was as erudite as it was entertaining. The evening saw the return of the singer-songwriter and storyteller extraordinaire to the intimate space of the niche theatre’s studio, having made such an impression here with her full band in February 2024 . Tonight was more of a stripped-back affair as Hannah, accompanied by husband and bassist Freddie Dr
Jan 23
FIFTY3FRIDAYS: A MAD WORLD
Ever wished that lie-in you promised yourself for New Year’s Day had actually happened and that you’d then stayed in bed for the last 16 days? It seems that the already mad world we lived in during 2025 has taken a sharper turn towards insanity with geopolitical developments ramping up daily over the past two weeks. Internationally, a Trump dominated agenda: Venezuela, shadow vessels, Iran, Greenland, AI, while over here failed politicians rush to join Reform, political comme
Jan 16
