<p><span><span>- It's been almost twelve months since I gushed about <em>Some Rap Songs</em>, Earl Sweatshirt's third studio album and twenty-five minute meditation on mortal grief. At the time I praised Earl's collaboration with artists from the New York underground, shaping his sound with the likes of <strong>Standing On the Corner</strong> and <strong>Ad</strong><strong>é </strong><strong>Hakim</strong>.

<p><span><span>- I just spent over two hours listening to the new Gene Clark box set and I couldn’t be happier! Specifically, we’re talking an exhaustive re-release of his 1974 country rock classic <em>No Other</em>, in which the remastered and remixed album tracks are combined with some twenty alternate versions recorded during the original sessions.</span></span></p>

- Each year, folk punk devotees of Australia pack their acoustic instruments and hangover remedies and set off, like Muslims embarking on Hajj, for Tasmania and Hobofopo - the nation’s only dedicated folk punk festival.

The 2019 edition took place last weekend, but for those of who couldn’t make it there is always the festival compilation, featuring twenty songs from the artists involved.

<p><span>- Abandoning familiarity and embracing the vast unknown is a task that makes you vulnerable. Particularly when your bonds are long-grown, and they inhabit their own homes. However, to grow, we must break free, or break up. After dissolving her professional, personal and geographical relationships all at once, indie-folk artist Josienne Clarke certainly knows this strenuous work. After a taxing year, what follows is an enchanting solo debut, engulfing the Sussex singer in all the recognition she deserves. In death, Clarke is reborn.</span></p>

<p><span>- Eight years into the game, These New South Whales haven’t abandoned their brash punk ethos, but they’re certainly maturing in some ways. When I caught them at BIGSOUND this year, their trademark nipple tape was nowhere to be seen, and the contact details of their management, publicist and booking agent were projected in huge letters behind their set (you never know who could be watching, right?). At the same time, you couldn’t fault lead vocalist <strong>Jamie Timony</strong>’s commitment to performing a set with all cylinders blazing.

- British musician FKA twigs has been making waves around the world since the release of her early EPs in 2012 and ‘13. They laid the groundwork for some of the sonic experimentation that she would present over her coming releases. Her debut studio album LP1 was met with overwhelming acclaim as was follow-up EP M3LL155X. twigs’ cross-genre, medium-bending performance art is on a level of its own.