Hauntings, Dystopia, and the English Outsider in Guy Mankowski’s Albion’s Secret History
Guy Mankowski’s book on pop culture in England, Albion’s Secret History, celebrates the unsung.
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The Kinks and Their Bad-Mannered English Decency
Mark Doyles biography of the Kinks might complement a seminar in British culture. Its tone and research prove its intent to articulate social critique through music for the masses.
‘Impossible Saints’ Is an Empathetic Portrayal of a Starry-eyed Suffragette
This telling of fictional suffragette Lilia Brooke could use more politics, less romance.
Honouring Ordeal in the Trenches: Interview with Journey’s End Director Saul Dibb
This remembrance of World War I in today's Brexit Britain illuminates the public's ignorance towards the bloody lessons of the past.
‘Sting: From Northern Skies to Fields of Gold’ Documents Travel, Evolving Perspectives
Observing Sting's career through the lens of home and travel, Paul Carr presents a striking portrait of a musician coming to grips with his long neglected hometown.
Slaves: Take Control
The English punk duo's bark lacks bite on this sophomore effort.
In ’45 Years’ the Quiet Speaks Volumes
A film this quiet and understated needs every element to work in subtle harmony, and Haigh's work has 45 Years humming with dignified vitality.
The Magnetic North: Prospect of Skelmersdale
It's a trip back home for singer Simon Tong as the Magnetic North paints a portrait of his hometown on their new album.
Hangin’ Loose: Exploring British Soul in the Music of Loose Ends
Loose Ends cultivated an art in supreme sophistication with their groundbreaking experiments in British soul and R&B during the '80s. Decades later, their music remains as potent as it was when it first graced the airwaves and clubs of both the UK and US.
‘A Town Called Malice’: What’s Happened to Working-Class Music?
Is it possible that the very idea of the working class doesn't exist in popular music today -- as if it's been erased?
‘H Is for Hawk’ and for Healing
This book about grief and hawks and T.H. White is so beautifully written that even readers unable to tell robins from parakeets will be entranced.
James Bay: Chaos and the Calm
On Chaos and the Calm,, singer/songwriter James Bay delivers a sound debut album that's never earth-shattering.