For some reason this had never clicked with me before, but it certainly has this week - this era is such well-trodden territory it is a delight to find something new from it to love...

Mama Sissoko - Diamond Fingers

Dug into this having heard a little bit of it on Radio 3's Music Planet, and it's superb - perfect Sunday morning music if you want to get it lined up in advance...

Applications open for Lords Social Mobility Work Experience Programme 9 April 2026

Great opportunity for year 12 students to do work experience at the House of Lords. Apply by 22 April
www.parliament.uk/business/new...

Evening Richard, evening all - so many wonderful options for #5Albums1519 but going with:

1. Phoebe Bridgers
2. The Beths
3. Green Lung
4. Big Joanie
5. The Comet Is Coming

Top 10 Albums of the Year (Easter Version):

1. The Twilight Sad
2. Souad Massi
3. Ratboys
4. Mitski
5. Courtney Barnett
6. Flea
7. Shabaka
8. Deary
9. Chalk
10. Art School Girlfriend

Not massively in order...

You don't hear much about Bob Taylor these days, do you? Good luck for the season, hopefully promotion beckons...

Hampshire fan for the best part of 50 years! Miraculously stayed up last season so hoping for a better campaign this time...

Just spent five minutes watching the ground staff fiddling about with the covers and felt much calmer as a result!

I feel seen. That's all I am going to say!

The Redskins - Bring It Down (This Insane Thing) - live on No. 73 in 1985 YouTube video by Salvage Operation

And here are The Redskins performing Bring It Down (This Insane Thing) on the same episode on No. 73
youtu.be/HIMue-vxnHE

Shabaka is a dead cert for a place on The Quietus's end of year top 100, if you know what I mean, but he's such an interesting artist. Flea's album is great, channels some pretty obvious jazz influences but really works, been listening a lot.

Shabaka Hutchings' new album cover

Been a great month for new music. In no particular order, my top 5:

Flea
Shabaka
Chalk
Courtney Barnett
The Twilight Sad

Lots of other good stuff too...

Great to hear you enjoyed it!

It's good knowledge! ☺️

Oh rats, it's one of those... Yep, limited release 2014, Heavenly release 2015. Oh well, enjoying it very much and I'm not short of options for my 5!

Just finished it. Great book, but joining "A Little Life" and "One Day" on my list of traumatic novels...!!

If you see this, post a concert photo you took

The one good concert photo I've ever taken!

The Names by Florence Knapp

Just started but fully engrossed...

Think I might join you. Wonderful album.

Parliament’s clock mechanics will be busy changing over 3000 clocks across the estate this weekend.

Loved that EP - also had superb versions of Band Of Gold and Come See About Me, if I remember.

I think it's a Methodist hymn, yes, but all those songs - Beatles and Simon and Garfunkel too, and lots of others, they felt at the time like they were eternal. Puff The Magic Dragon too, although even as a child I should perhaps have had my suspicions about that one...

Lots of Cat Stevens in my 70s childhood too... You have just unlocked a vivid memory of my RE teacher playing guitar and singing Streets Of London in assembly. Complicated things, memories!

Butler, Blake and Grant

The Twilight Sad

Robyn

Flea

Big day for great new albums today. Loving all of these and The Twilight Sad is definitely my album of the year so far. The Flea album might surprise you...

Excellent shout

Woodland Rites by Green Lung

One more for #5DebutAlbums1519 - a tremendously fun metal romp through English occult folklore. I listen to this a lot and it will probably make my 5...

Ran out of characters 😂 Consider her added!

Okay then...

Phoebe Bridgers
The Beths
Purple Mountains
Fontaines DC
Wolf Alice
Big Joanie
The Comet Is Coming
Big Thief
Stormzy
Gwenno
Green Lung
Julien Baker
Nabihah Iqbal
Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever
Porridge Radio
Soccer Mommy
Snail Mail

That's a decent long list #5DebutAlbums1519

Future Hates Me by The Beths

Okay, no-one has posted this in the first hour or so for #5DebutAlbums1519 so I can resist no longer - the brilliant Beths...

Phoebe Bridgers - Stranger In The Alps

A cup painted to resemble the cover of Stranger In The Alps

Let's make a start on #5DebutAlbums1519 with Phoebe Bridgers, now a firm favourite with my daughter too, so much so that it has inspired some pottery...