VIA PRESS RELEASE | Detroit’s legendary Westbound Records continues its partnership with Org Music to restore, reissue, and celebrate the label’s most vital recordings. Following the widely praised reissue of Funkadelic’s 1970 self-titled debut, Org Music now announces Free Your Mind And Your Ass Will Follow, arriving May 1 on LP, CD, cassette, and digital formats.

Released in July 1970 amid political unrest, cultural fragmentation, and creative upheaval in America, Free Your Mind And Your Ass Will Follow did not attempt to comfort its listeners. It confronted them. If Funkadelic’s debut introduced a new hybrid of psychedelic rock, gospel, blues, and heavy funk, this second album intensified the vision, pushing further into distortion, repetition, and spiritual confrontation.

The record’s origin story has become part of rock mythology, reportedly recorded during a single marathon session on LSD. The result was one of the most saturated and uncompromising sonic statements of its era. The album marked the official introduction of keyboardist Bernie Worrell, whose elastic harmonies and tonal experimentation would become central to the expanding P-Funk universe. Upon release, the record reached No. 92 on Billboard’s Pop chart, signaling that even its most radical impulses were finding an audience. More than five decades later, it stands as one of the boldest entries in the Westbound catalog and a defining document of Black psychedelic expression.

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Remembering Mark E. Smith, born on this day in 1957. —Ed.

The death of The Fall’s Mark E. Smith at age 60 has left me inconsolable; as a proud member of rock music’s most exclusive cult I find it hard to wrap my mind around the horrible fact that I have no more new Fall LPs to look forward to. Because the most telling thing I can say about rock’s most cantankerous, cranky, and iconoclastic artist is this: despite his age, Smith adamantly refused to rest on his laurels. He continued to produce difficult, angular, instantly recognizable, and ultimately brilliant music up until the very end.

By no means did the inimitable Mr. Smith end his days as a novelty act, reprising his greatest hits. Not that he had any greatest hits. Legendary DJ John Peel may have thought The Fall was the greatest thing since the watercress sandwich, but they never (in part because they remained a distinctly English phenomena) gained anything remotely resembling a mass following. Indeed, the title of 2004’s best-of compilation 50,000 Fall Fans Can’t Be Wrong–borrowed, of course, from Elvis Presley’s LP 50,000,000 Elvis Fans Can’t Be Wrong–is a self-mocking reference to this fact.

The first thing to be said about 50,000 Fall Fans Can’t Be Wrong–which includes both album tracks and singles from 1978 to 2003–is that there’s no way it could do the work intended. Trying to sum up The Fall in 39 songs is like trying to sum up Winston Churchill by saying he enjoyed cigars. The Fall catalogue is a sprawling beast because Mark E. Smith was a prolix artist who wasn’t happy unless he was glutting the market with studio albums, singles, EPs, live LPs, and compilations of all sorts, some of highly uneven quality but many dead brilliant. By my admittedly sloppy count The Fall released 10 records in 2005 alone. I certainly haven’t listened to everything The Fall committed to record, and I almost certainly never will. I’ll leave that to the sorts of obsessives who would otherwise be dedicating themselves full-time to trainspotting.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Black Metal remains a most fascinating subject, and it is therefore hardly surprising that a host of books have already been written about this harsh musical genre. One might even be justified in asking the heretical question, if the world needs another one. The answer is a resounding “yes,” because Argentinian author Matías Gallardo adds a Southern American perspective and voice to the existing canon with his book debut, Born for Burning—The History of Black Metal.

The contribution of Southern American bands spearheaded by Sarcófago among many others to the style’s evolution has all too often been overlooked. Gallardo leaves the narrow Nordic perspective behind by interviewing black metal acts, classic icons, as well as young and wild, from all over the world for a more global view. This makes Born for Burning–The History of Black Metal essential reading for everyone interested in the genre. Matías Gallardo’s Born for Burning–The History of Black Metal will be published on April 17, 2026.

Born in Argentina’s capital Buenos Aires in 1988, Matías Gallardo currently works as a journalist, graphic designer, and university teacher. He has been writing for Argentina’s leading metal magazine, Jedbangers, which was founded in 1998, since 2006. He has also contributed to webzines such as Norskmetal and No Clean Singing. Gallardo is also the host and producer of the podcast Días Negros, which is dedicated to black metal—obviously the author’s favourite style of music.

Furthermore, Gallardo has translated Tony Iommi’s autobiography Iron Man: My Journey through Heaven and Hell with Black Sabbath into the Spanish language. Born for Burning–The History of Black Metal is his first book.

Born in Denmark and currently based in Oslo, Norway, saxophonist Amalie Dahl is a composer, improviser, and bandleader of distinction on the contemporary scene. Amongst numerous projects is the quintet Amalie Dahl’s Dafnie, which has released two albums, beginning with a self-titled effort in 2022. Now there is Amalie Dahl’s Dafnie EXTENDED, as the 5-piece expands to a 12-piece unit with a double rhythm section. Combining free jazz abstraction with compositions that sway and groove, this large band’s debut, the 2LP set Live at Moldejazz, is out March 6 through Sonic Transmissions.

In addition to Dafnie, Amalie Dahl has released two albums under her own name. First came Memories, a CD issued by Sonic Transmissions in 2022, and then Breaking / Building Habits followed, an LP/CD on the Sauajazz label from last year. Additionally, Dahl has played in a leaderless trio with drummer Jomar Jeppsson Søvik and bassist Henrik Sandstad Dalen; they released the 2CD Live in Europe on Nice Things Records in 2024.

Other projects with releases include Noize R Us, Treen, and Superspreder. A constant across all of Dahl’s work is a disinterest in trad predictability, an absence that’s particularly notable in Dafnie, and now especially shines through in the lineup’s expansion. The list of personnel and their instruments will provide a tip-off for the uninitiated.

Along with composer Dahl on alto sax, Live at Moldejazz features Henriette Eilertsen on flute and electronics, Oscar Andreas Haug on trumpet, Jørgen Bjelkerud on trombone, Sofía Salvo on baritone sax, Ida Løvli Hidle on accordion, Anna Ueland on synthesizers, Lisa Ullén on piano, Nicolas Leirtrø and Ingebrigt Håker Flaten on double basses, and Trym Saugstad Karlsen and Veslemøy Narvesen on drums.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Universal Pictures International (UPI) announces the official title, key artwork, and International theatrical plans for the upcoming Iron Maiden feature documentary, now titled Iron Maiden: Burning Ambition.

Documenting one of the most iconic journeys in music history, the film will be released in cinemas in the UK on May 7th 2026. Tickets will go on sale March 18th. Directed by Malcolm Venville (Churchill at War) and produced by Dominic Freeman (Spirits in the Forest—A Depeche Mode Film), the feature‑length documentary charts Iron Maiden’s remarkable five‑decade journey. Alongside the band, the documentary features on‑camera reflections from prominent admirers including Javier Bardem, Lars Ulrich, and Chuck D, each speaking about Iron Maiden’s influence on music, culture and generations of fans worldwide. The newly released key art by Albert “Akirant” Quirantes, offers the first visual look at the documentary.

Formed in East London in 1975, Iron Maiden have grown into one of the world’s most influential and enduring rock bands. Across 50 years they have released 17 studio albums, sold over 100 million records, and performed almost 2,500 concerts across 64 countries. The documentary arrives as the band continues its two year Run For Your Lives world tour, which included a triumphant homecoming performance at London Stadium a short distance from where it all began five decades ago.

A recently announced, one of a kind, celebration named EddFest in historic Knebworth Park, England, on July 11th forms part of over 50 shows worldwide in 2026.

The Sun Records label, based in Memphis, Tennessee, put rock ‘n’ roll on the map in the 1950s and launched a musical, artistic, and cultural explosion that resonated around the world and can still be felt today. While rock ‘n’ roll and its many permeations are virtually absent from popular music these days, their place in American culture remains.

The key artists of the Sun rock ‘n’ roll explosion—Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis and others—arrived at their sound by a gradual and organic mixing of American roots music, primarily country and blues, but also R&B, jazz, and folk. Other Sun artists, while considered part of Sun’s seminal and groundbreaking rock ‘n’ roll stable, made a sound rooted in country. For Sam Phillips, who launched the company, labels meant very little.

Which brings us to two original and important Sun releases. One from Johnny Cash, Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar, which might be deemed strictly country, and one from Carl Perkins, Dance Album of Carl Perkins, which was a rock ‘n’ roll hybrid (rockabilly) that added a pinch of country to rock ‘n’ roll. The descriptions, categorizations, and assigning of labels are debatable and ultimately pointless.

Reissues of important recordings can serve many purposes, but often the big questions are: how do they sound and how faithful are they to the originals? Although these two Sun recordings from Cash and Perkins are revolutionary, the original pressings of the albums just don’t sound very good. Poor tape transfers, inferior vinyl record quality, and primitive means of producing records and getting them out to market in the mid- to late-’50s resulted in great music of historical significance.

However, given how quickly every step of the record-making process evolved through the late ’50s and particularly ’60s and ’70s, even mint copies of original and later vinyl pressings just didn’t sound very good. Of course, various CD reissues and deluxe packages of Sun recordings have been released over the years, preserving the music for generations and expanding on the knowledge, significance, and understanding of this important music. However, it would appear that these new Intervention Records releases are not only the best reissues of these albums, but maybe the best recordings of them to ever be released.

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Celebrating Fergal Lawler, born on this date in 1971. —Ed.

With Dolores O’Riordan as their distinctive vocalist, the Irish four-piece The Cranberries took alternative rock by storm in the 1990s, crafting a sound drawn from ’80s UK indie pop and adding elements of dream pop, post punk, and the nascent alt-rock scene. It was their second album, 1994’s No Need to Argue, that made the biggest splash and remains the band’s biggest seller; it’s just been given an expanded 30th anniversary edition that includes remixes of “Ode to My Family” and “Zombie,” a demo of “Zombie” and live tracks from Woodstock ’94 and MTV Unplugged. A fresh consideration of the LP is below.

If No Need to Argue was The Cranberries biggest success, their debut album from the previous year, Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We? laid the groundwork. That first record, like its follow-up, was produced by Stephen Street, and landed the band an alternative hit in “Dreams” and a legit mainstream breakthrough with “Linger.”

Released in October 1994, No Need to Argue managed four singles, with the first, “Zombie,” issued a month prior to the album, becoming huge internationally. The heaviest song they’d recorded up to that point, and featuring O’Riordan’s sharp, heavily accented wail, “Zombie” wasn’t a complete change of pace, as they’d gotten loud on their debut, and O’Riordan’s vocal prowess was a defining trait on their first album.

Second single and album opener “Ode to My Family” is closer to what fans would’ve expected; it’s pretty and achy and showcases O’Riordan’s singing exceptionally well. It’s followed on the LP by the more straightforward, punked-up rocker “I Can’t Be With You,” which was the third single from the album everywhere in the world except the USA, where it was single number four.

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VIA PRESS RELEASE | Motörhead On Parole Sessions is a unique opportunity to hear this legendary, fledgling band writing and capturing their earliest recordings, and celebrates the 50th anniversary of their first ever studio recordings that would go on to be their fourth album.

This 4-disc CD set contains a brand new remix of the original album by Steve Wilson, two CD’s of extensive session outtakes from demo versions to instrumental jams mixed Richard Digby Smith, and a blu-ray of the original album in Atmos. To be released on 17 April, it is available to pre-order now. On Parole was Motörhead’s first ever studio recording from 1975. The band features Larry Wallis on guitar, Phil Taylor and Lucas Fox on drums, and Lemmy on bass and vocals and is the only Motörhead album that features the original line-up of the band.

Originally completed in 1976, On Parole was the first-ever recorded material by Motörhead, but was released in 1979 after it was originally held-back by then record label United Artists. The album proved to be the starting point of one of the most important bands in rock history, these early recording sessions set Motörhead’s uncompromising sound and became a turning point for Lemmy who would now become front and centre of his own band and, unintentionally, one of the most iconic, influential and celebrated figures in rock music. On Parole was eventually released in 1979 becoming the band’s fourth released album.

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Celebrating Tobias Forge, born on this day in 1981. —Ed.

And now, for your entertainment, a Ghost Story. It takes place in Sweden, which if you’ve ever seen 2017’s The Ritual or tried to put an IKEA bookshelf together you know is one very scary place.

And even scarier (and I know I’m not getting to the point here) every year the Swedes of Gävle (wherever that is) construct a giant straw Christmas goat called the “Gävlebocken,” which is a horror movie scenario if ever I’ve heard one. Because, let’s face facts folks, nothing good can come of constructing a giant straw goat. Either the locals sacrifice wayward tourists (like you) to it or it comes alive and haunts the forest, slaughtering wayward hikers (like you). Do not, I repeat do not, include a trip to quaint Gävle in your Yule Season travel plans.

Parallel to this discussion, experiential entertainment continues gaining popularity as people seek alternatives to passive viewing or conventional social activities. I recently explored one such venue that exemplifies this trend perfectly, and you can learn more about their offerings at https://www.escaperoomsbristol.co.uk/. The three available experiences each present unique challenges wrapped in horror movie aesthetics, with production values that rival professional haunted attractions. Participants must work collaboratively under time pressure while navigating deliberately intimidating environments, from underground cellars to dystopian execution chambers. The psychological element of being “trapped” adds genuine stakes to the puzzle-solving, creating memorable experiences that groups discuss long afterwards.

But let’s get down to business. MY Ghost Story begins on the day Swedish metal musician Tobias Forge wrote a guitar riff and said to himself modestly, “This is probably the most heavy metal riff that has ever existed.” Forge then went on to do what any Swedish metal genius worth his Gävlebocken would do—sat down and wrote a whole slew of impossibly catchy metal, pop metal, and even plain old pop songs set to hilariously tongue-in-cheek Satanic lyrics. Then went out and put together an amusingly theatrical band called Ghost, whose anonymous members wear masks and are referred to only as “Nameless Ghouls.”

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Bette Adriaanse is a Dutch writer also known as Bette A. Along with authoring two novels, she’s co-authored with musician Brian Eno a non-fiction work on art and its impact on human experience that was published just last year. Now she’s back with Slow Stories, a collection of short works available today in hardcover. This book is also part of another collaboration with Eno, a white vinyl album in a gatefold jacket featuring two sidelong stories from the book read by Bette A. These readings are complemented by ambient music played by Eno.

Along with the book and record, there are 20cm x 20cm original paintings on canvas boards by Bette A. and Eno, each one unique and each one numbered and signed by the artists. This bundle is limited to just 444 copies, with no digital release of the two album tracks in the works. Soon to be highly sought after, 2 Slow Stories is assembled and issued by Unnamed Press. The artist’s proceeds go to their charities, The Heroines! Movement, co-founded by Bette A., and Earth Percent, co-founded by Eno.

Bette A.’s prior novels are Rus Like Everyone Else, published in 2015, and What’s Mine, published in 2023. The book co-authored with Brian Eno is What Art Does: An Unfinished Theory. Both novels were published by Unnamed Press, an independent house that focuses on global literature by underrepresented voices. The book authored with Eno was published by Faber & Faber.

Slow Stories will be widely available as a standalone hardcover book. It collects 16 works that have been in development across two decades. Bette A. offers that these stories were rewritten from memory and became shorter. Her style is indeed spare, leaving the impression of dispensing with what’s unneeded while dishing vivid descriptive sparks.

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