Hard meat

This Is Sparklehorse commemorates the life and work of the troubled but “incredibly talented” Mark Linkous

The gritty Tynesider’s latest is his most direct album to date

With the imminent release of Morrissey's debut novel, List Of The Lost, now seems like a good time to post my Smiths' Meat Is...

Cliff Richard has said that he will not go vegetarian when he supports Morrissey in America later this year. As reported on Thursday (February 13), Morrissey has announced two major US arena shows with support from Sir Tom Jones and Sir Cliff Richard. In a statement, Morrissey said he was "honoured and thrilled" to have Jones and Richard on the bills.

It's now seven years since Damage, the last Blues Explosion album, a hiatus during which Jon Spencer got to indulge his psychotic rockabilly side with three albums with Heavy Trash, and also pursue a few other alternative musical endeavours with the likes of Andre Williams, Solex and Cristina Martinez. It was also a period during which the original punk-blues pioneers saw their influence put to more remunerative use not just by The White Stripes but by The Black Keys as well, as stripped-back roots riffage unaccountably became one of rock's more commercially potent modes.

I have a real backlog of stuff to write about at the moment, and I need to do some kind of a round-up in the next day or two, hopefully before Easter. There's great doom, psych and drone from Earth, Vibracathedral Orchestra and Dungen. There's a lovely pair of reissues from ambient's spiritual master, Terry Riley. I have a couple of fun techno - or am I meant to call them new rave? - albums by Simian Mobile Disco and their feted French remixers, Justice. Oh, and I'm meant to hear The White Stripes' "Icky Thump" any day now. Today, though, I'm going to do the sensible thing and write about what's playing right now - the new album by Richard Thompson.

Move over My Chemical Romance: the dynamic beginnings of US punk

Cobain-approved country punks

Arctic Monkeys, Arcade Fire and The Clash are among the artists releasing new records as part of this year's Record Store Day.

A track-by-track commentary on the band's most explosive tracks