LTW Newletter 98

Dear Warriors,

Thanks for your continued support of LTW. It’s a massive help that keeps us online and it’s always appreciated. In the fast changing music landscape where every week the corporates make micro advances with their damned algorithms and sanitised ‘taste’ turning all music into lists, numbers and likes there has to be some kind of ramshackle fanzine spirit which we are proud to represent. There is no editorial control at LTW although we have a professional team making sure that everything is edited and done properly and that’s what the subscriptions pay for as its hours of work and the wolves are always at the door by your subs leaving them mewling hopefully!

Our music policy is that anything goes and if someone is passionate about it then it should be on the site and we enjoy the really random and strange collisions between totally different corners of music from scuzzy noise to shiny pop. Music is crush collision, music is random and music is instinct and we celebrate this.

Lets also have a shout out to Mel and her team of photographers…they do amazing work. I think we have the best team of photographers in the country who are even ahead of the big money music sites like Pitchfork. The standard of images on LTW is breathtaking and its done for the love of a great image or a photo that captures a moment in time and defines a gig or an astounding musical moment.

This week we have been as busy as ever. This column has been slightly delayed as I am in Jersey doing an event with Oasis drummer Tony McCarroll tonight..hopefully some of you may turn up! Say hello if you do. My Oasis book is out soon…

The big behemoth of old school rock Bruce Springsteen breezed in town this week for three arena shows at Manchester 23 500 capacity arena. Everything about Bruce is turned up to 11 including his anger at Donald Trump which infused the set and saw an impromptu speech in the middle of his set that became headline news when, bizarrely trump responded like a teenager with a tantrum. The Springsteen take down was well measured  and signed off with, ‘Welcome to the Land of Hope and Dreams Tour! The mighty E Street Band is here tonight to call upon the righteous power of art, of music, of rock ‘n roll in dangerous times.

"In my home, the America I love, the America I've written about, that has been a beacon of hope and liberty for 250 years is currently in the hands of a corrupt, incompetent, and treasonous administration.

"Tonight, we ask all who believe in democracy and the best of our American experiment to rise with us, raise your voices against authoritarianism and let freedom ring."’

This passion fired his set that saw the 75 year old session winning plaudits across he board including a great live review from our team.

Once back in the old days before we became a world at war I was in Moscow and saw a great set from Viagra Boys. Whilst the tattooed band whose very music sounds inked up have gone from strength to strength Russia has become an international pariah proving that often in a crazy, dangerous world the one true constant is mad bad and dangerous to know rock n roll bands who are still at the top of their game.

Long term LTW fave Billy Nomates is back with a new album that sees her perfectly find the balance between her DIY style and an innate pop. It’s a move that is fraught with danger but when its done well like. this album it can create a career high.

The Louder Than War live festival announced for march 2026 has announced its first headliner, Sea Power. In the next few weeks we will be announcing more bands for our inaugural festival event where will celebrate the music we love and the thick of the website.

The Sisters of Mercy are one of the great bands from the post punk era. Their ground breaking dark energy has seen the band embark on a long and strange road where they tour constantly put have not released a new album for decades. of course we know as much as we can about enigmatic vocalist Andrew Eldritch but who are those shadowy figures in the ret of the band and what are these side projects they are involved in…we take a look in…sisters dong it themselves.

It’s amazing that the Lemonheads are still with us. It’s been a long time since the fresh faced Evan Dando was the most handsome man in indie. Just what constitutes this band this far down the line and what do they sound like?

Reading’s Are You Listening? Festival is now in it’s 12th year. Keith Goldhanger makes the annual trip to the Berkshire capital for another multi-venue event.  https://louderthanwar.com/are-you-listening-2025-reading-festival-review/ (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)

After a brief break and a geographical relocation from its spiritual Mancunian home to Bristol, the Gigantic All-Dayer promised, in the words of Kim Deal, “A big, big love.” It was a chance to return to the ‘salad days’ of the 1990s, when ‘salad’ largely meant ‘iceberg lettuce’ and indie was cool as… something or other (more of that anon).  https://louderthanwar.com/gigantic-all-dayer-marble-factory-bristol-festival-review/ (Öffnet in neuem Fenster)