Low Culture Podcast: Derek Jarman’s Blue & Reflections on 2024

It’s the end of the year pod, with John Doran and Luke Turner having a chat about weird sightings in Dungeness, and highlights of this year’s albums

Over the past few years, we’ve often wondered if the round-up of our favourite albums might be the last we’d ever do. The site was creaking, and generally fell over with the traffic demand when we published the chart at the start of December. However, for 2024 we’ve got a brand-new site, it purred away, allowing thousands of people at a time to get stuck in to our selections from what has been a fantastic year for music. However, a new site would be for naught were it not for our generous and devoted subscribers, who now essentially fund all of our editorial – a massive thank you to them for keeping the engine running. For their listening pleasure, we’ve now published our annual round-up Low Culture podcast, in which The Quietus co-founders John Doran and Luke Turner reflect on the charts. That’s after a bit of a chat about the odd landscape of Dungeness, where years ago they encountered this unusual Santa driving up and down the coast road while listening to a transistor radio (pictured). They reflect on Derek Jarman’s Blue, Simon Fisher Turner’s recent live re-staging of the film, and how as a culture we could do with thinking more about the terrible sacrifice of life during the HIV/AIDS crisis of the late 80s and 90s. Then it’s onto this year’s chart, the albums discovered from it that seem to be getting a lot of love on socials, the records that are Luke and John’s personal highlights, the reissues and singles charts, John’s plan to get his mum playing the drums, and his personal favourite Christmas records. Thanks to our subscribers for all your support over the past year, and to Alannah Chance for producing these podcasts.