Crack Magazine
banner
crackmagazine.bsky.social
Crack Magazine
@crackmagazine.bsky.social
Listening closely.
Pinned
IB Kamara covers issue 172 of Crack Magazine.

Words: Amel Mukhtar
Photography: IB Kamara
On tour for her second album 'Juniper', Joy Crookes reflects on pushing her sound beyond her comfort zone, her favourite nights out this year, and creating spaces where people can feel free.

crackmagazine.net/article/prof...
Joy Crookes: “I could have easily been an artist that became guessable, and I didn’t”
On tour for her second album 'Juniper', Joy Crookes reflects on pushing her sound beyond her comfort zone, her favourite nights out this year, and creating spaces where people can feel free.
crackmagazine.net
December 19, 2025 at 7:42 PM
These artists are illuminating the present day with often strange, experimental music that blends traditional and elemental sounds with notions of queerness, ancestry, diaspora and resistance – a quietly radical act that is creating ritual for the here and now.

crackmagazine.net/article/long...
The artists tapping into the mystery of the ancient and elemental
A new wave of artists is illuminating the present day with often strange, experimental music that blends traditional and elemental sounds with notions of queerness, ancestry, diaspora and resistance…
crackmagazine.net
December 19, 2025 at 5:15 PM
The live music bookings industry has long been tangled in red tape and middlemen. GigPig, a UK-based hospitality music marketplace, says it’s time for a cultural reset.

crackmagazine.net/article/long...
Live shows are still vital for emerging artists breaking through. This startup is streamlining the process
The live music bookings industry has long been tangled in red tape and middlemen. GigPig, a UK-based hospitality music marketplace, says it’s time for a cultural reset.
crackmagazine.net
December 19, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Now focusing fully on her alias, valverdina, the Madrid-based artist is moving away from the city’s indie-pop scene into a more experimental one.

crackmagazine.net/article/prof...
How María Talaverano found creative freedom as valverdina
Now focusing fully on her alias, valverdina, the Madrid-based artist is moving away from the city’s indie-pop scene into a more experimental one.
crackmagazine.net
December 19, 2025 at 9:04 AM
Even after 30-plus years of boundary-smashing, genre-agnostic output, Chicago’s returning motorik post-rockers Tortoise prove there’s always fresh terrain to explore with 'Touch' – a shape-shifting album crafted across cities and pulsing with restless curiosity.

crackmagazine.net/article/prof...
Tortoise are covering new ground
Even after 30-plus years of boundary-smashing, genre-agnostic output, Chicago’s returning motorik post-rockers Tortoise prove there’s always fresh terrain to explore with 'Touch' – a shape-shifting…
crackmagazine.net
December 18, 2025 at 7:42 PM
The Prague-based artist’s new album deals with temporality, presence, and the search for meaning within overstimulated modern life.

crackmagazine.net/2025/12/gbcl...
Listen to GbClifford’s latest, 'Mock the World 2gether'
The Prague-based artist’s new album deals with temporality, presence, and the search for meaning within overstimulated modern life.
crackmagazine.net
December 18, 2025 at 5:15 PM
South London's DoomCannon puts together a restorative Sunday Mix with tracks from the likes of Donny Hathaway, James Brown and Kamasi Washington.

crackmagazine.net/article/mixp...
Sunday Mix: DoomCannon
South London's DoomCannon puts together a restorative Sunday Mix with tracks from the likes of Donny Hathaway, James Brown and Kamasi Washington.
crackmagazine.net
December 18, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Nuits sonores returns to Lyon next summer with Vril & Wata Igarashi, gyrofield, Mala, Lila Tirando a Violeta and more on the line-up.

crackmagazine.net/2025/12/nuit...
Nuits sonores unveils first wave of artists for its 2026 edition
The festival returns to Lyon next summer with Vril & Wata Igarashi, gyrofield, Mala, Lila Tirando a Violeta and more on the line-up.
crackmagazine.net
December 18, 2025 at 9:04 AM
The photographer and DRIP co-founder Jock Thomson documents the energy of his city's queer scene with photographs that feel sweaty, immediate and alive.

crackmagazine.net/article/long...
In Photos: Glasgow's DIY club scene through the lens of Jock Thomson
The photographer and DRIP co-founder documents the energy of his city's queer scene with photographs that feel sweaty, immediate and alive.
crackmagazine.net
December 17, 2025 at 7:42 PM
The Brighton band on their debut album, 'The New Eve Is Rising', being real, and being ready to get called weird.

crackmagazine.net/article/prof...
The New Eves: "If people still think we’re whimsical, they won’t after this"
The Brighton band on their debut album, 'The New Eve Is Rising', being real, and being ready to get called weird.
crackmagazine.net
December 13, 2025 at 7:42 PM
EPT Radio enters a new month of global storytelling through sound, featuring mixes from Sinéad, Yaya La Bae, Nina Yamada, Zozo, and Paurro.

crackmagazine.net/2025/12/east...
East Pacific Trade announces December EPT Radio curators
EPT Radio enters a new month of global storytelling through sound, featuring mixes from Sinéad, Yaya La Bae, Nina Yamada, Zozo, and Paurro.
crackmagazine.net
December 13, 2025 at 5:15 PM
London-based photographer Mariana Pires documents a community keeping Brazil’s samba culture thriving through music, movement, and collective practice.

crackmagazine.net/article/long...
In Photos: Inside London’s Paraíso School of Samba, shot by Mariana Pires
London-based photographer Mariana Pires documents a community keeping Brazil’s samba culture thriving through music, movement, and collective practice.
crackmagazine.net
December 13, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Jessie Reyez is unstoppable. She’s collaborated with Lil Yachty and Miguel, penned hits for Dua Lipa and, most recently, released her second book of poetry. Now, after years of laying the groundwork, the Canadian-Colombian is stepping into a radical confidence.

crackmagazine.net/article/prof...
Jessie Reyez is unstoppable
Jessie Reyez is unstoppable. She’s collaborated with Lil Yachty and Miguel, penned hits for Dua Lipa and, most recently, released her second book of poetry. Now, after years of laying the groundwork,…
crackmagazine.net
December 13, 2025 at 9:04 AM
Irene Haro, Jock Thomson and Mariana Pires have received a £1,000 grant to develop original photo stories focused on the communities and cultural spaces that matter most to them.

crackmagazine.net/2025/11/mpb-...
We've teamed up with MPB to commission photo series from three emerging photographers
Irene Haro, Jock Thomson and Mariana Pires have received a £1,000 grant to develop original photo stories focused on the communities and cultural spaces that matter most to them.
crackmagazine.net
December 12, 2025 at 7:42 PM
With roots in experimental performance art and dance, Mexican-American DJ and producer x3butterfly‘s sets are a collision of bass, electro, acid, UKG, techno, and a variety of Latin influences and experimental textures.

crackmagazine.net/article/mixp...
Crack Mix 611: x3butterfly
Mexican-American DJ and producer x3butterfly takes over this week’s Crack Mix with an hour of peak-time party sounds, darting from bass to electro to breakbeat and back again with a heavy dose of…
crackmagazine.net
December 12, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Frances Morgan of the Daphne Oram Trust reflects on the composer and musician's radical vision and lasting influence.

crackmagazine.net/article/long...
Decoding the legacy of electronic music visionary Daphne Oram
Frances Morgan of the Daphne Oram Trust reflects on the composer and musician's radical vision and lasting influence.
crackmagazine.net
December 12, 2025 at 2:43 PM
After reuniting with Charli xcx on her new 'Chains of Love' video, choreographer and filmmaker C Prinz reflects on the shared intuition behind their partnership and the blueprint they forged on the 'brat' tour.

crackmagazine.net/article/long...
How C Prinz choreographed Charli xcx’s “feverish, fearless” new era
After reuniting with Charli xcx on her new 'Chains of Love' video, choreographer and filmmaker C Prinz reflects on the shared intuition behind their partnership, the blueprint they forged on the…
crackmagazine.net
December 12, 2025 at 9:04 AM
Smerz, Joanne Robertson and Blawan are among the names announced for the festival's 15th edition.

crackmagazine.net/2025/11/rewi...
Rewire announces first artists and projects for 2026
Smerz, Joanne Robertson and Blawan are among the names announced for the festival's 15th edition.
crackmagazine.net
December 11, 2025 at 7:42 PM
JADE, IDLES and Clipse have joined the line-up for the festival’s 23rd edition, which will take place from 1-4 July in Gdynia.

crackmagazine.net/2025/11/open...
Open’er Festival announces second wave of artists for its 2026 edition
JADE, IDLES and Clipse have joined the line-up for the festival’s 23rd edition, which will take place from 1-4 July in Gdynia.
crackmagazine.net
December 11, 2025 at 5:15 PM
From 13-15 March 2026, London’s Southbank Centre will explore the question ‘What is jazz today?’ through a series of performances and talks.

crackmagazine.net/2025/11/sout...
Southbank Centre announce 2026 residency celebrating Miles Davis
From 13-15 March 2026, London’s Southbank Centre will explore the question ‘What is jazz today?’ through a series of performances and talks.
crackmagazine.net
December 11, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Jerskin Fendrix emerged from south London’s idiosyncratic Windmill scene before being tapped by Yorgos Lanthimos to compose the scores for 'Poor Things' and 'Bugonia'. His second album is a similarly strange and evocative meditation on memory and grief.

crackmagazine.net/article/prof...
Jerskin Fendrix on grief, memory and growing up in the sticks
Jerskin Fendrix emerged from south London’s idiosyncratic Windmill scene before being tapped by Yorgos Lanthimos to compose the scores for 'Poor Things' and 'Bugonia'. His second album, 'Once Upon a…
crackmagazine.net
December 11, 2025 at 9:04 AM
End of the Road is set to return to Larmer Tree Gardens for its 20th anniversary edition next September.

crackmagazine.net/2025/11/pulp...
Pulp, CMAT and Mac DeMarco to headline End of the Road 2026
The festival is set to return to Larmer Tree Gardens for its 20th anniversary edition next September.
crackmagazine.net
December 10, 2025 at 7:42 PM
Digging in to uphold true independent music values for communities and cultures from all over the world, Utrecht's flagship alternative festival was a four-day beacon of innovative music and raw emotion.

crackmagazine.net/article/long...
Joy, pain and resilience set the tone at Le Guess Who? 2025
Digging in to uphold true independent music values for communities and cultures from all over the world, Utrecht's flagship alternative festival was a four-day beacon of innovative music and raw…
crackmagazine.net
December 10, 2025 at 5:15 PM
The bassist, producer, DJ and Kilengi Dance Party founder reflects on reconnecting with her Congolese heritage through music, learning through collaboration, and how shared intention can turn a crowd into a community.

crackmagazine.net/article/prof...
For Marla Kether, the dancefloor is a space for community-building and collective joy
The bassist, producer, DJ and Kilengi Dance Party founder reflects on reconnecting with her Congolese heritage through music, learning through collaboration, and how shared intention can turn a crowd…
crackmagazine.net
December 10, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Morris Kolontyrsky of cosmic metal band Blood Incantation praises ambient icon William Basinski, who recently opened a show for them in a Chicago cemetery.

crackmagazine.net/article/long...
Pay it Forward: Morris Kolontyrsky on William Basinski
Morris Kolontyrsky of cosmic metal band Blood Incantation praises ambient icon William Basinski, who recently opened a show for them in a Chicago cemetery.
crackmagazine.net
December 10, 2025 at 9:04 AM