Daniel Dylan Wray
@danieldylanwray.bsky.social
Write about music & culture & various things for various places, mainly the Guardian. Based in Sheffield. danieldylanwray@gmail.com
https://www.theguardian.com/profile/daniel-dylan-wray
https://www.theguardian.com/profile/daniel-dylan-wray
Pinned
White Rabbit signs 'definitive, immersive' history of Sheffield's music scene in four-way auction
White Rabbit has acquired music and culture writer Daniel Dylan Wray’s Groovy, Laidback and Nasty, a history of Sheffield music told through the city’s independent artists, scenes and spirit.
www.thebookseller.com
Didn’t get chance to properly post yesterday, as a bit full on, but I have written a book. On the history of music in Sheffield. Out in May via the excellent @whiterabbitbks.bsky.social. Pre-order available now and full PR spiel here. Thanks for the love so far
www.thebookseller.com/rights/white...
www.thebookseller.com/rights/white...
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
Corbin Shaw has been working with flags for years, taking objects often seen as symbols of belligerent nationalism and subverting them with humour, emotion and vulnerability.
After a year in which flags have dominated our discourse, how does he feel about them today?
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
After a year in which flags have dominated our discourse, how does he feel about them today?
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
‘It's a strange time to be in this country’
Artist Corbin Shaw on flags, identity, and whether he’s still proud to be English
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk
December 10, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Corbin Shaw has been working with flags for years, taking objects often seen as symbols of belligerent nationalism and subverting them with humour, emotion and vulnerability.
After a year in which flags have dominated our discourse, how does he feel about them today?
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
After a year in which flags have dominated our discourse, how does he feel about them today?
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
Had my lunch at a proper proper old school boozer today. Pint of local ale, sandwich and crisps: £5.40. 🤌🏻
November 30, 2025 at 1:28 PM
Had my lunch at a proper proper old school boozer today. Pint of local ale, sandwich and crisps: £5.40. 🤌🏻
Always a joy to be blasted by My Bloody Valentine. Last night was also a tribute to Mani and for @thequietus.com I dug into the idea of extreme noise as a vehicle for calm and tranquility. thequietus.com/quietus-revi...
Noise is a Healing Force: My Bloody Valentine Live | The Quietus
Daniel Dylan Wray remembers Mani at a My Bloody Valentine show and relishes in the healing powers of volume and noise.
thequietus.com
November 25, 2025 at 10:00 AM
Always a joy to be blasted by My Bloody Valentine. Last night was also a tribute to Mani and for @thequietus.com I dug into the idea of extreme noise as a vehicle for calm and tranquility. thequietus.com/quietus-revi...
Also put together a bit of an accompanying playlist for the book. 30 tracks is peanuts in the grand scheme of things to reflect 60+ years, and a few bits also not on Spotify, but hopefully a nice taster and one that I may expand upon a bit over the coming months.
Weekend listening: @danieldylanwray.bsky.social's essential Sheffield playlist - 30 key tracks to get you in the mood for his book, GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY, which we announced yesterday. Thank you to everyone who has already helped spread the word!
🎧 open.spotify.com/playlist/1Vr...
🎧 open.spotify.com/playlist/1Vr...
November 21, 2025 at 2:44 PM
Also put together a bit of an accompanying playlist for the book. 30 tracks is peanuts in the grand scheme of things to reflect 60+ years, and a few bits also not on Spotify, but hopefully a nice taster and one that I may expand upon a bit over the coming months.
Didn’t get chance to properly post yesterday, as a bit full on, but I have written a book. On the history of music in Sheffield. Out in May via the excellent @whiterabbitbks.bsky.social. Pre-order available now and full PR spiel here. Thanks for the love so far
www.thebookseller.com/rights/white...
www.thebookseller.com/rights/white...
White Rabbit signs 'definitive, immersive' history of Sheffield's music scene in four-way auction
White Rabbit has acquired music and culture writer Daniel Dylan Wray’s Groovy, Laidback and Nasty, a history of Sheffield music told through the city’s independent artists, scenes and spirit.
www.thebookseller.com
November 21, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Didn’t get chance to properly post yesterday, as a bit full on, but I have written a book. On the history of music in Sheffield. Out in May via the excellent @whiterabbitbks.bsky.social. Pre-order available now and full PR spiel here. Thanks for the love so far
www.thebookseller.com/rights/white...
www.thebookseller.com/rights/white...
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
An incredible effort from @danieldylanwray.bsky.social on this. 150+ interviews, covering nearly 70 years, this is THE book on one of THE great cities for music. Very proud to be Dan's publisher 👊 #SHEFFIELD
This - finally - is the definitive musical history Sheffield so richly deserves.
GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY is @danieldylanwray.bsky.social's authoritative and hugely entertaining story of the city, told through its independent artists, scenes and spirit.
Coming May 2026 geni.us/GroovyLaidba...
GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY is @danieldylanwray.bsky.social's authoritative and hugely entertaining story of the city, told through its independent artists, scenes and spirit.
Coming May 2026 geni.us/GroovyLaidba...
November 20, 2025 at 10:36 AM
An incredible effort from @danieldylanwray.bsky.social on this. 150+ interviews, covering nearly 70 years, this is THE book on one of THE great cities for music. Very proud to be Dan's publisher 👊 #SHEFFIELD
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
Brilliantly researched and spanning almost seven decades, GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY features over 150 new interviews with the likes of Richard Hawley, Arctic Monkeys, Pulp, Self Esteem, The Human League, Toddla T, Def Leppard, ABC and Cabaret Voltaire – along with countless others.
November 20, 2025 at 10:11 AM
Brilliantly researched and spanning almost seven decades, GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY features over 150 new interviews with the likes of Richard Hawley, Arctic Monkeys, Pulp, Self Esteem, The Human League, Toddla T, Def Leppard, ABC and Cabaret Voltaire – along with countless others.
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
This - finally - is the definitive musical history Sheffield so richly deserves.
GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY is @danieldylanwray.bsky.social's authoritative and hugely entertaining story of the city, told through its independent artists, scenes and spirit.
Coming May 2026 geni.us/GroovyLaidba...
GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY is @danieldylanwray.bsky.social's authoritative and hugely entertaining story of the city, told through its independent artists, scenes and spirit.
Coming May 2026 geni.us/GroovyLaidba...
November 20, 2025 at 10:08 AM
This - finally - is the definitive musical history Sheffield so richly deserves.
GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY is @danieldylanwray.bsky.social's authoritative and hugely entertaining story of the city, told through its independent artists, scenes and spirit.
Coming May 2026 geni.us/GroovyLaidba...
GROOVY, LAIDBACK AND NASTY is @danieldylanwray.bsky.social's authoritative and hugely entertaining story of the city, told through its independent artists, scenes and spirit.
Coming May 2026 geni.us/GroovyLaidba...
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
Please read, listen, and share widely. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/n...
‘I never wanted to sing into a vacuum’: Scottish folk pioneer Dick Gaughan’s fight for his lost music
A skilled interpreter and social justice champion, Gaughan is a hero to the likes of Richard Hawley and Billy Bragg. Yet much of his work has been stuck in limbo for decades – until a determined fan s...
www.theguardian.com
November 19, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Please read, listen, and share widely. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/n...
Andrew absolutely coming up with the goods here!
The Swiss got rock’n’roll after it had been filtered through the rest of Europe so its version was brilliant, exaggerated and wrong. A sincere pastiche of the original.
November 19, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Andrew absolutely coming up with the goods here!
Big up Ben Wheatley, who has been creating and building a giant YouTube playlist of all the various BBC Arena documentaries from back in the day. It’s now featuring over 100 films. Loads of gold in here. youtube.com/playlist?lis...
BBC ARENA - YouTube
A Playlist of BBC Arena Docs all in one place. Arena is a British television documentary series, made and broadcast by the BBC since 1 October 1975. Voted by...
youtube.com
November 14, 2025 at 8:53 AM
Big up Ben Wheatley, who has been creating and building a giant YouTube playlist of all the various BBC Arena documentaries from back in the day. It’s now featuring over 100 films. Loads of gold in here. youtube.com/playlist?lis...
On Saturday, Stephen Mallinder and Chris Watson played together as Cabaret Voltaire for the first time in 44 years. I was genuinely knocked out by it. Was an outrageously good show that felt like a real privilege to witness. Reviewed for @thequietus.com. thequietus.com/quietus-revi...
An Elated Sense of Unity: The Live Return of Cabaret Voltaire | The Quietus
“For Richard Kirk,” says Stephen Mallinder, as his first words of the evening on stage. A mighty roar erupts inside the former Victorian steel forge in tribute to the late founding member who passed a...
thequietus.com
October 27, 2025 at 10:04 AM
On Saturday, Stephen Mallinder and Chris Watson played together as Cabaret Voltaire for the first time in 44 years. I was genuinely knocked out by it. Was an outrageously good show that felt like a real privilege to witness. Reviewed for @thequietus.com. thequietus.com/quietus-revi...
I like articles that plunge into world's so unknown, alien, confusing and eye-opening, to me, that it feels like you're genuinely speaking a different language / living on a different planet. This very engaging and utterly depressing piece manages to tick all those boxes. harpers.org/archive/2025...
The Goon Squad, by Daniel Kolitz
Loneliness, porn’s next frontier, and the dream of endless masturbation
harpers.org
October 24, 2025 at 11:22 AM
I like articles that plunge into world's so unknown, alien, confusing and eye-opening, to me, that it feels like you're genuinely speaking a different language / living on a different planet. This very engaging and utterly depressing piece manages to tick all those boxes. harpers.org/archive/2025...
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
As a founder member of Cabaret Voltaire, you might think nothing could match Chris Watson’s first act.
However, he went on to become one of the best sound recordists in the world, travelling the globe with David Attenborough and working on hit shows like Chernobyl.
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
However, he went on to become one of the best sound recordists in the world, travelling the globe with David Attenborough and working on hit shows like Chernobyl.
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
From ‘sonic shock’ to Attenborough docs: Chris Watson’s 60 years in sound
‘I revelled in discovering hostile or alien noises’
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk
October 22, 2025 at 3:13 PM
As a founder member of Cabaret Voltaire, you might think nothing could match Chris Watson’s first act.
However, he went on to become one of the best sound recordists in the world, travelling the globe with David Attenborough and working on hit shows like Chernobyl.
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
However, he went on to become one of the best sound recordists in the world, travelling the globe with David Attenborough and working on hit shows like Chernobyl.
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
I’ve managed to squeeze in a fair bit of niche music into the pages of the Guardian over the years, but especially chuffed with getting to cover the waltzer sound system wars of Hull Fair. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/o...
Oggy oggy oggy! The donk-tacular dance music of Hull’s huge funfair
With 600,000 people attending, Hull Fair is the UK’s biggest – and has a thrilling but overlooked musical subculture. We follow the blaring soundsystems to meet the DJs and MCs facing off in waltzer b...
www.theguardian.com
October 17, 2025 at 4:08 PM
I’ve managed to squeeze in a fair bit of niche music into the pages of the Guardian over the years, but especially chuffed with getting to cover the waltzer sound system wars of Hull Fair. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/o...
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
Did you know that we have two world-leading environmental investigative journalists living in Sheffield?
Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor, a married couple, made their names reporting on wildlife crime in Africa and now front hit podcasts such as Buried and Boy Wasted.
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor, a married couple, made their names reporting on wildlife crime in Africa and now front hit podcasts such as Buried and Boy Wasted.
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
‘I don't know if we’re fearless or just a bit stupid’
The intrepid Sheffield couple taking on global environment crime
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk
October 11, 2025 at 11:15 AM
Did you know that we have two world-leading environmental investigative journalists living in Sheffield?
Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor, a married couple, made their names reporting on wildlife crime in Africa and now front hit podcasts such as Buried and Boy Wasted.
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor, a married couple, made their names reporting on wildlife crime in Africa and now front hit podcasts such as Buried and Boy Wasted.
✍️ @danieldylanwray.bsky.social
Tales From A Hard City is a remarkable, v v funny and overlooked documentary. Celebrating its 30th anniversary, I look at how it's a useful accompanying document to tracing the origins of another Sheffield landmark turning 30 this month: Pulp's Different Class. thequietus.com/culture/film...
How Sheffield Film Tales From A Hard City set the Scene for Pulp's Different Class | The Quietus
Wild Dreams. Cool Ambition. Hard Cash. While these words may sound like something you’d associate with a high-octane blockbuster action flick, in reality they are the tagline to a 1995 documentary abo...
thequietus.com
October 8, 2025 at 10:28 AM
Tales From A Hard City is a remarkable, v v funny and overlooked documentary. Celebrating its 30th anniversary, I look at how it's a useful accompanying document to tracing the origins of another Sheffield landmark turning 30 this month: Pulp's Different Class. thequietus.com/culture/film...
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
“It’s become this indelible thing for Sheffield people now. It’s in the city’s blood.”
Love Threads? If so, you’ll definitely enjoy this piece by @danieldylanwray.bsky.social about new doc Survivors: The Spectre of Threads ahead of its world premiere at the Sheffield Film Festival next weekend.
Love Threads? If so, you’ll definitely enjoy this piece by @danieldylanwray.bsky.social about new doc Survivors: The Spectre of Threads ahead of its world premiere at the Sheffield Film Festival next weekend.
Threads and the making of the Sheffield mind
"The film had genuinely traumatised him in a way that has made him ready for the end of the world at any moment"
www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk
August 23, 2025 at 11:11 AM
“It’s become this indelible thing for Sheffield people now. It’s in the city’s blood.”
Love Threads? If so, you’ll definitely enjoy this piece by @danieldylanwray.bsky.social about new doc Survivors: The Spectre of Threads ahead of its world premiere at the Sheffield Film Festival next weekend.
Love Threads? If so, you’ll definitely enjoy this piece by @danieldylanwray.bsky.social about new doc Survivors: The Spectre of Threads ahead of its world premiere at the Sheffield Film Festival next weekend.
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
A quick update on #JDTwitch -- a new separate fund to raise money for care for others at the hospice he is at has been started by the family, with some of the Crowdfunder proceeds helping to start things there. Full details are here -- JD continues to want to give back to others.
Love to JD Twitch
Keith’s Hospice Tribute Fund
keith-mcivor.muchloved.com
August 20, 2025 at 8:03 PM
A quick update on #JDTwitch -- a new separate fund to raise money for care for others at the hospice he is at has been started by the family, with some of the Crowdfunder proceeds helping to start things there. Full details are here -- JD continues to want to give back to others.
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
there's almost nobody in This Thing Of Ours who doesn't owe something to Keith in one way or another, so let's all chip in a few quid when he needs it most... very glad to hear he's comfortable at last
Keith McIvor (JD Twitch) care support
Helping Keith McIvor (JD Twitch) access urgent care and therapies to manage and ease symptoms
crowdfunder.co.uk
July 14, 2025 at 9:26 PM
there's almost nobody in This Thing Of Ours who doesn't owe something to Keith in one way or another, so let's all chip in a few quid when he needs it most... very glad to hear he's comfortable at last
I love the documentary American Movie very deeply. I wrote the latest entry in the my feelgood movie series on it about how inspiring I find the purity and heart of it on top of the lols. www.theguardian.com/film/2025/ju...
‘I’m rooting for them’: why American Movie is my feelgood movie
The next in our series of writers drawing attention to their favourite comfort films looks back to a funny and touching documentary from 1999
www.theguardian.com
July 7, 2025 at 12:54 PM
I love the documentary American Movie very deeply. I wrote the latest entry in the my feelgood movie series on it about how inspiring I find the purity and heart of it on top of the lols. www.theguardian.com/film/2025/ju...
Reposted by Daniel Dylan Wray
It's here! The Quietus Albums of the Year So Far 2025.
What's at Number One? How many have you heard?
buff.ly/h3osP6p
@normanrecords.com
What's at Number One? How many have you heard?
buff.ly/h3osP6p
@normanrecords.com
July 7, 2025 at 7:47 AM
It's here! The Quietus Albums of the Year So Far 2025.
What's at Number One? How many have you heard?
buff.ly/h3osP6p
@normanrecords.com
What's at Number One? How many have you heard?
buff.ly/h3osP6p
@normanrecords.com
Hearts of Darkness - a doc on the making of Apocalypse Now - is back in cinemas this week. I spoke with its director, along with a couple of cast and crew from the original film, to dig into a troubled production that produced a landmark despite the chaos. www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
'Vietnam was insane, Apocalypse Now only slightly less so': The inside story of the wildest shoot in film history
No production has been as troubled as Apocalypse Now. As a documentary about Francis Ford Coppola's 1979 war epic is re-released, its director, and people who were on set, reveal all.
www.bbc.co.uk
July 2, 2025 at 10:32 AM
Hearts of Darkness - a doc on the making of Apocalypse Now - is back in cinemas this week. I spoke with its director, along with a couple of cast and crew from the original film, to dig into a troubled production that produced a landmark despite the chaos. www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...
After 45 years, The Leadmill closes this week. It's been a bitter, messy, battle – personal and legal – until the end. It's sad for many people but I wanted to use it as an opportunity to celebrate Sheffield's bountiful ongoing independent spirit elsewhere. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...
‘Not all grassroots venues are struggling’: Sheffield’s Leadmill may be closing, but the city’s DIY hubs are thriving
Despite controversial new ownership for the local landmark, Sheffield’s vibrant network of staunchly independent spots is bucking the crisis facing Britain’s small music venues
www.theguardian.com
June 24, 2025 at 7:05 AM
After 45 years, The Leadmill closes this week. It's been a bitter, messy, battle – personal and legal – until the end. It's sad for many people but I wanted to use it as an opportunity to celebrate Sheffield's bountiful ongoing independent spirit elsewhere. www.theguardian.com/music/2025/j...