It was a simple idea; to create a festival out of all the brilliant music and art made all over the world, stuff made outside of the mainstream – music that wasn’t getting on the radio and was even harder to find in record stores…

There was a time—not even that long ago—when the music industry seemed convinced that physical formats were done for. The digital revolution marched in with the swagger of inevitability: MP3s, iTunes, streaming platforms, cloud libraries. Convenience became king. Why bother with shelves of CDs or crates of vinyl when you could carry the entire history of recorded sound in your pocket?

The Stranglers’ current and longest-serving frontman, BAZ WARNE, has put together a special evening of songs, stories and conversation that he will tour across the UK. This run of shows marks the first time Baz has embarked on this type of tour. All of the Convivial tour’s wonderfully unscripted, unconventional shows will be seated, and there will be ample opportunity for questions from the audience.

Reading’s ONLY THE POETS are offering one unsigned UK band or artist the chance to support them at their sold-out O2 Academy Brixton show on 2nd February 2026, providing a rare platform for emerging talent at a milestone moment for the band.

Westside Cowboy today release their second EP So Much Country ‘Till We Get There via Island Records imprint Adventure Recordings. 

There’s a particular kind of heartbreak that only folk music seems able to articulate — the quiet, reflective kind that doesn’t explode so much as it lingers. Montana duo Buffalo Traffic Jam have built their young career on capturing those moments with startling honesty, and their new single “I Don’t Care” might be their most vulnerable offering yet.

Fast Money Music has always lived in the tension between motion and memory — songs that feel like they’re racing toward something just out of reach, while carrying the weight of everything left behind. With “Unfortunately”, the latest glimpse of his upcoming self‑titled debut album, Nick Hinman sharpens that emotional palette into something tender, restless, and quietly devastating.

There are nights when you walk into a venue knowing you’re about to see a good gig, and then there are nights when you walk out realising you’ve witnessed a band levelling up in real time. The Molotovs’ sold‑out appearance at Exeter’s Cavern was firmly the latter, a sweat‑soaked, high‑velocity reminder that there are still bands out there capable of impressing and surprising you.

Ahead of the release of his new studio album ‘Lost in the Wonder’ (out 3rd Feb) we chatted to the legend that is CORY WONG, read on to find out how he balances being a rhythm‑guitar torchbearer, a producer with a big‑picture brain, and a collaborator who pulls magic out of everyone from Benny Sings to Taylor Hanson? And what happens when you push guitar work into new territory while juggling pop finesse, vintage grit, and key‑change mischief? He has a lot to say about all of it—and his answers are far more revealing, funny, and thoughtful than you might expect. Dive in and get Lost In The Wonder yourself.

Indie‑psych artist Casey Wells is stepping into 2026 with a track that feels both intimate and expansive. His new single, “Beating Heart”, arriving January 15th, deepens the sonic world he began carving out on his acclaimed debut album Impermanence — but this time, the emotional stakes feel sharper, the production more immersive, and the pull of the music impossible to ignore.

There’s a particular electricity that follows The Howlers wherever they go — a kind of dust‑kicked, leather‑clad swagger that feels increasingly rare in the UK’s guitar landscape. Clash dubbed them “leather clad cigarette chomping outlaws”, and honestly, it’s hard to think of a more fitting introduction. But what’s most exciting about The Howlers in 2026 is how much further they’ve pushed beyond that first impression.

Arguably the South West’s best post-punk band, Colour TV, known for their catchy and energetic live shows, recently played their final gig of 2025 at The Underground in December, in a perfectly intimate send-off to the year.

EROTIC SECRETS OF POMPEII are an amazing band, we’ve seen them a couple of times over the past year and are looking forward to catching them in Exeter in early 2026 on their UK tour. In the meantime, we reached out to ESOP HQ to ask if they’d like to take part in our ‘5 FROM 25’ feature, naturally, they jumped at the opportunity, read on to see what 5 ‘things’ they chose from the year that was 2025….

B of Briz is a Bristol rapper and producer blending bass‑heavy alternative hip hop with sharp, feminist energy. Influenced by trip hop, dub, DnB, Little Simz, Kae Tempest and The Streets, she’s been championed by BBC 6 Music and released her debut album An Encyclopedia of Patriarchy (incomplete) last year. She dropped new singles throughout 2025 ahead of her Solace EP. For tons more info on this fab artist.

We invited her to take part in our 5 FROM 25 feature where she shares 5 ‘things’ from 2025 that helped to get her through the year, read on to learn more.

We recently posted news of a new single Revenge on God and debut album A Catalogue of Madness and Melancholia from a fabulous artist called n0trixx, read more HERE

We liked what we heard and saw and wanted to dive into her life a little deeper so we ran an in-depth Q&A feature which you can see HERE

As you may have seen on our socials, we have been inviting people from the music scene to take part in the musomuso ‘5 FROM 25’ feature where we ask people to share 5 things that happened to them during 2025. We posed the same to n0trixx and she was more than happy to get involved, read on to see what shaped her 2025….

I was considering creating a musomuso ‘Best of 25’ feature for the site but then I thought, why not ask people who work to create the content that YOU enjoy consuming. I reached out to a wonderful Plymouth based photographer called ANNA LEADER who I have worked with on numerous occasions and asked her to nominate her favourite moments of the year, here’s what she came back with.

I was considering creating a musomuso ‘Best of 25’ feature for the site but then I thought, why not ask bands/artists to nominate their favourite tracks or moments of the year instead. I reached out to a few acts that we have featured on the world famous SONIC NOMADS PODCAST and JOE SIMON said he’d be more than happy to share his thoughts. read on to see what helped make his 2025 that little bit more special. Joe recently moved to Liverpool to study, leaving behind his band mates from THE VIVE, a plucky indie rock quartet, to carry on without his guitar skills. Read on to see what Joe has selected as his 5 standout moments of 2025….

I was considering creating a musomuso ‘Best of 25’ feature for the site but then I thought, why not ask bands to nominate their favourite tracks instead. I reached out to a few acts that we have featured on the world famous SONIC NOMADS PODCAST and first out of the trap was SAM DURNEEN from a tremendous band called COLOUR TV. I asked for a paragraph on each track, Sam went the extra mile and wrote a novel for each one, nothing like setting the bar high! Read on to see which acts ticked all his boxes during 2025.

Saturday 20th December saw the final night of an 7 date UK headline tour by DIE TWICE (there was an 8th date but that was supporting a band called AQUALINE in Guildford).

South Wales has a habit of producing bands who thrive on tension — the push and pull between melody and menace — and Sawtega arrive firmly in that lineage. The nu‑grunge, nettle‑core trio (their words, but it fits) make their first official mark with Tower, a debut single that wastes no time establishing the band’s aesthetic: cinematic dread, serrated riffs, and a sense of emotional upheaval that feels both personal and mythic.