Different Noises

This weeks selection includes, amongst many other things, the return of Dusty and Stacey, a memorable new album from Mark Snarski, an anniversary release from The Dream Syndicate, and a look back at the work of Fini Tribe. PLAYLIST West Coast Sick Line - The House Of Paul Jessie Kilguss - St Teresa In Ecstasy Lucky And Love - Secret Is Out Mark Snarski - Friday’s Big Black Car Tombstones In Their...

Three double albums start a musical journey which includes, amongst other things, experimentation, a celebration of the legacy of Herb Robertson, a statement on the environment, previously unreleased material from a jazz legend, and a dip into the archives of British Jazz. PLAYLIST Charles Lloyd “The Ghost of Lady Day” from Figure In Blue (Blue Note) 00:00 Phil Haynes & Free Country “Simple Gi...

We lean towards the melodic to kick things off before taking a left turn into more esoteric material before recent favourites are featured and then there’s a closer from Sonic Youth which just happens to be the last track on the last studio album they released. PLAYLIST Slyboots - Silent Storm The Junta - San Antonio Octavian Winters - Saints of Absolution  Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter -...

A rich selection of brand new releases from across the wide World of Jazz includes two new ECM Records albums, debut releases from break-through artists, and rare broadcasting recordings from a UK jazz icon. We close with two duo recordings from masters of their craft. PLAYLIST Frank Swart Funkwrench Blues “Reflections From The Future” from Mischief In The Musitorium (Need To Know Music) 00:00 Noa...

“Pop Music” need not be obvious, safe, boring or trite. It should be unexpected, challenging, dangerous, and original. It should challenge your perceptions. This weeks selection does the latter - indeed if we are dealing in antonyms perhaps we should describe it as unpopular music - but that perhaps has all the wrong connotations. This music is from the edges, the nether regions of the music world...

This episode features music from Latin America, North America, Europe, and the Mediterranean region. It begins with rhythmically driven Latin jazz and piano-led ensemble work, followed by experimental compositions using layered electronics, extended techniques, and non-standard forms. Midway, the programme includes modal structures, bowed string textures, and vibraphone-led chamber jazz. The final...

A mix old, new, strange, obscure and challenging. Rock meets contemporary classical, electronica meets outsider, jazz meets rituals, blended into a mix of infinite complexity coupled with punk basics. PLAYLIST Undead Guitars - Jake Angel Good Technology Cowboy Mix Mac Gollehan & The Hispanic Mechanics - Pistoleros Precogs - Tech Nation The Prize - Silver Bullet Sanam - Hamam Kety Fusco - Noctu...

This week's show takes a musical journey that begins with experimental and improvisatory sounds, moves through a selection of fascinating re-releases of archival material, gathers a fresh crop of guitar-focused releases, detours into two contrasting approaches to Big Band music, and wraps up with a dose of cool West Coast jazz. PLAYLIST Francesca Remigi “Longhaven” from Witchess (Hora Records) 00:...

This episode brings together a wide range of experimental, ambient, and progressive sounds - a mix built around mood and texture rather than genre. It opens with Unsafe At Any Speed by Orcutt, Shelley, and Miller—an improvised collision of guitar, percussion, and electronics—then moves through cello minimalism (Kirin McElwain), post-rock layering (Tortoise), and gamelan-inspired textures (Bill Bre...

This week’s selection of new music gathers artists working in jazz’s more exploratory edges together with more traditional exponents approaching the music from new perspectives. PLAYLIST Matías Formica “Frio” from Absurdo (Numeral) 00:00 Fergus McCreadie “Wayfinder” from The Shieling (Edition Records) 07:03 Johnathan Blake “Requiem For Dreams Shattered” from My Life Matters (Blue Note Records) 12:...

This week’s Different Noises moves through ambient, jazz-rock, chamber pop, surreal collage, and post-punk. The playlist leans into ritual, resistance, humour, and minimalism, brought together by unexpected overlaps and artists working outside the usual lines. PLAYLIST Promenade Cinema - Under Review - Under Review The Golden Gaytimes - Cherries and Cheeses - Bung It On Hedvig Mollestad Trio - Apo...

This week’s playlist focuses on modern improvisation, small group dynamics, and inventive rhythms. You’ll hear brass-led pieces and complex beats, ranging from quiet solo moments to intense group performances and global musical influences. The show highlights drifting melodies, fresh takes on post-bop styles, and ambient textures. PLAYLIST Chris Ryan Williams “Visage (feat. Kalia Vandever)” from O...

This playlist spans experimental pop, dub, spoken word, ambient, post-punk, and electronic composition, alongside melodic hooks, lo-fi ballads, and offbeat pop. It includes archival reissues, live recordings, collaborations, and solo works—ranging from structured improvisation to direct, catchy songwriting. PLAYLIST Stereo Listening Booth - Simple Harmonic Motion - Disko Noir Octoberman - Harry Ni...

This show is a trip around jazz’s outer edges—where tradition collides with invention. From Michael Mayo’s vocal acrobatics on Coltrane’s “Giant Steps” to the explosive real-time conduction of Hill Collective, this selection of new releases spans chamber, ensemble, and solo work. PLAYLIST Michael Mayo “Giant Steps” from Fly - Deluxe Edition (Mack Avenue/Artistry Music) 00:00 Pino Palladino and Bla...

This week’s playlist moves through folk, psych, rock, jazz, and experimental pop, with new and archival tracks from across the spectrum. Some exciting new releases in play here and some strong contenders for album of the year - or at least getting into the top 100. PLAYLIST SnarskiCircusLindyBand - The Dying Conversation - What’s Said And Left Unsaid Charlie Nieland featuring spiritchild - Win - W...

The effects and the after-effects of the covid pandemic is a recurring theme in some of this weeks collection of new releases. That such a world-changing and harrowing episode in our history should lead to the production of a variety of ground-breaking music is perhaps a testament to the human race’s indomitable spirit and perhaps gives us hope for a brighter future in these challenging times. In...

A recent release of Terry Riley’s recordngs with Columbia dominates a show packed with new releases, current obsessions and favourites from my archives. Terry Riley revolutionized modern music by pioneering minimalism and reshaping how repetition, improvisation, and electronic layering could evoke deep emotional and spiritual resonance. His landmark works like In C and A Rainbow in Curved Air intr...

A show packed with new releases includes a couple of debut albums as well as two new releases from the ECM label and some newly found early 80s recordings from a British band led by Geoff Castle. A mix of intimate trio recordings, big band explorations and latin music is followed by a hypnotic piece of free improvisation from Rose Tang and Patrick Goulden. PLAYLIST Caelan Cardello “Groundwork” fro...

We start in Hull and end in Liverpool - in between a trip around the world which includes brand new releases, preview tracks, my current featured albums, and a dip in the archive for some of the music I featured on the radio when I started back in 2009. It’s an eclectic selection as usual including a piece of class from Dave Graney ‘n’ the Coral Snakes and a preview of the new album from The Necks...

A comprehensive mix of forthcoming, new and recent releases which includes a wide variety of differing jazz elements. Women in Jazz make a healthy contribution to the playlist with some notable vocal performances and exemplary musicianship. There’s also some classic jazz fusion from 1970 from Miles Davis in there as well. Conrad Herwig “C’Mon (Mi Gaujira)” from Reflections - Facing South (Savant R...

This isn’t a playlist that asks politely. It kicks off with PJ Harvey’s feral “50ft Queenie” and doesn’t let up—charging through noise, art-rock, outsider pop, and doom-laced experimentalism. From The Souless Creed’s jagged declarations to Orcutt Shelley Miller’s garage surrealism, the early stretch is all teeth and distortion. But it’s not just abrasion—it’s atmosphere. Moon’s “The Spaniard” drif...

This selection of music drifts across borders and decades, tracing a path from Dara Starr Tucker’s ethereal lullaby to Charles Tolliver’s fiery live invocation. It’s a voyage through jazz’s many dialects—big band warmth, avant-garde abstraction, global fusion, and spiritual depth. Each track marks a waypoint: Bonnie Jensen’s breezy swing, Henry Threadgill’s cryptic miniatures, Samara Joy’s playful...

Two hours of exploratory sound where the compass spins and the map’s been tossed. This isn’t a curated journey, it’s a cautious wander through, amongst other things, no wave abrasion, dubwise undercurrents, jazz reflections, and outsider poetics. Featuring:  Neon Kittens - White Light In Our Ears - We threw away the map and cautiously made our own way On Diamond - Downslide - Downslide John Ward -...

A show with mostly new releases with a mix of various genres of jazz features many fine examples of the use of the guitar. The show also includes a re-release from Steve Smith and more from the Strata-East catalogue. Playlist   Kevin Brunkhorst “As Fate Would Have It” from After The Fire (Calligram Records) 00:00 Toby Wren Standards Trio “Interplay” from Jazz in Meanjin 018: Live at JMI (4000 Reco...

A selection that drifts between the spectral and the grounded, the whispered and the defiant. From Jess Ribeiro’s hushed invocation to The Stolen Moans’ clawed surrealism, this sequence threads together outsider pop, experimental folk, and post-everything reflections. Each track feels like a dispatch from a parallel scene—whether it’s Hand To Earth’s Yolŋu-rooted reverence, Moff Skellington’s surr...