The Last Mixed Tape

Four decades after The Specials captured Britain’s collapse, Irish folk collective Lankum have reimagined Ghost Town transforming it into a haunting reflection of modern Ireland. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, we trace Ghost Town’s journey from 1981’s Two-Tone rebellion to today’s Dublin exploring how music becomes a document of its time, from racial tension and working-class despair in T...

In Berghain, Rosalía turns heartbreak into ritual. Set against the cultural backdrop of Berlin’s legendary club and her Catalan roots, this episode of The Last Mixed Tape examines how she translates loss into performance using sound, body, and movement to reclaim freedom. We look at how Berghain continues the evolution of Motomami, blending vulnerability with power, and how collaborators like Björ...

Róisín Murphy was once celebrated as a queer icon, a voice that echoed through the very clubs and communities that made her career. But her recent comments, and past posts, about trans people have shaken that bond to its core. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, Stephen White explores how an artist so deeply embraced by queer culture could turn against it, what that says about allyship, and wh...

The announcement of Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl Halftime Show sparked a wave of backlash from ICE threats to pundits questioning whether he’s even “American.” But this isn’t just about one artist or one performance. It’s about who gets to define America’s culture and who’s allowed to stand on its biggest stage. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, we explore how Bad Bunny and Chappell Roan have beco...

AI music is about control. From record labels chasing profit to right-wing culture warriors pushing “neutral” art, this is the plan to replace real artists with machines. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, Stephen White explores how the rise of AI in music is being weaponised by both corporate and political forces. Why are record labels and conservative commentators so interested in a world w...

Netflix’s new series House of Guinness has been slammed by Irish critics for its stereotypes and shallow storytelling. But there’s one part of the show that works the soundtrack. Featuring artists like Fontaines D.C., Kneecap, Lankum, Lisa O’Neill, and The Mary Wallopers, the music captures the rebellious poetry of Ireland far better than the drama itself. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, S...

Mo Chara (real name Liam Óg Ó hAnnaid , a member of Belfast rap group Kneecap, has had terrorism charges against him  thrown out at Woolwich Crown Court . The case, which alleged that Mo Chara displayed a Hezbollah flag during a London performance, collapsed when the judge ruled the prosecution was unlawful because the Attorney General’s consent had not been sought. This verdict means no convictio...

Fascists can’t create. They can only silence, steal, and twist music into something hollow. From Nazi Germany banning jazz, to the Catholic Church blacklisting artists in Ireland, to punk, disco, and hip-hop being targeted, authoritarian regimes have always feared music. Because music is messy, imperfect, alive… everything fascism can’t stand. In this video, I explore how fascists try to erase or...

Emerald Fennell’s new Wuthering Heights film has already stirred controversy, but I want to make the case that the best adaptation of Emily Brontë’s gothic masterpiece already exists and it isn’t on screen. In 1978, an 18-year-old Kate Bush captured the wild, haunting atmosphere of the novel in just four minutes of music, creating a version of Wuthering Heights that has outlived almost every film...

Kneecap’s brand new single “Sayōnara” is a cultural moment. In this video, Stephen White of The Last Mixed Tape breaks down why Kneecap are in their imperial phase, how their defiance on global stages like Glastonbury has made them cultural icons, and what Sayōnara tells us about Irish music and identity in 2025. From their stance on Gaza to the “Free Mo Chara” campaign, Kneecap’s mix of politics,...

CMAT’s Euro-Country is a generational reckoning. In this review, I explore why only CMAT could have made this record, and why it could only have been made now. From the scars of the Celtic Tiger to the contradictions of modern Europe, Euro-Country is witty, heartbreaking, and politically sharp, a pop record that laughs, cries, and critiques all at once. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, I di...

Florence + The Machine is back with Everybody Scream the first single from their upcoming album, Everybody Scream, set for release this Halloween. In this video, I dive into the song’s gothic sound, its themes of witchcraft and ritual, and how Florence continues to reclaim mystical imagery in her music. From Stevie Nicks to Kate Bush, from Irish folklore the witch has always been a powerful figure...

In 1993, U2 used their stage to beam Sarajevo into the world during the Bosnian War. They gave space for civilians to speak under siege during their acclaimed ZooTV Tour. From that came ‘Miss Sarajevo’ with Luciano Pavarotti and one of the most powerful artistic responses to war. But in August 2025, when U2 spoke out on Gaza, their words told a different story, one that felt cautious, muted, and u...

If grief was the language of For Those I Love’s debut, Carving the Stone is its translation into the language of a nation. David Balfe returns after four years with an album that moves from the deeply personal into the generational, tackling grief, class, violence, toxic masculinity, and the systems that keep us trapped. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, we explore how Carving the Stone spea...

Five years ago, Gemma Dunleavy released Up De Flats, an EP that did more than just tell her story. It told a place’s story. Sheriff Street. Dublin’s North Inner City. Communities flattened in headlines but still rising in rhythm. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, Stephen White reflects on the legacy of Up De Flats, what it meant then, and what it means now—against a backdrop of ongoing redev...

CMAT’s new single Euro-Country is a cultural reckoning. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, Stephen White breaks down how CMAT takes aim at the ghosts of the Celtic Tiger, the fallout of the 2008 crash, and the legacy of Bertie Ahern. From the fluorescent ruins of Santry’s OMNI Shopping Centre to Ireland’s Celtic Tiger past, this video explores why Euro-Country has struck such a deep chord acr...

The Oasis reunion is no longer a rumour, it’s happening. With shows already underway in Manchester, Cardiff and soon Dublin’s Croke Park, fans are once again screaming Champagne Supernova like no time has passed. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, I revisit the song that captured Oasis on the edge of everything, before Be Here Now, before the implosion, before break-up and the 2025 reunion. I...

“Let God Sort Em Out” isn’t just a comeback it’s a calculated strike. Clipse have returned with one of the most competitive, ruthless rap records in years, and they brought Pharrell and Kendrick Lamar into the ring with them. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, we dive into the philosophy behind the album, how Pusha T and Malice weaponise precision, and why this record proves that hip-hop is s...

Glastonbury 2025 became one of the most politically charged festivals in recent memory from Bob Vylan’s explosive set being investigated by police, to Kneecap’s BBC censorship, and Rod Stewart backing Nigel Farage in the press. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, we explore the growing tension between protest art and platform control, and ask:Who gets to speak freely on the biggest stages and...

In 1992, Sinéad O’Connor tore up a photo of the Pope live on Saturday Night Live and paid the price for telling the truth. Booed at Madison Square Garden. Silenced by the industry. Mocked by the media. But what if she was right all along? In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, we revisit that moment not as scandal, but as protest, an act of defiance rooted in Ireland’s painful history with the Ca...

In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, we break down the powerful courtroom moment when Kneecap’s Mo Chara demanded to speak Irish during his trial in London and why that decision echoes far beyond the courtroom. From The Pogues to Johnny Rotten, Shane MacGowan to Fontaines D.C., this is a history of Irish voices using British stages to express defiance, identity, and survival. Mo Chara’s stand i...

Ireland’s housing crisis. The ghost of Dublin. The music of frustration. In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, we dive into Fontaines D.C.’s “In The Modern World” and explore how it captures the voice of a generation let down by their country. With echoes of Gertrude Stein’s “Lost Generation”, this episode connects the cultural disillusionment of Hemingway and Joyce with Ireland’s own Generation...

Gilla Band are not the most commercially successful band of their generation but they might be the most influential. In this deep dive from The Last Mixed Tape, through the lens of Franics Bacon I explore how this uncompromising Dublin four-piece rewrote the rules for noise, post-punk, and experimental rock and why their contorted, chaotic sound is being echoed in a new wave of artists like Fontai...

This week on The Last Mixed Tape, I explore my personal connection to Kanye West’s Through the Wire, a song that helped me survive a near-fatal accident 20 years ago and reckon with what it means to love a piece of art when the artist behind it becomes indefensible. Kanye West’s most recent release, featuring praise of Hitler, crosses every line and forces a deeper conversation about artistic inte...

Irish rapper Mo Chara of Kneecap is facing terror charges in the UK for a performance in London. But what does this case really say about freedom of expression, cultural identity, and the criminalisation of art? In this episode of The Last Mixed Tape, I explore the history of artists on trial from John Lennon to Pussy Riot and ask what happens when the state decides where art ends and extremism be...