The latest collection of rants and raves.

We're on the lookout for a couple of talented new music writers who can help us increase the scope of our coverage. Interested? Did I mention there's a regular stream of free CDs?

so what was your glasto moment?

Dennis Wilson was never expected to produce anything of substance or artistic merit. With Pacific Ocean Blue, everyone was surprised.

In rural England, a dark indie gem is found.

The ninth No Ripcord podcast - our first since October 2007 - provides a showcase of some of the finest music of the last six months. Featuring Evangelicals, No Age and DeVotchKa.

In which we consider Madonna, Dennis Wilson and Speed Racer.

Two of the indie scene's foremost singer-songwriters bring their live act to UK shores for a very welcome tour. But will it be the established star or the hotly-tipped newcomer who steals the show?

Alan Shulman searches for meaning and truth in his brand new column for No Ripcord, Obsessions and Lamentations.

The joys of trawling the shelves of used bookstores and charity shops for hidden gems are many and varied. Wading through heaps of Frampton Comes Alive or Robert Plant solo albums is a frustrating yet rewarding pastime, and if end you end up with a flowery shirt and a dozen copies of The Da Vinci Code, all the better.

How did cinema adapt to the new constrains of life outside the Soviet Union, and how did life adapt to new cinema?

The Godfather of Goth takes the stage, and he's angrier than ever.

what's a meta phor?

The embodiment of an Onion headline, sometimes I read, but always about film and music.

The collapse of the Soviet Union meant a New Russia, and a new national cinema to go with it.