Culture
Olivia Rodrigo review – crushing riffs and infectious hooks at secret New York show
Playing to just 1,000 fans, Rodrigo’s pop-up show is a thrillingly intimate showcase of her tour de force talent
Newsdesk4 min read
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Culture
Prince to Madonna, Blur to Beth Orton: William Orbit’s 12 greatest recordings
The late producer’s gift for bringing in elements from dance music’s cutting edge drew all manner of music royalty – and he often made them sound better than ever before
Newsdesk7 min read
Culture
The best recent science fiction, fantasy and horror – review roundup
The Salt Kingby Natasha Pulley; A Trade of Blood by Robert Jackson Bennett; Netherwood by Jake Arnott; Fawn by CN Vair
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Culture
Add to playlist: the anxiety-ridden sugar rush of Tiffany Day and the week’s best new tracks
Day’s latest album Halo is all high-energy exhaustion, injected with a crushing electroclash chaos that illuminates her insecurities in bright neon
Newsdesk3 min read
Culture
Flo: Therapy at the Club review – skirting the dancefloor and overly sweating the small stuff
The British R&B girl group’s follow up to 2024’s Access All Areas is lyrically spicy and musically diverse but somewhat slow paced and lacking the euphoria and hedonism the title suggests
Newsdesk1 min read
Culture
Arun Sood and Angeline Morrison: Donn/Dubh review – British folk giants startlingly transform sacred histories
(Real World)Leaning on their Hebridean heritage, the duo meld 10th-century Celtic cantos with distortion, dream-pop and post-rock, with shades of Twin Peaks and Boards of Canada
Newsdesk2 min read
Culture
‘There is an alternative to capitalism’: after addiction and losing a home to LA wildfires, indie rockers Diiv start again
No stranger to rebuilding after disaster, the US band’s frontman Zachary Cole Smith now sees the entire capitalist project as ripe for reinvention, on a surprisingly upbeat new AG Cook-produced album
Newsdesk7 min read
Culture
What Happened to Liberal Democracy? by Daron Acemoglu review – how to fix the system
The Nobel-winning economist takes aim at elites for no longer meeting the needs of the masses
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Culture
Le Corbusier’s social housing was meant to be the dream. In a summer of extreme heat, it is a nightmare
When temperatures get to 40C inside, and French building regulations won’t even allow shutters, these tenants’ listed homes are simply unlivable, says Anna Richards, a journalist based in Lyon
Newsdesk5 min read
Culture
Australia’s best sustainable architecture for 2026 – in pictures
The National Architecture awards sustainability finalists include a compact Canberra housing development and the largest commercial use of hempcrete in the country
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Culture
Foster + Partners cleared over man’s death when window fell from London penthouse
Court rules architecture firm not responsible for safety breaches before fatal incident but project managers and contractors found guilty
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Culture
‘We crafted it from our hearts’: the Womack Sisters on continuing a great soul music dynasty
Their parents were Womack & Womack, Uncle Bobby was a superstar and so was their grandfather, Sam Cooke. The trio explain how, after driving Ubers and being told soul was dead, they joined the family business
Newsdesk7 min read
Culture
Thirst by John Robins audiobook review – an ex-drinker’s darkly funny journey
The comedian and broadcaster narrates the heartfelt and at times self-lacerating account of his relationship with alcohol
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Culture
Ravyn Lenae: Blue Island review – from Suicide to Squarepusher, grunge to Janet, a pop one-off plots her unique path
Evoking everyone from Janet Jackson to Squarepusher, the US singer follows up her huge hit Love Me Not with stylistic diversity – and lyrics that defy her doubters
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Culture
Sky City by Jacqueline Crooks review – an ambitious, lyrical portrait of trauma
A young woman is haunted by her childhood in this forcefully imaginative and unapologetically bleak novel from the author of Fire Rush
Newsdesk3 min read
Culture
A Sense of Occasion by Brodie Crellin review – a surprising and darkly funny debut
A dysfunctional family comes together for a funeral in this heartfelt, keenly observed novel
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Culture
The Ghost of the Mountains by Kulbhushansingh Suryawanshi review – the secrets of the snow leopard
An Indian mountaineer follows in the footsteps of explorers and conservationists in search of an enigmatic animal
Newsdesk5 min read
Culture
Phoebe Bridgers: Lost Weekend review – long-awaited return is a thrilling, daring study in dislocation
After sweeping the Grammys and being scrutinised by the press, Bridgers deploys electronics and unsettling sound design to brilliantly evoke emotional turmoil
Newsdesk4 min read
Culture
Children of the Wild by Kevin Powers review – gripping tale of a friendship forged in war
Written by a US army veteran, this novel of courage and cruelty during the first world war is filled with unsettlingly authoritative depictions of violence – but its characters are less believable
Newsdesk5 min read
Culture
Geography of Heaven by Rory MacLean – soul-searching journeys into the afterlife
From an ashram in India to an ayahuasca ceremony in Peru, a travel writer searches for meaning after the death of his wife
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Culture
The August Coup by Robert Service review – the drink-soaked collapse of the Soviet Union
This brilliant account of attempts by the old guard to take back control captures the ludicrousness of it all beautifully
Newsdesk5 min read
Culture
‘I loved the Police from the get-go’: Elaine Paige’s honest playlist
The singer and actor is partial to Mozart and once did Édith Piaf at karaoke, but to which musical showstopper does she owe everything?
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Culture
Playbooks, plagiarism and a pig’s head: new claims surrounding a star Cambridge professor
Jason Arday was regarded as an academic superstar, but then questions about his work prompted scrutiny of his backstory and counterclaims of racism
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Culture
What we’re reading: writers and readers on the books they enjoyed in July
Max Porter, Daisy Johnson, Avni Doshi and Guardian readers discuss the titles they have read over the last month. Join the conversation in the comments
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