The boxset entitled ‘The Roaring Forty | 1983-2023’ is set to be released on 27^th October this year and is available for pre-order now. Compiled by Bragg himself, fans can look forward to 3 formats of Bragg’s music.

The first format available is a single disc ‘primer’ of 13 songs on limited edition orange vinyl.

A 40-song, 3-album collection on three varying shades of green vinyl is also available to purchase, ‘to appeal to casual admirers and die-hard fans alike.’

Both limited edition colour vinyl formats are also available to purchase as a CD.

The third format is perfect for Bragg fanatics, allowing them the opportunity to own a 14-CD boxset containing over 300 songs. This limited edition ‘Super Deluxe’ boxset includes all 12 of Bragg’s studio albums, non-album singles and B-sides, as well as previously unreleased material and live recordings from throughout his career. With this edition, fans will also receive a large format book including images of 40 significant mementos from Bragg’s life, including the flyer to his first solo gig, his first NME cover, the Red Wedge Manifesto and much, much more.

When ordered from Bragg’s official shop, the first 1000 orders of any format will come with a signed A4 art print, as well as access to pre-sale tickets for an upcoming tour.

Known for his left-wing activism as much as his folk and punk rock music, Bragg has publicly tackled political issues throughout his career, using his platform to further the socialist agenda. Much of Bragg’s work incites its listeners to join activist causes, allowing Bragg to obtain a passionate and confronting fan base, many of whom have been with him since the 1980s.

Bragg tweeted, ‘In the early 80s, I realised if I wanted to hear music that said something about the state of the world, I’d have to make it myself.’ He has continued to act as a spokesperson for the left-wing and has compiled these ‘commemorative releases’ in honour of a career that hasn’t shied away from difficult conversations.

In the early 80s, I realised if I wanted to hear music that said something about the state of the world, I’d have to make it myself. To mark my 40th anniversary, I’ve compiled a number of commemorative releases spanning my career since then. Pre-order: https://t.co/BuRCFT8RJS pic.twitter.com/Or2sN0JqVh

— Billy Bragg (@billybragg) February 28, 2023

To celebrate his 40 years in music, an upcoming UK and Ireland tour is also set to be announced soon. Bragg is also set to play a charity show at the O2 Academy Oxford on 19^th May 2023. Tickets are available from 5^th March and can be purchased here.

For nearly 20 years, @HOPEnothate have been in the front line combatting racism and fascism in the UK, and I’m proud to help raise funds so they can continue their important work. Tickets on general sale 11am Sunday 5th March: https://t.co/cW0OW2F0Xg Support: @tomasmithmusic pic.twitter.com/ibIqi4Z2Vy — Billy Bragg (@billybragg) March 3, 2023

‘The Roaring Forty | 1983-2023’ is available to pre-order now.

Stream Billy Bragg’s discography here.

See Bragg on tour:

19/05/2023 – 02 Academy Oxford – Oxford

27/05/2023 – Catton Hall – Walton-on-Trent

05/08/2023 – Curraghmore Estate – County Waterford

The official synopsis says that “the new feature length film takes viewers on the journey with Simon, Ben and James as they return to their home in Ayrshire to create their latest, critically acclaimed album in the most unusual of studio environments. The film explores how the experience of recording an album in Scotland for the first time prompted the band to reflect on the importance of where they’re from, how this has influenced their career to date and reinforced their lifelong bond as friends and bandmates.“

The band (which comprises singer/guitarist Simon Neil, drummer Ben Johnston and bassist James Johnston) released The Myth of the Happily Ever After last October, with it becoming their sixth Top 5 album in a row. Recorded much quicker than their previous material and released as a surprise album, Neil has spoken in an interview recently on the more spontaneous approach the record had.

“Normally when I’m writing there’s 18 months of working on the songs. This one felt so spontaneous …. We did no pre-production. We would normally record ourselves in the practice room. This was like, ‘Here’s a song, let’s record it …. Because of the pandemic, the purpose of the music felt more pure, knowing that we weren’t going to go out on a promotional tour.“

The documentary also features the group’s performance at Glasgow Green last year, after over a year of being unable to perform. Speaking on the difficulty of performing after so long, Neil said “It was tough! … The big step for us was just even getting in a room and playing live together. That was the first time where things made sense …. There’s a level of fear that builds just having not engaged with more than three people for the last 18 months …. I think that led to something truly transcendental happening at the shows.”

Biffy Clyro are also soon to embark on a tour, going through North America in the spring. They’re also due for some dates in Europe after having to postpone due to the pandemic. If you’re interested in tickets, you can look here.

Biffy Clyro UK Tour Dates

12/06/2022 – Download Festival – Donnington Park
25/06 – Royal Highland Centre – Edinburgh

Cumming described their thought process as: “Tomorrow is not promised, no tour is promised, no popularity is promised, no health or money is promised. Why not make what you want to make on your own terms? Why not make a record that makes you want to dance? Why not make a record that makes you want to scream?“

They’ve had a little help from their friends when it came to the writing, collaborating with artists such as Shamir, Suzy Shinn and Jacob Portrait (who was also on producing/mixing/co-engineering duties). Recorded largely at home with Faber doing some of the engineering, it’s an album that shows the band mostly going it alone. Faber said that “We didn’t have to rely on anyone outside of the band and our producer, Jake Portrait, to get Headful of Sugar made. Self-sufficiency helped us tell the story we wanted to tell. “

And they set out to do just that. Their latest single “Who Put You Up To This?“, which is the opening track on the album, has been described as “a kiss-off to a former lover, maybe, but also a former self“, stating “In another life I was a bitch/ In another life I was your bitch/ Here’s how it turned out“.

new album ‘Headful of Sugar’ out May 6th. listen + watch the video for the first song, Who Put You Up To This? OUT NOW

sign up for early access to tickets, pre-order the album and merch https://t.co/ya0xo6OVal

Album Cover shot + creative directed by Driely S. pic.twitter.com/QYGvRsy0pM

— Sunflower Bean (@Sunflower_Bean) February 8, 2022

In other news, fans can also look forward to a new tour in support of the album, happening over February-June later this year.  Tickets go on sale this Friday from 10 am, and if you want to get in early, you can go by this link. The UK tour dates can be seen below.

Sunflower Bean UK Tour Dates:

30/03/2022 – Junction 2 – Cambridge
31/03 – Brudenell Social Club – Leeds
01/04 – Strange Waves Festival – Manchester
02/04 – Stereo – Glasgow
04/04 – Newcastle University – Newcastle upon Tyne
05/04 – Rescue Rooms – Nottingham
06/04 – Mama Roux’s – Birmingham
07/04 – Electric Ballroom – London
09/04 – Thekla – Bristol
0/04 – The Wedgewood Rooms – Portsmouth
11/04 – Concorde 2 – Brighton

He noted the cyclical nature of the pandemic as one reason for concern, arguing that “I think every summer we’re going to think it’s over and then every winter it’s going to come back. Every time I’ve had a guess that this is going to be over I’ve been completely wrong.”

It’s been a while for the popular star, whose last UK gig was back in 2019. He was also engaged in a Las Vegas residency at the Wynn Las Vegas’ Encore Theatre, playing 16 dates in 2019 before the onset of the pandemic stopped him from returning. The pop-star noted how the situation is “terrifying for many, many reasons but personally and selfishly I haven’t been able to gig, I haven’t been able to do a tour.”

However, if things go according to plan, fans have a lot to look forward to. His Stoke-on-Trent gig is coming up on June 4^th at Vale Park, and after that, a performance in Munich on August 27^th will see him doing one of the biggest headlining shows of his career, with 150,000 fans due to be present.

Germany: I’m so excited to announce that I’ll be playing a huge show in Munich on 27th August next year.
You don’t want to miss this one – it will be epic.
Tickets go on sale this Thursday Oct 7th at 10am UK time; link will be in my bio.
I can’t wait to see you all there x pic.twitter.com/oZh8fuJmKO

— Robbie Williams (@robbiewilliams) October 4, 2021

Williams had this to say about the gig: “I can’t wait to come to Munich next year – it’s always an incredible place to play and I have very fond memories of shows there.  My German fans are amazing, and I look forward to playing for them and for fans across Europe at this epic event. We’ve all been starved of live music for a long time, so I’m sure this concert will be a meeting of hearts and minds for us all.”

Also, some interesting revelations have come out concerning Robbie’s own history in the limelight, telling The Mirror that he was targeted by a hitman at one stage in his career. He said that “I had a contract put on me to kill me. I’ve never said that publicly before. It went away. I have friends. That stuff is the unseen stuff that happens when you become famous.“ He also spoke of the anxiety and depression that comes with fame, such as the lack of privacy and not being able to go to “normal places … because people want to kill me. It takes a while to get to acceptance.“

If you’re still optimistic about Robbie’s upcoming gigs and are interested in getting tickets, you can look here. Otherwise, we’ll just have to hope his fears don’t turn out to be true this year, and that live music really is back to stay.

Band member Noah Lennox says the single is a tribute to Scott Walker, who died around the time of the track’s writing (March 2019). Walker was a famous singer of the 1960s as part of the Walker Brothers and went on to create increasingly experimental solo records, moving from a distinctly baroque pop approach in the late sixties to avant-garde works from the ’90s until his death in 2019. If you want to see just the extent of this stylistic evolution, you can look at the two tracks below. Lennox said that “Scott’s music has meant a lot to me and he’ll always be a big inspiration. But there’s also a kind of exhaustion and resignation to the singer of ‘Walker’ that belies a darker layer”.


The single is the second release from the band’s upcoming new album, Time Skiffs, which will be out next February 4^th via Domino. The first release came last October with the song “Prester John“. The video to this song was directed by Jason Lester and had a similarly experimental vibe, seeing the band perform amid a light show that continually obscures and changes the band’s surroundings.

A press release describes the new album as being “like listening in on a conversation among four old friends, just as it felt during their inchoate early days or their Strawberry Jam heyday. These nine songs are love letters, distress signals, en plein air observations, and relaxation hymns, the collected transmissions of four people who have grown into relationships and parenthood and adult worry. But they are rendered with Animal Collective’s singular sense of exploratory wonder, same as they ever were. There are harmonies so rich you want to skydive through their shared air, textures so fascinating you want to decode their sorcery, rhythms so intricate you want to untangle their sources.”

Time Skiffs will be released in a number of formats, ranging from CD, 2xLP and digital release. You can also pre-order a limited edition deluxe 2xLP on starburst ruby and black vinyl here. The album’s release will be supported by a spring tour of North America, as well as a date in Spain, that begins next March. The band will be supported by experimental composer L’Rain (Taja Cheek). For those interested in getting tickets and seeing details of tour dates, you can look here. The tracklist for the new album can be seen below.

Time Skiffs tracklisting

1. Dragon Slayer
2. Car Keys
3. Prester John
4. Strung with Everything
5. Walker
6. Cherokee
7. Passer-by
8. We Go Back
9. Royal and Desire