It’s that most magical time of the year, when two of Glasgow’s most unlikely venues play host to all manner of weird, wonderful and occasionally harrowing acts from across the globe, and for three days this little corner of the world becomes a little bit more accepting and a lot more damaging to the eardrums.

Do yourself a favour: make space for Cosmic Vibration in your own plans for 2026.

Bear Stone is a liminal zone where only the best values of the outside world still apply. When the sun’s out, it’s beach vibes all day; when it goes down, the trees seem to close in and create a fairy glade where real magic and pleasant madness can occur. 

As fans speculate about what lies ahead for the band, and whether bridges can be rebuilt, one thing is clear: My Dying Bride remains a potent force in live performance.

“I will bury you beneath fifty tons of concrete and raise a hell like no other.” Consider me buried. And on a Monday evening, no less.

More so than any other festival I’ve been to, ATG feels like a big old party. But one where everyone is lovely and on the same wavelength, and I’m not going to spend most of it riffling through the host’s bookshelf waiting for it to end. And a party where you can legit listen to weird prog one minute, ultra-dissonant hardcore the next, and still get away with “dancing”.  

My first-ever music festival was Download 2016, affectionately known as “#Drownload.” With memories of the apocalyptic weather of that event fresh in my mind, I was somewhat apprehensive about attending ArcTanGent (ATG) 2025. Fortunately, I need not have worried. . .

Supersonic is the most forward-thinking and open minded-festival in the UK by far, and long may this continue. With only good vibes, and an eclectic gathering of artists and musicians from all across the globe converging on Birmingham, there is something for everyone. . .

Friday starts later and Sunday is usually a little more mellow (until The Bug anyway), but Saturday is the overstuffed filling in the festival sandwich – a ridiculous but delicious feast.

Battling mounting odds, and the encroaching horde of dead-eyed money men, the Supersonic crew keep the torches burning for the experimental and the just plain weird. Despite continuing venue difficulties, 2025’s edition of the festival was as great as ever, a defiant celebration of musical exploration and the shared magic of performance.

It’s another exciting and thought-provoking show courtesy of London Prog Gigs, introducing me to another great Camden live music venue, and demonstrating how Teiger and Pearl Handled Revolver are two of the best bands in the UK.  

One of those rare evenings when music not only delights, but refreshes and provides sustenance, sonically and emotionally. Love; kindness; inclusivity – that’s the new spiritual sound. Leave your fury in the venue with those snarling amps. We walk into the air, renewed.

David Bowes looks forward to the 3rd edition of Glasgow’s Core. Festival, 2025’s edition will be a treat for anyone who likes their music loud, in-your-face and socially conscious.

With both bands having such lengthy careers, it is heart-warming to see Melvins and Redd Kross, at the top of their game, playing such exceptional sets to equally rapturous audiences. Long may this continue as, on this form, these are two bands you could watch again, and again, and again.

Friends! Comrades! Brothers and sisters! Supersonic Festival 2025 hastens towards us, a tasty samosa in one hand and an overloaded sackful of musical adventure in the other.

Echoes and Dust heavy music editor Sander van den Driesche was at this year’s Roadburn Festival, and he finally found some time to write about his experiences.

ArcTanGent Festival, famous for its eclectic, dazzling line-ups as much as its relaxed and fun atmosphere, kicks off its 2025 edition on Wednesday 13 August and Joe Norman and Nick Dunn will be there for every minute of it. (It’s a hard assignment, but someone had to do it!)

Deerhoof find themselves where they always prefer to be. . . on the road, playing live gigs. . . The quartet are treating London to a pair of gigs at Bush Hall – two completely different sets – promoted by the wonderful Upset the Rhythm (another apt name!) and supported by handpicked wonderful artists on each evening.

Welcome to Bear Stone Festival: a liminal zone where only the best values of the outside world still apply. When the sun’s out, it’s beach vibes all day; when it goes down, the trees seem to close in and create a fairy glade where real magic and pleasant madness can occur. It might well be the best festival I’ve attended.

I first heard Ostraca just a few months ago with the release of their single ‘Song for a Closed Door’, an absolutely pummelling screamo/post-rock hybrid that reminded me of the very best the genre has to offer. So, even though I hadn’t yet delved deep into their back catalogue, when I saw they were coming to Japan – and playing alongside three other great bands – I knew I had to be there.

Couch Slut are a unique band. . . they are a group that merge noise rock and sludge metal together, into something that has a coherent sound and vision. . . They make “unkind music”, but they sure are kind and welcoming people. That feeling was reciprocated as they took to the stage to make their first audio levelling of London to date.