Said the Gramophone — Sorry for all the technical troubles here this past week. It's unfortunate (and unusual). We're still trying to get all our troubles hammered out and apologize for any hiccups. Fingers crossed that everything will be better soon. Moderat - "Rusty ... more info

Guardian Music — For his Christmas concert at the Royal Albert Hall, Rufus Wainwright managed to cram in every cliche of live performance. So here is a list of offences that all musicians should avoid ...This week I witnessed the most excruciatingly boring gig of my ... more info

Guardian Music — Royal Albert Hall, LondonThey say Christmas is for families, and in recent years the Wainwright/McGarrigle New York Christmas concert has become an institution, with singing siblings Rufus and Martha Wainwright and their folk-icon mother Kate McGarri... more info

The Quietus — Guy Garvey spills the latest on studio sessions more info

NME — Bury band working on fifth album more info

Guardian Music — Believe it or not, pop got smarter in the noughtiesThere is a parlour game you can play to gauge how dramatically rock and pop music has changed in the course of a decade. Imagine a music fan from the start of the decade is transported to its end, an... more info

NME - Radar — Now that all the 'proper rock'n'roll' bands up norf have abandoned lad-rock, they seem to have chanelled their creative urges into blustery, booming, boozy, mandie (which is my new term for indie for the older gentleman). Even the Courteeners sound l... more info

Stopcryingyourheartout.com — Q's Artists Of The Century Issue, featuring:Amy Winehouse, Noel Gallagher, U2, Dave Grohl, Paul McCartney, Matt Bellamy, Lily Allen, Kings Of Leon, Billie Joe Armstrong, Guy Garvey, Robert Plant, Gary Lightbody, Florence Welch, Coldplay, Mika, Pink, ... more info

NME — Items to go under the hammer for the Music Beats Mines project more info

Guardian Music — The Mercury prize-winning rapper has sacked her record label Big Dada, claiming that the small independent operation is responsible for her album's lack of commercial successSpeech Debelle has announced that she is sacking her record label, blaming B... more info