Wire 506 April 2026

Wire Tapper 70

Wendy Eisenberg Shredding Skins

Wendy Eisenberg: The prolific US guitarist collides free jazz with metal and Americana across myriad collaborations and a new introspective solo album. By Stewart Smith

Mariá Portugal: The Brazilian percussionist and improvisor reanimates song fragments from São Paolo’s radical past. By Peter Margasak

KAVARI: The Glasgow producer and DJ brings the occult to the club through visceral volume. By Misha Farrant

The Primer: Augustus Pablo: A user’s guide to the recordings of the roots reggae artist, producer and multi-instrumentalist who conjured visions of a better world. By Derek Walmsley

Invisible Jukebox: Yellow Swans: How will the psychedelic noise duo process The Wire’s mystery record selection? Tested by Ilia Rogatchevski

Cowboy Builder: Junk shop jerry-rigging from the shadowy Edinburgh quartet. By Daryl Worthington

LINTD: The Manchester based artist connects grief with ideas of Black utopia. By John Morrison

Jenna Sutela: Pond life and slime mould fuel the Finnish artist’s creative language. By Robert Barry

Global Ear: Berlin’s Turkish diaspora keeps the psychedelic light burning. By Robert Rigney

Unlimited Editions: The outsider sounds of Jordan label Drowned By Locals skirt the margins. By Miloš Hroch

The Inner Sleeve: Tim Fish on Armand Hammer’s Rome

Against The Grain: The new sound of UK rap is hijacked by London’s police force for clicks. By Hugh Morris

Epiphanies: Derek Baron passes the time with Laure M Hiendl.

Soundcheck: Joshua Abrams; Dinesh Allirajah; Méryll Ampe; Bird Of Peace Orchestra; Daniel Blumberg; Linda Buckley; Maria Chávez/Odeya Nini/Zach Cooper; Oliver Coates; Pascal Comelade; Delphine Dora; Arnold Dreyblatt; Magda Drozd; E The Artist; Terrie Ex; Morton Feldman; Flea; Flying Lotus; dj galen; Carlos Giffoni; Hildur Guðnadóttir; Florian Hecker; Tim Hill; Anthony Joseph; Annea Lockwood; Alexis Marcelo; Eve Maret; Mata; Melvins with Napalm Death; Mi3raj; Roy Montgomery; more eaze; Nondi_; Adam O’Farrill; Stephen O’Malley; Bill Orcutt; Orè; Sam Pluta; Pullman; Mariel Roberts Musa; Soft Machine; Carl Stone & Asuna; Tanya Tagaq; Tangerine Dream; Pat Thomas & XT; Thundercat; Teresa Winter/Birthmark/Guest/A Childs; Witness Wounds; Zone Null; Various The Black Hill, The Glass Sky

The Boomerang: Mick Abrahams; Nanjo Asahito; Peter Baumann; Blodwyn Pig; Clifton Chenier; Circle X; The Colourfield; Peter Gabriel; Anthony Moore; Conrad Schnitzler; Toshiyuki Tsuchitori & Ryuichi Sakamoto; The Tweeters; Mark Vernon; Frank Zappa & Captain Beefheart

The Columns: Avant Rock by Joseph Stannard; Dub & Reggae by Steve Barker; Electronics by Steph Kretowicz; Global by Francis Gooding; Hiphop & R&B by Tim Fish; Jazz & Improv by Phil Freeman; Noise, Industrial & Beyond by Louis Pattison; Size Matters by Byron Coley

Print Run: Ukrainian Field Notes: Sound, Music & Voices From Ukraine After The Full-Scale Invasion by Gianmarco De Re; No New York: A Memoir Of No Wave And The Women Who Shaped The Scene by Adele Bertei; Minimalist Music by George Grella, Jr; We’ll Never Stop Living This Way: A Ghostly International Catalogue edited by JC Gabel, James Goggin & Sam Valenti IV; Listening In: How Audio Surveillance Became Artificial Intelligence by Toby Heys, David Jackson & Marsha Courneya; Rock Notes by Clark Coolidge & Tom Clark; Chris Knox: Not Given Lightly by Craig Robertson

On Screen: Andrew Keogh Mismantler; Pablo Jiménez Moreno In’sive

On Location: CTM Festival, Berlin, Germany; Elucid + DJ Haram, New York, US; Company 2025 (For Derek Bailey), London, UK; Elaine Mitchener: Are ‘Friends’ Electric?, London, UK; The Hotel presents Stan Brakhage + Henry Cyer + Excel DJ, London, UK; Vari/ations: An Ode To Oram, London, UK; New Ear Festival, New York, US; Umlaut Big Band, Paris, France; Felicity J Lord + Vaseline, London, UK; Bendik Giske + Matthew Mallinger & The Beyond The Flowered Gates Ensemble, Los Angeles, US; Yellow Swans + Dhangsha + aya, London, UK