The Wire #501 November 2025

claire rousay: The Texas raised composer finds an uneasy balance between melancholy and wonder with her interweavings of soundscapes and spoken word confessions. By Lucy Thraves

Rafael Toral: The Portuguese experimentalist injects the harmonic innovations of swing-era jazz into guitar drone. By Peter Margasak

Once Upon a Time in New York: The late John Giorno’s Giorno Poetry Systems operation hotwired the Beat generation’s literary crossover with New York no wave, Los Angeles punk, sound art and beyond. By Alan Licht

Yusuf Mumin: Black Unity Trio’s founding member revisits his archive of spiritual and philosophical jazz. By Phil Freeman

Susu Laroche: The Egyptian/French musician and film maker conjures otherworlds from a fog of electronics. By Misha Farrant

Invisible Jukebox: Lord Spikeheart: Can Kenya’s premier metal producer and vocalist crack The Wire’s mystery record selection? Tested by Claire Biddles

Kinlaw & Franco Franco: Cybernetic industrial rap from Bristol. By Alastair Shuttleworth

Alister Spence: Sydney keyboardist probes the guts of his instrument. By Derek Walmsley

Chupame El Dedo: Colombia’s tongue in cheek Satanic metal cult. By Juan San Cristóbal Lizama

Global Ear: Warsaw club Chmury offers a haven for the marginalised. By Aleksandra Bieniewska

Unlimited Editions: steel tipped dove’s hiphop label Fused Arrow. By Tim Fish

The Inner Sleeve: Chino Amobi on Ryuichi Sakamoto’s async

Against The Grain: Hauntology doesn’t account for Black creative practices, argues Robin James

Epiphanies: Two chance encounters revolutionise UK-Iranian composer Pouya Ehsaei’s music