DiSpatch podcast debuts, Diddy verdict fallout, Spotify boycotts & more
Dua Lipa's book club, Glastonbury, Govt music survey, album recommendations, and more | 2107 words | 8mins
Album of the month, this week's news, and more. There's a fun Aphex Twin video at the end too.
In This Week's Newsletter
- Track of the Week
- New! A Pilot Podcast
- News Headlines
- June's Albums of the Month
- A Little Digest of Things I've Enjoyed Reading & Listening To Lately
Track of the Week
Back in January at the ESNS music conference in The Netherlands (note to musicians: applications to play in 2026 are now open), I saw Cliffords and was absolutely blown away by this track 'My Favourite Monster'.
The stuck-on-repeat studio version of the song has a hanging from a chandelier in a hurricane magic to it (think: Frightened Rabbit fronted by Sharon Van Etten).
However, this, a little bit stripped back version for the BBC's Glastonbury coverage, has a real charm. Perhaps it feels special because it's capturing a moment in time before the band rockets into the stratosphere. Even without the big drums it is devastating:
New Pod!
Introducing... DiSpatch
With our new podcast, Drowned in Sound is trying something new. It's not groundbreaking by any means, but it's a first for us, so I'd love to hear your thoughts over on our messageboards (or just reply to this newsletter):
The idea came from you. We processed the feedback from over 300 of you who took part in our recent survey and this concept was born. We hope we've delivered on what many of you were keen to hear more of.
What is it? We left the comfort of our studio for the pilot of what we're calling a "DiSpatch". The concept, as the name half-suggests, is to get out there and bring together a mixture of voices, including insight from a reporter, a catch up with an expert, and the voices of our fellow music fans.
What's the first episode about? We're starting big, we've kicked off with the biggest event in music's calendar: Glastonbury.
Our working title was My First... Glastonbury: When I discovered that music journalist Emma Wilkes had never been to Glastonbury before and that she had bought a ticket, I asked if she'd like to give an idea I had a go. I was thrilled when she said yes, as I love Emma's insightful writing for NME and Kerrang! due to its fizz of fandom (a word we truly need to reclaim from snobby old blokes who have unrelentingly told me to tone down my passion for music since day of DiS...).
The report that came back not only takes you into the city of music that's erected for a week on Worthy Farm with the wide-eyes of a first timer but it also distils what it was like to be there in the political fire storms amidst the heat.
In this 37 minute episode:
- Emma's thoughts on the festival and her highlights
- We meet music fans at the start and end of the festival to see if the expectation met the reality.
- DiS nipped back stage at Terminal 1 to discuss everything from immigration to the meaning of music with Laima Leyton, a Brazilian artist, education, educator, producer and musician who many DiSsers may know as a member of Soulwax's live band, from her solo work or as one half of electronic duo Mixhell alongside her husband Iggor Cavalera (of Sepultura and Cavalera Conspiracy). Laima was at the festival with the conflict & climate org In Place of War, who took over Terminal 1 on the Thursday.
- Clips of speeches from Amyl and The Sniffers, Seun Kuti, and The 1975.
- Plus a quick 90 second intro from me
Massive thanks to our new podcast producer Josh Craggs for capturing and editing this episode.
If you're not already subscribed, you can listen for free by searching for "Drowned in Sound" on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you get yours.
The Headlines
In the news...
UK Government Wants To Know What You Think
Music fans have a rare opportunity to help the music scenes we love by telling Dame Caroline Dineage and the UK's department of Digital, Culture, Media & Sport what they should prioritise to fix.
The survey doesn't take long to fill in but it covers everything from ticket touts to whether companies like Live Nation should also be able to own the ticket sellers like Ticketmaster.
This fan-led review of live music follows on from the Music Fans' Voice survey that over 8,000 music fans took part in (read the results).
🚨 Love music? Take action: This survey takes about 10 mins to fill in
Headline of the Week
I Tried Apple Music's New DJ Feature, and I Have Mixed Feelings (Lifehacker)
BICEP premieres new record
This week DiS had a sneak peek of TAKKUUK a new project soundtracked by Bicep. We popped along to Outernet in central London (see our archived Instagram Story) and saw a version of the film across 5 screens.
TAKKUUK is a beautifully visceral documentary, taking us to the frontlines of the climate crisis, with indigenous artists from across the arctic region discussing protecting both the planet and their culture. This project will be touring the world and we have an interview with the electronic duo coming soon. Sign up for updates here: bicep.earthsonic.org
AI Band Breaks The Internet
This news story of an AI band getting a huge amount of plays on Spotify took a turn, with a representative making the following statement that we can't tell if it's satire:
"Over the past days, a number of impersonator accounts have surfaced across social media platforms, publishing fabricated statements and AI-generated imagery falsely attributed to us. Unfortunately, some of this material was cited in your recent article."
Graham Barlow
Disarm Spotify movement has entered the chat!
Dunno about you but my social media feeds are awash with people outraged about how Spotify founder Daniel Ek spends the profits from the music streaming platform. His recent investment in war technology has led many artists and unions (like More Perfect Union and UMAW) to post about boycotting the platform or withdrawing their labour.
I'll likely write more about this campaign soon but Mynabirds' video series on working with Saddle Creek to remove her music is well worth a watch. Watch on Instagram or TikTok.
Dua Lipa's Book Club
One positive way Spotify are splashing their cash is on Dua Lipa's Service95 Book Club podcast. More of this and less AI drones, please. (You can also watch it on YouTube, if you've joined the Spotify exodus).
Soulwax have been dropping teasers online and appear to have a new album on the way. It appears to be titled ALL SYSTEMS ARE LYING, and well, that title seems perfect. (NME)
Budweiser have been forced to apologise (Ad Age) for using music without paying royalties by artists including Taylor Swift. The controversy came after they bafflingly won a Cannes Lion award. Read this fantastic explainer: Why is Grand Prix-winning Budweiser a miser when it comes to paying artists? (The Drum)
Marilyn Manson is attempting a comeback and has a UK arena tour on sale. We'll write more about this soon but it's notable to see that following an open letter from Green MP Siân Berry, his show in Brighton is no longer happening. (BBC)
Black Sabbath's farewell fundraiser show last night has hit the headlines because fans were outraged (Independent) that not only did the aforementioned Marilyn Manson appear on screen to pay tribute but also lead singer of the band Disturbed, David Draiman, was booed, with many speculating it's for his very pro-Israel views that included signing bombs in this Instagram gallery with the IDF. Manson in particular was quite a surprising choice when you consider Sharon Osbourne's recent outrage at Kneecap and Gary Lineker, conflating criticism with Israel's war crimes with antisemitism, and the long list of allegations of antisemitism against Marilyn Manson, including in his abuse of Evan Rachel Wood and from Esme Bianco
Sean Combs (P Diddy, Puff Daddy, etc) trial has come to an end. It's an incredibly complex case but despite the sensitive nature of the case, it has sparked some shocking reactions, including this highly triggering BBC headline, which I won't include here as it's bound to be upsetting to any victims of domestic violence.
Last week, a jury found Mr Combs guilty on two counts of transportation to engage in pr*stitution (only censored this word to ensure this email reaches you inbox). He was acquitted of the most serious charges of racketeering and s*x trafficking. Sentencing is to follow.
Here are a few reactions to the verdict:
Coercive control campaigner David Challen added:
Increasingly, I am finding myself siding with the idea of abolishing juries in cases involving s*xual violence and/or domestic abuse.
Time and time again, juries struggle to grasp the basics of consent, let alone the coercive and controlling behaviours abusers use to manipulate their victims.
I would recommend reading recent Drowned in Sound podcast guest Linda Coogan Byrne's full post, but this conclusion is the key line:
It’s time for major labels, execs, agencies, managers, (most of which are men) and media platforms to do some serious soul-searching. Not just about "who you platform", but about "what you enable" when you stay silent and allow this behaviour.
Johnny Foreigner have joined the BDS movement and pulled out of Truck festival in protest over the event's ties to private equity firm KKR (Twitter)
A bit of personal news: I've started a new consultancy called The Sounding. Details on LinkedIn here.
June 2025's Albums of the Month
The Drowned in Sound community have voted, and here are the top 5:
- 1st Turnstile - Never Enough
- 2nd Pulp - More
- 3rd S.G. Goodman - Planting by the Signs
- 4th McKinley Dixon - Magic, Alive!
- 5th Great Death - Die in Love
PSSST! If you're looking for more music recommendations this thread is full of gold. Including a recommendation from me.
The Digest
Things I've been discussing in group chats or sharing online this week...
Mark Davyd from Music Venues Trust's update on the grassroots levy, which is currently voluntary is pretty shocking to read. A lot of massive shows aren't putting that ÂŁ1 into the pot to support the future of music:
By the end of 2024, 15 million tickets for Arenas and Stadiums were already on sale for 2025 shows. 8 million more tickets for 2025 have been announced since, but let’s punch some numbers based solely on that established historical precedent. Assuming that a similar number will be on sale by the end of 2025 for 2026 events as were available at the end of 2024 for 2025 events, that means that between now, when there are 1,374,318 (1.4 million) 2026 tickets on sale, and 31 December 2025, when the prediction is there will be 15 million tickets on sale, a further 13,625,682 (13.6 million) tickets will be announced. Currently, just 99,600 of the 2026 tickets that are on sale contain the levy. That’s a rather lowly 7.25%. To hit Chris Bryant’s target of a minimum of “the majority of qualifying tickets” including the levy, the industry needs to ensure that 7,500,001 (7.5 million plus 1) tickets on sale on 31 December includes the levy. That requires that 7,400,401 (7.4 million) out of the next 13,652,682 (13.6 million) tickets will feature a levy. 54.2% of all tickets that will be announced in Q3 and Q4 of 2025 will need to include it. That already feels like a tall order, but let’s park it for now, return to it later, and explore the rest of the Creative Industries Sector Plan.
Mark Davyd
Mary Spender is an upcoming guest on the DiS podcast and this video in which she encourages musicians to join YouTube is really interesting
Chris Brown fans are asked if they knew or really care about allegations of domestic violence
Luc Rinaldi
John Harris