Five music artists who you may not know have been inspired by global folk or classical music
Art cannot exist without outside influence and throughout history, we have seen this reflected within popular music.
Mitski’s Nothing’s About to Happen to Me: The female and feline intersection
Every few years, Mitski returns to my Spotify feed with a new body of work for me to unpack and internalise as she discusses, in sometimes horrifically accurate levels of detail, feelings of melancholy and sorrow in a way few other artists are able to replicate.
2018’s “Be the Cowboy” was an uncomfortable assessment of desire and the want to be desired, a testament to the tempestuous feelings that love can bring and the negative effects it can have on one’s sense of self, writes Music News Blitz’s Isaac James.
2023’s “The Land is Inhospitable and So Are We” was a sorrowful commentary on love as a force for transformation and the desolation we often tolerate, simply attributing the horrors of modern life to industrialisation and population expanse.
So, what is “Nothing’s About to Happen To Me” a testament to?
Cats. The human perception of cats, and how their suffering can mirror our own.
Music news: The Strokes announce ‘Reality Awaits’ album
The New York legends will make a return ‘this summer’ to release their seventh full-length album after a six-year hiatus.
After the roaring success of 2020’s comeback album, The New Abnormal, it has been quite the period of radio silence from the five-piece.
Julian Casablancas and co. originally burst onto the scene in 2001 with the release of the classic album ‘Is This It’, cementing themselves as indie music royalty with subsequent releases.
A leading force for the 2000s garage-rock movement, the group have been credited as direct influences for major acts including Arctic Monkeys, The Killers and Kings of Leon.
Music News Blitz’s Freddie Thomas-Neher went further into the upcoming release.
Music News: Ones to watch - five more alternative acts who could have a breakthrough year
Last week saw Geese, Mac DeMarco, the return of Death Grips and more mentioned as 2026 starts to take shape in the music scene.
Music News Blitz writer Freddie Thomas-Neher gives his final five in a two-part ‘ones to watch’ series for the year.
Music news: Ones to Watch – Five alternative acts who could have a breakthrough year
With last year being a year dominated by bands such as Turnstile, Fontaines D.C and Geese, which bands could spring forward and break through this year?
Music News Blitz writer Freddie Thomas-Neher gives the first five of his 10 acts to watch in part one of a two-part series.
Album review: The 1975’s I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It - 10 years later
In February 2026, The 1975’s second studio album, I Like It When You Sleep, for You Are So Beautiful yet So Unaware of It, is turning 10 years old.
A monumental album for both the band and fans, Music News Blitz writer and The 1975 superfan Nisha Cullen looks back at the album and its effects.
Music analysis: My Bloody Valentine - The pioneers of shoegaze
Shoegaze is a subgenre of alternative rock, often described as psychedelic and ethereal.
My Bloody Valentine were formed in Dublin in 1983, and are said to be pioneers of the genre.
But what is shoegaze? And what was My Bloody Valentine’s influence on the genre?
Music News Blitz writer Nisha Cullen answers those questions…
Against the algorithm: Could the Last Dinner Party mark the return of human artistry?
With the slow starvation of independent venues and the decline in funds for emerging artists, the music industry appears to be in crisis.
Whether the villain is streaming platforms or the latest AI tools, the commodification of music is moulding artists and cheapening art.
Amidst this landscape, The Last Dinner Party burst onto the scene early last year, standing far above the capitalised homogeneity.
With their sophomore album, From the Pyre, released on October 17, they have produced one of the most captivating albums in recent years.
Challenging the dominating commercialisation that defines success for developing artists, select bands like The Last Dinner Party remind the world what music made by people rather than products can really sound like, writes Music News Blitz’s Katie Slater.
Onesies, profanity and innuendo: Who were Bloodhound Gang?
Before a world of edgy streamers and hidden-camera pranksters, there was a band that went viral for their crude jokes, catchy hooks and nothing but pure disregard for class or dignity.
In this article, Music News Blitz’s Charlie Gardner discusses the infamy of Bloodhound Gang, answering questions of what made them so iconic and how their success defined an era.
Skinty Fia: A look back on Fontaines D.C.’s big break - Irish identity and moody reflection
In 2025, Fontaines D.C. is a band known to anyone remotely interested in the music scene, writes Music News Blitz’s Charlie Gardner.
By 2020, they had broken through, releasing two albums each with songs that pushed the band into popularity.
Dogrel (2019) pushed the band into the public eye, before A Hero’s Death (2020) cemented their place, while still uniquely experimenting with their sound.
Music news: Sam Fender delivers the goods for Geordies in staggering shows at St. James Park
Sam Fender’s three-night takeover at St James’ Park brought together over 50,000 Geordies each night to celebrate their local hero on his People Watching Tour.
With emotional highs, crowd anthems, surprise appearances and a firework finale, it was a monumental achievement in the rising star’s career, writes Music News Blitz’s Katie Jones.
Music news: Sam Fender and Olivia Dean join forces and announce collaboration rendition of ‘Rein Me In’
Sam Fender confirmed on June 17 that he has collaborated with pop-soul artist Olivia Dean on his song “Rein Me In”, which will be released Friday, June 20.
The original song was featured on his album People Watching, which was released in February of this year and has since gained hundreds of millions of streams, writes Music News Blitz’s Amelie Da Costa.
Clairo: The plight of a teenager
By nature of her writing style and the themes explored through her music, Clairo has always worn her heart on her sleeve and remained expressive about the plight of coming into one’s age.
Her music is deeply emotive and reflective and throughout her career has been erected by the feminine, ethereal tone of her songs, a staple of her career that separates her from other artists, writes Music News Blitz’s Isaac James.
This fragility that accompanies her music invites thought from the listeners, the harmonic instrumentation in songs like “Heaven” and “Juna” enable storytelling on a greater level than most artists, gentle melodies that are guided by Clairo’s voice.
Billie Eilish’s Happier Than Ever achieved growth in a time of chaos
The COVID-19 pandemic had monumental consequences on just about every industry on a global scale, be it medicine, infrastructure or entertainment.
The ways in which the world operated and the way humans interacted with each other fundamentally shifted, writes Music News Blitz’s Isaac James.
We as a race were faced with the question as to whether human connection could persist when a key component is removed; proximity.