Maxïmo Park review – Newcastle band play the hell out of their jaggy and angsty debut album

Paul Smith and the band play tracks old and new with a dash of humour and the sort of chops you develop from years on the road

Winter Olympics 2026 opening ceremony review – disco-dancing opera masters upstage Mariah Carey

Carey was the big draw at Milan’s San Siro, but she was outweighed by pop-classical artists – and a sizeable dollop of kitsch

Yumi Zouma: No Love Lost to Kindness review – New Zealand dream-poppers’ reinvention doesn’t go far enough

The quartet edge away from their trademark sound with louder guitars and bolder intentions – but their reinvention is more gradual than radical

Tyler Ballgame: For the First Time, Again review – cosplaying singer-songwriter courts comparisons to 1970s greats

The much-hyped LA singer – who has been compared to Tim Buckley, Elvis and more – certainly has a beautiful voice, though he can lean too eagerly on his influences

Lucinda Williams review – Americana legend brilliantly rails against a world out of balance

At 73, the lodestar of Americana still writes with urgency, as the patient force of her band sends the music grooving skywards

Dijon review – a dense and dramatic forest of futurist sound from Grammy-nominated R&B auteur

Nominated for producer of the year for his album Baby and work with Justin Bieber, the US musician’s passion and experimentalism shine in this daring performance

Harry Styles: Aperture review – a joyous, quietly radical track made for hugging strangers on a dancefloor

Styles is wonderfully loose and unhurried on the lead single to his new album, taking a bold path away from the rest of today’s mainstream pop

Hilary Duff review – first gig in 18 years for former teen icon is euphoric, escapist fun

Despite never being a huge pop force after her years as Disney star Lizzie McGuire, fans come from Brazil and Saudi Arabia for Duff’s charming, self-deprecating return

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds review – an electrifying crescendo of faith, fury and fragile joy

Returning to Australian stages after nine years, the band delivers a fierce, generous set that draws on four decades of music

Emmylou Harris review – spine-tingling goodbye from 78-year-old country legend

The lived-in dustiness of her voice only enriches her storytelling, with her greatest songs now more devastating than ever

Sleaford Mods: The Demise of Planet X review – vulnerability and versatility widen potty-mouthed appeal

The duo’s 13th album finds Jason Williamson as baffled and infuriated as ever at the state of the world, with help from some unexpected collaborators

Robbie Williams: Britpop review – a wayward yet winning time-machine trip back to the 90s

Framed as the music Williams wanted to make post-Take That, Britpop surpasses pastiche and swerves unpredictably. Homoerotic paean to Morrissey, anyone?

Biffy Clyro review – triumphant set marks a thunderous renewal

Coming off the back of a rough period, the Scottish band find reconnection, renewal and purpose in their singular mix of pop, rock and metal

Jenny on Holiday: Quicksand Heart review – Let’s Eat Grandma innovator’s knowing new-wave reinvention

In Jenny Hollingworth’s first solo venture, her singular songwriting powers shine in swooping vocals and transcendent pop melodies

Blue: Reflections review – a clunky rehash of their Y2K boyband heyday

The four-piece try to tap into modern pop’s deep well of nostalgia but come off like Westlife on a bad day