Returning to the bare bones folk of his earlier output, the Geordie troubadour is placing utmost importance on the heart-wrenching stories at the centre of these songs. 

Through kitchen-sink poetics covering hospital visits, zoom meetings, schoolyard scraps, tea and toast, he weaves an epic tapestry of modern existence with a fresh and lucid approach emerging through the prism of each odd-folk ballad. It might be the ‘End Of The Middle’ but this trip back to the start feels like a brand new beginning.

His instore event is long sold out but you can still score a Dinked or signed copy if you're nippy!

Also out this week: 

A pressure-cooked smorgasbord of diverse inspirations make up Bartees Strange's genre-merging odyssey - slow-burning funk-fuelled struts, riotous guitars, pumping dancefloor beats, and quietly strummed contemplation are all gelled together by an enlightened coherence. And there are a handful of Dinked editions left for the fleet of fingers! Just when we think we've got the Manics pegged, they come back with something like 'Critical Thinking' and completely sideswipe our expectations - it's an optimistic, dare we say joyous, outing that lets rip with tsunami-sized choruses and fretboard runs that could tickle the Sun. Leaping in a Mercedes Coupe and throttling it for the horizon, The Delines dish out laidback licks that oh-so-smoothly soundtrack a trouble-crossed runaway pair as they dodge their way out of dodge, leaving a song in our hearts and burnt rubber in their wake. And not only did The Cure blow everyone away with their brand new album at the business end of '24, but they popped up with a rare intimate performance of the record too! For those of us who weren't fortunate enough to attend, this is the next best thing: a near-perfect recording of the night in question - it's enough to get the hairs on the back of your neck reaching for the stars.

Elsewhere, fresh from toilet-papering our shop, Lambrini Girls' debut EP has returned to the racks tp-free, flat-capped fella Louis Dunford's debut has landed and he'll be premiering it right here with a double instore tonight! Rizzle Kicks will always be winners in our hearts and they'll also be meeting & greeting you fine folk in the shop next Wednesday! The much-missed Andrew Weatherall's club night A Love From Outer Space has appeared in compilation form just in time for Valentine's Day, you can snag The Orb's triplet for Kompakt, we're back on the Autobahn with Kraftwerk, and The Wombats are sharing their watery surprise with a fancy new poster plus digital download!