Let’s take a spin on for what might seem a creepy subject, but the more you look into it, the more fascinating and beautiful it becomes. Deadly? Sometimes, but also intricate, amazing, reflecting fear, attraction and more in human nature
Read morePlaylists: songs about the colour orange
Fresh, funky, bright and effervescent, spreading from Jamaica to India, France and America and all the way to Japan, this week’s guest playlister Hoshino Sakura captures the essence of this colour in all forms, sky to fruit to street
Read moreBright and beautiful: songs about the colour orange
From animals to objects, plants to birds, and all of its cultural associations, the meeting of red and yellow, symbol of change, joy, entertainment and also warning, this week let’s explore songs are about anything clearly of this colour
Read morePlaylists: songs about urban wildlife and nature
Foxes, deer, ducks, ospreys, to blossoms and orchids, leaping up into life from last week’s topic, guest writer barbryn picks a magical musical menagerie and floral fanfare in playlists about the wildlife that inhabit our towns and cities
Read moreCracks in the concrete: songs about urban wildlife and nature
Cats, rats or bats, peregrine falcons to parakeets, foxes and rabbits, bears or boars, and a whole host of other creatures, as well as plants and urban sunsets, this week let’s explore how nature exists in the city as shown in song
Read morePlaylists: songs about deceptive appearances
Warnings about false friends, to advice about keeping things secret, one appearance doesn’t deceive - this week’s playlists are skilfully strung together by this week’s guest Suzi, covering everything from love to personal life, politics to parties
Read moreGame of Tones? Songs about deceptive appearances
Sex, love relationships, work, politics, and war, appearances all play apart in the game of life, and this week with a huge cast of talent coming to visit the Bar, we discuss and explore the art and topic of false or true in song lyrics
Read morePlaylists: songs from/about Birmingham and The Black Country
Bromwichham to Brummagem, Wednesfield, Walsall and Wolverhampton, this week’s guest playlister philipphilip99 blows an entertaining trumpet for the city and area that shaped him, his lists filled with fabulous music and facts
Read moreBostin'! Songs from or about Birmingham and The Black Country
This week’s topic takes a particular accent towards music inspired by the great British West Midlands city and its surrounding area, a rich cultural mix of ethnicities and styles, industrial history, upheaval and humour
Read morePlaylists: songs about electricity
Ancient lightning gods and rods to pioneers of current, this week’s bright spark EnglishOutlaw connects nature, history and scientific experiment into musical form with playlists inspired by last week’s electrifying topic
Read moreCurrent topic: songs about electricity
Capacitance, or resistance? This week on the circuit it’s time for bright sparks to plug in and make lyrical connections with songs that refer to electricity in all literal or metaphorical forms, from famous inventors to natural forces
Read morePlaylists: songs enhanced by impressive videos
What a production! Cartoons to big-screen movie references, emotional stories, quirky comedies and extraordinary dancing, from a massive choice, this week’s guest Marco den Ouden chooses two perfectly eye-popping playlists
Read moreThe gift of sound and vision: songs enhanced by impressive videos
Music and film are often intertwined commercially, but where does a video become an artform to the level that the visual elements enhance, complement and become symbiotic with the song? Let the action commence …
Read morePlaylists: songs that defy genre definition
Embarking on adventures into the avant-garde, hip-hop, jazz and more, crossing continents and skimming multiple styles from waves of nominations, this week’s guest Nilpferd creates playlists enduringly indefinable
Read moreOut of this oeuvre? Songs and music that defy genre definition
This week let’s push the envelope and dig out often lesser known artists and works that wriggle away from definition, those who or mix sub-genres and styles with such originality it’s hard to place them. But can you still define them?
Read morePlaylists: songs about witches and witchcraft
What’s been brewing in the musical cauldron this week? Making the magic happen from a huge casting of spells and songs from readers is guest playlister George Boyland, who conjures up two miraculous selections
Read morePut in a spell on this: songs about witches and witchcraft
Good, bad, beautiful or ugly, purveyors of black or white magic, and the effect they have on others, from witch-finders to fans, this week we explore the culture of witchery, but which way, and what magic will this conjure up in songs?
Read morePlaylists: songs about joints of the body
Shoulders to toes, hips to knees, this week’s playlists, picked by our flexibly skilful guest Noodsy from last week’s topic connect up through all the styles and genres, from Shakira to Sparklehorse, The Beat to The Beach Boys …
Read moreJoint effort: songs about knees, hips, elbows, wrists & toes …
… as well as knuckles, ankles, shoulders and any other key bendy and swivelling bits of the body, human or otherwise. It's all about making connections, and freedom of movement …
Read morePlaylists: worst songs outside the comfort zone
Worst week ever? Just how low can we go? This week’s counterintuitive topic brought hundreds of highly entertaining gems, out of which the wonderfully mischievous guest playlister Olive Butler created two terrifically torturous lists
Read more