‘It’ll be in my Guardian obituary’: David Balfe on inspiring Blur’s Country House and tripping on Top of the Pops

He was the burned-out bigwig who moved to a very big house. Now back with his first music for decades, he talks about signing the Proclaimers, being punched by Julian Cope – and his Scott Walker-inspired trio

The Lost Idealism of Heartland Rock

The genre of Bob Seger and John Mellencamp reached across the ideological spectrum in a way that seems unimaginable today.

'The folk scene is very middle class. The divide is huge': Jim Ghedi, the Sheffield singer bringing his doomy music to the movies

Plucked from relative obscurity to score Hugh Jackman film The Death of Robin Hood, the skilled singer-songwriter explains how he conquered his impostor syndrome

The Primitives: ‘A reviewer said that Crash would finish the band. Then it was in Dumb and Dumber’

‘The label added ukulele and steel guitar without bothering to tell us. We couldn’t complain – it made the song a worldwide hit’

Nedra Talley Ross helped make the Ronettes the platonic ideal of a girl group

Even though she was unwell, the last surviving Ronette was full of poignant memories and saucy asides when I met her last year. And she had a rich life after pop success

‘It needs to be loud’: Jozef Van Wissem’s one-man mission to make the lute rock again

The Dutch ex-punk and Jim Jarmusch bandmate talks about his passion to free up a hidebound repertoire and make its strings ‘a real pop instrument’

'I don’t believe in song shaming!': Jon Batiste’s honest playlist

The acclaimed musician and former late night bandleader loves everything from Amyl and the Sniffers to Erykah Badu. So why can’t he stand Steely Dan?

When did northern soul get so southern?

Young people are high-kicking to vintage US soul tunes again, but this time London and Bristol are leading the charge. Is the scene losing its working-class heritage?

Anohni review

Barbican, London Accompanied by a virtuosic band and powered by her operatic voice, Anohni is as good as Nina Simone at interpreting songs – and her own catalogue proves equally malleable yet strong

Add to playlist: the disaster-baiting jazz-rock brinkmanship of Taupe and the week’s best new tracks

The trio combine sludgy rock, homemade electronics and squawking into a watertight groove that makes light work of their complex musicianship

Carla dal Forno: Confession review

The Australian songwriter’s fourth album exists in the captivating chasm between the coolness of her music and the unrepentant obsession of the crush it explores

Walter Smith III: Twio Vol 2 review

(Blue Note)The redoubtable musician and guests including Branford Marsalis and Ron Carter make standard song-shapes sparkle with focus and rugged phrasing