Music
Johnny James, Managing EditorGrubby dance music meets high-gloss hyperpop and wildly ambitious opera in our latest music guide.
First up, FaT OuT brings its intense, experimental, unapologetically queer spirit to The White Hotel and The Derby Brewery Arms. Gold Panda’s in Salford, too, switching his reflective electronica for fast, scrappy house.
At Albert Hall, the music of The Durutti Column gets bathed in new chamber textures courtesy of Vini Reilly’s bandmates and close collaborators, including Caoilfhionn Rose.
Underscores brings something different. Recently named “pop’s most brilliant brain” by the Guardian, the hyperpop artist performs tracks from her new album U at Aviva Studios.
We stay with Aviva Studios as we look ahead to one of the biggest cultural events of 2027: Philip Glass’ first opera, Einstein on the Beach, which is both one of the most influential stage works of the last 50 years and among the least performed.
Proving big ideas don’t always need big venues, The Martin Harris Centre also hosts a wild-sounding opera. Ghost of the AI Empire asks audience members to decide how a futuristic Japanese ghost story unfolds, while AI contorts the sound of live instruments in real time.
