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Hello and welcome to Hook! 

 

Sadly I decided to stop actively running the site in Summer 2022 - independent music journalism is a lot of work to maintain with no advertisers. However there's still lots of amazing content to be found on this site - our goal was to be a space for evergreen music writing and I hope we have succeeded at that!

 

If you like you can see what I'm up to now at jessicawrigglesworth.com 

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Happy reading!

Jess
 

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by Francis 
Lung

The late singer-songwriter in her own words, and those of the artists she inspired.

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"Art is so important to have in your everyday because the combination of the two cast some dramatic shadows over reality."

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An essay from Blue Bendy frontman Arthur Nolan as he traverses the night coach between London and Aberdeen

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The musicians each write a love letter to PJ Harvey in honour of their 'The Desperate Kingdom of Love' cover 

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Anusha Persson on how musicians like Leo Kalyan, Joy Crookes and Raveena have impacted her relationship with her heritage.

"What gets me in the mood for dancing? 'Double Dutch' by Malcolm McLaren. Also 'Double Dutch Bus' by Frank Smith.  I promise I don’t have a rope fetish."

Tamara Lindeman on creating the album artwork for 'Ignorance.'

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Oakland based musician Brijean writes a love letter to the Russian artist.

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The London band's frontman Charlie Drinkwater on designing the artwork for 'Uppers.'

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When I appeared on the same concert [as Pink Floyd]in London’s Roundhouse, the audience clearly didn’t know what to make of Dolly and me and our English folk songs.  We got heckled, I heckled back, everyone laughed and it all cheered up after that! 

The singer on balancing her day job as a psychotherapist with her music.

The young singer songwriter's tribute to her biggest inspiration.

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The Copenhagen-based Scottish singer on the cover art for her debut album 'The Voyager.'

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The Omaha based singer writes a touching letter to her late friend Jake Dunwoody.

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The Slow Dance signed singer-songwriter answers our musical Q&A

"We saw James Blake at Glastonbury a few years ago. It was so amazing- it felt like I was in a hypnotic trance or like deep in meditation. We both walked away feeling pretty mind blown."

The Russian musician on her first office job—and how it influenced the Lu Na video.

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Jon from Everything Everything breaks down the themes behind new album Re-Animator

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The Tunisian singer songwriter tells Hook about lockdown in her hometown of Tunis.

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"A song that gets me in the mood for romancing? John Cale, 4'33."

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"By the second week here a kind of emptiness sets in. It's a distant relative of Zen, but the mantra is capital."

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"Being thrown into a busy 16 hour day at work almost gave me an adrenalin rush equivalent to playing a live gig (almost)."

The London based South Korean musician answers our music related Q&A.

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"Every Joanna Newsom song has changed my mind...truly"

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 "We took a picture next to a wall of naked men, by your request. And then we said our goodbyes. As I walked into the elevator, I waited for the door to close to cry. "

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 "I wanted there to be a reflective property to the record, so that people would be able to see themselves when they picked it up."

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"I'll never forget my very first concert, around age 11: David Bowie touring  with Nine Inch Nails. They duetted on “Hurt”  My Dad was super confused.”

The Chicago based band take our music related q&a with picks from Moses Sumney, 100 gecs, John Prine, Kate Bush and many more..

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"I used to put on Shiver by Coldplay every night when I was at school and cry about boys. Now I realise I was just crying about the song ."

I’ve grown up to your music, watched you continually reinvent yourself, continually test the limits of what’s expected of you, and yet, continually remain yourself.."

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"I moved from Flowers to your two films and inhaled their despair and bleakness. There’s something that magically pokes fun at, and embraces, Englishness in your work."

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"I’d burrow my head into the book whilst walking along... I only hit my head on passing lampposts less than 5 times"

"I would personally like to never hear any pop song EVER again. I despise pop punk/emo music. I am not sorry."

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Cal Cashin offers a guide to the rock and jazz experimentalists that set post-war Japan alight.

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A letter from the Dutch rock band's frontman, Arie Van Vliet.

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Up and coming artist April chats to Biig Piig about making music,  life in lockdown and, of course, Tiger King.

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The Canadian/Serbian singer wrote to us from isolation in Serbia.

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Our pick of the best music content to see you through social distancing.

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"You were so far above making television. But I should have trusted you. You didn't just make television, you re-defined it."

 "I had no confidence in my abilities—and, it seemed, neither did the universe, because even my simplest experiments would fail so reliably"

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"A lot of Big Thief songs make me cry every single time I listen to them. Adrianne Lenker is, in my opinion, the best poet and lyricist alive right now."

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'Hey That’s No Way to Say Goodbye by Roberta Flack  makes me cry every time'

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'I suppose the feeling Hollis’ voice and music gives me is
somewhere between hushed wonder and a deep ache in my chest.
There really isn’t anyone else that sounded quite like him.'

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"Daniel Johnson, True Love Will Find You In The End is the most genuine song I’ve ever heard. It’s so simple but so emotional."

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"Tears In The Typing Pool connected my feet to yours and walked me through the door into world within your mind"

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"A lot of people have told me they listen to TOPS in a 'Let’s Get it On' kinda way, and I fully support that."

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The singer pays tribute to her friend, the late Melbourne musician Karl Von Bamberger.

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 'I think it’s lovely when you listen to people like J.J Cale and Little Feat and you can really feel the soul that has gone in to the songs. And you look at the artwork and this same voice comes through it..'

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'One time when we were recording I was playing the piano and you said through the control mic, "Can't you make the piano sound cooler, you're playing like Billy Joel"'

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‘If the world were ending, what would be the last piece of music you'd want to hear?'

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'The album was initially meant to show a kind of playful tenderness coupled with a more abrasive, violent side. I think in the end the darker elements took over"

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'Watching your stories unfold on a screen made me want to point, jump up and say, I told you so, look! Its true! Buildings can fly! People can talk out of their arse.'

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David Mckenna tries to describe the indescribable - a France live show.

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My favourite place to listen to music? 

Driving around in the car! Windows down! Moon roof open!

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'I borrowed my dad's Deep Forest cd & would crawl under my bath when the water was hot & listen on headphones.'

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"On tour I kept staring out the window listening to Siren 042 by lala Lala and WHY? on a loop, it's beautiful"

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The Doctors of Madness frontman on the making of Dark Times:

"Damned right it’s political."

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'Sometimes it is necessary to abandon, sometimes it is necessary to embrace and sometimes it is necessary to step beyond.'

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'A gig I'll never forget? Spiritualized at the Ace Theater in Downtown LA, the day after Valentine's Day'

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'I had the chance to see Wu Tang Clan at a festival and decided to go the techo tent instead. Classic mistake that I might make again.'

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"There is nothing I would not hear again. Give me one bottle of Cider and what was once rinsed is fresh again."

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'Me and my friend Eddy used to have a pretty intense breakfast routine where we would listen to bossa nova, drink coffee and stare out the window.'

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The musician and ex-Nick Cave backing singer on the artistic process behind the cover of her latest single Black Eye.

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Your go-to karaoke song?

Ma$e - Feel so good

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"A gig we'll never forget? 

Our first time playing the Troubadour in LA. There was so much love in the room that night."

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Jamie Ryder explores anonymity in music. 

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I was pretty obsessed with Disney’s ‘Tarzan’ film growing up. Whenever I hear the song ‘You’ll Be In My Heart’ I well up a little.

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My go- to karaoke song? 

Livin' on a Prayer by Bon Jovi

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Skye Butchard finds solace in the artist's latest output.

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A song which reminds me of my childhood?  

“The Sign” by Ace of Base. I used to put this song on and dance in front of our living room window at night.

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In a deep listening exercise gone wrong,

Milo Gooder meditates on the purpose of music...

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A song which gives me goosebumps?

White Noise by Kojaque.

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A song which makes me cry? 

Over Christmas I heard River by Joni Mitchell and it got me good.

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Rebecca Liu revisits Marina's Electra Heart.

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