We Heard Wonders - music review podcast from Scotland - podcast cover

We Heard Wonders - music review podcast from Scotland

Iain McKinstry and Andrew Hallwww.buzzsprout.com
Two Scottish music fans, Iain McKinstry and Andrew Hall, review tracks, albums and artists old, new and some with a personal twist.
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Episodes

Yorke, Knives & Other Wonders: Mark Pritchard & Thom Yorke, Mess Esque, Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals, Barker, Little Barrie & Malcolm Catto

Send us a text You are all invited to @weheardwonders' infinite garden of musical delights! Tune in for Iain and Andrew's takes on the new collaborative album by electronic musician/producer Mark Pritchard and a certain Thomas Edward Yorke, the Aussie alt-rock experimentation of Mess Esque, Infinity Knives & Brian Ennals' confounding and confrontational brand of alternative hip-hop, Barker's textured techno, and Little Barrie & Malcolm Catto's psych-blues interplay. Something unrelenting...

May 14, 20251 hr 28 minSeason 6Ep. 8

Bold Voices: Matt Carmichael Interview + Sault & Backxwash Fresh Cuts

Send us a text Joining the @weheardwonders boys for this week's pod is Scottish saxophonist and composer Matt Carmichael. Matt discusses his wonderful new LP Dancing With Embers, the art of improvising and taking inspiration from folk singer-songwriters, as well as selecting some fantastic music to play. Elsewhere, with Iain talking Animals and Andrew enthusing about At Pompeii, is 2025 going to be a Floyd Summer? New releases by mysterious groove merchants Sault and intense alternative hip-hop ...

May 07, 20251 hr 43 minSeason 6Ep. 7

Newish Music - Bon Iver! Japanese Breakfast! The Horrors! Daniel Paul O'Sullivan! Annie and the Caldwells!

Send us a text We Heard Wonderers Iain and Andrew return in one piece (just about) following their European exploits. We have our say on high-profile new indie releases from Bon Iver, Japanese Breakfast and The Horrors - do they hit the mark, or leave something to be desired? Exciting projects from contemporary composer Daniel Paul O’Sullivan and gospel-soul family unit Annie & The Caldwells are also up for discussion. Something beguiling and beautiful has The Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard ...

Apr 17, 20251 hr 28 minSeason 6Ep. 6

New Music - Lady Gaga! Fust! Melin Melyn! Candi Staton! Maud the Moth!

Send us a text Don’t let it ever be said that @weheardwonders don’t have range! On the latest pod, Iain and Andrew discuss the potential reemergence of Radiohead, before playing and reviewing new records by returning pop royalty Lady Gaga, none-more-American alternative country band Fust, mellifluous Welsh millers Melin Melyn, sensational soul survivor Candi Staton and avant-classical-folk-metal world-weaver Maud The Moth. Something strutting of a sixties vintage has The Vinyl Word. Listen to We...

Mar 19, 20251 hr 39 minSeason 6Ep. 5

New Music - The Limiñanas! DARKSIDE! Everything is Recorded! Marshall Allen! Ichiko Aoba!

Send us a text Fascinating, sometimes unexpected pairings and groupings are the name of the game on this week’s @weheardwonders podcast. Iain and Andrew share their favourite musical mash-ups, before moving on to review five collaboration-heavy new projects. Bobby Gillespie lives out his noirish, faded glamour fantasies alongside Mr & Mrs of French garage-rock The Limiñanas; DARKSIDE expand to a trio and jam out; Richard Russell and assorted friends turn existential on the latest Everything ...

Mar 05, 20251 hr 31 minSeason 6Ep. 4

New Music - HONESTY! John Glacier! Oklou! Richard Dawson! Confucius MC & Bastien Keb!

Send us a text Mystery hangs in the air and cloaks many of the artists played and discussed on this week's @weheardwonders pod: whether it be shadowy, alt-electro collective HONESTY; the endlessly intriguing, expectation-defying John Glacier; Oklou's introspective approach to futurist-medieval-Y2K dance-pop; progressive folk musician Richard Dawson's obtuse quest for the divine in day-time TV; or the hazy, daydream-folk-hop of South London rapper Confucius MC's new collaboration with producer/mu...

Feb 26, 20251 hr 28 minSeason 6Ep. 3

New Music - FKA Twigs! Benjamin Booker! Anna B Savage! Sam Amidon! Thandii!

Send us a text Podcasting late at night in their pants surrounded by a week’s worth of washing is when Iain and Andrew are at their most Eusexua. Tune into @weheardwonders to hear their opinions on some intriguing new music: FKA twigs discovers the best version of herself on the dance-floor; Benjamin Booker takes a dramatic left-turn and asks “what would happen if I mixed Mobb Deep and the Mary Chain?”; tender singer-songwriter Anna B Savage tests our Irish pronunciation; Sam Amidon brings a sal...

Feb 14, 20251 hr 31 minSeason 6Ep. 2

New Music - Ale Hop & Titi Bakorta! Ex-Vöid! Sophie Jamieson! Moonchild Sanelly! Brown Spirits!

Send us a text Looking for some intriguing artists and box-fresh tunes to kick-start your year? @weheardwonders have you covered! Yes, indeed, Iain and Andrew are back with their first new music show of 2025: played and discussed are a novel merging of old and new, Congolese and Peruvian; scuzzy, fuzzy indie-rock featuring a Joanna Gruesome twosome; stirringly intense alternative-folk courtesy of Bella Union; exuberantly provocative South African "future ghetto funk"; and cosmic jams from down-u...

Jan 22, 20251 hr 16 minSeason 6Ep. 1

Episode 100 - Best of 2024

Send us a text They said it couldn’t be done! Many questioned whether it SHOULD be done! But here it is - Episode 100 of the @weheardwonders podcast! What better way to commemorate this astonishing achievement in content-creation than by Iain and Andrew sitting down and reflecting on the year that was 2024? We play and enthuse about some of our standout records of the past 12 months, as well as discussing many of the wider trends. Which releases did Iain return to again and again? Did Andrew’s e...

Jan 08, 20251 hr 28 minSeason 6Ep. 1

New Music - Sam Fender! MEMORIALS! Denzel Curry! Emma-Jean Thackray! Jill Lorean! Plus Kendrick Lamar!

Send us a text MUSTAAAARD! The latest @weheardwonders is burnin' HOT, with Andrew and Iain discussing GNX, the surprise new album from Kendrick Lamar, before playing and sharing their thoughts on new tracks from Top 5 single hit-maker and man-of-the-people Sam Fender, exploratory art-rock duo MEMORIALS, mischievous Southern hip-hop king Denzel Curry, space-funk trumpeter Emma-Jean Thackray and very talented friend-o'-pod Jill Lorean. Something obscenely, moreishly groovy has the Vinyl Word. List...

Nov 27, 20241 hr 21 minSeason 5Ep. 22

New Music - Doves! Fievel is Glauque! Kim Deal! Mk.gee! Olive Jones!

Send us a text Three is the magic number this week on @weheardwonders as Iain and Andrew are joined by The Talent from Glasgow band The Deadline Shakes, Greg Dingwall. Greg shares his love of Field Music and joins us to listen to and review new music from the broodingly majestic Doves, progressive jazz-pop jesters Fievel Is Glauque, alt-rock legend Kim Deal, 80s-obsessed word-of-mouth sensation Mk.Gee and British soul stylist Olive Jones. Something beardy and jauntily acousticy has the Vinyl Wor...

Nov 13, 20241 hr 35 minSeason 5Ep. 21

New Music - Yasmin Williams! Blood Incantation! Field Music! Tyler, The Creator! One True Pairing!

Send us a text Iain and Andrew return for a @weheardwonders round-up, featuring some of the most interesting new music releases from the past month or so. Finger-picking virtuoso Yasmin Williams, sci-fi-death-metal-progsters Blood Incantation, art-rock cottage-industry Field Music, hip-hop polymath Tyler, The Creator and former-Wild Beast One True Pairing are all played and reviewed. Something raw and rockin’ from Thailand has the Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard Wonders on your podcast platform o...

Nov 06, 20241 hr 52 minSeason 5Ep. 20

New Music - Kosmischer Läufer! Alan Sparhawk! Ezra Collective! Upupayãma! Nubya Garcia!

Send us a text Yippie-yi-o! Yippie-yi-yay! Pod-casters in the sky! Yer loyal @weheardwonders cowboys Iain and Andrew round up and review the latest musical offerings from cosmic runner and hoaxer(?) Kosmischer Läufer, quiet titan of alternative music Alan Sparhawk, London jazz party-starters Ezra Collective, acid-folk-psych-rock mountain-dweller Upupayãma and sax ’n’ string supremo Nubya Garcia. Something lovely and lunar-related has the Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard Wonders on your podcast pla...

Oct 08, 20241 hr 41 minSeason 5Ep. 19

New Music - Bon Iver! Etran de L'Aïr! Lady Blackbird! Beautify Junkyards w/Paul Weller! Chrysanths!

Send us a text Iain and Andrew deliver their opinions on the freshest new music with scalpel-sharp incisiveness on the latest @weheardwonders pod. Indie-folk phenomenon Bon Iver go back to basics, 100% Saharan guitar-band Etran de L’Aïr step into a proper studio for the first time, “the Grace Jones of jazz” Lady Blackbird expands her horizons, Lisbon psych-folk collective Beautify Junkyards team up with Modfather Paul Weller with the sole intention of freaking out Iain, and Chrysanths (aka Emily...

Sep 27, 20241 hr 37 minSeason 5Ep. 18

New Music - MJ Lenderman! Mercury Rev! Nala Sinephro! Brooke Combe! Christopher Haddow!

Send us a text The Spice Girls above Beck?!?! Nineties bangers are ranked on this week’s @weheardwonders, before Iain and Andrew get on to the main business at hand: casting their critical ear over new releases from alt-rock man-of-the-moment MJ Lenderman, neo-psych legends/pod-heroes Mercury Rev, spiralling synth-jazz spellcaster Nala Sinephro, Scottish soul-sister Brooke Combe and ambient-folk axeman Christopher Haddow. Something iridescent and electronic has the Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard...

Sep 18, 20241 hr 44 minSeason 5Ep. 17

New Music - Yannis & The Yaw! Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds! Bananagun! The Soundcarriers! Ezra Feinberg!

Send us a text At the top of this week’s @weheardwonders, Andrew has a surprise quiz sprung on him - will he be triumphant or left in a sulk with Iain for the remainder of the recording? New music from Yannis & The Yaw, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Bananagun, The Soundcarriers and Ezra Feinberg is played and reviewed for your consideration. Something shimmering and stunning has the Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard Wonders on your podcast platform of choice; tell your friends; like, subscribe...

Sep 04, 20241 hr 46 minSeason 5Ep. 16

New Music - Fontaines D.C.! Geordie Greep! Gillian Welch & David Rawlings! Thee Heart Tones! Magdalena Bay! Plus Oasis reunion chat!

Send us a text Be here now! Iain and Andrew share their thoughts on the announcement of Oasis’ feverishly-anticipated reunion tour - are they intending to get mad wit’ it next summer or does the public’s appetite for reliving past glories have them looking back in anger and wondering “where did it all go wrong”? Then it’s time to play and review new music from indie-rock kings-in-waiting Fontaines D.C., black midi showman Geordie Greep, Americana royalty Gillian Welch & David Rawlings, Chica...

Aug 28, 20241 hr 43 minSeason 5Ep. 15

New Music - This Is Lorelei! Ari Tsugi! Hamish Hawk! Club Kuru! Liana Flores!

Send us a text Following a summer break which heralded the arrival of the latest addition to the @weheardwonders dynasty, normal podcasting service is resumed! We preview the forthcoming album from Leith’s premier practitioner of bittersweet wonk-pop Gurry Wurry, and share our thoughts on new music from one-man indie-rock-jukebox This Is Lorelei, expansive soul-jazz collective Ari Tsugi, the lustily literate Hamish Hawk, lugubrious yacht-rockers Club Kuru and bossa-nova-inflected folk singer Lia...

Aug 21, 20241 hr 26 minSeason 5Ep. 14

New Music - Billie Eilish! The Lovely Eggs! Villagers! Ugly (UK)! Myriam Gendron!

Send us a text We hit this pod runnin’ - like a nosebleed! Andrew provides a roundup of some of the recent big music releases - those to check out as well as those that are probably best avoided. Then it’s on to this episode’s playlist and the five fresh projects which made the cut: Iain and Andrew play tracks from and share their opinions on the new album by pop sensation Billie Eilish, Northern indie cottage-industry The Lovely Eggs, Ivor Novella darlings Villagers, creatively restless and amb...

May 28, 20241 hr 31 minSeason 5Ep. 13

New Music - Mdou Moctar! The Lemon Twigs! Ibibio Sound Machine! Jessica Pratt! Fergus McCreadie!

Send us a text Gigantic! A big, big love! Iain and Andrew salute the late great Steve Albini, the immeasurably-influential ‘recording engineer’ and sonic architect of alternative rock. We then play and review new music from pod heroes Mdou Moctar and Fergus McCreadie, as well as boys-of-melody/siblings-of-song The Lemon Twigs, UK Afro-funkers Ibibio Sound Machine and the ever-beguiling Jessica Pratt. Something splintering, sprawling and fitting has the Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard Wonders on y...

May 09, 20241 hr 37 minSeason 5Ep. 12

New Music - Corridor! St. Vincent! Iron & Wine with Fiona Apple! Ganavya! Amelia Coburn!

Send us a text A discursive quality and literary bent to this week’s @weheardwonders, with references to John Dunne, Dylan Thomas and, er, Eddie Van Halen. We play and review new music from transporting indie-rockers Corridor, art-rock auteur St. Vincent, Americana mainstay Iron & Wine, South Indian ambient-jazz scholar Ganavya and exciting, uke-wielding upstart Amelia Coburn. Something ravishingly verbose has The Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard Wonders on your podcast platform of choice; tel...

May 03, 20241 hr 46 minSeason 5Ep. 11

New Music - Taylor Swift! Friko! Ederlezi! Fabiana Palladino! Guests!

Send us a text We’re a music review podcast, so of course we have some thoughts on the biggest music release of the year (deepest sympathies, Cowboy Carter, it was fun while it lasted) from the biggest pop star of her era(s). Find out what Iain and Andrew (podcasters don’t come more tortured or poetic) make of Taylor Swift’s latest grand statement. It’s not exclusively planet-swallowing superstars on their 11th album on @weheardwonders, however - we also play and share our thoughts on tracks fro...

Apr 26, 20241 hr 34 minSeason 5Ep. 10

New Music - Hannah Frances! Cindy Lee! English Teacher! Shabaka! Magick Brother & Mystic Sister!

Send us a text Iain and Andrew are Taking Care Of Business on the latest @weheardwonders (don’t ask them why - it just felt right, alright?). Join them for juicy music-based discussion covering avant-folk artist Hannah Frances, word-of-mouth indie-sensation Cindy Lee, the accomplished, well-read English Teacher, reed-master Shabaka Hutchings, and Barcelona’s psych-fantasists Magick Brother & Mystic Sister. Finally, a whoop-inducing flute-led banger has the Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard Wond...

Apr 20, 20241 hr 53 minSeason 5Ep. 9

New Music - Sahra Halgan! Gustaf! Jane Weaver! Khruangbin! Daisy Rickman! Diving Horse!

Send us a text Home-improvement hounds Iain and Andrew put down their paintbrushes and rollers long enough to play and pore over new musical offerings from Somali freedom fighter Sahra Halgan, Brooklyn no-wavers Gustaf, psychedelic national treasure Jane Weaver, sub-zero Texan synthesists Khruangbin and “Cornish high priestess” Daisy Rickman. Central Belt upstarts Diving Horse make a splash, and one side of a classic Brit-psych 45 has The Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard Wonders on your podcast pl...

Apr 09, 20241 hr 30 minSeason 5Ep. 8

New Music - Waxahatchee! LAIR! Adrianne Lenker! Julia Holter! Oisin Leech!

Send us a text After a few weeks away, Iain and Andrew reconvene to catch up and cast their critical eye over three of the year’s most hotly tipped and anticipated releases - Waxahatchee, Adrianne Lenker and Julia Holter - as well as something eyebrow-raising from Indonesian psych collective LAIR and something decidedly more low-key from Steve Gunn-collaborating Irish songwriter Oisin Leech. Finally, something “Something”-related has The Vinyl Word. Listen to We Heard Wonders on your podcast pla...

Apr 04, 20241 hr 35 minSeason 5Ep. 7

New Music - Nadine Shah! Real Estate! Mohammad Syfkhan! MGMT! Ghost Funk Orchestra!

Send us a text On this week’s @weheardwonders, soaring singer-songwriter Nadine Shah sings her life, MGMT add slacker alt-rock shagginess to their usual neo-psych, and Real Estate return. We also discuss the remarkable story of how Kurdish/Syrian singer & bouzouki player Mohammad Syfkhan found himself performing at the Cork Opera House, and spin a track from Ghost Funk Orchestra’s new “jazz-funk space odyssey” - are we along for the trip? Finally, Andrew won’t let the small matter of his rec...

Feb 28, 20241 hr 32 minSeason 5Ep. 6

New Music - Les Amazones d’Afrique! Brittany Howard! Dina Ögon! Grandaddy! Yirinda!

Send us a text There’s only one didgeridoo thing to do! It’s another globetrotting edition of @weheardwonders, with intrepid explorers Iain and Andrew delving into new music from all around the world. Up for discussion are five tracks by artists from four continents, including Sweden’s Dina Ögon, Brittany Howard and Grandaddy from North America, Australia’s Yirinda, and Les Amazones d’Afrique from, er, Africa. A heart-melter from one of Andrew’s ultimate musical icons has The Vinyl Word. Listen ...

Feb 20, 20241 hr 21 minSeason 5Ep. 5

New Music - David Nance! The Last Dinner Party! Bolts Of Melody! YG Marley! Beth Gibbons!

Send us a text On the latest @weheardwonders, one track inspired our Iain to reach for the “G” word, while another offended him so much that he had to reach for the “mute” button mid-recording. Can you guess which artists and tracks inspired such visceral and opposing reactions? Up for debate this week are rollicking barn-rockers David Nance & The Mowed Sound, new great hopes The Last Dinner Party, cinematic shoegazers Bolts Of Melody, heir-to-the-reggae-spoils YG Marley and returning queen ...

Feb 10, 20241 hr 47 minSeason 5Ep. 4

New Music - The Smile! Gruff Rhys! Ty Segall! They Hate Change! Daudi Matsiko!

Send us a text No effort required on Iain or Andrew’s part to crowbar the R-word into this week’s @weheardwonders discussion - the big alternative music release being, of course, the second full-length from The Smile, featuring a certain Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood. We’ve cast our eyes (and ears) over Wall Of Eyes - find out what we make of it. Also played and dissected are new releases from mind-bending pop-mage Gruff Rhys, dog-loving psych-punk-rocker Ty Segall, hyperactive hip-hop upstarts...

Jan 31, 20241 hr 39 minSeason 5Ep. 3

New Music - YĪN YĪN! Rosali! Omni! Kali Uchis! SLIFT!

Send us a text Yes indeedy, @weheardwonders are back to put some pep in the step of your blustery seemingly-never-ending January. Iain and Andrew play and review a veritable smorgasbord of new musical treats, including: YĪN YĪN’s Asian-inspired disco-funk; graceful Crazy Horse-play from Rosali; Omni’s arch art-punk; a diaphanous Spanish-language bop from Kali Uchis, and a monolithic, monochromatic interstellar epic from doomy space-rockers SLIFT (it’s what they do!). We also play the new track b...

Jan 24, 20241 hr 31 minSeason 5Ep. 2
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