In an exclusive edited extract from Niko Stratis’s new book The Dad Rock That Made Me A Woman, the award-winning Canadian writer explores trans identity, the music of the American heartlands and how the Boss changed her life for good
25 years ago The Boss played Brixton Academy as part of his least successful tour since his first but, says, Liam Inscoe-Jones, while he may have been underperforming catastrophically in financial terms, this was also a time of creative rebirth
He's Silvio in the Sopranos, Bruce Springsteen's righthand man, now Steve Van Zandt has put out his first solo album in 18 years. He talks to Michael Hann about taking gyms on tour, the Boss, and why musicians should be more grateful to major labels
With Aidan Moffat's excellent new record with Bill Wells just out, we sent Daniel Dylan Wray up to Glasgow to meet the former Arab Strap man/Quietus sex columnist to discuss his top formative albums. And, with the help of beers, a record player and one powerful deployment of the phrase "get to utter fuck", here's what he picked
With TV drama Adolescence and Andrew Tate currently in the news, author Craig Johnson asks how the toxic ideology extremist influencers became so widespread and offers practical advice to help young people affected. CW: Reference to sexual assault and violence against women. Contains mild spoilers for Adolescence. Stills courtesy of Netflix
From Goethe to Novalis, nineteenth-century novels about artists offered stories about self-invention and self-discovery, but what happens to the artist-protagonist in an age where no-one any longer feels in control of their own destiny? Gabrielle Sicam looks to recent books by Anika Jade Levy, Brandon Taylor and Stephanie Wambugu