Plus: Will the boom in huge outdoor concerts be sustained after Oasis?
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Picks of the week
What happened to the one-hit wonders of 80s package holiday pop?
Wish you were still here  
What happened to the one-hit wonders of 80s package holiday pop?
Europop acts from Opus to Baltimora to Nena got huge after Brits brought their songs home from their summer breaks. But despite returning to obscurity, the artists say they’re not (sun)burnt by fame
‘Never seen buzz like this’  
Oasis fever grips Manchester before reunion gigs
‘She’s one of us!’  
The dizzying rise of Hannah Laing, Scottish dental nurse turned superstar doof-doof DJ
Live review  
Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne: Back to the Beginning – all-star farewell to the gods of metal is epic and emotional
Reviews
Alexis Petridis's album of the week  
Clipse: Let God Sort Em Out – reunited rap greats deliver one of the albums of the year
Clipse: Let God Sort Em Out – reunited rap greats deliver one of the albums of the year
Wet Leg  
Moisturizer – Doritos, Davina McCall and dumb fun from British indie’s big breakout band
Experimental album of the month  
Phase Space: Degrees of Freedom – improvisation knocks ambient tracks pleasingly off-kilter
Kokoroko  
Tuff Times Never Last – ruminative jazz outfit get stuck in a relaxed rut
 

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Spotlight
Sellout or washout: will the boom in huge outdoor concerts be sustained after Oasis?
Music  
Sellout or washout: will the boom in huge outdoor concerts be sustained after Oasis?
Fans love them, even local councils try to attract them, but immense park and stadium shows don’t always break even – and many bands don’t want to risk images of empty seats
Classical
Album review  
Schubert: Piano Sonata in A major, D959; Moments Musicaux – grandeur and grace from Steven Osborne
Schubert: Piano Sonata in A major, D959; Moments Musicaux – grandeur and grace from Steven Osborne
Album review  
Steve Reich: Jacob’s Ladder; Traveler’s Prayer – at nearly 90, he’s as energetic as ever
Steve Reich: Jacob’s Ladder; Traveler’s Prayer – at nearly 90, he’s as energetic as ever
‘I gave Tom Cruise an impromptu organ lesson!’  
Anna Lapwood on her classical mashups – and her all-night Prom
Anna Lapwood on her classical mashups – and her all-night Prom
Add to playlist
Add to playlist  
Sarah Meth’s resplendent, intimate songwriting and the week’s best new tracks
Sarah Meth’s resplendent, intimate songwriting and the week’s best new tracks
Mel Giedroyc’s honest playlist  
‘The best song to have sex to? Kraftwerk has good beats’
You may have missed
Purity Ring on how nostalgia for a gaming era inspired their new single
‘We’re huge JRPG fans’  
Purity Ring on how nostalgia for a gaming era inspired their new single
The Canadian electropop duo return with a new track (and forthcoming album) that sounds like a half-forgotten RPG you played in the 00s
Sabrina Carpenter may be ‘highly sexualised’ – but that’s not what is most provocative about her
Zoe Williams
The superstar singer is being used in an argument about sex, pornography, the male gaze, female desire and blond hair that has been going on since before her grandmother was born. Meanwhile, her autonomy is overlooked, writes Zoe Williams
How we made  
‘The army were on the streets – and we were bored’: Stiff Little Fingers on making Alternative Ulster
‘There wasn’t time to sit down and discuss politics and the future of the world, or your aims and aspirations. You just did stuff’
Documentary review  
Pavements – US indie rockers and their dream director run four ideas at once
Alex Ross Perry’s intriguing documentary about 90s band Pavement runs four concepts at once, whose effect is to obscure clarity
Live music this week
Blackhaine: And Now I Know What Love Is  
Avant garde dance that grabs hold of your senses
Avant garde dance that grabs hold of your senses
Kendrick Lamar & SZA  
A pyrotechnic party of dark and light
Billie Eilish  
Pop’s sharpest commentator plays with fame’s power dynamics
Stevie Wonder  
A riotously joyful celebration
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