Alan Sparhawk: Petal Power

From the classical pomp of The Proms to the thrilling pop of her new album ‘Varmints’, Anna Meredith is shaking up preconceptions about composers and turning ideas of what a songwriter is on its head

Morton Subotnick’s 1967 album ‘Silver Apples Of The Moon’ is an experience of pure electronic music – or “new new music”, as Subotnick puts it. It was created solely on the Buchla, the modular synth he commissioned as an “easel” for creating the kind of studio art sounds he had in mind

Established in 1988, The Orb were instrumental in a scene whose ripples are still very much felt on these pages today. Where did it all start, and how has it come to be such a vital part of our world? What you need is a potted history of chill-out…

Soundtracking low-budget British film ‘Moon’ was an experience that combined Clint Mansell’s love of Bowie, modern morality and a lifetime of sci-fi into one of his most meaningful projects. The composer tells us how science fiction offers a mirror to mankind