Album Of The Year: Telefís

Dedicated to his late wife and former Low cohort, Mimi Parker, and made using his children’s drum machine and synths, Alan Sparhawk’s astonishing solo debut is both profound and propulsive

The Norwegian press came up with the name Bergen Wave to describe the large number of bands and producers – of all shapes and genres – that developed in the west coast city of Bergen in the late 1990s. We’ve picked out 10 of the best electronic albums associated with the movement, although we’re starting the story in another place at another time…

He’s been known by many aliases throughout his long solo career, but Richard H Kirk is now once again Cabaret Voltaire. After a hiatus of more than 25 years, the Cabs’ ‘Shadow Of Fear’ album is both a reflection of the current madness and a nod to the possibility of happier times ahead

Splitting up, getting back together (twice), a farewell gig that wasn’t quite goodbye… and now Soft Cell are making another welcome return. Marc Almond and Dave Ball remain as thick as thieves and ‘Happiness Not Included’, their first album for 20 years, shows why the duo are still the undisputed kings of twisted synthpop

Having released a plethora of krautrock reissues and a stack of experimental/contemporary German music over the last two decades, Bureau B founder Gunther Buskies looks back at some of the key labels from krautrock’s formative era