THE WIRE - ISSUE 503/504 JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2026 (MAG)

2025 Rewind: the Year in Underground Music - 50 Releases of the Year: We asked our contributors to vote for their top ten releases of 2025 then added up the votes; Columnists' Charts: Our specialist critics delve deep into their musical niches from noise to modern composition; 50 Archive Releases of the Year: We asked our contributors to vote for their top ten archive releases of 2025, then added up the votes; Critics' Reflections: Our writers discuss their memorable cultural experiences of the year; Plus: Style Counsel: Experimental music's uneasy flirtation with high fashion. By Lucy Thraves; Against the Stream: DIY radio subverts the hierarchies and algorithms of the mega-platforms. By Paul Rekret; Time out of Joint: Old school instruments and ancient wisdom connects past and present. By Daryl Worthington; Arch Rivals: London's crumbling infrastructure provides a haven for experimentation. By Deborah Nash; Hybrid Vigour: Jazzing up improvisation via beats, noise and rhymes. By Stewart Smith; Extended Play: Drones and duration versus doomscrolling. By Xenia Benivolski.