Culture

The best albums of 2023 so far

From the unique sonic world of Yaeji to the dark folk music of Lankum, here are our picks of the best LPs from the first half of the year

Ben Beaumont-Thomas, Safi Bugel, Alexis Petridis and Laura Snapes

06, Jun, 2023 @12:00 PM

Festivals now feel like a cross between a spa and a gastropub – what about the music?

With fancy food, political talks and curated experiences becoming the norm, music – and working class fans – could become an afterthought. It’s time to go back to basics

Daniel Dylan Wray

06, Jun, 2023 @9:49 AM

A bloodbath, a boycott, a blindfolded kidnapping: after 10 chaotic years, has Dark Mofo lost its edge?

Marcus Teague has experienced each extreme of Hobart’s winter festival. There may have been fewer controversies in recent years – but they weren’t always the best bits

Marcus Teague

05, Jun, 2023 @11:27 PM

Did it inspire Bowie’s Let’s Dance? How M made crossover classic Pop Muzik

The creators of the pop send-up reveal its own unlikely inspirations, from the Andrews Sisters and the Paris Métro, to the sample bottles of a travelling perfume salesman

Interviews by Dave Simpson

05, Jun, 2023 @2:00 PM

Directors union reaches tentative deal with Hollywood studios as writers strike

Agreement comes as writers remain on strike and actors are currently holding a strike authorization vote

Michael Sainato and agencies

04, Jun, 2023 @6:46 PM

The writing is on the wall for women and blue plaques | Letters

Letters: Emma Dally suggested her grandmother, Gwen Mullins, to English Heritage, to no avail. Plus letters from Jean Davies, Kate Levey and Ian Dawson

04, Jun, 2023 @3:39 PM

Anthony LaPaglia ‘scared and excited’ to make Australian stage debut in Death of a Salesman

Golden Globe and Tony-winning actor will star as Willy Loman in a Melbourne production directed by Neil Armfield

Kelly Burke

04, Jun, 2023 @3:00 PM

‘I want to be part of the rebirth’: the artists bringing creation out of Beirut’s chaos

Decades of civil war and economic meltdowns left Lebanon’s people struggling for hope – but the country’s creatives are fighting back

04, Jun, 2023 @9:00 AM

Simone Lia: Yawn – cartoon

Is yawning when someone else yawns a sign of empathy?

Simone Lia

04, Jun, 2023 @7:00 AM

On my radar: Milly Alcock’s cultural highlights

The Australian star of House of the Dragon and Upright on her favourite podcast, an immersive art experience and a novel of ugly emotions

Kathryn Bromwich

03, Jun, 2023 @2:00 PM

From Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse to Anselm Kiefer: a complete guide to this week’s entertainment

Whether it’s Marvel’s multiverse or the German artist’s Joycean dreamworld, our critics have you covered for the next seven days

03, Jun, 2023 @5:00 AM

Euphoria review – Cate Blanchett voices a tiger in this visually beautiful takedown of capitalism, but where’s the fury?

Melbourne town hall, Rising festival
Julian Rosefeldt’s magnificent and exhausting film, starring the Oscar winner and Giancarlo Esposito, reverts to evasive surrealist flourishes just as it threatens to become truly angry

Tim Byrne

03, Jun, 2023 @1:40 AM