Today is the 20th Anniversary of Modern “Doctor Who” (Plus Watch the Trailer for the New Season)

Mar 26, 2025 Mark Redfern

The beloved British sci-fi show Doctor Who dates back to 1963, but after 16 years of being largely off the air, the modern incarnation of the show premiered 20 years ago today, on March 26, 2005 with the episode “Rose,” which introduced Christopher Eccleston as the Ninth Doctor and Billie Piper as Rose Tyler. The new season of the show premieres on April 12 and this week a new trailer for the season was shared.

Japanese Breakfast on Mega-Novels, “Difficult” Fourth Albums, and Opposites in Art

Mar 25, 2025 Web Exclusive

“I saw a painting of a woman, head down on a table, collapsed from melancholy,” remarks indie pop visionary and bestselling author Michelle Zauner of the influence behind Japanese Breakfast’s fourth album For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women). “After that I discovered there is this whole trope in painting, especially in the 19th century, of women collapsed from sadness. I thought that was really fitting.”

Lonnie Holley on “Tonky” and Life as a Gatherer

Mar 26, 2025 Web Exclusive

At 75 years of age, many stories have been told about Lonnie Holley. Most from his own tongue. A world renowned self-taught artist, Holley was born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama. Using improvised approaches in both art and music, Holley has forged his own path. Many similar visual artists have come before and behind him, but his combination of the visual mixed with making songs, and his unique personal history, make Holley one of a kind.

Pictoria Vark on “Nothing Sticks” and Accepting Change

Mar 21, 2025 Web Exclusive

The bulk of Victoria Park’s expanding catalog seeks answers in gently reflective ways. That is unless it doesn’t. Her second album, Nothing Sticks (recorded as Pictoria Vark), releases today on Get Better Records.

Seven Music Documentary Films and Series From the Second Half of 2024 to Watch (and Three To Skip)

Jan 08, 2025

Halfway through 2024, we published a list of “Seven Music Documentary Films and Series From 2024 to Watch (and Three to Skip).” Another glut of music documentaries and series have been released since then including the superstar projects Megan Thee Stallion: In Her Words (Prime Video), Luther: Never Too Much (CNN), Melissa Etheridge: I’m Not Broken (Paramount+), Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band (Hulu), Olivia Rodrigo: Guts World Tour (Netflix), Elton John: Never Too Late (Disney+) and Yoshiki: Under the Sky (On Demand). If there is one takeaway from the overabundance of the biographical documentaries, it is that it’s best if the subject is not involved. The micromanaging of their story leaves viewers with a manicured and surface-level experience of the artist.

Although, the artist’s complete removal from the process can make a documentary spin into tabloid territory. There’s a lot of scandal on tap. Fallen Idols: Nick and Aaron Carter (Max) is the traumatic story of mental illness and sexual assault. While the latter is horrifying, the litigation is still underway. Why are the survivors on film talking about their experiences? Speaking of survivors, IMPACT x Nightline: Diddy’s Downfall (Hulu) is equally horrific and a far more disgusting explanation of the recent uncovering of Sean Combs’ abusive, and illegal actions during his entire time in the spotlight. Secret Life of Diddy: A Special Edition of 20/20 (Hulu) covers the exact same ground with many of the same talking heads journalists and individuals. On the positive side of hip hop, Tale of the Tape (Tubi) explores the world of mixtapes, the skill involved in making them, their impact on the culture and the legends of that scene. While the homemade quality of this short but deep unpacking is charming, it only speaks to people in that space and doesn’t go far in educating the uninitiated.

A brave director with a strong grasp on storytelling can create a compelling product that draws you in, whether or not you are interested in the artist or topic. But it feels like there is a positive correlation between the number of music documentaries released and how many of them aren’t worth pressing play on. Here are seven from the second half of 2024 that are worth watching and three not so much.—By Lily Moayeri

SXSW 2025, Austin, Texas, US, March 7 - March 15, 2025

Mar 26, 2025 By Alex Lee Thomson

The 2025 edition of SXSW took place in Austin, Texas earlier this month and Under the Radar saw the best of what this year’s event had to offer

Get 30% Off Subscriptions to the Last Great Indie Rock Print Magazine

Feb 21, 2025 By Mark Redfern

Subscribe to the last great American indie rock print magazine! We’re aiming to sign up 600 new or renewed subscribers in the next three months, and to help make that happen, we’re offering 30% off all print subscriptions.