Understandably different from both Arch Enemy and The Agonist, the new single from Alicia White-Gluz, "The Room Where She Died" is more hard rock than heavy metal. Nice to hear her clean vocals though — a talent squandered by Arch Enemy! Opening with a moving string piece, I thought for a second she was going to go...

Following on shortly after the events of "Greenwitch", the fourth book in Cooper's "Sequence" sees our mate, Will Stanton, ushered off to distant family in Wales to convalesce as was the style at the time. But –horror of horrors!– he has some kind of amnesia and is distressed because he knows he has a task to...

I have been tracking a few easy goals over the year to see how I fare. All in all, I think I've done well. Unsure if I'll do a 2026 version but this has been an interesting experiment. 1. Don't over-budget on books I have a ton of books I have already bought that I haven't yet read. Even though I only really buy 99p...

Happy New Year! Here are a few photos from my phone from the last month with neither rhyme nor reason to the theme. Thanks for reading this post via RSS! Let me know your thoughts by sending me an email: rss@thomasrigby.com.

It's time to put on every winter coat you've owned since '98 and tot up The Quantified Self™ — Buckle in! This year's top ten artists The Cure (92 plays) Orla Gartland (71 plays) Chloe Slater (67 plays) Placebo (52 plays) Arch Enemy (51 plays) Baby Queen (49 plays) Chappell Roan (48 plays) Ulver (48 plays) Frozen...

22nd December - 28th December There are definitely two Tawny Owls in the village as I heard a distinct and prolonged call-and-response over some distance; one faint over the fields but the other in a tree right over my head — loud and terrifying. Getting a head start on some work (actually tying up some loose ends I...

"I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" by Wizzard I own two Roy Wood singles; this and "Music to Commit Suicide By". This is the more festive. Thanks for reading this post via RSS! Let me know your thoughts by sending me an email: rss@thomasrigby.com.

[!information] Caveat This is, naturally, not exhaustive. I use last.fm on my phone and my laptop to scrobble music I listen to while I'm on my own. As other people have pointed out, this doesn't capture music listened to with friends and family, nor does it log public music from the radio, bars, or shopping...

"Underneath the Tree" by Kelly Clarkson Baader-Meinhof Syndrome or genuine omnipotence, I will never know, but this 2013 banger seems to have been everywhere this year. Not many artists can pull off a Christmas song this grand. A modern classic. Thanks for reading this post via RSS! Let me know your thoughts by...

"Baby It's Cold Outside" by Cerys Matthews and Tom Jones The knowing gravel of Cerys Matthews somehow steers this song from creepy to funny. Welsh pop powerhouse Tom Jones also appears. Thanks for reading this post via RSS! Let me know your thoughts by sending me an email: rss@thomasrigby.com.

"Christmas in Hollis" by Run-DMC Another unmistakable riff; that funky brass, mixed with sleigh bells and scratching, supports a hilarious tale of finding Santa's lost wallet. Thanks for reading this post via RSS! Let me know your thoughts by sending me an email: rss@thomasrigby.com.

15th December - 21st December I have this theory that focusing on being busy prevents me from getting ill because I always seem to come down with something just before holiday or Christmas; the second I think about relaxing, all the germs sense weakness! Being struck down with a stomach bug kept me at a distance...