Flowdan is a giant in the U.K. underground. As part of Roll Deep, he steered the influential grime crew to murkier places. Alongside The Bug, he pushed dub and dancehall to its limits with his uncompromising flows. In February, he became the first ever British MC to win a Grammy for Rumble – the Skrillex-featuring hit that shook dancefloors as much as it did TikTok. Where does the east Londoner go from here?
Adrianne Lenker has turned tenderness into an artform. On her latest solo album, the completely analogue ‘Bright Future’, the Big Thief leader is moving through life with a heart wide open
Vegyn’s transportive music resonates with a generation of listeners who are equally curious and overwhelmed. Ahead of his second album, the London producer connects with Emma Garland for our February issue
Intentionally or not, Bar Italia have cultivated an air of inscrutability with their approach to being a rock band that, depending on your POV, is standoffish, wry or just the right side of pretentious. As they bid the underground goodbye, the time is apt to find out who they really are
As 2023 draws to a close, the world more broken than ever, Anohni is unequivocal: we must face the truth, however hard that may be. Read the landmark December cover story
TraTraTrax has taken the global underground by storm. The Colombian label is leading a Latin American dance movement where diasporic traditions merge with UK bass and techno. But with recognition often comes tokenisation – and they’re resisting
Starting off as a grime DJ in her teens, Shy One has since become a luminary in UK nightlife. Gearing up for a second album, she’s never sounded more sure of herself. Read the October issue cover story
The music of Oneohtrix Point Never cleaves to a dream logic. For a glowing tenth album, pop’s resident disruptor and the Weeknd collaborator is revisiting past selves. Sasha Geffen learns more for the September cover story
This year has been a trip for LSDXOXO. The custodian of queer and kinky club music has launched a label, DJ’d for Beyoncé and even roused the ire of techno’s gatekeepers. Now, emboldened by a period of artistic risk-taking, the game is on. Meet our August cover star
Not content with releasing one of the year’s most exciting tapes, rapper-producer Jim Legxacy has co-produced the UK’s song of the summer. This is the story of an artist from Lewisham, and how he came to create a sound that’s as vibrant and complex as his home
PJ Harvey: musician, poet and iconoclast. A new album, the first in seven years, captures a moment of creative renewal as she explores the ambiguities of worlds both real and imagined. Crack’s Editor-in-Chief, Louise Brailey, learns more
World builder. Eartheater. The experimental provocateur, label head and fashion muse is readying her next phase the only way she knows how: devouring everything
The audio version of our Issue 142 cover story, featuring Jam City
Jam City’s 2012 debut album rerouted UK club music, but a series of stylistic heel-turns and A-list collaborations defined the years that followed. Now, the producer is returning to his roots to celebrate the transcendent quality of a messy night out
The audio version of our Issue 140 cover story, featuring Caroline Polachek
Always positive. Always moving. Blockbuster hitmaker Popcaan has one objective – to keep pushing dancehall forward. For the March issue cover story, Tshepo Mokoena learns how
Caroline Polachek is no stranger to drama. Guided by her breathtaking voice, the experimental pop artist has written operas, earned a Grammy nomination and even inspired a TikTok dance craze. Now, she’s ready for her next chapter
Duval Timothy’s meticulous musical practice reverberates with humanity. Now, he’s ready to embrace life in all its messy shades.
Ethel Cain, the Southern Gothic alter ego of Hayden Silas Anhedönia, inspired devotion like no other artist in 2022. But with the first chapter of her sprawling epic ending in tragedy, where does the cult of Cain go from here?
As Sudan Archives, Brittney Parks brought the innovative instrumentation of East and West Africa to the experimental R&B world. Her latest reinvention, girl-next-door Britt, reveals the person behind the art
The history and future of Hessle Audio, a label which came to define an era of UK club music
In the aughts, Yeah Yeah Yeahs were the chaos agents who upended sterile rock conventions. Two decades on, the storied New York band are still raising hell – and hoping for a revolution
The Nigerian superstar’s career has been coloured by controversy. But where a conservative society sees a troublemaker, its youth find a new idol. Naira Marley is our Issue 133 cover star
The audio version of our Issue 132 cover story, featuring Grammy-winning composer and vocalist Arooj Aftab
Despite having his creativity stifled by the authorities, the west London rapper has continued to build on the foundations he laid when helping the genre rise to prominence. Now, a new era is beginning
Los Angeles indie duo Girlpool are growing up, not growing apart. The pair are the cover stars of Issue 130
Kano, Little Simz, Ashley Walters and Micheal Ward preview the return of Top Boy. This is the story of how converging forces of Black British creativity are changing the face of culture.
The audio version of our Issue 126 cover story. Featuring rapper, producer and self-confessed nerd John Glacier
Few dare to blend high theory and art pop like the Norwegian musician and writer. But for her latest chapter, Jenny Hval is finding inspiration in the ordinary
In 2019, Mitski announced a hiatus from music and disappeared from social media. Nearly two-and-a-half years later, she’s about to release her sixth album and take it on a global tour. So Mitski’s back? Kind of…
Through brutal narratives and choreography, Blackhaine is giving expression to a desolation that lives at society’s margins. The Salford-based artist is the cover star of Issue 125
Eris Drew has switched countless dancefloors on to the Motherbeat philosophy. With the release of her debut album, the Midwest rave mystic draws us deeper into her world
As Moor Mother, Camae Ayewa has explored pain and protest through visceral words and sound. Now, she’s shifting her focus to decoding R&B
Golden Hour made a household name out of country outlier Kacey Musgraves, even as her personal life was coming undone. For its follow-up, she leans into tragedy to find inner peace
The stars have aligned for the breakthrough Benin City hitmaker, but he’s busy dreaming of a whole other galaxy
In the most unusual of circumstances, Anz has risen to become one of the most compelling figures in club culture. As that world begins to open up again, she pauses to take it all in
The self-anointed Queen of Drill is on a mission to conquer the world. We meet Ivorian Doll for a four-cover UK rap special
The softly-spoken rapper from Birmingham is ready to show, not tell. One of Crack Magazine’s four UK rap covers, available to read in its entirety now
It may have taken five decades for the singular artist to be discovered, but his sublime transmissions speak to the times we’re living in
Unknown T’s career was just taking off when it was unjustly derailed. Now, the east London rapper is looking forward
The Nigerian powerhouse has always believed in himself. In the wake of his global breakout album African Giant, the rest of the world is finally catching up
Giant Swan want to question everything you know about extreme music. We meet the duo in Bristol to talk noise, debut albums and their guiding philosophy
With just an iPhone and a guitar, Steve Lacy declared himself the sound of a generation. With his debut album, he proved he’s the sound of a fluid future
The east London rapper is back with new music, new reflections and the same charisma
With a 15-minute album, the Philadelphia MC showed the world what she can do. We meet with her in London to trace her stratospheric rise
Ahead of his next album, the Radiohead frontman calls for a shock to the system
After watching her reputation implode, Claire Boucher leaned into destruction. For her latest album, she brings us the end of the world
The cellist, avant-pop alchemist and Issue 98 cover star is on her own divine path – we meet her to trace the journey so far
Everyday life in forgotten Britain, as seen by the anarchic rapper
We meet the visionary leader ushering in London’s jazz revolution
Against the backdrop of broken Britain, the Bristol five-piece have become a symbol for collective joy and care
After years of feeding the mystery machine, Richard D. James is offering us more pieces of himself
With her latest album, the French pop star has transformed, summoning the swagger of 1000 heartthrobs to unlock a bold, seductive new persona
Charlotte Aitchison is taking pop on a thrilling joyride. Chal Ravens joins her as she powers into the future
At 18 years old, Rich Brian represents a new chapter in hip-hop. No longer just a viral sensation, the Indonesian rapper wants you to see him – and his 88rising crew – as more than a novelty
There’s a timeless elegance to the breakthrough pop star, but her modern soul speaks directly to today’s youth
Kali Uchis hustled hard to make it as a musician. Now, a generation is in love with her timeless style
Since 2009’s debut LP, the freedoms Dreijer fiercely protects have come under threat. Following a period of queer exploration, the progressive glow of Fever Ray is brighter than ever
The last few years have been turbulent for Archy Marshall. In a pub garden in Peckham he meets with Joe Zadeh to make sense of it all
