Monocle on Culture

Robert Bound is joined by the film critics Anna Smith and Tim Robey to review Ben Wheatley’s latest movie, the pandemic-set folk-horror ‘In The Earth’, and discuss the things it reminded them of.

The writer Andrew O’Hagan pops into Midori House to chat to Robert Bound about his novel ‘Mayflies’, which is loosely based on his own teenage years and has just been published in paperback. They discuss the politics and music of the 1980s, and the romance of male friendships.

The legendary Tom Jones joins Robert Bound to discuss the confessional nature of his new record, ‘Surrounded By Time’, and how he took on other people’s songs.

This week saw galleries and museums reopen their doors in the UK and France, and the return of Art Basel Hong Kong as a physical event. To celebrate, we speak to gallerists and artists about a few new exhibitions. In London, Robert Bound meets Jo Stella-Sawicka from Goodman Gallery and Jeremy Epstein from Edel Assanti – two of the driving forces behind London Gallery Weekend this June. In New York, Henry Rees-Sheridan meets the artist Adam Pendleton to discuss his new collaborative exhibition with British-Ghanaian architect Sir David Adjaye and in Hong Kong James Chambers pays a visit to Gallery Exit to take the temperature of the art scene over there right now.

We head to Luxembourg + Co gallery on Savile Row for a new exhibition that explores the experimental creativity of the Italian art scene in the mid-20th century. The show puts Italian abstractionists such as Alberto Burri alongside American painters such as Robert Rauschenberg. It also shows images from Richard Serra’s debut solo show in Rome, which thread together the influence that Italy had on artists during this period. Robert Bound meets curator Francesco Bonami and gallerist, Alma Luxembourg.

We swap Midori House for the most famous studio in the world, Abbey Road, for a special episode marking our 500th edition. Robert Bound is given a tour by Mirek Stiles, head of audio products, to learn about the studios’ history; he meets sound engineer Paul Pritchard to find out what goes on in a day’s work behind the mixing desk; and he chats to managing director Isabel Garvey about Abbey Road Studios’ legacy and future developments.

Belgian brothers David and Stephen Dewaele are the masterminds behind indie-electronic band Soulwax. On this week’s episode they chat to Robert Bound about their handsome studio in Ghent, their latest release, ‘Foundations’, and – having been grounded in their hometown for the first time in their 25-year career – they discuss the places they miss the most.

Film critic Anna Smith and Monocle’s senior culture correspondent Fernando Augusto Pacheco join Robert Bound to review this year’s Academy Awards, which saw ‘Nomadland’ win big and had a refreshed format by the director Steven Soderbergh. Our guests also recommend their favourite films from the nominee list.

Two independent US record labels – Jagjaguwar and Secretly Canadian, which both operate under the Secretly Group – celebrate their 25th anniversaries this year. Their co-founders Darius Van Arman and Chris Swanson join Robert Bound to discuss their roots in Bloomington, Indiana, the artists that have shaped their labels and the music industry’s past quarter-century.

Robert Bound is joined by literary critic Lucy Scholes, film critic Simran Hans and music journalist Kate Hutchinson to find out which films will be getting us back into cinemas, the albums to spin in the run-up to summer and the books to enjoy on a sunny day in the park.

We meet Oscar-winning US director duo, Dan Lindsay and TJ Martin, who have just released their new documentary about the life of superstar singer Tina Turner.

What is a head? That’s the question we’re asking this week’s guest, art historian, writer and curator Michael Peppiatt, who has put together an exhibition at Ben Brown Fine Arts that explores exactly that, through the art of Tony Bevan and Frank Auerbach. Peppiatt chats to Robert Bound about what the head symbolises, the difference between a head and a face, and why it is the greatest challenge to artists.

Robert Bound meets the legendary folk singer as she releases her brand-new album ‘First Farewell’. They discuss family, age and the folk scene over her 60-year career.

Robert Bound is joined by Tim Robey, film critic for ‘The Telegraph’, and Will Hodgkinson, chief rock and pop critic for ‘The Times’, to review ‘Creation Stories’, a biopic of Creation Records boss Alan McGee. The notorious British record label represented some of the biggest names in indie, rock and Britpop.

The composer Nainita Desai is a master of innovative thinking in scores for film, television and games. She is best-known for her documentary work – including music for the Oscar-nominated ‘For Sama’ and a new Sundance-winning documentary that’s soon to be released called ‘The Reason I Jump’ – but her career has been multi-faceted. Desai has a background in maths and has also worked as a sound designer, which gives her a unique approach. In this episode, Desai discusses the techniques she came up with to reflect the experiences of autistic teenagers in ‘The Reason I Jump’ (from water-filled clarinets to improvising on cellos), how working with Peter Gabriel early in her career inspired her and why her job is to manipulate a viewer’s emotions.