John Murry first entered Uncut airspace in 2006 with World Without End, the bleakly brilliant album of country death songs he wrote and recorded with Bob Frank. Six years on, Murry has just released his first solo album, The Graceless Age, an album of almost symphonic emotional turmoil, co-produced by late American Music Club drummer Tim Mooney. The songs on the record deal sometimes explicitly with Murry’s heroin addiction, specifically the 10-minute ‘Little Coloured Balloons’, a harrowing account of a near-fatal OD. I reviewed The Graceless Age for the current issue of Uncut and emailed Murry some questions, to which he replied in detail and at illuminating length, as you will see from the fascinating transcript that follows.

Don’t spread it about, but, yes, I’ve heard the new Dylan album. And four or five tracks in, what I was thinking was: how much better is this thing going to get?

Definitive statement from the whip-smart, uncompromising string band...

The new issue of Uncut (Take 183, dated August 2012) features a ‘first listen’ to Animal Collective’s new album, Centipede Hz – so in this week’s archive feature, we revisit the band in São Paulo in 2009, just after the release of their acclaimed Merriweather Post Pavilion. Stephen Troussé heads to Brazil to talk Christina Aguilera, musique concrète and the Grateful Dead… –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

Sun Kil Moon’s excellent Among The Leaves is Uncut’s lead review in the new August 2012 issue, out now. In this feature from September 2010 (Take 160), Mark Kozelek looks back over the highlights of his recording career, from Red House Painters to his current wrestling-indebted incarnation. Words: Graeme Thomson –––––––––––––––––––––––––

The pianist, singer and songwriter Mac Rebennack, known better as Dr John, faces your questions in the latest Uncut (dated July 2012), out now – but back in October 2010 (Take 161), he took us on a fascinating journey through his most important, and interesting, releases, from Gris-Gris to Exile On Main St. "We went to a nudist camp somewhere, we made up a song called 'The Symphony Of Frogs'…" ______________________________

Sir Paul discusses the end of the Fab Four and a new group…

As long as you’ve been briefed on Yorkshire local history, you know where you are with Richard Hawley. His 2009 album Truleove’s Gutter took its name from the site of an 18th century tavern whose effluent spilled into the River Don. His 2005 Coles Corner memorialized a junction outside a Sheffield Department store that was a rendez-vous for 1950s couples.

Fairport Convention founder, solo artist and folk-rock guitar legend Richard Thompson is featured in Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes in the latest issue of Uncut (May 2012, Take 181), out now. The songwriter appeared in My Life In Music in our February 2009 issue, speaking to Terry Staunton about his favourite cuts, from Les Paul to Klaxons… __________________________________ The First Record I Bought Roy Rogers – A Four Legged Friend (1952)

Paul McCartney unveiled three new videos for his track "My Valentine" at a world premiere held by his daughter Stella in Los Angeles on Friday [April 13]. One features Johnny Depp, while the other stars Natalie Portman. A third clip combines the Hollywood pair's contributions into one video. Depp plays guitar in his video and recorded the solo in the track live. Portman, who previously starred in McCartney's "Dance Tonight" video in 2007, mimes along to the song in her video.