Articles by Niall Doherty

Niall Doherty is a writer and editor whose work can be found in Classic Rock, The Guardian, Music Week, FourFourTwo, on Apple Music and more. Formerly the Deputy Editor of Q magazine, he co-runs the music Substack letter The New Cue with fellow former Q colleagues Ted Kessler and Chris Catchpole. He is also Reviews Editor at Record Collector. Over the years, he's interviewed some of the world's biggest stars, including Elton John, Coldplay, Arctic Monkeys, Muse, Pearl Jam, Radiohead, Depeche Mode, Robert Plant and more. Radiohead was only for eight minutes but he still counts it.

Articles by: Niall Doherty

“Those music scenes are supported by local musicians trying to help each other out”: English Teacher's Lily Fontaine on the importance of keeping small venues alive

By Niall Doherty published 19 October 24

The Mercury Prize-winning singer cut her teeth in local venues and says they are crucial to artists breaking through

"I went from sleeping on a mattress to playing arenas inside two years": Creed's rise and fall was fast, but now, thanks to the TikTok generation, they're selling more tickets than ever

By Niall Doherty published 9 October 24

Twenty-five years ago the Human Clay album put Creed on top of the world, but it was the calm before the storm

"Lorde's version is more in tune with the lyrics than our version": Tears For Fears' Curt Smith on his favourite covers of the band's songs

By Niall Doherty published 6 October 24

The 80s titans have been treated to renditions of their tracks by Lorde, Gary Jules, Foals, Kanye, Drake and more

"He warned me, 'You've got to be careful to avoid being pigeonholed'": The The's Matt Johnson on the time he went to dinner with Leonard Cohen

By Niall Doherty published 6 October 24

The godfather of gloom told the This Is The Day singer he was annoyed with being called things like the godfather of gloom

“It was like that scene in The Fast Show, the MD, cigar in mouth, going ‘Come on guys, impress me’.”: Shed Seven’s Rick Witter on how the Britpop veterans made their make-or-break hit Going For Gold

By Niall Doherty published 5 October 24

Shed Seven's Rick Witter on how their anthemic hit Going For Gold came together

“It mentions drugs and boozing and social comment and listening to tunes, what more do you want?”: Noel Gallagher on the making of Oasis’s classic anthem Cigarettes & Alcohol

By Niall Doherty published 5 October 24

The fourth single from Definitely Maybe came out 30 years ago this weekend and it marked the moment that Gallagher realised stardom was here to stay

“Every video we made, we were like, ‘Oh my god, what are we doing?!’”: Creed’s Scott Phillips looks back on the band’s big budget music videos

By Niall Doherty published 29 September 24

The US rockers were MTV catnip in the early 00s but the band weren’t always convinced about their vids until they saw the finished article

“Quentin had it down to three tracks and he was going to bounce it off Uma Thurman and let her choose”: the story of how Urge Overkill’s Neil Diamond cover made its way onto the Pulp Fiction soundtrack

By Niall Doherty published 29 September 24

Girl, You’ll Be A Woman Soon became the Chicago quartet’s biggest hit, and there’s a few people they have to thank for it

Metallica's Robert Trujillo and James's Tim Booth

"His kid goes to our kid’s school, he's a lovely guy": how Metallica's Robert Trujillo and James singer Tim Booth became unexpected lunch buddies

By Niall Doherty published 28 September 24

The James frontman has been hanging out with the Metallica man in LA

“We were thrilled to be in England. I was discovering the joy of a pint of bitter”: R.E.M.’s Mike Mills looks back on the band’s first ever UK show

By Niall Doherty published 28 September 24

The Athens, Georgia quartet made their British bow in Camden, with Lemmy and Phil Lynott there to witness it

"I remember being sat in the car the day after I got arrested and Danny was coming up with lines in the car, going ‘Caught by the fuzz!'": Supergrass on the making of their classic debut single

By Niall Doherty published 22 September 24

Gaz Coombes and Danny Goffey on how the Britpop scamps made their riotous debut single

“I had become Musical Director, which I always hate. But I took the money and took the title and did the job!”: The Cure’s Reeves Gabrels on the time he became David Bowie’s touring MD

By Niall Doherty published 22 September 24

Bowie needed someone to be his first lieutenant in the 90s, and his ex-Tin Machine bandmate was the person he turned to

Radiohead live at MTV Beach House in 1993

"We're playing Creep and looking terrible": revisiting Radiohead's most deranged performance ever

By Niall Doherty published 21 September 24

Thom Yorke & co. played the MTV Beach House in 1993, and the singer wasn't shy in showing his displeasure about it

"If Cocteau Twins counts as a ‘job’ then of course that was the best": former Cocteau Twin Simon Raymonde on the magic of his old band and being a record label chief

By Niall Doherty published 21 September 24

The former Cocteau Twin has written a memoir looking back on his life and career

"It’s always been the song that we would say, ‘This is our best song'": Creed's Mark Tremonti on the track that the band think is their finest

By Niall Doherty published 21 September 24

On the 25th anniversary of their mega-selling second record Human Clay, the Creed guitarist looks back on its success

“It has brightened my spirit to see how many have posted about Ric, praising his originality, flair, and brilliance”: Revisiting Billy Corgan’s tribute to late Cars leader Ric Ocasek

By Niall Doherty published 15 September 24

The Cars frontman and famed producer died five years ago this weekend and his passing prompted eulogies from an array of fellow musicians

“It was very bittersweet and not an easy decision for us to arrive at”: Michael Stipe looks back on the day that R.E.M. split up

By Niall Doherty published 15 September 24

The R.E.M. frontman has had a lot of time to reflect on his band's work in the years since and here's what he thinks

"Antics leaked 10 days after we finished it... you’d go to every city and someone would be talking about it": Interpol on the premature release of their brilliant second record as it turns 20

By Niall Doherty published 14 September 24

Fans got to hear the New Yorkers' excellent second three months ahead of release in 2004, and the indie-rockers think it might have worked in their favour

“When we first playing Reading, we got everything thrown at us. The whole crowd hated us.” Bring Me The Horizon’s Oli Sykes on the hurdles the metal giants overcame to become one of Britain’s biggest bands

By Niall Doherty published 14 September 24

The Sheffield quartet released their debut EP 20 years ago this month, and there were plenty of bumps on the way to eventual triumph

Supergrass tease second reunion with announcement coming next week

By Niall Doherty published 13 September 24

The Britpop quartet’s iconic debut turns 30 next year – and it looks like they’re planning to celebrate it

"I was like, ‘What do I do?'. I chose the band": English Teacher's Lily Fontaine on how she turned her back on the world's best job to become a Mercury Prize-winner

By Niall Doherty published 8 September 24

The English Teacher singer and guitarist can finally rest easy that she made the right choice

The 10 best cover versions by Smashing Pumpkins

By Niall Doherty published 8 September 24

Billy Corgan and crew's renditions of hits by U2, Hole, Fleetwood Mac, Depeche Mode, The Cure and, umm, Natalie Imbruglia

“I’m not very good at ignoring people who slag us off”: the story of Radiohead’s My Iron Lung, the song that changed everything for Thom Yorke & co.

By Niall Doherty published 7 September 24

The Oxford band were determined to show there was more to them than Creep, and they wrote just the song to do so

Ash, Liam Gallagher, Mansun, Elastica, Suede and Blur

The 10 best Britpop B-sides, featuring Oasis, Supergrass, Ash, Elastica, Blur and more

By Niall Doherty published 7 September 24

It wasn’t all about Parklife, Alright and Live Forever, you know. Here’s some Britpop magic you might have missed…

From Oppenheimer to The Mandalorian, Childish Gambino to Vampire Weekend and more: 10 of the best by Oscar-winning producer and composer Ludwig Göransson

By Niall Doherty published 1 September 24

In celebration of the film score supremo and pop polymath’s 40th birthday, we celebrate his finest moments

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Niall Doherty

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