Fiona Apple
The Idler Wheel...
Epic
****
Compromise has always been like kryptonite to artists, but the idiosyncratic US singer-songwriter Fiona Apple learnt a thing or two about it during the making of her last album.
After three years in the studio, Extraordinary Machine was finally released by her label in 2005, amid reports that its commercial appeal had been in serious doubt. Returning with an album whose full title is 23 words long, it seems like Apple is determined never to compromise again.
The likes of Every Single Night, Daredevil and Left Alone show the singer hasn't lost her ability to craft songs that feel both universal and deeply personal, deployed here with sparse, almost jazzy arrangements. Then there are more introspective one-woman-and-a-piano moments, such as the darkly comedic Werewolf and the tortured Regret.
But despite all the warning signs, The Idler Wheel... is not an overindulgent or impenetrable artistic statement. In fact at times it feels like Extraordinary Machine's slightly more restrained younger sibling. Although not wildly experimental, it isn't greatly immediate either - just the sound of an artist confident enough to do things her own way, whatever they may be.
Banthology: Stories from Unwanted Nations
Edited by Sarah Cleave, Comma Press
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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MATCH INFO
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