Sleeve notes: this week in music

Sleeve notes Friday 27 Feb 2015 g Most read More » Madonna suffered whiplash after falling off the Brits stage Star says Armani cape was tied too tight because choreographers did not want it to fall off, and denies it was a publicity stunt  Madonna falls, but it was the Brit awards that took a tumble If the ceremony proved anything, it was that the Brit awards themselves are substantially less interesting than watching someone fall over  Madonna falls over at Brit awards and six more spectacular stage tumbles The Queen of Pop has fallen into a crowded pool that includes repeat Oscars offender Jennifer Lawrence and even the dark prince of cool, Nick Cave

Editors' picks The aristo and the spiv: the true story of the men behind the Who Pop impresarios are often the hidden power behind the biggest acts, now two films turn spotlight on Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp  Sam Smith: ‘Becoming famous? It isn’t necessarily a nice thing’ The Cambridgeshire crooner has shot from obscurity to record-breaking success in an amazingly short time. But instant fame has come at a price  At home with the world’s most dedicated record collectors For his cult Dust & Grooves website, Eilon Paz photographs vinyl obsessives alongside their extensive collections. The resulting pictures and interviews, now published in print, reveal a highly personal and passionate take on music culture The pitfalls and perks of playing a concert hall piano The tone and touch of a piano might be terrific or terrible, so how does a performer prepare? Pianist Boris Giltburg describes the keyboard of his dreams

Today's top stories More » Yoko Ono and Madonna fight ageism – in radically different ways Ono and Madonna have both felt the sharp edge of the ageism stick recently. Is it too much to hope that an artist can be loved for who she is?  Skrillex & Diplo Presents Jack Ü spreads itself too thin to work as an album – first listen review On Thursday night, the dance superstars dropped a brand new collaborative album – but too much if it relies on a glaringly obvious formula  Hear Will Butler's fourth song inspired by the Guardian, Madonna Can't Save Me Now All this week, Arcade Fire’s Will Butler has been writing songs based on stories he has read in the Guardian. Here’s the fourth, prompted by the discovery of a black hole 12bn times larger than the sun  Royal Blood get biggest Brit awards sales boost, One Direction get the smallest Two days on from the Brits and the trends are clear: perform and see interest swell, win but stay away and the fans won’t go shopping for you  Du Blonde, Usher, Alex Adair: this week’s new tracks rated and slated In the Guide single reviews, no one is safe, especially that annoying git Alex Adair  On the blog More » Aaron Watson's success proves that country radio is out of touch The Texan has shot to No 1 in the charts despite being ignored on country radio – a sure sign that musicians can thrive outside the increasingly homogenised airwaves  The musical and environmental mindfulness of John Luther Adams The activist and composer is inspired by the natural processes he sees all around him – but refuses to let politics take charge of the music  Brit awards 2015: 10 things we learned From Madonna’s tumble to Kanye embracing grime, here are ten talking points from the Brit awards 2015 Hot 97 v Power 105.1: battle of the New York hip-hop stations Both play the same old records ad nauseam – but when it comes to getting the scoops, there’s one station that clearly has the edge  The boss of Reading and Leeds festivals says women are not marginalised. So why are so few on his bill? The lineup for this year’s festivals is, so far, 89.6% all-male bands. And that’s just not good enough  Watch and listen More » Marc Almond: The Velvet Trail Watch the video for the title track of Marc Almond's new album, The Velvet Trail, premiering here exclusively  Why Songhoy Blues's Music in Exile is the one album you should hear this week – video review It's the music, not the circumstances in which Songhoy Blues's Music in Exile was made that makes it worth hearing, says Alexis Petridis  Kimberley calling: Dan Sultan on his family's stolen generation past - video Singer-songwriter Dan Sultan talks about his APRA-nominated song, inspired by his search for his mother's mother  The Pop Group perform Echelon live in session – video In an exclusive parred back session for the Guardian, post-punk collective the Pop Group performs Echelon from their album Citizen Zombie  Courtney Barnett performs Pedestrian at Best live in session – video Australian singer-songwriter Courtney Barnett performs Pedestrian at Best from her album I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit  Further reading More » New band of the week: Evvol (No 44) Australian-French-Irish trio based in Berlin who specialise in haunting, atmospheric trance-pop  New faces: meet James Bay He’s picking up Brit Awards – and criticism – back home, but the man in the hat is becoming an Australian favourite after sell-out gigs in Sydney and Melbourne  B2M: (2213) Home review – boyband balladry meets Tiwi Island culture The all-male singing group draw from the culture of Tiwi Islands to make old-school R&B that is unashamedly sentimental and often inspirational

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