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Stewart Smith

@drstewartsmith.bsky.social
833 followers 789 following 529 posts

Writer: jazz, improvised, experimental, Scotland & the avant-garde @ The Wire, Bandcamp, The Quietus, We Jazz, Guardian. Associate lecturer Newcastle University. Musician. He/him. 🇵🇸

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Reposted by Stewart Smith
Natacha @natacha.bsky.social · 1h
“This Labour Government is the worst thing to have ever happened to trans children. They have step by step dismantled every protection that supported my daughter […] At every point when the Labour Government could have made something better, they have turned around and given her another kick.”
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 21h
Edinburgh folks, don’t miss!
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
"I want each project to be distinct in some way." My Jazzfest Berlin Conversations series kicks off with an in depth discussion of Alexander Hawkins' inspirations and compositional process ahead of the EU premiere of Willow Music @berlinerfestspiele.bsky.social @alexanderhawkins.bsky.social
ionengine.substack.com
Jazzfest Berlin conversations #1: Alexander Hawkins
The Oxford-based composer and pianist discusses his new work Willow Music, post-production as composition, and the rhythmic genius of Hamid Drake.
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Sherrilyn Ifill @sifill.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
I gasped! The Mighty Sparrow has left us. One of the most important and popular Calypsonians to ever do it! Songs filled political fire, irreverence, humor, naughty (very, very naughty) banter, and beats that make you wind your waist! Rest in Power, Sparrow. www.nytimes.com/2026/09/27/a...
nytimes.com
The Mighty Sparrow, Trinidadian Titan of Calypso, Is Dead at 91
He was sometimes described as the last of the true calypso singers. But in fact he simultaneously preserved calypso tradition and invented it anew.
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Saul Staniforth @saulstaniforth.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
Miliband: "To the millions in this country.. who have been moved & outraged by the plight of the Palestinian people, we hear you. You were right" So scrap the proscription of Palestine Action. End all arms exports to Israel. Impose sanctions on the Israeli govt & economy.
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
A bump for the Monday crowd. I'm going to be previewing Berlin Jazz Festival over the coming weeks with a series of artist interviews, beginning with the great composer-pianist ALEXANDER HAWKINS. That'll drop in the coming days. ionengine.substack.com/p/berlin-cal... @berlinerfestspiele.bsky.social
ionengine.substack.com
Berlin Calling
Some exciting news ahead of Berlin Jazz Festival and a look back at summer
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 27/09/2026
All happening at my Ion Engine newsletter, with a series of interviews ahead of Berlin Jazz Festival. Look out for a wide-ranging conversation with composer-pianist Alexander Hawkins this week! ionengine.substack.com/p/berlin-cal...
ionengine.substack.com
Berlin Calling
Some exciting news ahead of Berlin Jazz Festival and a look back at summer
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The Wire Magazine @thewiremagazine.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
Today is the 100th anniversary of the birth of John Coltrane. To mark it we have selected a number of essays and reviews from back issues of The Wire going back over 40 years, all attempting to come to an understanding of the meaning and significance of Coltrane’s life and music.
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Mic Wright @brokenbottleboy.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
NEW | I’m not surprised, but I am livid. BBC NEWS, ‘DANNY TOMMO’ AND THE DINGHY ATTACK THAT DISAPPEARED While the rest of the media – even the very worst parts – report on Daniel Thomas’ actions, BBC News fails to give its audience the facts. brokenbottleboy.substack.com/p/bbc-news-d...
brokenbottleboy.substack.com
BBC News, ‘Danny Tommo’ and the dinghy attack that disappeared
While the rest of the media – even the very worst parts – report on Daniel Thomas’ actions, BBC News fails to give its audience the facts.
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flyingrodent @flyingrodent.bsky.social · 23/09/2026
15 years of brutal austerity + increasingly vile far right politics to secure the positions of parties enforcing it + world’s most poisonous media outlets = Years of fascist rioting with little or no government response
something has gone very, very wrong with the UK
Kevin Thurston @del-boy.bsk... • 10h
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8:02 pm 22/09/26
Hundreds of people are out in Gosport facing a police line.
Crowds of masked protesters are now confronting a police line to chants of "let them drown" sung by a child over a megaphone.
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 21/09/2026
Incredible deal! Some I know and love already - Hernandez Brothers, Joe Sacco, Simon Hanselmann etc - but this is a real treasure trove.
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
The late, great Dawn Foster got sacked by the Graun for recognising Tim Watson for the snake he was. Since then, he’s only gone on to prove her right.
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
This, from Laura Snapes, is spot on. www.theguardian.com/music/commen...
theguardian.com
Ed Sheeran wants to stay out of politics. By quitting his tour, his support acts have exposed the hollowness of neutrality
By standing behind support act Macklemore, who was removed from the tour for his vocal support of Palestine, these artists are demonstrating the self-sacrifice necessary to stand against those crushin...
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Phil McDuff @mcduff.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The Ed Sheeran thing really does demonstrate that this isn't just an obsession of a fringe group of lefty weirdos. Supporting Palestinians against Israeli genocide is a really normie position. The problem is support for Israel remains an absolutely immovable condition for the *elite*.
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flyingrodent @flyingrodent.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Yes, people like the woman in that clip being insulted, bullied and pushed around by comfortable, middle aged wankers has been the entire selling point of right wing politics for *at least* two decades. “We will harm people you irrationally hate and make them cry” is most of the sales pitch.
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The National @scotnational.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Historic scenes in Cardiff as the leaders of the SNP, Plaid Cymru and Sinn Fein come together to sign a deal calling for a democratic route to constitutional change in Scotland, Wales and the north of Ireland 🚨
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Neil Mackay @neilmackay.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
The inside story of the ordinary men and women fighting the far right on the streets of Scotland While rightwing extremists dominate the news we never hear from the folk who are facing down fascism despite threats and violence To even the scales I tell their stories In @heraldscotland.bsky.social
heraldscotland.com
'It beggars belief': The inside story of Scots fighting the far-right on the streets
With right-wing extremists dominating the news, our Writer at Large talks to the ordinary men and women standing up to racists and defending their…
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Luke Turner @luketurner.com · 12/09/2026
As Ben Delo's record £36m Reform donation is headline news, I can't emphasise enough that the media ought to be reporting on Delo's heinous funding of antisemitic conspiracy theorists in the High Court – anonymous contributors to the horrifying neo-Nazi account shown below. bsky.app/profile/luke...
A sample of neo-Nazi posts by the @ParallaxOptics account, displaying grotesque antisemitic caricatures and violent Jew hate.The @ParallaxOptics account's banner image depicting Adolf Hitler.Post by @ParallaxOptics of an article anonymously written by Nina Power and Daniel Miller: ON CULTS II "If we're proposing the the Left is a cult, the first question is what do cults want in general?"
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Louisa Annie @louisaannie.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
RNLI staff have been targeted, tyres slased home addresses identified on FB. Its got so bad that the RNLI have advised staff not to wear badges oor clothing identifiably RNLI. Please sign petition below Thank you. 👇 38d.gs/jpcf
38d.gs
An open letter in support of the volunteers and staff at the RNLI
This is a disgrace. Brave RNLI volunteers being called scum for risking their lives to save others at sea is just plain wrong. So I've signed an open letter of thanks for the RNLI letting them know th...
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elia ayoub @ayoub.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
As a brown migrant living in the UK legally, this is precisely why there can be *no* compromise on the fundamental right of seeking asylum. Pretty quickly it’s anyone who ‘looks’ like an asylum seeker - ie brown or black - who is targeted. No one is safe from this.
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Zack Polanski @zackpolanski.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Labour has banned peaceful protest for Palestine. It should not be hard for Andy Burnham to condemn thugs.
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Giant Tank / Aldo The Chob @gianttank.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
I'll perform my new piece ‘The Wireless Dummy’ live on air as part of Radiophrenia’s two week programme of 24hr broadcasts on Monday 7th September 2026 from 5pm until 5:30pm. Youse can find out how to listen and read all about the festival’s weighty schedule here: radiophrenia.scot/calendar/mon...
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Aliza Adi (she/her) @alizaadi.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
📝 I've just signed this petition calling on the @plaidcymru.bsky.social government to immediately overturn the NHS' indiscriminate, politically motivated, and hamful, attack on Trans+ peoples healthcare, and to unfreeze gender-affirming surgeries and protect NHS Welsh Gender Service patients
petitions.senedd.wales
Petition: Immediately unfreeze gender-affirming surgeries and protect NHS Welsh Gender Service patients.
We call on the Senedd and Welsh Government to direct the NHS Wales Joint Commissioning Committee (NWJCC) to: Immediately unfreeze scheduled and approved gender-affirming surgeries for patients who have already completed assessments. Ensure that any ongoing clinical review is conducted concurrently without disrupting active, established patient care. Publish clear, transparent Terms of Reference and a strict timeline for the independent review of the Welsh Gender Service.
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Giant Tank / Aldo The Chob @gianttank.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
Ali & Collette head off for a Belgian/Dutch tour in Sep, but Firas feels the urge to get his Tfeh hat back on, so Mr. Khnaisser will host a one of ’TFEHXTRA’ edition at @fruitmarket.bsky.social before we return for our regular programme in Oct, Nov, Dec & Jan! www.ticketsource.com/tfeh/tfeh-pr...
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John Chantler @inventingzero.net · 01/09/2026
Lovely feature on Finn Loxbo in the latest @thewiremagazine.bsky.social by @drstewartsmith.bsky.social !
bearded man in black, sits on sofa.
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
For the latest @thewiremagazine.bsky.social I interview 🇸🇪 guitarist Finn Loxbo & review new albums from Squanderers (David Grubbs, Wendy Eisenberg & Bonner Kramer), Grubbs & Loren Connors, and Yvonne Rogers.
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Elizabeth Taylor @elizabethtaylor47.bsky.social · 22/06/2026
Goodbye and good riddance to the most anti LGBTQ PM of my lifetime. Lives were ruined for absolutely no benefit, and now an entire marginalised group is going to suffer a generation desperately trying to claw back their hard won rights thanks so him.
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Gerard Cosloy @gerardcosloy.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
deepest condolences to all family, friends and musical co-conspirators of Half Japanese’s David Fair
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 30/08/2026
Ornette Coleman Hermeto Pascoal Keiji Haino Roscoe Mitchell Nicole Mitchell Boredoms Amina Claudine Myers Al Green Sachiko M Neil Young
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Pieter T. L. Beck @ptrbck.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
We have written a statement in support of Ghent Uni's decision to suspend Nathan Cofnas. We resist attempts to frame this as a punishment for "whistleblowing" or censorship of "controversial research". We invite all academics who share our views to sign our letter. forms.gle/qwN8xzEM5C7Q...
forms.gle
Open letter on the suspension of Nathan Cofnas at Ghent University
We, colleagues of Nathan Cofnas - supported by many colleagues internationally - want to respond to the negative and incorrect framing of Ghent University’s decision to suspend Nathan Cofnas. With th...
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Jes Steele ✌️ @piratito.com · 25/08/2026
Dolly Parton, Linda Ronstadt, and Emmylou Harris performing “Bury Me Under the Weeping Willow” on The Dolly Parton Show (1976)
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Micah @rincewind.run · 25/08/2026
dolly parton taught millions of children to read dolly parton raised millions of dollars for cancer research and disaster relief dolly parton stood by the lgbtq community her entire life dolly parton personally helped fund the moderna vaccine if there was a right side of something she was on it
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Apocalyptic NYC masterpiece vs whiny posh lads, no contest.
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
Nice to see this doing the rounds again: a great list. My picks were Motown Chartbusters 3 & Kevin Martin’s revelatory Jazz Satellites. Big tune Kevin!
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roterote @roterote.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
I can highly recommend @hopenothate.org.uk ‘s report Race Science Inc. as a good starting place to understand how a eugenicist like Nathan Cofnas can get hired at two prestigious universities over more qualified candidates. This is a major far right project to give the academy’s legitimacy to them.
investigations.hopenothate.org.uk
Race Science Inc. | HOPE not hate
Undercover in The Human Diversity Foundation, the million-dollar race science company
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Zack Polanski @zackpolanski.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
It’s time we sorted out the press. Constant misinformation to protect their donors and fossil fuels is destroying lives and our planet. The Government must step up and stop being cowardly.
Sorry Zack Polanski this long hot summer is not the apocalypse - it's like a gloriously long holiday in France
..with village green cricket thrown in good measure
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Q Manivannan MSP @qmanivannan.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
The truth remains a perfect response. I’m aware of an excerpt of an old interview of mine with The Subjective Space and Dr Sindhu Rajasekaran circulating online, and commentary about its selective application. To prevent further misinformation, here’s a statement.
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Elizabeth Taylor @elizabethtaylor47.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Yvette Cooper confirming that NHS guidance is coming forth shortly banning trans people from single sex wards. She waffles about ‘alternative provision’ but let’s be realistic here, this will massively massively disadvantage trans people’s care. Fuck Andy Burnham
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Q Manivannan MSP @qmanivannan.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
I am calling on the Scottish Government to act this week to save the CCA's building and archive. All across Scotland, including in my Edinburgh and Lothians East region, people are concerned that this represents a loss to Scottish culture.
The Herald: Why Creative Scotland must act to save Glasgow CCA building and archive.
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Mic Wright @brokenbottleboy.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
NEW | A corrective to the gushing tributes… LIDDLE TO BE CELEBRATED An honest obituary for Rod Liddle, dead at 66, dead inside for many years before that. brokenbottleboy.substack.com/p/liddle-to-...
brokenbottleboy.substack.com
Liddle to be celebrated
An honest obituary for Rod Liddle, dead at 66, dead inside for many years before that.
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 04/08/2026
New Wire! I report from StopOver4Berlin, where curators Ingrid Laubrock, Julia Hulsmann & Christian Lillinger offer a taste of the city's proposed jazzhaus. Plus LP reviews: Tyshawn Sorey & Pat Thomas, Josh Berman, Nick Mazzarella, Henry Threadgill (Zooid & trio with Vijay Iyer, Dafnis Prieto).
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Nate O @nateo.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
The UK commentariat and political class are almost exclusively a wealthy, politically powerful and insular group, many of whom landowners/landlords, and almost every last one of them despises the working class, minorities, migrants, queer people, and disabled people. That’s why they love Rod Liddle
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Malt Lick Nursery @maltlicknursery.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
"Music is spiritual. Music is certainly way up there on that level. That's one of the things that has attracted me to music is that all of the possibilities of things that can happen." Happy Birthday Roscoe Mitchell born August 3, 1940
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Zack Polanski @zackpolanski.bsky.social · 03/08/2026
Very disappointing from the new Prime Minister, very much sounding like the previous PM. These are among the world’s most vulnerable and desparate people. They need safe routes and humanity from responsible politicians, not grandstanding. This isn’t doing politics differently.
Burnham pledges to be "relentless" in curbing small boat crossings
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Helen 🏳️‍⚧️✊🏻💕 @mimmymum.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Stop Sex Matters spreading transphobic hate @goodlawproject.org have identified 46 examples, including harassment and discrimination, which they think break charity law. Email the Charity Commission and the culture minister now, and make sure they stop charities spreading hate.
action.goodlawproject.org
Stop Sex Matters spreading transphobic hate
The anti-trans pressure group Sex Matters are running a campaign of hate, spewing abuse online and in the media – and putting trans people in danger. Sex Matters say they work to “protect everybody’s ...
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Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani @mayor.nyc.gov · 22/07/2026
Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal.
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Stewart Smith @drstewartsmith.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
You can watch this, alongside other Glasgow archive gems & contemporary responses, with improved sound as part of my Third Eye project :) Julius Eastman, John Tchicai, Tony Bevan… thirdeyejazz.blogspot.com/2025/07/thir...
thirdeyejazz.blogspot.com
Third Eye TV Episode Two: Free Music
Streamed live on 23 Oct 2021   Episode 2: Free Music    1. Introduction  2. Derek Bailey  3. Tony Bevan intro & performance  4. Interview: M...
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Lee Hurley @hleehurley.com · 20/07/2026
This might sound like I only care about trans people but the fact is how Burnham opts to treat trans people will tell you exactly how he will treat everybody else eventually. You can poo-poo that if you want, but you're wrong.
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