Plus: Six generations of women on the power and passion of Madonna
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Picks of the week
Abba’s Agnetha Fältskog on fame, family and her secret songs
‘It’s difficult to look upon yourself as an icon’  
Abba’s Agnetha Fältskog on fame, family and her secret songs
In between caring for her dogs, cats, chickens and horses, the reclusive superstar has overseen new versions of old solo tracks. She recalls the stress and sadness in Abba, their blockbuster Voyage project, and the music she never lets the world hear
‘Provocateur! Sex symbol! Opportunist!’  
Six generations of women on the power and passion of Madonna
Mitski  
How the US songwriter scored the year’s quietest global chart smash
‘I’m at one of the lowest points of my life’  
Svalbard’s Serena Cherry on confronting depression with metal
Dolly Parton on style, stardom and sexists  
I know how to push men off and get the hell away
Reviews
Album of the week  
Troye Sivan: Something to Give Each Other – one of the year’s most distinctive pop albums
Troye Sivan: Something to Give Each Other – one of the year’s most distinctive pop albums
Taylor Swift  
The Eras Tour film – a cacophonous testament to megastardom
Jamila Woods  
Water Made Us – tracing a relationship’s painful arc
Global album of the month  
Titanic: Vidrio – joyous Mexico City duo are unbounded by genre
Drake  
For All the Dogs – repetitive rap titan needs new tricks
 
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Spotlight
How an Ikea became one of the world’s biggest nightclubs
Flatpacks and floorfillers  
How an Ikea became one of the world’s biggest nightclubs
The furniture giant’s ex-London flagship is now a giant venue – boasting a Batman movie set and not a Billy bookcase in sight. Our writer hits the dancefloor on opening night to ‘chuck out his chintz’
Classical
‘We have to be very creative to survive’  
The show goes on at Kharkiv opera house
The show goes on at Kharkiv opera house
Adès  
Alchymia review – immaculate recording of an extraordinary work
Alchymia review – immaculate recording of an extraordinary work
Joana Mallwitz is the first woman to lead a Berlin orchestra  
And, no, she hasn’t seen Tár
And, no, she hasn’t seen Tár
Nigel Kennedy  
Banter, birdsong and violin heroics
Banter, birdsong and violin heroics
Add to playlist
Get into the groove!  
Writers go head-to-head to declare Madonna’s best album
Writers go head-to-head to declare Madonna’s best album
You may have missed
Jools Holland on making Later …
‘Mark E Smith said the Fall would only come on if I didn’t play piano’  
Jools Holland on making Later …
‘I’ve been hosting the show for 31 years. That’s almost half my life. You don’t get that for armed robbery’
Jazz star Yussef Dayes  
Other people had David Beckham as their hero – I had the drummer Billy Cobham
The groundbreaking south London drummer is now on the brink of solo stardom. He reveals the highs and lows of his journey and why his new album is more than just a jazz record
‘It was incredible when she said yes’  
Why Chaka Khan teamed up with Bombay Bicycle Club
They are London indie stalwarts, she’s a multiple Grammy-winning great. So how on earth did the band end up duetting with the soul legend on their new album?
Troye Sivan on growth, gay clubs and ‘going ballistic’  
‘I’m just not as afraid as I was before’
The Australian pop star used to be conscious of fans oversexualising his art. For his new album – and its music videos – he’s thrown those hang-ups away
‘It is just raw feeling!’  
Afrobeats star Mr Eazi on how his debut album caused an art explosion
After a painting stopped him in his tracks, the singer asked 13 artists to create a work for each track of The Evil Genius. It has been, he says, ‘the most therapeutic journey’ – and it’s on show in London
Live music this week
Blink-182  
Foul-mouthed arena antics are fitfully fun
Foul-mouthed arena antics are fitfully fun
Gilberto Gil  
Farewell London concert for a joyful musical great
Kitty Empire's artist of the week  
Jorja Smith – high art from the woman in black
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