No Tags

“Is this dubstep?”
There was a time in the 2010s when approximately 23% of all YouTube comments were a variation of this question. One of the UK’s most influential yet misunderstood dance exports, dubstep is also one of those rare genres that can trace its origins to a handful of people working in a few rooms.
That unusual origin story is definitively told in a new book, Aftershock: The Seismic Impact of Dubstep. Based on hundreds of hours of interviews by journalist Lauren Martin, it weaves together testimony from the main players (including Benny Ill, Skream, Hatcha, Loefah, Mala, Coki, Youngsta, Plastician, Sgt Pokes, Kode9, Shackleton, Pinch, Joker and Rusko) with thoughtful framing from the likes of Martin Clark and Ammunition’s Neil Jolliffe, plus stacks of of flyers, ephemera and unseen photos.
We had a blast going through the archives in preparation for this conversation with Lauren, where we talked about Croydon in the early 2000s, the school-age crew that formed around Big Apple Records, the closed loop of creativity that allowed the nascent genre to develop, the particular magic of FWD>> at Plastic People, the impact of Radio 1’s Dubstep Warz broadcast, and the competing explanations for dubstep’s demise in the 2010s, among many other things.
Before the episode’s big drop into dubstep, Tom and Chal compare notes on a very ‘Merican month in the stunned afterglow of the World Cup half-time show, UFC on the White House lawn, a pretty decent Madonna album and Tom’s trip to the sunshine state.
We do No Tags for the love of the game, but you can support the podcast in material ways by buying our latest book or subscribing to our paid tier for £5 per month.


Get full access to No Tags at notagspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

Keep honking, piggies: I’m listening to whatever rockslop the algorithm just sicked up for me!
So we’ve been circling a certain topic for a while now – in order to be fashionably off-cycle rather than just late to the party, of course – and we’ve finally done enough muck-raking to present you with our red-hot take.
It’s verifiable: your favourite DJ is a psyop.
We jest, mildly. But why is it so satisfying to point to popular things and call them a psyop? And it’s not just Geese, the perfectly solid rock band that launched a thousand hysterical thinkpieces. Angine de Poitrine? Évidemment. Rita Ora? Innit. But what about the current numerical titans of dance music? Your Josh Bakers, Kettamas, Silva Bumpas and, of course, your Freds Again? What does it take to reach the premier league in the age of algorithm?
In this episode we break down the tectonic shifts underway in the game of selling yourself, and how video clips, vlogging, ‘content seeding’ and engineered virality are becoming standard promo tools from the mainstream to the underground. Is your favourite DJ paying low four-figure sums to have someone manufacture a viral moment during their next set? Honestly, they might be. Should No Tags join the party?* Let us know!
—
*If you do think we should join the party, these things don’t come cheap. You can support the podcast by buying our latest book, or by subscribing to our paid tier for a mere £5 per month.


Get full access to No Tags at notagspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

Why be seamless when you can go KLANGGG? This week’s guest is living proof that doing things wrong, backwards, upside-down or simply not at all can reap creative dividends.
We speak, of course, about Djrum. Recorded at our book launch at London’s ICA last December, our conversation with the Oxford-dwelling DJ-producer followed up on the wild acclaim for his 2025 maybe-opus, Under Tangled Silence.
The interview starts at 48:00, but before that we debrief on some new music from old favourites. Is the spirit of 2011 still haunting dance music? We couldn’t possibly say.
Look out for our third listening session at 180 Studios, to be announced soon! Our second book, No Tags: Conversations on underground music culture Vol. 1 is out now.


Get full access to No Tags at notagspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

Sheffield punches well above its weight when it comes to tunes.
From #1 synth-pop hits to underground techno classics, clattering industrial funk to accidental Britpop icons, the Steel City might have produced more brilliant music per capita than any other world metropolis.
And yet, no one has published the definitive book on the subject – until now! Daniel Dylan Wray is one of the UK’s best music writers, and his new book Groovy, Laidback and Nasty: The History of Independent Music in Sheffield chronicles the maverick artists, chart invaders, parties, labels, venues and even Christian cults that shaped the city’s musical history.
We talked to Dan about why Sheffield wasn’t swept away by punk rock but instead loved Kraftwerk and Wendy Carlos, how Peter Stringfellow became a crucial early mover in Sheffield’s club scene, and why there are no murals of Jarvis Cocker in the city centre. We also heard about the unlikely chain of events that birthed Warp Records, and one of the most important yet undersung ‘80s club nights, Jive Turkey.
We also unveil a major expansion of our Rockufiction canon of ‘music films that bend reality’, including Frank Zappa, Daft Punk, Macca and S Club 7. That’ll probably be the final update on Rockufiction, but if you have any burning additions then get them in quick…
As ever, if you like what we do on No Tags, please do consider signing up to our paid tier for a mere £5 per month!


Get full access to No Tags at notagspodcast.substack.com/subscribe

The Q1 report is here and the charts are clear: buy underscores. 📈
On this episode of No Tags, we talk through our favourite releases of 2026 so far – not to mention some music that we’re more mixed on but felt like it was worthy of discussion regardless.
Before we get into it, on 5th May we’ll be returning to 180 Studios for our second session at their audiophile listening room. Following March’s session with Call Super and Parris, this time we’ll be joined by Al Wootton and Valentina Magaletti, collaborators in Holy Tongue and live bandmates in Moin, to play records from their collections and explore where their musical tastes meet. Tickets are on sale now, it should be a treat!
If you discover something you love on this episode, why not send us a tip? We have a paid tier which allows you to support No Tags for £5 a month, and also gives you a discount on our book – which is out now.
Discussed on this episode, in order:
Maara – Ultra Villain (Naff)
Zora Jones – Angel Crisis (Bellyfat)
Kim Gordon – PLAY ME (Matador)
Mandy, Indiana – URGH (Sacred Bones)
Fcukers – Ö (Ninja Tune)
2charm – star scum city (self-released)
Slayyyter – WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA (Columbia)
Charli XCX – Wuthering Heights (Atlantic)
underscores – U (Mom+Pop)
Sade Olutola – Arrow Heart (Rogue Collective)
Shy One – Mali (Touching Bass)
PACH – The Wake-Up Call (Peach Discs)
SY3 – 梦游 Sleepwalker (Music from Memory)
Simo Cell & Abdullah Miniawy – Dying is the Internet (Dekmantel UFO)
Egg Meat – The most Pathetic poem is small people on fire (Mutualism)
Mammo – Lateral (Short Span)
Crespi Drum Syndicate – Colada Talk (Cinnamon Disc)
Valentina Magaletti & Upsammy - Seismo (PAN)


Get full access to No Tags at notagspodcast.substack.com/subscribe