As many folk will already know, after nine years on the newsstands, the current issue of The Word magazine is to be the last.

I used to subscribe to The Word, along with Mojo, Uncut and Q. I stopped about a year ago, although I have kept up the other three (Q is hanging by the skin of its teeth mind you as it gets worse every month). I stopped because although it was well written and mostly interesting, it seemed to get safer and safer with an ever increasing emphasis on rehashing the rock royalty (Bowie, Elton John, Kinks, Springsteen et al). Worst of all destroyed its review section and replaced it with some random wonderings which were mostly unreadable and way too self-indulgent.

For all that I will miss it. The cover CDs often threw up new found delights and were always varied and idiosyncratic. Some of the opinion pieces were great and it at least treated the reader like an intelligent human being!

So tonight I bought a copy at the train station for old times sake. I read it on the train and lots of it was good. The editorial was dignified and a little sad, Lou Reed and the Cure were main features, and the review section was worse than ever.

Here then are a couple of final tastes from their monthly CD. The ‘rousing acoustic dash‘ of Urusen, and My Darling Clementine who are busy ‘invoking the feuding spirit of George and Tammy with added twangy guitar‘.

Farewell The Word.

Download Urusen – Fifty & 9 mp3 (from Now Hear This! The Word Magazine August 2012)

Download My Darling Clementine – 100,000 Words mp3 (from Now Hear This! The Word Magazine August 2012)

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