I was intending to get a rock album review up for October but, this month, most of my standout album release choices are in other music genres. It’s good to sometimes pause and explore to the left and the right a bit.

Time for a party – and at any time that you want. After a summer of endless studio album releases, the feel-good festival season kind of made it appropriate to turn attention to an album release that captures the irreplaceable magic of a live show, and that spontaneous connection between band and audience.

When ‘Mad’ landed it was the first time for years I felt suitably acquainted with Sparks music to welcome the new songs with a sense of familiarity and excitement – having grown particularly fond of  ‘Hello Young Lovers’ and their nineteenth studio album ‘Lil’ Beethoven’ over the previous year…