It's the 20th anniversary—already—of the groundbreaking TV pop show where enigmatic New Order vocalist Barney once furrowed his brow, stared at Paula Yates' arse and said to me: "Cor, I wouldn't half mind shagging that." Ah, melancholy '80s indieland, where the boys were poets and the girls were, if they had any gumption at all, somewhere else having a life. A splendid 37-track compilation this, as much for Wham! and Frankie as for Echo And The Bunnymen, Iggy Pop, U2, The Human League and The Jam.

Eighth album from rap renegades is a 21-track jumble of new tracks, live performances and fan remixes

Moody and fascinating European orchestral jazz

Final offering from da bruddas past their gabba-gabba heyday

Avant-electro types dazzled by mirrorballs

Chicago indie jazzers' latest, featuring cover of Bowie's "Sound And Vision"

Unlikely as he is—a white, upper-class rapper who positively revels in his Ivy Leaguery—Paul Barman offers a surprisingly fresh take on hip hop clichés. The absurd sexscapade "Cock Mobster" balances graphic detail with literary conceit ("I think of the pube I got while reading the Rubaiyat"), owing more to Woody Allen than standard rap bravado. But attempts at gravitas ("Anarchist Bookstore", "Talking Time Travel") resonate with all the panache of a student union debate.

Ultra-hip German label gets birthday cake and bunting treatment

Retro '60s garage rock from Scandinavian quartet

Mysterious Californian outsider outfit release album written in wake of September 11