WIRE, THE - #512 October 2026

"On the cover: Mike Watt is one of the hardest working and most influential veterans of American hardcore punk's first wave, Minutemen and fIREHOSE cofounder (and sometime post-reunion Stooges bassist). Mike Watt has barely stopped to catch his breath in recent years, having racked up a swathe of releases with collaborators like Papa M , J Mascis , and others. Interview and profile by Alan Licht . The Primer: Aphex Twin -- A comprehensive user's guide to around three and a half decades of warped mischief, expert knob twiddling and unlikely celebrity status from the artist otherwise known as Richard D James . Text by Derek Walmsley , plus a new Aphex illustration by Savage Pencil . Kaja Draksler : The Slovenian, Amsterdam-based pianist, composer and improvisor has been honing her craft and building her profile as one of the most exciting names in European improv for the last ten years, collaborating extensively with John Butcher , Terrie Ex and Susanna Santos Silva . This August she releases the latest album by Punkt.Vrt.Plastik , her trio with bassist Petter Eldh and drummer Christian Lillinger . By Peter Margasak . Prepared piano now: Since the days of John Cage and his early mentor Henry Cowell , prepared piano has become an enduring focus of practice for composers seeking to explore extended techniques and avant garde possibilities. Jo Hutton takes a look at how contemporary pianists continue to work with it and what the method means to them today. Invisible Jukebox: Pamela Z In advance of her headline appearance at London Barbican's Always, Already There festival in October, the US composer, vocalist, technologist and new media artist takes The Wire's blind listening challenge. Tested by Marc Weidenbaum ."