After the tumult of the last two years, I think that we had all hoped this year would be considerably brighter. On a personal level though 2022 has been probably the most challenging year of my life so far.

Last week my Dad died, a statement that I’m still very much struggling to make much sense of. While this was sudden, it was not entirely out of the blue as he had been ill for some time. As well as being a huge factor in shaping my love of music, and in particular the joy of discovering new music, my Dad was also a great supporter of my writing. He’d often let me know which bands he’d enjoyed that I’d been writing about, whether it was Knomad Spock or Ryley Walker. He was a man of eclectic musical taste, whether it was Jazz and Blues or Jeffrey Lewis, and for bringing me up in a household full of books, and all kinds of books, I can’t ever thank my parents enough.

If there’s one thing I’ve learnt about writing while running this site is that it requires time and mental space, and recent events, coupled with my upcoming wedding and ongoing attempts to relocate from London to Sheffield, have left me with little room for either. With that in mind, I’ve decided to take a month off from the blog to focus on myself and my loved ones and with the aim of coming back with fresh impetus in November. There’ll be a tonne of great albums out in October I’m sure, but thankfully for me, they’ll still be there waiting when I get back.

I’d like to thank everyone who has already sent me kind messages of support, they are truly appreciated and remind me that while the internet can be a place of division and hatred, it can also foster friendship, kindness and community.

Wishing you all health and happiness, and to my Dad, thank you for the days,

Sam / For The Rabbits