Thursday 1st Emily Portman: beautiful, beguiling, slightly witchy contemporary folk music from Glastonbury’s Emily Portman, but then again her new album is called Dominion Of Spells; The North Wall; 7pm 

Friday 2nd The Balkan Wanderers + The Mighty Redox + The HorMONES + Gulag Walrus: Oxford institution Klub Kakofanney celebrates its 35th anniversary with a quartet of veteran party bands providing, variously, hippy-type folk music, ‘77 punk, and ska revival; music strongly imprinted with the sticky floors and beer-fug of The Wheatsheaf (RIP), Phil and Sue’s base for many good years. But: onwards! Florence Park Community Centre; 7:20 | Anton Barbeau & Thrust + MarysGarden + Moogieman: Anglophilic Sacramento singer-songwriter Anton Barbeau plays songs from his XTC-featuring new record World Calls Love, backed by his one-time Oxford band Charms Against The Evil Eye. Julian Cope and Stewart Lee like him, so you will too. Support from local goths MarysGarden plus nerdy songsmith/photographer/noisemaker Moogieman; Master Rhythm Studios; 7:45 | Getner + Sweet Gene + Alto Alto: Goofy, historically literate rock music from Manchester-based Getner, sweet, melodic, pleasant-enough jangle-indie from more Mancs Sweet Gene, plus Oxford’s own REM/Sonic Youth hybrid Alto Alto, The Library; 7:45 | Abi O’Meara: chirpy singer-songs – the current one is called ‘Ray Of Sun’, and that’s all you need to know really; Day Release by Tap Social; 5:30; FREE 

Saturday 3rd Master Peace: London-born Peace Okezie continues his popward slide, launching his second album If I Don’t Love You, Who Will?: the sound of British up-and-coming indie musicians working with the guy who produced that Panic! At The Disco record (complimentary); Truck Store; 6pm | The Wanted 2.0: Second-wave UK boyband reform under a slightly different name after the death of founding member Tom Parker; O2 Academy; 6:30 | Sounds of the City: Mick Quinn’s DB Band + Emma Hunter: Admirably workmanlike, energetic 90s indie-rock from the bassist of The Jennifers/Supergrass with support from Emma Hunter and their spacious, widescreen story-songs; Museum of Oxford; 6:30

Sunday 4th Freya Ridings + Amber Run: Earnest, rock-coloured pop music, part-Florence and the Machine, part-Ed Sheeran, in other words exactly the kind of thing that gives me the ick, but please don’t let me yuck your yum; New Theatre; 7pm | The Hobknobs + The Sunbathers + Flamingo: Divine Schism present delicate, slight, charming, knowingly mannered (or unknowing unmannered?) songs from Dutch duo The Hobknobs, wistful fingerpicked guitars from The Sunbathers, plus Flamingo’s thoughtful rock music; The Library; 6pm |

Monday 5th Lime Garden: Confident, competent 90s-tinged indie rock from BIMM, Lime Garden are touring their second album Maybe Not Tonight, which features contributions from Windmill scene supremo and Wet Leg producer Dan Carey; The Bullingdon; 7:30 | From The Jam: Not sure if this breaks my no-covers-bands rule but this is the bass player from The Jam playing songs the singer from The Jam wrote for The Jam; O2 Academy; 7:30 |The Yummy Fur + Penny Ante + Pea Sea: The Fall with singing-type indie and hard-edged, dry Scottish whimsy from influential Glasgow group The Yummy Fur supporting their new album Everybody Talks About The Weather. Oxford alt supergroup Penny Ante and art rock from Gretna-born Chris Rollen open the show; Little Bully; 7pm | Sadurn: earnest, heartstring-pulling indie rock from Philadelphia, like a Gen-Z Big Thief – see them before they get massive (or 6Music A-list-sized); Truck Store; 6pm

Tuesday 6th The Hoosiers + Hunny Buzz: Landfill indie is back baby (it never went away); O2 Academy; 7pm 

Wednesday 7th

Thursday 8th Perennial + Means of Production + Fuzzy Heart: Perennial’s sophomore and most recent record is called Modernism, I suppose because its influences are the 1960s mod groups who repurposed Motown beats for their own ends – but the band’s folding-in of East Coast psychedelia and 00s rock guitars sounds arch and *post*-modern to me. Maybe I just don’t like The Strokes enough. Oxford’s brilliant dancefloor-filling satirists Means Of Production and London’s emo-poppers Fuzzy Heart provide support; The Library; 7:30 | Robert Jon & The Wreck: Southern pop-rock from Orange County – I’m sure they love what they do; O2 Academy; 7pm | Koch Marshall Trio: Guitar/organ trio, not unpleasant as long as you take it with a large pinch of salt. Maybe this is too much like jazz to be included here? Fat Lil’s; 7pm

Friday 9th Elanor Moss + Sophie Jamieson + Eva May: Elanor Moss plays Mannerist folk music from 2020s Lincolnshire that sounds like it could be from 1770s Virginia – deceptively pretty; Support from Sophie Jamieson’s folk-adjacent indie and Eva May’s piano songs; Common Ground; 7:30 | Db Band + Struggles End + Chalice in Wonderland + Dead Anyway + Flip Phone + Hollie Stringer + Gwyn Wilden: Veteran local promoter Mark ‘Osprey’ O’Brien presents seven local acts in one evening to kick off his Oxford City Music Festival. With the aforementioned Supergrass bassist’s other band headlining, the undercard consists mainly of young rock groups like Struggles End and Flip Phone – a great proving-ground, in other words. And if all else fails, the FPCC has a lovely bar; Florence Park Community Centre; 6pm | Nineteenth Hour: four blokes playing loud rock music; Tap Social; 8pm | Who Ate All The Crayons + Flump: eight more blokes (two groups of four) playing more rock music, slightly quieter (= more introspective?) – WAATC promise ‘an anthemic discography’; honestly I don’t mean to be mean, just point out the obvious – give it a shot if you’re free, they’ve come here from Berkshire, the venue does pizza; The Library; 7:30 

Saturday 10th Lunatraktors + Masal: OCM present this wild experimental double-header: music-concrete, tap dancing, analogue synths and sewing machines all twisted into a kind of folk music by Lunatraktors, plus English-Turkish electronic duo Masal play jazzy, atmospheric electronica; The Nest; 7pm 

Sunday 11th Dan Croll: old-fashioned pop singer-songwriting; Truck Store; 5pm; Madra Salach: rock-coloured, politically-charged Irish folk band continue to tour their debut EP It’s A Hell Of An Age; The Bullingdon; 7:30

Monday 12th Antony Szmierek: Spoken-word over nostalgic/optimistic electronic backing – pretty fun! There’s something about it that makes it not-rap, although sometimes it maybe tips over… are there rap bits in Born Slippy? Was Maxi Jazz a rapper? Answers on a postcard; O2 Academy; 7pm | Meryl Streek; I’ve listened three times to Dublin ‘punk producer’ Meryl Streek’s latest release ‘Bullet’ and I can’t quite work out the irony level here – could be a 0, could be at 10 (or perhaps it goes to 11?). Maybe that’s the whole point – I’m intrigued by the character? The white contact lenses look cool; Truck Store; 6pm

Tuesday 13th Girl Group: Pleasing pop-rock from Norway-via-LIPA; The Bullingdon; 7pm  

Wednesday 14th Erja Lytinnen: Melodic euro-rock with guitar solos from Finland; The Bullingdon; 7pm

Thursday 15th Or Sobre Blau + Nick Granata + Sharron Kraus: Or Sobre Blau is the duo project of Divine Schism favourite Kiran Leonard and Spanish-based Ubaldo, who create lightly knotty guitar songs that sometimes tip into the soundscapy, sometimes the post-rocky – support from Shovel Dance Collective vocalist Nick Granata promoting their first album of original songs, plus the folktronica of Sharron Kraus; The Library; 7:30 | Tommy Lefroy: American duo making stadium-oriented indie rock, Tessa Mouzourakis and Wynter Bethel both moved to Nashville as aspiring songwriters in 2017 before going viral on TikTok with their song ‘The Cause’ in 2021. Almost a decade after their arrival in Nashville, they come to Truck to present their debut album The Precariat, and it warms my heart that you can make it as a songwriter these days. A note on changing terminology – yes it says ‘indie rock’ on Wikipedia, and yes I’ve used the term above, but this is very much the sound of half of major label pop music now, from Phoebe Bridgers to Olivia Rodgrigo, and of course Taylor Swift’s work with Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner of The National — and I suppose that they were an indie band once? – but the kind of indie rock you get at a Divine Schism show is *not* the kind of indie rock we have here. Or is it? Again, please write in; maybe, halfway through the month I’m having a bit of a breakdown; Truck Store; 6pm

Friday 16th Ibibio Sound Machine: Come celebrate Bossaphonik’s 22nd Anniversary as festival favourites, afro-futurist party band Ibibio Sound Machine support their 6th album Chopping Mountain – we’re pretty lucky to have this stuff in town; Cowley Worker’s Social Club; 8pm | The Howlers: Mid-Arctic Monkeys-type indie, but without the sarcasm; Truck Store; 6pm | Crash Test Dummies: The Canadian band continue their tour celebrating the 25th anniversary of their 1993 debut album God Shuffled His Feet (you do the math); O2 Academy; 6:30 

Saturday 17th Von Braun + Great Bear Radio: local guitar music; The Library; 8pm | Black Hats + Emma Hunter: Mod-revival-revival from Oxford’s Black Hats plus soaring story-songs from Emma Hunter; Tap Social; 8pm | Megson: Bright, bucolic folk-pop with great close-harmony singing from the Middlesborough duo; The North Wall; 7:30 | Transvision Vamp: 80s pop band reunite with the singer but not the songwriter; O2 Academy; 6:30 | MarysGarden + Cedars of Lebanon + The HorMones + Ghostflint: Laima Bite-fronted Goth rockers headline this gig in celebration of Master Rhythm Studio’s 10th anniversary, also featuring similarly-reverbed college rock from Cedars Of Lebanon, real-life riot women The HorMones and music from some of Master Rhythm’s drum students; O2 Academy; 6:30 | Landless: the Dublin-based vocal quartet bring both traditional and original songs to Oxford. In some ways you know exactly what to expect here — beautiful singing, moodily arranged, with drones aplenty – but there are some truly unexpected harmonic choices to savour: thoughtful and somewhat sublime. I wish I had a lyric sheet. St. John’s College Auditorium; 6:30

Sunday 18th Bikini Body + Sofftness + Asterix: Post-punk from Edinburgh and Nottingham, the kind where the guitar plays downstrokes all the time and the bassist plays with a pick (approx bpm 160) – opening the show are young grunge upstarts Asterix; Little Bully; 7pm | Codefendents + Ratboy; Gen X rock music from former NOFX frontman Fat Mike; O2 Academy; 7:30 

Monday 19th Hayseed Dixie + Sweet Electric: Again, not sure if this breaks my no-covers-bands policy? O2 Academy; 7pm | Adult DVD: Dance-rock from Leeds, or perhaps a harder-hitting indie-disco. Is this where the reappraisal of Landfill is going? It’s pretty fun, I like the slightly cheap-sounding keyb sounds, reminds me of New Order’s best record Technique, but these lads aren’t interested in that kind of élan, they’re messy as hell and they’re enjoying it; The Bullingdon; 7:30 | Jamie T: revered noughties indie songwriter – a more sentimental, depressive Mike Skinner – launches his new album Ghosts; O2 Academy; 7:30 | Samavayo + Son of Boar + WALL: Heavy rock music, with Sabbath not too far away; The Wheatsheaf; 8pm | Matthew C Whittaker: warm, wistful, smiling, 60’s-inflected pop-rock | The Bullingdon; 7:30

Tuesday 20th Tom McRae; hushed guitar songs; O2 Academy; 7:30

Wednesday 21st Welly: Tongue-in-cheek guitar music from Brighton, a bit like if Elvis Costello cheered up *a lot* and left irony behind, by which I mean I guess it’s a bit pub-rocky, a bit Springsteen-in-toy-town; The Bullingdon; 6pm | Enter Shikari + Sunday Best: Self-serious rock-pop from St Albans – I blame them for Imagine Dragons; O2 Academy; 6pm

Thursday 22nd The Besnard Lakes + Lou Terry: Expansive Canadians present their latest album of woozy, gently rocking songscapes – support comes from Divine Schism signing Lou Terry playing his whimsical, affecting alt-folk; The Bullingdon; 7pm ; Ags Connolly & Sarah Jory + Luke Jack: Oxford’s own country star plays in a duo format with Pedal Steelist Sarah Jory. Support from bluegrass picker Luke Jack; Fat Lil’s; 7:30 | Preen: Nicely atmospheric, gently propulsive pop-folk from that London; The Handlebar; 7:45 

Friday 23rd Cheap Suits + Cymbal Shards + Flip Phone + Hunnymooners: There are so many bands called Cheap Suits – put links in your gig listings if you want me to be smarmy about your group!! Maybe if I was on TikTok I would have a better chance; Florence Park Community Centre; 7pm | Half Man Half Biscuit + CRAPSONS: Legendary whimsy; O2 Academy: 6:30 | Hannah Rose Platt: Prettily disturbing Ed Harcourt-produced stories of Old England (and by Old England I mean the England that we still live in); Tap Social; 8pm 

Saturday 24th The Bluetones: Mark Morriss’ Britpop crew (yes, the original crew, he hasn’t even fallen out with his brother Scott) have just made their first album since 2010, and I was all ready to sneer, but honestly trying to make art in your fifties is what I hope to still be doing so good luck to them. And when they play ‘Slight Return’, that will be a moment; O2 Academy; 6:30 | Wax Head + Mystery Biscuit: Wax Head are from Manchester, and they’re labeled ‘psych’ because there’s lots of reverb on the vocal and bleepy-bloopy synth noises everywhere but the drummer plays fast and hard so it sound like Hardcore to me, but I suppose it is a bit like sped-up Hawkwind – support from Oxford’s Mystery Biscuit, who are more like slowed-down Hawkwind, with a bit of Can and The Wedding Present thrown in for good measure; The Library, 7:30

Sunday 25th Odette + Agatha Posy-Rose + Lina Roze + Hollie Stringer: no info on this – no I will not ‘ask AI’; The Bullingdon; 7pm | Retail Simps + Eliots Graveyard + Zarbi: Canadian garage rock that sounds like several tapes from the 60s being played simultaneously – support comes from Eliots Graveyard’s warm, retro outsider songs, plus weirdo-blues from Oxford’s Zarbi; The Library; 6pm | 

Monday 26th Formal Sppeedwear: Talking Heads, Sparks, various Robert Fripp projects, could be some bits from the first few OMD albums, plus a bit of Clor and maybe Maximo Park – quintessential art punk stuff, and there’s nothing wrong with that. But the press release says they sound like Neu! I really hate press releases; The Bullingdon; 7pm 

Tuesday 27th

Wednesday 28th YAANG: it’s that term ‘post-punk’ again, but it’s rock music, this time from Manchester. Too self-serious for me, and I find it wearing, but all the usual suspects like it, so what do I know? And no it doesn’t ‘resist easy categorisation’ just because it changes tempo, people have been doing that since, well, at least Beethoven. Oh gosh it’s the end of the month and I am truly grumpy. The Bullingdon; 7:30; Tara Clerkin Trio + Osgled; This, however, is more magic from Divine Schism, and while there is no such thing as ‘post-jazz’, this is groovy as hell, and light and fun and playful with it. Osgled are very different vibe-wise but not tone-wise, being all drones and half-pretty atmospheres underneath direct, beautiful songs – great double-header. The Nest; 7:45

Thursday 29th The bEAT + The Selecter: You’re not fooling me with that typography, this is the guitarist’s Beat splinter group, the one that was called The English Beat and only toured America, but now Rankin Roger has died (RIP) I guess the way is clear? but no-one remembers the guitar bits anyway. It’s a dirty business, but I suppose it’s a living. O2 Academy; 7pm | Swervedriver + Long Distance Runner: Oxford shoegaze pioneers; O2 Academy; 7pm | Julia-Sophie, Maria Uzor, Octavia Freud, DJ Simplex; Beloved Oxford songwriter and electronicer Julia-Sophie headlines this Love Music Hate Racism show with a strong undercard of local beat-makers; The Bullingdon; 7pm | Joely June: charismatic, sardonic, defiant guitar pop; Truck Store; 7pm

Friday 30th Ferocious Dog: they’re calling it ‘folk-punk’; O2 Academy; 6:30 | The HorMones + Stop That Pigeon + Late Summer Chickens: Dance away Day of the Dead with Oxford’s real life, real good riot women; Florence Park Community Centre; 7:30 | Mount St Helen (solo) + Dolly Mavies; Head to the Museum of Oxford this evening to hear Mount St. Helen’s stadium-sized rock music somehow stripped down to a solo performance, it could be a revelation – Dolly’s honest, full-hearted pop songs work in any situation; Museum Of Oxford; 6:30 | Deradoorian + Mason Lindahl: Former Dirty Projectors member Angel Deradoorian presents her groovy art-pop songs, with support from the instrumental steel guitar of Mason Lindahl; The Nest; 7pm | Barricane + Doops + Beth Eliza: Moody close-harmony songs from Barricane, fuzzy alt-rock from Doops, and keening piano ballads from Beth Eliza – it’s another eclectic night of Gappy Tooth first-timers of course. Common Ground; 8:30

Saturday 31st Peerless Pirates + Marysgarden + Das Goul +  Puppet Mechanic + Masterdog + Mortifi’d + Mojo Demon + more TBC; A packed all-dayer from Osprey, celebrating Halloween with 7-plus Oxford acts, headlined by everyone’s favourite corsair-themed* party band; Cowley Worker’s Club; 2pm | Liz Jones & John Bruce: rootsy, 70s-style folk-rock songs; The Library; 2pm | Hacktivist, Bldsgr, The Dead XIII, Black Candy, Novacrow, Vampyra, Rattlesnakes, Devilmusk, Necronomicunt, Twin Skeletons; The first day of the city’s annual metal festival is headlined by London’s Hacktivist, featuring Grime MC Jermaine Hurley, but get down early for seasonally-appropriate emo from Twin Skeletons – spooky! The Bullingdon: 12:15