Mean World News Today

These local acts weren't in the mood for any tomfoolery when they released a handful of debut EPs and several singles.

Hunter Bates founded Mean World Records and records Denver bands like In Plain Air, Shady Oaks and the Losers Club.

To kick off the new year, our music journalist Craig Havighurst offers this in-depth analysis of how two great and sweeping genres - jazz and Americana - can have such different audiences and narratives in contemporary life despite their common origins in the blues. Reviewed are two releases - the 10th anniversary vinyl edition of Esperanza Spalding's Grammy Award-winning Radio Music Society and sax player JD Allen's new and provocatively titled Americana, Vol. 2.

The real new year and its resolutions start tomorrow. We will all try to exercise more, drink less, lose weight and save more money. These are the most common promises that we make to improve our health and well-being. But there is something missing from this list. What are we doing to take care of our mental health? Ireland has one of the highest rates of mental illness in Europe. More than 18pc of us have suffered from anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression or substance abuse. We are not a st...