On the cover Matthew Shipp, one of the most gifted, diligent and pioneering pianists and polemicists of his generation. Matthew Shipp's career since the late 1980s has charted a course through the most significant developments in avant garde jazz and new music via collaborations with David S Ware, Daniel Carter, Susie Ibarra, William Parker, Ivo Perelman, and more. By Phil Freeman. Edward George: The writer, researcher, Black Audio Film Collective co-founder and broadcaster has cultivated a singular voice via his Strangeness of Dub and Strangeness of Jazz radio broadcasts and performance lectures. By Francis Gooding. Tears|OV: With a catalogue of releases on the Tapeworm, Industrial Coast and Bloxham Tapes, the sound art adjacent London trio has integrated strings, plunder, looped samples, surreal theatre, and the strange revelations of chance into a highly idiosyncratic whole. By Ilia Rogatchevski. Gigi Masin: Renewed interest in the 1986 album Wind (a landmark release for contemporary ambient electronics) has cast new light on the Venetian composer's back catalogue, including his latest, Movement, which was released this summer by Sacred Bones. By Abi Bliss: Prepared piano. Since the days of John Cage and his early mentor Henry Cowell, prepared piano has become an enduring practice for composers seeking to explore extended techniques and avant garde possibilities. Jo Hutton looks at how contemporary pianists are continuing to work with it and what the method means to them today.