There's just over a month to go before 2018 comes to a close, and the UK music magazines have begun to weigh in on the year's best music. Uncut and Mojo have published their lists of the Best of 2018, and included among them are David Byrne's American Utopia, Laurie Anderson and Kronos Quartet's Landfall, Olivia Chaney's Shelter, and Jonny Greenwood's Phantom Thread soundtrack.

David Byrne, who has begun his American Utopia arena tour of the UK and Ireland, was a guest on BBC Newsnight on Friday. He spoke with Kirsty Wark about the American Utopia album and tour, the forthcoming release of the complete True Stories soundtrack, and his collaborations with St. Vincent and Fatboy Slim. He also strongly encourages US voters to turn out for the November 6 midterm elections!

David Byrne brings the American Utopia tour back to the UK and to Ireland for eight arena shows starting at the First Direct Arena in Leeds this Sunday and including concerts at the O2 Arena in London, Manchester Arena, Hydro in Glasgow, 3Arena in Dublin, and more. Benjamin Clementine will be Byrne’s special guest for the UK and Irish dates. The tour will then make stops in Amsterdam and Paris before heading to Hong Kong, New Zealand (where Kimbra will be special guest), and Australia. "If you only go to one gig this autumn [or spring, depending]," says the Independent's i, "make it this: David Byrne’s imaginative, breathtaking show is a work of art."

In conjunction with The Criterion Collection’s special-edition DVD and Blu-ray release of David Byrne’s 1986 film True Stories, Nonesuch and Todomundo Records release a comprehensive soundtrack, collected for the first time in one package and in film sequence: True Stories, A Film by David Byrne: The Complete Soundtrack is due on vinyl LP, CD, and digital formats on November 23, 2018. Nonesuch Store pre-orders include an exclusive, limited-edition 12” print of a production photo taken by Byrne. "I always imagined that the music written for True Stories should be heard as it is in the film," says Byrne. "It makes the most sense this way. Me singing the song that was written for John Goodman’s character, Louis Fine, always felt weird to me. It was written for that character, not for me.”

David Byrne's American Utopia tour, which has earned rave review across continents throughout the year, has been shortlisted for a Q Award for Best Live Act. Folks can cast their votes and choose the winners now through Friday, October 5, at qthemusic.com. The awards will be presented at London's Roundhouse on October 17. The American Utopia tour continues in the US through mid-October, and heads back across the Atlantic for two weeks of arena shows in the UK. "If you only go to one gig this Autumn, make it this," exclaims the Independent's i.

Caetano Veloso and David Byrne caught up backstage at Byrne's American Utopia concert on Friday, and Veloso took in the concert from the crowd. He shared his beautiful response to the show on his Instagram, roughly translated from the Portuguese here. "The David Byrne (American Utopia) show is incredible," says Veloso. "It is one of the most beautiful rock or pop concerts ever made and is unlike any other." Read what else he has to say here.

Pitchfork has published its list of "The 200 Best Albums of the 1980s," which it hopes "represents the best of what this innovative decade has to offer." Among the "icons who defined a decade" are Steve Reich for Different Trains / Electric Counterpoint, featuring Kronos Quartet and Pat Metheny, Brian Eno and David Byrne for My Life in the Bush of Ghosts, and Laurie Anderson for Big Science.

David Byrne was a guest on NPR's World Cafe today. He spoke with host Talia Schlanger about his new album, American Utopia, its ongoing tour, and more. His "creativity knows no bounds," says Schlanger. "Exploration, freedom, and a sense of awe rule the day. David Byrne collects wonder from the world around him and sets it to music." Hear the conversation here.

David Byrne's 1986 film True Stories will receive its Blu-Ray and DVD via the Criterion Collection on November 20, 2018. The complete film soundtrack will also be released for the first time on Nonesuch this fall; details to come. Byrne was inspired by tabloid headlines to make True Stories, his sole foray into feature film directing, an ode to the extraordinariness of ordinary American life and a distillation of what was in his own idiosyncratic mind. He uses his songs to stitch together pop iconography, voodoo rituals, and a singular variety show-all in the service of uncovering the rich mysteries that lurk under the surface of everyday experience.

David Byrne's American Utopia tour made its way to the UK for a week of sold-out shows, all met with rave reviews, starting with the NME's declaration: "The American Utopia tour may just be the best live show of all time." "An unforgettably unique, imaginative, and kaleidoscopically entrancing spectacle of music, dance, and theatre," exclaims the Telegraph. "This was something special." "One of the most mind-blowingly meticulous and awe-inspiring productions you could ever hope to see," says the Independent. "Perfection." "Daringly ambitious and full of joy," says the Evening Standard. "Mass exposure to his glorious, life-affirming American Utopia show alone would make the world a better place," says the Scotsman. "An extraordinary, ecstatic show."

David Byrne, who begins the sold-out UK leg of his American Utopia World Tour on Thursday, has announced that he will bring the tour back to the UK and to Ireland for nine shows this autumn, including concerts at the O2 Arena in London, Manchester Arena, Hydro in Glasgow, 3Arena in Dublin, and more. He has also announced that he will take the tour to Australia and New Zealand in November. Additionally, Byrne has added a second performance at Brooklyn's Kings Theatre, on September 16, after the first sold out, and a night at Bass Hall in Austin in October.

David Byrne, whose birthday was earlier this week, was given a special gift by Choir! Choir! Choir!. The group, through which directors Nobu Adilman and Daveed Goldman lead singers and non-singers alike to participate in a mass sing-along, dedicated its latest gathering in Toronto to Byrne's birthday, performing "Everybody's Coming to My House," from his new album, American Utopia. Grab a piece of cake and enjoy the performance here. Byrne joined Choir! Choir! Choir! in NYC to perform David Bowie's "Heroes" earlier this year.