Leo McGurk

Hi everyone, I’m a third year history student and I’d love to be one of your UnCL editors for 24/25. I’ve been involved with Rare FM since second year, when my flatmates and I had a regular slot on Friday mornings. This really sparked a passion for music journalism that I’ve been pursuing since. Whilst on my year abroad at the University of British Columbia, I’ve had the opportunity to write for their student-ran music magazine, Discorder, with a print circulation of 8000 in the Vancouver area. This has significantly improved my experience with music journalism and editorial processes whilst also being a great source of inspiration for how we can improve and diversify UnCL.

I’d like to start regular columns with a more standardised format to give UnCL a greater sense of style and personality. These could be album reviews, gig reviews, interviews with UCL / London based artists and also longer-format pieces. I’d like to focus on reviewing recent albums, but also want to leave space to revisit some of the classics.

I would also like to develop more of a London / UK based identity for the magazine. That’s not to say that other music doesn’t have a place in the magazine, but London has such a vibrant and exciting music scene that I believe we’re in a really unique position to celebrate.

Finally, I’d like to host more in-person meetings / socials for those that would like to contribute to pitch their ideas whilst also fostering a sense of community at the magazine.