Bob Dylan may have made his fans wait eight years for the March release of the song A Murder Most Foul, but they didn't have to wait long for the follow-up.
Called I Contain Multitudes, and just like its predecessor, the new song arrived without press release or hype, and no information about when it was recorded or with whom, or if it is part of a new album.
Although less epic than the 17-minute A Murder Most Foul, this new 4.38 minute song – like all of Dylan's best work – is filled with vivid imagery conjured from brutally sparse phrasing, and takes its title from a line in Walt Whitman's poem, Song of Myself.
Quietly delivered – Dylan’s voice is well-worn these days – he breathes lines such as: “Today, tomorrow and yesterday too / The flowers are dying / Like all things do."
With typical Dylan gravel, and toying with imagery, he continues, “I fuss with my hair / And I fight blood feuds / I contain multitudes.”
Over slow tempo instrumentals, he goes on “I got a tell-tale heart like Mr Poe / Got skeletons in the walls of people you know,” before comparing himself to Holocaust victim Anne Frank, and the film character of Indiana Jones. "I'm just like Anne Frank, like Indiana Jones / And them British bad boys, the Rolling Stones / I go right to the edge, I go right to the end / I go right where all things lost are made good again."
Seemingly content to live on the periphery, Dylan knows exactly how to keep his audience confounded by constantly shifting what we think we know of him. Be it switching from acoustic to electric guitar and horrifying his folk music followers back in 1965 (a move that can still ignite arguments) or writing his own autobiography and scooping the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016, Dylan is the master of the enigmatic.
A natural wordsmith, Dylan delivers spartan, eclectic phrasing, loaded with meaning. "What more can I tell you?" he sings, "I sleep with life and death in the same bed."
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Avatar: Fire and Ash
Director: James Cameron
Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana
Rating: 4.5/5
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
War 2
Director: Ayan Mukerji
Stars: Hrithik Roshan, NTR, Kiara Advani, Ashutosh Rana
Rating: 2/5
Classification of skills
A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation.
A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.
The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000.
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Jeff Buckley: From Hallelujah To The Last Goodbye
By Dave Lory with Jim Irvin
