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News

SHINee members Minho and Key renew their contracts with SM Entertainment

K-pop idols Minho and Key of K-pop boyband SHINee have renewed their contracts with long-time label SM Entertainment. SM Entertainment announced the contract renewals of both Minho and Key in a statement to South Korean news outlet Sports Chosun, saying that the SHINee duo had re-signed due to a “strong foundation of trust” with the K-pop agency, via Soompi. “We are happy to continue our valuable relationship with Minho and Key,” SM Entertainment added. “We will provide our full support in various ways for Minho and Key to shine not only as members of SHINee but also as solo artists.” In the same statement, Minho and Key also touched on their decision to re-sign with SM Entertainment, saying that the K-pop boyband have “spent every moment together [with the agency] from our beginning until now”. Advertisement “I think we are who we are today because of the agency staff that we have worked together with for a long time,” the SHINee members added. “We hope to continue creating good synergy with SM and establish new and diverse beginnings as artists.” The news comes about a month after SHINee members Taemin and Onew confirmed that they would be leaving SM Entertainment after… Read More →

News

Architects will release new single ‘Curse’ with Jordan Fish tomorrow

Architects will drop a new single, ‘Curse’, featuring former Bring Me The Horizon member Jordan Fish tomorrow (April 9). The Brighton metallers had teased the track by sharing a photo to their social media of a graphic featuring the Architects ‘A’ logo along with the song’s title. Fish’s Instagram handle was tagged in the picture, suggesting he has been involved with their new music. Fish shared the same graphic onto his Instagram story, along with a photo of him in the studio which tagged Architects frontman Sam Carter. Now, the band have confirmed ‘Curse’ will be released at 3pm BST tomorrow. They shared a teaser of the song to their social media, which appears to indicate a return to their heavier roots. Advertisement Their collaboration is the first music released from Fish since his departure from Bring Me The Horizon in December. In a statement confirming his departure from the band after 11 years, Fish suggested he would be “focusing for the meantime on songwriting and production” in his career going forward. Curse 7AM PDT / 3PM BST tomorrowhttps://t.co/2Tb1hWgkpd pic.twitter.com/BhhXcDCCPr — Architects (@Architectsuk) April 8, 2024 Recommended In January, Fish shared a photo of him working on new music after… Read More →

Hit Singles

Jane Weaver – Love In Constant Spectacle

Jane Weaver is playing a very good long game. She’s just turned 52 and has spent over 30 of those years deeply involved in music in Manchester – from her early bands Kill Laura and Misty Dixon to her free-flowing solo output and more wayward projects such as Fenella and NeoTantrik – and yet this latest release, Love In Constant Spectacle, is by some distance her most satisfying album. Full of surprises and tantalisingly familiar, it’s the sound of Weaver stretching out and drawing from her wealth of experience to fashion a heartfelt, head-spinning account of grief and solace. DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE Viewing the curve of her career, you can see how she got here: 2014’s The Silver Globe and its follow-up Modern Kosmology packaged her hippie-ish idealism in proggy chansons and Can-like grooves, a homespun blend of Hawkwind and Hot Chocolate that paved the way for Flock in 2021. This, she’d decided, was to be her pop breakthrough, one she’d play to her swelling fanbase at numerous festivals. She studied the hits of Hall & Oates and the Bee Gees and emulated the parts that worked for… Read More →

News

THE BOYZ announce 2024 ‘Zeneration II’ world tour

K-pop boyband THE BOYZ have announced their upcoming 2024 ‘Zeneration II’ world tour, featuring concerts in Asia, the US, Europe and more. Today (April 8), THE BOYZ announced the first batch of dates for their upcoming 2024 ‘Zeneration II’ world tour. The trek will follow their 2023 ‘Zeneration’ world tour, which had featured 24 dates in Asia. ‘Zeneration II’ will kick-off in July with a three-date show in South, South Korea, before the boyband head to the US for a solo tour the first time since 2022. The US leg of THE BOYZ’s tour 2024 will feature five concerts across four states, with shows in New York, Dallas, Los Angeles and more. In August and September, the boyband will bring their tour to Southeast Asia, with six dates across five different cities, notably including a two-date stop in Bangkok, Thailand. Thereafter, the K-pop act will head to Europe to play shows in Paris and London. Advertisement According to a poster for THE BOYZ’s 2024 ‘Zeneration II’ world tour, more dates will be announced in the future. Ticketing and venue information for the tour have yet to be revealed. Keep tabs on this page for the latest information. The dates for… Read More →

News

The Zutons’ Dave McCabe on how Amy Winehouse telling him to “fuck off” led to her covering ‘Valerie’

The Zutons‘ Dave McCabe has recounted how Amy Winehouse telling him to “fuck off” led to her iconic cover of their song ‘Valerie’. In NME‘s latest series of Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?!, in which we quiz musicians on their own career to see how much they can remember, the Zutons frontman opened up about how the cover came to be. “I met Amy three times in my life,” he recalled. “Once at the Mercury Prize, once in the Camden boozer The Hawley Arms, and once when I was hanging around with this Brummie lad called Boo, who was a tit. “He spent all night comparing me to her, saying: ‘If you’re a 1, she’s a 10’. I thought: ‘OK, I get it, she’s good’. Eventually, I said ‘Look Boo, fuck off being a wanker. You’ve done this for hours and it’s pissing me off’, and Amy turned round and said: ‘Well, you fuck off then!’ to me, because he was her mate. Advertisement “So, I walked out of the house in the strop, and she followed me and pleaded: ‘Please come back. I’m sorry I told you to fuck off,” he continued. “I really like that song’ [‘Valerie’]. We went back… Read More →

News

Krist Novoselic pays tribute to Kurt Cobain on 30th anniversary of his death

Krist Novoselic has paid tribute to Kurt Cobain on the 30th anniversary of his death this week (April 5). Cobain rose to prominence at the end of the ‘80s as the frontman and guitarist of Nirvana – alongside Dave Grohl and Novoselic – and went on to become one of the most iconic figures in rock, particularly the ‘90s grunge scene. He died by suicide on April 5, 1994. Novoselic has paid tribute to his former bandmate in Mojo, where he recalled the opening to their ‘In Utero’ North American tour, which began at Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix. He remembered Cobain as the one “carrying the show”. “We were trying to be professional,” Novoselic recalls of the tour. “So we put on a show for people: an acoustic section, an amazing stage set. It was all about being a world class band.” “The shows rock,” Novoselic continued. “They need to be heard. Now with the AI, you can take a stereo mix and then break it down into a multitrack. So you can get really good mixes. They sound raw. And you get Kurt up there who’s just carrying the show. Amazing.” He went on to say Nirvana remain… Read More →

News

Blink-182 cancel Mexico shows due to illness

Blink-182 have been forced to cancel three shows in Mexico this week following the illness of the band’s bassist, Mark Hoppus. The trio, also comprising of Tom DeLonge (vocals and guitar) and Travis Barker (drums) had already cancelled one show before the two remaining dates were also pulled. “Dear fans, sadly, Blink-182 shows on April 5 and 6 at Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City have been cancelled due to illness,” said promoter Ocesa in a statement on Friday (April 5). While Hoppus wrote on his Discord account: “We don’t take cancelling lightly. We know people booked flights, hotels, made plans, got babysitters…We had multiple lengthy discussions all morning within the band, with promoters, managers. We tried moving the date, tried every possible solution, but this is the reality. We appreciate your understanding and support.” Advertisement He continued: “For me and my illness, I have seen a doctor here and talked to my doctor back home. I am on multiple medications and have been in bed the past three days except to go to the show, and yesterday I was hoping it was just allergies… Saw docs, was told I had an acute infection in my throat and severe… Read More →

Hit Singles

Epic Soundtracks

In this month’s Uncut, we speak to the reigning king of jazz saxophone Kamasi Washington about how his upcoming album is inspired by new life and the need to overcome old divisions. “Music cleanses us,” he explains. Now read on for an extract from our interview… DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE Advertisement Around midnight most evenings, Kamasi Washington will sit down at the piano in the living room of his home in Inglewood, Los Angeles, and begin to compose. Despite being synonymous with the saxophone, he only ever writes on piano, which goes some way towards explaining the harmonic richness of his music. “The piano is so much more versatile as far as being able to play the different parts and hear the song in its entirety,” he explains. “I played piano before I played saxophone, so it was always the logical choice. The saxophone is the racehorse, but the piano is the workhorse.” He never tends to get much written during the day. “When the world gets quieter, it’s easier to focus. There’s rarely something I have to do at one in the morning.” But there’s another reason for his… Read More →

Hit Singles

Hymns Ancient And Modern

In this month’s Uncut, we speak to Myriam Gendron, the enigmatic French-Canadian artist who has been quietly transforming folk songs and Dorothy Parker poems with intense, delicate results. With a new album of her own compositions imminent, we hear her remarkable story. Now read on for an extract from our interview… DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE Advertisement On the wall of the music room in her Montreal home, Myriam Gendron has hung several posters: one from a party to celebrate the poetry publishing house run by her partner; another from a Michael Hurley show at La Vitrola, where Gendron played support; and a billing for Pour La Suite du Monde, a documentary set in the fishing community of a small island on the St Lawrence River. There too, is an enlarged print of a photograph the singer took of a studio house on Villa Seurat in Paris. “Henry Miller used to live there,” she says. “I was a huge fan of Henry Miller when I was a teenager, so I went to visit where he lived.” The picture she took to commemorate that day did not turn out as planned; a… Read More →

Hit Singles

Still On The Ledge

In this month’s Uncut, we speak to Richard Thompson about his brilliant new album, the magic of Big Pink, adventures in the Sahara and imaginary conversations with Sandy Denny. Now read on for an extract from our interview… DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE Advertisement Inconspicuous in a black leather coat and cap, Richard Thompson remains undisturbed as he windowshops on London’s Denmark Street. For one of Britain’s most revered guitarists and songwriters, though, this particular road holds temptations and regrets at every turn. “Roger McGuinn left his Rickenbacker behind in the UK, because the neck was broken,” he says, eyeing a 12-string in one shop window. “Somebody fixed it and I bought it. I’m divorced from it now, but it was good while it lasted. Now I’ve got a Telecaster 12-string, which is great – Jeff Tweedy has three!” Further along the street, past a display fortuitously presenting two models from his past – a Gibson ES-175 and a vintage sunburst Stratocaster – he pauses to peer into the industrial interior of a chic steak restaurant. Thompson used to come here in the ’60s, back when this was La Gioconda coffee… Read More →

Hit Singles

The Woman Who Fell To Earth

In this month’s Uncut, we speak to Annie Clark, aka St Vincent, about her the dramas and demons behind her sublime seventh album, All Born Screaming. Now read on for an extract from our interview… DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE Advertisement Reclining on the sofa in her grand Edwardian hotel suite, Annie Clark seems immaculately composed as she recalls the first strange stirrings of her seventh album. “I had a sense that I wanted to be pummeled by music,” she says matter-of-factly, holding your gaze. “Who knows if I was reacting to things I’ve done in the past, or things that are around in the culture, but I wanted to be just pummeled. Shaken like a rag doll.” She pauses for a moment, maybe for effect, maybe just considering her words carefully, possibly pondering Brian Eno’s maxim that art is a safe space for violent experiment, a plane you can crash and then walk away from. “I really wanted to explore that feeling of digging your fingernails into your thigh,” she concludes. “You know, just so that it bleeds a little…” She looks like she means business. At various times over… Read More →

Hit Singles

Where It’s At

In this month’s Uncut, we bring together The Black Keys‘ Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney and Beck for an exclusive interview to celebrate their work together on The Black Keys new studio album, Ohio Players… Let’s just call them The Beck Keys. Now read on for an extract from this one-off encounter… DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE Advertisement That’s a picnic lunch 20 years in the making. The two acts have been circling each other for decades, bound by their shared love of blues, funk and soul. After touring together in 2003, the three musicians often talked about jamming, recording or just hanging out together, but their plans only finally came to fruition in 2022, when Beck stopped by Auerbach’s Easy Eye Sound Studio in Nashville and the trio raced through a handful of songs in an afternoon. “When you’re working on a record and the songs are coming together, whatever the energy and the vibe, it just goes into the music,” says Beck. Such energies are evident on the lively Ohio Players, which combines the thickfreak attack of The Black Keys with Beck’s bottles-and-cans-and-just-clap-your-hands aesthetic. Of the album’s 14 tracks, Beck co-wrote seven and played on several others,… Read More →

Hit Singles

“I’ll Be Your King Volcano!”

This month’s Uncut cover story digs deep into David Bowie‘s groundbreaking Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars album, as an expansive new box set, Rock N Roll Star!, unearths outtakes, alternate versions, radio sessions and more to shed new light on his doomed extra-terrestrial rocker. In this excerpt from our cover story, we preview 10 tracks from the upcoming Rock N Roll Star! box… DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE Advertisement DISC 1 “Hang On To Yourself” [Early demo] Advertisement Bowie had just met Gene Vincent when he recorded this demo at the home of an RCA executive in the US in February 1972, which might explain the retro feel of one of the Ziggy songs that took longest to get right. “Sweet Head” [Haddon Hall rehearsal] An early version of the Ziggy outtake that was probably dropped from the running order due to the sexual references. Bowie also dropped “Velvet Goldmine” for similar reasons – and along with the use of American slang, it shows that he was actively courting the US market. DISC 2 “I’m Waiting For The Man” [BBC Radio session] Bowie’s love of the Velvet Underground… Read More →

Hit Singles

Alice Cooper – Billion Dollar Babies (reissue, 1973)

Supporting the old trope that you must suffer for your art, Alice Cooper got an opus out of a toothache. On “Unfinished Sweet”, the deranged heart of the band’s sixth studio album, Billion Dollar Babies, frontman Vincent Furnier sings some lowdown dental blues, describing the pain like a “Saint Vitus dance on my molars tonight” and wincing at the paranoid hallucinations prompted by the laughing gas. The rest of the band are just as committed to the ludicrous concept, with Glen Buxton duetting with a dental drill before colliding head-on with a surf-rock/spy-theme breakdown. At no point does dentistry become a metaphor for anything else associated with rock’n’roll. It’s not about sex or VD. It’s not about drugs or ODs. It’s just candy and cavities. DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE Therein lies the appeal of Alice Cooper. There was no concept so stupid that it couldn’t be parlayed into a catchy rock song, no idea so weird they couldn’t deliver it to radio with a black bow on top. Before the Ramones made dumb sound smart, Alice Cooper reveled in juvenile jokes, adolescent alienation and bludgeon-to-the-brain riffage. The band developed… Read More →

Hit Singles

Perfect Circle

On a Thursday night in February at the famous 40 Watt club in Athens, Georgia, REM fans got to witness the closest thing we may ever see to a full-band reunion. As actor Michael Shannon and guitarist Jason Narducy brought their touring celebration of 1984’s Murmur to REM’s hometown, members of the original band began joining the the fray, until Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills and Michael Stipe were sharing a stage for the first time in 17 years. DAVID BOWIE IS ON THE COVER OF THE LATEST UNCUT – ORDER YOUR COPY HERE “Bill asked us if he could play piano on ‘Perfect Circle,’ which he does on the record,” says Narducy. “And when I saw ‘Pretty Persuasion’ coming up on the setlist, I asked our stage manager to see if he could find Mike Mills and invite him up, since that song has such heavy backing vocals. He jumped up and kept on jumping up.” Buck, meanwhile, had been at the club since soundcheck, giving Narducy a few pointers. “Even when he was on-stage with us, he’s showing me these little things as he was playing on the record. It was very touching for a massive fan… Read More →

News

Black Strobe artist Arnaud Rebotini accused of sexual assault and harassment

French musician Arnaud Rebotini has been accused of sexual assault and harassment by seven different women. According to an investigation by Mediapart, Rebotini was accused of sexual assault and harassment over the course of 13 years with various allegations allegedly taking place at his concerts. The French publication shared an Instagram post reporting on the allegations with the outlet writing in the caption: “Seven women testify in Mediapart to having been sexually assaulted and harassed on the sidelines of concerts by the famous French composer,” (translated from the French via MixMag). Advertisement Per Resident Advisor, Rebotini has denied all of the claims alleged by the women who testified to Mediapart which inculded incidents of groping and sexual harassment amongst other accusations. However, Rebotini did admit to being an “annoying, old-fashioned flirt,” but denied being a “sexual aggressor,” via Mediapart. He continued: “If I behaved badly and they suffered trauma, I apologise. These are things I wouldn’t do again, I’ve completely moved on.” Joran Le Corre, Rebotini’s tour manager also went on to admit that he was aware of the allegations, telling the outlet: “Friends of mine have suffered things. It’s serious, but these are quite old stories.” Recommended He continued: “Arnaud is… Read More →

News

Jerry Abbott, father of Pantera’s Dimebag and Vinnie Paul, dies aged 80

Jerry Abbott, the father of late Pantera members Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul, has died at the age of 80. The news of his passing was reported by a friend, Danny Wood Sr., who wrote a post announcing the news on social media. “I’m very sad to tell everyone of the passing of a close friend Jerry Abbott. He died last night in a Denton care giving facility. His Family is having a private Funeral for Family and close Friends with a Memorial Service being planned. Details soon.” Abbott was a musician and recording engineer and played a key role in developing Pantera during their formative years. He managed the band and co-produced their albums in the ’80s. In 2014, Abbott released his autobiography Over My Shoulder: The Life and Times of Jerry Abbott, in which he opened up about his relationship with his sons and the success and subsequent break up of Pantera. He wrote in the book: “Too much success can breed failure and often does. I think that’s an accurate assessment of what happened to Pantera. It’s like a marriage that’s just too good to believe, and the next thing you know it’s on the rocks.” (L-R)… Read More →

Hit Singles

Introducing the 500 Greatest Albums of the 1990s…Ranked!

1991, according to the title of a documentary about Sonic Youth, was “The Year Punk Broke”. What they meant by this was that 1991 was finally when punk – the traditional music of abrasion, alienation and catharsis – finally became commercially successful. It was a strange turn of events, as if this wasn’t in the first place an absurd expectation for such music. In truth, while exciting music was certainly being made by Sonic Youth, Dinosaur Jr, Mudhoney and Babes In Toyland and others featured in Dave Markey’s documentary, the majority of the actual breaking was being done by Nirvana. As Stephen Deusner writes in his review of Nevermind in this new magazine, other artists launched careers, reinvigorated genres and sold more records in 1991, but no-one had quite the cultural influence of Nirvana. True enough, the bands of Britpop – by some reckonings the other dominant genre of the decade – made lesser incursions overseas, but for huge numbers of inland youth the successes of these bands marked a breaking of their own: a victory over the imagined gatekeepers of the pop charts, the ones keeping Take That at the top. If in the previous decade success might have… Read More →

Hit Singles

Live! Paul Weller, The Lighthouse, Poole (04/04/24)

Paul Weller is not going gently into that good night. On the cusp of turning 66 – the title of his upcoming album – the ever-changing mod-rock godfather remains an edgy, bristling, wired presence onstage; still fired by youthful belligerence despite that sleek silver swoop of hair. Kicking off a short British tour in Poole, Weller keeps his stage banter genial but spare, giving little away. A Palestinian flag hangs behind him, a reminder of his long legacy of political statements. With barely a lull across two frenetic hours, he plays even gentle folk-pop ballads like he is itching for a fight. Powered by a muscular six-piece band, including two drummers, this Poole show mostly sticks within Weller’s boisterous, high-decibel comfort zone. There is doubtless an element of playing to his geezer-rock heartland here: the public gets what the public wants. But all this burly clobbering risks underselling the subtle beauty of songs like the soulful, intricate “Mayfly”or the wafting, perfumed “Above The Clouds”. Even so, there are softer sonic textures in the mix, notably when honking tenor sax player Jacko Peake switches to pastoral flute and plaintive melodica on more introspective tracks like “Glad Times”. Weller may be naturally pugnacious, but manages… Read More →

News

Loka Manya Prawiro’s ‘I Love You Evermore’: A Musical Journey of Love and Loss

Loka Manya Prawiro, a seasoned musician with a rich tapestry of life experiences, unveils his latest musical offering, I Love You Evermore. This deeply personal album is a testament to Prawiro’s resilience in the face of adversity, capturing the essence of love, loss, and spiritual growth. Born in 1961, Loka‘s musical journey began at a young age, driven by a passion for music that transcends conventional boundaries. Influenced by a diverse array of genres, including pop, rock, soul, R&B funk, and classical instrumentals, he has crafted a unique sound that defies categorization. Despite facing personal tragedies, including the loss of his mother to cancer in 2018, Prawiro found solace in music. After an 18-year hiatus, he returned to the studio, channeling his emotions into his compositions with raw honesty and authenticity. I Love You Evermore, originally penned in Indonesian as “Aku Makin Cinta” for his beloved wife, stands as a timeless classic that resonates deeply with listeners. Each track on the album reflects Loka‘s personal journey, offering a glimpse into the depths of his soul. Collaborating with seasoned music arranger and producer Aminoto Kosin, as well as the Budapest Scoring Orchestra, Prawiro has created a symphonic masterpiece that evokes a… Read More →

News

BtoB’s Sungjae on the secret behind the boyband’s longevity: “We don’t really contact each other”

Sungjae of BtoB has revealed that contrary to popular belief, the group do not contact each other often, saying this is the secret behind their longevity as a team. The singer-actor recently made a guest appearance on singer Jung Jae-hyung’s YouTube series, Fairy Table on its March 31 episode. Over the course of the hour-long episode, Jung asks Sungjae about his years-long experience in the K-pop industry. “You’ve been in the K-pop scene for quite a while. Right, Sungjae? It seems like many K-pop idols burn out after about 10 years. Maybe I’m wrong, but that’s just what I’ve noticed,” Jung says, per SBS Star, to which Sungjae replies: “That’s right. A lot of groups don’t last longer than seven years as well.” This is commonly due to most K-pop idol group contracts stipulating a seven-year period of effectiveness, after which many idols opt to leave their companies in pursuit of other endeavours. This sometimes either result in permanent group disbandment or prolonged hiatuses. Advertisement However, Sungjae begins talking about the steps he and his bandmates have been taking recently to maintain their presence as a K-pop act. “For us, BtoB, we made some changes recently. For the first time, Changsub and… Read More →