Peter Shep

Florence Welch on a “shifting of priorities” during the making of ‘Dance Fever’

Florence Welch of Florence +The Machine has opened up about her desires in life, away from writing and releasing music. READ MORE: Florence + The Machine live in London: an electrifying show of unity and dance In a new interview with Vogue, the artist spoke about life during the pandemic, the creation of the band’s new album ‘Dance Fever’, and her complicated feelings around motherhood. “I had this drive underneath me and I was like if these songs want to get out, I have to get them out fast, because I do have other desires,” she said. Advertisement Welch added: “The thing I’ve always been sure of is my work, but I do start to feel this shifting of priorities, this sense of like…maybe I want something different.” The band’s fifth album is set for release on May 13 via Polydor, and has been previewed so far by the singles ‘My Love’, ‘King’, ‘Heaven Is Here’ and ‘Free’, which has a Bill Nighy-starring video. Earlier this month, Welch and co. previewed new ‘Dance Fever’ tracks – including ‘Free’ – at a handful of intimate UK gigs, which ended on April 19 in London. Shot by @autumndewilde for @voguemagazine ?https://t.co/pG5GuUag7Y pic.twitter.com/OXdKB5gFNt — florence welch… Read More →

26APRNews

Ed Sheeran joins line-up for Capital’s Summertime Ball with Barclaycard 2022

Ed Sheeran and David Guetta are among the new names to join the line-up for the Capital Summertime Ball with Barclaycard 2022. READ MORE: Ed Sheeran – ‘=’ review: the millennial Lionel Richie indulges his saccharine streak Dubbed “the UK’s biggest summer party”, the concert will take place at Wembley Stadium in London on Sunday, June 12. Tickets go on general sale exclusively on Global Player this Thursday (April 28) – buy yours here. Yesterday (April 25) saw organisers announce the first wave of acts, which included Harry Styles, George Ezra and KSI. Advertisement The line-up was completed during Capital Breakfast With Roman Kemp this morning (April 26), with the news that Sheeran would be returning to the Summertime Ball for the first time since 2014. Other new additions include Guetta, Aitch, Joel Corry and Mimi Webb. You can see the line-up poster in the tweet below. Your complete Summertime Ball 2022 line-up is here ? Pre-sale ticks are now live exclusively on @globalplayer #CapitalSTB pic.twitter.com/R786n6dhUZ — Capital (@CapitalOfficial) April 26, 2022 “We’re back! After a three-year break, we’ve never been so excited to be back at Wembley Stadium for this huge show,” Roman Kemp said in a statement. “I… Read More →

25APRNews

Sam Fender announces North American headline tour

Sam Fender has shared dates for an upcoming North American headline tour, which is set to kick off this July in Toronto. READ MORE: Sam Fender live in Newcastle: a euphoric homecoming for the Toon’s finest The new round of shows comes after the announcement that Fender will be supporting select dates of Florence + The Machine’s US tour, including a stop at New York City’s Madison Square Garden on September 16. The headline tour is also set to stop in New York City on August 9 and in Los Angeles on August 15. See the full list of dates below and view ticket details here. Advertisement He’s also set to play this year’s Lollapalooza music festival in Chicago and Quebec’s Osheaga festival. The singer had previously teased the US tour announcement, posting a photo on social media of a ‘Seventeen Going Under’ billboard in the middle of the desert that read ‘on tour this summer’. He added an eye and American flag emoji as the caption. ??? pic.twitter.com/WWFlMoWPGO — Sam Fender (@samfendermusic) April 24, 2022 Sam Fender North American Tour Dates: JULY 30 – Danforth Music Hall – Toronto, ON 28-31 – Lollapalooza Festival – Chicago, IL 31 – Osheaga… Read More →

25APRNews

Bush announce first London show in five years

Bush have announced details of their first London show in five years, with a one-off UK gig taking place in the capital this summer. The Gavin Rossdale-led band will head out on a European tour in support of their 2020 album ‘The Kingdom’ in June. A North American run of dates will follow later, stretching from July to October. READ MORE: Gavin Rossdale on Bush’s new album ‘The Kingdom’, ‘The Voice’ and catching flak in the ’90s As part of the tour, Bush will perform at London’s O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire on June 13. Tickets for the gig will go on sale at 10am on Friday (April 29) and tickets will be available to purchase here. Advertisement Bush’s full 2022 tour dates are as follows: June 1 – Bremen, Aladin 2 – Antwerp, Trix 7 – Warsaw, Proxima 8 – Berlin, Astra 13 – London, O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire 14 – Tilburg, O13 15 – Munster, Skaters Palace 19 – Padova, Hall 20 – Rome, Orion 21 – Milan, Magazzini 23 – Barcelona, Razzmatazz 24 – Madrid, Kapital July 3 – Grantville, PA, Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course August 6 – Saint Michael, ND, Spirit Lake Casino 7 –… Read More →

24APRNews

Norwegian DJ buys Coachella billboards to raise funds for Ukraine

Norwegian DJ Matoma has bought a number of billboards on the road into Coachella to raise awareness and funds for the Ukraine relief effort. READ MORE: Coachella 2022 review: the festival’s return to the desert is cause for celebration The festival is currently holding its second weekend in Indio, California, and the billboards have been put up by Matoma in collaboration with the Music Saves UA charity. Alongside video of the billboards – which are emblazoned with the slogan ‘DROP BEATS NOT BOMBS’ and feature the blue and yellow of the Ukraine flag – Matoma wrote on Instagram: “Only a few years ago, I played at a festival called Atlas Weekend in Ukraine to a beautiful crowd of people, just like those attending Coachella this year. Advertisement “Those days of freedom are sadly gone for them, and now bombs rain down on their cities. These very same people from Atlas Festival have converted their nightclub to a humanitarian centre (!!!), providing supplies and care for those who need their help. He added: “This is one of the most inspiring things I’ve seen and gives me much needed hope. This club was once filled with free, happy people, and now driven with… Read More →

24APRNews

Watch Toyah Willcox and Robert Fripp cover The Who’s ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’

Toyah Willcox and her husband, King Crimson founder Robert Fripp have shared a cover of The Who’s ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ – check it out below. READ MORE: Toyah Willcox and Robert Fripp’s 10 best lockdown covers – ranked! The clip comes as the next chapter in their long-running ‘Sunday Lunch’ series which was launched in 2020 due to Fripp missing live performance as a result of lockdown. The series has so far seen the couple share renditions of songs by Ramones, Nirvana, David Bowie, Metallica, Billy Idol, The Rolling Stones, Judas Priest, The Prodigy, Guns N’ Roses, Alice Cooper and many more through Willcox’s YouTube channel. Advertisement In recent weeks, they’ve covered ‘Bullet With Butterfly Wings’ by the Smashing Pumpkins, Red Hot Chili Peppers’ ‘Can’t Stop’ and Kaiser Chiefs‘ ‘I Predict A Riot’. Last week’s cover saw the pair deliver their take on Michael Jackson’s ‘Give In To Me’ with Fripp dressed up like Slash from Guns N’ Roses. This week though (April 24) the pair have taken on The Who classic, ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ complete with wind machine and outtake compilation. Check it out below. “This week is a belter and we at team Toyah And Robert… Read More →

23APRNews

Jennifer Grey says her relationship with Matthew Broderick inspired Madonna’s ‘Express Yourself’

Jennifer Grey has revealed that her relationship with Matthew Broderick in the late ’80s was the inspiration behind Madonna‘s ‘Express Yourself’. READ MORE: The Big Read – Madonna: ”People pick on me. That’s just the way it is” Grey and Broderick started dating in 1986 after meeting on the set of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Grey then bagged the role of Baby in Dirty Dancing, catapulting her to new heights of stardom in Hollywood. She and Broderick were engaged to be married, but after about four years together the pair split up and Grey started dating Johnny Depp. Speaking to People magazine, the actor – whose new memoir Out Of The Corner is released May 3 – recalled the time Madonna threw her a 29th birthday party and on the same night shared that her 1989 hit was penned in response to her breakup with Broderick. Advertisement “She told me she wrote ‘Express Yourself’ about me breaking up with Matthew,” Grey said. “She played it for me in her car. I was in my log cabin with Johnny and she said, ‘Come into my car.’ And I got in her Mercedes where she had a really good sound system and she was like, ‘Listen… Read More →

23APRNews

Watch Foals play recent single ‘Looking High’ for the first time

Foals gave their latest single ‘Looking High’ its live debut during a show in Edinburgh this week – check out the fan-shot footage below. READ MORE: The NME Big Read – Foals: “Life is something to be cherished and enjoyed” The song is set to appear on the Oxford band’s seventh studio album ‘Life Is Yours’, which comes out on June 17. On Wednesday (April 20), Foals performed ‘2am’ and the as-yet-unreleased cut ‘2001’ for the first time as they kicked off their 2022 UK headline tour at Edinburgh’s Usher Hall. Advertisement The trio returned to the venue the following night (April 21) where they debuted ‘Looking High’. Tune in here: ‘Looking High’, frontman Yannis Philippakis explained, “is looking back to a more hedonistic time in my life, and a more innocent time in society in general, pre-pandemic and before the existential threat of climate change”. He continued: “It takes place in an alley in Oxford with two clubs – The Cellar and The Wheatsheaf – that all the city’s nightlife gravitated towards.” Foals’ current run of UK gigs continues in Birmingham tonight (April 23) ahead of various festival appearances this summer. You can see their upcoming live schedule below and… Read More →

22APRNews

Ravers say they were “just having some cake” after police shut down illegal party

Over 1000 illegal ravers gathered in Dorset at the weekend, with many defending the rave by referencing the recent ‘Partygate’ scandal. READ MORE: Sadiq Khan on “piss-taker” Boris Johnson and talent coming from London The ravers gathered in Lulworth in Dorset at the weekend in the early hours of Easter Sunday. It was shut down by police over 21 hours later. Police said it took “some time” to disperse the event due to the scale of the event, which saw over 1000 people congregating “with sound systems, tents, vehicles and rave-rending lighting” according to MixMag. Advertisement A statement from police said at the time: “It is reported that about 1000 people are attending the event. A large number of vehicles have also been reported travelling through the area. “We have received a number of calls from concerned and upset residents who have had their sleep disturbed by the noise levels coming from the event. We would like to reassure them that we are fully aware of this unauthorised large gathering of people and we are monitoring the situation and taking steps to deal with it. “Officers are at the scene making enquiries and this includes contact with the landowner. There are… Read More →

22APRNews

Rage Against The Machine announce huge outdoor Edinburgh show

Rage Against The Machine have announced details of a huge outdoor summer show in Edinburgh. The returning four-piece will play the gig two days before the first of their two headline dates at Reading & Leeds Festival on August 26 (Leeds) and 28. READ MORE: The roots of… Rage Against The Machine RATM will perform live at the Royal Highland Showgrounds on August 24 as an extension of Edinburgh’s Connect Music Festival, which will also welcome sets from Massive Attack, The Chemical Brothers and The National from August 26-28. Advertisement RATM will be supported on August 24 by Run The Jewels, Nova Twins and The Last Internationale. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Connect Music Festival (@connectfestsco) Tickets for the Edinburgh show go on general sale at 9am tomorrow (April 23), and you’ll be able to buy them from here. Nova Twins said in a tweet this afternoon (April 22) that they were “beyond honoured to join this legendary line-up” in Edinburgh. We’re supporting Rage Against The Machine!!!!! ❤️‍? We’ve had to keep this secret for far too long, so excited to finally tell u all!! ?? Beyond honoured to join this legendary line-up, can’t thank RATM… Read More →

22APRNews

SEVENTEEN announce new studio album ‘Face The Sun’, reveal release date

SEVENTEEN have announced their upcoming studio album ‘Face The Sun’, and have unveiled details about the upcoming release. READ MORE: ‘SEVENTEEN Power Of Love: The Movie’ review: a sentimental love letter to fans The K-pop group announced today (April 22) at midnight KST that their forthcoming fourth full-length album will be titled ‘Face The Sun’. SEVENTEEN also unveiled the first concept image for the comeback, along with the record’s release date of May 27 at 1pm KST/12am EST. The forthcoming arrival of the new record was first confirmed by the group’s label Pledis Entertainment in March, who at the time announced that the boyband were “preparing to make a comeback with a full-length studio album in May”. SEVENTEEN (세븐틴) 4th Album'Face the Sun' ? 2022.05.27 1PM (KST)? 2022.05.27 0AM (ET)#SEVENTEEN #세븐틴#FacetheSun pic.twitter.com/vbeplTQMY4 — 세븐틴(SEVENTEEN) (@pledis_17) April 21, 2022 Advertisement The upcoming project will be SEVENTEEN’s first domestic release of 2022, and will come almost three years after their previous full-length record ‘An Ode’, which dropped in September 2019. That album featured 11 tracks, led by the title track ‘Fear’. Earlier this month, SEVENTEEN released the fully English single ‘Darl+ing’. The track is SEVENTEEN’s first-ever English single performed by all 13… Read More →

21APRNews

FKA Twigs heads to the nail salon in old-school ‘Oh My Love’ video

FKA Twigs has shared the official video for her recent single ‘Oh My Love’ – you can watch it below. The track appears on the singer-songwriter’s ‘Caprisongs’ mixtape, which was released back in January via Young. READ MORE: The NME Big Read – FKA Twigs – “There are so many sides to me that the world hasn’t seen yet” Arriving this week, the lo-fi and vintage-inspired ‘Oh My Love’ visuals intersperse 80s-looking studio footage of Twigs with shots of the artist visiting a beauty salon. The singer is offered relationship advice while having a set of long acrylic nails applied. Advertisement “Fuck crying over these stupid boys that don’t even recognise the worth in themselves,” the nail artist tells Twigs at one point. “They’re just trying to steal your youth.” The clip was directed by Aidan Zamiri, who also helmed the official videos for Twigs’ previous singles ‘Papi Bones’ (featuring Shygirl), ‘Meta Angel’ and ‘Jealousy’ (featuring Rema). Earlier this month, it was announced that FKA Twigs had directed a new short film, in which she also stars, as part of the 2022 International Woolmark Prize celebrations. Playscape features Twigs and others dancing to ‘He Hu’ by Duval Timothy and Rosie Lowe, before… Read More →

21APRNews

Big Thief’s Adrianne Lenker asks fans to stop talking during support acts’ sets

Big Thief frontwoman Adrianne Lenker has asked fans in a video message to stop talking through their support acts’ sets. The Brooklyn band are currently out on a North American headline tour in support of their fifth studio album, ‘Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe in You’, which came out in February via 4AD. READ MORE: Big Thief – ‘Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You’ review: a new chapter Canadian musician and producer Kara-Lis Coverdale is currently opening for Big Thief at the ongoing concerts, per Stereogum. Advertisement Earlier this week, Lenker took to Instagram to share a video message in which she outlined her “feelings r.e talking during openers and attention/creating respectful show environment in general”. “Hello, friends. Hello. This has been on my mind for a few days now. Actually, I should say this has been on my mind for a lot longer than that,” she began. “It’s really come forward in the last few days that: when music is happening in a room, there’s a performer on stage playing and doing their craft, when you enter into that space, try to be mindful of what’s happening and pay attention and don’t talk. “And if you want to… Read More →

21APRNews

Smashing Pumpkins have completed their “big” and “epic” 12th album, says Jeff Schroeder

According to Smashing Pumpkins’ longstanding guitarist Jeff Schroeder, the band have finished working on their “big” and “epic” 12th studio album. READ MORE: The Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan on being a reformed control freak: “I drove myself with my insecurities” Word of the LP first came before the release of 2020’s ‘CYR’, when frontman Billy Corgan said it would be a sequel to both their 1995 album ‘Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness’ and 2000’s ‘Machina’ records. He described it at the time as “kind of a rock opera”, and confirmed last March that he and the rest of the Pumpkins had begun recording material for it. Work seemed to progress quickly, as Schroeder said last July that the band was “about halfway through” the recording process. During an appearance on the Audio Ink Radio podcast, Schroeder reconfirmed that the Pumpkins’ 12th album would end the saga started with ‘Mellon Collie’ and continued with ‘Machina’, and that it would sport a sprawling 33-song tracklist. Advertisement In another interview with Audio Ink Radio, released today (April 21), Schroeder told host Anne Erickson that the as-yet-untitled album was finally completed, though he conceded that there was “nothing [he] can give details on… Read More →

21APRNews

Bartees Strange announces second album ‘Farm To Table’ and shares new single

Bartees Strange has announced that his second album, ‘Farm To Table’, will arrive in June, sharing new single ‘Cosigns’ along with the news. READ MORE: Bartees Strange: The Washington, D.C. artist bending genres to build his own uncompromising world Set to arrive on June 17, the follow-up to 2020 debut ‘Live Forever’ was previewed last month with lead single ‘Heavy Heart’. That song’s release came with the news that Strange had signed to his “dream label”, 4AD, who will release ‘Farm To Table’. ‘Cosigns’ is a characteristically diverse cut from Strange, melding trappy, auto-tuned verses that shout out Phoebe Bridgers, Lucy Dacus, Courtney Barnett and Justin Vernon, with blistering, anthemic alt-rock refrains. It arrives alongside a video directed by Pooneh Ghana – watch that below: Advertisement NME named ‘Live Forever’ one of the 20 best debut albums of 2020, writing: “The record resists conforming to genre at every turn, blending shades of indie rock, hip-hop, punk, country and more – often within the same song.” Since then, Strange has performed on Late Night With Seth Meyers, performed an NPR Tiny Desk Concert, and released standalone single ‘Weights’. He’s also shared covers of Bon Iver’s ‘Skinny Love’, TV On The… Read More →

20APRNews

‘No Music On A Dead Planet’ announce plans for Earth Day

Music Declares Emergency has announced a new partnership with music industry organisations and a number of global artists to celebrate Earth Day 2022. READ MORE: The music world on the aftermath of COP26: “The future needs reinforcements” A week of activities have been planned that emphasise “the power of music to make real changes that benefit all life on Earth and carry the message of climate action to all corners of the globe”. “From new technologies to smarter finance, bringing the world together in song to revealing new releases from some of the biggest names in music, the week is a celebration of the ability of music to power real change,” organisers said in a statement. Advertisement Under the banner ‘No Music On A Dead Planet’, some of the artists taking part include KT Tunstall, Annie Lennox, Hamilton, The Wombats, Meas Soksophea, Star Feminine Band, South Africa’s Soweto Gospel Choir, Harmony Chorus Bangalore, Stewart Sukuma, The NHS Choir and many more. The global project will see these artists take ‘Resolution Song’ and perform it for the camera to call for peace, unity, global harmony and action on climate, celebrating the differences and similarities that bring us all together. “‘Resolution Song’ is… Read More →

20APRNews

Man sentenced to 190 years in prison for murder of music legend Clarence Avant’s wife Jacqueline

A man has been sentenced to 190 years in prison for murdering Jacqueline Avant, the wife of legendary music executive Clarence Avant. Aariel Maynor, 30, was sentenced yesterday (April 19) after pleading guilty to murder and other charges in Los Angeles’ Superior Court last month and admitting he used an AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle to shoot Avant in her Beverly Hills home on December 1 2021, before firing several rounds at her security guard as he fled, reports Billboard. According to prosecutors, Maynor shot Avant in the back when she surprised him after he broke into the couple’s house during a burglary attempt in which he hoped to steal $50,000 (£38,288). After fleeing the scene, prosecuters claimed that he broke into a separate home in the Hollywood Hills and then accidentally shot himself in the foot as he was leaving. It was alleged that Maynor had searched for information on Clarence Avant and the couple’s address the day before the killing. Jacqueline Avant and Clarence Avant. CREDIT: Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency Jacqueline was known for her philanthropic efforts including being on the board of directors of UCLA’s International Student Center and having acted as president of the Neighbors of Watts…. Read More →

20APRNews

Architects spin out of control in dizzying video for new track ‘When We Were Young’

Architects have released a brand new single called ‘When We Were Young’ – listen to the track below. READ MORE: Architects: “People will recoil in horror at this record – and then find they actually like it” The Brighton metalcore band’s soaring new record is their first new music since the release of their 2021 album, ‘For Those That Wish To Exist’. “‘When We Were Young’ is a song that recognises what is gained and what is lost as we get older,” drummer Dan Searle said of the track. “As the world unfolds around us we can become overwhelmed by its endless complexity.” Advertisement He continued: “When I was 20 I thought I had the whole thing sussed, today I’m pretty sure I’ll never understand reality. We lose our innocence as we age, and although fatalism and cynicism can creep in, we also begin to shift our focus toward gratitude for existence and for those that we love.” The song comes alongside a dizzying video, directed by Searle and produced by Jamie Whymark, which sees the band set up in the centre of a rotating camera rig which captures every angle of their explosive performance. Watch the video for ‘When We… Read More →

20APRNews

Editors share new single ‘Heart Attack’ and add Blanck Mass as full member

Editors have shared their new single ‘Heart Attack’ and confirmed the addition of composer and producer Blanck Mass to their line-up as a full member. Blanck Mass, real name Benjamin John Power (also of Fuck Buttons), previously worked with the band on their sixth album ‘Violence’, which arrived in March 2018. READ MORE: The term ‘landfill indie’ is pure snobbery from people who don’t know how to have fun “Having worked with the band for coming up to five years now, joining Editors seemed more like a natural progression than a decision that had to be made,” Power said in a statement. “We know that we work well together, are on a similar page creatively, and are all very close friends. Advertisement “Being part of a ‘creative conglomerate’ is something that I haven’t experienced for a while now so to be part of something that works in that way again is both liberating and exciting in equal measures.” Editors have also shared their first new music since 2019 with the song ‘Heart Attack’, which frontman Tom Smith has described as “a song of obsession, about losing yourself in someone, a love song, a morbid love song”. The video for ‘Heart… Read More →

20APRNews

The Regrettes follow up playful Coachella 2022 performance with UK summer shows announcement

The Regrettes have announced two headline shows in the UK this summer. Tickets will be available here. The LA band, who had previously shared that they’d be playing TRNSMT, 2000trees, and a Sounds of the City show opening for Foals and Wet Leg at Manchester’s Castlefield Bowl, added two gigs at London’s Omeara on June 24 and Brighton’s Patterns on June 25. See the full list of dates below. READ MORE: The Regrettes’ reinvention: “I want us to go as big as we can. I don’t see a ceiling for us” Tickets for the new dates are set to go on sale on Thursday (April 21) at 10 am BST. Advertisement This news follows the band’s Friday (April 15) Coachella 2022 performance, which saw bassist Brooke Dickson, drummer Drew Thomsen, guitarist Genessa Gariano, and lead vocalist Lydia Night playing their playful, punk, and self-aware album ‘Furthur Joy’ in the desert festival’s Gobi tent. The performance marked the first time they played their track, ‘Show Me You Want Me’ live, and also included the band’s rendition of the Avril Lavigne hit, ‘Girlfriend’. The Regrettes will return to Indio, California for the second weekend of the festival on Friday (April 22). The… Read More →

20APRNews

A Spitfire, Skateboarding Rapper From Atlanta: This Is Mercury

By Arielle Lana LeJarde The experience of coming of age is often captured in art and popular culture. Tales of teen heartbreak, unpredictable change, and finding yourself attempt to mine our collective pangs of adolescence or feelings of nostalgia. But in 21-year-old Mercury’s latest project, Tabula Rasa, the Atlanta-based rapper doesn’t need to try. The album strikes on a visceral level, each song expressing the elastic emotions of growing up. Antithetical to its Latin translation of “blank slate,” Tabula Rasa isn’t meant to serve as a new beginning for Mercury. At the top of 2021, “Slob on My Kat,” Mercury’s raunchy and booty-bouncing response to Tear da Club Up Thugs and Three 6 Mafia’s “Slob on My Knob,” was named Pitchfork’s must-hear rap song of the day. Eight months later, she released her trap-centric debut album MERCTAPE. After only making music for two years, multiple tracks on the record saw over 100,000 Spotify streams on a song, starting with “Cacti.” But these achievements haven’t impeded Mercury’s effortlessly down-to-earth aura. She takes her moniker from Kodansha Comics’s magical girl Sailor Mercury, an extremely shy junior-high student who becomes a guardian of the solar system after forming a foundation with the rest of… Read More →