Moby releases a new album in September, entitled Innocents, featuring collaborations with Wayne Coyne, Cold Specks and Mark Lanegan. Scary album cover:
The two new songs, A Case For Shame and The Lonely Night, sound great and can be heard on Moby's website.
The new Nine Inch Nails album, Hesitation Marks, out in September this year, will be issued with separate album covers for each format. Each cover is designed by artist Russell Mills who says about the artwork: “I’ve tried to lock into the album’s prevailing mood and echo the
album’s essence. The ideas are not communicated in a literal or easily
digested form, as this would be boring for me and would insult the
intelligence of a potential audience. I’ve tried to make works that
obliquely allude to the essence of the subject matter, to its emotional
core.”
Mazzy Star release a new album - Seasons Of Your Day, in September this year, their first in 17 years. New song California has Hope Sandoval's gorgeous vocals and typical moody, ethereal feel. It's like they never went away. Read about the band's comeback here on the Spin website.
Sigur Rós are to star in an episode of The Simpsons on May 19th. Entitled 'The Saga of Carl', Homer heads to Iceland in pursuit of Carl and the band feature, provide new music for a score and have a go at the classic theme song.
I've never been a huge David Bowie fan but at the risk of jumping on an already packed bandwagon, this new single, accompanied by a 'creepy' surreal video which isn't quite as odd as it could have been, is rather magnificent. You can see it all here.
This is Bowie's first new song in ten years and this nostalgia trip back to Berlin grows into a cinematic work of genius, subtle and unassuming with a delicate vocal contrasted with huge orchestral music.
Mogwai are to release a new album on November 19th entitled A Wrenched Virile Lore containing remixes of tracks from Hardcore Will never Die, But You Will.
Track listing:
'George Square Thatcher Death Party' (Justin K Broadrick Reshape)'
'Rano Pano (Klad Hest – Mogwai is My Dick RMX)'
'White Noise (EVP Mix by Cyclob)'
'How To Be A Werewolf (Xander Harris Remix)'
'Letters To The Metro (Zombi Remix)'
'Mexican Grand Prix (Reworked by RM Hubbert)'
'Rano Pano (Tim Hecker Remix)'
'San Pedro (The Soft Moon Remix)'
'Too Raging To Cheers (Umberto Remix)'
'La Mort Blanche (Robert Hampson Remix)'
Former R.E.M. guitarist Peter Buck has a new solo album, released on October 5th. The record features Corin Tucker of Sleater-Kinney and the Corin Tucker
Band, Jenny Conley of The Decemberists, Patti Smith guitarist Lenny Kaye
and several other friends and musicians Buck has worked with over the
years.
"I know I said for years that I would never make a solo record. It was
never a plan or a desire but it just kind of happened. When REM called
it a day I'd spent the last 3 months on my back with a semi-crippling
injury unable to play guitar. With my band gone and unable to use the
fingers on my right hand, I started writing lyrics just to have
something creative to do. The lyrics turned into songs and the songs
turned into what felt like a possible album, so I called some of my
favorite musicians, Scott, Mike, Bill, Lenny Kaye, Corin Tucker, Jenny
Conlee, and booked studio time."
Buck has written most of lyrics on the album but vocal duties go elsewhere; however he still feels it is his solo record.
Buck is also quite dismissive about the project: "At this point it is a limited edition of 2,000 vinyl only. As for the
future I may do some performances, but this is not a career, it is
something I am doing for fun."
Will the album be available digitally? Who knows. I hope so.
“If I had wanted to make it a CD, the CD would’ve been out three months
ago,” he said, “but vinyl is what I want to do for right now. It’s a
record—like all records, people will have to look for it, I guess. It’s
not gonna be in Walmart. We’ll see about the digital."
Ok so he's being humble about it all but he was (is) the guitarist in R.E.M. While we all appreciate his artistic integrity, he could reach a huge audience. 2000 copies? Vinyl? Come on, at least give us a digital listen, even for a limited time.
Very cool new video for Knock Knock by Band of Horses, shot in the style of a cheesy 70s nature documentary. The single is taken from the band's fourth album Mirage, out next month. Thanks to NPR.
It's a bit Country, it's a bit rough around the edges, but it's still a new Counting Crows single. The new album Underwater Sunshine is out soon. But for now you can download the single for free.
Feeder return to form with a new single Borders, as a preview for their new album Generation Freakshow, the follow-up to the disastrous Renegades project. Thankfully Grant Nicholas and Taka Hirose (now officially a duo) with session musicians Tim Trotter and Damon Wilson, have ditched the new persona and gone back to the Feeder of old, writing and performing great pop songs and delivering power, melody and energy.
This bodes well for the new album which Nicholas describes as much more commercial and like Yesterday Went Too Soon and Comfort In Sound - both great albums.
The single is backed with Arms, and acoustic versions of Borders and the charity single Side By Side - all superb.
Last night heralded this year's BBC Radio 2 Awards, celebrating the last 12 months best of the folk music world.Veteran June Tabor swept the board and emerged as the best singer, singing the best traditional song, on the best album, with the best group, Oysterband. The album Ragged Kingdom, featuring Bonny Bunch Of Roses, is a revelation and a marvellous balance of the old and the new; a perfect example of how to bring traditional folk right up to date without going too far. And Tabor's voice just gets better with age. The Dubliners and Don McLean picked up Lifetime Achievement Awards at the ceremony presented by Mike Harding and Julie Fowlis at The Lowry Theatre.
The winners (in bold) and nominees:
FOLK SINGER OF THE YEAR
Jon Boden
Jackie Oates
Emily Smith June Tabor
BEST DUO Tim Edey & Brendan Power
Jonny Kearney & Lucy Farrell
Spiers & Boden
Marry Waterson & Oliver Knight
BEST GROUP
Bellowhead
The Home Service June Tabor & Oysterband
The Unthanks
BEST ALBUM
Last – The Unthanks
Purpose & Grace – Martin Simpson Ragged Kingdom – June Tabor & Oysterband
Saturnine – Jackie Oates
BEST ORIGINAL SONG The Herring Girl – Bella Hardy
Last – Adrian McNally (performed by The Unthanks)
On Morecambe Bay – Kevin Littlewood (performed by Christy Moore) The Reckoning – Steve Tilston
BEST TRADITIONAL TRACK Bonny Bunch of Roses – June Tabor & Oysterband
Lakes of Ponchartrain – Martin Simpson
Maids When You’re Young – Lucy Ward
Sweet Lover of Mine – Emily Smith
HORIZON AWARD
Megan Henwood
Lady Maisery
Pilgrims’ Way Lucy Ward
MUSICIAN OF THE YEAR
Andy Cutting Tim Edey
Will Pound
Martin Simpson
BEST LIVE ACT
Bellowhead The Home Service
Peatbog Faeries
The Unthanks
BBC RADIO 2 YOUNG FOLK AWARD
Sunjay Brayne
Blair Dunlop Ioscaid
Graham Mackenzie
Orbital release their new album Wonky in April this year and the video for second track Straight Sun is now on YouTube. The album is produced by Flood.
The BBC 'Sound of...' is generally a good indication of talent to listen out for in the coming year. The shortlists have introduced us to the likes of Florence and The Machine, The Ting Tings, Mumford and Sons, Adele, Vampire Weekend, Dizzee Rascal and Lady Gaga as well as less mainstream artists trying to make it big.
Starting with Niki and The Dove, the Swedish electro-pop duo sound a bit like Florence and The Machine (with a bit of Bjork) as remixed by Underworld. No bad thing as in these days of 80s retrospectives, these guys bring something unique and interesting.
Skrillex (Sonny Moore from Los Angeles) is trying to take electronic music to another level, combining dubstep, hardcore and more conventional dance music elements. It doesn't sound too radical but definitely has an edge.
New York rapper Azealia Banks is best known for 212 (featuring Lazy Jay), a torrent of sexually explicit lyrics wrapped up in half-decent rap-pop, but there needs to be more to Azealia Banks than headlines. Her cover of Interpol's Slow Hands is genuinely interesting but the rest of her material is definitely not radio-friendly. She has talent and with the right direction she can use it.
US singer Frank Ocean seems like nothing new after a few listens but he does bring something fresh to a tired genre. A good voice, if over-produced, and strong, hard-hitting subject matter (see Novacane) is one thing but he sounds in danger of getting lost amongst everyone else.
BBC Sound of 2012 winner Michael Kiwanuka is the only Brit in the top 5 and the obvious choice for first place. A soul/folk combination is not original but his voice is a breath of fresh air. Single Home is a delight.
It's a shame that there appear to be no indie 'guitar' bands on the horizon and I can't say that I'm going to rush out and start buying any of this. Uninspiring top 5.
The Sigur Rós front man Jónsi has provided music for We Bought A Zoo. The animated video for the wonderful Gathering Stories, co-written with director Cameron Crowe, is here...
To celebrate 25 years of Q, top artists have collaborated to remake the classic U2 album Achtung Baby which is 20 years old this year. Great to see Nine Inch Nails, Damien Rice, Patti Smith and Jack White heading the talent. Having heard a few of the covers, this sounds like a fantastic version of a great album.
The track listing is:
Nine Inch Nails - Zoo Station
U2 (Jacques Lu Cont Mix) - Even Better Than The Real Thing
Damien Rice - One
Patti Smith - Until The End Of The World
Garbage - Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses
Depeche Mode - So Cruel
Snow Patrol - Mysterious Ways
The Fray - Trying To Throw Your Arms Around The World
Gavin Friday - The Fly
The Killers - Ultraviolet (Light My Way)
Glasvegas - Acrobat
Jack White - Love Is Blindness
