Music, Rock & Pop

US rapper J-Live not playing Glasgow, just Edinburgh

12 May 2008

Further to our announcement that rising NYC rap star J-Live is to come to Scotland this month, we wish to make it clear he is only playing one date, the Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh on Monday 19 May and not, as we previously stated at the Ivy in Glasgow on…

Pete Doherty announces Glasgow Barrowland show

12 May 2008

Babyshambles frontman Pete Doherty is out of jail and getting back to doing what he does best: playing live to an adoring audience

Sugababes, The Feeling And Gnarls Barkley to play Princes Street Gardens

9 May 2008

Sugababes, The Feeling And Gnarls Barkley are to perform in Edinburgh’s Princes Street Gardens on Sunday June 1st. The Sugababes, with a line up now consisting of Keisha, Heidi and Amelle, have sold five million albums (including 3 triple-platinum…

Girls Aloud to broadcast concert live to UK cinemas

8 May 2008

Girls Aloud are to broadcast their London concert to 50 Vue cinemas across the UK.

Hey You Get Off My Pavement! announces line up

8 May 2008

The best-monikered music festival in Scotland - Hey You Get Off My Pavement! - returns to Glasgow’s King’s Court on 29 June.

New social networking site targets Scottish talent and fans

8 May 2008

Ooizit.com, a new online social networking site purely dedicated to exposing and supporting unsigned local music talent, is scouting for the very best new music, artists and fans that Scotland has to offer. Users can upload their music, videos…

Conor Oberst and Gutter Twins for Hydro Connect festival

7 May 2008

Bright Eyes head honcho Conor Oberst brings his new band The Magic Valley Band to Hydro Connect festival this summer. This will be Oberst’s first venture to Scotland in this new guise.

Sergeant and I Was a Cub Scout to play JD Set in Glasgow

21 Apr 2008

Fife rockers Sergeant, recently tipped for success by Alan McGee in the Guardian, are to play a JD Set gig at Glasgow's Cathouse on the 25 April. The Jack Daniels-sponsored event will see the band joined by Nottingham's I Was a Cub Scout. Tickets can…

O2 Wireless Weekenders coming to Scotland

21 Apr 2008

The O2 Wireless festival is branching out from London, with a set of O2 Wireless Weekenders around the UK. Joining dates in Birmingham, Bristol, Newcastle and Manchester will be two shows in Glasgow. The first is at Oran Mor on 9 May, and is the…

Pete Doherty Welfare Fund launched by fashion website

18 Apr 2008

Discount fashion website lastseason.com today announced it's to set up a 'Pete Doherty Welfare Fund'. It's aim is to help the troubled singer get back on his feet when he gets out of jail in late July. 'Pete's incredibly talented and as a musician he…

Digitalism cancel Glasgow show

18 Apr 2008

German laptop electro duo Digitalism have cancelled the remainder of their UK tour, including a date at Glasgow's Arches on 22 April, due to unspecified band illness. The pair said in a statement: "We are really sorry that we have to cancel our UK…

Chrome Hoof, Mikel Rouse cancel Triptych shows

18 Apr 2008

London krautfunk orchestra Chrome Hoof have had to pull out of their date at the Triptych festival. The band were due to play Optimo at Glasgow's Sub Club on 27 April, making them one of the last acts to appear at the final Triptych. Reasons for…

Jay-Z to play Scotland

17 Apr 2008

Hip hop superstar Jay-Z is to play dates at Glasgow SECC on 20 July and Aberdeen Exhibition Centre on 21 July as part of a wider UK tour. The rapper, who reportedly married his girlfriend Beyonce last week, will first headline Glastonbury on 28 June…

Santogold to play Scottish date

17 Apr 2008

New York-based singer and producer Santogold is to play a one-off Scottish date at Glasgow's Sub Club on 30 May. The gig will be part of the Kinky Afro club night. Santogold, real name Santi White, releases her debut album on 12 May, and is tipped to…

Retrofest 2008 lineup announced

17 Apr 2008

The bill for Retrofest, Scotland's annual festival of pop nostalgia, has been announced. The event, which moves to a new home at Strathclyde Country Park, Motherwell from its old location at Culzean Castle, Ayrshire, is expected to attract 15,000 fans…

Drive By Argument announce debut album and Scottish tour

17 Apr 2008

Glasgow rockers Drive By Argument have announced the release of their eponymous debut album, which will be out on Lizard King on 12 May. The group have also announced a short Scottish tour to promote the album, which was produced by Apollo 440's…

The Kills

16 Apr 2008

Being as cool as The Kills must be exhausting at times. They have thrived since they emerged amid the flurry of ‘The’ bands that brought us, among others, The Strokes. Happily, however, they’ve surpassed their lethargic contemporaries and are here with…

Xfm Scotland's Jim Gellatly wins radio award

16 Apr 2008

Jim Gellatly of Xfm Scotland was honoured with a PRS John Peel Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music Radio last night, 15 April. The award was presented at the Radio Academy's Celebration of Music Radio event at the London O2's Indigo2 venue, and…

Kate Moss joins The Kills in Edinburgh

16 Apr 2008

Supermodel Kate Moss watched her fiance Jamie Hince's band The Kills in action on Wednesday night, as their current UK tour kicked off in Edinburgh. The Anglo-American duo of guitarist Hince and singer Alison Mosshart, who recently released their…

Kaiser Chiefs to play intimate Scottish dates

16 Apr 2008

Kaiser Chiefs will play three warm-up gigs in the Scottish Highlands next month, ahead of their show at Leeds' Elland Road stadium. The band, currently recording the follow-up to 2007's Yours Truly, Angry Mob, play Strathpeffer Spa Pavilion on 19 and…

Waterboys set for top billing at Tartan Heart

15 Apr 2008

He's a singer, he's a songwriter and he can play almost as many instruments as the London Symphony Orchestra. Now Mike Scott is set to top the bill with his band Waterboys at the Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival in Inverness-shire. Joining them…

Isle of Skye Music Festival 2008 cancelled

15 Apr 2008

The Isle of Skye Music Festival, which has previously attracted acts like Kasabian and Primal Scream, has been cancelled for this year. The event has been called off after organisers announced a shortfall of £500,000, with administrators being…

Amy Winehouse begins work on Bond song

15 Apr 2008

Amy Winehouse has begun collaboration on the theme song for the new James Bond film with producer Mark Ronson in Oxfordshire. The high profile musician, who has battled against narcotic addiction, is set to swap rehab for a certain type of martini…

Little Comets get their own coffee

15 Apr 2008

Indie rockers Little Comets are to play an intimate coffee shop gig in Edinburgh to launch their own blend of coffee. Michael Wilson, barista at Artisan Roast on Broughton Street, first encountered the band at Newcastle Central Station in January, as…

The Edge replaces T on the Fringe

14 Apr 2008

DF Concerts, the promoters behind T in the Park, are rebranding their August live music series at the Edinburgh Fringe as The Edge. The month-long series has been an annual fixture since 2000 although, as DF's partnership with Tennent's on T in the…

Bis singer makes solo return

10 Apr 2008

Sometime Bis singer Amanda McKinnon has announced details of a debut solo album on her website. The album, which will be released under her Manda Rin alias, is entitled 'My DNA' and is due this summer on This Is Fake DIY Records, as is the first single…

Indie record stores unite

10 Apr 2008

Glasgow and Edinburgh's independent record store Avalanche Records is to head up the Coalition of UK Indie Stores, a trade body which will fight for the interests of independent music shops across the UK. The initial grouping includes 15 of the…

Paul Haig

10 Apr 2008

INDIE Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Sun 13 Apr When Josef K named their solitary album The Only Fun in Town in 1981, it was as dry a statement on Edinburgh nightlife as a band named after a Franz Kafka character could muster. Almost 30 years on, ex-Josef K…

5 Reasons To Go See - Edwyn Collins

10 Apr 2008

The Scottish troubadour’s career has spanned 30 years, during which time he’s been a relentlessly original and innovative artist, redefining pop music first with his band Orange Juice and then as a solo artist of great renown. Three years ago Collins…

Down The Tiny Steps, Le Reno Amps and Doug Johnstone

10 Apr 2008

INDIE FOLK 13th Note, Glasgow, Thu 20 Mar A little bit country, a little bit rock’n’roll. And, to kick off, some acoustic folk from sometime author Doug Johnstone who, confusingly, is premiering the back catalogue of The Ossians, a band invented for…

Eagleowl

10 Apr 2008

INDIE Liquid Room, Edinburgh, Thu 20 Mar Not to be confused with the vicious bird world nasty they’re named after (who loves a bit of dog eating and deer biting), the Eagleowl live experience is a very gentle thing, like watching clouds dragged at a…

Exposure - Pete and the Pirates

10 Apr 2008

A rag tag band of five Reading songwriters press-ganged into service as a functioning indie pop group after a gig down their local, Pete and the Pirates are presently leading a stealthy campaign to become your new favourite band. Melodic, upbeat…

Festivals update

10 Apr 2008

Connect, T in the Park and Rock Ness all make announcements The Connect festival returns this year as Hydro Connect, with a clutch of quality acts over 29-31 August including Franz Ferdinand, Sigur Ros, Spiritualized, The Gossip and The…

Make Model

10 Apr 2008

Shimmering indie that doesn’t quail at the thought of massed harmonies, tinkling piano refrains and crunchy guitars; Make Model are a Scottish talent to watch as they launch new single ‘LSB’ through EMI. Catch them in a venue of this modest size while…

Natty

10 Apr 2008

REGGAE Nice’n’Sleazy, Glasgow, Tue 1 Apr ‘You’ve made my night very enjoyable,’ says Natty at the end of his infectiously sunny set, before needlessly adding: ‘I hope I have yours.’ It’s a suitably charming signing off from this Londoner; fresh from…

Next stop, the Universal

10 Apr 2008

Scots musicians mark their homecoming from Tartan Week with a show Glasgow musicians Louise Cairns, Keith Warwick and Simone Welsh have announced they will follow up their appearance at New York’s Tartan Week with a show in London before heading up…

Soma Skool is back

10 Apr 2008

Big Scottish music industry names are confirmed for the educational event Soma Records' Soma Skool returns to Glasgow this month. Dave Clarke, DJ Sneak, Anja Schneider, Vic Galloway and music managers Dee Bahl and John Williamson take to the Arches…

Televised Crimewave

10 Apr 2008

Punk club night Fast is joined by Televised Crimewave, formed from the ashes of Leeds art-punks Black Wire (who inspired the Kaiser Chiefs’ ‘I Predict a Riot’), and now favour a raw, raucous no wave garage sound with a reputation for wild live shows. ‘I…

We Are Scientists

10 Apr 2008

Now stripped down to a two-piece after drummer Michael Tapper left last year, We Are Scientists’ new album, Brain Thrust Mastery, has a distinct 80s feel. Not as immediate as their taut, spiky debut With Love and Squalor the record still showcases their…

Calvin Harris gig postponed

7 Apr 2008

Dumfries electro popster's Barrowland gig is off Calvin Harris has cancelled his upcoming live show at Barrowland, Glasgow, which was due to go ahead on Sunday 13 Apr. A statement on the singer's official website (www.calvinharris.tv) reads: "We…

The Gossip - Live In Liverpool

27 Mar 2008

LIVE ALBUM (Columbia) The Gossip may have been catapulted to fame on the back of an advert for E4 teen-soap Skins, but they’ve been playing spine-tingling gigs on the underground for years, and this live performance, recorded in Liverpool’s Carling…

Barry Adamson

27 Mar 2008

Barry Adamson is making his pitch. The way the composer, crooner, ex-Magazine and Bad Seeds bassist and now big(ish) band leader tells it regarding his forthcoming eighth album, Back to the Cat, though, sounds like making movies. But then, the absorbed…

Amplifico - See Heart, See Muscle

13 Mar 2008

POP ROCK (MDM Creations) A triumph in genuinely independent music, savvy Scots Amplifico, following voiceful label interest but seeking commitment, have fashioned a self-released debut of assured distinction and depth. Boasting ballsy rather than more…

Madonna’s new album Hard Candy out in April

3 Mar 2008

After selling eight million copies of Confessions on a Dancefloor worldwide, Madonna will return with follow up, Hard Candy, on 28 April. Among her musical collaborators this time round are Justin Timberlake, Pharrell Williams, Timbaland and Nate…

Leonard Cohen

28 Feb 2008

There’s no particular reason why Glasgow poetry promoters Vital Synz are holding a Leonard Cohen Supper this fortnight. It’s not the great songwriter’s birthday, and he’s still, as far as we know, in rude health. He is being inducted into the Rock…

Exposure - Parka

28 Feb 2008

Tomorrow’s music today. This issue: Parka While the name might scream Ocean Colour Scene, Glasgow’s Parka’s two singles so far (‘If You Wanna?’ and ‘Disco Dancer’, both on Jeepster) actually combine the earthy rock of Stereophonics with a bit of The…

Tina Dico

28 Feb 2008

Danish vocalist Tina Dico came to most of our attentions thanks to her work with chill out boffins Zero 7, particularly on the track ‘Home’. It was her ethereal vocals that lifted the tune to another level. Over the years she’s starred in a Danish…

Various - Rough Trade Counter Culture 07

14 Feb 2008

EVERYTHING (Rough Trade) If anything can be gleaned from these expansive, annual compilations its this: try as you might you can’t keep up with all the fine new music around unless you actually run a record store. And while you might have…

American Music Club - The Golden Age

31 Jan 2008

(Cooking Vinyl) AMERICANA Terminal romantics Mark Eitzel and AMC have been breaking hearts and taking names for over 20 years and still manage to turn out new albums that surprise with songs that are utterly evocative, fragile, dry, witty and truly…

Bob Mould - District Line

31 Jan 2008

(Beggar’s Banquet) ROCK Mould is rightly regarded as a legend for his work in seminal hardcore outfit Hüsker Dü, and the bristling grunge-pop of Sugar, but his solo outings have been hit and miss. District Line is no different, showing glimpses of…

Colin MacIntyre

31 Jan 2008

POP Gone is the Mull Historical Society pseudonym and in its place is Colin MacIntyre, a couple of choirs and a veteran politician. After three critically acclaimed albums, MacIntyre is back with his latest, The Water, and a set at Celtic…

Correcto - Correcto

31 Jan 2008

(Domino) INDIE This foursome may boast the talent of two of Glasgow’s indie glitterati – Franz Ferdinand’s Paul Thomson and Patrick Doyle of The Royal We – but there’s so much more to Correcto than the hype about their famous members. The band’s…

Drive-By Truckers - Brighter Than Creation’s Dark

31 Jan 2008

(New West) COUNTRY ROCK Any band with songs called ‘Daddy Needs a Drink’ and ‘You and Your Crystal Meth’ can’t be all bad, and so it proves, as Drive-By Truckers here provide a fantastically sprawling trawl through the Southern Gothic hinterland of…

Eels - Meet the Eels

31 Jan 2008

(Geffen) ROCK Mark Everett has always been the outsider on the inside – the indie kid on the major label, the shy freak adopted by the LA cool crowd, the bearded freak on Top of the Pops. This collection of his band’s finest moments confirms…

Endor, Q Without U and Jesus H Foxx

31 Jan 2008

INDIE is this music?, the magazine/website which sponsors tonight’s show, prides itself on spotting upcoming talent. However, they also show loyalty to neglected bands from the past. Jesus H Foxx (formerly Sweetheart) tick both boxes. Describing…

Envelopes - Here Comes the Wind

31 Jan 2008

(Brille) INDIE Envelopes are more than a little unconventional, and in a world where past-plundering dullards like The Courteeners are tipped for the top, you’ve got to be grateful for every bit of eccentricity you can find. Here Comes the Wind is…

Helen Boulding - New Red Dress

31 Jan 2008

(Maid in Sheffield) INDIE POP GUFF Connections aren’t everything. Sheffield singer-songwriter Boulding has worked with members of The Verve, Pink Floyd and Squeeze, Youth produced this debut album, and Bryan Adams even took the cover shot (!?). Yet…

Hot Chip - Made in the Dark

31 Jan 2008

(EMI) POP Hot Chip were in mortal danger of being ‘that band that did the over and over song’. Lucky then, that this, their third long player, is crammed full of bloody marvellous tracks. Providing some kind of parping, clunking, rolling…

I Was a Cub Scout - I Want You to Know That There is Always Hope

31 Jan 2008

(XL) EMO From the knowingly wordy title to the swathes of epic keyboards and echoey guitars, this album has ‘emo’ written all over it. Strange, then, that it comes not from the college heartland of America, but rather from a nerdy Nottingham…

Joe Lean & The Jing Jang Jong

31 Jan 2008

INDIE All skinny jeans and wiry frame Joe Lean is a complex multi-media construct. Born Joseph Beamont, ex-drummer with The Pippettes (under the stage name Robin of Loxley) also known by his acting name Joe Van Moyland as seen in Peep Show, Nathan…

Los Campesinos! - Hold on Now, Youngster . . .

31 Jan 2008

(Wichita) INDIE Born from an unabashed love of DIY music scenes and a totally understandable distaste for tired Libertines copycats such as The Kooks, Pigeon Detectives and The View, Los Campesinos! hope to offer music fans something genuinely…

Lupe Fiasco - The Cool

31 Jan 2008

(Atlantic) HIP HOP The fondness for branding artists the ‘new’ someone means they have little or no time to establish themselves as themselves. So, with this in mind, young Master Fiasco is neither the new Kanye West or Jay-Z, though the Chicagoan…

Paul Vickers & The Leg - Tropical Favourites

31 Jan 2008

AVANT-ROCK (SL Records) In one fearsome circle of hell or another, Paul Vickers & The Leg would provide the children’s entertainment. The Edinburgh supergroup – Dawn of the Replicants’ Vickers, backed by the band formerly known as Desc, and Khaya…

Rags and Feathers and Eugene McGuinness

31 Jan 2008

ROCK FOLK ‘Heckle us if you like!’ was a brave challenge from Rags and Feathers frontman Tom Davis, especially as the band was apparently brought to life in this very venue only a few months previously. But there was nothing to find fault in during a…

The Duke Spirit - Neptune

31 Jan 2008

(You Are Here) ROCK ‘I do believe in something, you know,’ intones Duke Spirit Leila Moss over the short, hymnal intro to her band’s new album. Judging by the other eleven songs on here, that belief extends as far as the kind of flurrying…

The Mars Volta - The Bedlam in Goliath

31 Jan 2008

(Universal) ROCK Listening to the barrage emanating from the speakers for 78 minutes it’s hard to believe that Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and Cedric Bixler-Zavala (for they are the heart, soul and hair of The Mars Volta) have reeled things in for album…

The NME Tour Featuring The Ting Tings

31 Jan 2008

INDIE Mix indie music, punk attitude, clubby vibes, pop melodies and art-rock sensibilities, then say hello to The Ting Tings, the Mancunian duo of Katie White and Jules De Martino who are one of the buzz bands of 2008, and rightly so. Having…

Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend

31 Jan 2008

(XL Recordings) INDIE Indie rock has taken many wilful turns in its ragged adolescence but the predilection for smartening up and tuning up has been one that’s arrived to infrequently for most. Vampire Weekend look like dropouts from an Abercrombie…

Win tickets to the JD Set

17 Jan 2008

The JD Set is a series of nationwide live music events featuring hotly tipped talent that’s storming the underground. Calling in on Glasgow will be Leicester’s finest The Displacements (pictured), who will be taking to the stage for one of their…

Rihanna

13 Dec 2007

Girls Aloud know it, Leona Lewis knows it, and even Franz Ferdinand know it – great pop is hard to beat. America’s most recent answer to our successful crop has to be Rihanna, whose infectious ‘Umbrella’ dominated the UK charts and playlists for months…

Kylie announces new Glasgow gigs

3 Dec 2007

Kylie Minogue has confirmed that she is planning two more concerts in Glasgow next year. The glamorous wee Australian will be performing at the SECC on 5, 6, 8 and 9 July 2008. She was originally only expected to perform in Glasgow on 5 and 6…

Lou Hickey

Pop

29 Nov 2007

‘I was brought up watching Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin movies, and when I was a little girl I wanted to be just like Marilyn Monroe singing ‘Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend’. Lou Hickey is a bit of an anachronism – a classically-trained…

Chi Weapon - review

29 Nov 2007

The Beat Club, Glasgow, Wed 7 Nov For every band breaking new territory by moving too fast to be pigeon-holed, there are plenty more who are spreading themselves too thinly. Chi Weapon, originally from Bute but now Glasgow-based, live up to their…

Jimmy Page says last Led Zeppelin reunion was a disaster

20 Nov 2007

Jimmy Page has described as ‘shambolic’ Led Zeppelin’s last reunion. The metal gods last played together in Philadelphia at the original Live aid in 1985. Led Zepp thought their performance was so bad that they wouldn't let it be included on the…

Fan pays £83,000 for Led Zeppelin tickets

16 Nov 2007

A Led Zeppelin fan from Glasgow has shelled out more than £80,000 for two tickets to see the band’s reunion concert next month, after they were auctioned for charity. Kenneth Donnell will also watch the group’s three remaining members rehearse ahead…

New Scottish bands

15 Nov 2007

Over the last couple of years, it has sometimes seemed like the end of an era for Scottish indie music. Starting with the amicable split of the seminal Delgados, and, more recently, the demise of Falkirk’s Arab Strap and underrated noiseniks…

Stereophonics

15 Nov 2007

ROCK SECC, Glasgow, Sun 25 Nov It’s a rock truism. Some bands burn out, some fade away while a few just keep rolling on for an age, undaunted by critical opinion and undimmed in their fans’ affections. Stereophonics are an archetypal example of…

Britney Spears

15 Nov 2007

POP Blackout (Jive) Producer So, she’ll be here in a few minutes, yeah? Record company executive Yeah, so we’ll have a window of 30 minutes to lay down some vocals. P But she hasn’t even heard the tunes yet . . . RCE Erm, yeah, just, um…

Duran Duran

15 Nov 2007

NEW ROMANTIC LEGENDS Red Carpet Massacre (RCA) In the 20-odd years since the original fab five went their separate ways, Duran Duran have plastered the cracks in their line-up with contributions from session musicians and legendary producers such as…

Paul Vickers & The Leg

15 Nov 2007

ROCK Nice’n’Sleazy’s, Glasgow, Tue 6 Nov Rock’n’roll clichés, eh? Musicians trashing their instruments, throwing TVs out of their hotel room windows, and erm . . . their backing bands modelling terrifying panda-meets-voodoo-skeleton outfits. The…

The Ting Tings

15 Nov 2007

POWERPOP Liquid Room, Edinburgh, Wed 17 Oct If record labels really must go getting caught up in unseemly ‘bidding wars’, the least they can do is make sure they’re getting a good band. Columbia recently won the squabble for Manchester duo The Ting…

Torche

15 Nov 2007

ROCK In Return (Rock Action) More terrifying than Cradle of Filth coming to your house to do trick or treat and heavier than a sack of Ozzy’s spuds, Torche at least have the common decency not to take up much of anyone’s time, clocking this…

Jimmy Page - broken finger a ‘nuisance’

7 Nov 2007

Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page has spoken about the broken finger that saw the group postpone their much anticipated reunion concert, claiming it will take ‘a little while to heal’. Recently named a Living Legend at the Classic Rock awards, Page…

Singer Meat Loaf cancels European tour

7 Nov 2007

Meat Loaf has cancelled his European tour after ill health forced the Bat Out Of Hell Singer to pull out of two UK dates. The 60-year-old was diagnosed with a cyst on his vocal chords, but not before cancelling gigs in Manchester and…

Lavigne and Muse reign supreme at MTV awards in Munich

2 Nov 2007

Pop star Avril Lavigne took home two honours from last night’s MTV Europe Awards, while hotly tipped Justin Timberlake left empty handed. The 23-year-old won the prize for Most Addictive Track with Girlfriend, as well as taking the Solo Artist of…

Found

18 Oct 2007

ART POP The Caves, Edinburgh, Thu 1 Nov The latest musical ponies to be welcomed into the warm stables of Fence Records are the Edinburgh art pop collective, Found. According to band member Tommy Perman they’ve found themselves a good home. ‘I guess…

Ash

18 Oct 2007

ROCK Barrowland, Glasgow, Sun 28 Oct ‘There’s always been a fight within ourselves between wanting to rock out and also wanting to be totally pop,’ says Tim Wheeler, grinning. ‘So there’s always a real tension to what we do.’ And there, in a…

Mr Hudson & the Library

18 Oct 2007

The ultimate hybrid, Mr Hudson & the Library mix mournful piano with emotive vocals, acoustic guitar and grime. It’s not a marriage you’d imagine would work, but Mr Hudson creates a startling new sound as Chet Baker-inspired rhythms are underpinned by…

Britney's album title revealed

8 Oct 2007

The new album from Britney Spears will be entitled Blackout, her record label has revealed. Due for UK release on 12 November, it will be the 25-year-old’s first album for four years. The singer will not be making many promotional appearances…

Queen reign with best music video honour

8 Oct 2007

Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody has been named the best music video of all time, with almost a third of those polled voting for the opera-based rock song. The survey was commissioned by O2 to mark the company’s sponsorship of the ‘best video’ category at…

Charlatans offer free downloads to boost following

5 Oct 2007

Alan McGee, the mastermind behind Britpop success stories Oasis and the Charlatans, has launched plans to allow singles and albums to be download for free. McGee had the idea when negotiating a distribution deal for the Charlatans. He rejected…

Led Zeppelin touts warned: eBay tickets not getting in

5 Oct 2007

Ticket promoter Harvey Goldsmith has warned Led Zeppelin fans who buy tickets for the group’s one-off reunion gig on eBay they will not get in to the gig. Just hours after successful applicants were notified they had been selected from 25 million…

Placebo drummer quits band after 11 years

5 Oct 2007

The drummer for Placebo Steve Hewitt has quit the band in a split described as “amicable”. He replaced Robert Schultzberg on drums to record Placebo’s debut album in 1996 and stayed with the group for the next 11 years. Singer Brian Molko and…

Rufus Wainright interview

4 Oct 2007

Late last month, Rufus Wainwright was in Los Angeles, treading the hallowed boards of the Hollywood Bowl, whooping it up as only Rufus can whoop it up. He had brought his acclaimed Judy Garland Live At Carnegie Hall show to town. Just him, an orchestra…

The Decemberists interview

4 Oct 2007

Any band who name themselves after the Russian uprising of 1825 are, you feel, coming from a different place to most other heralded groups for whom the tune’s the thing. The Decemberists’ architect and songwriter Colin Meloy is not so much a tunesmith…

Muse named best band at Digital Music Awards

4 Oct 2007

Rock group Muse has scooped the best band accolade at the BT Digital Music Awards in London. The awards were created to single out the artists who recognise the increasing emphasis on digital music, with more than 90 per cent of singles in the UK now…

Fans flood Radiohead site for new album

3 Oct 2007

Radiohead fans flocked to the band’s official website in their droves after it was announced their new album would only be available as a download. It was also revealed that fans can pay what they like for the download, with the ensuing rush causing…

Fans to dictate price of new Radiohead album

2 Oct 2007

Radiohead will allow fans who download their new album decide what they want to pay. In the latest move to modernise with the music industry, as CD sales decline year on year, the group’s seventh studio album In Rainbows will be available for…

Kylie to headline Glastonbury 2008?

28 Sep 2007

Kylie Minogue is among a list of names reportedly lined up to headline the Glastonbury Festival next year. The Australian singer is thought to be frontrunner to top the bill at the UK’s most prominent festival, three years after cancelling an…

Pink Floyd 1 – Spice Girls 0

28 Sep 2007

A survey by digital music provider Music Choice has found that Pink Floyd has topped the nation’s wish list of bands most wanted to reform. Next in line were 70s Swedish stars Abba and rockers Guns N’ Roses. The poll of 5,000 music fans spells…