Presenting Classic Alternative 2017: New Year's Eve Spectacular
This week it's A Very Special Presentation of Time Warp as we look back at 2017. Trip back in time and recall some of the big Classic Alternative music news stories of the year; enjoy Time Warp faves you know and love, plus there's a sprinkling of songs released in 2017 by Classic Alternative artists.
Featured artists on the program include: Chris Cornell, The Damned, Mazzy Star, The Fall, New Order, Majesty Crush, Morrissey, Nine Inch Nails, The English Beat, U2, Mission Of Burma, Love And Rockets, and more.
Stream below or here and catch up with the archive of previous episodes here or here.
My eternal gratitude to everyone who stopped by the website and/or streamed any of the Classic Alternative / Time Warp episodes throughout the year. Happy 2018!
A few music news stories from the week (regular updates begin again 1/4)
XTC fans - save the date! The XTC documentary XTC: This Is Pop premieres on Showtime on January 11th at 7pm ET. The compelling film features newly filmed interviews with XTC (Andy Partridge, Colin Moulding, Dave Gregory and Terry Chambers), plus commentary from other musical luminaries including Stewart Copeland, super-producer John Leckie, Miles Kane, and John Grant.
Johnny Marr and Noel Gallagher have been friends for years - when Gallagher was starting out and poor, Marr lent Gallagher several of his guitars including the guitar he used to write "Bigmouth Strikes Again" and "The Queen Is Dead."
Over the years they've guested on each other's albums, jammed onstage at each other concerts, and they've been known to pal around; the pair was photographed taking in a Manchester City football game back in November.
Marr recently participated in a video interview talking about Gallagher (Marr guests on "If Love Is The Law" on Who Built The Moon?) and Gallagher premiered an excerpt from the interview today. Watch Marr talk about how he's always getting mistaken for Gallagher and how he looks like a guitar player.
Check it out below - Noel promises the full interview will premiere in the New Year:
Graphic artist, poet, and Mission of Burma collaborator Holly Anderson died December 22nd. She was diagnosed this year with an aggressive cancer which was reportedly 9/11-related; Anderson worked as a volunteer for an emergency relief center at Ground Zero in 2001 for several months after the 9/11 attacks. Anderson was 62 years old.
Anderson created graphics, designed packaging, and penned lyrics for Mission of Burma songs, notably the 1982 post-punk anthem "Mica" which was adapted from a poem she wrote titled "White Story."
Presenting Classic Alternative - Episode #36: flip (reprise)
Holiday blues? No sweat, we've got you covered with a festive-less new episode of Time Warp. Rock it old school with Classic Alternative from the 70s, 80s, and 90s. This week's program includes music from The The, Radiohead, The Breeders, The Stone Roses, Buzzcocks, Ministry, Peter Murphy, Sugarcubes, The Smiths, and an updated version of a classic White Town song.
Stream below or here and catch up with the archive of previous episodes here or here.
Last month Cherry Red Records announced five albums from influential UK band Felt would be reissued on vinyl and CD in February along with a new album from Lawrence's latest project GoKart Mozart. All of the releases arrive February 23rd (March 2nd in the U.S.) and are available to pre-order here.
As excitement ramps up for Felt fans worldwide, Loud And Quiet magazine caught up with Lawrence and published an intriguing interview with the legend. In the piece Felt's leader discussed the band's early days, hating the 80s, always wanting to be professional, and the upcoming Felt reissues, which he considers the last word on the band.
One of the (many) highlights: Felt's big break was opening up for The Fall. The opportunity presented itself after bassist Nick Gilbert wrote Mark E. Smith a fan letter. To everyone's shock and surprise, not only did Smith respond but he invited Felt to open up for The Fall in Manchester. Lawrence called it "the dream beginning."
"We played a place called the Cyprus Tavern and we were first on. I’d never been on stage in my life. I was nervous, but I was also thinking I have to get this right. We played a short set – we had about six songs – and when we came off stage The Fall all ran over to us going ‘fucking hell, you’re amazing – where the hell have you been!?’ Their manager was saying, ‘come and play with us tomorrow, we’re playing Liverpool and then we’re playing at the Marquee in London.’"
Lawrence also described his personal music philosophy: "I’m more like a painter than a musician. Musicians rest on their laurels, play their old songs but stop making great new albums. But painters keep struggling and pushing forward...I’m trying to put myself in the same category of Lou Reed and Tom Waits. I still want to create, invent and not look back – that’s the kind of artist I want to be."
Peter Hook has been on the road in the U.K. performing classic albums from Joy Division and New Order with his band The Light. The tour wrapped up last night in London with an epic three hour show which included a five song Joy Division encore. Before launching into the encore, Hooky brought out a special guest for the first two songs.
You may recall earlier this year Mark Lanegan invited Hooky to perform "Atmosphere" and "Love Will Tear Us Apart" at his show in Manchester. Last night Hooky returned the favor telling the crowd at the Roundhouse "one of the best things about this job is I get to play with my heroes," and out walked Lanegan. Together they performed a dazzling version of "Atmosphere," which Hooky dedicated to Ian Curtis, followed by "Dead Souls."
Check out video of the encore below courtesy of Automorph.
Audio of last night's show has been released as part of Hook's live album series. Order a copy of the concert here.
Peter Hook and The Light return to North America in the spring to perform the Joy Division and New Order compilations Substance in full. Tickets for all of the shows on the tour, including the May 3rd stop at the Royal Oak Music Theatre, are on sale now.
Thank you @peterhook@Jack_Bass_ and co for having me sing with you tonight in London. Words can't express what a righteous experience it was. Cross that one off my list of dream gigs
Apr 24 -- Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
Apr 27 -- Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel
Apr 28 -- Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
Apr 30 -- Montreal, QC @ Theatre Fairmount
May 01 -- Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall
May 03 -- Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
May 04 -- Chicago, IL @ Metro
May 05 -- Madison, WI @ Majestic Theater
May 07 -- Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue
May 08 -- Vancouver, BC @ Venue
May 10 -- Seattle, WA @ Neptune Theatre
May 11 -- Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
May 12 -- San Francisco, CA @ Warfield
May 14 -- Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl
May 15 -- Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Music Hall
May 17 -- Phoenix, AZ @ Van Buren
May 18 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Wiltern*
May 19 -- San Diego, CA @ House Of Blues
May 21 -- Sacramento, CA @ Ace Of Spades
May 22 -- Dallas, TX @ Granada
May 23 -- Austin, TX @ Mohawk
May 25 -- Carrboro, NC @ Cat's Cradle
May 26 -- Knoxville, TN @ The Mill & Mine
May 27 -- Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse
May 29 -- Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
May 30 -- San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
May 31 -- Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live
Jun 02 -- West Palm Beach, FL @ Respectable Street
Jun 03 -- Orlando, FL @ Plaza Live
Jun 04 -- St. Petersburg, FL @ State Theatre
Kirsty MacColl died on this day in 2000. Over the course of her remarkable career she wrote and released brilliant music, and collaborated with and/or guested on songs from The Smiths, Billy Bragg, The Pogues, Talking Heads, Alison Moyet, Happy Mondays, and many more.
The 2001 documentary Kirsty: The Life and Songs of Kirsty MacColl is a fantastic overview of her life and career along with commentary from Johnny Marr,Shane MacGowan, Bono, Billy Bragg, and more. Among the highlights: Johnny Marr tells a story about hanging out with MacColl and Keith Richards, and Bono reveals MacColl was the one who sequenced (created the tracklisting for) The Joshua Tree.
Check out the documentary along with some videos featuring MacColl below:
Today Morrissey took to You Tube to directly address fans and re-assert his stance on a number of issues and discuss politics, free speech, and the print media. In the emotional and dramatic eight minute video he emphatically called out Der Spiegel, The Guardian, and other media outlets as "haters" who "derailed and damaged" his campaign for Low In High School, alleging that the press are trying to get fans to turn on him and ruin him.
He revealed that the Secret Service paid him a visit after learning of anti-Trump comments attributed to him during his Der Spiegel interview. Even though after his "cross-examination" the Secret Service assured him "there had no cause for concern," Morrissey claims his status in the U.S. is now in jeopardy and he may not be able to return.
It wasn't all apocalyptic news though - he thanked fans for supporting Low In High School and said he and the band consider his recent U.S. tour "the best concerts of our lives." He named a handful of shows on the tour he particularly enjoyed (not Detroit), and gave props to BBC 6, Jools Holland, and Graham Norton for giving him the opportunity to perform on British television.
Near the end of the video he took a moment to remember the victims of the May 22nd bombing at Manchester Arena "I'd like to let their spirit know that they are remembered by at least me, if not many other people."
It's really quite a striking and fascinating video - his words, emotion, the way he emphasizes his points, and most interesting of all -- the gestures/facial expressions/non-verbal communication which reveal way more than words ever could.
Watch Morrissey's State Of The Union Address in full below:
Transcript:
"I wanted to take this rare opportunity to say hello to you and to thank you earnestly for buying Low In High School, which is here (shows LP cover), of which I'm very proud.
And again, thank you for buying it, we had higher hopes - everything looked great for a higher chart position, but, as usual, not to be. But nevermind, the music exists and I'm really proud of it, and hopefully in the future, maybe next year...the year after, I don't know, it will be reviewed properly by people.
Also as you know we released "Jacky's Only Happy When She's Up On The Stage" a couple of weeks ago. It received no airplay, just one by Jonathan -- which was very nice -- otherwise nobody will play it, and I suspect it's because of the hateful press I've received over the last three weeks in Britain by the usual outlets, mainly The Guardian and so forth, but the usual haters are very determined.
And so in many ways they do succeed, because there's a lot of them, and everything they said goes back to a recent interview I regrettably gave, with Der Spiegel in Germany, the newspaper.
When it emerged in print after a very pleasant conversation, it emerged in print, and suddenly I was sympathizing with sexual harassment, I was apparently sympathizing with pedophilia, I was sympathizing with rape, I was sympathizing with everything that would persuade anybody on the planet to stop listening to me.
Of course none of those assumptions were true.
I do not support anything like that, you can hear it even in the tone of my voice.
However this is the world we now live in with the print media. It seems to me that in the first place they get very angry or very excited if you start to say something that people are listening to, or that reflect the will of the people, they get really nervous they won't allow it, they shut it down and so forth.
But also it seems to me in England at the moment the right wing has adopted a left wing stance and the left wing has adopted a right wing stance, so everybody's confused and nobody seems to know what people mean. This shuts down free speech, this shuts down any open debate about anything and consequently we're all in a mess and we don't know where we stand.
So I feel that the campaign for Low In High School and for surrounding singles was derailed and damaged purposely by the haters. They're not listening to the music, they're not listening to anything really, they see my name and they just want to get rid of it as quickly as possible, and as I said in many ways they do succeed, there's not really that much you can do about it, you have to live with it and you have to try to carry on and be as positive as you can.
Thankfully I have a very strong audience and I have for 35 years, which seems to count for absolutely nothing, but nonetheless, I'm still here, and I must tell everybody in the United States, that recently we had a fantastic tour in America...especially the nights in Washington, San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Chicago, Denver, Phoenix...they were the best concerts of our lives and we're really grateful.
As a further result of Der Spiegel, I was cross-examined by the American Secret Service, who were very very nice, and I do understand their position. So that went very, very well, and they assured me that they had no cause for concern, but it was a direct result of Der Spiegel, that I was cross-examined, which is very, very sad.
So congratulations Der Spiegel, you achieved everything you set out to do.
Whether again I'm allowed free access to America I really don't know. I have to wait and see if I can enter the country again. But we never know.
If I can't, I have to say a very sincere thanks to everybody who supported me in the U.S. On one week, Los Angeles announces Morrissey Day and then a week later I'm being cross-examined by the Secret Service, so that's a perfect reflection of how the entire world is now.
People just, nobody has any answers, everybody's very very frightened about everything. So by being frightened about everything you simply target people willy nilly about whom you know nothing and you write things about people whom you've never met, and you denigrate them and destroy them because there's a certain blame and shame culture that has risen where all of us are destroyed constantly no matter what we do, and it doesn't really matter what we do and what we say.
Occasionally it becomes hard to live with, certainly on issues of pedophilia, sexual harassment, rape, I think critics consider all the things that are important to your audience and therefore they consider all the things that would turn your audience against you, and THAT is what they accuse you of, in order to make your audience angry with you. Because they know there's no other way, especially when you've been around as long as I have.
And I've been assassinated many many times however, I'm still here. What happens next year, I really don't know. I don't know where this will go to, whichever way it doesn't matter, because I, I simply want to thank you.
As the year closes now I would like to remember all the kids in Manchester who were murdered on May 22nd of this year, they're largely forgotten because most terrorist activities are immediately forgotten I find. So I would like to remember them, I'd like to let their spirit know that they are remembered by at least me, if not many other people.
And I would also like to, I would also like to thank such as Jools Holland, Graham Norton, BBC 6, who gave me a chance to sing this year on television, it was great -- did I appear anywhere else? I can't remember -- but that was very nice of them.
So again thank you and whatever will be in 2018 will be, and I would finally ask that you please, please, don't believe what other people say about me. But believe whatever you think when you see me and when you hear me, because it's quite a different thing, so that's all I ask of you, and I wish you a Christmas free of terrorism and these days that's all we can ask for.
Presenting Classic Alternative - Overture I: Phasing The Continuum
Rock it old school with a new streaming episode of Time Warp. This week's show includes music from R.E.M., The The, Lloyd Cole, Jane's Addiction, Nine Inch Nails, The Smithereens, Guadalcanal Diary, Joe Strummer, The Jesus and Mary Chain, New Order, and more.
Stream below or here and catch up with the archive of previous episodes here or here.
Morrissey was featured on this week's edition of CBS This Morning - Saturday Sessions. The program aired three songs captured at Morrissey's November 30th, 2017 show at The Anthem in Washington DC. Check it out below:
Irish radio station RTE1 premiered an informative and fascinating hourlong documentary about R.E.M.'s early days. Hosted by Ken Sweeney, R.E.M. Out Of Athens takes the listener back in time as the band and key players share previously unheard stories about the early days, touring, revelations behind iconic songs, and more.
The documentary underscores the integrity, class, and true independent spirit of R.E.M. - they always did things their own way, on their own terms. It also reveals how genuinely supportive they were of other bands, their crew, and everyone they worked with. This is an extraordinary documentary about an extraordinary band and is essential listening for any R.E.M. fan.
Bonus: includes a ton of music from R.E.M. along with B-52's, Let's Active, and 10,000 Maniacs among others.
Yesterday The Cureannounced details for a massive gig July 7th in London celebrating their 40th anniversary and now more exciting news about project celebrating The Cure's 40th anniversary has been revealed!
Director Tim Pope, who has worked with the band throughout their career dropped bombshell news earlier this month on Twitter that The Cure had some special things planned for 2018. Over the last couple of weeks he threw out a couple of hints, but today he has let the proverbial cat out of the bag:
In celebration of their 40th anniversary, The Cure will be releasing a feature-length documentary chronicling the band's extraordinary career all the way from the 70s through present day. Pope reveals that Robert Smith will be heavily involved in the film, which will include "a cornucopia" of previously unseen material from Smith's archives including live performances, interviews, bootlegs, and other behind the scenes material. Pope was just sent 50 (!!!) boxes of archival material and he's getting ready to start on this sensational project.
The news from Pope is super-exciting! Check out the chronological series of Pope's tweets about the project below:
Being the kind-hearted person I am, I can confirm one of my upcoming projects next year is with The Cure with whom I have worked since 1981. This will be with the full participation of Robert. Updates when I can, but suffice to say it will be a 40th anniversary project.
Flicka flicka flicka. Here you are. Dust my lemon lies. 50 dusty boxes filled with memories. None of it seen before. From the 1970s to present day. Put that in your pipe and smoke it! More soon.
I'll cut the cryptic crap soon, certainly before Christmas, but wanted to hint a little bit about next year's plans on The Cure project because I am excited! Be great to work with my old chums, as we go so far back. Going to be a bumper year for the 40th anniversary!
So, 50 boxes of ‘stuff’ has just arrived at mine. Just peeked and apart from dust they seem to be filled with what looks like films, photographs, memorabilia. They go by the year. Hm. Can’t wait to get cracking, though might take me a while. I can feel Christmas is nearly here.
So, 2018 will see me collaborating with Robert on a feature-length, chronological documentary of The Cure’s history from the 1970s via present day to the future. Robert himself will tell the story and this will work alongside other events for the band’s 40-year celebration.
The film to which I will bring my own style of jiggery-pokery will use as well as 'old favourites' a cornucopia of material from Robert’s collection which has never been seen before: Super-8; interviews; bootlegs; rare performances; behind-the-scenes, blah. Updates ’as and when’.
Tragic and upsetting news coming out of New Jersey - Pat DiNizio of The Smithereens has died at the age of 62. The band broke the news overnight on their website and social media. It's been reported that DiNizio's health had been declining after suffering from neurological damage from a fall in 2015, though no cause of death has been announced.
DiNizio and The Smithereens crafted so many beloved songs and the band has been . It truly is a sad day in the world of music. R.I.P.
Read the announcement from The Smithereens below:
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Pat DiNizio, lead singer and songwriter of the influential New Jersey rock band, The Smithereens - America's Band. Pat was looking forward to getting back on the road and seeing his many fans and friends. Please keep Pat in your thoughts and prayers. Today we mourn the loss of our friend, brother and bandmate Pat DiNizio. Pat had the magic touch. He channeled the essence of joy and heartbreak into hook-laden three minute pop songs infused with a lifelong passion for rock & roll. Our journey with Pat was long, storied and a hell of a lot of fun. We grew up together. Little did we know that we wouldn’t grow old together. Goodbye Pat. Seems like yesterday. Jimmy, Mike, Dennis December 12, 2017
White Town's acclaimed massive synth-pop hit "Your Woman" was released 20 years ago. In celebration of its 20th anniversary, White Town (aka Jyoti Mishra) recorded a new breathtaking version of the classic track. "Your Woman 1917" isn't an updated version; it's an old school orchestral/chambery stripped down take that Mishra says "would have sounded pretty sweet 100 years ago."
This is SO incredibly good!
Stream the lovely "Your Woman 1917" along with the original version below. "Your Woman 1917" will be released as a digital single on December 20th.
Catch up with Jyoti Mishra/White Town on Facebook.
Today Cleopatra Records hosted a Facebook live event with Kevin Haskins in celebration of the new coffee table book Bauhaus Undead: The Visual History and Legacy of Bauhaus.
Some of the highlights from the 15 minute broadcast:
Haskins originally wanted to self-release Bauhaus Undead, but ran into financial and logistical issues so he decided to enlist the help of Cleopatra.
The memorabilia is mostly culled from his own archive. He began saving press clippings, reviews, photos, doodles, artwork, tour schedules, recording schedules, etc from the very beginning, though friends and fans provided some items that were missing.
Haskins flipped through the book to give viewers an idea of what's inside and it looks incredible. This is something any Bauhaus fan will want to check out, not just for the previously unseen photos, etc, but also to read the commentary/stories from Haskins. Haskins says he wrote about 30 stories for the book.
Ultimately Haskins says he created Bauhaus Undead to celebrate the band, and says fans will get to see the more humorous side of Bauhaus.
Haskins says he'll consider creating a Love and Rockets memorabilia book down the road, though he admits that he has less archival material to draw from, plus right now he's quite busy with Poptone.
Check out the video archive of the Facebook event below and pre-order a copy here.
The Cure announced that they'll celebrate their 40th anniversary in style next July with a swoonworthy anniversary concert. The legendary band will be joined by other incredible artists including Ride, Slowdive, The Twilight Sad, Interpol, Goldfrapp, and Editors (with more to be announced). The gig takes place July 7th at BST Hyde Park in London. Pre-sale tickets are on sale now (password: IMAGINARY) with the general onsale kicking off this Friday, December 15th at 4am ET (9am local time).
The Cure will be playing a 2 hour headline set at Hyde Park, and this show will be the band's only European show in 2018. No word on whether an equally awesome North American anniversary event is in the works, but fingers crossed...
The Cure have not made any other official announcements concerning their 40th anniversary, though if director Tim Pope is to be believed, The Cure have some very exciting things planned for 2018. Stay tuned!
Being the kind-hearted person I am, I can confirm one of my upcoming projects next year is with The Cure with whom I have worked since 1981. This will be with the full participation of Robert. Updates when I can, but suffice to say it will be a 40th anniversary project.
Flicka flicka flicka. Here you are. Dust my lemon lies. 50 dusty boxes filled with memories. None of it seen before. From the 1970s to present day. Put that in your pipe and smoke it! More soon.
I'll cut the cryptic crap soon, certainly before Christmas, but wanted to hint a little bit about next year's plans on The Cure project because I am excited! Be great to work with my old chums, as we go so far back. Going to be a bumper year for the 40th anniversary!
Jack White and Third Man Films unleashed a new video titled Servings and Portions from my Boarding House Reach. The video, directed by White, features a collage of sounds which presumably are taken from White's forthcoming solo album. This delicious pairing of vintage and cutting edge sounds will make you yearn for White's new offering, which is still shrouded in mystery.
As previously reported a new coffee table book about Bauhaus by Kevin Haskins will be released early next year. Bauhaus - Undead: The Visual History and Legacy of Bauhaus chronicles the pioneering goth band's visual journey from 1979 through their reunion in 1998. The 315 page hardcover book includes previously unpublished photos, a delicious array of memorabilia (handwritten lyrics, tour itineraries, set lists, ticket stubs, band flyers, etc), a Bauhaus comic strip, and personal stories/commentary from Haskins.
In celebration of the upcoming release Cleopatra Records is holding a Facebook live event tomorrow (December 12th) featuring Kevin Haskins. Haskins will be signing copies of the book and answering questions starting at 2pm ET (11am PT) on the Cleopatra FB page here.
UPDATE (12/12): During today's event Haskins signed copies of the book and revealed a bit about how things came together: over the years he collected Bauhaus press clippings, flyers, artwork, doodles, tour schedules/recording schedules, etc, and most of the material included in the book comes from his archive, though friends and fans provided some material he couldn't otherwise locate. He also revealed that fans will be able to see the humorous side of Bauhaus.
The archive of the live chat is available to view below - it starts off a bit slow, but eventually Haskins answers questions and flips through the book to give fans an idea of how packed with awesomeness Bauhaus Undead is.
FYI Haskins also said it's possible he'll do a Love And Rockets memorabilia book eventually though he has less material. He says he'll consider putting one together down the road, though says Poptone is currently occupying most of his time.
Bauhaus - Undead: The Visual History and Legacy of Bauhaus is available to pre-order here.
Earlier this year a documentary on XTC titled This Is Pop premiered on British television. Today Andy Partridge revealed on social media that fans in the U.S. will be able to view the documentary next month on Showtime. Save the date (or set the DVR) for January 11th.
Meanwhile, last month XTC released an remixed/expanded 5.1 edition of Black Sea with previously unreleased bonus material including instrumentals and demos. Grab a copy here.
THIS IS POP XTC TV doc, to be shown in US on January 11th, 2018, via SHOWTIME. Hooray! (Canadians can see that too?)
Morrissey posted a statement today clarifying his stance on a variety of issues and reaffirming his declaration to deny print interviews. In the post titled The Slander System he continues to dispute the veracity of statements attributed to him in a recent interview with Der Spiegel, and goes to on claim that the newspaper refused to provide his team with an unedited audio copy of the interview.
Morrissey also took aim at the vapidness that plagues the current state of affairs in the music industry and decreed the need for change in 2018.
"Music is eternity, and the call of 2018 is the time to be new and different."
Read Morrissey's statement in full below or over on Facebook.
UPDATE (12/12): Der Spiegel posted audio of their interview with Morrissey. Stream the interview here via Morrissey-Solo.
Johnny Marr and actress Maxine Peake teamed up for a socially conscious new song titled "The Priest," which debuted today. The song is a narrative depicting a homeless girl's experiences on the street.
Marr tells The Guardian the song was inspired by the mounting homelessness in London
"I would notice the youngish to middle-aged man who just seemed to be on his first or second step towards the great downfall. I don’t know any other way of putting it … It was like seeing a homeless man in training. There might be a few homeless men together, who’d obviously been on the street for a while. And you’d notice the guy who’d obviously not been on the street that long, who had just joined the fray. And you’d think: ‘Where’s this going to end?’"
The lyrics for "The Priest" were taken from the diaries of a writer named Joe Gallagher who documented his experiences living on the street for a Scottish paper in Edinburgh. Though the words were written by a man, they opted to use Peake's voice to give the song "a gender-less universality."
Marr was intent on making a social statement, but also wanted the song to be a "good listen." He told The Guardian:
"As a musician, that’s my priority, no matter what the subject matter is. I always want to honour that. Ultimately, that’s my job."
The striking video for "The Priest" was shot on the streets in Manchester and is available to view below viaThe Guardian.
Presenting Classic Alternative - Episode #35: The Cognoscenti Shuffle
Rock it old school with a new streaming episode of Time Warp. This week's show includes music from Buffalo Tom, The Stooges, The Ocean Blue, Killing Joke, The Pogues, Blur, James, Roxy Music, New Order, and more.
Stream below or here and catch up with the archive of previous episodes here or here.
Seminal singles from two Classic Alternative behemoths were released on this day in 1987...both incredible and iconic singles continue to impress and amaze with their brilliance.
New Order's "Touched By The Hand Of God" was originally written for the Salvation! soundtrack, but ahead of the soundtrack's 1988 release, New Order released a single version and dub mix on the 7" and 12" (respectively). The anthem is one of the many, many gems in New Order's brilliant catalog and is unquestionably the most entertaining video New Order released. New Order taking a fantastic dig at crappy hair bands that were at that point dominating MTV and radio. MTV wasn't amused and gave it no airtime.
The Smiths ended on a high note with Strangeways Here We Come - every track on their swansong is a classic. But the haunting single "Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me" remains a cut above all other Smiths songs - it is the quintessential Smiths song. This enduring and beloved song remains not only a fan favorite, but Johnny Marr and Morrissey also consider it the crown jewel in their incredible catalog.
Earlier this week Morrissey canceled his Philadelphia show and his appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. It should come as no surprise that Morrissey has now cancelled tonight's show in Boston. The cancellations are due to "an illness in the touring party" though it has not been revealed which member of the band is unwell.
Though Mozzer's proper tour is now over, he still has a couple of gigs left on the tour itinerary - he is scheduled to play a radio festival in Los Angeles on Sunday, December 10th, and the CBS program Saturday Sessions on December 16th.
UPDATE (12/9): Morrissey's appearance at KROQ's Xmas show has now officially been canceled.
Oct 31 -- Portland, OR @ Schnitzer Concert Hall
Nov 02 -- Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre
Nov 04 -- San Francisco, CA @ Masonic Auditorium Nov 05 -- Paso Robles, CA @ Vina Robles Amphitheatre (canceled)
Nov 10 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
Nov 11 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl
Nov 16 -- Phoenix, AZ @ Marquee
Nov 18 -- Salt Lake City, UT @ Kingsbury Hall
Nov 20 -- Denver, CO @ Paramount Theatre
Nov 22 -- St. Louis, MO @ Peabody Opera House
Nov 25 -- Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theater
Nov 28 -- Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore Detroit
Nov 30 -- Washington, DC @ The Anthem
Dec 02 -- New York, NY @ Theatre at Madison Square Garden Dec 04 -- Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore (canceled) Dec 07 -- Boston, MA @ Orpheum Theatre (canceled) Dec 10 -- Inglewood, CA @ The Forum (KROQ Almost Acoustic Xmas)
Morrissey's tour hit another snag. Tonight's show in Philadelphia was postponed due to "an illness in the touring party." The Fillmore Philadelphia broke the news to fans a few hours before doors were scheduled to open. Read the announcement from the Fillmore below.
Morrissey is scheduled to perform on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert tomorrow (December 5th) then is scheduled to return to the road December 7th in Boston.
UPDATE (12/5): Morrissey will not be appearing on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert tonight. Morrissey was still listed as a guest on Colbert's website this afternoon (see below), but his name was removed from Colbert's website about an hour ago.
Show update: It is with great regret that we must inform you that tonight’s Morrissey performance at The Fillmore Philadelphia has been postponed due to illness in the touring party. Additional details… pic.twitter.com/qfdJfTNBKy
Presenting Classic Alternative - Episode #34: Dining At The All-You-Can-Eat Outrage Buffet
Rock it old school with a new streaming episode of Time Warp. This week's show includes music from Sonic Youth, The Fall, Depeche Mode, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Sex Pistols, The Cure, The Stone Roses, New Order, and The Smiths.
Stream below or here and catch up with the archive of previous episodes here or here.
The Charlatans played a sold-out show in Manchester last night at The Manchester Apollo. The performance included an epic display of drumming - Stephen Morris (Joy Division/New Order), Pete Salisbury (The Verve), and Donald Johnson (A Certain Ratio) all joined The Charlatans on stage and rocked out together! Talk about a triple threat!
The show also included a tribute to Mark E. Smith with a fantastic cover of The Fall's "Totally Wired"
Morrissey is winding down his U.S. tour in support of Low In High School. Part of next week's itinerary includes a rare late night television appearance - Moz is scheduled to play The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Tuesday, December 5th.
Moz just released the video for "Jacky's Only Happy When She's Up On The Stage," so it's a good bet that's what he'll be performing on Tuesday. Tune in!
UPDATE (12/5): Looks like Morrissey will not be appearing on the program tonight. Morrissey's name was listed on Colbert's website as a guest earlier this afternoon (see screenshot below), but the listing was updated around 6pm ET and Morrissey's name has been removed. A tweet promoting tonight's show also makes no mention of Morrissey. Considering yesterday's show cancellation in Philadelphia, this shouldn't be surprising news.
The Damned announced a five piece vinyl set The Damned: Stiff Singles 1976-1977. The limited edition 7" set contains the band's early singles including the band's previously issued fan-club exclusive "Stretcher Case Baby," (originally sent to fans in celebration of the band's first anniversary in 1977). The boxset will feature five 7" singles (see tracklisting below) with recreated original artwork, original press clippings, and an embroidered patch.
The Damned: Stiff Singles 1976 - 1977 is available exclusive through Pledge Music. Check out the tracklisting below and pre-order here.
The Damned teamed up with super-producer Tony Visconti and will return with a brand new studio record in 2018. The album is also available to pre-order through Pledge Music.
The Damned: Stiff Singles 1976-1977
Single 1: New Rose
1. New Rose
2. Help
Single 2: Neat Neat Neat
1. Neat Neat Neat
2. Stab Your Back
3. Singalonga Scabies Single 3: Problem Child
1. Problem Child
2. You Take My Money
Single 4: Don't Cry Wolf
1. Don't Cry Wolf
2. One Way Love Single 5: Fanclub single
The Soft Moon (aka Luis Vasquez) return with a new studio album Criminal on February 2nd. The follow up to 2015's Deeper promises to be another sizzling darkwave-ish extravaganza. Last month Vasquez issued the first song "Burn" and this week sees the premiere of another track titled "It Kills," which is about guilt and "a continual battle with the conscience."
Check out both singles below along with dates for a 2018 run of North America. Pre-order Criminalhere and catch up with The Soft Moon here.
The Soft Moon - North American tour
Mar 27 -- Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda's
Mar 28 -- Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall Of Williamsburg
Mar 29 -- Montreal, QC @ Theatre Fairmount
Mar 30 -- Toronto, ON @ Longboat Hall
Mar 31 -- Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
Apr 02 -- Saint Paul, MN @ Turf Club
Apr 04 -- Denver, CO @ Larimer Lounge
Apr 06 -- Portland, OR @ Mississipi Studios
Apr 07 -- Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
Apr 08 -- Vancouver, BC @ The Cobalt
Apr 11 -- San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
Apr 13 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
Apr 14 -- San Diego, CA @ Casbah
Apr 16 -- Las Vegas, NV @ The Bunkhouse
Apr 17 -- Phoenix, AZ @ Valley Bar
Apr 19 -- Dallas, TX @ Three Links
Apr 20 -- Austin, TX @ Barracuda
Apr 21 -- San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger
Apr 22 -- New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa
Apr 24 -- Gainesville, FL @ The Wooly
Apr 25 -- Miami, FL @ Gramps
Apr 26 -- Tampa, FL @ The Crowbar
Apr 27 -- Atlanta, GA @ Aisle 5
Apr 28 -- Asheville, NC @ The Mothlight
Apr 29 -- Washington, DC @ DC9
