Includes music from Supergrass, Ultravox, R.E.M., The Mission, Swervedriver, Japan, The Mighty Lemon Drops, General Public, Ministry, The Cure, and more.
Stream below or here and catch up with the archive of previous episodes here or here.
After The Cure's induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Friday Robert Smith was interviewed by Rolling Stone and discussed the band's forthcoming new album, tour plans, and legacy.
Smith revealed that contrary to earlier reports the new record isn't quite finished yet, but hopes to have it mixed this summer and out sometime before the end of the year. He described the record as dark and intense, with epic-length songs:
"It's so dark. It's incredibly intense. And I've waited 10 years to do something that means something...the songs are like 10 minutes, 12 minutes long. We recorded 19 songs...I'll pick six or maybe eight songs and do like a single album. But I think it will delight our hardcore fans. And probably really, really infuriate everyone else. At my age, I'm still doom and gloom."
The Cure have already announced a string of gigs in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the seminal album Disintegration. Smith confirmed there are plans for doing a few shows in the U.S. (New York and Los Angeles) near the end of the year:
"We're holding home theatres in New York and Los Angeles. But I kind of feel like we should do it in a bigger venue. I'd like to a big show with it, really. It's a bigger album. I think when we did the first three albums we did three nights at the Beacon in New York. It was much more punky. We were trying to recreate that vibe. But I think Disintegration is just big. So we need to do somewhere that's just big. But probably about Christmas time we'll come back."
As for The Cure's staying power:
"I know Radiohead talked about integrity and authenticity and stuff. It's kind of like an unspoken thing with us. We don't bang on about it. But that's why we retain so many fans, I think. Because they know we're not pretending what we do."
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony premieres on HBO April 27th. If you just can't wait, stream Trent Reznor's induction speech, The Cure's acceptance speech, and their five song performance below.
Wayne Hussey of The Mission has announced he's releasing his memoir Salad Daze on May 23rd. Hussey reveals that Iggy Pop and Gary Numan contributed to the foreword of the book, and he'll be announcing more details and pre-order info shortly.
Hussey created unique audio playlists for each chapter of the book which will be available to stream on You Tube and Spotify and he's planning to debut two playlists each week (twenty-one total) leading up to the memoir's release. The playlists soundtrack the memoir, though Hussey says you certainly don't need to read the book to enjoy the playlists. "I must add that a few of these choices are purely for context, but most are because I love the songs. Despite my eventual moral ruin, of which you shall soon be reading, my heart continues to beat fiercely, insanely, to the same incessant rhythm of love for music that propelled me to pick up a guitar in the first place. And in music there is redemption. Believe you me. It’s because of music that this book exists. It’s only right that there should be a soundtrack to its reading. You don’t even need to read the book to enjoy the playlists!"
Hussey kicked things off today by premiering the first two playlists which are available to stream here and here.
Read Hussey's full announcement regarding Salad Daze and his playlists here.
A new biography detailing R.E.M.'s formative years will be published on May 14th. Begin The Begin: R.E.M.'s Early Years is a comprehensive biography that goes deep on R.E.M. from the very beginning -- how they met and formed, their early live performances and recordings, and many intriguing stories about the band that helped put Athens, Georgia on the map. Author Robert Dean Lurie, who has previously written books on David Bowie and The Church combed through R.E.M.'s history, interviewed key figures, and presents a thorough book that promises to be a compelling page-turner for R.E.M. fans.
Perry Farrell will release his new Tony Visconte-produced new album Kind Heaven on June 7th. Last week Farrell announced his band Kind Heaven Orchestra will perform at Lollapalooza in Chicago, and now he's announced a handful of other gigs in promotion of the album. The tour stops at Saint Andrew's Hall in Detroit on June 24th. Tickets go on sale April 5th.
View the tour itinerary below and stream the first single off the record "Pirate, Punk, Politician" below. The album Kind Heaven features 10 tracks and is available to pre-order here.
Perry Farrell's Kind Heaven Orchestra tour
Jun 07 -- New York, NY @ City Winery
Jun 08 -- New York, NY @ City Winery
Jun 10 -- Boston, MA @ City Winery
Jun 11 -- Boston, MA @ City Winery
Jun 14 -- New York, NY @ City Winery
Jun 15 -- New York, NY @ City Winery
Jun 18 -- Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
Jun 19 -- Washington, DC @ City Winery
Jun 21 -- Nashville, TN @ City Winery
Jun 22 -- Atlanta, GA @ City Winery
Jun 24 -- Detroit, MI @ Saint Andrew's Hall
Jun 25 -- Toronto, ON @ Mod Club
Aug 1-4 - Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza
New Order premiered the fourth and final episode of their docu-series chronicling the band's debut album Movement. In his Transmissions interview Stephen Morris called Movement "painful to make" and discussed the challenge New Order had with figuring out who was going to handle the vocals. Morris said Movement wasn't well received upon its release but admits the record wasn't all that bad.
Watch the video interview with Morris below.
Transmissions leads up to and celebrates the release of the Movement Definitive Edition box set. The four piece set (1LP/2CD/1DVD) arrives April 5th and contains a copy of Movement on vinyl, a copy of Movement on CD, a bonus CD with previously unreleased tracks (Western Works and Cargo demos, rehearsal versions and more), a DVD collecting live concert recordings from 1980/81 along with their Granada TV and BBC appearances, plus a hard back book. Pre-order here.
FYI: Stephen Morris has written a memoir Record Play Pause: Confessions of a Post Punk Percussionist Vol 1 which will be published May 9th in the U.K. (North American release info has not been announced). Morris is the final surviving member of Joy Division to release a memoir -- Peter HookreleasedUnknown Pleasures: Inside Joy Division in 2013 followed by his New Order memoir Substance in 2017; Bernard Sumner's memoirChapter and Verse was published in 2015.
Peter Murphy played the first of two sold out David Bowie tribute shows at The Chapel in San Francisco last night. Murphy performed classics including "Cracked Actor," "Queen Bitch," "Suffragette City," and "Rebel Rebel," plus wrapped up the show with a spoken word performance of "Ziggy Stardust." Watch a montage of fan filmed video captured at last night's show courtesy of Andi Sumpter below.
Murphy performs his second and final Bowie tribute at The Chapel tonight. Tonight's show is also his final show of his two-week residency.
Setlist - March 26th
01. Suffragette City
02. Queen Bitch
03. Rebel Rebel
04. The Jean Genie
05. Moonage Daydream
06. All The Young Dudes
07. Starman
08. Rock 'n' Roll Suicide
09. Cracked Actor
10. Ziggy Stardust
More gutting news: Ranking Roger (aka Robert Charlery) has died. Last August he was diagnosed with lung and brain cancer and had undergone surgery to remove a brain tumor. Roger revealed his diagnosis to fans in January prior to the release of The Beat's excellent new album Public Confidential. In the candid video interview Ranking Roger remained optimistic that he'd fight it and be back on stage soon. Alas, the legend peacefully died today surrounded by family. He was 56 years old.
During his final months Ranking Roger wrote his autobiography I Just Can't Stop It - My Life In The Beat. The book will be published later this year by Omnibus Press (release date TBA).
Includes music from Roxy Music, XTC, Belly, The Telescopes, Depeche Mode, Lords Of The New Church, Pixies, Primal Scream, Buzzcocks, The Smiths, and more.
Stream below or here and catch up with the archive of previous episodes here or here.
Primal Scream will release a career-spanning greatest hits collection on May 24th. The collection will be released on CD and vinyl -- the CD version comes as a double disc set with ALL the singles; the vinyl edition is spread across TWO different volumes -- Maximum Rock 'n' Roll: The Singles Volume 1, a 2LP set which covers the singles from 1986 through 2000 and Maximum Rock 'n' Roll: The Singles Volume 2, a 2LP set with material from 2000 through 2016. A bundle which includes the 2CD and both of the vinyl editions is also available. Head here to view all the pre-order options.
CD 1
01. Velocity Girl
02. Gentle Tuesday
03. Imperial
04. Ivy Ivy Ivy
05. Loaded
06. Come Together
07. Higher Than The Sun
08. Don't Fight It, Feel It
09. Movin' On Up
10. Rocks
11. Jailbird
12. (I'm Gonna) Cry Myself Blind
13. Kowalski
14. Star
15. Burning Wheel
16. Swastika Eyes
17. Kill All Hippies CD 2
01. Accelerator
02. Miss Lucifer
03. Autobahn 66
04. Some Velvet Morning
05. Country Girl
06. Dolls (Sweet Rock and Roll)
07. Sometimes I Feel So Lonely
08. Can't Go Back
09. Uptown (Weatherall mix)
10. 2013
11. It's Alright, It's OK
12. Goodbye Johnny
13. Where The Light Gets In
14. 100% Or Nothing
Buzzcocks will perform in London on June 21st to pay tribute to Pete Shelley. A Celebration Of The Life Of Pete Shelley will feature current and original/ex-members of Buzzcocks along with guest vocalists which will be announced in the coming weeks. The event takes place at Royal Albert Hall and will include support from Skids and Penetration.
Meanwhile, Steve Diggle from Buzzcocks discusses Pete Shelley, Buzzcocks, and his life as a musician in a new interview with John Robb of Louder Than War. The almost hour-long video interview is Diggle's first major interview since Shelley's death in December. Diggle called Shelley's tragic death a "massive loss" and said though he and his fallen bandmate were "polar opposites" they complemented each other and were "different sides of the same character."
Head here to stream the full fascinating interview with Diggle.
Today Gary Numan has officially launched a campaign through Making Music for his forthcoming new album.
Numan revealed that he purposely avoided writing anything for this new record until today's launch of the campaign because he wants fans to witness the entire process. Much like his previous campaign for Savage, fans will see songs/lyrics/arrangements form and morph from ideas and concepts to the final result.
"Making an album is challenging on many levels. As I’ve said many times before, starting a new album project is very much like standing at the foot of a mountain, looking up and realizing that you have a long and difficult climb ahead. At times it will go well, at other times it will be incredibly difficult and stressful, and it’s always daunting. Confidence will be high one day, and destroyed the next. Frustrations will set in, tempers will flare and at times it will seem impossible, hopeless. Truly euphoric moments of triumph will be few but, hopefully, they will happen from time to time. You will witness songs develop from the very first note, through the many ups and downs of its tortuous path to the finished, produced, mastered piece of music that we will go on to play at shows all over the world."
The album is expected to be completed and released in 2020 (release date TBA). In the meantime fans can sit back and enjoy the ride.
As part of the campaign, Numan has offered up many rare items from his vaults including equipment like processers and dat machines; lyric sheets, printed music booklets, legacy tour books, test pressings (including pressings for Telekon, I, Assassin, and Music For Chameleons) along with other exclusive items. Head here to view Numan's full statement and pre-order options.
Today New Order debuted the third segment in their Transmissions docu-series. The latest episode is a candid interview with Peter Hook who recalls New Order's early days and the recording of Movement. Hooky considers Movement as an escape from dealing with Ian Curtis' death and said manager Rob Gretton was instrumental in keeping them going by lining up gigs for them.
Watch the interview with the always intriguing Peter Hook below and catch up with the previous episodes here.
Transmissions leads up to and celebrates the release of the Movement Definitive Edition box set. The four piece set (1LP/2CD/1DVD) arrives April 5th and contains a copy of Movement on vinyl, a copy of Movement on CD, a bonus CD with previously unreleased tracks (Western Works and Cargo demos, rehearsal versions and more), a DVD collecting live concert recordings from 1980/81 along with their Granada TV and BBC appearances, plus a hard back book. Pre-order here.
This month New Order issued remastered editions of four iconic Movement-era non-album singles. So far they've reissued both versions of "Ceremony," and "Everythings Gone Green" (with the correct tracklisting for "Mesh" and "Cries And Whispers!) This week they wrap up the reissue series with the remastered version of "Temptation." Head here to order.
The Cure's Robert Smith was interviewed this week by the program CapeTalk in promotion of the band's first ever shows in South Africa. During the interview Smith revealed that he's just finished recording the Cure's still-untitled 14th studio album but says the record does not yet have a release date.
He also told interviewer John Maytham that even though he's spent 40 years focusing on the Cure he says it doesn't feel like he's "been doing it that long" and he especially loves playing live shows. He chalks that up to the Cure's varied catalog -- it's still very interesting to him because The Cure have tons of different songs and styles to draw from: dark, brooding, whimsical, emotional, melodic, and poppy.
Though not a punk band, Smith thinks The Cure drew inspiration from the punk movement:
"Really at heart, I think the Cure stayed with the punk ethic although we've had a degree of success and signed to major labels and stuff, at the heart of it, we've always slightly rejected doing things in a conventional way."
Near the end of the interview, Maytham, who didn't exactly come off as the world's biggest Cure fan asked Smith how his "look" evolved:
"When we first started we had no photos taken, we shied away from it. I didn't want people to know who we were, because I wanted them to listen to the music. I didn't want them to prejudge us and think we were a punk band because I thought we were kind of different. I played with a band called Siouxsie and the Banshees for a while, I saw the audience and I kind of liked that look, so I suppose that I just kind of like moved into that kind of look. But I think the real reason was actually because I don't have well defined features and I just need make up when I'm on stage...for thousands of years people stand on stage and get made up to kind of project their features, and I just do the same. I just liked doing it...as a Bowie fan from way back I liked the way he created characters although I've only ever created one character and it's pretty much me, it's just a bigger version -- a louder version of me -- it just allows me to be a little bit more kind of flamboyant. I'm not naturally a performer...it gives me...not courage, but a lack of self-awareness."
In celebration of The The's 40th anniversary this year the band will release a line of t-shirts commemorating different eras of their history. The first two shirts have been unveiled and honor the band's classic 1983 album Soul Mining. The Soul Mining Artwork shirt features the classic album artwork designed by the late Andrew "Andy Dog" Johnson; the Soul Mining Lyric shirt features lyrics from "This Is The Day." Both shirts include a 40th anniversary logo on the sleeve.
The shirts are available to view below. Head here to order while supplies last.
Morrissey has unleashed another single from his forthcoming covers album California Son. "Morning Starship" was originally written and released by Jobriath (Bruce Wayne Campbell) in 1973. Mozzer's cover serves as the second single from California Son and features Ed Droste of Grizzly Bear on backing vocals. Check it out below.
California Sun features 12 cover songs and is available to pre-order here or here.
Andrew Golding best known for his work in the C86 band The Wolfhounds has launched an new project titled Dragon Welding. The self-titled debut album was released last week and includes an intriguing and diverse mix of sounds which run the gamut from buzzy guitar-driven to analog synth, to folk and ambient. Yet another glorious record from the uber-talented and pioneering musician.
Stream two tracks from Dragon Welding below and head to Bandcamp to stream/order.
Squeeze hit the road in the U.S. this summer for the Difford & Tilbrook Songbook tour which sees the band performing Squeeze classics written by founding members Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook. The U.S. dates will precede the previously announced European leg, which kicks off in October, however unlike the UK/Euro leg Heaven 17 will NOT serve as openers. Tickets for the U.S. tour go on sale this Friday, March 22nd.
Squeeze - Difford & Tilbrook Songbook tour
Aug 14 -- Pawling, NY @ Daryl's House
Aug 15 -- Derry, NH @ The Tupelo Music Hall
Aug 16 -- Bensalem, PA @ XCite Center at Parx Casino
Aug 17 -- Washington, DC @ The Kennedy Center
Aug 20 -- Englewood, NJ @ Bergen PAC
Aug 22 -- Asbury Park, NJ @ Stone Pony Summer Stage
Aug 23 -- Mashantucket, CT @ Foxwoods Resort Casino
Aug 24 -- New York, NY @ Pier 17
Aug 25 -- Cohasset, MA @ South Shore Music Circus
Aug 27 -- Hyannis, MA @ Cape Cod Melody Tent
Aug 29 -- Lenox, MA @ Tanglewood
Aug 30 -- Munhall, PA @ Carnegie of Homestead Music Hall
Aug 31 -- Chicago, IL @ Chicago Theatre
Sep 01 -- Milwaukee, WI @ The Pabst Theater
Sep 03 -- Minneapolis, MN @ The State Theatre
Sep 04 -- Omaha, NE @ Kiewit Concert Hall
Sep 06 -- Arvada, CO @ Arvada Center
Sep 07 -- Park City, UT @ Deer Valley Resort
Sep 09 -- Seattle, WA @ The Showbox
Sep 10 -- Salem, OR @ The Elsinore Theatre
Sep 12 -- Oakland, CA @ The Fox Theatre
Sep 13 -- Los Angeles, CA @ The Orpheum Theatre
Sep 15 -- Chandler, AZ @ The Chandler Center For The Arts
Sep 17 -- Austin, TX @ The Paramount
Sep 18 -- Dallas, TX @ The Bomb Factory
Sep 19 -- Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live
Sep 21 -- Louisville, KY @ Bourbon & Beyond Festival
Sep 22 -- Atlanta, GA @ The Tabernacle
Adam Ant returns to North American this fall to tour his debut solo album Friend Or Foe. Ant will perform the classic 1982 breakthrough album in full along with other favorites from his catalog. The tour kicks off in September and includes a Detroit area stop September 13th at the Royal Oak Music Theatre. Tickets go on sale this Friday, March 22nd.
Friend Or Foe was a massive album for Adam Ant in the U.S. in part due to MTV banging out "Goody Two Shoes" and "Desperate But Not Serious" in heavy rotation. Good times.
Adam Ant -- North American tour
Sep 04 -- Milwaukee, WI @ Pabst Theater
Sep 06 -- St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
Sep 07 -- Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theatre
Sep 08 -- Minneapolis, MN @ Pantages Theatre
Sep 11 -- Cincinnati, OH @ Taft Theatre
Sep 13 -- Royal Oak, MI @ Royal Oak Music Theatre
Sep 14 -- Cleveland, OH @ Masonic Auditorium
Sep 15 -- Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall
Sep 17 -- Boston, MA @ Shubert Theatre
Sep 19 -- New York, NY @ Beacon Theatre
Sep 20 -- Philadelphia, PA @ Merriam Theater
Sep 21 -- Mashantucket, CT @ Fox Theater
Sep 23 -- Washington, DC @ Lincoln Theatre
Sep 25 -- Greensboro, NC @ Carolina Theatre
Sep 27 -- Atlanta, GA @ Symphony Hall
Sep 28 -- Clearwater, FL @ Capitol Theatre
Sep 29 -- Orlando, FL @ Hard Rock Live
Oct 01 -- Miami, FL @ Fillmore Miami Beach
The second episode of New Order's docu-series Transmissions premiered today and features commentary from the intriguing and legendary Gillian Gilbert. Highlights include Gilbert's comments about working with Martin Hannett and talking about how Joy Division/New Order are pegged as dark, serious people even though the reality is they are quite the opposite.
Enjoy the all-too-short interview with Gilbert below.
Transmissions leads up to and celebrates the release of the Movement Definitive Edition box set. The four piece set (1LP/2CD/1DVD) arrives April 5th and contains a copy of Movement on vinyl, a copy of Movement on CD, a bonus CD with previously unreleased tracks (Western Works and Cargo demos, rehearsal versions and more), a DVD collecting live concert recordings from 1980/81 along with their Granada TV and BBC appearances, plus a hard back book. Pre-order here.
This month remastered editions of four iconic Movement-era non-album singles will be released. Last week both versions of "Ceremony" were reissued; tomorrow (March 15th) will see the reissue of "Everythings Gone Green" (with the correct tracklisting for "Mesh" and "Cries And Whispers!), and "Temptation" wraps up the reissue series on March 23rd. Head here to pre-order.
Slowness have been creating dreamy and mesmerizing post-punk soundscapes since their formation in 2008 and soon they'll return with yet another brilliant recording. The band's new full length album Berths follows the release of 2014's How To Keep From Falling Off A Mountain and arrives via Schoolkids Records on June 5th. The album is preceded by the phenomenal new single "Rose" which gets its official release on April 3rd, but is available to stream now ahead of its release.
Envelope yourself in the entrancing beauty of Slowness below and catch up with the band here.
Bernard Sumner and Stephen Morris are warning fans/collectors about buying vintage instruments purported to be authentic instruments previously used and/or built by New Order and Joy Division.
The legends have posted a warning on New Order's website cautioning "buyer beware" to those thinking of buying their vintage gear. As you might guess, though the posting doesn't mention him by name, it essentially calls out Peter Hook and his recent auction.
The posting features a picture of Mark Reeder posing with a vintage synth. [Reeder is an electronic wizard and was previously a member of Frantic Elevators -- he's collaborated with Sumner in the past and Sumner considers him a friend.] The posting reveals that the picture is of Joy Division's only Transcendent 2000 which Sumner built himself and eventually gave to his friend.
Note: Peter Hook's recent auction included a Transcendent 2000, though Hook was very open and honest that the synth he was auctioning off was NOT Sumner's original.
There is, however, a dispute between parties regarding chimes that were allegedly used on Joy Division's classic single "Atmosphere."
Peter Hook's Signature Collection included a bell tree/chimes that Hook claimed were used on "Atmosphere." The chimes ended up selling for $6,000 U.S. in the auction.
From Hook's Omega Auction listing:
"As used very distinctively on ATMOSPHERE by JOY DIVISION instigated by Martin Hannett. These were lying around Cargo Studios for years along with along with Nico’s old harmonium. When I changed Cargo to Sweet Sixteen this had gone. Then John Brierley returned them for The Joy Division Exhibition at The Factory. I have no idea what happened to the Harmonium."
However Sumner and Morris claim in their post that Morris did NOT use a bell tree or chimes on "Atmosphere" and instead fashioned the sound using a tambourine, scissors, and a delay. As proof of their allegation, they included a screenshotted excerpt from the 2009 book Totally Wired highlighting Morris' comments about how he created the sound.
Despite taking shots at Hook, New Order's posting is great advice that should be taken to heart when buying items online: it makes sense to take caution when buying vintage items that are allegedly authentic, especially with so many fraudsters circling around. Buyer beware, indeed.
Television return to Detroit May 4th for an all ages show in celebration of El Club's 3rd anniversary. Tickets to see the legendary band go on sale tomorrow morning at 10 am. Head here or here for details.
David Bowie's archive has uploaded two classic Bowie videos -- the remastered original (1969) version of "Space Oddity" and the original uncensored version of "China Girl" (featuring Bowie's bare behind) below:
The "Space Oddity" video was created February 6th, 1969 as a segment for the larger promotional Bowie film Love You Till Tuesday. "Space Oddity" would later debut on the BBC in 1975; the film Love You Till Tuesday was shelved and eventually released on home video in 1984. Read more about the video here.
The "China Girl" video was originally released in 1983 and was one of Bowie's "very simple, very direct" statements on racism. Read more about the video here.
Meanwhile two separate David Bowie collections are due out this spring in celebration of the 50th anniversary of "Space Oddity": Spying Through A Keyhole is a 7" box set which collects nine rare and previously unreleased demos (including 2 early demos of "Space Oddity"). The set arrives April 3rd and is available to pre-order here. The Clareville Grove Demos 7" vinyl singles box features a different (later) demo of "Space Oddity" along with five other home demos (four previously unreleased demos total) and will be released May 15th. Pre-order here.
The Waterboys have announced they'll release a new album titled Where The Action Is on May 24th. This is the band's 13th studio album overall and follows their 2017 album Out Of All This Blue. The standard edition of the record contains 10 tracks; the deluxe edition adds an 11 track "mashed" version of the album -- all of the album's tracks were remixed/mashed, plus a "reprise" version of the title track is included. Head here to check out all the options.
Stream the first single "Right Side Of Heartbreak (Wrong Side Of Love)" and view the album tracklisting below.
Standard edition
01. Where The Action Is
02. London Mick
03. Out Of All This Blue
04. Right Side Of Heartbreak (Wrong Side Of Love)
05. In My Time On Earth
06. Ladbroke Grove Symphony
07. Take Me There I Will Follow You
08. And There's Love
09. Then She Made The Lasses-O
10. Piper At The Gates Of Dawn Bonus mash version (included with deluxe edition)
01. Where The Action Is (Mash)
02. London Mick (Jess'n'Zeenie Mix)
03. Out Of All This Blue (Soul Choir)
04. Right Side Of Heartbreak (Box & Vox)
05. In My Time On Earth (Scott & Wickham Mix)
06. Ladbroke Grove Coda
07. I Will Follow You Take Me There
08. And There's Love (Mashtrumental)
09. Then She Made The Lasses (Mash)
10. Where The Action Is (Reprise)
11. Piper At The Gates of Dawn (Instrumental)
Massive Attack issued a statement today announcing the postponement of their upcoming North American tour. The mostly sold out Mezzanine XXI tour was scheduled to kick off March 11th in Montreal but will be rescheduled due to illness within the band. The rescheduled dates will take place in the fall and will be announced on March 14th.
UPDATE (3/16): Make up dates have been announced. See the updated tour itinerary below.
"We regret to announce that the upcoming Mezzanine XXI shows in the USA and Canada have been postponed due to illness. The shows will be rescheduled for this fall, with a full announcement to be made on Thursday March 14th. All current tickets will be valid for the new dates. The band are deeply sorry for any inconvenience and are looking forward to bringing the show to the USA and Canada soon."
Massive Attack - Mezzanine XXI North American tour Sep 01 -- San Diego, CA @ Cal Coast Credit Union Amphitheater Sep 03 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium Sep 04 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium Sep 05 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Palladium Sep 07 -- San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium Sep 10 -- Saint Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre Sep 11 -- Chicago, IL @ The Chicago Theater Sep 12 -- Detroit, MI @ Masonic Temple Theatre Sep 14 -- Montreal, QC @ Bell Centre, Sep 17 -- Toronto, ON @ Sony Centre Sep 18 -- Toronto, ON @ Sony Centre Sep 20 -- Philadelphia, PA @ Metropolitan Opera House Sep 21 -- Boston, MA @ Boch Center Sep 24 -- Washington, DC @ The Anthem Sep 26 -- New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall Sep 27 -- New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall
Postponed Massive Attack North American tour dates Mar 11 -- Montreal, QC @ Place Des Arts (sold out) Mar 12 -- Toronto, ON @ Sony Centre For Performing Arts (sold out) Mar 14 -- Boston, MA @ Boch Center (sold out) Mar 15 -- New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall (sold out) Mar 16 -- New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall Mar 19 -- Philadelphia, PA @ Metropolitan Opera House Mar 20 -- Washington, DC @ Anthem Mar 22 -- Detroit, MI @ Masonic Temple Mar 23 -- Chicago, IL @ Chicago Theatre (sold out) Mar 24 -- Saint Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre (sold out) Mar 28 -- San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium (sold out) Mar 29 -- Los Angeles, CA @ The Hollywood Palladium (sold out) Mar 30 -- Los Angeles, CA @ The Hollywood Palladium (sold out) Mar 31 -- Los Angeles, CA @ The Hollywood Palladium Apr 02 -- San Diego, CA @ Cal Coast Open Air Theatre
The first episode of New Order's docu-series Transmissions premiered today. The first installment is an interview with Bernard Sumner - among the highlights: Sumner explains the difficulty/awkwardness of learning how to sing in public plus discusses the devastation of New Order having their gear stolen while on the road in the U.S.
Watch Transmissions below (note: Sumner's f-bomb was hilariously bleeped with a few notes from "Bizarre Love Triangle")
Transmissions leads up to and celebrates the release of the Movement Definitive Edition box set. The four piece set (1LP/2CD/1DVD) arrives April 5th and contains a copy of Movement on vinyl, a copy of Movement on CD, a bonus CD with previously unreleased tracks (Western Works and Cargo demos, rehearsal versions and more), a DVD collecting live concert recordings from 1980/81 along with their Granada TV and BBC appearances, plus a hard back book. Pre-order here.
This month remastered editions of four iconic Movement-era non-album singles will be released. The series launches tomorrow (March 8th) with "Ceremony" (the original version and re-recorded version with Gillian Gilbert will be reissued separately); "Everythings Gone Green" (with the correct tracklisting for "Mesh" and "Cries And Whispers!) will be reissued March 15th; and "Temptation" wraps up the reissue series on March 23rd. Head here to pre-order.
The new Iggy Pop produced docu-series Punk premieres March 11th on Epix. Punk explores the history of the genre and includes legends such as John Lydon, Wayne Kramer, Debbie Harry, Marky Ramone, Jello Biafra and more.
Earlier this week a launch event for the series took place in Hollywood and featured a panel discussion which included John Lydon, Marky Ramone, Henry Rollins, Donita Sparks, and producer John Varvados. Egos clashed and quickly spun out of control -- Lydon and Rollins shared a few uncomfortable barbs, then Lydon turned his attention to lash out at Ramone.
Marty Willson-Piper's fifth studio album Hanging Out In Heaven is being reissued on vinyl next month for Record Store Day. The double album is pressed on blue vinyl, includes brand new artwork plus two bonus tracks "Queen In Her Jeans" and "Dressed Up As You." The album was originally released in 2000 (without the bonus tracks) and was always intended to be released on vinyl according to Willson-Piper:
"At last, my fifth solo album, Hanging Out In Heaven, will be released through Schoolkids Records on Record Store Day. It's been a long wait for one of my most well-received records. The album has new artwork and comes on blue double vinyl with two extra tracks. Recorded in sessions in L.A. and Sweden with the two added songs recorded in London, the album contains some of the most emotional and poignant songs I ever wrote."
Though almost 20 years old, the album truly holds up. The powerful message of the galvanizing single "Forget The Radio" is more relevant than ever in 2019, plus namechecks the mighty Andy Partridge of XTC!
The Record Store Day release is limited to 1000 copies, so as always, it's best to contact your favorite record store ahead of time to see if they'll be stocking the release.
Hanging Out In Heaven - Tracklist
01 Forget the Radio
02 Swan
03 Wondering
04 Sanctuary
05 Waves Towards the Moon
06 Goodbye
07 I Don’t Think So
08 Watching Us
09 You Bring Your Love to Me
10 After Eight
11 All Those Wires
12 1929 Vintage Wine
13 Wreck (A Sea Shanty)
14 What Is Her Name
15 All That Remains
16 Queen In Her Jeans (bonus track)
17 Dressed Up As You (bonus track)
New Order's iconic single "True Faith" appears in a new Calvin Klein commercial. Some of today's pop-music/popculture stars are featured singing to and/or enjoying the timeless gem.
Say what you will about these "stars" but at least New Order are getting some well-deserved recognition from a new generation. Check it out below.
Meanwhile Peter Hook's Signature Collection was auctioned off last Saturday with proceeds going to benefit Epilepsy UK, CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably), and The Christie. According to Omega Auctions auctioneer Paul Fairweather, the event's sales results were unprecedented with memorabilia commanding prices well above expectations:
“It was a huge honour to have the opportunity to sell a collection of items that tell a very important story about Manchester’s musical history, and fantastic to have the chance to work so closely with Hooky over the last year. We would describe the sale results as unprecedented, with prices often far exceeding our expectations. The fully signed Ideal For Living single attained a price in excess of what we would expect for a full set of Beatles signatures, suggesting a fascinating shift in the spending habits of some of the biggest collectors.”
Some of the highly sought after items:
*chimes used on "Atmosphere" sold for £5,800 ($7639)
*Factory Records hanging table sold for £9,000 ($11,800)
*an original ‘FAC1’, the very first Factory club poster sold for £9,000 ($11,800)
*Hooky’s first ever bass sold for £10,000 ($13,170)
*bass used on Closer sold for £15,500 ($20,414)
*original Joy Division flight case sold for £21,000 ($27,658)
The legendary Creation band The Jasmine Minks are releasing a brand new 7" single "Step By Step" on March 22nd. The limited edition double A-side has been pressed on blue vinyl and is limited to 300 copies. A digital release will also be available. Stream "Step By Step" below and pre-order here or here.
The Jasmine Minks formed in 1983 and are notable not just for their incredibly addictive and timeless indie singles but also for being the very first band Alan McGee signed to Creation records.
Sara Romweber, the drummer for the influential college rock band Let's Active has died. The news was first reported by journalist David Menconi and has been confirmed by her manager. Romweber died from a brain tumor. She was 55 years old.
Romweber was the original drummer of Let's Active and played with the band through 1984 and is featured on their debut EP Afoot and full length album Cypress.
The mighty Noel Gallagher is hitting the road this summer. Gallagher and his band The High Flying Birds are part of a co-headline package tour that also includes Smashing Pumpkins and opening support from AFI. The tour kicks off in August and includes a Detroit area stop at DTE on August 14th. The general onsale for tickets is this Friday, March 8th, with pre-sales kicking off today (Tuesday, March 5th) at 10am. View the full itinerary below.
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds return with a new EP for Record Store Day (April 13th). The Wait And Return EP includes three remixes of songs that appeared on Gallagher's latest album Who Built The Moon? The release is limited to 2500 copies and will be pressed on teal vinyl (the EP cover art is featured at the top of this post). If interested in obtaining a copy contact your favorite record store ahead of time to see if they'll be stocking the release.
Meanwhile Noel Gallagher has signed to Warner Brothers much to the dismay of his brother Liam who took the opportunity to call him out. (NG established Sour Mash in 2000 and has been releasing his records independently through his label).
He’s just signed to Warner’s my fucking major record label company ting the 1 he slagged of about a thousand times because he’s a real independent artist he does everything on his own he is so real it’s like realism it’s so fucking real it’s Laer backwards Dya get me bruvs
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - Wait And Return tracklist
A1. She Taught Me How To Fly (The Reflex Revision)
A2. Keep On Reaching (The Reflex Revision)
B1. Black & White Sunshine (Richard Norris Remix)
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds/Smashing Pumpkins tour
Aug 08 -- Camden, NJ @ BB & T Pavilion
Aug 09 -- Wantagh, NY @ Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
Aug 10 -- Darien Center, NY @ Darien Lake Amphitheater
Aug 13 -- Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage
Aug 14 -- Clarkston, MI @ DTE
Aug 15 -- Tinley Park, IL @ Hollywood Casino amphitheatre
Aug 17 -- Columbia, MD @ Merriweather Post Pavilion
Aug 19 -- Cuyahoga Falls, OH @ Blossom Music Center
Aug 20 -- Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
Aug 21 -- Alpharetta, GA @ Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Aug 23 -- Rogers, AR @ The Walmart AMP
Aug 24 -- Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion
Aug 25 -- The Woodlands, TX @ The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Aug 28 -- Chula Vista, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
Aug 30 -- Los Angeles, CA @ Banc Of California Stadium
Aug 31 -- Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheatre
