Morcheeba have unveiled an album preview in celebration for the launch of their forthcoming new LP Head Up High.
The album, set for release on 14th October, is the band’s first new material since 2010’s Blood Like Lemonade and is preluded by brilliant new single Gimme Your Love (below).
Hit the play button on the YouTube video to listen to over 4 minutes of Morcheeba loveliness, and click the iTunes button below to preorder Head Up High.
After posting a short teaser last week, Britney Spears has unveiled the full video for her new single Work Bitch.
The track is the first single to be lifted off the US popstar’s forthcoming eighth studio album, set for release on 3rd December, prior to the star’s residency at the MGM Grand resort in Las Vegas.
Check the video and let us know your thoughts.
US sisterly trio HAIM took to London’s Rough Trade record store tonight to play an intimate gig in support of their new album Days Are Gone.
For those lucky fans who managed to get wristband passes, the show was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see the band in a close setting; for those who missed out though, eager fan @SunWasAnAltar recorded the whole thing!
Hit play on the Soundcloud widget above to listen to the set, or press play below to watch the whole performance.
HAIM @ Rough Trade – 01 10 2013 from Keiran Chilvers on Vimeo.
Check it out – we’re jealous! Hit the iTunes button below to download Days Are Gone.
Rock band Franz Ferdinand joined Goldfrapp, James Blake and Gregory Porter tonight on the live edition of Jools Holland’s legendary ‘Later’ program.
Check out the performances below; Blake’s live rendition of hit Retrograde is particularly touching:
James Blake – Retrograde
James Blake – Life Round Here
Goldfrapp – Annabel
Gregory Porter – Liquid Spirit
Franz Ferdinand – Right Action
Words by:
Dan Bull
Follow @DanBull7609
As a small-town American father, with a knack for shooting deer and a basement full of emergency supplies, Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman) soon shows he also has the temper of Wolverine, and a stronger disdain for the law than Jean Valjean, when, following the disappearance of his daughter and her best friend on Thanksgiving, he takes matters into his own hands.
When prime suspect, clapped-out RV driving Alex Jones (a spine-chillingly creepy Paul Dano as Alex Jones, with a voice like Michael Jackson at half the volume) is released on bail, controlling Keller is far from happy. Despite his pleas to man-on-the case Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal), there is insufficient evidence to keep Jones in. Gyllenhall adds yet another stellar performance to an ever growing list, with his Loki arguably an even more complex character than his Brokeback Mountain performance. With a tick that becomes more prominent throughout the film, and obvious demons we aren’t ever shown, his “100% record” for solving cases has far from created one of the uber confident, cocky cops we’re used to seeing.
The story takes an unsettling twist when old-fashioned father Keller kidnaps Jones, torturing him for information and all too easily keeping Loki at bay. Encouraging his wife (Maria Bello) to take sleeping pills and forcing his son to keep information from her, Keller confuses love and control, which Jackman delivers with precision.
Prisoners marks director Denis Villeneuve’s first full-length English feature, and with 2010’s Incendies being nominated for a Best Foreign Film Oscar, could he now have his sights on the award for ‘Best Picture’? Visually, it’s a stunning set of picture perfect frames, shrouded in weather without being too cliché (rain = sad, sad = rain) and with a depth that’s almost 3D, without the need for black, plastic specs. Whether staring through windscreen wipers or watching a broken character crumble, like a hawk, from a bird’s eye view, the sense of closeness adds to the tension, echoed with a minimal soundtrack that somehow manages to create the sense of suspense of Jaw’s two notes in just one.
A supporting cast, including Terrence Howard as Franklin Birch (father of Joy, who also disappeared) and Oscar winner Melissa Leo as Jones’ aunt and guardian, Holly, bring strong performances from both sides of the story, however it’s Dano who is the most captivating. Despite the fact that, like his role in Little Miss Sunshine, it’s a mainly silent role, he has become a modern day Charlie Chaplin, delivering just one expression for every one of Jackman’s pages of script, yet coming off as the winner of the act-battle.
At 150 minutes it’s ambitiously lengthy considering the subject, however, a whole host of moral dilemmas, and cinematography that’s unafraid to play out a moment until it’s natural end (in a similar style to Clint Eastwood’s direction) ensures the audience’s attention throughout. By the final thirty minutes, you’ll feel as pressured as Detective Loki to decide who and what is right or wrong, and which you might have chosen.
Rising Australian producer Flume is all set to re-release his self-titled debut LP, and to mark the occasion, the young dance prodigy has reworked his 2012 hit Holdin On, now featuring additional vocals by US rapper Freddie Gibbs.
The rerelease of Flume, set to drop on 11th November, will group together the original LP, along with remixes, a producer disc as well as a 70-minute documentary, all within a massive 4-disc bundle.
Take a listen to the rework of Holdin On, and hit the iTunes link to buy the original LP Flume.
Words by:
Dan Bull
Follow @DanBull7609
With a list of featuring artists that could rival the latest NOW [That’s What I Call Music] compilation, Dizzee Rascal’s fifth album (aptly titled The Fifth) emphasises the fact that the one-time face of (what are generally considered), underground genres, has no intention of ending his time in the sun.
Featured vocalists Jessie J, Sean Kingston and Ke$ha are here, as well as the friendliest rap battles ever with Tinie Tempah and Will.I.Am (although, can we even call that rapping?), and production from dance-mentor Calvin Harris and hit machine RedOne. Compare this with the self production of his debut and it’s clear that the Boy In Da Corner has become the Man In Control Of Da Room. And not just any man…
Opener Superman shows no sign of a return to his roots, instead aiming to keep his hits on a mainstream dancefloor. With a chant of “I am Superman” (albeit, not from Dizzee himself) it’s clearly a declaration, from an artist whose tracks have not only taken over dancefloors and airwaves; he’s also become a festival fixture, appearing to be an annual guest of honour at Glastonbury. Lines including “I always keep my willy protected, so I don’t ever worry ’bout being affected” only ever hint at controversy, so when Dizzee says he’s “getting jiggy” it makes you question whether he’s turning into the UK’s answer to Will Smith.
Bonkerz-esque bangerz (and no, no copywriting for you Miley), continue with Jessie J-featuring, Guetta’s Titanium-sounding We Don’t Play Around, and the Sean Kingston duet on Arse Like That. Whilst their titles may sound Eminem-esque, the finished produce of Superman, Arse Like That and Goin’ Crazy? are anything of that quality.
However by the time we get to Love This Town, images of Cristal spilling on the floor are replaced with memories of struggling to lift your feet from a WKD-soaked one. It’s euphoric to the point of nausea, sharing more in common with Bonkers-rave compilations of the 90s rather than the track that marked his change in direction.
Of all the dance anthems, Goin’ Crazy is the most successful. Even with a featured vocalist who Radio 1 now refuse to play, Robbie Williams’ input creates a track that sounds like a Dirtee Disco in a vintage arcade game. Second official single – the Will.I.Am produced Something Really Bad – follows a stencil that seems prominent throughout, whereby the Rascal’s vocals appear to only take up half of the track, if not less. Could it be that he’s run out of things to say, or is it more a case of a focus on the beat than a message to be received?
As successful as these tracks are at providing DJ’s with guaranteed floorfillers, it’s refreshing to be reminded of the Mercury Prize-winning style that first brought Dizzee to our attention. I Don’t Need A Reason’s minimal approach (no guest appearance, no Calvin Harris-approved backing track) puts Dizzee back in Da Corner, while the equally impressive H-Town is flavoured by US rappers Bun B and Trae The Truth, leaving us wanting more than just a taste of what our Londoner could create with more influences from across the Atlantic.
Despite this, it’s more likely that Good or Heart Of A Warrior will be lifted as future singles, complete with crazy promos; the former a more chilled-out ode to holidays, the latter sharing Katy Perry’s Eye Of A Tiger influences from Roar (although it’s unlikely you’ll hear her singing “pull your finger out”. Or is it?). Survivor can only be moments away from announcing a comeback/reunion/best of tour.
Despite an impressive group of collaborators, The Fifth fails to show the potential we might have expected for album #5 back when his debut was introducing a whole new audience to genres they’d only ever heard of. There are moments that make you want to dance, and there are moments that sound like a natural progression to Boy In Da Corner and Showtime, but there are also too many moments when it seems that Dizzee Rascal has become a caricature of his Bonkers self.
Buy The Fifth here:
Solange has teamed up with Vice’s Creators Project to take us behind the scenes of the video shoot for current single Lovers In The Parking Lot.
The video features a choreographed journey through Houston’s legendary flea market, King’s Best Market, along with a cameo by Houston rap legend, Bun B.
Take a look and head over here to catch the full video to Lovers In The Parking Lot.
Chase and Status took to BBC’s Radio 1 Live Lounge earlier, performing their new single Count On Me, for Fearne Cotton’s show.
Bringing new vocalist Moko along, the dance production duo performed a stripped-back version of the track, the second single to be lifted off the group’s forthcoming new album Brand New Machine.
The Live Lounge sessions follows a remarkable Live Lounge cover of London Grammar’s Strong by the team less than a fortnight ago.
Dev Hynes, aka Blood Orange, has announced that sophomore album Cupid Deluxe will be released on November 18th 2013.
The album, produced entirely by Hynes, features an impressive list of collaborators, including David Longstreth (Dirty Projectors), Caroline Polachek (Chairlift) and Skepta.
Hynes has already released first single Chamakay from Cupid Deluxe, whilst the album is the follow up to Hynes’ debut as Blood Orange, 2011’s Coastal Grooves. Since that album’s release, Hynes has written and produced music for the likes of Solange, Sky Ferreira, MKS, and more.
Hit the iTunes link below to preorder Cupid Deluxe now.