In news from their respective official websites, both Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds and Elbow will be joining an already confirmed Bruce Springsteen at 2012′s Isle of Wight music festival.

Elbow will be taking to the main stage on Friday 22nd June, whereas Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds will be special guests to headliners Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band on Sunday 24th June.

Music Week has confirmed some other acts for the festival, namely: Example, Madness, Biffy Clyro, Noah & the Whale and The Vaccines.

Biffy Clyro and Madness will peform on Saturday 23rd June, Example and Noah & the Whale on Friday and The Vaccines are on the bill for Sunday.

John Giddings, who promotes the Iow festival, said:

”We are very proud to bring the cream of British talent to the island next summer, it’s shaping up to be another bumper year!’

See Elbow perform ‘Open Arms’ , live on Red Nose Day 2011, below:

Michael Antony Sullivan, former assistant to Tommy Lee, has filed a lawsuit against him – stating that the Mötley Crüe drummer ruined his reputation and prevented him getting jobs with other bands.

The Guardian reports that:

“According to his lawsuit, Sullivan was hired by Lee in January 2005. Until March 2011, he worked as “procurer, Man Friday, chauffeur, guide, book-keeper, attendant, door-keeper, agent, butler, valet, attendant, cook, shopper, nanny, bodyguard, maid, nurse and nursemaid”, on-call 24 hours. For long periods, including when Lee was touring with Mötley Crüe, Sullivan worked 80- to 100-hour weeks “without a single day off”.”

Refusing Sullivan overtime and expenses, Tommy Lee would also “…find a reason to dock his pay…if Lee was upset with Sullivan for any reason.”

Mr. Sullivan left in early 2011, but has alleged that Lee hounded him and prevented him getting jobs with bands Bush and Godsmack. He is looking for renumeration of “no less than $50,000″ in order to “…punish Lee and make an example of him.”

An online version of the lawsuit can be found HERE.

Billboard reports that Lisa Johansen, who has claimed for nearly two decades that she is the ‘real’ daughter of Elvis, is suing the Presley estate on grounds of defamation and infliction of emotional distress – to the tune of $130 million (around £84 million).

Author of the book, I, Lisa Marie: The True Story of Elvis Presley’s Real Daughter, Johansen details how Priscilla Presley fled the US for her safety and gave her daughter a new identity to protect her. At the time of the book’s release, Johansen refused to take a DNA test to prove she categorically was Elvis’ daughter. This then resulted in the publishers of the memoir suing her for $50 million for the reason that this had damaged sales figures.

Johansen has since consented to taking a DNA test, including the results with other documents pertaining the lawsuit – a countersuit that responds to a legal letter issued by Graceland warning Ms. Johansen off, saying that her “malicious false claims” would no longer be tolerated.

The case will likely make it to court in 2012.

London-based quintet Spector have announced a string of UK headline dates in February 2012.

The dates are as follows:

11/02/2012 Kasbah – Coventry, UK
14/02/2012 The Cluny – Newcastle Upon Tyne, UK
15/02/2012 King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut – Glasgow, UK
16/02/2012 The Cockpit – Leeds, UK
17/02/2012 The Duchess – York, UK
18/02/2012 The Deaf Institute – Manchester, UK
21/02/2012 Jericho Tavern – Oxford, UK
22/02/2012 Masque Theatre – Liverpool, UK
23/02/2012 The Rainbow – Birmingham, UK
24/02/2012 The Louisiana – Bristol, UK
25/02/2012 The Green Door Store – Brighton, UK

These shows will take place prior to the group’s support slot on Florence + the Machine’s UK tour and could possibly coincide with the release of their debut album.

Watch the video for new single, ‘Grey Shirt and Tie’, below:

Influential Wu-Tang Clan member GZA/The Genius is set to host a lecture at the internationally-renowned Harvard University on Thursday December 1st.

The lecture (which will begin at 4PM) will focus on his career and his lyrical craft, with a Q&A session to follow. The event is hosted by Harvard’s Black Men’s Forum and will be open to the general public.

In a statement from the rapper, he wishes to speak with scientists and other specialists in their field in order to get inspiration for his next album – due in 2012.

For once, Frankie Boyle can be safe in the knowledge that he hasn’t caused a media storm with another “controversial” joke. The Daily Mail (the U.K.’s premier fear-mongering broadsheet newspaper) has today published an article about Jimmy Carr (Presenter of 8 Out of 10 Cats and 10 O’Clock Live), proclaiming he left an audience of 1,000 people “aghast” when he cracked a joke about Sunshine Variety coaches:

“Why are they called Sunshine Variety coaches when all the kids on them look the fucking same?”

This is just the latest in a string of incidents over the past few years, which has seen the British media lash out at funny men and women over any joke that pokes fun at anyone.

This all begs two questions: Are they any taboos left in comedy? And, if so, who is deciding what is taboo and what isn’t?

Frankie Boyle (Formerly of BBC’s Mock the Week and Channel 4′s Frankie Boyle’s Tramadol Nights) is possibly the biggest comedic offender of the 21st century, if column inches are anything to go by. Not just because his Channel 4 show was god-awful, but because one of his jokes within it caused a sensational amount of offence. The target – Katie “Jordan” Price’s son Harvey:

“I have a theory that Jordan married a cagefighter because she needed someone strong enough to stop Harvey from fucking her…”

This one-liner drew around 500 complaints for Channel 4, who refused to apologise on-air.

Is making jokes about disabled children the line that none of us must cross? Or is there no subject that you can’t make a joke out of?

In a recent interview on Absolute Radio, Jimmy Carr stated:

“You go, well you can’t joke about race. Well if you’re from a different race and that’s your experience of the world and you want to talk about that, then fine. Or you can’t talk about disability, but disabled comics can talk about that. Well okay that’s … I think anyone can talk about anything, anything’s kind of up for grabs.”

With regards to disability, perhaps the most absurd outrage came in the form of complaints made in the light of Little Britain’s Lou and Andy sketches. People said that the sketches made fun of the disabled and would lead to disablism amongst the more gullible viewers that watched it (gullible is my word, used in jest. I don’t indulge in gulliblism…often).

The complainers obviously missed the joke here. The joke being that Andy Pipkin wasn’t actually disabled – quite the opposite. He was just a lazy bastard that had a carer waiting on him, hand and foot.

As I write this, more questions appear: Do we sometimes feel offended FOR a group of people, rather than we ourselves offended?

I think that ‘taboo’ is relative to the individual. Each human being has a different set of rules that they live by and what is defined as offensive will change from person to person. The media will try their damnedest to suggest to each individual what they should find funny and what they should find offensive, but anyone who is remotely level-headed will – ultimately – come to their own conclusions. (See the Brand and Ross “Sachsgate” debacle for a masterclass in how to cause uproar without actually finding out what the joke was in the first place).

The simple fact of the matter is this: if you don’t like something, don’t go thoroughly out of your way to bombard people into not liking it either – complain if you must, but don’t tell everyone else what it is that should be found funny.

“Censorship ends in logical completeness when nobody is allowed to read any books except the books that nobody reads.”

- George Bernard Shaw

Kate Bush appears to be like an unreliable bus service at the moment. You wait six years for a new album, then two come along within the space of  six months. May 2011′s offering, the splendid Director’s Cut, gave her fanbase just enough of a hook to make the wilderness years worthwhile (albeit with only one of the tracks on the album – ‘Flower of the Mountain’ vaguely resembling anything that could be described as ‘new’).

November 2011′s release of 50 Words for Snow offers ‘new’ and so much more besides.

Time-wise the album comes in at a fairly lengthy 65:29, which would lead one to expect a plethora of songage to be provided within its arctic climes. But with ten minute opener ‘Snowflake’ rearing its sensual head like a voluptuous ice queen, you know for definite that Ms. Bush will not be pushing you around. More like leading you by the hand in a crisp winter twilight, smiling at you as you struggle to walk in refrozen snow.

‘Set against a background of falling snow’, the album is a microcosm that draws you in with a delicate embrace, belying the arctic theme with a warmth that you wouldn’t find in many other places, such is the beauty of Kate’s voice (possibly at its best after a 30+ year career).

Comparing it to 2005′s platinum-seller, Aerial, the changes are not vast but they are extremely apparent. ‘Lake Tahoe’ and ‘Misty’ (which come in together at 24:40) have the nuances of tracks ‘Mrs. Bartolozzi’ and ‘A Coral Room’, but the former songs seem to have a more confident and exacting air about them. There is a ‘grown-upness’ about them.

Pre-album-release single ‘Wild Man’ is a great song. Great, great, great. But I certainly had to google many of the lyrics spouted:

They call you an animal, the Kangchenjunga Demon, Wild Man, Metoh-Kangmi.
Lying in my tent, I can hear your cry echoing round the mountainside.
You sound lonely. While crossing the Lhakpa-La something jumped down from the rocks.
In the remote Garo Hills by Dipu Marak we found footprints in the snow.

If you didn’t have to google any of that, perhaps you should consider that course in Himalayan Studies at the University of Ulanbaatar you’ve always thought about doing.

Elton John makes an appearance on a Kate Bush album in voice for the very first time (better late than never, I suppose) on ‘Snowed in at Wheeler Street’. Although she is clearly barking up the wrong tree with Elton John, lyrically and musically it is sublime. A triumph in love, loss and heartache. Combine that with the duet of many a person’s dreams; there you have a classic of the 21st Century.

The more surprising appearance comes in the guise of the U.K.’s Raconteur General – Stephen Fry. He literally reels off fifty words for snow on ’50 Words for Snow’, from the album 50 Words for Snow. Although not as moving and enduring as ‘Snowed in…’, it has slightly menacing tone that refreshingly contradicts the rest of the album. It reminds me of Aerial’s ‘π‘ and this is no bad thing, considering how much talent is required to sing random words and numbers, while keeping the listener interested.

‘Among Angels’ brings this grand world to a close, like a January sun melting everything pure and white. When the album ended, I half-expected to be left with a brown sludge swimming around my shoes. I was sad to see the world go.

50 Words for Snow is a masterpiece. It’s THE album that defines THE artist. Just a shame we may have to wait a long time for the next one.

 ★★★★★ 

There’s something rather heartwarming about being part of a small crowd that has no discernible demographic. The young, the old and the middling – mingling in anticipation. In a small second-floor room in the middle of Derby city centre, the some 300 people had all the buzz and none of the body odor that comes with such an intimate space.

First up was tour support Samantha Crain, a singer-songwriter from Oklahoma whose voice resonated beautifully across the auditorium. She appeared to be slightly bashful when talking between songs – almost as though she’d only just got up in time to perform – but the great songs spoke for themselves in the end, with the particular highlight of her set being ‘Santa Fe’.

A half hour wait and Andy Dinan and Troy Donockley came onto the stage, with a hobbling Ade Edmondson bringing up the rear. Ade then sat on a stool at the front of the stage and explained to us that he had fallen over and injured his foot after playing a cave in Cornwall, which meant he would be sat down for whole show – “It really fucking hurt.”

The set began with Madness hit, ‘Our House’. A slow way to open proceedings, but the crowd gladly lapped it up – and rightly so.

Perhaps the Bad Shepherds were preparing us for the rest of the night, because everything started getting faster and faster with ‘Anarchy In the U.K.’, ‘Making Plans For Nigel’ and ‘Down At the Tube Station At Midnight’ coming in quick succession. The call of the chorus in The Jam’s classic hit really made the crowd come alive, which Ade complimented as he took a swig of beer and a gulp of wine.

At certain points, it was almost as though everyone would fall through the floor as everyone was stamping their feet to the beat, along with pockets of people locking arms and dancing around the venue. Probably not what The Sex Pistols had in mind when they were writing ‘God Save the Queen’.

A personal highlight of mine was their take on Squeeze’s ‘Up the Junction’. If you can take a  decent song about lost and found love, make it into something that could melt even the coldest soul, then that is the sign of a great talent.

I would say the best thing about The Bad Shepherds is the intros that they give to their re-workings. For a minute or two (sometimes longer), you stand in front of the boys and wonder what they’re actually going to perform. Then comes the glorious moment of realization and you realize – it’s ‘White Riot’ by The Clash. But only in a lyrical sense, of course. The boys take the songs and make them their own.

Let’s hope it IS just the ‘First Farewell’ tour and not the final one.

Songs Played:

• Our House – Originally by Madness
• Anarchy in the U.K. – Originally by Sex Pistols
• Making Plans for Nigel – Originally by XTC
• Down at the Tube Station at Midnight -  Originally by The Jam
• The Lunatics (Have Taken Over the Asylum) – Originally by Fun Boy Three
• Friday Night/Saturday Morning – Originally by The Specials
• God Save the Queen – Originally by Sex Pistols
• Up the Junction – Originally by Squeeze
• Ace of Spades – Originally by Motörhead
• The Model – Originally by Kraftwerk
• Ramones Medley
• Rise – Originally by Public Image Ltd.
• What a Waste – Originally by Ian Dury & the Blockheads
• London Calling – Originally by The Clash
• Whole Wide World – Originally by Wreckless Eric
• No More Heroes – Originally by The Stranglers
• Once In A Lifetime – Originally by Talking Heads
• White Riot – Originally by The Clash

See Adrian Edmondson & the Bad Shepherds play ‘Making Plans for Nigel’ below:

American singer Andy Williams has begun a course of chemotherapy, following the news that he has bladder cancer.

The 83 year old balladeer – most famous for hits such as ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’ and ‘Butterfly’ – was diagnosed last month and began chemotherapy on October 31st, according to National Enquirer.

A source says that:

“Andy got the diagnosis of invasive bladder cancer very recently…That means his cancer has invaded the lining of his bladder, but doctors weren’t sure yet whether it had spread to other parts of his body.”

It is unclear whether Williams will be well enough to perform at his annual Christmas concert. A recent statement declared:

“Due to health reasons Andy may not make a live appearance in his Christmas Show…”

Andy Williams began his solo career in 1953 and collected a number of transatlantic hits along the way, including twice reaching the U.K. top 40 with ‘Music to Watch Girls By’.

One of the United Kingdom’s most popular comedians, Bill Bailey is as well known for his off-beat humour as he is for his musical repertoire. With such catchy ditties as ‘Insect Nation’ and ‘Unisex Chip Shop’, it seemed a natural move to release a collection of songs that could be accessible to fans of the be-bearded raconteur and music lovers alike.

Headlining the Saturn Stage at this year’s Sonisphere festival, Bailey brought together a team of musicians that took on the mostly-discerning fans of Opeth and Airbourne, which left them converted to the Bill Bailey cause – metal could be funny without losing its credibility.

In Metal carries on from where the success of his Sonisphere set left off, with nine masterful tracks ranging from “very funny” to “downright hilarious”. But don’t be fooled by the title, this is an eclectic album that multi-tasks genre in a superb way.

Instrumental opener Lazer Gazer has the echoes of Kraftwerk running through it, with hints of Alec Empire that are probably unknown by even Mr. Bailey himself. The haunting violins crescendo and lead into another original composition, ‘Leg of Time’, which is – again – a fusion of genres that punch and kick their way through to forefront (with nice of bit of “Cockney middle eight” for good measure”). So, tick off Krautrock, Led Zeppelin, Wolfmother and Chas ‘n’ Dave from your In Metal musicality bingo cards, please!

Part Troll tour favourite ‘Love Song’ has been given a heavy rock makeover for the album, giving it a crisper sound that really comes together when the Maiden-esque solo seals everything at around the 3 minute mark. May your head rock back and forth, fairly quickly.

Second instrumental track ‘Apocalyptic News’ could benefit from being about a minute or so shorter, but then, when we start to live in a post-apocalyptic world, it might as well be this tune to lulls us into our nuclear-fallout-induced comas.

For me, the Rammstein-influenced ‘Scarborough Fair’ is the complete and utter winner of In Metal. Even keeping true to singing the song in German, Bailey captures the rasping vocals of Till Lindemann perfectly – something that even Lindemann himself can’t do at times.

So we’ve had German; the natural progression might as well be French, mightn’t it?

‘Cars’ – originally by Gary Numan – is the only track on the album that has previously been a bonafide modern hit (hitting the U.K. top spot in 1979), but that doesn’t seem to daunt Bill Bailey and his band one bit. I dare say that this is how Numan would re-write the song if the opportunity presents itself – without the French vocal stylings, of course (or is that, perhaps, just a demand on mine and many others parts?). Keep the horn section especially, Gary!

Back to German now with another song from a previous tour, ‘Das Hokey Cokey’. For those of you that have heard of eurotrash band Stereo Total, you will notice the similarities between them and this – if you’re scratching your head, I mean it in a good way. Could this usurp the original version of the nation’s favourite party song? Probably not. But show it to some Bavarians and they’ll hokey cokey-ing on the tables at next year’s Oktoberfest.

You like your music heavier than a sumo wrestler eating granite? Look no further than ‘Oblivion’. What can be said other than RAWWWWRRAAARRAAARRRRRRWWWAATRRRRRR…er, I mean…yes, it’s good.

‘Pot Plant Elegy’ calms (me) everyone down with a lovely piano/theremin serenade, straight outta Vienna via an Icelanic volcano.

And there you have it. Certifiable evidence that better music can be produced by a man who likes like he’s lost his way from Mordor, rather than…whatever Cher Lloyd looks like.

 ★★★★☆ 

As a student, I tend to have a lot of time on my hands to search for new music. Yes – you wish you were me. But it seems, as of late, that a fair amount of my waking hours have been spent accidentally stumbling across strange albums while looking for “proper” tracks on Spotify.

Such a regular occurrence it has become, I am able to compile – arguably – the top 5 oddest albums you can find on the otherwise useful music streaming service.

5. Mr. Richard – Polka Dot Puzzle

After searching for Richard Cheese (willingly so), I clicked on this cheery chappie by mistake. You might say that Richard Cheese is actually weirder than this guy, but I thought I’d add him because he sounds like he could do with some free publicity.

I’m not going to get away with this, but he does sound like a combination of The Decemberists and They Might Be Giants.

4. This Is Just a Tribute: The Music of Tenacious D ft. The Dust Bowl Cavaliers

Following in a similar vein to Hayseed Dixie, this album is one of those where you think “Was this really necessary? I mean…REALLY?”. Perhaps because I’m a resident of the U.K. and altogether unfamiliar with the phenomenon that is bluegrass cover versions, I may just not…get it. Coming from the same people that brought you Vitamin String Quartet, you’re better off listening to them instead – their cover versions are rather beautiful.

3. Worship Jamz

In no way do I wish to offend anyone that has a belief in Christianity, but do you really think God would be happy to listen to a Nu-Punk version of ‘Amazing Grace’ every week at church? No, I thought not…

Give me the droning sound a hundred old ladies in a building marginally younger than their combined age, singing ‘Be Thou My Vision’, any day of the week (but preferably Sunday).

2. Never Mind the Pan Pipes – Indie Pan Pipe Hits

Some awesomely awful stuff here. Ever wondered what Coldplay’s Chris Martin would sound like if he suddenly metamorphosed into a pan pipe? To be honest, the sounds aren’t that dissimilar as I couldn’t differentiate at first. In fact, I’d rather Chris Martin WAS a pan pipe – he’d be slightly more tolerable then.

1. Yoga Pop Ups – Yoga to Metallica

Probably the only album on the list that could double up as a lullaby album for your children (or alternatively, buy the Iron Maiden lullaby collection), this has to be the weirdest album I have come across…ever. And I listened to Lulu…in full!

So there you have it, five of the oddest albums on Spotify. Props to me for not even mentioning Anal C**t once.

Damn.

If you think you can find an even stranger album, then comment below.

New Order have announced they will be performing at London’s Troxy venue on Saturday 10th December – without bassist Peter Hook in the group.

Taking Hook’s place will be new addition Tom Chapman, while keyboardist Gillian Gilbert (who returned to the group in 2011 for two benefit concerts after a ten year hiatus) will once again join founding members Bernard Sumner (vocals) and Stephen Morris (drums) in what will be New Order’s first U.K. show since October 2006.

Peter Hook has expressed his displeasure with regards to the group reforming without him. In an interview with Spinner earlier this year, Hook said:

“What they’ve done to me, to tour as New Order, is frankly disgusting…”

Hook is currently on tour with his band, The Light, who have been playing Joy Division’s Closer as part of their shows.

Tickets for the New Order show will be made available from Friday 4th November at 9.30 AM (GMT)

In the wake of 24-hour song 7 Skies H3 streaming online for Halloween, Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne has revealed the group are currently in the process of a number of collaborations – which includes Grinderman and Bad Seeds leader Nick Cave.

In an interview with Pitchfork, Coyne stated:

“We’ve done a couple of things with Nick Cave, but he’s on tour right now so it won’t be until after November that he’s able to do more. But I think we’ll get a good Nick Cave collection of songs with the Flaming Lips. We already have one really good one, so that seems like it’ll work out.”

Grinderman will be touring Australia at the beginning of December, with Nick Cave returning to his office to write the eagerly-awaited follow-up to 2008 Bad Seeds record Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! after that.

Other artists and bands that The Flaming Lips have initiated collaborations with include Death Cab for Cutie, No Age and Deerhoof. The band are also interested in working with U.S. pop star Ke$ha:

“I wanna do something with Ke$ha, even. I’m up for anything.”

A limited edition release of all the songs is looking to be released in time for April 2012′s Record Store Day.

Not content with releasing a song only six hours long, The Flaming Lips have gone four times better by streaming a 24 hour song online to celebrate Halloween.

The song – entitled 7 Skies H3 – can be bought, but in the form of a human skull (complete with USB port) for $5,000. At the time of writing there are only thirteen skulls left, but the song stream can be listened to HERE.

The psychedelic Oklahoma rockers will soon be embarking on a short tour of Australia, starting on Saturday 12th November.

Fans were left incensed after Metallica cancelled their first ever concert in India, with a reported £125,000 ($200,000) worth of damage being caused due to rioting.

The reason simply being given as “technical difficulties”, this notice of cancellation was given two hours before the show was due to start. A large number of fans had already arrived by this point, with some of them causing substantial damage to the stage.

The Guardian reported:

“Dozens allegedly raided the stage, and hundreds more broke down barricades, vandalized the sound system and threw bottles and chairs at the LED video screens.”

The group did manage to perform on Sunday (30th October), with 22,000 people in attendance at Bangalore’s Palace Grounds.

In related news, Metallica’s collaboration with Lou Reed, Lulu, was released worldwide (except the U.S) today. Seemingly Metallica’s most polarizing release to date, Lou Reed considers it:

“The best thing I’ve ever done.”

Listen to first single ‘The View’ here:

From tomorrow (Thursday 27th November), the cool autumn-winter air will be filled with the dulcet thrumming of the UK’s premier punk-folk band, The Bad Shepherds.

Spearheaded by Adrian Edmondson (mandolin in hand) -the accompaniment provided by Troy Donockley and Andy Dinan (a two time All Ireland Fiddle Champion)  – the trio will be saying their “First Farewell” on this tour.

With two stellar albums in the shape of Yan, Tyan, Tethera, Metheral and last year’s By Hook Or By Crook, it seems like saying goodbye now would be too soon.

However, a recent press release said:

“…this tour by no means the end of The Bad Shepherds, they will be taking an extended sabbatical throughout 2012. With no firm plans in place for future tours these gigs are the first chance to say farewell.”

A nominee at 2010′s BBC Radio Folk Awards for Best Live Act, the band is well received by fans and critics alike. In this writer’s opinion, it would be literally criminal to miss out on The Bad Shepherds live experience. Even if you were only wondering what Ade Edmondson is doing post-Bottom, it’s definitely worth a try.

With support from Samantha Crain, the 21 dates for the tour are as follows:

Thu 27 October -Southampton, The Brook 023 8055 5366
Fri 28 – Bristol, The Fleece 0117 929 9008
Sat 29 – Liskeard, Carnglaze Cavern 01579 320 251
Sun 30 – Exeter, Phoenix 01392 667 080

Thu 3 November – Birmingham, Town Hall 0121 780 3333
Fri 4 – Gloucester, Gloucester Guildhall 01452 503 050
Sat 5 – Morecambe, The Platform 01524 582 803
Sun 6 – Hereford, Courtyard Theatre 01432 340 555
Wed 9 – Colchester, Arts Centre 01206 500 900
Thu 10 – Norwich, The Waterfront 01603 508 050
Fri 11 – Stamford, Corn Exchange 01780 766 455
Sat 12 – Derby, Derby Theatre 01332 255 800
Sun 13 – Harpenden, Public Halls 01582 767 525
Thu 17 – Manchester, Band on the Wall 08452 500 500
Fri 18 – Leeds, Leeds Varities 0113 243 0808
Sat 19 – Gateshead, The Sage 0191 443 4661
Sun 20 – Hull, Hull Truck 01482 323 638
Wed 23 – Brighton, Komedia 08452 293 8480
Thu 24 – Farnham, Maltings 01252 745 444
Fri 25 – Folkstone, The Quarterhouse 01303 858 500
Sat 26 – London, Union Chapel 0844 477 1000

Book now, or forever hold your pieces!

Siouxsie Sioux was among the recipients at Q Magazine’s annual music awards, with the influential punk star being given an award for outstanding contribution to music.

In a special gala to celebrate the publication’s 25yrs, Adele picked up two awards for best female and best track (for top ten hit ‘Rolling in the Deep’), while Irish stadium fillers U2 were crowned the best act of the past quarter of a century.

Bon Iver was also a winner at the ceremony, which saw the otherwise-named Justin Vernon scoop the best album award for his second release Bon Iver, beating Mercury Prize winning album Let England Shake by PJ Harvey in the process.

In a career spanning four decades and a clutch of top ten singles and albums, Susan ‘Siouxsie’ Ballion is best known for her role as frontwoman of Siouxsie and the Banshees, with ex-husband Peter ‘Budgie’ Clark and Steve Severin comprising the other main members.

On accepting her award, Siouxsie said:

“I’m just here to say I haven’t died yet. I’m still here and I’m working on new material. Be seeing you soon.”

Full list of Q award winners:

Greatest act of the past 25 years – U2

Q outstanding contribution to music – Siouxsie Sioux

Breakthrough artist – Ed Sheeran

Q classic songwriter – Gary Barlow

Best track – Adele, ‘Rolling In The Deep’

Q innovation in sound – Kaiser Chiefs

Q next big thing – Lana Del Rey

Best video – Jessie J, ‘Do It Like A Dude’

Best album – Bon Iver, Bon Iver

Best live act – Biffy Clyro

Q inspiration – Fatboy Slim

Q classic song – Snow Patrol, ‘Chasing Cars’

Best new act – WU LYF

Q icon – Noel Gallagher

Q best male artist – Tinie Tempah

Q best female artist – Adele

Best act in the world today – Coldplay

Hall of fame – Queen

Let’s face it, the electronic scene is very saturated. For every Depeche Mode colossus, you have seven-and-a-half MGMT sound alikes that wouldn’t know a Moog if it gave them a hickey in a free-fall elevator (which would probably make a nice sound, I must admit). So there was a certain degree of trepidation when I first turned up the volume on the debut E.P. from Kid Savant, Drop It on the Stereo.

Then the opening wave of vocals smoothed over me. It was a glorious stream of chocolate in my ears (an altogether comfortable feeling), that lasted for just enough time without leaving a sickly taste. “NaNa Never Ends” would not be out of place in any mainstream dance club; the catchy lines and shoulder-popping beats are just delectable and the entire piece has “HIT” written all over it.

“What It’s Worth” is another catchy little number, that runs in a similar vein to “NaNa…”, but doesn’t allow itself to become an extension – a part two that isn’t necessary. Fundamentally it pulls itself apart from the rest of the E.P and becomes its own entity, with the stilted vocals and roughshod drumming; it really makes the song close to heavenly. Definitely my favourite track of the five.

The eponymous track has a strange opening that makes me feel like I’m playing Final Fantasy VII and I’ve got to a part where two of the characters have a neat little heart-to-heart, leaving me bashing the buttons in order to make the dialogue progress faster. Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice and all, but there’s really something missing from this and I can’t quite grasp what needs to be put in to make it better. Perhaps it’s because the first two tracks are so interstellar of terms of their catchiness, that this just falls flat on its face with a marginal amount of dignity.

Penultimate symphony, “4 Years”, brings the Brooklyn four-piece back up to a better level. But only by a little bit. There are very similar elements of “Drop It on the Stereo” that appear here as well, which is possibly a warning to the group that they are – perhaps – not particularly well-suited to making slower, more downbeat tracks.

And so, the end comes with “Walt”. A nice piano plonking intro, direct from the 1990′s, eases us into a more rocky sound that doesn’t sound too dissimilar to Glasgow art rockers Franz Ferdinand. The level is raised again and the song is a nice finish to Kid Savant’s initial extended player, a myriad a clashing drums, challenging vocals and tumultuous beats.

The high points outweigh the lows, most definitely. But, perhaps more of a focus on the uptempo and the caustic will serve the quartet better on their next outing, which I’m sure will have its fair share of party-anthems-in-the-making.

 ★★★☆☆ 

After 15 long years, Damon Albarn and Noel Gallagher have finally put their Britpop feud behind them.

The “Blur vs Oasis” battle garnered international headlines when the two groups went head-to-head with respective singles, ‘Country House’ and ‘Roll With It’, in August of 1995- which saw Blur take the top spot.

But now, it seems that both parties have mellowed. Gallagher – in an interview with Shortlist magazine – said:

“Funnily enough, when I was out last night, I bumped into him. I literally haven’t seen the guy for 15 f*cking years and I bump into him in some club. We both went, “Hey! F*cking hell!” and then he said, “Come on, let’s go for a beer.” So, we’re sitting there, having a beer, just going, “What the f*ck was all that about 15 years ago? That was mental.” Then he said, “It was a great time, though,” and I was like, “Yeah, it was a f*cking good laugh.” It was cool, man.”

In related news, the midweek album chart currently places Noel Gallagher’s debut solo album, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, in pole position ahead of X-Factor‘s 2010 winner Matt Cardle’s first effort, Letters.

See the video for ‘The Death of You and Me’ below:

In a short note from her official website, Kate Bush has assured her fans that the fur she is wearing in promotional photos for latest album, 50 Words For Snow, is not real.

Bush writes:

“Hi there,

We have recently taken some photos and I just want to pre-empt any concerns there might be as I’m sure most of you will feel the same way as I do about wearing real fur. All the fur in these photos is synthetic.

Best wishes,
Kate”

The singer – who is a vegetarian – has said in a previous interview that she has worn a real fur coat, but never owned one:

“I may have occasionally been in photos with one, but it wouldn’t have been mine.”

First single, ‘Wild Man’, was released last Tuesday and is currently BBC Radio 2′s ‘Record of the Week’. Listen to the radio edit below: