UFO: Classic Rock!
UFO, the massively successful multi-million selling classic British hard rock / metal band, are set to release their humungous new studio album ‘Seven Deadly’, on February 27th on SPV’s Steamhammer label, prior to a full scale UK & Irish tour commencing March 15th. An atmospherically dense fabric, consisting of exceptionally classy guitars, tight rock grooves and mesmerizing vocals, ‘Seven Deadly’ is bound to be hailed – by critics and public alike - as featuring some of the strongest compositions UFO have ever recorded.
‘Seven Deadly’, recorded at Tommy Newton’s Area 51 Studio in Celle, Germany, in the late Autumn of 2011, is nothing other than the work of a band on fire, each member seemingly bursting with a zest for action and a wealth of ideas. American guitarist Vinnie Moore excels himself with haunting, fluid licks, dynamic riffs and world class solos, effortlessly complemented by the flawless musicianship of original members Paul Raymond and Andy Parker. Commenting on the vocals, Newton, who engineered the album, states that “I’ve never heard a better Phil Mogg!” UFO’s first studio album since 2009, will be available as a standard ten track jewel case CD, plus a limited edition digipak CD with 2 bonus tracks, and as a double gatefold orange coloured vinyl album, also with 2 bonus tracks. Two weeks after release, the UFO live juggernaut will set off on the road to play the following UK tour dates:-
15th March - Cambridge – The Junction
16th March - Edinburgh – MV Picture House
17th March - Newcastle – O2 Academy
18th March - Leeds – O2 Academy
20th March - Dublin – Academy
21st March - Belfast – Spring & Airbrake
23rd March - Milton Keynes – The Stables
24th March - Tavistock – The Wharf
25th March - Bristol – O2 Academy
27th March - Nottingham – Rock City
28th March - Norwich – Waterfront
30th March - Manchester – HMV Ritz
31st March - Wolverhampton – Wulfrun Hall
1st April - Southampton – The Brook
3rd April - Brighton – Concorde 2
4th April - London – Forum
Nothing would be easier for British rock legend UFO than to rest on their laurels. The band could easily release the occasional best-of album to earn a few additional royalties and otherwise content themselves with looking back at their exceptionally glorious past. And it certainly wouldn’t be a problem for UFO to sell out tours on the strength of their legendary name with a great hoopla and low artistic values. But idleness or indeed a musical standstill have always been out of the question for Phil Mogg, Paul Raymond, Andy Parker, and Vinnie Moore. These in equal measures experienced and ambitious musicians are interested in the present, their love of creativity and the active continuation of their celebrated band history. And now we can look forward to Seven Deadly, the band’s latest studio album which combines present and future with UFO’s greatest fortes. Mogg, Raymond, Parker and Moore are set to release twelve brand-new songs on Steamhammer/SPV in Germany on 24 February 2012 (Europe: 27 February, USA/Canada: March 2012), featuring – without going into great detail at this point – some of the strongest compositions this band has ever recorded.
What is this bold thesis based on – in view of the countless classics the band has produced throughout its history? Not only on the fact that UFO have that perfect mix of talent, charisma and experience, but also on each individual band member, who currently all seem to be bursting with a zest for action and a wealth of ideas. Seven Deadly is an atmospherically dense fabric consisting of classy guitars, tight rock grooves and vocals which are unique to UFO.
The UFO frontman’s thoroughly impressive vocal performance goes hand in hand with the awesome compositions on Seven Deadly. The classic rock of ‘Burn Your House Down’ features all the important UFO strengths, ‘Mojotown’ sees the musicians sound tougher than ever, and last but not least ‘Year Of The Gun’ features a pointed reference to UFO’s early days. ‘Angelstation’ sees the band prove how classic rock music is complemented perfectly with epic elements, while ‘Fight Night’ is an excellent track to be performed in a live context. There’s no need to draw attention to the technical skills of original UFO members Paul Raymond and Andy Parker, their music sounding inspired and faultless at the same time. Having said that, Vinnie Moore’s exceptional guitar style deserves to be explicitly mentioned. The American musician not only lends the songs expression and power with his haunting licks and dynamic riffs, but also contributes solos on Seven Deadly which can only be described as absolute world class. Anybody still doubting my words should get ready to be absolutely convinced when the album arrives in January.
As already mentioned, UFO continue to be a live force to be reckoned with. Their UK tour has been scheduled for mid-March 2012 before the band go on to tour the rest of Europe. A little note in passing: at the time ofSeven Deadly’s release, UFO will be performing at the Monsters Of Rock Cruise – The Voyage: there could hardly be a more fitting setting for this exciting new album!
History
There are even more stories about UFO than they’ve composed songs. Any band who have been in the music business for over 40 years are bound to have experienced difficult times, but also massive highs and spectacular events. UFO’s success story began in London way back in 1969, when vocalist Phil Mogg, drummer Andy Parker, guitarist Mick Bolton and bassist Pete Way formed the group, borrowing the band name from a legendary London music club. Even in the early Seventies, the band distinguished themselves with their very own, unmistakable style, touching a nerve among their growing following with rock numbers like ‘Prince Kajuku’, ‘Follow You Home’ and ‘C’mon Everybody’ from their albums UFO 1, Flying and UFO Live.
The global breakthrough arrived when German guitarist, Michael Schenker, joined the fold in 1973, who left the Scorpions to take up an offer by Phil Mogg and Pete Way. This line-up of UFO broke through into rock’s big time with their Phenomenon album in 1974, closely followed by Force It in 1975 and No Heavy Pettin’ in 1976, featuring classics such as ‘Doctor Doctor’, ‘Shoot, Shoot’, and ‘Rock Bottom’. Following the arrival of keyboarder/rhythm guitarist Paul Raymond in 1976, UFO released two more studio albums Lights Out (1977) and Obsession (1978), including the hit singles ‘Too Hot To Handle’, ‘Lights Out’ and ‘Only You Can Rock Me’. Their double live album Strangers In The Night came out in 1979 and is regarded to this day as one of the best live releases of all time, while also signalling the ‘end’ of the Mogg, Way, Schenker, Parker & Raymond line-up.
The reorganised band underwent fifteen years marked by various eras and numerous line-up changes. To everyone’s surprise, autumn 1993 saw the return of the classic UFO line-up, which brought out Walk On Water, their first joint effort after one and a half decades, and embarked on a world tour. However, Schenker left UFO during the Walk On Water tour again to continue working with his own group, MSG, while Mogg & Way went on to release their second album, Chocolate Box. The UFO albums Covenant and Sharks, recorded by Mogg, Way and Schenker, arrived in the stores in 2000 and 2002. With Schenker returning to MSG yet again, Vinnie Moore joined the UFO family, and the album You Are Here was recorded with Jason Bonham on drums in 2004. During the subsequent world tour, UFO cut a show in Wilhelmshaven, Germany, which was later released as a double live album, Showtime, along with a DVD of the same name which featured additional bonus material. Later, Bonham made his farewells to join Foreigner and was replaced by UFO’s original drummer, Andy Parker, who rejoined to play on ‘The Monkey Puzzle’ studio album (2006), 2009’s much acclaimed ‘The Visitor’ album, and now the new opus ‘Seven Deadly’.
‘Seven Deadly’, a compact collection of 10 very special, soaring, instantly recognisable UFO hard rock anthems, marks yet another major milestone on the illustrious path of this celebrated band’s history.
2012 LINE-UP:
Phil Mogg – vocals / Paul Raymond - keyboards, guitars / Vinnie Moore – guitars / Andy Parker - drums
Sting: back 2 bass: Euro Tour 2012
STING: BACK TO BASS European Tour 2012 Performing His Greatest Hits, Stripped Down To Celebrate the 25th Anniversary of His Solo Career. Following the success of his North American tour this fall, Live Nation is pleased to announce that Sting’s Back to Bass Tour will extend to Europe early next year as he celebrates the 25th anniversary of his solo career by taking it back to bass…all of the hits, stripped down, as they haven’t been played in years.
Currently garnering stellar reviews throughout North America, the European tour will begin February 5th, 2012 in Newcastle at the Sage Gateshead with additional performances in Amsterdam, Brussels, Copenhagen, Gothenburg, Prague, Stockholm, Warsaw, and Vienna as well as multiple dates in France, Germany and the UK (itinerary below).
“…an exquisite performance…” The Boston Globe, Oct. 24, 2011
“Every Little Thing He Does is Magic – Sting Captivated DC.” The Washington Examiner, Oct. 31, 2011
“…A sonic adventure that revisits past triumphs and explores some lesser-known gems…” The Toronto Star, Nov. 2, 2011
In support of Sting: 25 Years, the recently released box set collection, Back to Bass finds Sting performing songs spanning his dynamic and enduring solo career, from his 1985 debut The Dream Of The Blue Turtles to his latest release, Live in Berlin, plus a selection of The Police’s greatest hits. Highlights include fan favourites such as “Desert Rose,” “Every Breath You Take,” and “Fields of Gold.” Sting will be joined by a band including his longtime guitarist Dominic Miller, Rufus Miller (guitarist), Vinnie Colaiuta (drummer), Peter Tickell (electric fiddle), and Jo Lawry (vocalist).
Sting: 25 Years, was released on September 26, 2011. This collection captures for the first time both the highlights and rarities of Sting’s enduring solo career and contains three CDs, all re-mastered exclusively for this set and personally curated by Sting, as well as a previously unreleased live DVD, Rough, Raw & Unreleased, filmed at New York City’s Irving Plaza. The discs are housed in a hardcover book featuring rare photos, complete lyrics, and newly written commentary by Sting. Sting: The Best of 25 Years is also available as both a single and double disc. Members of the Sting fan club will have the opportunity to purchase tickets in advance with complete tour and ticket information at www.sting.com. VIP Packages are also available through VIP Nation, including premium seats, exclusive merchandise and more. For more information please visit: www.sting.com
The tour is promoted by Live Nation and produced by RZO Entertainment, Inc.
Sting: Back To Bass Tour – 2012 European Itinerary:
February 5 Gateshead, UK The Sage Gateshead
February 7 Amsterdam, The Netherlands Heinekin Music Hall
February 9 Gothenburg, Sweden Lisebergshallen
February 12 Stockholm, Sweden Waterfront
February 13 Copenhagen, Denmark Falconer Theatre
February 15 Warsaw, Poland SalaKongresowa
February 18 Prague, Czech Republic Congress Center
February 19 Vienna, Austria Gasometer
February 21 Grenoble, France Summum
February 22 Toulouse, France Zenith
February 24 Claremont-Ferrand, France Zenith
February 25 Marseille, France Le Dome de Marseille
February 29 Frankfurt, Germany Jahrhunderthalle
March 2 Koln, Germany E-Werk
March 4 Brussels, Belgium Cirque Royale
March 5 Brussels, Belgium Cirque Royal
March 7 Stuttgart, Germany Beethovensaal
March 8 Lille, France Zenith
March 10 Berlin, Germany Columbiahalle
March 13 Paris, France Zenith
March 16 Manchester, UK Apollo
March 18 Glasgow, UK Clyde Auditorium
March 19 London, UK Hammersmith Apollo
Itinerary subject to change. Additional cities and venues to be confirmed.
For complete tour and ticket information, please visit www.sting.com
Direct to Fan isn’t an option – it’s a necessity
Why every artist - whether new and unknown or superstar - must embrace D2F
It seems that the majority of musicians are ignoring the concept and practice of ‘direct to fan’, or ‘D2F’ as the vanguard like to call it.
D2F is the practice of identifying people with an interest in your music, creating a relationship with those fans, promoting and marketing your music to them and going direct to them to finance your career by monetising that relationship. It is typified by engagement via your own website and social media outposts and by the sale of music, merchandise, tickets and more through that direct connection. This results in a return of the lion’s share of revenue (less only technology partner costs) to the artist.
Instead of adopting this approach to build a platform for their success, too many unsigned artists focus on just getting noticed and then rely on outmoded and directionless efforts (such as spamming on social media sites, overplaying a small local area or looking for management), all of which they do before they have developed any significant fanbase on the strength of their material and by their own efforts.
The belief appears to be that building a direct connection with your fanbase is something that is too hard or too much work, that can be left until you have a record deal (i.e. something ‘the label’ or a manager can do for you), or perhaps that it won’t work in a specific artist’s case as a way to build momentum or sustain a career.
All of these mind-sets couldn’t be more wrong.
Understanding the vast advantage that the current generation of musicians have been granted by technology is hard for some but the slow decline of the old mass media / major label paradigm is, in fact, a great opportunity.
At the heart of the D2F apathy may be the conundrum that so many artists are still achieving success from the old model – and not just those who benefitted from a major label deal before the advent of file-sharing. So many advocates of D2F and supporters of the DIY musician would have us all believe that the days of the major label are over and that mass media, specifically radio, no longer matters.
Yet we all see the evidence that this is a fallacy on a regular basis when a new artist receives a ‘push’ from the label and all of a sudden seems to be everywhere – recent examples might include Jessie J, Bruno Mars, Tinie Tempah, Nickie Minaj and lately Lana Del Rey. I know that those are pop artists but they demonstrate that material that has mass appeal when married with the marketing muscle (cash) and skills of a major label (or large indie) will still bring success.
The reality is that every artist needs a team and that team takes money to hire and needs money to spend. For those pop artists and for many less commercially viable musicians, although the internet has made it possible for them to find some success, they have chosen not to go it alone all the way, but to have the support structure of a partner.
And, for the most part, that team is still a label. The most recent survey shows that 75% of unsigned musicians still hope to secure a record deal of some sort. And it’s no wonder, when the prospect for the unsigned artist is having to do it all and raise the cash to do it as well if you don’t get a deal. By securing a record deal the artist doesn’t have to create all the music and then also develop the skills to produce, package, market and promote it.
Today the artist partner is still most likely to be a label, but in the future it could be another part of the established industry (a promoter or perhaps a distributor) or some new entity emerging in the new model. In many cases it’s likely to be a powerful management company that puts together the services required piecemeal, as many are doing already. In that future, the chain from artist to fan will be shortened and for many it will comprise solely a marketing partner and a technology partner – thereby removing the traditional label, distributor and retailer entirely.
And that means that D2F will be a part of every artist’s promotion, marketing and sales.
But the landscape has already truly changed for all artists. Even for most of the pop artists referred to above, they had to create a significant level of buzz before any partner came on board and helped them. And the best way to do that is to build a fanbase that you can display to your suitors.
In fact, the best way to do it is to get your head down, create great music and then let that expression of your art build your fanbase. Properly harnessing the engagement that your fans want during that early phase of acquisition will only make that fanbase stronger, more supportive and more reliable in the long term. If that attracts a partner or label, then you may choose to take them on, but if it doesn’t you are building your own army of fans who will sustain you.
The truth is that if you don’t embrace D2F, you are very unlikely today to succeed – DIY or signed.
The internet gave the musician MySpace and perhaps their own website as the first routes to put their art in front of a global audience. More recently technology partners (such as Topspin, Nimbit, ReverbNation and many more) have built the tools to make that online presence more effective and easier to administer. Other platforms with better direct communication and ready made eager audiences (Facebook, SoundCloud, Twitter etc) have made the reach much greater.
On top of that endless blogs, online and offline colleges and thought leaders have risen to prominence dishing out advice on how best a musician can build that direct to fan relationship. So whether you want to sign to a label, find a team to partner with or whether you want to truly do it all yourself, D2F will be part of your career. And it doesn’t matter whether you want a small hobbyist existence which fulfils your creative urge, a self funded and managed long-term niche career or the full blown superstardom. In each case you will need to engage more directly with fans than ever before, let them closer and give them more.
Pete Townshend Saves Music!
Pete Townshend on iTunes, Steve Jobs, the BBC and his rebellious ‘inner artist’ Legendary guitarist and songwriter Pete Townshend delivered the BBC John Peel lecture this evening at the Lowry Theatre, Salford in which he discusses the future of popular music as we know it…
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Stop the Rock? Nope!
Loyal fans keep heavy rock and metal above the genre decline
Despite a dearth of rock acts in the higher echelons of the charts, heavy rock and metal continue to generate strong business thanks largely to the staunch fan loyalty that proponents of pop fail to muster. Four decades after the likes of Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Deep Purple first swaggered on stage pioneering the sound of heaving riffs and wandering guitar solos, metal’s appeal remains untarnished by a sharply diminished appetite for rock in the mainstream market. The number of rock songs in the singles chart fell to its lowest level in 50 years last year with only three tracks, which the Official Chart Company (OCC) categorises as “rock”, making it into the top 100 selling tracks of the year. Rock music, in terms of singles sales, is as far from being in vogue as it has ever been.
But the ongoing demand for rock’s heavier and more experimental sub-genres appears to be unabated. Acts including Iron Maiden, Foo Fighters, Green Day, Biffy Clyro and Rage Against The Machine, all of which can be loosely termed as heavy rock or metal, continue to trouble the higher echelons of the charts. Meanwhile, a healthy number of specialist labels, the majority being independent, are working hard to generate sturdy business from the genre, even if their releases largely bubble under the Top 75.
OCC senior licensing manager Phil Matchum, whose job it is to immerse himself in the charts on a daily basis, has seen that without fail there are new albums every week from the specialist labels including Roadrunner, Napalm, Nuclear Blast, Metal Blade, Peaceville, Spinefarm and Epitaph.
And, while these albums will not always challenge the Top 75, they consistently flirt with the top 100–200 of the albums chart. “There have been releases from acts such as The Answer, Machine Head, Mastodon, Blink 182, and Evile – and that is just the tip of an iceberg,” says Matchum. “With that amount of releases, and from a mixture of new, contemporary and classic acts, it shows the metal market is in a pretty healthy state. The albums may not sell in vast quantities – in terms of crossover/mainstream – but the labels clearly know who their audience is and that audience is clearly still hungry for new metal music.”
Cooking Vinyl, a label celebrating its 20th anniversary, is among those looking to sate that appetite for heavy rock, and has of late been taking an increasing interest in the genre. Since releasing the biggest-selling independent album of 2009 with Invaders Must Die by The Prodigy, whose single Omen won a Kerrang! award, Cooking Vinyl has generated significant interest among artists wanting to work with the label, not least shock rocker Marilyn Manson. Manson signed to Cooking Vinyl, which recently tied in with the new multi-million-pound investment fund backed by Icebreaker. The result will be a new Marilyn Manson album released next year.
Cooking Vinyl director Rob Collins admits that heavy rock is not an area that the label has really explored before. “[Signing Marilyn Manson] has led us to look at more alternative rock and metal acts, but in a broad sense – at one end of the spectrum there is The Blackout, a young UK band who were nominated for three Kerrang! awards, and at the other end we have a punk band from New York, Cerebral Ballzy,” says Collins. Indeed there is no lack of heavy rock sub-genres and one label that has been exploring the more experimental and extreme exponents of hardcore rock for many years is Nottingham-based Earache, whose acts include Evile, SSS, Savage Messiah and Singaporean grindcore trio Wormrot.
Earache has been releasing extreme metal music for the best part of 25 years but label manager Dan Tobin, who has been with the company for 17 of them, describes Wormrot as being one of the most extreme acts the label has ever worked with. Despite, and possibly because of, the band’s obviously uncommercial sound, Wormrot are building strong support and have become one of Earache’s priority acts. While Tobin admits that record sales of his artists rarely trouble the charts, he points out this is not necessarily the primary focus and that naturally heavy rock acts do not sell as much as pop bands because they are not as accessible and do not get the mainstream exposure. “The way these bands and the labels that support them make the money is through touring and merchandise; and that’s the way we have always done it. I don’t think anyone judges success by record sales anymore. It is about how many people you play live to and how many T-shirts you sell at the end of the night,” says Tobin.
When it comes to performing live, demand certainly appears to be stronger than ever with the recent Download Festival having attracted an audience of 72,000, while Kilimanjaro’s Sonisphere announced that it expanded its capacity at the July event at Knebworth.
Download festival promoter Live Nation’s Andy Copping is adamant that while major labels have failed in recent years to sufficiently develop new artists, live promoters and independent labels are playing a more important role than ever. “Independent labels are doing great deals with the acts that they are signing because they understand the artists and how best to get behind them,” says Copping. “They are developing them, which the major labels aren’t doing. It’s almost like punk rock again with artists signing to independent labels that are working in new and interesting ways and are happy to explore new things,” says Copping.
Shake Revelations Radio!
Shake Revelations was a 2 hour show on wednesday nights on calon fm, in Jan 2012 it gave way to a full on shake sessions show, playlis here: http://www.shakenstir.co.uk/index.php/features/calon-105-fm-shakenstir-session-playlists/features/5656/ So tune in at Calon 105FM: 10pm on Wednesday night, or Online at www.calonfm.com On with the show…
Dec 28th 2011: 10pm - Midnite: St Giles Sessions: Join us as we bring you music from one of the most exciting events of 2011 when one of the seven wonders of Wales (St Giles Church) rocked to the sounds of the underground, join one of the men behind this pioneering idea David Gray as he chats about the location, the artists and where this colaboration will go in 2012. Live music from the sessions and some studio tracks from Camera, Heal The Last Stand + North Rising! A raft of new ‘undiscovered’ music coming out of North Wales [The New Seattle]
Midnite: Peter & The Wolf: Gavin Friday + U2 Achtung Baby re-invented with depeche mode, killers and jack white.
Dec 21st: 10pm-Midnite: K-Rock, K-Roll, K-Zone… 2 hours of alternative rock, metal, indie, eclectic, new, old, here, now, there, then, up, down, in, out, quiet, loud, shake & stir… All in association with Krazyhouse-LvrpL, Aerial Studios & Battery Energy Drink… Double J will be throwing a shizz load of music off the desk into the machine and raging against it, this week’s show centres on the ‘best of’ An end of year soundcheck on some of our fave toons to blow out the airwaves, including the waterboys, the national, horrible crowes, sbtrkt, korn, gallops, wolfgang, brandon flowers, frankie and the heartstrings, camera, the reads, manics, tom jones, wanda jackson, rival sons, evile, the blackout, frank turner, panic at the disco, the blackout, rival schools, blink 182, a day to remember, depeche mode, u2, volbeat… and the original cannonball…
Dec 14th: 10pm - 11pm: In A Big Country: 10 yrs gone but we remember Stuart Adamson by playing some of our fave songs from the man, including songs from ‘The Crossing’ which remaining members will play in full during the early days of 2012, no tears just boss songs…
11pm - Midnight: The Alarm Bell: Following on from an hour of BC, we bring you the man presented with the difficult decision to step into Stuarts shoes ‘Mike Peters’ of The Alarm… We bring you some solo and band classics to remind you why he is the ‘King’ of North Wales!
12am - 1am: The Midnite Special 1am - 2am: Shake Classic Rock
DEC 7th: 10pm = Midnite: North Rising! Local promoter Brendan joins us to talk all things rising, he brings in tunes from some of the bands and solo stars that are setting a fire to the music scene here in Wales northern quarter, we examine the entire Welsh music scene and look at where we go from here in 2012… Focus Wales, William Aston Hall, Central Station and much more! Featuring: The Lovin’ Cup – Deadman Jump, Bring The Soul - Split Me In Two, The Revolutionary Spirit - Last Memories, Gallops - Deff Box/ Miami Spider, The Roseville Band - Sad Way To Go, The Reads - Good Omens, Meilir – Fingertips, Camera - Take Me Back, Heal The Last Stand - Forgive and Forget, Deaf Club - It, She, Mowbird - Lady Lion, Sound of Guns – Archiects, The Lovin’ Cup - Love Can Be Cruel, I Am Austin - L.A.F.S., Shoot The Rabbit – Kestrel, The Joy Formidable – Austere, The Red Van Man - Fashion Girl, We//Are//Animal - Black Magic, Masters in France – Greyhounds, Space - Avenging Angels, The Las - There She Goes, Cast - See That Girl, The Reads - Supersaver Return
12am - 1am: The Midnite Special 1am - 2am: Shake Classic Rock
10pm-11pm: Achtung Baby: It’s 20 years since u2 re-wrote rock n’ roll history alongside their own by re-inventing themselves, we celebrate by playing the entire album re-visited by many peers of the band + an exclusive re-mix from the album by u2 themselves…
Nine Inch Nails/Zoo Station, Jacque Lu Cont remixes Even Better Than The Real Thing, Damien Rice/One. Patti Smith/Until The End Of The World, Garbage/Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses, Depeche Mode/So Cruel. Gavin Friday/The Fly, Snow Patrol/Mysterious Ways, The Fray/Tryin’ To Throw Your Arms Around The World, The Killers/Ultra Violet (Light My Way), Glasvegas/Arcobat, Jack White/Love is Blindness
11pm - 12am: The ‘Mixtape’ 12am - 1am: The Midnite Special 1am - 2am: Shake Classic Rock / 2am - 3am Shake Live
10pm - 11pm: WHY? PINK FLOYD: New one-hour radio special features never before heard demos, rare live recordings from the band, some familiar Floyd classics and brand new interview with drummer, Nick Mason - Pink Floyd’s only band member for its entire existence. Followed by an hour long re-interpretation of two Floyd classic albums… Producer/Host: Redbeard (In the Studio)
1. Part 1 (22:08 ) * Music – “Time”(excerpt), ”Money” demo, ”Money”, ”One of These Days”, ”Echoes (excerpt) .
2. Part 2 (9:30) * Music – “Is There Anbody Out There”, ”Comfortably Numb”, ”Echoes”(excerpt)
3. Part 3 (27:31) * Music – “Us & Them” live 1974, ”Marooned”, ”Wish You Were Here”, ”Sheep”
All music comes from the WHY PINK FLOYD series of deluxe reissues in stores on 9/27. “Us & Them” live 1974 and “Money (demo)” are previously unreleased.
11pm - 12am: O’ Brother Where Art Thou! Radio Special: 10 years since this film and soundtrack moved the goalposts for the alternative country / folk scene, we hear from those involved and play some exclusive never before heard music from the movie…
Football + Metal = Jagermeister!
The next ‘Ice Cold’ Studio Session will feature British heavy metal band Malefice and football legend Marcus Hahnemann and will take place at London’s famous Strongroom Studios on January 17th.
Marcus Hahnemann, US international goalkeeper (“Best goalkeeper in the world” – 2009/2010 Castrol Performance Index) who is currently playing for Everton is a well known heavy metal fan but this will be the first time he has ever taken his passion for metal into a recording studio.
Marcus Hahnemann said: “Today I have come down to London for the Arsenal game. Getting ready for the game always includes some heavy rock to get me going. But I can’t stop thinking about when I am coming back down here in a few weeks to record with Malefice! So hopefully my love of music and their love of football with translate to a really cool track!” Reading band Malefice are one of the leading exponents of modern British heavy metal and released their album ‘Awaken The Tides’ to critical acclaim earlier in the year.
Vocalist, Dale Butler commented: “We’re really stoked to be recording a special track with Marcus Hahnemann. Given that before every game he listens to Five Finger Death Punch or Slipknot to ‘get himself psyched’ for the game has to be a pretty good indicator of where his musical tastes are! We even have a track ‘Outnumbered/Outgunned’ on our album ‘Awaken The Tides’ which is all about that rush of adrenaline you get when you’re with your mates at the terraces in the away end on a Saturday afternoon, so this collaboration of Football and Metal is gonna be something you won’t want to miss”
The collaboration will be streamed exclusively on the Jägermeister UK Facebook page (www.facebook.com/jagermeisteruk) from Feb 1st 2012 as well as photos and extended footage of the recording process. (Please note the Jägermeister Facebook page is accessible only to those aged 18 and above)
Want to know more about JägerMusic?
The highly successful JägerMusic programme supports signed and unsigned bands in the UK. The current roster notably includes exciting talent such as Skindred, Bring Me The Horizon and Malefice. Additionally, the JägerMusic programme is supporting many up and coming UK bands that will be big in years to come.
Want to know more about Jägermeister?
Jägermeister packs in at number 8 in the league of Impact Top Spirits Brands Worldwide 2010 and continues to show significant growth year on year (A C Nielsen/CGA, 10) within the UK market. The unique German herbal spirit is made from a blend of 56 herbs, blossoms, roots and fruits. Consumed mostly as an ice cold shot, Jägermeister has become the fastest growing shot brand in the UK. As a long drink, it is often mixed with cola or an energy drink.
The innovative Jägermeister tap machine ensures ice cold shots at sub zero temperatures for three bottles at a time and is a resident fixture in some of the UK’s biggest and busiest music venues and festivals. Highly coveted also for personal at-home bars, the Jäger-tap machine has even been known to change hands as a wedding gift for rock royalty. Beyond its iconic status in its heartland of rock, Jägermeister gains numerous press credits as a rider-request by artists as diverse as Bullet for my Valentine and Tiesto.
www.jagermeister.co.uk Jägermeister [and Cellar Trends] is a member of Drinkaware and promotes responsible drinking. For the facts please visit: www.drinkaware.co.uk
Want to know more about Malefice? www.facebook.com/maleficeofficial
Want to know more about Marcus Hahnemann? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Hahnemann
Dirty Three New LP in 2012
Legendary instrumental trio Dirty Three will boldly break cover in March 2012 with a remarkable new album, “Toward The Low Sun”, on Bella Union records, plus an intensive live schedule of headline shows and festival appearances. Toward The Low Sun is the product of the most ceaselessly creative period of the band’s career.
In the 6 year’s since the release of their previous album “Cinder”, Jim White, Mick Turner and Warren Ellis have been relentlessly creating music in different permutations and locations around the globe. The artists they have performed and recorded with is testament to the high regard in which they are held.
Warren resides in Paris, though is regularly to be found touring with the Bad Seeds and Grinderman or working with Nick Cave on soundtracks for such films as The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, The Proposition and The Road. Jim is based out of Brooklyn but endlessly tours the world, recording and/or performing with Cat Power, Bonnie Prince Billy, Nina Nastasia and PJ Harvey, whilst Mick lives in Melbourne where he has developed a fine reputation as a visual artist and released the Blue Trees album alongside the occasional Tren Brothers release.
However, even amidst this frantic activity and incessant creativity a return to the mothership was inevitable. “Toward the Low Sun” is a cacophonyic explosion of influences and attitude that has the energy and urgency of a first release. There is an energy and a raw excitement evident from the first electrifying opening moments through to the album’s finale. In Warren’s words, “Dirty Three has always been about the way we play together and feed off each other. We wanted this one to be a return to the more improvised and instinctive approach of the earlier recordings”. And indeed Toward The Low Sun sounds like a first ever recording, a punk avant-garde art-jazz record! And for all their incredible music of the past, the Dirty Three have never seemed more relevant. Live they remain a force unto themselves.
Don’t shade your eyes… Look Toward the Low Sun and you will know once again the burn of the Dirty Three!
Last Live Shows Of 2011
Shed Seven
Liverpool Academy 1, 5 December 2011
The band has been around for a while and still manages to attract large crowds wherever they play. I’ve not been a fan and have never witnessed a live performance until this event. Hell, I don’t even possess one of their recordings, but I am curious…
Shed Seven are a band from York, England who formed in 1990 and are famed for their no nonsense good-time tunes and live shows. Their popularity peaked in the mid-1990’s during the britpop boom with their most popular songs, including Chasing Rainbows, Going for Gold, Getting Better and Disco Down, all reaching the Top 20 of the UK Singles Chart.
The band split in December 2003, but not before a farewell tour which culminated in a final hometown show. The split was amicable and came about due to disagreements with their record company about their musical direction. In 2005, they released a posthumous collection of demos for what would have been their fifth studio album. whilst the band members themselves began their own separate projects, including frontman Rick Witter, who went on to form Rick Witter and The Dukes .
However, in 2007 the band reunited for what was to become a sell out tour of the UK, and their most successful to date. The re-formed line up included all of the original members, including both of their former guitarists, Joe Johnson and Paul Banks. Although the 2007 tour was intended as a one-off reunion, the band remained together and were seen performing at several UK festivals during the summer of 2008. It was announced in mid-2009, shortly before a one-off headlining performance at the Tartan Heart Festival, that the band would again undergo a tour during December 2009 - they also revealed that they had been working on new songs, though none of these were played during the 2009 tour. The band classed their 18 date 2009 tour as ‘their most successful and enjoyable so far’.
First up was the singer/songwriter, ex-band frontman Chris Helme who went down well with the audience through his his banter, excellent voice and, for me, surprisingly good songs. Helme’s short performance seemed effortless, natural, sincere and deceptively skilled. Even when he forgot his lyrics it didn’t seem to matter - he told the audience and then just started again to loud cheers.
Then it was Shed Seven’s tuurn to impress and I was not disapponted with the band’s performance in front of a near sell-out audience of twenty, thirty and forty-somethings. The guys made it look deceptively easy during their tight-as-a-drum, all-the-hits performance. Witter was in his element chatting comfortably with a crowd whose reponse to songs just made him happier and more talkative. Was it my cup of tea? Song-wise not really but the crowd loved it (with singalong after singalong) and the guys provided a faultless performance deserving of high praise.
SETLIST
Parallel Lines, Where Have You Been Tonight, Bully Boy, Magic Streets, Devil In Your Shoes, Speakeasy, She Left Me On Friday, Ocean Pie, Ladyman, Falling From The Sky, Dolphin, Going For Gold, Out By Your Side, On Standby, Disco Down, High Hopes, Getting Better, Panic, Chasing Rainbows.
Rara: Streaming Made Easy!
Streaming music service www.rara.com has been launched across 15 countries with the backing of all four majors - and is being billed by its creators as “revolutionary”. Eight additional markets including the USA, Canada and Mexico will be covered later by the ad-free, browser based service, which offers access to more than 10 million tracks from just 99p/99c per month.
The service, powered by Omnifone, is aimed specifically at the mass market who still use CDs and want an easier way to adopt digital music - hence the use of a simple, browser-based platform rather than the app approach that the likes of Deezer and Spotify have taken so far. Rara.com has secured international licensing agreements with Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Music and Warner Music Group. It also claims to have partnered with leading independents - but has come under fire from Merlin boss Charles Caldas, who says he was approached as an afterthought by the company. The service will also be pre-loaded on the vast majority of European HP PCs, the world’s No.1 PC brand and rara.com affiliate. It will also be available on Android, iOS and other platforms.
“Uniquely, you can experience access to all the music you want, ad-free, for less than the price of a single track,” said Tim Hadley, rara.com director. “Whether you’re into Gaga or Elgar, rara.com is a new kind of streaming music service which makes accessing the music you love online easier and more delightful than ever; type rara.com into your web browser and you have a world of music at your fingertips.” Backing from the major labels, however, is clear. Rob Wells, president of Global Digital Business for Universal Music Group, said “rara.com has delivered a music service that taps into an entirely new type of music consumer.”
“Instead of competing with existing digital music services, it’s designed for the mass market of consumers who have yet to do digital music at all. Growing the audience for digital music around the world requires services that resonate with the mass market. rara.com has been designed with broad consumer appeal in mind with a simple interface that provides a great music experience and accessibility across a range of devices,” added Michael Paull, Executive Vice President, Global Digital Business, Sony Music Entertainment. “rara.com is a great new way for a whole new audience of fans to find, listen to and share music online, building deeper connections with the artists they love and discovering a world of new music as well,” said Mark Piibe, executive vice president - Global Business Development at EMI Music.
“The intuitive and thoughtfully designed interface combined with the curated channels makes rara.com a service that will be accessible and appealing to a wide audience and, potentially, an entry point for many people just starting the transition to digital music.” said Stephen Bryan, executive vice president of Digital Strategy and Business Development, Warner Music Group. rara.com will do battle in a crowded streaming music market that now includes Deezer, Spotify, Google Music, We 7, Rhapsody and Rdio.
Merlin CEO Charles Caldas has called independent label representation on new streaming service rara.com into question. His comments follow the announcement of the new service aimed specifically at the mass-market who want an easier way to adopt digital music rara.com has licensing agreements and vocal backing from all four majors, while at the same time claiming to have similar partnerships with “leading independent labels” However, Caldas said: “I’d be surprised to see who those leading independent labels are. From our understanding, none of the key UK indies are on the service and we’re not on the service, so I think I’d be asking them that question.
“I doubt whether any of them would have a deal with them. Again, we don’t have a deal with them so that counts out Domino, Warp, Cooking Vinyl and a whole bunch of other ones. I’m sure PIAS and Beggars don’t have a deal with them either from what I know.” Giving his wider thoughts on the service and what he sees as a lack of indie agreements, the Merlin CEO expressed disappointment. “I am truly astounded that any company could still be so absurdly arrogant and short sighted as to ask consumers to spend good money on what is an incomplete and inherently inferior product to many that are already in the market,” he said.
“Despite the fact that independents represent a third of the market and that the biggest artist in the world this year is released by an independent, we still see a service launched without a deal in place with the world’s key indies as represented by Merlin – meaning the service will not feature some of the most important artists in the world. “I am sure consumers won’t be hoodwinked by more smoke and mirrors, not when there are comprehensive services available to them,” Caldas concluded.
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Shakenstir Photo Supplement |
DPK: Digital Press Kit |
Black Stone Cherry |
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