News Stories

Pre-sale Tickets For The Corrs At Manchester Arena On Sale Now

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Pre-sale tickets for the Manchester leg of the Corrs’ comeback tour are on sale now. 

The Irish pop quartet will head to the city’s Arena on January 24. Head here to get yours.

The tour, dubbed White Light after the band’s new album, will also call at Birmingham’s Genting Arena, Cardiff’s Motorpoint Arena, Liverpool’s Echo Arena, The O2 Arena London, Glasgow’s SSE Hydro, Dublin’s 3Arena and the SSE Arena Belfast. between January 19 and 29.

Tickets for the UK dates are on general sale at 9am on September 21, while tickets for the Irish shows are on sale September 24.

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Wild Life: Disclosure’s Next Move Sketched Out With A Flourish

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Wild Life began small, but it has the potential to be very big indeed. The festival, co-curated by Rudimental and Disclosure, found the Lawrence brothers stealing the show by closing proceedings and simultaneously smashing a hole in the internet by announcing their new album ‘Caracal’, which is set to arrive this autumn.

Disclosure turned up in Brighton with a set that amalgamated ‘Settle’ cuts and their highly anticipated new material, combining the now de rigueur guest appearances with their blend of neon theatre and silhouettes.

The brothers opened up on pedestals to the familiar throes of White Noise and, with the sun beaming down, the assembled crowd was putty in their hands. The visuals were familiar, while the duo’s tendency to flit between an array of instruments highlighted the technical depth of their work as producers.

The stage was also set for ‘Caracal’ to make its first waves, though. Throughout a 90 minute set the pair dipped into album two, with Jaded, Willing and Able, Super Ego and Hourglass all winning positive receptions and reiterating Disclosure’s melodic deep house sensibilities.

Jaded is voiced beautifully by Howard, using a soft drum breakdown prior to the expected melodic chorus, while the Nao-starring Super Ego delivers a sense of tranquillity via the use of delicate synths. Hourglass features Lion Babe and might just be the song to define ‘Caracal’. With an up-tempo beat, fascinating synth shifts and teasing drops, it’s proof that the Disclosure formula works.

Elsewhere, Rudimental brought the house down on Saturday night with a mix of old and new, George Ezra had everyone singing, Mark Ronson had everyone dancing, while Nas and Wu-Tang Clan brought the sound of raw ‘90s hip hop to Brighton airport. Annie Mac, Maya Jane Coles, Gorgon City, Seth Troxler and Jamie XX delivered in fine style. Despite one or two transport problems on the Saturday night, Wild Life was a huge success. Expect to see it again.

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Record Store Day Reveal Full Release List

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So, which side are you on? Are you sweaty-palmed and anxious, just desperate to get your mitts on that Metallica tape? Or are you rolling your eyes at the commercialisation of it all? Either way, Record Store Day is creeping ever closer, with its full slate of goodies now available to peruse.

As usual, the list is stacked with big names and exclusives of various levels. There’s a new Foo Fighters 10”, a cool J. Dilla 7”, heart-shaped wax from Father John Misty for the romantics, Johnny Marr doing Depeche Mode and Jack White’s Elvis reissue…in other words, it’s looking pretty good whatever your inclination.

Head here for the full, searchable rundown or here for the PDF, if that’s your thing. Also, check out the list of participating stores before packing your sleeping bag/slippers.

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The Best Of Kanye At KOKO

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So, that was a nice surprise, wasn’t it? Kanye West, fresh from almost setting fire to the Brits and lying down on the floor with Jonathan Ross, hit London’s KOKO last night at very short notice, bringing a cavalcade of stars with him for good measure.

Yeezy’s new record, ‘So Help Me God’, has been the talk of the internet of late, with the Sia/Vic Mensa collaboration Wolves and All Day leading the vanguard. Last night’s show sent Twitter and Instagram into a frenzy, and below are some of the best bits.

Big Sean stopped by to power through Blessings, his tie up with West and Drake from ‘Dark Sky Paradise’ (via Jonathan Earl)

Wu Tang Clan’s Raekwon wound the clock back to ’93 with the ‘Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)’ classic C.R.E.A.M (via brmmr)

#KANYEWEST #SKEPTA #RAEKWON #CREAM #VICMENSA #YEEZYSEASON #KOKO #LONDON #SOHELPMEGOD

A video posted by BREN (@brmmr) on

Vic Mensa rolled out new music, in the form of a Stefan Ponce, Smoko Ono and D. Phelps-produced track (via stefanponce)

  VIC MENSA W KANYE. … Produced by me @smoko_ono & @dphelps94   A video posted by stefanponce (@stefanponce) on

Killer shot of the mayhem from @blaowphotography.

Last night Kanye West came through and #SHUTDOWN.

A photo posted by Blaow (@blaowphotography) on

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Oxjam Cardiff Takeover: The Inside Story

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On Sunday, Oxjam will stage its latest takeover in Cardiff, with bands including The People The Poet, Breathe In The Silence and Tree Of Wolves set to tread the boards at Clwb Ifor Bach, Undertone, The Moon Club, Four Bars and the Full Moon. Here, Oxjam Cardiff Takeover Manager Sian Walden talks us through what’s set to be a day to remember.

My first experience with Oxjam was last year’s Cardiff Takeover. I’m Australian and had just moved to the city a couple of months beforehand. It was a case of ‘What’s this festival, what’s it all about?’ I really wanted to get involved as it brings together two things that I’m really passionate about: local, emerging music and volunteering for those less fortunate and finding out how we can help. And, what a great way to help, really.

The Cause

Oxfam does lots of work throughout the world supporting aid and campaigning. They’re a figurehead for anything to do with things like sanitation, water, or providing tanks and toilets in areas of disaster. This year, money raised will also help to fight the ongoing ebola crisis. We’ve named our stages after a number of causes – Make Poverty History, Lift Lives For Good, Make Trade Fair, Control Arms and Crisis Appeals – in order to create awareness of the work they do.

The Line Up

The line up is an amalgamation of a list of bands that myself and the production team put together. We included some of our favourite Cardiff bands and also groups that we hadn’t had a chance to see yet. We went through and put together a festival that we’d like to attend, featuring bands that we think Cardiff should be seeing and celebrating.

Contacting those bands was a really rewarding experience, too, even if they couldn’t play. Some who have had to miss it were devastated and often had great reasons because they’re doing really successful things. A lot of them weren’t able to play because they were out on tour or they had big shows coming up. Even though it was disappointing for us it was a really proud moment – they can’t play, but only because they’re doing so well.

We’ve got loads of great bands who are a part of it this year and it’s a big thing in their diary. We were also approached by acts who wanted to play because they understand where Oxjam sits in the music industry and how the Takeover is such a part of the music calendar in Cardiff and all over the UK. It’s grass roots in a lot of ways but has a brand behind it. It’s great exposure but they get to give back, too.

The Venues

We’re taking over on a Sunday rather than a Saturday, but we’re happy with it. We do things a bit differently here! We’ve had a positive response, even though that’s unconventional for a festival. We would have loved to have taken over many more venues but we had to be realistic and make sure that what we were going to pull off was going to be successful and we weren’t going to spread ourselves too far.

We’re all volunteers and we don’t get any funding directly from Oxfam. Any money we spend we have to fundraise ourselves. We go in with zero. Taking on more venues means taking on more cost and more risk. We needed to make it logical. For example: if we did have seven venues, rather than five, would that mean that people were less likely to buy a full day wristband as it’s spread around the city?

We’re really happy and have been really well supported by the venues that are involved. Hopefully in the coming years a larger takeover will be possible. It’s not just 2014. Let’s hope the support keeps growing.

Why You Should Come

We’ve got an amazing line up of bands across the five music venues and some great arts at Urban Tap House’s Fringe Stage – comedy, poetry, creative writing and local film screenings. There are also offers for those with wristbands. Cardiff businesses have come on board and offered discounts to wristband holders, which is great for students especially. The afterparty then will send us all off in style at the end of the night.

Head here to check out the full Oxjam line up and schedule. For more information on the causes supported by the event, head here.

 

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A Grand Day Out: Stereoboard’s DimSŵn Setlist

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Sŵn Festival is enjoying a well-earned rest in 2014, letting its younger sibling, DimSŵn, step into the spotlight across a string of Cardiff venues this Saturday. Smaller it may be, but it does have the look of a perfectly formed day of music and merrymaking.

With the line up set to weave its way between Clwb Ifor Bach, Gwdihw, Moon Club, Buffalo, Four Bars, St. David’s Hall, Undertone and the Cardiff Fashion Quarter, there are potential highlights scattered all over the place. You can check out the schedule and map here and get scheming.

Last year, the festival scaled fresh heights and came away with the NME award for Best Small Festival and next year, we’re promised something new, something reimagined. If DimSŵn is to be a one-shot deal, then we’d better make the most of it.

Here are some picks for the day. It was pretty tough to narrow things down so, in all honesty, just go nuts and see as much as you can.

Woman’s Hour – Buffalo/9.00-10.00pm

The hype around this bunch is entirely justified. Creative, smart and very cool, they also happen to have crafted a brilliant collection of indie-pop songs on their debut, ‘Conversations’. You can check out our recent feature on the band here.

A Winged Victory For The Sullen – St. David’s Hall/7.30-9.00pm

Prepare to get atmospheric. This ambient duo – former Sparklehorse guitarist Adam Wiltzie and Dévics man Dustin O’Halloran – have a full 90 minutes to weave their spells, having spent the last few months readying ‘ATOMOS’, the companion to a dance piece by choreographer Wayne McGregor, for release.

Cian Ciarán – Four Bars/12.30-1.30am

Few bands can boast as many restlessly creative members as Super Furry Animals. Along with Guto Pryce’s work with the brilliant Gulp and Gruff Rhys’ recent multimedia odyssey, Cian Ciarán has been in fine solo fettle himself. ‘They Are Nothing Without Us’, released last year, still burns bright, while he has also been working with a new band, Zefur Wolves.

Grumbling Fur – Four Bars/2.15-3.00pm

Proggy pop ramblings or rambling pop-prog? Ah, what’s the difference? Delightfully weird and unapologetically infectious, Grumbling Fur are set to provide an early afternoon treat upstairs at Dempsey’s. Their third album, ‘Preternaturals’, was recently put out by the Quietus.

Taffy – Four Bars/10.30-11.15pm

As the organisers have noted, this lot are not a bunch of Caerdydd types, but a Japanese indie-pop troupe with a batch of ultra charming, Britpop-influenced tunes. ‘Lixiviate’, their recent album, was a little uneven, but when its sugar rush melodies clicked there was nothing to do but go with it and roll out a big ol’ smile.

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Robin Williams – 1951-2014

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Robin Williams – 1951-2014. RIP.

For more information on and help with depression and mental health problems, you can call Mind or the Samaritans.

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Upon A Burning Body Hoax Condemned By Label Boss

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It appears that Upon A Burning Body have hit shaky ground with their label, Sumerian Records, after a social media hoax.

The metallers, who will tour the UK later this year, posted messages to their Facebook and Twitter pages alleging that Danny Leal, their frontman, had been reported missing.

Soon after the posts – which also followed Leal’s own Twitter contributions to the ruse – the band released a new song, Red Razor Wrists. Ash Avildsen, Sumerian’s CEO, responded quickly to the stunt, issuing a statement condemning the band’s actions. He wrote:

“I woke up to a ton of missed calls and just saw all this stuff about Danny Leal of UABB posing as that he’s been abducted or kidnapped. My phone hasn’t stopped ringing since. As a child, we all learn the story “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” and it sticks within our consciousness for a reason. I do not condone this type of publicity stunt. This was done behind my back and I am not OK with it.

“In my eyes, there’s never a time to use the possibility of real-life abduction, injury or murder of someone you care about to promote anything, especially an album. If you need to resort to that, then you have lost the plot. We as a society should have evolved past that way of thinking by now and especially within the rock/metal community, given all the tragedy that has happened in our world over the past few years. There are some people who owe us an apology. -Ash Avildsen, Creator & CEO of Sumerian Records.”

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Glastonbury 2015 Speculation Underway: AC/DC, Prince Among First Names Mentioned

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The dust has barely begun to settle on this year’s Glastonbury and already the rumour mill is turning. The Independent has speculated that AC/DC have been snapped up to headline in 2015, while Michael Eavis has already confirmed that three bands have been signed to top the bill.

One deal was struck during Metallica’s headline set, while Eavis offered a tiny hint in a press conference on Sunday (quotes via the Independent):

“We’ve got some good headliners,” he said. “We had an agent yesterday on the platform by the stage watching Metallica with me, saying: ‘My band want to do it next year.’ I can’t tell you who it was but that was done on the platform watching Metallica.”

He added, stoking the Indy’s AC/DC fire: “Is it a British artist? He’s definitely British, but the band are not British anymore.”

Eavis also addressed the perennial Prince question, but the Purple One is not one of the three headliners inked in: “We’re always having a go at Prince, but it’s up to him whether he wants to do it or not. Most of the people in the world want him to play here. I did ask him to hop on the train and come down so I can show him around the farm sometime. It hasn’t been taken up yet.”

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Beyoncé And Jay Z Kick Off On The Run Tour In Miami

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Beyoncé and Jay Z opened their long-awaited On The Run tour in Miami last night, getting through 42 songs’ worth of work according to Consequence Of Sound.

You can check out a short clip from 03 Bonnie and Clyde below and head here for the full setlist. They will bring the tour to Paris in September, taking over the Stade De France for two nights. For full info, you’ll want to go here.

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