Music Review: Megson - Take Yourself A Wife

I first "discovered" this brilliant London, England-based folk music duo at a gig organized by a local gig-booking group called (shameless plug) Warthog Promotions, based at the nearby village of Lowdham (in England).

Megson are a husband/wife duo, consisting of Stu Hanna and Debbie Hanna-Palmer.

Take Yourself A Wife is their third album, which according to the Financial Times "was recorded while they were planning their wedding" and features their original takes on a collection of songs written by songwriters of North-Eastern England and ranging from 1700s-1900s.

Debbie contributes vocals and concertina, whereas Stu contributes vocals, octave mandola, mandolin, guitar, bass and fiddles.

My favourite number on this album is the title track, "Take Yourself A Wife" which is a call to a single man of 31 to hurry up and (funnily enough) take yourself a wife. That is closely followed by "Fourpence A Day", a story of a little child living in poverty and having to work as a washer boy for a pittance.

The whole album is quite mellow, although the faster numbers will (at the least) have you tapping your foot along with the beat. Of course, it helps that Stu and Debbie are both very accomplished folk musicians.

Read More >>

Undertaker Of The Damned Announces New Album "Lords Of The Extreme Mockery"

Chile's Undertaker of the Damned has announced the band's second full-length album will be titled "Lords of the Extreme Mockery." A new song from the album, titled "The Horde of Dibbuk," can be heard in the player below.

 

Undertaker of the Damned - The horde of Dibbuk by Australis Records

The album's track listing is as follows:

1. The Horde of Dibbuk
2. Nest of Vipers
3. False Creed
4. Emperors of Life
5. Lords of the Extreme Mockery
6. In Violence, We Fund Pleasure
7. 1975

Read More >>

DJ Shadow’s new album 'The Less You Know The Better' set for September release

DJ Shadow has announced that he will release his fourth studio album 'The Less You Know The Better' on September 5.

The album is the follow up to 2006’s 'The Outsider' and is preceded by a single 'I Gotta Rokk’, which was released as part of a new six track E.P last night (May 10). You can hear the single on music blog website Somekindofawesome.com now.

The E.P, which is also called 'I Gotta Rokk', includes 'Def Surrounds Us' and 'I’ve Been Trying', which were released as one-off singles last year.

'I Gotta Rokk E.P' also features remixes of all three singles. The E.P is available to download from iTunes now.

No details of any tracklisting or collaborations for 'The Less You Know The Better' have been confirmed as yet.

DJ Shadow plays the Great Escape festival in Brighton on Thursday night (May 12) and he is also confirmed to play Glastonbury as well as Bestival in September.

Read More >>

Lostprophets begin recording new album in Hollywood

The Welsh rockers are currently holed-up in the NRG Recording Studios in Los Angeles working on the follow-up to 2010's 'The Betrayed'. Andrews has previously worked with the likes of A Perfect Circle, Tenacious D and Black Rebel Motorcycle Club.

Writing on his blog at Web.me.com/kenandrews, Andrews stated: "Lostprophets approached me in November of last year. They had a big hit here is the states in 2004... they have been relatively quiet here since, but that’s all about to change. This is a Sony project so I can’t post up any of the new material but I can say, without any bias at all, that this will be the best album these guys have ever made."

He added: ”They’re Welsh, so sometimes I can’t make out all the quick-fired humour, but I enjoy the accent overall. When your the only person not speaking that way, you start to speak their way unconsciously. Which is fun, until you get home!"

Read More >>

Google Music To Be Unveiled Today May 10

Google is set to launch a new cloud-based music service, Google Music, at its I/O conference today (May 10).
The service will be similar to one offered by Amazon, but will enable users to store up to 20,000 songs without charge.

Amazon only allow people to store around 2,000 songs before they have to pay a subscription fee for access to more memory.

Google had hoped to launch a more comprehensive service with support from all of the major record labels, which would enable it to sell music, but talks broke down and the company has decided to proceed on its own.

But in an interview with All Things Digital, Jamie Rosenberg, who oversees digital content and strategy for Google’s Android platform, said: “Unfortunately, a couple of the major labels were less focused on the innovative vision that we put forward, and more interested in in an unreasonable and unsustainable set of business terms.”

A spokesperson for Google has declined to comment on the new service.

Read More >>

Interview: Gordon Barr talks to Tulisa of N-Dubz

Urban group N-Dubz make their Metro Radio Arena debut on April 22. Entertainment Editor Gordon Barr poses a few questions to Tulisa

Your first ever arena tour – how does that make you feel?

It’s crazy. I mean the fact we’re selling out and playing to arenas is such an achievement in itself, but we’re also the first UK urban act to do an arena tour and that’s pretty special. It’s all because of our fans and without them we wouldn’t be where we are today and we never forget that. We’re putting on a big show that’s going to be unmissable.

It’s been a long-time coming (almost a decade). Did you ever lose that self-belief?

No, not at all. We’ve come from nothing and created a career for ourselves. You’ve got to be proud of that and what you’ve achieved because eventually you’ll convince other people of your talent and your worth if you keep on.

What has been the glue that has kept you together this amount of time in the fickle world of the music business?

We’re family and we’re there for each other all the time. I don’t think we know any differently to what we do. And when I’m not working, I chill out at home in a tracksuit, make dinner and watch TV, snuggle up with my dogs and that’s it. We’ve never really done the showbiz party thing excessively – of course we all like to have fun, but we’re all down to earth.

You have carved out something of a niche market for yourselves. Have the past three years been something of a whirlwind/dream for you?

I feel like our hard work is paying off, but it’s been a lifetime coming so no, it’s not been a dream as such! Things get so busy that you can’t always take in exactly when and what is happening, but there’s no one else like N-Dubz out there and I like that!

I’ve got a lot of friends of a certain age (ie over 40) who love N-Dubz. How does that make you feel?

Our fans are varied and that’s a brilliant thing. I love that we appeal to all ages. We’ve got five-year-old fans that listen to our songs and then grandparents too! We talk about real issues and real things that people can relate to whether you’re eight or 80.

What does the arena tour have in store for the fans?

I can’t give too much away but it’s going to be huge! We’ve all come up with ideas for the tour and there are three different themes which are almost like character themes. But we’re going to have a lot of fun and dress up! You’ll just have to come down and check it out!

Any thoughts on Newcastle?

We have a wicked time in Newcastle and our fans are always up for a good time! We never get enough time to explore cities on tour so it would be great to come back and see the sights one day soon.

The future ... You have changed your style over the years, is this something you will continue to do?

As an artist you have to keep evolving and doing new things to keep your fans interested. Naturally your sound and your style is going to change as you get older. We started when we were really young so of course our style is going to change as we grow up and learn and experience different things. We’re always thinking of the next step, you’ve got to keep pushing forward but we’ll always be N-Dubz and no matter what happens, we’ll always have that distinctive N-Dubz style and sound.

Anyone you would give your eye teeth to work with?

There’s tons of artists killing it at the moment but I’ve been loving Nicki Minaj for ages and it’s great that she’s finally getting the recognition she deserves and has worked hard for. So maybe me and Nicki can team up for a female anthem!

Source : chroniclelive.co.uk

Read More >>

Kasabian city concert sells out in minutes

ARENA rock giants Kasabian have sold out an intimate concert at the O2 Academy Sheffield in nine minutes - making them one of the fastest-selling bands at the venue, writes digital editor Geraham Walker.

And these lucky guitar-playing fans at the front of the queue – who queued all night and entertained others with Kasabian songs – said it made getting their hands on the £30 tickets even more special for the gig on June 4.

“We just feel sorry for fans who didn’t get them. We knew they would sell out fast – but nine minutes, that’s crazy,’’ said first-in-line Matt Webster, aged 19, from Aston.

He turned up the previous evening with Failed Theory bandmate Adam South, 18, of Shiregreen, and pals Danny Hodgett, 19, of Southall, and Danny Blagg, 18, of Aston, who camped out with fold-up chairs and a box of beer.

Venue marketing co-ordinator Nicole Jewitt organised tea and biscuits for fans.

Tickets went on sale yesterday at 9am and by nine minutes past the entire allocation of around 2,000 tickets had been snapped up by queuing fans, internet and phone callers, who were allowed up to four tickets each.

Nicole said: “I’ve never known a band sell out as quickly as this. We feel for those who didn’t manage to get a ticket but we did warn people to expect this one to sell out fast. Kasabian play arenas and this is an intimate gig as a warm-up to their festival appearances. We’re delighted to have the show here.”

Read More >>

Kate Bush new album inspired by fertiliser

The 'Wuthering Heights' singer has revealed she has experienced a flow of creativity since she rested a bag of organic bone meal ' a garden fertiliser created from ground animal bones ' on her piano. And it could lead to her releasing her first studio album since 2005's 'Aerial'.

In an interview on British station BBC Radio 4, she said: ' was en route to the garden and put a packet of bone meal on my piano. It seems to be helping the blossoming of the songs so I thought I'd just leave it there.'

Following her recent spell of songwriting, Kate has even hinted she could be prepared to tour again - despite having only ever going on the road for a run of shows once in 1979.

The 52-year-old musician ' who has spent most of the last 18 years avoiding the spotlight - revealed: 'A lot of people think I didn't enjoy touring. I did - it was like being in the circus. I'd hate to say I'd never do it again.'

Kate releases 'The Director's Cut', an album which contains 11 reworked tracks from her earlier LPs 'The Sensual World' and 'The Red Shoes' on May 16.

Read More >>

Joss Stone Announces New Album

Stone'd Records & Surfdog Records are proud to announce their partnership to release Joss Stone's next album, LP1 on July 26, 2011.

As a world-renowned soul singer who Smokey Robinson calls "Aretha Joplin," Joss has sold over 11 million records globally. Having just turned 24, Joss has already amassed a career's worth of successes. She is a Grammy winner, five-time Grammy nominee, and the recipient of several Brit Awards.

Stone recently established her own label, Stone'd Records, and has partnered with Surfdog to release LP1. This is the first album Joss has recorded with total creative freedom. She co-wrote andco -producedit with super-producer and Eurythmics co-founder, Dave Stewart. Together they immersed themselves into a rock n' soul musical odyssey in Nashville, Tennessee, finishing LP1 in only six days.

"This is the most fun I've ever had making a record with Crazy Dave Stewart at the helm, and yes the players in Nashville are unbelievable!!!" says Stone. "This album captures a specific moment in time that was spontaneous and full of creativity."

"Joss can sing with the ferocity of a lioness and dynamically switch to the most delicate whisper in the same phrase,"says Stewart. "She is always honest and full of real emotion. It is an honor to work alongside a true artist who understands so much at such a young age."

Read More >>

New Jersey Rock History: More Than Big Hair and the Boss

IN “Jersey Rocks: A History of Rock & Roll in the Garden State,” a new exhibition at the Morris Museum in Morristown that will run through Sept. 5, the background music may be as interesting for some visitors as the 400 or so objects on display. “Stacy’s Mom,” the 2003 hit by the pop band Fountains of Wayne, whose front man, Adam Schlesinger, grew up in Montclair, was followed recently by “Walk on By,” the 1960s classic made famous by Dionne Warwick, who was raised in Newark and now lives in South Orange.

“I think people are going to come to the show with a lot of preconceived notions” about what — or who — best represents rock music in New Jersey, said Claudia Ocello, 44, the co-curator with Ellen Snyder-Grenier of the exhibition and the president of Museum Partners Consulting in Morristown. “I’m excited about helping them walk away with a different perspective.”

That does not mean the show ignores the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Bon Jovi. The former is represented by early performance photographs lent by Carrie Potter Devening of Waco, Tex.; she is the granddaughter of Tom and Margaret Potter, who founded the long-shuttered Upstage Club in Asbury Park. The museum will host a launch party on Friday featuring the E Street Shuffle, a Springsteen tribute band. Bon Jovi artifacts on display include a guitar signed by members of the band in the 1990s and lent by a longtime fan, Kathy Francis of Cedar Knolls.

A sizable chunk of the 4,200-square-foot gallery is devoted to rock figures from less-celebrated eras and sensibilities, including the Duprees, a ’60s doo-wop group.

Tom Bialoglow, a singer for the Jersey City group who now lives in Pompton Lakes, lent a turquoise tuxedo jacket that he wore in the photo on the cover of the album “You Belong to Me.” Likewise, Dennis Diken, drummer for the Smithereens, which formed in 1980 in Carteret and released a new album last month, contributed drum covers emblazoned with the group’s logo.

Three media stations will show videos throughout the exhibition: one is a montage of performers; another shines a spotlight on the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s roots of New Jersey rock ’n’ roll; and a third is a trailer for the documentary “The Last Bastions of Rock,” written and directed by Fritch Clark of Franklin Township.

Ms. Ocello says she believes visitors will be surprised by the range of the state’s contributions to rock. “So much of what happened here was pivotal in the advancement of the music,” she said.

TAMMY LA GORCE

Read More >>