The Seasons World Tour comes as a celebration of the band’s latest album It’s The End Of The World But It’s A Beautiful Day which was released in September this year. The band also posted a short video of them performing one of their latest songs at the very top of the tower.

Leto took to Instagram to state, “As many of you also know, I love to climb. It’s one of the few things I’ve found that takes me away from some of the pressures of life and helps me to find a bit of freedom and equanimity. In a lot of ways, this album is about following your dreams and pushing yourself to do the seemingly impossible.”

It’s The End Of The World But It’s A Beautiful Day comes as the first album from the band without guitarist Tomo Miličevic, leaving brothers Jared and Shannon Leto as the sole members. British writers on the album include the likes of Steve Mac, Dave Gibson and even Ed Sheeran.

On social media, and in reference to the importance of the Empire State Building, Jared also stated, “I’ve had a fascination with the Empire State Building, the “world’s number one attraction”, since I was a kid. Not sure if it was Guinness world records, King Kong, but something about this iconic structure always captured my imagination. Built in just 13 short months, in one of the greatest cities in the world it has always been a powerful symbol to me of all the possibilities in life.”

The Seasons Tour, beginning in March in the US, the band will make their way over to Glasgow in April where they will start their UK and European leg of the tour. Here they have booked some of the largest venues in the country, from the AO Arena in Manchester, to the O2 in London.

This tour comes as their first time returning to the UK after almost 9 years with their previous tour, The Monolith Tour, in 2018.

“We are so excited to get back out on the road and to come see you in so many amazing places all over the world,” the band stated, “It’s been too long. We miss you. We love you. We’ll see you very soon!!!”

You can find the tour dates below and the link to tickets here:

16/04/2024 – OVO Hydro – Glasgow
17/04 – Motorpoint Arena – Nottingham
19/04 – AO Arena – Manchester
20/04 – Utilita Arena – Birmingham
22/04 – Utilita Arena – Cardiff
23/04 – The O2 – London

Taking to social media to announce the tour and the dates, the band stated, “Crowded House is excited to be playing shows in the UK and Ireland again next summer on the Gravity Stairs Tour!”.

The band, made up of Neil Finn, Nick Seymour, Mitchell Froom, Liam Finn and Elroy Finn, released their latest album Dreamers Are Waiting, back in 2021. The album was received with positive reviews and served as the first album in which Neil’s son’s, Liam and Elroy Finn, had featured.

Formed in Melbourne in 1985, Crowded House saw international success with their self-titled debut album and their first international hit ‘Don’t Dream It’s Over’, which went to number 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100. Other hits included, ‘Something So Strong’, ‘World Where You Live’, and ‘Weather With You’ which remains the band’s highest UK chart performance.

Crowded House will be playing at one of the UK’s most prestigious grounds, Blenheim Palace, and will be joined by special guests Sheryl Crow and Turin Brakes on the night. This star-studded line-up is not the only one in their tour as they have also announced that they will be playing at the iconic Isle of Wight music festival on June 21st.

For their Irish show at Cork’s Musgrave Park, the band will be joined by The Waterboys, a British-Irish folk rock band.

Crowded House has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide, have won a Brit Award for International Group Of The Year, and 13 ARIA awards across their career.

Tickets for their upcoming tours can be found here:

15/06/2024 – Lincoln Castle – Lincoln
16/06 – Blenheim Palace – Blenheim
19/06 – The Piece Hall – Halifax
20/06 – Cardiff Castle – Cardiff
21/06 – Isle of Wight Festival – Isle of Wight
23/06 – Musgrave Park – Cork, Ireland

This exciting announcement comes after both artist’s recent album releases. Peckham-born Giggs released his sixth studio album, Zero Tolerance in August of this year which featured a collaboration with Diddy on the song, ‘Mandem‘. Diddy recently released his fifth studio album, The Love Album, which features works and collaborations with some of the best names in music and which arrived 17 years after his previous album, Press Play.

Diddy took to Instagram to share his excitement, “Attention LONDON! One night only! We comin’ to make History!”.

This has not been the first show Giggs has put on for charitable purposes. In 2018, Giggs put on a show at Camden’s Roundhouse in which people could set their own price for tickets for Sickle Cell Society and the Amy Winehouse Foundation.

Similar to previous charitable events, the upcoming evening with Diddy and Giggs will also be funded by patrons where they can choose their own ticket prices.

Diddy has also recently made news by donating a large sum of money to Howard University. Ben Vinson, president of the academic institution, stated, “A monumental moment at Yardfest! Thank you Diddy, for your incredible generosity and support of Howard University. Your million-dollar contribution will make a profound impact on our students and community. We’re honoured to have you as a part of our Bison family.”

This year marks the 15th year anniversary of Giggs’ debut studio album Walk In Da Park. This album has been seen as one of the most influential in the British hip-hop scene and even helped spawn a sub-genre called ‘Road Rap’.

Diddy’s rise to stardom has been as tumultuous as it has been successful. Releasing music which has topped the charts, won awards and has earned Diddy international fame despite receiving consistently mixed reviews has not stopped this hip-hop legend from performing and writing.

Diddy has recently taken to social media to announce his film, ‘Off The Grid’, stating, “The Movie “Off The Grid” starring Sean Diddy Combs & Eva Apio coming to a theatre near you. Inspired by The Love Album.”

Between Diddy and Giggs are years of brilliant performances and shows which they are sure to bring next week at O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire. You can find tickets here.

Duran Duran have stitched together a collection of new songs, themed covers, and re-imagined versions of their older music in this exciting, 13-track album. The band, now made up of Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor and Roger Taylor, have teamed up with producer, Mr Hudson to create their most ambitious and unexpected album yet.

Keyboardist, Nick Rhodes spoke about the album’s conceptions, stating, “The song ‘Danse Macabre’ celebrates the joy and madness of Halloween. It is the title track of our forthcoming album… The idea was born out of a show we played in Las Vegas on October 31st, 2022. We had decided to seize the moment to create a unique, special event…the temptation of using glorious gothic visuals set to a dark soundtrack of horror and humour was simply irresistible.”

The band’s legendary status has allowed them to collaborate with some of music’s newest and oldest talents. Long time collaborator, producer and guitarist, Nile Rogers, features on the album with the record ‘Black Moonlight‘.

In an interview with Duran Duran, Nile Rogers said, “The great thing about working with Duran Duran is that I’ve been there really almost from the beginning. I’ve been able to see that artistic arc, so I always say to myself ‘How do I take that next step?’“.

A relatively new face to the music scene, but one that has packed a punch, is Victoria de Angelis of Italian modern rock band Måneskin, who features as the bassist on Duran Duran’s cover of Talking Head’s ‘Psycho Killer‘. The unlikely bass duo of John Taylor and Victoria de Angelis has breathed new life into the Talking Heads classic.

“I’m so grateful and honoured,” Victoria stated in an Instagram post, “It was so much fun recording together with John and he was so sweet to me and encouraged me to express myself and play it my own way.”

Not only have Duran Duran collaborated with old and new, but they have also chosen to cover rock classics and gothic modern pop hits. Heard on the album is The Rolling Stones’ ‘Paint It, Black’ and Billie Eilish’s gothic anthem, ‘bury a friend’.

Adding to his previous comments, Nick Rhodes said, “The record metamorphosed through a pure, organic process, and not only was it made faster than anything since our debut album, it has also resulted in something none of us could have ever predicted. Emotion, mood, style and attitude have always been at the heart of Duran Duran’s DNA, we search for light in the darkness and darkness in the light, and I feel we have somehow managed to capture the essence of all of that in this project.”

You can purchase or stream the album here.

Coming off an extremely busy festival season, DJing at some of the largest festivals in the UK and finishing a stint in Ibiza, this rising superstar has 2024 in his sights. Performing his signature mix of house, trance and rave music, Ben Hemsley is sure to excite.

He took to instagram to share his excitement, “Liverpool, I’m coming back for the biggest headline show I’ve ever done… 12,000 of you at the legendary Waterfront with me. You can’t beat this man. I feel so honoured to be a part of this ridiculous event. Without a doubt one of the best shows in the U.K. and we are gunna make it so special for yas.”

For Hemsley, the quick rise to stardom came after his legendary 2021 Creamfields set where he only performed due to another artist backing out because of COVID-19 restrictions. Since this set, he has often lauded Creamfields as the reason for his successes.

“Last year [Creamfields 2022] I ended up crying because of the love,” he stated on social media, “In 2021 my dream became reality and I went from playing shows in front of less than 100 people, once a month to selling out the biggest venues and doing shows around the world and then 2022 took it to another level.”

Ben Hemsley’s conquering of the rave circuit has continued in 2023 after a myriad of career defining moments. Hemsley’s first Ibiza residency saw the Geordie artist gain the opportunity to support monumental names in the electronic music arena: Eric Prydz at Hï Ibiza, and Calvin Harris at world famous Ushuaïa.

Ben has seen similar success and adoration. Manchester’s premiere club, and possibly one of the UK’s biggest raves, Warehouse Project, invited Ben Hemsley to headline their venue with his Connection tour. This show was the first to be announced for The Warehouse Project’s new season which sold-out.

Ben stated, “There’s a video of me in 2017, steaming after a night at Warehouse Project with my mates telling them I’d deadline it in 5 years… It might have taken 6 but on Friday I eventually did it and sold it out… Can’t thank you enough. A night I’ll remember forever.”

Tickets for The Waterfront festival can be found here.

His connection tour is ongoing and you can find the dates here:

27/10/2023 – Royal Highland Centre – Edinburgh
28/10 – The Telegraph Building – Belfast
11/11 – The Telegraph Building – Belfast
22/06/2024 – Liverpool Pier Head – Liverpool

The 22-year old singer-songwriter, gaining popularity for her bubbly melodies and alternative pop hooks, has recently joined some of music’s biggest names on tour – supporting Dua Lipa on her Future Nostalgia Tour, Coldplay for their Music of the Sphere’s Tour and Ed Sheeran on his Mathematics Tour.

Griff took to Instagram to share her excitement, stating, “Guys, news!! I’m going on tour next year across the UK and Europe. It’s going to be my first headline shows in Europe! And I’ll be playing across UK again too. Can’t wait to be in the room with you all and play you the new music. Tickets are on sale this Friday. Come and find me in your nearest city.”

The Brit-award winner has recently released her new single ‘Vertigo‘, gaining attention and acclaim from US pop star, Taylor Swift, who shared the song on her Instagram page. The single has been followed by the release of her EP, Vert1go.vol.1, which gives listeners a closer insight into Griff’s personal life, saying, “This collection of songs are fragile and insular and desperately heartbroken (as usual).  Can’t wait for them to be yours.”

To celebrate the release of this latest EP, Griff has been playing a trilogy of intimate shows in London, Berlin and Paris. Playing unreleased songs to fans in London, Griff shared the news that she has collaborated with Chris Martin to write upcoming song, ‘Astronaut‘. Her return to the stage has seen fans sell-out these shows within days.

“On Wednesday I played an intimate show with some of you guys, and played the songs on volume 1. It’s been so long since I’ve been in the room with you guys for my own show and it felt so good,” she stated on X, “I hope volume 1 can become some kind of soundtrack to your days and nights.”

This latest era for Griff comes after her critically acclaimed debut mixtape, One Foot in Front of the Other, which saw the singer enter the UK album charts for the first time and peak at no.4. This also saw Griff win the Rising Star Award at the Brit Awards, making her one of the youngest recipients at just 20 years old.

Beginning in March 2024, Griff will begin her tour in Stockholm and continue her run, finishing up in London’s iconic Roundhouse venue.

Tour dates are as follows and tickets can be purchased here.

10/03/2024 – Debaser Strand – Stockholm, Sweden
11/03 – Parkteateret – Oslo, Norway
15/03 – Mojo Club – Hamburg, Germany
16/03 – Heimathafen – Berlin, Germany
18/03 – Gloria Theater – Cologne, Germany
19/03 – Tolhuisten – Amsterdam, Netherlands
21/03 – Botanique Orangerie – Brussels, Belgium
22/03 – La Machine Du Moulin Rouge – Paris, France
24/03 – O2 Academy – Bournemouth, UK
26/03 – Olympia Theatre – Dublin, Ireland
28/03 – Albert Hall – Manchester, UK
30/03 – Barrowland Ballroom – Glasgow, UK
31/03 – O2 Institute – Birmingham, UK
02/04 – Roundhouse – London, UK

In an Instagram post, Barry Can’t Swim stated, “It’s a huge personal milestone for me, after 10 months of solid writing plus a 20+ years dreaming about it before then. I’ve poured everything I have into it and really hope you you like.”

Opening with the title track, “When Will We Land?”, Barry Can’t Swim surprises listeners with an ambient, almost cinematic track, seeming to disappear at times only to give room for breakbeat percussion and heavenly choirs to slingshot listeners into what this artist does best – bouncing basslines that dance around pulsing kick drums.

“You only get to make your debut album once,” he stated, “So I want to showcase all the elements of the things I enjoy and love in music up to this point.”

This London-based producer (real name Joshua Mannie), made himself known with his EP, Amor Fati, an inspiring blend of jazzy piano licks and house drum beats. After joining with the label, Ninja Tune, Barry Can’t Swim collaborated with Anish Kumar with “Blackpool Boulevard”,  which lead to him being named in Billboard’s ’10 Dance Artists To Watch in 2022′.

Now in 2023, When Will We Land?, often sprinkled with personal voice-notes and ambient recordings, has made this Barry Can’t Swim’s most personal and introspective work to date. In the track, “Deadbeat Gospel”, recorded live on his phone on the banks of the River Liffey in Dublin, Barry’s university friend and poet, somedeadbeat, recites themes of UK club culture in articulate religious metaphors.

“For me, I want it to have musicality to it,” he adds. “I wanted it to have the energy of electronic music but also with a more organic live element. I feel like I’m more of a musician than anything else. I’m a producer but I like writing music on instruments.”

For the track, “Woman”, Barry Can’t Swim stated, “Lapsley came back immediately with this unreal vocal. I chopped it up, re-arranged it… it’s one of those things that fell into place.”

This producer, instrumentalist, and DJ has made a name for himself across the country, playing brilliant sets in clubs, warehouses and even in the forest. Just last week, Barry Can’t Swim played at Warehouse Project in Manchester for his second live Boiler Room set – a popular online broadcaster of electronic music.

Speaking about the set, Barry stated, “Anytime I’ve thought about it [Warehouse Project] since I just start laughing to myself stepping into that bear pit of a booth. It was mad! Hard to explain without actually being in there but you could proper feel nothing but pure joy in that room. It’s a show that I’ll never ever forget, I loved every single second of it.”

What is clear to see is that Barry Can’t Swim is here to stay. Making rumblings in the music industry and creating an impressive debut album is just the first on his list of upcoming plans – continuing to tour is his next focus.

10/11/2023 – Button Factory – Dublin, Ireland
11/11 – Bitterzoet – Amsterdam, Netherlands
15/11 – Berghain –  Berlin, Germany
16/11 – Le Pop Up Du Label – Paris, France
17/11 –  Canvas – Manchester, UK
18/11 –  24 Kitchen Street – Liverpool, UK
19/11 – 24 Kitchen Street – Liverpool, UK
22/11 – Strange Brew – Bristol, UK
23/11 – St John at Hackney – London, UK
24/11 – SWG3 Studio Warehouse – Glasgow, UK
25/11 – The Bongo Club – Edinburgh, UK

The 11-track album will see the band stray from familiar themes which has made them so popular and championed. Rather then channelling anger and politicism, the band have stated that they, “have arrived in this new act to offer the fruits of such perseverance: love, joy, and indeed gratitude for the mere opportunity of existence.”

“TANGK. I needed love. So I made it,” frontman Joe Talbot posted on Instagram, “I gave love out to the world and it feels like magic. This is our album of gratitude and power. All love songs. All is love.”

TANGK was co-produced by Nigel Godrich (producer of all of Radiohead’s albums since OK Computer), Kenny Beats (producer of IDLES’ latest album Crawler), and IDLES guitarist, Mark Bowen.

Although fans may have to wait until February to experience TANGK in its entirety, listeners are able to drop-in momentarily with the lead single, ‘Dancer‘. This energetic and grungy track exudes bone-rattling basslines, guitar riffs and drums, giving singer Joe Talbot the opportunity to profess his sexual desires to someone on the dancefloor.

Joined by LCD Soundsystem’s, James Murphy and Nancy Whang on backing vocals, ‘Dancer‘ serves to represent the physical feeling of the beginning of a relationship, but it is also about the special dynamic between the band and their fans.

The band have stated, “It is a love song the same way that TANGK is a love album—open to anyone who requires something to shout out loud in order to fend off any encroaching sense of the void, now or forever.”

Joe Talbot said, “’Dancer’ is the violence that comes from the pounding heart of the dancefloor and rushes through your body and gives you life from music, from love and from you.”

Last night, IDLES debuted ‘Dancer‘, amongst a setlist of their biggest and best songs at Village Underground in London – billed under the name ‘TANGK‘.

The tracklist for TANGK is:

1. IDEA 01
2. Gift Horse
3. POP POP POP
4. Roy
5. A Gospel
6. Dancer
7. Grace
8. Hall & Oates
9. Jungle
10. Gratitude
11. Monolith

Although IDLES do not have any UK tour dates released, you can find European tour dates here:

29/02/2024 – Super Bock Arehna – Porto, Portugal
01/03 – Wizinik – Madrid, Spain
02/03 – Sant Jordi Club – Barcelona, Spain
05/03 – Alcatraz – Milan, Italy
07/03 – Zenith – Paris, France
08/03 – AFAS – Amsterdam, Netherlands
09/03 – Lotto Arena – Antwerp, Belgium
11/03 – SaSaZu – Prague, Czech Republic
12/03 – ROCKHAL – Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
14/03 – Halle 622 – Zurich, Switzerland
15/03 – Max Schmeling Halle – Berlin, Germany
16/03 – Sporthalle – Hamburg, Germany
18/03 – Annexet – Stockholm, Sweden
19/03 – KB Hallen – Copenhagen, Denmark
21/03 – Palladium – Cologne, Germany
22/03 – Zenith – Munich, Germany
23/03 – Jahrhunderthalle – Frankfurt, Germany

Weezer announced the tour on X, stating, “Today is the greatest day we’ve ever known. UK and Ireland we’re coming back around to co-headline a handful of shows next summer with @SmashingPumpkin“.

The Smashing Pumpkins, who have just come off their US tour, announced soon after, “SP is excited to announce we will be touring UK & Ireland next year with Weezer.”

With multiple, multi-platinum records and careers spanning about 30 years, these US bands are sure to thrill UK and Irish fans. Just last year, US fans experienced this powerful rock concoction at BeachLife Festival in California where both bands headlined.

For Weezer, they are returning to the UK after their highly anticipated, Hella Mega, sold-out stadium tour with Green Day and Fallout Boy which was initially delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. 2022 saw Weezer release an innovative quartet of EP’s titled SZNZ – each album changing its sound to correspond to the feeling and emotions of the four seasons.

Since their debut studio album release in 1994 with Weezer (often referred to as the ‘Blue Album‘), this Los Angeles group have amassed billions of streams, over 10 million album sales in the US and over 35 million record sales internationally.

Chicago rock icons, The Smashing Pumpkins, have had their fair share of success since forming in 1988. Their unique and pioneering sound, which blended various music genres previously unexplored by the world, paved the way for them to achieve enduring iconic status. Their name quickly became synonymous with 90’s alternative rock.

In November 2022, The Smashing Pumpkins began to release a trilogy of rock opera albums titled, ATUM. Past albums they have released have been critically acclaimed and commercially successful. Siamese Dream (1993), which just celebrated its 30th year anniversary, has since gone quadruple-platinum and was placed no.18 in Pitchfork’s ‘Top 100 Albums of the 90’s’.

Tickets for their UK and Ireland co-headlining tour will go on sale Friday 20th October at 10am: get the link here.

Touring dates for The Smashing Pumpkins and Weezer:

07/06/2024 – Birmingham Utilita Arena – Birmingham
08/06 – The O2 Arena – London
10/06 –  3Arena – Dublin
12/06 – Glasgow OVO Hydro – Glasgow
13/06 – Manchester Co-op Live – Manchester
14/06 – Cardiff Castle – Cardiff

The choir and orchestral infusion Raye and her team have put into this celebrated pop album uplifts and intensifies each song’s intended mood, whether that’s with the heart-wrenching yet inspirational ballad “Ice-cream Man”, or with the entrancing dance single, “Black Mascara”. Additional interludes, preludes, overtures and requiems allowed for conductor Tom Richards to showcase his own vision (or sound, mind you) of Raye’s musical prowess, intertwined sonically with original arrangements fans loved from the original album.

Listeners gain an insight into Raye’s infectious stage presence and sense of humour, “Are you f****** joking”, she screams in joy and disbelief at the beginning of the album to 3,442 cheering attendees.

“I will never forget this night – as long as I live,” she announces to the crowd at the end of the album, followed by music of which you imagine her twirling and dancing off stage.

Perhaps her biggest hit off the studio album, “Escapism”, comes as the encore performance on the live version – originally a genre-bending take on a “pop” song, now transformed with the epic cacophony of the haunting, Phantom of the Opera-esque organ, electric guitar and of course, Raye’s unwavering vocals echoed by the powerful harmonies of The Flames Collective.

“The show of my entire career, I can’t handle this… I cannot believe this is my real life after all these years of hustle and monstrous dreams, my city saw me for the artist I truly want to be and continue to strive to be,” she stated in a celebratory Instagram post.

The release of this live album comes after a string of successes for the London-born singer. Not only did “Escapism” chart at no.1 in the UK singles chart at the beginning of the year, or that her current collaboration “Prada” with CaSSo and D-Block Europe is currently at no.2 on the charts, but she was also shortlisted for the prestigious Mercury Prize back in July – an award that goes to the best album recorded by a UK artist.

Last week, Raye appeared on The Late Show starring Jimmy Fallon to perform a medley of “Escapism/Worth It” accompanied by a smaller orchestra to promote the release.

Raye’s popularity is growing by the day on an international scale, currently touring worldwide – taking a short break only to rehearse for the live recording at Royal Albert Hall. Raye is currently touring the U.S but will return for several sold-out shows in the UK this November/December. See below for UK touring dates:

29/11/2023 – Bridlington Spa Centre – Bridlington
30/11 – O2 Academy Glasgow – Glasgow
01/12 – NX – Newcastle Upon Tyne
02/12 – O2 Apollo Manchester – Manchester
05/12 – O2 Academy Birmingham – Birmingham
07/12 – O2 Academy Bristol – Bristol

Listen to My 21st Century Symphony (Live At Royal Albert Hall) here: