The singer also included some artwork for the single and a short snippet of the song which features him singing the title of the song in the line ‘look at what you’ve gone and done, baby baby now i’m numb.’ Pre-saving the track, the singer announced, will also give fans early access to tickets for an exclusive, virtual live performance which will feature tracks from his upcoming album. With 2018’s ‘Jubilee Road,’ the last studio album released by Odell, fans have been waiting two long years for a follow up and finally now it has been confirmed that his fourth is coming very soon.

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Tom Odell, who’s debut album ‘Long Way Down,’ reached number 1 on the UK official album charts is known for his simple yet effective combination of piano and vocals to deliver his potent songwriting. However, the clip which he has provided us to preview new song ‘numb,’ features rich production with thumping kick drums and synth sounds added to the simple keyboard and vocal lines which are reminiscent and familiar of the sound he is known for. This suggests a much greater time being spent in the studio experimenting with different sounds, perhaps inspired by the additional time he was able to spend in there throughout lockdown, and gives fans hope for an album which is both original and breaking new ground but also nostalgic and familiar for fans who fell in love with ‘Long Way Down.’

With the UK sill in a full national lockdown and live music in person still of the cards for the foreseeable future, it is only right that British artists like Tom Odell continue to make use of the possibilities of live streaming to create interactions with fans and also to generate an income for themselves in these difficult times. While vaccine passports may bring some hope for the return of live music sooner than expected, with the UK government’s focus entirely being on vaccinating the population and generally refusing to answer any questions regarding when things might be reopening, it may be wise of all of us to settle in to another long few months of live streamed entertainment.

Dave, the Streatham-born winner of the Mercury Prize 2010, features on the track and his status as one of the leading figures of the genre has undoubtably boosted the success of this single. The track is taken from Fredo’s album ‘Money Can’t Buy Happiness,’ which can be streamed on all platforms or bought on CD from Fredo’s official store here. Fredo also has a number of t-shirts and hoodies for sale on his official store for fans who want to show their appreciation for the album.

The theme of the track is simple and critical of the materialistic society that values money over everything else. The video tells the story of the London underworld with scenes including prostitution and drug use juxtaposed against scenes of religious blessings with a narrative that money is present in every single scene. While the theme may be a simple one it is far from explicit exactly what we should believe after hearing the track and seeing the video.

While it at first might seem to be a critique of money and materialism, the video which shows money as the constant lifeblood throughout almost all activities in life, the viewer is much less sure what they should think. It is incredibly hard to tell whether the two Grime Rappers are telling us that money is bad, or simply shining a light on the which money is valued and also ultimately meaningless, since it is only attained in order to be exchanged for things which people value more.

This track from Fredo and Dave represents everything that makes UK Grime such a great genre and shows exactly why is has risen to become one of the country’s most mainstream and successful genres. While it is tempting to look to art and music to tell us exactly what is write or wrong or to be told exactly what we should believe, the greatest and must successful is always that which doesn’t actually tell us exactly what to think, but that raises more questions and simply shines a light on life in a way that we might not have seen it before.

There is certainly something different about this track when compared to traditional hip-hop, which has a definite materialistic streak, and the most obvious explanation is to see it as a rejection of that attitude. However, there is so much nuance and subtlety to the verses that it can not simply be summed up this simply, this a complex piece of art which may take a long time to truly be understood.

Osquello’s take on the track, which was first released on his Soundcloud a month ago, before being followed up with the video yesterday, features the same trademark Dilla beat with a fresh set of verses delivered by the young London rapper to keep the track fresh and current. It is a testament to the prowess of J Dilla that in a genre as ephemeral as Rap and Hip-Hop, a beat made 24 years ago can remain current and still groove with a set of verses penned in the present time.

The music video for Osquello’s ‘Stakes Is High,’ cover is lo-fi but shot with a pleasing noir aesthetic that transcends the need for high budget production values by seeking instead to create a suitable vibe and paint a picture of the song’s meaning through simple techniques. The black and white filming and urban city landscape transports the listener to the rapper’s home and studio in London as charms the viewer without trying to overly impress them.

The simple, non-flashy titles at the beginning and end of the video which display first the rapper’s name and at the end the message ‘Love To Dilla,’ which pays tribute to the late producer give the video a pleasing school project type feel which rejects the excessive production values and decadence which often plague mainstream pop or hip-hop videos where it often feels that money is simply being thrown around without any real vision. This video instead opts for an art-house feel and styling which prioritises meaning and simplicity with the only real editing which is added after the camera work are a few freeze frames and the black and white colour filter.

The audio version of the track which Osquello released about a month earlier to his Soundcloud profile the London rapper includes a transcription of his original bars which he added to J Dilla’s timeless instrumental. Over the classic samples which still sound as fresh today as they did two decades ago, Osquello raps about life in 2021 covering topics as broad and as far reaching as human mortality, the effects of money and fame, greed and authenticity. The lyrics show the true underground approach which the rapper presents of himself, seeming to totally reject the trappings of money and fame and show himself to be pursuing art for a higher purpose.

The veteran British artists and knight of the realm made his thoughts very clear about the lack of consideration for musicians in the Brexit negations, saying that ‘The situation we’re now in is ridiculous. Music is one of Britain’s greatest cultural exports. It contributed £5.8bn to the British economy in 2019, but was left out of the Brexit trade negotiations when other industries weren’t.’ Despite all of this the governments response to protests from the industry following the release of the deal’s details has been reluctant at most and seemed mostly to be an attempt at shirking most of the blame to the European side.

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These comments from Elton John come a couple of weeks after he announced in his Instagram profile that he had signed a letter ‘urging the UK government to fulfil its promise to negotiate permit and paperwork-free travel in Europe for British artists, their road crew and equipment.’ The announcement was paired with an image of the singer performing in Verona, Italy in 2019. The biggest concern Sir Elton John has, he says, not for himself who will still be able to perform in Europe, but for the younger emerging artists who do not have the same financially resources which come with a long established career. The singer states that ‘none of this affects me. I’m lucky enough to play big venues and have a huge organisation supporting me. My tours can absorb these costs, and I have people working for me who can sort out the admin.’

The Guardian also reports that Radiohead’s bassist Colin Greenwood has written an article due to be published tomorrow in the paper which further criticises the changes. According to Greenwood, ‘The costs of travel and accommodation are already high, and the extra paperwork and expenses would rise quickly for a touring orchestra.’ If these costs are set to be so high that musicians are worrying about the fate of touring orchestras, then surely bands emerging from grassroots venues and scenes in the UK will have an even tougher time, with European tours already operating on a shoestring budget pre-Brexit.

The situation is mired in confusion and miscommunication and pretty much everyone in the UK music industry is disappointed with how the government has handled their interests in the negotiations. After the announcement of the final Brexit deal which had not mention of visa considerations for musicians, a petition was launched to counter this and the government’s culture minister will have some difficult questions to answer when it is debated in parliament tomorrow.

The trio were not short of original material to drop into the set with hit tunes like ‘I Miss You,’ featuring vocals from Julia Michaels making an appearance amongst a blend of dance beats and classic samples. As well as their own hits, the trio laced together a gripping setlist of club classics to get their fans dancing. The set was streamed from Clean Bandit’s studio in North London and featured an expensive looking selection of musical equipment from synths, to drum pads, to sampling machines.

Towards the end of the set the trio performed a live cover of a song by SOPHIE in tribute to the Scottish pop idol who sadly died last week in a terrible accident. This was unusual for a Clean Bandit house party set, which usually attempts to recreate the vibe and atmosphere of a real house party by blending to gather a stream of classic tunes to get everybody dancing. However, it was fitting that the trio did pay tribute to SOPHIE whose death last week as a totally unexpected shock to the music industry and a very sad way to begin 2021.

The visuals throughout the livestream were also very impressive, with psychedelic patterns and video footage swirling projected on the walls around the band as they performed their set. The trio also had an impressive range of camera equipment and a hi-tech screen which allowed them to show the audience a variety of angles blended with the projected images and added camera effects for a truly immersive experience. It has to be handed to Clean Bandit that they have certainly managed to raise the spirits of their fans during this difficult third lockdown in Britain especially and have made great use of technology to recreate the vibe and excitement of a real life live experience.

It is of course never going to be possible to completely recreate the experience of real life using digital technology and its place is better serving as a supplement to real world events where people can socialise in the most natural way possible. That being said, considering the difficult circumstances it must be admitted that people have adapted well to using technology to overcome their external difficulties. With the possibility of health passports signalling a return to live music, there is some optimism about the possibility of being about to get out and party with our friends once more at some point this year, until then we must be content with livestreams.

The first week of February 2021 has proved to be a great week for British albums all round with all five of the top albums this week coming from home turf. ‘Not Your Muse,’ was closely followed in second place by London rapper Fredo’s ‘Money Can’t Buy Happiness,’ and Arlo Parks’ ‘Collapsed In Sunbeams,’ which was released the same day as ‘Not Your Muse,’ coming in an impressive third place. Arlo Parks and Celeste have proved us all right this week, having been two British artists most tipped for success this year throughout 2020 and now they have finally seen that triumph come to fruition.

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Celeste’s chart success this month was certainly helped by all of the hard work she put in throughout 2020. Most notably, she wrote and recorded ‘A Little Love,’ for The John Lewis and Waitrose Christmas Avert 2020 which was hugely successful and touched hearts across the nation. The advert, which has now been viewed 4.4 million times on YouTube, placed Celeste in the forefront of the imagination of the British public like never before. It is not a huge stretch of the imagination to believe that some of those 4.4 million people would have been persuaded by the inclusion of that song on Celeste’s debut album to be persuaded to buy a copy.

As well as standout tracks like ‘A Little Love,’ and single releases ‘Love is Back,’ and ‘Stop This Flame,’ which were both well received in advance of the album’s release, the album is full of beautiful songwriting, pristine production and effortlessly good musicianship on the simple R&B/Pop accompaniment which supports her vocals perfectly. Celeste’s album was made very appealing as a preorder item by a number of exclusive bundles including signed copies which were available to purchases in advance exclusively from her online store. Shortly after the album’s release Celeste also announced that she would be touring the UK in 2022 with tickets being made available to those who have already purchased her album first. Full dates are as follows:

31/03/2022 – O2 Institute – Birmingham
03/04 – O2 Academy – Bristol
07/04 – Bar Rowland Ballroom – Glasgow
12/04 – Corn Exchange – Cambridge
16/04 – Albert Hall – Manchester
21/04 – Roundhouse – London

The app has now been adapted to include the functionality to work in combination with the government’s NHS Covid-19 app which is used to notify members of the public of their results after taking a coronavirus test, as well as informing them when they have been in contact with someone who has tested positive. What this means for concert goers and venue owners is that they may now have a system by which ticket buyers can verify their identity, proof of purchase, and show evidence of a negative covid-19 test taken within the last 48 hours and be granted access to a show which, as a result of this, should only contain people who have proved themselves to be free of the virus.

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The news of these trials brings a great deal of hope to music fans across the country who saw 2020 quickly become a barren, live music free wasteland due to the coronavirus outbreak. While large events like Glastonbury have sadly now been cancelled and arena tours may look to be going the same way, this app may bring some hope for smaller venues who can use the system to ensure a small, safe covid-free gathering can occur and live music can safely begin to return. 100-200 capacity venues exist all across the UK and if these trials show that they can safely be reopened, this could mean a huge boost for the UK live music industry which has suffered so greatly throughout this pandemic.

It would be a relief too, if this news were to benefit especially these smaller venues who may not have the financial reserves of big arena owners like O2 to be able to safely keep their doors closed without running completely out of money. It is unclear yet what this will mean for the UK artists who planned to tour in 2021 but may have started to rethink their plans. Dua Lipa for example, whose tour will require large arena’s to house all of her loyal fans, may need to wait until a later date when the vaccine program has been completely rolled out and coronavirus effectively eradicated from the UK before her concerts become completely safe. Smaller artists, however, might find that they are able to begin performing shows again a little sooner than they thought.

The news of the new single was announced by Dua Lipa on her Instagram profile which showed the cover art which features the singer looking glamorous which a vintage and tropical green aesthetic. The artwork features the singer’s name vertically on the left in her trademark stylised font and the title of the track ‘We’re Good,’ in the top right corner. The Instagram post received widespread positive response, collecting 885,700 like in just 4 hours and attracting comments from celebrities and fellow musicians such as Mae Muller who expressed their enthusiasm for the release.

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Dua Lipa has undoubtably been one of the most successful British artists of 2020. With her album ‘Future Nostalgia,’ premiering in April, she shot to number one on the album charts. One track from the album, a collaboration with US rapper DaBaby called ‘Levitating,’ was released as a EP with a number of remixes of the song later on in the year and reached number 5 on the singles charts. This did not eclipse the success of the album’s leading single ‘Don’t Start Now,’ which clocked in at number 2 when it was released in advance of the album late in 2019.

The year ended on a dizzying high for Dua Lipa when she featured on another across the pond collaboration with international superstar Miley Cyrus with ‘Prisoner,’ which saw the two working together in an 80s throwback that pleased fans on both sides of the Atlantic and reached number 8 on the UK single charts when it was released early in December 2020. Now Dua Lipa is set to begin 2021 off the back of that with ‘We’re Good,’ which is sure to be a big success. The leaking of the pre-save link at this point success a release strategy geared to rack up record streaming stats, though whether it will surpass ‘Don’t Start Now,’ which now has over a billion plays, remains to be seen.

The video has a simple and authentic feel with Griff being filmed inside a London warehouse making and mending clothes before cutting her hand on the sewing machine. The filming has an art house feel with emotive imagery and colour schemes being favoured over high end production values. The song has spiritual undertones with the lyrics in the pre-chorus stating ‘and boy you know I’ve tried to pray, i’ve bruised my knees,’ and ‘i’ve tried my best to find some kind of peace.’ The song gives the impression of a young soul searching for meaning and understanding of the difficulties faced in early adult life and relationships.

The song’s video has received a very good reception and has already received over 62 thousand views on Youtube in just a few days since it was uploaded. The song has also quickly rocked up over 748 thousand streams on Spotify, an impressive feat when such a short time has passed since its release. Griff had a very good year for streaming in 2020, with her single good stuff, a laid back piano and vocal ballad, receiving well over 21 million streams so far. Her other releases last year also performed well on the platform, with ‘Love Is A Compass,’ and ‘1,000,000 X Better,’ both reaching in excess of 5 million views.

Griffs mixtures of gentle piano ballads and alternative-tinged pop songs are an appealing combination and well suited to the social media based music consumption which looks set to dominate the 2020s, especially via TikTok which is quickly becoming seen by many as the saving grace of the music industry which has taken such a big hit from the loss of live music through the pandemic. Though will Griff’s laid back style is suitable for online consumption, her 3 million monthly listeners will surely be craving to see some of her songs performed live, so we can only hope that this will once again be possible soon.

Frontman Oli Sykes thanked fans for their support in an Instagram post and owners of their record label RCA, Sony Music UK showed equal enthusiasm and congratulated the band in the comments section. ‘POST HUMAN: SURVIVAL HORROR,’ is the second Bring Me The Horizon album to reach number 1, with 2019s ‘AMO,’ also reaching the top spot. Since they first entered the charts with an album release in 2006, Bring Me The Horizon have steadily been improving their chart release with every single album, climbing from number 13 up to number 1 in the space of the last decade.

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The band’s success with this album, while certainly largely down to their long standing and loyal fan base, may also be to do with the band’s wise choice of collaborators for many of the tracks. Yungblud is featured on ‘Obey,’ and after his album ‘weird!’ shot to number 1 when it was released in December the world has been watching what he does with great enthusiasm. The album also features a collaboration with Japanese J-Pop and Metal fusion band ‘BABYMETAL,’ who have a large cult following and have appeared in the UK events like the Reading and Leeds festival.

Collaborations certainly seems to be the way forward in todays music industry, with artists as big as Dua Lipa frequently working with a variety of musicians, producers and songwriters to sharpen her sound and broaden her appeal. This is definitely an idea that Bring Me The Horizon have picked up on and they have chosen very well who to work with on this album. Yungblud helps the band appeal to a younger audience and to the slightly less aggressive Indie Rock scene whose fans may be initially put off by the more aggressive Metal sound, but be tempted to try it out by the appearance of their beloved Yungblud.

With the UK’s coronavirus crisis continuing to unravel with and end still not in sight, live music in Britain is still unfortunately out of the question. However some music fans are still hopeful that 2021 will see a return of bands to stages, with big acts like Dua Lipa and Indie Rockers Declan McKenna and Yungblud all promising tours this year. Bring Me The Horizon have hinted at some in-store performances in Kingston but have not set a firm date yet.