In a surprise victory, Leeds-based indie band English Teacher took home the 2024 Mercury Prize for their debut album, This Could Be Texas. The four-piece, who formed at Leeds Conservatoire in 2020, became the first act from outside of London to win the prestigious award since Young Fathers in 2014, and the group used the occasion to highlight concerns about London-centrism in the industry.

The band’s album was praised by judges for its “originality and character,” with a unique blend of surrealist lyrics and social commentary layered over a fresh interpretation of the traditional guitar band sound. The prize, which seeks to recognize artistic achievement in album form, awarded the band £25,000 along with widespread industry recognition.

Frontwoman Lily Fontaine took the stage at Abbey Road Studios to accept the award, thanking her mother, who designed the album’s artwork. The rest of the band, including guitarist Lewis Whiting, drummer Douglas Frost, and bassist Nicholas Eden, seemed stunned by the win, with Fontaine admitting: “We didn’t really plan this far. What do we do now?”

The 44-year-old musician had been living with stage four bowel cancer since his diagnosis in 2016, the cancer was worsened when the illness spread to his lungs. Gilbert had been active with documenting his Cancer through his art and social media.

The singer had studied at Winchester art school and after his diagnosis, he started to further emerge himself in art and poetry. The singer’s artwork was included within an exhibition at Southampton City Art Gallery, his art was displayed alongside work by famed painter Leonardo da Vinci. Gilbert’s poetry was also published, the artist’s poetry was included within Carol Ann Duffey’s collection, Laureate’s Choice series.

Gilbert and his family launched a crowdfund for his medical treatment which raised over £200,000. However, in August Gilbert shared via social media that he had stopped medical treatment and had begun treatment for pain relief at Island of Wright centre, Countess Mountbatten Hospice. Gilbert shared the news via Twitter.

This isn’t a post I ever thought I’d write but it seems necessary. I have, unfortunately, been taken off of treatment and am now being treated for pain relief at Countess Mountbatten Hospice. The pains are mostly under control and the nurses here are nothing less than angels. 1/3

— Greg Gilbert (@GregDelays) August 8, 2021

But I’m now in an uncertain future where I don’t know how long I have and what the days will look like. I’m trying to get home for a couple of hours a day to see the kids, energy willing, and hope I can still find the time to create. I’m impossibly lucky to have the family 2/3

— Greg Gilbert (@GregDelays) August 8, 2021

The tragic news of Gilbert’s passing was confirmed on social media on 30th September 2021 by Aaron Gilbert, Greg’s brother and bandmate. Aaron posted a statement sharing the heartbreaking news to fans. “I have no idea how to do this right now, but this afternoon at 2:22; we walked my brother back home to somewhere out there in the ether, Greg died surrounded in the endless love that us and all of you have given him on this journey, and we Weill never be able to fully express how much it meant to him (and all of us) to have you by our side lifting us up like a winged army.”

Within the post, Aaron also shared a message of thanks for the support shown during his brother’s diagnosis, “Your messages, your encouragement and your compassion have been our oxygen for the last 5 years.”

My brother @GregDelays x pic.twitter.com/GMUM1pe3SK

— Aaron Gilbert (@AaronDelays) September 30, 2021

Gilbert’s wife also took to social media to thank those who sent messages and support during this tragic time.

Gilbert formed the Southampton Indie band Delays with original members, drummer Rowly, bassist Colin Fox and Dan Hall, who was replaced by Aaron Gilbert. The group underwent several name changes, initially called Croky, they then performed under the name Idoru. The band then took their present name and were signed to Rough Trade Records, their debut single “Nearer Than Heaven” was released in 2003.

The quintet then released their debut album Faded Seaside Glamour in April 2004 which charted within the top 20 and garnered them the recognition and success. The album included the single “Long Time Coming” which sired the group’s highest chart position, the single also appeared within the TV show, Veronica Mars. Since their debut releases, the band have achieved further chart success and embarked on worldwide tours. The group’s most recent and fourth studio album Star Tiger Star Ariel was released in 2010 and reached number ten within the UK indie charts.

Gilbert is survived by his brother, children and wife.

Circa Waves dropped some festive breadcrumbs for their new release via social media last night. Taking to Instagram, the band alerted fans of the upcoming track: “Ho Ho Ho our christmas banger is out tomorrow at 10am GMT.” 

The indie quintet stayed true to their promise, and took to Instagram again today to post news of Miss Christmas’ arrival. Circa Waves declared in the posts’ caption: “MISS CHRISTMAS, maybe the greatest christmas song ever is out now. Listen to it loud to get in the Christmas spirit!”

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A post shared by Circa Waves (@circawaves)

The post, which garnered over 2,400 likes and views, clearly provoked excitement amongst fans. One fan commented: “Well done boys!”

Along with the new release, Circa Waves premiered the Miss Christmas music video to their 70,000 YouTube subscribers. The humorous and socially distanced video sees the band all dressed as Santa, jamming out with their respective instruments from the comfort of their homes. 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Circa Waves (@circawaves)

In a few short hours, the Miss Christmas music video has obtained over 1,800 views already. The Miss Christmas music video can be watched in full here. 

Keiran Shudall, frontman of Circa Waves, spoke out about their new festive track. In an official press release, Shudall meditated on the emotional aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, especially around Christmas time.

Shudall said: “As no one’s been able to hug their family for half a year we wanted to give you this song. A warm Christmassy cuddle to tide you over till Covid gets chinned out of its shoes in 2021!”

Shudall continued by discussing the Christmassy effect Circa Waves were trying to achieve with Miss Christmas. Shudall said: “We wanted to make a Christmas song that felt timeless and could sit between Mariah Carey and Paul McCartney on the nation’s Christmas Day. Pass the sprouts!”

Miss Christmas is the latest from the stream of new music that Circa Waves have shared this year. The Liverpool-born band dropped their fourth studio album, Sad Happy, on March 13th, and followed the release with EP, Sadder Happier. 

A surprise EP, the self-described “angry record” was shared by the band on May 20th, 2020. Circa Waves also enlisted Alfie Templeman for the collaborative single, Lemonade, on August 27th. 

When chatting to NME, Keiran Shudall said of Lemonade: “The song has been a bit prophetic in a sense. It’s almost as if I felt what the nation now feels, months before it all happened. This feeling of imagining that you’d be doing something better than what you’re doing at the time.”

Shudall continued, saying: “I think everyone has that sense all the time anyway, thinking that life should be a bit more interesting than it is, and Corona has just put a massive magnifying glass on that.”

Miss Christmas is out everywhere now.

Before will serve as the climax to the string of brilliant singles that Blake has shared recently. Blake dropped a cover of Frank Ocean’s Godspeed on September 11th, before working with Mount Kimbie and slowthai for collaborative track feel away, that premiered on September 15th. 

Earlier this week, Blake indicated at a new project through some heavy hinting on social media. Taking to Instagram, Blake posted a story with two telephone numbers, one for the UK and one for the USA.

When excited Blake fans call either number in the artist’s bio, they will be directed to a timer on the official James Blake website, counting down to October 14th. The Before EP will be Blake’s first full-length project since Assume Form, the twelve track album that Blake released back in January of 2019. 

Music broadcaster Boiler Room confirmed the EP release date as October 13th by sharing a post of the Before promotional poster to Twitter. The exciting post can be viewed here.

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I love working with Starrah. She’s a dream. After ‘Are You Even Real’ we stayed on a roll and this one came along soon after. Couldn’t be happier to have a production with her, with help from my man @dom_maker – this one she absolutely killed. I know she’s known for her great melodies, but the lyrics on this one are‘Complex, convex, can tell you love to project’…@whereisstarrah @dom_maker

A post shared by James Blake (@jamesblake) on Sep 23, 2020 at 11:12am PDT

Blake, who is widely known for his genre-defying music, has said that he has at times struggled to write music since attaining success. In an interview with NME, the multiinstrumentalist spoke on his plans for future releases: “I’m embracing more of the experimental side of myself, different time signatures and being a bit more fluid”

Blake continued, expanding on the pressure he sometimes feels making music as a globally known artist: “if you feel pressure to create a big song, which I think is in the back of the mind of any artist who’s had a big song, unfortunately, that creates a pressure to homogenise further songs to the framework that you think will create another big song”

Recently, Blake teamed up with singer-songwriter Starrah by producing her enchanting track, Keep Calm, which came out on September 23rd. In a post to Instagram, Blake showed his appreciation for Starrah, real name Brittany Hazzard, who collaborated with Blake on Are You Even Real? 

Blake wrote affectionately “I love working with Starrah. She’s a dream. After ‘Are You Even Real’ we stayed on a roll and this one came along soon after. I couldn’t be happier to have a production with her.” Keep Calm can be listened to here.

Before is out on October 13th.

An ironic locational pairing, Sports Teams’ performed at Kennington’s world-famous cricket ground, The Oval, in London. The group were also outfitted in a cricket-appropriate colour palette, a playful nod to the gig’s setting. Posting a celebratory photo on Twitter, the band jokingly said of the performance: “First band to play The Oval since The Who in ’72. Same vibe.”

Blaring their anthemic raucous on a small stage directly in the middle of the sweeping stadium, the sound of Camel Crew fills the huge, empty venue to the brim. Playing with the zest and charisma of longtime headliners, Sports Teams’ most recent performance is just a taste of what is to come for these rising stars. As the coronavirus crisis hopefully dissipates with time, and health guidelines permit live gigs again, Sports Team will be playing filled stadiums faster than you can say, Kutcher.

Sports Team shared their high-energy performance on their official YouTube channel, which has already received over 4500 views. The spunky six-piece also posted their performance to Instagram, sharing jokingly to their 35,000 followers: “‘Camel Crew’ was one of the first songs we wrote, always knew we’d wind up playing it to empty stadiums.” Garnering over 5,000 likes and views, the post was warmly received by the band’s ever-growing fanbase. 

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Camel Crew was one of the first songs we wrote, always knew we’d wind up playing it to empty stadiums. That full session from the Oval is up now, link in bio@luxuriousthomas

A post shared by Sports Team (@sportsteam) on Aug 3, 2020 at 9:18am PDT

Make no mistake, Sports Team have been hard at work during lockdown, and have already been creating their second album together. Lead vocalist Alex Rice chatted to NME last month about their next project, mentioning that they had “been in the studio for the past three weeks, cracking on with album two”.

Rice spoke further on the making of Deep Down Happy, revealing that “The last album was born out of playing live shows.” Rice expanded with “being recorded in a block, it was done with us coming back from tour on a ferry, going straight into the studio and trying to get a single out of it. Then we’d be straight back on tour.” 

A sonic experiment following their long-awaited debut album, Rice says their next album is “more about the sound. It’s about the changes of the scene within a song as well. We’re looking at changing the mood in a big way.” Now fans won’t have to wait too long for the indie rock gang to add to their discography! 

Released on the 5th June, Deep Down Happy is nominated for a coveted Mercury Award, and also went head-to-head with none other than Lady Gaga for Number 1 album in the UK Official Charts that month. The euphoric Deep Down Happy is composed of twelve tracks and contains the singles Going Soft, Born Sugar, and Here’s The Thing.

Deep Down Happy is out now.

The Cure’s most recent record is the haunting 4:13 Dream, their 13th studio album that was released back in 2008. With eleven years since their last record, The Cure delayed their latest release until they had a body of work that exceeded their own impeccable standards. Containing songs like Freakshow, Siren Song and Underneath the Stars, naturally, The Cure was hesitant to put out the follow up to the largely successful 4:13 Dream.

Chatting to Classic Pop magazine, O’Donnell disclosed some sought-after details surrounding the band’s decade-long hiatus. O’Donnell stated: “Four years ago, I said to Robert ‘We have to make one more record, and it has to be the most intense, saddest, most dramatic and most emotional record we’ve ever made, and then we can just walk away from it. Listening to the demos, it is that record. I think everybody will be happy with it.” 

O’Donnell also meditated upon how having a break from music actually heightened the pressure to produce the otherwordly record they wanted. O’Donnell stated thoughtfully: “The problem is, it’s 12 years since the last album so it becomes precious.” There is an internal competition alongside their classic discography also: “When you’ve got a back catalogue like The Cure, it’s a lot to live up to. Robert has said, ‘If The Cure says any more, it had better be important and it better be good!”

Fantastically, The Cure’s upcoming record is not the only confirmed project fans can look forward to hearing. Chatting backstage at the NME Awards earlier this year, Robert Smith confirmed that “there are only really two new albums”, referring to the reported third album as “just an hour of noise.” Speaking on the mysterious upcoming project, Robert Smit said: “The first one will definitely be out. We’re just wrapping it up now, it’s going to be mixed. Until it’s out, no one would believe me. I look forward to it coming out, more than anybody else – trust me.”

Formed in 1978 after meeting in school, the original members of the era-defining band formed in Crawley, West Sussex. Robert Smith, guitarist and vocalist, has been the only constant member of the band. Integral to the new wave of post-punk that circulated Britain in the 1980s, The Cure carved a niche sound that echoes through the generations. Penning hits like Just Like Heaven, Close to Me and Boys Don’t Cry, The Cure has an expansive catalogue, producing both eerie lullaby tracks and commercial feel-good hits. With 13 albums, 2 EPs, and 30 standalone singles, to say that The Cure’s discography is impressive would be a gross understatement. An emblem of British music and an inspiration for musicians even to this day, The Cure will go down in history for their distinct sound – sometimes tormented, sometimes angty, or catchy, but always hauntingly beautiful. 

Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat