Emerging in the mid ’90s, Faithless’ core members, comprising of lead vocalist Maxi Jazz, musician Sister Bliss and producer Rollo, played a key role in shaping the electronic dance music scene, with iconic tracks such as ‘Insomnia’ and ‘We Come 1′.

‘Forever Free’ which was released on Friday 6 June, will be the opening track in their new album ‘Champion Sound’, their first since 2020’s ‘All Blessed’. ‘Champion Sound’ will be the first studio album to feature Maxi Jazz’s vocals since 2010’s ‘The Dance’. The 17-minute-long track takes listeners on a journey through echoed, distorted synths, energetic beats and evocative spoken word. Jazz’s segment in the track nears the beginning, and goes as follows: “When time come/Beneath the fearsome sun/My daughter my son/Be as completely you/As you can be.”

Maxi Jazz passed away in 2022 at the age of 65 after battling a long illness. Faithless had split in 2011, and when they reformed in the midst of the Covid pandemic, Maxi hadn’t joined them, as he’d formed his own band, Maxi Jazz and The E-Type Boys. A complete stylistic departure from his work with Faithless, the band described their sound as “melodic funk and blues mixed with reggae beats, dub basslines and Jamaican melodies.”

In a 2024 interview with NME, Sister Bliss shared some insight into the new album, and discussed missing Jazz and honouring his legacy. She described going on stage without their former frontman as “like going out there and just pulling your pants down.”

She says: “It’s a very vulnerable experience because Maxi was so iconic and so powerful and so compelling and charismatic as a frontman. You couldn’t not get involved when he’s there being the remaster of it all, and bringing that extra dimension – that philosophical, anarcho-Buddhist-punk vibe – to the live shows.”

Speaking about ‘Champion Sound’, Sister Bliss said working with poets and spoken word musicians that shared Faithless’ vision was key after Jazz’s passing: “That is a real passing the baton from Maxi, which is what he wanted to do. He wanted to slow down on Faithless, probably because he wasn’t very well. So I feel that we’ve been blessed enough to find artists to collaborate with who are worthy of that baton.”

‘Champion Sound’ will be released in four parts over the summer, and is said to feature big names such as Bebe Rexha. The full album is dropping in September. Singles ‘Forever Free’, ‘Fugitive’, ‘In Your Own Groove’ and ‘Peace and Noise’ have already been released, and are available for streaming. You can pre-order ‘Champion Sound’ here.

According to Dork the producer’s new project marks a departure from the usual pop-oriented sound and a move towards something darker and more club oriented. According to Rolling Stone when discussing the new album in a statement Mura Masa said: “Curve 1 is ultimately a manifestation of an attitude I’ve been cultivating in my personal life; ignore everything. All the content, all of the attention economy, all of it. In doing that, the really meaningful and vital parts of what’s around you make themselves known and unignorable, demanding your energy.”

‘Curve 1′ is set to be Mura Masa’s first release as an independent artist via his own record label and he said that he “wanted it to be as free and anti-narrative as possible. Impressionistic.” He continued saying that “Music as entertainment has in many cases, to me, become very advertorial and excessively sentimental in terms of creating narrative around albums and artists. I wanted to strip this away as much as possible to leave room for the music to create its own meaning in the lives of people who form connections with it.”

It’s hard for me not to explain away the intricacies and ideas contained within these records after having theorised and tolled and executed them over the course of nearly three years, but I think it’s far more fitting of the album’s intent to say simply: listen to it in the dark.”

Curve 1 arrives August 23rd. ‘FLY’ is out now. Listen: https://t.co/tYPTQYVLTj pic.twitter.com/Nk6WKeiS2H

— xander (@mura_masa_) July 29, 2024

Leading up to this announcement of a new album Crossan has released a number of new singles including ‘Still’ back in March which saw British pop hero Griff provide vocals. He’s also released ‘We Are Making Out’ which saw him collaborate with yeule and he shared singles ‘rise/gimme’, ‘Drugs’, and ‘Whenever I Want’.

He also helped co-write and produce a number of songs for other artists in recent years as well as his own music. Including producing global hit ‘Boy’s a Liar pt.2′ by Ice Spice and Pink Pantheress as well as co-writing the latter’s single ‘Turn It Up’. He’s also recently opened a creative hub in Peckham, London called The Pond which is officially supposed to launch next year.

Elsewhere Mura Masa is set to be playing a DJ set at Field Day 2024 in Victoria Park, London next month. Justice and Pink Pantheress will be headlining this year’s event.

Both acts are storming the music industry within their respective genres with multiple BBC, BRIT and DJ awards between them. With hundreds of more acts still to be announced, the festival caters to all music tastes booking indie, pop, rock and dance artists alike. Stormzy has become a household name in the music industry, gracing his way through a wide span of music genres like a knife through butter. He rose to fame through his Wicked Skengman series of freestyles over classic grime beats going on to win multiple awards such as a MOBO in 2014 and British Album of The Year at the BRITs amongst others.

Party starters, Chase and Status released their latest album 2 Ruff Vol. 1 on October 27 this year. The album included their popular single ‘Badadan’ featuring Bou and Flowdan which came out earlier this year in July. 

The duo have also collaborated with UK dance vocalist, Becky Hill on their joint single ​​‘Disconnect’. Hill will be playing her own set at Boardmasters next summer. The singer is known for a multitude of collaborations on tracks such as ‘Afterglow’ with Wilkinson, ‘Gecko’ with Oliver Heldens and ‘Crazy What Love Can Do’ with David Guetta. 

Other dance artists who will be on the bill include the experimental, electronic duo Bicep, who originate from Belfast, Northern Ireland. They have been hailed by the BBC as “one of the biggest names in UK dance” and have had music debuting at number two on the UK Official Albums Chart and number one on the UK Official Vinyl Albums. This led to two BRIT Award nominations. 

Last year the headliners included Lorde, Liam Gallagher and Florence and The Machine. Previous years have seen acts such as The Chemical Brothers, Ed Sheeran, Calvin Harris and Two Door Cinema Club. However some years, the festival had to be cancelled due to poor weather and COVID-19.

The festival was founded in 1981 as a surfing competition and became a home for new music acts in 2005, with festival goers camping at Watergate Bay. The event now consists of surfing and skateboarding competitions happening in and around the town of Newquay and artists playing on stages overlooking the sea. There is currently a maximum capacity of 53,000 surf and music enthusiasts who attend each year. With plenty more artists still to be announced, this festival is one not to miss.

Check out the full line-up below! Tickets are available here

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

VENUS REMIX out Friday https://t.co/5LdtERYpjr

— Boys Noize (@boysnoize) August 14, 2023

“Venus,” itself a cover by Dutch rock band Shocking Blue, was a considerable hit for Bananarama, making the dance floor hit a global sensation and earning the trio a top ten place in the UK charts. Now, Boys Noize has taken a turn reworking the single and has added his own, high speed spin on the track-ensuring the song is a hit on the dance floor once again.

Boys Noize of his newest release, “when the request came in I was quite excited to take this on. I really enjoyed the challenge making the classic work in my DJ sets, speeding it up and making it pop on new sound systems. Besides the vocals, some of the original worked really well in my new musical dress too-it’s really fun to play this one!”

The @boysnoize rework of #Venus is OUT NOW Listen here: https://t.co/cKtLajP0Iy pic.twitter.com/zFvIAONhBt — Bananarama Official (@VivaBananarama) August 18, 2023

Formed in London and Ireland in 1980, Bananarama were an unprecedented success for an all female pop/dance group, announcing themselves on the scene with a top ten collaboration with Fun Boy Three on “It Ain’t What You Do (It’s The Way That You Do It).” The group would have similar chart topping success throughout the 80s with songs such as “Cruel Summer,” “Love In The First Degree,” and “I Want You Back.”

By the early 1990s, the group became a duo, continuing on with original members Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward-the pair remaining active as Bananarama to this day. The group released their latest album Masquerade in 2022. Celebrating 40 years, Bananarama have released a re-mix of their hit song “Cruel Summer” as well as “Venus” by Boys Noize.

Boys Noize, also known by his given name, Alex Ridha, is a German-Iraqi record producer and songwriter. Having notable success as a DJ, Boys Noize has received high praise from a number of music outlets, with many citing him as one of the best currently active DJs in the world. Boys Noize has also produced records for Kano, The Black-Eyed Peas and Kelis as well as winning a Grammy Award for Lady Gaga’s “Rain On Me,” featuring Ariana Grande.

Boys Noize will be playing a live show in London this October with VTSS. Tickets can be purchased here.

Boys Noize Tour:

27/08/2023 – Solomun + 1 – Ibiza, Spain
15/10 – E1 x Percolate – London

Bananarama Tour:

16/09/2023 – Radio 2 In The Park – Leicester

After their homecoming gig at The Alban Arena in August, the trio will be touring across the UK in late November/ early December performing in Nottingham, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, London, and Brighton. Friendly Fires will also be appearing at Connect Festival in Edinburgh and Victorious Festival in Portsmouth in August.

Tickets go on sale Friday 26^th May at 10 am BST. For tickets and more information see here.

Friendly Fires previously played their debut record in its entirety during a two-day residency at HERE at Outernet in London. Last week the party-loving band continued the celebrations and played two more gigs in Norwich and Hull.

The band took to social media on the 22^nd May to announce that they would be extending their tour further writing, “We‘ve had such a ridiculously fun time playing these first album shows that we‘re going to spread the love to some more corners of the UK.” They continued, “Join us to raise a glass, and have a dance- it’s gonna be special.”

A special 15th-anniversary re-issue of the vinyl edition of Friendly Fires and the “Paris” 12 inch including the Aeroplane remix in silver and gold respectively has also been made available to pre-order. For more information see here.

Ed Macfarlane, Jack Savidge, and Edd Gibson met at St Albans School aged 13 and formed the post-hard-core band First Day Back covering Green Day tracks and the like until they left for university. Post-uni the lads regrouped and took a new musical direction taking inspiration from the German techno label Kompakt, Carl Craig, and Prince to form the dance band Friendly Fires.

Their sophomore single “Paris” gathered attention from critics receiving single of the week in The Guardian, NME magazine, and on Zane Lowe’s BBC Radio 1 show. With their infectious sunshine and upbeat energy, it’s no surprise the singles from Friendly Fires became favourites for soundtracking TV commercials and television series – “On Board” featured in Nintendo’s Wii Fit commercial, and “White Diamond” can be heard in the second season of Gossip Girl.

Watch the video for “Paris” below:

In 2008, the album was released becoming a favourite for former indie sleaze party kids. Friendly Fires was certified double gold, nominated for the Mercury Music Prize, and led to the band being nominated for Best British Group and British Breakthrough Act at the Brit Awards in 2010.

For Friendly Fires’ UK tour dates see below:

24/08/23 – Arena – St Albans
25/08 – Victorious Festival – Portsmouth
26/08 – Connect Festival – Edinburgh
23/11 – Rock City – Nottingham
24/11 – O2 Victoria Warehouse – Manchester
25/11 – O2 Institute – Birmingham
28/11 – Beckett Students Union – Leeds
30/11 – Troxy – London
1/12 – Dome – Brighton

The book, first announced in 2021, is set to be released in 2024. “After Daft” will provide fans an insight into Daft Punk’s influence on the electronic music scene, giving a deep dive into their legacy and their process as a duo.

“After Daft” is set to include over 100 guest contributors, with Disclosure, Franz Ferdinand, Annie Mac and Porter Robinson named amongst the first 50 revealed this week. The book is said to encompass “250+ hours of new conversations with some of the 21st century’s most successful and groundbreaking artists” making it “an unparalleled resource for fans of dance & electronic music.”

Written by Gabriel Szatan, the book is set to be published by John Murray Press / Hachette UK.

Speaking on the upcoming publication, Szatan said, “Daft Punk sit in the pantheon of pop alongside Prince, Talking Heads, Kate Bush, Stevie Wonder, Kraftwerk, Missy Elliott, David Bowie or any visionary you’d care to name.”

He continued, “Beyond making joyous records, there are countless compelling sub-narratives which flow in and out of their career: Alive 2006-07 was as consequential for dance music as The Beatles’ 1964 appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show was for rock ’n’ roll — what changed about the way we respond to concerts in the aftermath? Were the Teachers sufficiently recognised for their contributions? And how did Daft Punk retain anonymity at a time when the internet erased privacy for everyone else?”

“I’m excited to bring it all to light — as well as making the case for how, over 28 years, music really did sound better with them.”

The book will also give fans the insight of industry experts including producers such as Oneohtrix Point Never and Rostam Batmanglij.

Szatan said, “After Daft is artist-led, [telling] an authentic story through the eyes of those
who shaped it. [It reflects] musicians from different backgrounds and disciplines whose lives interacted in fascinating ways, undersung creatives who oil the industry machine, as well as countless artists that thrived as the ceiling was raised on dance & electronic music’s creative possibilities and immense global popularity.”

“After Daft” will also honour the Latin and Black roots of club culture that are inextricably linked with Daft Punk’s 28 year career as a duo.

The hardback edition of “After Daft: The Rewiring of 21st Century Culture” is set to be released in spring of 2024 and can be preordered here.

Daft Punk have also announced a 10th anniversary expanded edition of their final album, Random Access Memories, to be released 12th May 2023.

Random Access Memories 10th Anniversary Edition, May 12th 2023

pre-order now, https://t.co/5NbYQEMnHA pic.twitter.com/qf8xe3u2zn

— Daft Punk (@daftpunk) February 22, 2023

Stream Daft Punk’s expansive works here.

Labyrinth Open Air will be a two date festival at Tofte Manor. The first event, on Saturday 10^th July 2021, will be headlined by Âme back-to-back Dixon,  and additionally performances from Carista, TSHA, Sofia Kourtesis and more acts still to be announced. The second date will be on Saturday 7^th August 2021, however the line up is yet to be announced.

After teasing the news and location of this new UK festival, Labyrinth officially announced the news on Instagram, writing: “Meet Tofte Manor. The new home for our shows this summer. ⁠1.5 hour drive from London, or a 35 min train from King’s Cross. ⁠A space that combines the natural beauty of the UK countryside with the energy and atmosphere of a spiritual sanctuary. ⁠The 17th century manor house, is also home to a unique labyrinth, which copies the design pattern of the ancient labyrinth in Chartes Cathedral, France. ⁠This is an outdoor space unlike any other on the UK festival circuit and will be experienced for the first time by the music community this summer. ⁠We can’t wait to enjoy this stunningly beautiful space with you all this summer. First show on July 10th will be announced next week. Any guesses on who’s playing? ⁠⁠⁠”

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Labyrinth was founded in 2017 by Nick Castleman and started with a series of Thursday evening dances at Notting Hill Arts Club. Since then Labyrinth events have grown in popularity, selling out some of London’s most popular dance spaces including E1, Loft Studios, Village Underground, The Steelyard, among others. The events are curated and organised by Michael Dicks and founder Nick Castleman.

Writing about the company, the event organisers said: “ Labyrinth focuses on showcasing the record labels, artists and communities that we believe to be pushing the boundaries of contemporary dance music. We work with these record labels, artists and brands to curate event experiences that allow them to exhibit their talents in the most interesting way possible. As London’s nightlife becomes increasingly competitive, it takes thinking differently to build something that is truly unique and that’s what we stand for at Labyrinth – a fanatical level of attention to every detail of the event and creating a dance experience that’s much more than your typical night out.”

 Tofte Manor is a 17th-century estate situated in the Midland county of Bedfordshire. The Manor features its very own Labyrinth making this the perfect venue for its namesake to put on their first festival.

Tickets for Labyrinth Open Air will go on sale 31^st March at 10 am via pre-sale. To get early access to the pre-sale, sign up here.

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Producers Dave Whelan and Mike Di Scala were due to tour their first full studio album Dark Matter which was released in October 2020. CamelPhat are best known for the 2017 single ‘Cola’, which peaked at number 3 in the UK Dance Chart. The single, featuring dance act Elderbrook, became an international hit and led the duo to find mainstream success. They are also known for collaborations with Au/Ra, Jake Bugg, and Yannis Philippakis of Foals. CamelPhat have also gained popularity through their remixes of songs by popular artists such as Depeche Mode, Kate Bush, and Daft Punk.

CamelPhat’s album features twenty-one original tracks including their previous hits and new collaborations with artists such as Noel Gallagher. Speaking to Rollercoaster magazine, the duo gushed about the collaboration.“Noel is a class act, totally genuine and incredibly down to earth. We smashed out two tracks in just a few hours. It was mad for us, two lads from Liverpool who’d been to so many Oasis concerts growing up and bought all the albums, finding ourselves not just in the same room and writing together, but also just relaxing and talking about football.”

CamelPhat are due to appear at UK festival Creamfields later this summer.

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Tickets for the tour are still available for selected dates here.

CamelPhat Tour 2022:

10/03/22 – Digital – Newcastle
11/03 – Digital – Newcastle
18/03 – O2 Academy – Leeds
19/03 – Motion (day) – Bristol
19/03 – Motion (night) – Bristol
01/04 – Bramley Moore Dock – Liverpool
02/04 – Bramley Moore Dock – Liverpool
08/04 – SSE Hydro Area – Glasgow
09/04 – SSE Area Wembley – London

The track opens with a slow melancholic introduction led by Au/Ra’s intimate vocals paving the way to a groovy and atmospheric chorus. The catchy rhythm and deep minimalistic bassline reminds of Jax Jones’ signature house material, with the only thing missing here being the iconic line “Watcha watcha gonna do?“.

‘i miss you‘ premiered with official video release on Friday, directed by the team at La Familia London as established creative partners of Jax Jones for previous visualizations and album promotions.  The video sees Hannah Ekholm dancing alone under the pouring rain at an abandon warehouse, with the DJ himself delivering a lonely set alongside holographic image of Au/Ra, a powerful visual metaphor of the separation, distancing and isolation that unexpectedly took over 2020.

Reinforcing the message behind the new track, Jax Jones took it to Twitter to share that “we all miss something right now and i miss u is supposed to highlight that and remind ourselves that it’s ok to feel this way sometimes“. The DJ continued with a not-so-subtle dig at Rishi Sunak following his contoversial recent statement that sent the UK music industry in uproar, and reminded everyone “music is more important than ever” in the mad times we live in.

i miss u is finally out in the world we all miss something right now and i miss u is supposed to highlight that and remind ourselves that it’s ok to feel this way sometimes. despite what rishi says music is more important than ever https://t.co/Lt5VOZ9NHF pic.twitter.com/QsMZRrU6gl

— JaxJones (@JaxJones) October 9, 2020

Jax Jones hardly needs introduction after holding a prime spot at the UK club scene ever since his uplifting debut team-up with Duke Dumont for ‘I Got U‘ from 2014. Born Timucin Aluo to a multi-ethnic household with diverse musical influences, the English DJ has been a regular feature at the global dance charts with smash hits like ‘Breathe (ft. Ina Wroldsen)‘, ‘You Don’t Know Me (ft. RAYE)‘ and ‘Instruction (ft. Demi Lovato & Stefflon Don)‘ all featured in his debut record Snacks (Supersize) from 2019. More recently, Jax Jones has been involved with the music project Europa with Martin Solveig that produced the latest banger ‘Tequila‘ and 2019’s hottest dance hit ‘All Day and Night‘.

Born Jamie Stenzel, the Antiguan-German singer know as Au/Ra (a nickname combining the chemical symbols for gold and radium) has been consistently growing in popularity as both a talented solo artist and powerful featured vocalist. She is the driving force behind Alen Walker’s ‘Darkside‘, the brilliantly suitable vocal partner to Kina in ‘Feel Again‘, and the original composer of ‘Panic Room‘ which remix by the British house duo CamelPhat is set to feature on their upcoming debut album Dark Matter.

Вижте тази публикация в Instagram.

„i miss u“ w @jaxjones IS OUT BEANS 。.:☆*:･'(*⌒―⌒*) we’re all missing someone or something with how weird the world has been. it’s okay to feel that and I hope this song lets u (while dancing lol) link in bio.

Публикация, споделена от Au/Ra (@heyitsau_ra) на Окт 9, 2020 в 8:27 PDT