UK it’s been too long, see you this October

Pre-order our new album ‘Smitten’ from the @DirtyHit store before 3pm on Tuesday to get access to pre-sale tickets

General tickets on sale this Friday at 10am BSThttps://t.co/FvI7kUw6NO pic.twitter.com/GnJVP3Fl7Q

— PALE WAVES (@palewaves) July 1, 2024

Their tour will take place throughout October beginning at The Waterfront in Norwich before playing dates in Liverpool, Nottingham, Brighton, Bristol, Sheffield, Glasgow, Newcastle and Birmingham. The tour will conclude at Here at Outernet in London on the 17th of October. During this run of dates the band are also set to headline Manchester’s Neighbourhood festival on the 5th of October, making a return to their home city.

Tickets go on sale at 10am BST on Friday (June 5) and you can buy tickets here. Fans can get access to presale tickets by pre-ordering a copy of ‘Smitten’ here. The pre-sale opened today (June 3) at 10am.

Pale Waves’ 2024 UK headline tour dates are as follows:

The Waterfront, Norwich, Thursday 3 October
O2 Academy, Liverpool, Friday 4 October
Neighbourhood Festival, Manchester, Saturday 5 October
Rock City, Nottingham, Sunday 6 October
Chalk, Brighton, Tuesday 8 October
O2 Academy, Bristol, Wednesday 9 October
Foundry, Sheffield, Thursday 10 October
Fat Sam’s, Dundee, Friday 11 October
SWG3, Glasgow, Sunday 13 October
Boiler Shop, Newcastle, Monday 14 October
O2 Institute, Birmingham, Tuesday 15 October
HERE At Outernet, London, Thursday 17 October

This follows the announcement last month of the Manchester group’s upcoming fourth album ‘Smitten’. Pale Waves previewed the band’s forthcoming album with 80s inspired single ‘Perfume’ which is reminiscent of bands like the Cure and The Cranberries. The lead single taken from ‘Smitten’ details what it is like being totally infatuated by someone. Speaking about the new single lead singer Heather Baron-Gracie described it as “Perfume’ is the perfect introduction into the new world we’ve created. It’s queer, feminine and romantic and it encapsulates the essence of ‘Smitten.’” The release of ‘Perfume’ was accompanied by a music video that shows the band in a hazy, Lovestruck Fairy tale.

“I found myself writing about not just a certain time period, but my whole life, from years ago,” Baron-Gracie says about ‘Smitten’. “When I fall in love, I fall deep, and it’s interesting to me that you can feel so fascinated and smitten with someone and then they can become a total stranger. So I feel like Smitten really summarised perfectly what I felt for others at a certain point.”

The new album was written over a two-year period between the UK and US and sees Baron-Gracie talk a lot about the early stages of queer relationships.

The band are currently on tour in the USA supporting pop rock band PVRIS and are set to return to the UK for a handful of festival performances including Y Not Festival at the start of August.

The New Jersey rock legends hit the huge MetLife Stadium as part of the 2024 Navy Federal Credit Union NHL Stadium Series between the Philadelphia Flyers and the band’s local team, the New Jersey Devils.

Being local legends, the band’s song ‘Howl’ (taken from their fourth album Handwritten) has been used as the Devil’s Goal song. As such, they descended on the MetLife to play it live after every goal went in. They also broke up the intermission and the howls of Howl by performing a three-set performance of “45”, Great Expectations and The ’59 Sound.

@hipvideopromo Back in 2009, we first worked with @gaslightanthemband to champion the songs “Great Expectations”, “The ‘59 Sound”, and “Old White Lincoln”. Last Saturday, they had the incredible opportunity to perform those first two songs live in front of 70,000+ hockey fans at MetLife Stadium for the 2024 Devils-Flyers Stadium Series, as well as their hit “Howl” after every Devils goal! #stadiumseries #thegaslightanthem #newjerseydevils #metlifestadium ♬ original sound – HIP Video Promo

“To have your song played after every time the hometown team scores is such an incredible honour, and we can’t wait to play it live when our beloved Devils score in their Stadium Series game,” said frontman Brian Fallon before the game. “For a Jersey band, there’s no greater place to play than MetLife Stadium – we can’t wait!”

But the news gets better because the band took a hiatus in 2018, and as such, there has been no music or tours until now.

The Gaslight Anthem was formed in 2006 in New Brunswick, New Jersey and has constantly delivered its brand of heartfelt folk-inspired punk rock since its debut album, Sink or Swim, in 2007. They gained a substantial global following and released four more studio records, the most recent being ‘Get Hurt’ in 2014. The following year, the band announced they would be going on hiatus as they focused on other projects, reuniting briefly in 2018 for a run of anniversary shows and then resuming the break.

In 2022, the band ended their hiatus and reformed, dropping their sixth studio album ‘History Books‘ the following year.

Given the four-year-long hiatus, the new album and a UK tour will feel like a second coming to most fans.

And you can catch them here next month:

March 2024

6 Stockholm The Annex
7 Oslo Sentrum Scene
9 Copenhagen Gray Hall
11 Berlin Columbiahalle
12 Wiesbaden Schlachthof
14 Brussels Ancienne Belgique
15 Cologne Palladium
16 Utrecht Tivoli/Vredenburg Ronda
18 Glasgow O2 Academy
19 Edinburgh O2 Academy
21 Sheffield Academy
22 Manchester O2 Apollo
23 Wolverhampton Civic Hall
25 London Roundhouse
26 London Roundhouse
27 London Roundhouse
29 Dublin 3Olympia
30 Dublin 3Olympia

July 2024

10 Nottingham Rock City
11 Cheltenham 2000trees Festival

Get your tickets here now.

Last night, at 5 pm, in London, there was a seemingly quiet crowd gathered in the Barbican foyer, in front of the free stage to watch the two Irish jazz groups: The RGB Trio and The Eoin O’Callaghan Trio. Sometime later, just before the band were about to play, there were no seats available in the Barbican foyer with many now standing around.

Fast forward to 6 pm and a large audience has gravitated towards the enchanting music being played. Both groups, which comprise saxophone, bass and drums, play improvised and composed pieces, albeit very different takes has their sounds blasting through the centre, with hints of Irish melodies and Jan Garbarek-esque saxophone tones.

The musical set-up of the two groups, both with no chord instruments, allowed for a spacious sound, based on groove and showed a sense of simplicity in the timbre of each instrument during solos as well as musical interactions. At the very baseline, the musicians all played with endless care.

RGB Trio features some of Ireland’s finest musicians including Meilana Gillard, double-bassist Dave Redmond and drummer Kevin Brady. Unfortunately, Redmond could not attend the gig so the audience was presented with the wonderful Corman O’Brian.

The group began their set with their 2022 single ‘Neither Here No There’ before moving on to ‘Chrysalis’, a track from their latest album ‘RGB Trio’, written by the saxophonist Gillard,  the musician who was seemingly the leader, or just the musician who did the talking. 

Gillard took a moment to thank Culture Ireland, Improvised Music Company and Serious for setting up the gig and for funding the trip to London.

The second trio led by bassist and composer Eoin O’Halloran had obvious Irish trad references throughout the jazz set. There was a mixture of original compositions, with some electronic processing and a couple of arrangements by other composers, including a nursery rhyme originally from Japan. The band states that the “music is accented by catchy hooks and landmarks combined with broader themes by the instincts of long-standing collaborators Yuzuha O’Halloran on alto saxophone and drummer Hugh Denman. ” 

The festival ends today Sunday 19th November but will be returning to the streets of London next year with another exciting array of musicians and events.

At a recent show at London’s Eventim Apollo, Hook invited a very special guest to join him in an exclusive performance. Damon Albarn, frontman of iconic Britpop band Blur and virtual band Gorillaz, joined Hook on stage to perform Gorillaz tune “Aries”. The song, which featured Hook, was released in 2020 as the third single from the album Song Machine, Season One: Strange Timez.

“Not long ago, I was honoured to be asked by a wonderful, very kind gentleman if I’d play with him,” Hook told the crowd on Saturday evening (October 14). “And this track is what we did, innit, Damon?”

According to setlist.fm, the performance marked the first time Hook and Albarn have played “Aries” in front of a live audience, and saw Albarn take on guitar and vocal duties for the special appearance. It’s safe to say fans were not disappointed by the iconic collaboration.

A few pictures of @peterhook last night at the @EventimApollo. Fantastic night, almost 3 hours of pure joy. Really enjoyed the support from @RebelskiMusic. Damon Albarn also made an appearance. pic.twitter.com/nbNTFda319

— britpop4ever (@DavidW010512) October 15, 2023

So tonight I saw @peterhook and The Light (with a surprise guest appearance from Damon Albarn!!!).
I was at the barrier and I could not stop smiling. Just non stop euphoria! The crowd were fantastic pic.twitter.com/9b7ir3Asd7

— Will (@WilliamD1123) October 14, 2023

Great to see @peterhook last night at the Apollo, best of both worlds Joy Division New Order

And to top it off Damon Albarn makes an appearance aswell, I’ve had worse Saturdays pic.twitter.com/JaJI7KFtoz

— Alex Murphy (@AlexMurphy_92) October 15, 2023

Hook’s show at the Eventim Apollo last weekend marked his final UK performance of 2023, however, starting on November 13th, his solo project Peter Hook & The Light will continue to tour Europe. The solo project of the legendary British bassist will also return to touring the UK in 2024. You can find tickets to the remaining dates of the tour here.

As for Damon Albarn, the singer has been on the road with his band Blur during the summer, promoting the release of the quartet’s latest studio album The Ballad Of Darren, which dropped on July 21st. The tour included two monumental shows at London’s Wembley Stadium, as well as an intimate show in Hammersmith where the band debuted songs from the new LP alongside fan favourites such as “The Universal”.

On the 17^th May, the venue posted on its website and social media accounts the plea for fans to object to the landlord’s licence application writing, “As many of you are aware, our landlords have issued The Leadmill with an eviction notice in order to operate from this location themselves. If they are successful, this would result in The Leadmill ceasing to exist after 43 years.”

Help to save The Leadmill. For more information please visit https://t.co/2YhtkPx7M7 pic.twitter.com/d0wkeKUMbZ

— The Leadmill (@Leadmill) May 17, 2023

Members of the public can object to the application if they are aware of any relevant reasons as to why it shouldn’t be granted which includes the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, the prevention of public nuisance, and the protection of children from harm. The Leadmill continued, “You may be assisted in your understanding by Googling relevant reviews and press reports about the operation of the landlord’s current nightclubs. These are; Electric Brixton, SWX Bristol, and NX Newcastle.”

In 2017, Electric Group bought the site’s freehold and announced their plans to evict the current management in order to run the venue themselves under the name Electric Sheffield last year.

Artists and gig-goers alike have been quick to support the preservation of the current managers of The Leadmill on social media. Last year when the landlords announced their plans to evict the organisers, Yorkshire band Kaiser Chiefs took to Twitter writing, “We played The Leadmill in our early days and not only do we have very fond memories, it really helped us, too. It would be a huge loss not just for Sheffield and Yorkshire, but the whole UK music scene.”

We played @Leadmill in our early days and not only do we have very fond memories, it really helped us, too. It would be a huge loss not just for Sheffield and Yorkshire, but the whole UK music scene. #WeCantLoseLeadmill https://t.co/Y3Sgc8aQBq — Kaiser Chiefs (@KaiserChiefs) March 31, 2022

Charlatans frontman Tim Burgess also joined the #WeCantLoseTheLeadmill campaign on social media writing, “Such a brilliant venue. Let’s do all we can to stop The @Leadmill from closing.”

Such a brilliant venue. Let’s do all we can to stop The @Leadmill from closing https://t.co/0VeUfeBdMz

— Tim Burgess (@Tim_Burgess) March 31, 2022

Northern Irish rock band Ash joined the campaign too, adding, “This venue has been part of our lives for almost 30 years. Always been a great place to play. Show them your support; let’s get @Leadmill trending.”

This venue has been part of our lives for almost 30 years. Always been a great place to play. Show them your support; let’s get @Leadmill trending. https://t.co/v8U2HcDmcl

— ASH (@ashofficial) March 31, 2022

Sheffield’s own Arctic Monkeys have previously shown their support for the venue by launching a Crowdfunder campaign to help with funding in 2020. Alex Turner chipped in by giving away his Fender Stratocaster used in the band’s early days.

Last year, Music Venue Trust launched a new initiative to protect, secure, and improve UK music venues.

The former flour mill has a long history of hosting gigs having once been the Esquire in the 1960s where the Small Faces and Jimi Hendrix played. The live music venue and nightclub first opened its doors as The Leadmill in 1980 and has since hosted artists including Pulp, Coldplay, The Stone Roses, Arctic Monkeys, Kings of Leon, The Killers, and Oasis. To celebrate its 40th anniversary back in 2021, the venue released a limited edition red vinyl compilation album featuring tracks from the likes of The Orielles, Enter Shikari, and Bedroom High Club.

Supported by the band Es, they will be making their way to London’s Islington Assembly Hall on the Tuesday, 20th June. After this gig they will follow with a series of performances as the opening act for The Black Keys. On Wednesday the 21st they will be playing at the O2 in London. On Thursday the 22nd June they will be supporting, again, at the O2 in Manchester and finally on Saturday the 24th they will be playing the OVO Hydro in Glasgow.

This album, Lucifer On The Sofa, was released in February last year (2022). A brilliant success for the band receiving critical acclaim from all sorts. ‘Lucifer on the Sofa is hands down one of the best rock albums released in the last few years; deeply inspired by the place it was written and recorded in, and full of honest and relatable introspection.’ stated by Loud & Quiet, a 9/10.

The making of the album sits around lockdown when the quintet was back in Austin, their hometown. It is said to be the first time, in a dedace, that they dedicate to writing music within their roots. This resonates immensely within the co writing of their tracks making a shift towards something louder, widler and more full-colour. NME said “Not many bands can make dogged experimentalism easy for consumption, but Spoon are experts in the game”. The pandemic brought out a touch for them to go back to the old fashioned way.

They are coming back to the UK proudly to showcase their inner lifeblood. This June will be the first visit from the band since they last played in All Points East back in 2018. The lead singer mentions in a press release “our June 20 show at Islington Assembly Hall will be the first proper Spoon show in London since All Points East in 2018 and the first chance we’ll get to play Londoners songs from our wicked LP ‘Lucifer On The Sofa.’ It’ll also be Benny’s birthday and he’s requesting that in lieu of gifts you bring him flowers.”

It wouldn’t be wise to miss one of the sharpest bands of our generation. Tickets have gone live today (23rd March, 2023) at 10am.

Click here to purchase.

UK Tour Dates:

20/06/2023 – Islington Assembly Hall – London
21/06 – O2 – London
22/06 – O2 – Manchester
24/06 – OVO Hydro – Glasgow

We’re overwhelmed with how quickly the three shows on 29th & 30th sold out. Thanks so much for your response.
We wanted try to make a global audience inside the venue as well as online, so we’ve held back some venue tickets for sale… pic.twitter.com/AbHhYgh5MX

— The Smile (@thesmiletheband) January 20, 2022

Set to go ahead in just over a week (January 29^th and 30^th), all 3 of the shows are set to go ahead in less than 24 hours. Beginning at 8pm on January 29^th, the first show almost immediately leads into the 2^nd that will kick off 5 hours later at 1am the next morning. The 3^rd and final show will then allow the trio to rest for a short while before beginning again at 11am that same day.

The shows have already sold out. But fear not, if you’re in desperate need to watch the show there are a number of options. The shows will be streamed at select venues around the UK, US, and EU live on the big screen, with accompanying big sound. Details for where and when can be found here. If you don’t fancy dragging yourself to the cinema to see the show at 1AM, then firstly you may want to reassess your priorities, you can however bag a ticket to the livestream through dice. For about £14 you can stay up until 2:30AM from the comfort of your own home. Details to gain entrance to the livestream are available here.

We are still short on most other details for the band though, still no announcements on when we can hear the album or even how many songs we’re going to hear. A few snippets have surfaced on the group’s socials; so, if you’re in desperate need then head over the group’s Twitter or Instagram and you can hear a few 15-second snippets to calm the nerves until the album drops. Or you can just keep listening to the sole release we already have, “You Will Never Work in Television Again”, on repeat… it’s up to you. Listen below.

BREAKING: The 4 steps to lifting lockdown in England.

There will be weeks between each step: 4 weeks to reflect on the data followed by 1 week notice to be given to relevant sectors and the public. pic.twitter.com/7RTql0pV7S

— Daniel Hewitt (@DanielHewittITV) February 22, 2021

Music Venue Trust Mark Davyd has stated the the governments road map plan has given the organisation the go-ahead to begin ‘imagining how we revive live music in grassroots music venues and develop that work into the full return of the domestic music scene.’

From the 17th May, large performances up to a capacity of 1,000 people or half-full (whichever is lower for the venue) will be allowed. This could mean that smaller music venues and theatres will be allowed to put on shows and gigs to small crowds. This follows on from Johnsons discussion last week of having rapid testing for music venues and nightclubs to ensure these parts of the sector can open as they were unable to last year. Out-door venues of 4,000 people will also be allowed, or at hall-full capacity – whichever is lower.

Many in the music industry have called out to the government and Johnson to ensure that the music sector is not forgotten and supported equally throughout the rest of the pandemic. Greg Parmley, the CEO of LIVE has stated “While it is good to get some clarity following almost a year of confusion, as predicted our £4.5 billion industry is at the back of the queue to reopen. Any return to normality for live music could be months behind the rest of the economy. The Chancellor must acknowledge our extended closure in the Budget and provide the economic support needed to ensure the jobs and livelihoods of the hundreds of thousands of people that work in our industry exist as we come through this pandemic.”

This includes extending the current 5% rate VAT on tickets sales, which was discussed to be risen to 20%, financially hurting those in live music extensively. Similarly, David Martin CEO of Featured Artists Coalition agrees with Parmley stating ‘there is some way to go’. Acknowledging a slower approach was correct, Martin said “the government should learn from its “slow response on income support and other financial assistance” last year.”

Smaller festivals such as Maiden Voyage have been 100% confirmed to go ahead by the government. Maiden Voyage have stated that they have been given ‘provisional confirmation from the government that our festival will be going ahead as planned this year.’ 

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A post shared by Maiden Voyage Festival (@maidenvoyagefestival)

However, the roadmap is reliant and based upon England passing four tests. These are the success of the vaccine rollout, the effectiveness of vaccines, how the NHS is coping with the current infection rate and any potential threats from new variants.

Newman is a singer-songwriter based in London. He has previously won a Brit Award for co-writing ‘Waiting All Night’, the up-beat track from Rudimental and Ella Eyre. He has also written for Ed Sheeran and Jess Glynne, as well as being John Newman’s older brother.

The singer, who was set to perform ‘My Last Breath’ from his 2020 EP ‘The Things We Do’, has promised to come back with a brand new track for this years event. He tweeted ‘Super happy to announce that I’ll be representing the UK at the 2021 @Eurovision song contest! (for real this time!) Things didn’t go to plan last year but this year we’re back (with a brand new song no less!) keep your eyes and ears peeled  x #ESC2021

Super happy to announce that I’ll be representing the UK at the 2021 @Eurovision song contest! (for real this time!)

Things didn’t go to plan last year but this year we’re back (with a brand new song no less!) keep your eyes and ears peeled x#ESC2021 pic.twitter.com/vDqUB2w3Gu

— James Newman (@JamesNewmanUk) February 19, 2021

The singer stated to the BBC, “I feel like everyone wants a party and to have some fun so when I was writing, that’s what I had in my head. I wanted something people can dance to, even if it’s just in their kitchen.” He continued “I haven’t stopped making new music in lockdown and I can’t wait for everyone to hear the song I’m taking to Eurovision in 2021.

 Jo Wallace, Acting Controller Entertainment Commissioning for the BBC, said: “We are so pleased to have James back with us and representing the United Kingdom at Eurovision 2021. After 2020 and the postponing of the 65th song contest Eurovision is exactly what everyone needs!”

 To give Newman a run for his money, Iceland’s Daði Freyr will also be returning. Being last years favourites to win, the singer will return with his track ‘Think About Things’ that went viral and ended up being used for Strictly Come Dancing’s promo campaign. The singer has already asked for members of the public to join a virtual choir for his 2021 return to the Eurovision contest, meaning ‘he has eyes on a win in 2021’. 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Daði Freyr (@dadimakesmusic)

The organisers of the 65th Eurovision Song Contest have taken extra precautions to ensure that the event will go ahead. They have prepared for a ‘series of scenarios’ to ensure the contest happens this year, no matter the severity of the pandemic and its restrictions. This means that James Newman will definitely be the UK’s offering for the contest, regardless of travel restrictions, meaning contestants can either perform live in Rotterdam or remotely in their home country or in quarantine.

Graham Norton, who commentates the Eurovision Contest for the UK has confirmed the event will go ahead stating “There’s definitely going to be a Eurovision… The competition element is going to happen.” The event will take place on 22nd May 2021.

Follow James Newman for updates on the UK’s track at the contest and be sure to vote at the 65th Eurovision Song Contest!

Today, it was discovered on eFestivals.com through a forum that two of Glastonbury chief organisers have created, rather secretly, a new events company called Holy Cow Events. Emily Eavis and Nick Dewey have collaborated together and put their names on Holy Cow at Companies House and Incorporated on February 8th, 2021; shortly after this years cancellation of Glastonbury.

With great regret, we must announce that this year’s Glastonbury Festival will not take place, and that this will be another enforced fallow year for us. Tickets for this year will roll over to next year. Full statement below and on our website. Michael & Emily pic.twitter.com/SlNdwA2tHd

— Glastonbury Festival (@glastonbury) January 21, 2021

The official registered address for the brand-new Holy Cow Events is under the well-known Worthy-Farm which is owned by Emily Eavis’ father Michael Eavis, who is also the 84-year-old founding-father of the Glastonbury Festival. Holy Cow Events is listed as a performing arts related company at this time and it is unclear what its purpose will be.

Michael Eavis has expressed interest in hosting an event in September 2021, in Glastonbury’s place. He has stated that his hopes would be that the September festival would be smaller in capacity due to the concerns still surrounding Covid-19. The hypothetical event would take place at Worthy-Farm and it is unclear whether Holy Cow Events, though it is registered with Worthy-Farm, would have a role in the event.

It should be noted that when questioned about whether Glastonbury Festival would go bankrupt after two consecutive years cancelled the famous event, Emily Eavis denied the possibility of such a thing ever happening. It is still unclear whether Holy Cow Events will have anything to do with Glastonbury Festival, however, it is associated under Glastonbury’s famous family business name, Eavis.