The bi-annual Independent Label Market is set to return to London’s Spitalfields Market this July for this summer’s edition of their music celebratory event.

The fourth instalment of the day set up to celebrate the UK’s best indie labels, this round of the day will take place on Saturday 13 July. Regulars in having a stall, Bella Union, XL, Domino and more will be joined by the likes of Matador and 4AD, appearing at Independent Label Market for the first time. Each label will be cutting out the middle man and offering a series of special releases or rare items up for sale to the general public.

You can find a full list of the imprints taking part below. Check out photos from last Xmas’ event here and here.

4AD
Angular
Because
Bella Union
Big Dada
Brownswood
Caught By The River
Chess Club
Critical Heights
Dead Oceans
Domino
Fabric
Factory Benelux
Faux Discx
Fierce Panda
Fire
Fortuna Pop!
Full Time Hobby
Gringo
Heavenly
Hingefinger
Hospital Records
Houndstooth
Huntley & Palmers
Jagjaguwar
!K7
Killing Moon Ltd
Laissez Faire Club
Les Disques du Crépuscule
Lex
LoJinx
Mais Um Discos
Matador
Monotreme
Moshi Moshi
Ninja Tune
No Pain In Pop
O Genesis
Phantasy Sound
PIAS
Pink Mist
Proville
R&S
Robot Elephant
Rocket Girl
Secretly Canadian
Song By Toad
Sonic Cathedral
Soul Jazz
Soundway
Strut
Swamp 81
Tough Love
Trilogy Tapes
Upset The Rhythm
WIAIWYA
XL
ZZK Records

Photo by Howard Melnyczuk.

For somebody so adamant on his music being taken as art, Kanye West does go a strange way about it. It’s now emerged that he’s been working with the Fresh Prince himself, Will Smith, on some new material.

It turns out that Kanye headhunted the former rapper, now more of an actor, to return to the music world. ”I’ve been messing around with Kanye, we went to the studio a couple times,” he recently told Hip Hollywood. “I might get the bug. I’m not gonna do it unless I’m truly inspired, but Ye’s been pushing me a little bit.”

They had previously been photographed together at a studio in Brazil. West’s new album, Yeezus comes out 18 June, while Smith last released a record in 2005.

[via NME]

Oxford band Trophy Wife have some good news and some bad news for you. The good first, as it kind of leads into the bad: they’ve released their debut album online. But don’t get too excited, as they’re breaking up too.

The 11-track self-titled effort is available via Bandcamp as a name-your-price download, with the band releasing a statement on Facebook saying that it’s the “right time” for them to split and “make new music” separately.

Before they do part, however, they’ll play a handful of finale shows during June. Stream the release via Best Fit below those dates in full beneath.

June
10 – Manchester, Night & Day Café
11 – Leicester, The Cookie Jar
12 – Bristol, Start The Bus
13 – London, Birthdays
14 – Oxford, O2 Academy 2

Reformed post-hardcore legends, At The Drive-In have announced that they’ll give seminal LP, Relationship of Command, another reissue outing.

The band initially re-released a limited number of coloured vinyl on Record Store Day back in April, but now they’ll offer up a full repressing via Transgressive on 5 August. You can pre-order it now here.

It’s the latest in a series of reissues from the recently reunited group, following Acrobatic Tenement’s repressing earlier this year.

Ok, on the basis that 2013 has already been a shriek-worthily good year for new music, you may think you have no room for Yet Another Potentially Favourite Popstar in your life but – and we mean this in the politest of ways – think again, for you may have inadvertently overlooked Tove Lo.

Harnessing the heritage of umpteen Swedish musical geniuses before her and adding an extra edgy twist of her own, Lo magics up pop that gets sufficiently naughty to hook you in but is simultaneously classy enough to have self-respect. Her main subject of exploration is love but she doesn’t get shy when it comes to putting relationships under the magnifying glass and observing their slightly less savoury aspects.

Lo’s career began with a rock flirtation in the guise of a band called Tremblebee, which she set up with her then guitarist boyfriend. After separating as a couple they kept the band going for a while longer but Lo then decided that she wanted her musical direction to veer off towards pop. With the remaining band members starting to get involved in other projects, Tremblebee fizzled out and Lo’s reinvention entered phase one. The result was last year’s infectious debut single, ‘Love Ballad’, which is the kind of song that gets A&R people rubbing their hands together as their eyes reflect $ signs and music lovers wanting to start blogs for.

When Lo’s second single, ‘Habits’ emerged and proved to be no less of a triumph, we simply had to corner her for a chat and find out more about her work.

Once you left Tremblebee, how long did it take you to get people to pay attention to your songs?

It took me a long time, I needed to find my expression first. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to just write or be an artist, although I love being on stage. I had a shed outside my cousin’s house where I had my studio. I just spent my days there writing and producing on my own. I guess after about a year of doing that Warner Chappell [publishing] noticed me and signed me as a songwriter.

Were you surprised by the almost-immediate widespread admiration for ‘Love Ballad’?

I didn’t know what to expect, I just released it and hoped for the best [laughs]. So I’m really happy with the attention it got.

What is your all-time favourite love ballad?

Oooh that’s a tricky one! I suppose a love ballad should be a happy one but I’m gonna say Veronica Maggio’s ‘Snälla bli min’. It’s so emotional I can only listen to two bars in and I start crying. Listen to it, it’s in Swedish but you’ll still get it.

I sure will. Now, let’s talk about the new single, ‘Habits’.

Well, after I finished ‘Love Ballad’ and released it, I went traveling and didn’t really think about what the next step would be. But when I was away I wrote ‘Habits’ and it just felt right for that one to be next. I never questioned it. Other people did, but I didn’t.

What are your writing and recording habits?

I write in a lot of different ways, depending on who I’m writing with. But when I write on my own I usually have a lyric and kind of a phrasing that I hear in my head. I then make a beat or just find my way on the piano with chords I like.  I experiment, sometimes change the whole lyric around but the thread is still there. I like having the story in place first. It inspires me… getting the mood of the song and that sort of thing.

How were your connections with Xenomania, Elof Loelv and Alexander Kronlund first forged?

Alex Kronlund is a funny story. When I just got signed to Warner Chappell I went with a producer friend to Alex’s birthday party. I didn’t know that many people but I got really drunk and hogged the stage with the live band. He called me a few days later and asked who I was. We had a few sessions and then he flew me over to LA for the first time. It was pretty overwhelming [laughs]. Xenomania happened through Warner Chappell. I went there on a “test run” first and it went really well so I keep going back. It’s a very cool and interesting way of writing the way they do it. I’ve never seen anything like it still! Elof I met through Icona Pop. I was really nervous the first time we wrote together because I had wanted to work with him for so long! Now we write together all the time and we’re at the point of finishing each other’s sentences!

Of the above three, whose method of music-making do you consider to resemble your own method the most?

It’s hard to say… I never write on my own the way that Xenomania write because that needs a lot more people involved. With Alex it’s all about fresh inspiration and getting our ideas out fast, leave it for a bit and then dive back in. Elof is more of a grinder. We can sit for hours finding the last word to make the song perfect. I love both ways. With every writer it’s a different relationships, you know? So I guess I’m a mix between the two, it all depends on the song I’m writing, what mood I’m in that day, etc.

Can you tell us a bit more about any of the songs you’ve written with these people recently?

With Xenomania I wrote ‘Something New‘. It’s the Brian Higgins way, he makes sure the music or the track is a hit. He brings in melody writers, we sing our hearts out, he picks the best melodies from each of us, puts it together and then gets lyrics on it! That place is all about keeping it inspiring, coming up with your best melodies to a specific track and then letting Brian glue it together. With Elof Loelv I wrote ‘We Got the World‘, which was actually one of the first songs I co-wrote with him. He had most of it already, though [laughs]. I was just excited to be part of finishing it off with [Icona Pop] and Coco Morier. In the beginning with Elof it was a lot of me coming in and finishing up all his genius ideas with him. Now we’ve done a lot from scratch and I can’t wait for it to come out! The best song I’ve written together with Alex Kronlund isn’t out yet so I’ll get back to you when it is. Won’t be too long now…

OK, definitely looking forward to that one. Now, have you done many live performances to date?

Yes, and I love playing live!

If cost was not an issue, what kind of stage setup would you ideally love to have at a Tove Lo show?

I know exactly what I’d want! I’d want Thomas Canto making his “light art” live on stage with me, writing the lyrics with his lights. Everything else is completely dark at first and then BOOM in the chorus and you see me and my band standing on smaller stages in different heights on this big, big stage and we all have our individual “light painter” who draws things around us in the air. Maybe I’ll get two of those, since I’m the artist [laughs].

And finally, can you give us a clue about what your next single is going to be?

Well, it’s the follow up from ‘Habits’ where I’m kind of okay…

Right. Is the video likely to be as eye-popping as the one for ‘Habits’?

Well, step one is that I’ve just sent pieces of my diary to a painter who is going to freely interpret it. That’s all I’m giving away for now!

Reportedly working on a new album currently, Cloud Nothings are set to return across the pond for a European stint this summer.

With their new material, premiered at their SXSW appearance, sounding “noisier” than previous record Attack On Memory, it’s likely that they’ll take this upcoming opportunity to showcase some of the tracks.

The band will stop off in Germany, Italy and other EU countries, as well as Visions Festival in London on 10 August. Check out the full schedule beneath:

August
1 Prague, 007
3 Austria, Vienna, B72
5 Germany, Munich, Strøm
6 Switzerland, Luzern, Treibhaus
7 Italy, Ravenna, Hana-Bi, Ravenna
9 Croatia, Sibenik, Terraneo Festival
10 London, Visions Festival

[via DIY]

David Bowie, Is Tropical et al have already proven this year that the art of a good music video isn’t dead. Also up there with them, busy ploughing away at resurrecting the long-lost medium, are London fourpiece Wolf Alice.

But instead of angering Catholic groups or depicting French teenagers masturbating over video game characters like the others, Wolf Alice show that their secret for thoroughly watchable video treatments is the simple mantra of “Seem to have fun yourself, and viewers will likewise follow suit”.

Lo and behold, that’s what happened when the band were let loose in front of a green screen – producing this Apple ad-esque clip for new single ‘Bros’.

‘Bros’ is out now on Chess Club Records, with the video streaming beneath:

If you thought Daft Punk had been busy lately enlisting collaborators for their new album, just wait until you see how prolific one of those feature stars, Todd Edwards, has been recently.

Random Access Memories cameo-maker and New Jersey producer, Edwards has unveiled a new Essential Mix for BBC Radio 1. Within the two hour-long mix are remixes, edits and reworkings of tracks by Daft Punk themselves, Jessie Ware, Disclosure, Rudimental and even David Bowie.

Listen below via Soundcloud, with the tracklist in full beneath the stream.

David Bowie – Let’s Dance (Todd Edwards Edit)
Daft Punk – Instant Crush [Columbia]
Pharaohs – Syzygy [100% Silk]
My Morning Jacket – Touch Me I’m Going to Scream, Pt. 2/Big Love (Todd Edwards Edit)
Poolside – Between Dreams [Poolside Music]
Giorgio Moroder – The Chase/Digital Love (Todd Edwards Edit)
Pharaohs – Miraculous Feet [100% Silk]
Giorgio Moroder – Evolution/Looking For Love (Todd Edwards Edit)
Chic – I Want Your Love [Atlantic]
Daft Punk – Get Lucky/Something About Us (Todd Edwards Edit)
LOL Boys – Changes (Todd Edwards Remix – Special Edit)
Atumpan – The Thing (Todd Edwards Remix)
Todd Edwards – Javid Khan
Nameless – Unnamed track (feat. Todd Edwards)
Jonah S. – Got My Mind Jazzed Up (Velcro Remix)
Todd Edwards – Hold The Faith [Body High Records]
Surkin & Todd Edwards – Mighty Love/My Girls (Todd Edwards Edit)
Jessie Ware – No To Love (Todd Edwards Remix) [PMR]
Disclosure – White Noise (Todd Edwards Unofficial Dub)
Donna Summer – I Feel Love (Todd Edwards Edit)
Daft Punk & Prince – Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger/Controversy (Todd Edwards Edit)
The Messenger & Todd Edwards – Guide My Soul [Nervous Records]
Todd Edwards – Saved My Life [i! Records]
Todd Edwards – Steal Your Heart [i! Records]
St. Germain – Alabama Blues (Todd Edwards Dub) [F Communications]
Todd Edwards – No Place Like London [Sweat It Out!]
Daft Punk – Face to Face (Todd Edwards Edit)
Rudimental – Waiting All Night (Todd Edwards Unreleased Vocal Mix)
Robert Lux – Fool Disclosure
Sam Smith – Lay Me Down (Todd Edwards Vocal Mix)
The Sample Choir & Todd Edwards – Break Smooth [Nervous Records]
Todd Edwards – Fly Away [i! Records]
Todd Edwards – Georgio by Moroder [i! Records]

R&B frontrunner, The-Dream is set to release his new album IV Play next week. Terrible pun in the title aside, the record is available for streaming right now.

The stream, via Youtube, caps off a busy couple of days for the musician, having appeared on Jay Leno last night with Kelly Rowland, running through their collaborative track ‘Where Have You Been’.

Watch the U.S TV performance below, with the album stream here.

21352131

Manchester band Kult Country released their debut 7″ ‘Slow Burn’ / ‘Amongst The Dead Forever’ in April and now one side of that record has its own video.

Since carving out a name for themselves with their arduously crafted shoegaze swamp, Kult Country have found themselves on the bill for likes of Beacons this summer.

The new release is a doubleheader of loud, gloomy, reverb heavy ambling with crunchy guitars and drawn out cries. During ‘Slowbun’ in particular, there’s a point at which it’s easy to feel as though you’re about to be engulfed by a torrent of noise as it all comes together.

Watch the dark, crackling video below.

Hot Chip member and man behind one of the best, if not the best, dancefloor fillers in the past few years, Joe Goddard returns with another sublime team-up.

Following on from his solo outing with Valentina in the form of the aforementioned ‘Gabriel’, Goddard has unleashed this new number ‘She Burns’, with folk singer and arranger Mara Carlyle.

Bubbling under the surface with post-dub bass bursts and swirls, the producer perfectly compliments Carlyle’s emphatic tones. Take a listen to the track, set to feature on forthcoming EP Taking Over, below:

[via Clash]

Lo-fi, green screen action provides suitably heart-warming visuals to match Wolf Alice‘s tale of nostalgic tale of friendship.

‘Bros’, their most uplifting track to date, is packed with twinkling riffs and whimsical words, so it makes sense to marry the sound with improvised, let your hair down, revelry. Roll back the years and jump around with these new fun-filled visuals from the real North London favourites.

A new retrospective release has been announced by The Clash bassist Paul Simonon, who has compiled a boombox-shaped boxset from the punk band called The Clash Sound System.

The collection will feature the band’s first five studio albums - The Clash (1977), Give ‘Em Enough Rope (1978), London Calling(1979), Sandinista! (1980) and Combat Rock (1982) - all remastered, three rarities CDs, a DVD of unseen footage by Julien Temple and Don Letts, plus fanzines, posters, stickers, badges and more alike goodies.

“Remastering’s a really amazing thing,” Simonon said of the project. “That was the musical point of it all, because there’s so much there that you wouldn’t have heard before. It was like discovering stuff, because the advances in mastering are so immense”.

The boxset will be released on 9 September, along with 33-track compilation The Clash Hits Back. Watch a video trailer for the release below:

Alt-pop musician, Waxahatchee (aka Katie Crutchfield) has teamed up with sister, former P.S. Eliot bandmate and current Swearin’ singer Allison Crutchfield for a cover of Grimes track ‘Oblivion’.

The pair recorded their rendition of the Visions single for fashion blogger/wonderkid Tavi Gevinson’s Rookie Mag, as part of its theme song feature.

“This song has been a staple in our house for a while. We were sort of late to the Grimes game,” says Katie. “I kind of rejected her music at first based completely on the fact that it was contemporary and hip, and I just assumed I wouldn’t like it or relate to it. I was wrong, though. “Oblivion” was the first song I heard by her, and I immediately loved it, and once I researched her a little, I realized how cool she is‬.”

Listen to the cover in full beneath:

[via Pitchfork]

Not ones adverse to movie scores, post-rock outfit Explosions In The Sky follow up their 2004 Friday Night Lights soundtrack with another for a new movie by Pineapple Express/Eastbound & Down director David Gordon Green.

The movie, Prince Avalanche, features Paul Rudd and Emile Hirsch and will hit cinemas from 9 August. The soundtrack, however, will precede it on 6 August via Temporary Residence.

The tracklist is as below, followed by the artwork.

1 Fires
2 Theme From Prince Avalanche
3 Dear Madison
4 Passing Time
5 Rain
6 Alone Time
7 Hello, Is This Your House?
8 Can’t We Just Listen to the Silence
9 Wading
10 Dear Alvin
11 The Lines on the Road That Lead You Back Home
12 An Old Peasant Like Me
13 Join Me on My Avalanche
14 The Adventures of Alvin and Lance
15 Send Off

[via Pitchfork]

Vermont-born Sam Amidon was steeped in folk traditions from his earliest days as the son of notable musicians and educators in early American music.

Now based in London, Bright Sunny South is Amidon’s first record for Warner imprint Nonesuch – his sixth solo release – and finds him dabbling further in compelling expressions that draw jazz and folk influences together to an entirely unique place.

Watch Amidon’s haunting performance for Best Fit, with a take on a track from the new record. ‘As I Roved Out’ revisits an Irish standard and Amidon quickly makes the song his own.

Bright Sunny South is out now and Amidon plays four dates in the UK this week:

May

23 – London Bush Hall
24 – Bristol Grain Barge
25 – Guildford Holy Trinity Church
26 – Bury The Met

Laura Marling has offered up  a full preview of her brand new album, streaming now over at NPR.

Once I Was An Eagle, the follow-up to 2011′s A Creature I Don’t Know, will come out next week (27 May) – her fourth record to date.

Before then however, you can stream it in its entirety here. The tracklist is in full below, including lead cuts ‘Master Hunter’ and ‘Where Can I Go?’

1. Take The Night Off
2. I Was An Eagle
3. You Know
4. Breathe
5. Master Hunter
6. Little Love Caster
7. Devil’s Resting Place
8. Interlude
9. Undine
10. Where Can I Go?
11. Once
12. Pray For Me
13. When Were You Happy? (And How Long Has That Been)
14. Love Be Brave
15. Little Bird
16. Saved These Words

Ever-surprising noise-rap outfit, Death Grips have outdone themselves once again, having revealed that they’ll open for Björk at a show this summer.

The Icelandic singer, who made a brief cameo on The Simpsons recently, will share a stage with the Oakland troupe at a Toronto show during July.

The gig is part of Death Grips’ summer tour just announced, which sees the band tour North America throughout June, July, August and September.

Check out Death Grips’ entire upcoming tour schedule beneath:

May
20 – Rome, IT @ Roma Circolo degli Artisti
21 – Milan, IT @ Tunnel
22 – Nimes, FR @ Paloma
23 – Barcelona, ES @ Primavera Sound
25 – Düdingen, CH @ Bad Bonn Kilbi
27 – Quincy, WA @ Sasquatch! Music Festival

June
8 – Detroit, MI @ Orion Music + More
9 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
10 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Altar Bar
11 – Cincinatti, OH @ The Ballroom at the Taft
13 – St. Louis, MO @ The Firebird
14 – Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall
15 – Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival

July
13 – Ottawa, ON @ Ottawa Blues Fest
16 – Toronto, ON @ Echo Beach at the Molson Amphitheatre [with Björk]
26 – Niigata, JP @ Fuji Rock Festival

August
3 – Chicago, IL @ Lollapalooza
4 – Montreal, Quebec @ Osheaga Fest
7 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall

September
24 – Los Angeles, CA @ FYF Fest

[Photo by Howard Melnyczuk, news story via CoS]

California’s premium festival extravaganza, where the audience members are as famous as those on stage, Coachella have revealed the dates for next year’s event.

The fest, which takes place on two separate weekends back to back, will run from 11-13 April and then 18-20 April, again at the Empire Polo Grounds in Indo.

Advanced passes go on sale this Friday (24 May), with more information available here.

Having been previewed in a Pepsi commercial last month and performed live on her current Mrs Carter tour, new Beyoncé track ‘Grown Woman’ has been leaked online in its full form.

Thought to feature on her widely-expected upcoming new album, ‘Grown Woman’ follows on the feminist empowering message that Bey has always been known for (‘Single Ladies’, ‘Independent Women’, etc). But, with the likes of ‘Bow Down’ lately, it seems set to come to fore even more on this forthcoming LP.

Listen to the Timbaland-produced, The-Dream co-penned ‘Grown Woman’ in its entirety below:

With their new album out this week (yesterday in the UK, today in North America), The National thought it a perfect time to make a now-obliged appearance on late-night U.S talk show, The Late Show with David Letterman.

Running through Trouble Will Find Me track ‘Don’t Swallow The Cap’, the Brooklyn band deliver a composed performance their detractors will call boring and that their yay-sayers will deem infinitely faultless.

Watch in full beneath:

[via CoS]

It’s with great sadness that we report the passing of The Doors‘ Ray Manzarek, who died yesterday at a hospital in in Rosenheim, Germany.

The band’s keyboardist, Manzarek was also their co-founding member – starting the group with Jim Morrison in 1965. He is known for being integral to their sound, replacing the position of a bassist in the group.

After Morrison’s death, Manzarek proceeded to release a handful of solo albums before collaborating with Iggy Pop, Echo and the Bunnymen plus others.

The cause of his death is cited as being bile duct cancer. Our thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.

[photo via Pitchfork]

A whole slew of up-and-coming acts to watch are descending up on Dalston’s hottest music spot, Alibi, this Wednesday.

To celebrate the launch of London producer Jon Phonics’ label Astral Black, he’s put together a lineup of talented friends to help the heat. London MC ItsNate will be dropping lyrical bombs, while NTS Radio’s Tim Parker, Tempo Clash head APHOTIK, Soulection’s Sivey and future funk purveyor himself, Jon Phonics all ensure the beats never slow. If you’re looking to satisfy your headbob craving this week, look no further.

It’s a free show and doors are at 9pm, so no excuses. See the FB invite here.

Bob Dylan‘s influence has also reached beyond the music world alone. Heck, there’s even been poetry lectures at Universities analysing his lyrics.  But now it’s pretty much been confirmed with the folk musician made an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

The honour society, which attempts to “foster, assist, and sustain excellence” in music, literature and art, inducted Dylan into the academy last week, with its president Henry Cobb applauding the singer for “probing and prodding our psyches, recording and then changing our world and our lives through poetry made manifest in song”.

Dylan, sadly unable to attend the ceremony, said he was honoured to be among the “pantheon of great individual artists”. He joins the likes of Woody Allen, Meryl Streep and Martin Scorsese in receiving the induction.

[via BBC News]

Two of Iceland’s finest appeared on a Nordic-centric episode of The Simpsons this weekend, with Sigur Rós and Björk making guest cameos on the long-running cartoon.

The post-rock band soundtracked the entire episode, and made a brief appearance themselves, while Björk gets Simpson-ified as a museum showpiece – along with her extravagant swan attire.

You can stream the entire episode here, Björk appears at 11mins 12s and Sigur Rós around 17mins 45s.

[via Pitchfork]

Aussie psych-rock outfit, Tame Impala have revealed that they’re parting ways with bassist Nick Allbrook.

The band confirmed the news earlier over the weekend, posting a statement via their official website that cited “an attempt to assimilate back into society” as the reason behind the decision. Allbrook will be replaced by Pond member Cam Avery.

The full statement reads in full:

“Hey friends, fans and followers,

We have big news. It’s the end of an era. Tonight Nick play’s his last gig with us. Nick Roland Paisley Adams Allbrook is hopping off the Tame Impala band wagon so that he can try and screw his head back on, and make an attempt to assimilate back into society. A task the rest of us fear we will one day have to perform….

Anyway, heir to the throne is our long time super best musical blood brother Cam Avery, ape/womaniser/former pro golfer. You may remember Cam from such bands as The Growl and POND, neither of which he actually plays bass for but uuuh that’s how we roll.

Anyway anyone who saw us during the Allbrook era will know how awesome nick is, so cam has big shoes to fill, which is fortunate because Cam has big feet. big stinky feet that leave sock footprints in your house when he comes in and he’s like, hey man can I sleep on youz guysez’ couch?

So Nick plays his last gig at Belvoir Amphitheatre tonight, the very same place he played his first gig with us some 4 or 5 or 6 years ago, not sure on that… Lost track of time…

We’re super happy for our bro Nick and wish him well in all his various fucking awesome artistic spewings and endeavours that he’ll actually have time for now.. Good on ya brah.”

Tame Impala released previous album, Lonerism, last year.

[via Pitchfork]

When Baths debut Cerulean emerged in 2010, Will Wiesenfeld was bracketed with L.A beat scene artists like Flying Lotus and Nosaj Thing, but he always had a spark of something different about him. His sound mixed deep saturated beats with wistful samples and falsetto vocals that imbued a sadness to the record, one which seemed more human and much less exhausting to listen to than those peers. This second album only serves to highlight the superficiality of those previous associations, as Obsidian is a casually accessible but black-hearted collection which he has called his “weird version of a pop record”.

The songs here are definitely more immediate than on Cerulean but they’re no less intricately constructed, with repeat listens teasing out several layers of little auditory oddities. The hooks on ‘Miasma Sky’ mask a meandering almost jazz like structure and distract from the wealth of ambient details that percolate throughout. ‘Ironworks’ is a gorgeous number on which Wiesenfeld croons a brewing storm over lilting piano keys and sepia strings whilst softly strewn beats jostle for position underneath. On tracks like this one and ‘No Past Lives’ his classical training really becomes apparent by its juxtaposition with more thoroughly modernist production. The opening four tracks of Obsidian are quite unstoppable though, striking a perfect middle ground of such technical vivification and a tone of heart-on-sleeve introspection.

There is a definite mid-point lull though as the sex-obsessed but oddly sexless pairing of ‘Incompatible’ and ‘No Eyes’ serve up some disconcertingly trite lyrics with little to compensate musically, other than the brilliantly noisy coda that drowns the latter track in more palpable aggression. It’s a surprisingly isolated burst of volume as well (matched only be the NIN like stomp of ‘Earth Death’) considering that much of the album was written following a debilitating bacterial infection which rendered Wiesenfeld unable to do much of anything for several months, and its dense claustrophobic atmosphere feels like an expulsion of pent-up negativity.

It is a dark cloud of an album for sure, as a glance at the song titles suggest, and his moribund lyrics throughout are occupied with death and decay often to a point of overkill. Instrumental closing track ‘Inter’ lifts that cloud though with a haunting romance, an atmosphere which feels eerily similar to Donnie and Joe Emerson’s indie-movie favourite ‘Baby’. It channels a quiet loneliness which is detached from the buzzing anxiety of the rest of the album, a snapshot of something simpler and optimistic.

Twisted, beautiful and introspectively bleak, Obsidian has a lot of qualities which I expect will keep me coming back to it, but it feels lacking as well. Its emotions are strangely impenetrable, because for all it sounds like an emotional record on surface the more you sink into it the more it seems only like the outline of one. His falsetto wavers and his wordless harmonies cast shapeless rain clouds while noises bubble and burst in the vicinity but it’s difficult to feel anything specific toward most of the songs beyond a superficial level.

It’s perhaps ironically this which makes it a “weird pop record”, its surface. There’s no denying the technical ability and songcraft is there, and unpicking the layers is the most enjoyable part of listening, but it’s emotional tugging ultimately strikes as hollow, not through insincerity but in being too obfuscated or overbearing for me to really love these songs. Wiesenfeld’s lyrical talents are yet to routinely manifest the same subtlety as his composition, but there is enough here to suggest that he is definitely capable of closing the gap.

R&B singer Miguel landing on the head of a fan while attempting to stage-dive was always going to be the most talked about part of any awards ceremony, but you might have missed a few other highlights from last night’s Billboard Music Awards.

As well as Miguel’s aforementioned performance of ‘Adorn’, there were also live appearances from Prince, Icona Pop, Taylor Swift and Nicki Minaj teaming up with/giving an awkward lapdance to Lil Wayne.

Watch each of those beneath.

Prince – ‘Let’s Go Crazy’:

Taylor Swift – ’22′:

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Icona Pop – ‘I Love It’

Miguel – ‘Adorn’:

Nicki Minaj & Lil Wayne – ‘High School’

Oh and Miguel attempting to stage dive, landing on a fan and then, well, continuing with the show…

Following their release of tenth studio album Postcards from a Young Man back in 2010, the Manic Street Preachers are reportedly working on not one, but two new records.

Speaking to reporters at the Ivor Novello Awards last Thursday, singer James Dean Bradfield said: “We’ve virtually finished the first, which is acoustic… [it] has a soul vibe, with Rolling Stones-style horns. The first single is very positive, but there are darker moments too.”

Bradfield continued to reveal that both Cate Le Bon and Richard Hawley would feature on the release. The second LP – on the other hand – has been further described as sounding “more aggressive and experimental”.

Meanwhile, the Manics recently revealed a series of shows in Australia later this summer to coincide with the British Lions rugby tour of the country. No due date is yet known for their forthcoming double album outing.

[via NME]

Before their new album Cold Spring Fault Less Youth gets released next week via Warp, Mount Kimbie have given it a First Listen over at NPR.

The electronic duo’s second LP drops on 27 May, but can be streamed in full here. It’s tracklisting is as below:

1. Home Recording
2. You Took Your Time (feat. King Krule)
3. Break Well
4. Blood and Form
5. Made To Stray
6. So Many Times, So Many Ways
7. Lie Near
8. Meter, Pale, Tone (feat. King Krule)
9. Slow
10. Sullen Ground
11. Fall Out

Mount Kimbie will play an album launch show at Peckham’s Bussey Building on Wednesday 22 May, before an appearance at Field Day in London on Saturday.

We <3 Field Day. So much in fact, that we’re going to be partying non stop throughout the entire weekend at our favourite East London boozer The Shacklewell Arms. Join us?

Yep, we’re hosting three events across the weekend which will feature live sets from Virals and Dark Bells, the return of the infamous (and highly dangerous) DJ Crew 50 Shades Of Cray and a special DJ sets from Eat Your Own Ears and Wild Nothing.

There will be no better place to be this weekend. What’s more, all three parties are totally free. Just head over to billetto.co.uk and sign up for your free ticket(s). We’ll be open from 8pm – 3am every night from Friday 24 May to Sunday 26 May.

Grab your free tickets here. 

Full line-up info printed on the flyer above. RSVP via Facebook here.

Brick Lane venue, 93 Feet East have announced they will reopen.

The East London bar was raided by the Met Police back in December, where 175 officers and dog units were deployed after reports of Class A drug use. The owners temporarily closed the bar after what was named Operation Condor, before being forced to shut their doors in January for what, at the time, seemed to be permanently.

Now however, as FACT point out, the club will now start running again “immediately”. The venue posted the following message on Facebook:

“We are delighted to announce that on 17th May 2013, Thames Magistrates’ Court allowed 93 Feet East’s appeal against the decision of Tower Hamlets council on 7th January 2013 to close 93 Feet East. 93 Feet East, which has been at the heart of Brick Lane’s evening economy since the year 2000 as part of The Old Truman Brewery, is free to reopen immediately.”

Following the departure of former singer Scott Weiland in February, Stone Temple Pilots have revealed that his replacement will be none other than Linkin Park‘s Chester Bennington.

The unveiling was made over the weekend at a surprise KROQ show in Los Angeles, with Bennington taking on lead vocals for new track ‘Out of Time’. Shortly afterwards, the band posted the song as a free download online, as well as updating their website with new promo photos taken with the nu-metal frontman.

You can watch their live performance at KROQ below:

Rihanna is set to head back to the UK later this summer after her chaotic 777 tour last year, with a strange but welcome surprise announced today that Haim will support her on two of the dates.

Kicking off in Cardiff on 10 June, the pop starlet will then travel throughout the UK later in the month before returning for a pair of Manchester dates in July. These latter two dates will see the LA threepiece opening with tracks from their upcoming debut album likely to be aired.

Check out Rihanna’s full UK tour schedule beneath:

June
10 Cardiff, Millennium Stadium
12 Manchester, Manchester Arena
13 Manchester, Manchester Arena
15 London, Twickenham Stadium
16 London, Twickenham Stadium
17 Birmingham, LG Arena
20 Sunderland, Stadium of Light

July
15 Manchester, Manchester Arena [w/ Haim]
16 Manchester, Manchester Arena [w/ Haim]

[via DIY]

I’m sat in the stalls of the Barbican Hall, at the end of what’s been an evening of beautiful, challenging music. Timo Andres is sat straight up at the piano in a rococo beige suit, his head back and his long arms stretched out before him, playing out the last bars of Philip Glass’s Etudes for Piano.

My mind wanders to an evening spent watching renegade concert pianist Chilly Gonzalez a few weeks back in the Cadogan Hall, during which he tried to dispel the idea that the piano was an unconquerable instrument. There were postcards being sold on the merch desk proclaiming that a monkey playing a note is no different to Tchaikovsky playing the same one, or something to that effect.

As entertaining as Gonzalez is – and his possibly faux reverse snobbery shtick is a joy to behold – he is wrong. Andres has just replaced Nico Muhly at the keys, who himself was preceded by Philip Glass. In some baton-passing way, the sequencing feels symbolic. From the master, to the protégée, to the (outside of classical circles) relatively unknown. All three are playing pieces from the same movement, but each emblazons his own contribution with a personalised stamp.

Glass (in a straightforward navy cardigan, naturally) carries an air of unaffected normality. I’d recently watched a rerun of the stellar Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts – a documentary tracing his journey from avant-garde nihilist of the Lower East Side to toast of Carnegie Hall. All the way through, the man was unflappably normal. The day after Einstein on the Beach opened at the Metropolitan Opera, the , er, broke Glass was driving a taxi around New York City when a passenger leaned forward to tell him that he had the same name as a “very famous composer”. He plays his pieces coldly – scientifically, Gonzalez might say. Etudes is not difficult to enjoy. Perhaps the reason Glass has enjoyed so much crossover success is that you don’t have to look too hard, to listen too deep, to find the crux of the melody, and his style is as minimalistic as the music itself.

Muhly, by contrast, is altogether more involved. He leans – dives – into the music, contorting his body with each lift and fall. His head bobs forwards and back, the sweat glistening on the side of his face. A Scream and an Outrage is his baby and by the end of his performance of Etudes, he is emotional and drained. He snatches the music from its holder and bows, fulsomely. The calibre and breadth of performers he’s gathered for the weekend is testament to his own chameleonic ways. Conor O’Brien of Villagers is nodding in approval a few rows in front of me, and earlier in the evening we’d had our hearts ripped from their cages and served still beating on a plate by Shara Worden of My Brightest Diamond’s performance of the impeccable death speaks by David Lang.

Twenty-something Andres is a hybrid of his predecessors, at least stylistically. He, too, evokes something scientific – his bowtie and muffin hair suggest that if he were to speak (which he doesn’t), he might ask us to tell him about our childhoods. He’s not as distant as Glass, but nowhere near as intense as Muhly. Glass played from memory, Muhly from manuscript and for Andres, there’s an iPad sat on the rack, emitting a dim, tinny light that’s drowning in the face of the grandness that surrounds it. His long fingers arguably coax more elegance from his pieces than the others and his style is more playful.

As the three align to take their applause, I recall Gonzalez and his ersatz philosophy again. While Glass, I’m sure, would never claim to be a “musical genius” (Gonzalez’s words), there’s something interesting about the way in which each has struck out from the “world of serious music” (Glass’s). But as he homes in on 80, Philip Glass is still producing music which can be interpreted and reinterpreted ad infinitum, which challenges and thrills and which finds new territory and pulls new life from the same set of parameters he was given 60 years ago. That, to me, is something marvellous.

Photograph by Sebastien Dehesdin

With it already confirmed that Kanye West will appear in the upcoming sequel to Anchorman, it now seems like hip-hop cohort Drake will also be joining him in the movie.

Drake is reported to have been spotted on a New York set of Anchorman: The Legend Continues, which is currently scheduled for an end of year release. The New York Daily News say that the singer was wearing an afro wig and a leather jacket, much like those that Kanye was wearing.

This might spark a return to acting for Drake, who previously featured in Canadian teen drama Degrassi: The Next Generation before his rise to rapping fame.

[via CoS]

The reason that Primal Scream have been one of the most compelling bands of the last 25 years is entirely down to their being one of the least reliable. Listening to any new Primal Scream album seems rooted more in trepidation than excitement. As a true student of rock and roll – and someone who seems to love every revolutionary piece of music he hears – Bobby Gillespie simply can’t seem to tell what he is and isn’t good at.

Hence, his band have never had anything longer than a run of two great albums at a time and, when you think about it, there isn’t really a Primal Scream Sound. After pretty much predicting the last decade with the unimpeachable XTRMNTR, the slide into mediocrity has been slow and painful, either through increasingly bland rehashes of former glories, or Riot City Blues, a blooze-rock record that makes everything the Stones put out in the eighties sound like Exile on Main Street.

So, on paper, More Light seems poised to change that – albeit in a relatively regressive way. Their most interesting collaborators all stop by – Andy Wetherall, Kevin Shields and David Holmes – and the ever-touted “return to form” seems predicated on it being a XTRMNTR for the 2010s. Politico-cultural commentary? Check, including two references to Thatcher and Guy Debord in the first three songs. Dense, bleak soundscapes? You got it. Bobby G trying his hand at rapping again? Shudder. Yup. That’s here too. In fact, at 13 tracks in 68 minutes (and with a member of the band on the cover of the album for the first time since the eighties - Bobby G, obviously), Primal Scream sound genuinely determined to prove themselves for the first time in ages.

And guess what? Some of that effort pays off, just not always in the ways you’d expect. Sure, there’s the relentless gonzo rock and roll euphoria of ‘Hit Void’ – More Light‘s worthiest successor to anything on XTRMNTR - but it’s the more spacious moments of the album that really pay off. Most promising of the bunch is ‘Walking With the Beast’, the best ballad the Primals have conjured since ‘Keep Your Dreams’. A loving tribute to (read: straight-up rip-off of) the third Velvets album, it’s all muted twang and hushed strums, while the lyrics are unashamedly pulled straight out of the class of ’69.

Similarly, the intricate acoustic psychedelics of ‘River of Pain’  and ‘Goodbye Johnny’ – on which Gillespie actually croons – sounds like Lee Hazelwood by way of a David Lynch soundtrack, suggests that there’s the kernel of a sound that the band are hitting upon waiting to be properly explored.

Unfortunately, it’s simply not to be, at least not here, and these more reflective moments are caught up in an all-too-similar tidal wave of the kind of self-important bluster you’d hope Bobby and co would have outgrown by now. While there’s nothing quite at the ‘Suicide Sally and Johnny Guitar’ level of awful, the ungodly trip-hop-hip-hop-post-punk-gospel nonsense of ‘Culturecide’ and ’2013”s opening saxophonic Krautrush (which, lyrically, is part curious time-capsule, part embarrassing politics lesson) veer dangerously close. Meanwhile, the just-plain-boring stretch of tracks from ‘Sideman’ to ‘Relativity’ sounds a hell of a lot less subversive than it obviously thinks it does.

At its best, More Light shows that even this far into the game, Primal Scream still have some aces up their sleeve. Unfortunately, the rest of the time, it’s the sonic equivalent of the moment in Almost Famous when its fictional band’s lead singer petulantly insists “I’m incendiary too!” There’s too much telling and not enough showing across More Light‘s 70 minutes, and while its most impressive moments clearly see the band give out, another flickeringly interesting record dominated by pseudo-revolutionary scattershot sloganeering and half-baked riffery suggests they may well do better to just give up.

How do you better perfection? Well, that’s what Kanye West is up against following 2010′s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Luckily, the rapper is never short of self-confidence and grandeur, revealing over the weekend that the record will be entitled Yeezus, a combination of his nickname, ‘Yeezy’, and, well, God’s son himself.

Having premiered his new video projected on buildings all around the world, West also stopped off at Saturday Night Live, turning in two performances – of the previously revealed ‘New Slaves’ and brand new one, and equally racially-charged, ‘Black Skinhead’.

You can watch both performances below. The album’s alleged artwork is beneath those, it’s due out on 18 June.

UPDATE: You can pre-order Yeezus via iTunes now. It’ll be 14 tracks long.

Producer, DJ and singer featured on Daft Punk track ‘One More Time’, Anthony ‘Romanthony‘ Moore passed away earlier this month.

Romanthony, who also starred on ‘Too Long’ from Daft Punk′s Discovery album, is said to have died of yet unknown causes, aged just 46.

Moore ran the label Black Male Records, releasing three solo albums from 1997-2000. He also collborated with the likes of Teengirl Fantasy and Boys Noize in recent years.

Our thoughts are with his friends and family at this time.

[via CoS]

Far from winding things down our last day in Brighton for The Great Escape Festival is packed with incredible artists, Dan Carson and George O’Brien catch sets from Mausi, Wall, YADi and Lulu James.

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Mausi have come on leaps and bounds of late. Daisy downing tools – or bass, whatever – and moving front and centre has really beefed up their stage presence. Now she’s no longer constrained by keeping time strapped to her instrument; she plays the part of hyperactive cheer girl beautifully, bounding across the stage and encouraging awkward dancemoves. Backed with synths courtesy of her brother Thomas, whose vocal contributions have been pared back a little it seems, plus padding drumbeats and pogoing bass; Mausi have hit their stride as a live band.

Even the visuals have a super-sleek feel now. Shots of gorgeous guys and girls wandering sun-kissed boulevards knit delightfully with the likes of ‘sol.’ and closing track ‘My Friend Has A Swimming Pool’. Their hyperactive Tangfastic pop can come across a little cloying over the radio but in the flesh it’s actually pretty hair-raising. The latter song in particular is a bona fide, box-ticking slab of pop bombast with a brilliantly daft vocal hook and sheets of pirouetting synthesizer. It’s all come together: tighter, sharper, faster. DC

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Soundtracking our late Saturday morning, Dan Croll is his typically fun-filled, energetic self, as a bursting downstairs Komedia is treated to an uplifting set of genuine pop hits. The five Liverpool lads are devilishly tight, considering the relatively new set-up and it is a completely pro-sounding set the highlights of which are made up from the spirit-raising latest single ‘Compliment Your Soul’ and his first attention-grabbing track ‘From Nowhere’. The jangling open chords of ‘Home’ wrap things up, as our final day in Brighton gets off to the best possible start – real weekend favourite.  GB

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Another exciting young UK singer-songwrter followed-up at Komedia; the gentle hue of Wall sounds gorgeous in the Brighton basement. Her hushed, delicate vocal is married with ticking manufactured beats and deliberate and careful punctuation from a warm guitar. ‘Magazine’ remains a real highlight, and feels particularly poignant by the sea, given it’s relevant wording, while ‘Left To Wonder’ is genuinely  touching. The London three are magical. GB

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Norway’s Farao makes the best of the cold hard daylight at Festival Hub. Until now it’s been easy hiding away in the gloom, nursing our bruised last-day-at-a-festival bodies but we’re exposed and out in the open now. Mercifully Kari Johansen’s rustic little ditties offer up a pretty lovely remedy. There’s a warmth glow at the very heart of these earthy alt-folk Scandi-pop songs. Although it’s a measured, careful performance, the sweet little cooing between Kari and her live keyboardist cradles sensitively, it’d be great to see more interplay between the two in the future. DC

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

We caught Chlöe’s show up in Newcastle a matter of weeks ago and the thing that really stuck out was her ability to take the shape and sound of the room in her stride and make it work. That hollowed out former warehouse – with its shipping container vibe – became a playground for her edgy, pin-sharp pop stylings and it’s a similar situation here at Blind Tiger.

Making these kind of vibrant, precisely executed tracks work – capturing the joy and the vitality – in a live setting doesn’t come naturally to all artists; but my word does she make it look like a walk in the park. It engages more than many other emerging, buzzy pop shows; ‘No Strings’ is typically peppy but she’s also keen to drop down and experiment with more mellow sonics. ‘I Wish I Could Tell You’ serves as a bittersweet aperitif to the sugared vocal hooks and spritely melodies.

You hear it regurgitated over and over, ‘she’s only 18’ but that really doesn’t illustrate how impressive this all is. She wrote these songs and she’s now translating it with striking finesse on the live circuit. Just go see her. DC

The Toronto three-piece kicked-off our evening, offering-up their enticing mix of early 80s-sounding pop rock. It’s quirky and fun and, thanks to the cute, catching vocal, it is somewhat seductive. Awash with layers of warm synths and glimmers of dancing drums the performance feels exciting and certainly noteworthy, in as much as you’re left wanting more, which Diana have promised with a new Jagjaguar record on the horizon.GB

Newcastle’s bundle of energy and excitement, Lulu James smashes through her super cool set, stomping around the Digital stage in some typically garish attire. She’s the finished article now, thanks to the ease of ‘Sweetest Thing’, the garage-like ‘Closer’ and her hugely impressive vocal that sounds as fluid and natural live as it does on record. Endearing humour between songs fills the seafront venue with smiles, and the effortlessly charismatic Geordie really gets the evening off to the perfect start. GB

A real electro-pop pace-setter, Copenhagen’s edgy Karen Marie Ørsted delivers one of the weekend’s highlights; with her perfect levels of attitude and angst, MØ sits somewhere between Grimes and Robyn, and powerful tracks like ‘Pilgrim’ and the new ‘Waste Of Time’ sound sultry and genuinely enormous. Bone-shuddering bass thunders out underneath her distinctive, languid vocal and glistening guitar riffs. Punching the air and chucking herself about, she is captivating and we really can’t take your eyes of this one.   GB

Wrapping-up the pretty special Digital line-up, Glasgow synth-poppers CHVRCHES entertained a packed crowd, utilising their booming electronic lines underneath a chillingly striking vocal. ‘Lies’ and ‘Mother We Share’ are two of the most memorable numbers from the set, and indeed the weekend; futuristic, thunderous, with hints of retro, they sound immaculate and help to prove why so many turn out for the show. They make a big, big sound and it really was everything we hoped for. GB

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Emerging London vocalist YADi warns her live drummer, Chris,that “he’s got his work cut out tonight” shortly after she emerges on stage at The Blind Tiger. She’s not wrong either; his springy backbeats – urgent but wholly controlled – provide the ideal cushion for her sultry, expressive tones. ‘Guillotine’ chops rippling piano chords together with snappy, pitter-patter percussion; her cool collected voice swelling into the refrain ‘like a queen, I can make you love me’, repeated over and over. There’s sass and bite to the starlet’s sound which keeps things from slipping into the realms of electro-pop tweeness; even a mistakenly repeated intro doesn’t phase her one bit, shrugging ‘this is just the remix version!’ YADi is quickly becoming our new go-to girl for smart, sexy future-pop. DC

Lead photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Marnie Stern takes the Best Fit Q&A and tells us all about her dreams of flying, fears of being stuck in limbo and who she’d most like to apologise to.

Who would play you in the movie of your life?
That’s a tough one!! Sara Silverman?

What would your superpower be and why?
To fly! Isn’t that everyone’s dream?

What’s your idea of heaven?
Nothing to do but rest and relax.

What one thing have you learnt from your parents?
To go at my own pace and not compare myself to what others are doing.

What song do you wish you’d written?
Who Are You by The Who

If you could say something to your 15 year old self, what would it be?
Don’t worry so much about what’s gonna happen.

What’s your re-occurring nightmare?
That I’ll stop being able to write songs..and be stuck in limbo forever.

What song will they play at your funeral?
That’s Life by Frank Sinatra

What five people would you invite to your fantasy dinner party?
Gilbert Godfried, Bill Maher, Howard Stern (not related), Jerry Seinfeld and Julia Louis Dreyfus. Basically a bunch of loud funny people. It would be a fun dinner party.

Who would you most like to apologise to and why?
My dog for taking her with me on tour so much.

Marnie Stern’s latest album The Chronicles of Marnia is out now via Kill Rock Stars. You can catch Marnie Stern live in the UK very soon, check out a full list of dates here.

If yesterday was the warm-up leg then today was the real deal: Dan Carson and George O’Brien ran around Brighton so you didn’t have to.

Brolin

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Brolin absolutely flew through a Double Denim-curated set above a pub to kick-off day two. The loft room played host to a decent-sized crowd as the masked producer filled the stuffy attic with his cooling tones.

With just drums and a voice, it is a simple set-up, but, particularly the later songs like ‘NYC’ and his closer ‘Reykjavik;’ embrace their pop-like nature. The blend of manufactured and actual drums simmer through the tiny room, while his chilling vocal leads proceedings. There is something about Brolin that is lacking in his contemporaries, we’re not quite sure what it is, maybe it’s hidden underneath that mask of his.GB

Empress Of

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

The Brooklyn based ambient singer sights “X-files, Fresh Prince of Bel Air (seasons 1-3 with the original aunt viv)” as her influences and her set is as sought-after as a reformed Will Smith show, as punters line the stairs of the Fitzherberts bar.

Her first ever UK show is massively captivating; dreamy vocals lead the way, while heady, manufactured synths pound through. She is captivating, in terms of her obvious excitement to be playing in Brighton and her energy and intensity is completely endearing – ‘Hat Trick’ is a really memorable moment.GB

San Zhi

Gorgeously soft pop rock washes the Unitarian Church for Best Fit’s own stage, as UK five-piece San Zhi flood the busy venue with their heady combination of FX-heavy guitar and warm synth lines.

‘Ice Light’ stands out, as well as an ambiguous track with their best riff; unclear whether it is a Lauren Hill number, the band contradict themselves explaining who wrote it but ownership becomes irrelevant as soon as the piano line kicks-off. A crackling mini megaphone adds depth to the already intriguing vocal and it is an entirely dreamy set from the exciting group.GB

Josef Salvat

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Hotly-tipped London-based Aussie, Joesf Salvat married his clear knack for songwriting with intensity and verve, as the evening closed-in at the Best Fit stage in Brighton.

Filling a veritable gap in the market, it is so refreshing to see a male singer, with a proper catalogue of hits, losing himself in honesty and pouring out a distinctive vocal. ‘This Life’ and ‘Hustler’ stand-out are undoubtedly highlights and give it time, and a band around him, this set could be genuinely breath-taking thanks to the quality of the tracks already in place.GB

Luke Sital-Singh

It would be a real challenge to see a better voice over this jam-packed weekend. The church setting couldn’t be better suited for the North London raconteur, as his powerful, but wonderfully controlled vocal screams out over the pews.

‘Bottled Up Tight’ is the set’s hit single, in a show filled with emotion and wonderful melancholy. There are middle-aged men in actual tears, captivated and shocked by the equal rawness and delicacy of his voice. Endearing, dry humour breaks-up this intensity, and it is a set filled with assurance from the very best ‘man and his guitar’ around – stunning.GB

Mykki Blanco

‘Dontcha just love a good showcase?’ hoots a seriously pumped up Mykki Blanco when she arrives front and centre, downstairs at Audio. The American rapper holds each and every one of us in the palm of her hand, negotiating the crunching beats and coronary-inducing bass throbs with deadly verve. Her live DJ – aided by the venue’s impeccable soundsystem – keeps things broiling over nicely with sinister, industrial oscillations but Mykki actually shines brightest when the backbeat drops out entirely. Writhing across the front row, cooing Marilyn Monroe quotes and glugging away at bottles of beer; even the deftest flick of her wrist commands total attention. The most enthralling show we’ve seen thus far; we expected nothing less to be honest.DC

Ewert and the Two Dragons

Photograph by Andrew Novell

It’s a capacity crowd at the beautiful but tiny Prince Albert pub for the much-talked about Estonian four-piece’s first performance of the festival. With the entry being co-ordinated on a ‘tall guys at the back’ basis, we can just about catch a glimpse of the band as they gently pad their way through a set punctuated by tinkling xylophones, bounding kick drum and sweetly whispering guitar lines. Totally worth the long uphill slog from the seafront. DC

Tourist

Following the neurotic rhyming and pulsing beats of Mykki Blanco was always going to be a tough task but London-based producer Tourist makes a strong fist of the mammoth task regardless. For those capable of concentrating on anything other than Blanco’s batshit mental dance moves; Brighton’s own William Phillips turns in a pretty energetic showing from behind his array of Midi controllers and synths. Whipping his hometown crowd into a fervour with a potent blend of swarming 2 step and mellow house; Phillips’ frothy vocal loops, skittish beats and bubbling bass are a match made in heaven for the suitably loosened-up dance-floor.DC

Rainy Milo

Photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Coalition’s got a really nice buzz going ahead of Rainy Milo’s late show. The South Londoner emerges and takes the howling, well-oiled crowd in the palm of her hand from the moment she brings the mic to her lips. She mightn’t yet feel fully confident in her own skin but the youngster’s silken, soulful tones speak for themselves. Bobbing her way through cuts from 2012 breakthrough EP, Limey, Rainy handles both delicate melancholy and ballsy, bassy future-pop with charm and grace. It’s by no means perfect but her sugared lilt alone keeps the future looking blindingly bright.DC

Lead photograph by Howard Melnyczuk

Kanye West has premiered a song from his upcoming new record on the side of a building in New York.

Kanye projected the video to ‘New Slaves’ onto a building in Williamsburg, Brooklyn last night, before tweeting his intent for more to follow this weekend:

NEW SONG AND VISUAL FROM MY NEW ALBUM BEING PROJECTED TONIGHT ACROSS THE GLOBE ON 66 BUILDINGS, LOCATIONS @ http://KANYEWEST.COM 

Some of the locations include London, Chicago, Paris, Toronto and Sydney. Cities include multiple sites also. London, for example, will have projections at Brick Lane, Camden Stables, Shoreditch High Street station (as he did for Watch The Throne) and more.

Watch a full clip of the video projected in New York below. The still untitled follow-up to My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is due out next month.

Here’s the full list of events in London and New York below:

London: Saturday 18th & Sunday 19th May

9-10pm Royal Opera House, Covent Garden

11.45-12.45 Camden Stables

1-2am Chinatown, Soho

12.45-2am Tate Modern

Sat 10.15-11.30pm Truman Brewery, Brick Lane

Sat 11.45-12.30pm Shoreditch High Street Station

Sun 10:30-11.30pm Shoreditch High Street Station

New York: Friday 17th & 18th Saturday

11:00pm – LaFayette St. & Howard St. SoHo

11:45pm – West 14th St. & 10th Ave. Meatpacking

12:15 – FIT 27th St & 6th Ave

12:30am – Columbus Circle Museum of Design & Arts

1:15am – Louis Vuitton – E 57th St & 5th Ave

1:30am – Prada W 56th St & 5th Avenue

Photo via Vine.

Two of our favourite worlds collide on emerging disco-house music stars Behling & Simpson’s edits of R&B honey Ciara’s ‘Surgeon’. 

The track that originally appeared on Jackmaster’s 2012 “Master Mix”, is finally seeing a proper vinyl release, which also includes a stellar version of Ciara’s ‘Goodies’.

The Bristol duo have been steadily climbing the ranks of the house music world with their smoothed out boogie beats, with recent releases on some of cult favourite dance labels, Futureboogie and Outernational.

For their Ciara series, Behling & Simpson roll out their signature chunky slink, adding slow rolling punches and pops, sparse stabs of rumbling bass in a variety of forms and these wild alarms that emerge twirling and sputtering through an ether of funky beats. Keeping the bpms turnt down (for once), and adding whirring vintage synths and slightly Caribbean sounding percussion, ‘Surgeon’ is transformed into a sparkling disco-in-slow-motion we don’t ever want to leave.

“Behling & Simpson vs Ciara” limited edition vinyl is out now, get it from Rubadub Records.