Coldplay have today confirmed the release of their much-anticipated new album, Music Of The Spheres. The band’s ninth LP will hit stores and streaming services on October 15th, 2021.
The band announced the Max Martin-produced album on Instagram via a handwritten note alongside an album trailer which combines an animated cosmic journey through the album’s planetary artwork with short clips of the album’s twelve tracks.
The band’s note also seemed to hint at further sci-fi themes with the phrase ‘Everyone is an alien somewhere’.
In May, the band released Higher Power – the first single from Music Of The Spheres – which has been streamed more than 160 million times. The band’s note also revealed the imminent release of an album track called Coloratura on Friday, to be followed by a new single in September.
The band have also revealed the full album tracklisting – with five of the twelve tracks represented by emojis.
Music Of The Spheres
🪐
Higher Power
Humankind
✨
Let Somebody Go
❤️
People Of The Pride
Biutyful
🌎
My Universe
♾️
Coloratura
Music Of The Spheres is available to pre-order now at store.coldplay.com
The War On Drugs announce I Don’t Live Here Anymore, their first studio album in four years, out October 29th on Atlantic Records, and a 2022 North American and European tour. In conjunction with today’s announcement, they present its first song/video, “Living Proof.” Over the last 15 years, The War on Drugs have steadily emerged as one of this century’s great rock and roll synthesists, removing the gaps between the underground and the mainstream, between the obtuse and the anthemic, making records that wrestle a fractured past into a unified and engrossing present. The War On Drugs have never done that as well as they do with their fifth studio album, I Don’t Live Here Anymore, an uncommon rock album about one of our most common but daunting processes—resilience in the face of despair.
Just a month after The War On Drugs’ A Deeper Understandingreceived the 2018 Grammy for Best Rock Album, the core of bandleader Adam Granduciel, bassist Dave Hartley, and multi-instrumentalist Anthony LaMarca retreated to upstate New York to jam and cut new demos, working outside of the predetermined roles each member plays in the live setting. These sessions proved highly productive, turning out early versions of some of the most immediate songs onI Don’t Live Here Anymore. It was the start of a dozen-plus session odyssey that spanned three years and seven studios, including some of rock’s greatest sonic workshops like Electric Lady in New York and Los Angeles’ Sound City. Band leaderGranducieland trusted co-producer/engineer Shawn Everett spent untold hours peeling back every piece of these songs and rebuilding them.
One of the most memorable sessions occurred in May 2019 at Electro-Vox, in which the band’s entire line-up — rounded out by keyboardist Robbie Bennett, drummer Charlie Hall, and saxophonist Jon Natchez — convened to record the affecting album opener “Living Proof.” Typically, Granduciel assembles The War On Drugs records from reams of overdubs, like a kind of rock ‘n’ roll jigsaw puzzle. But for “Living Proof,” the track came together in real time, as the musicians drew on their chemistry as a live unit to summon some extemporaneous magic. The immediacy of the performance was appropriate for one of the most personal songs Granduciel has ever written.
The “Living Proof” video, directed by filmmaker Emmett Malloy, and shot on 16mm, captures Granduciel at the historic Panoramic studio in Stinson Beach, California.
The War On Drugs’ particular combination of intricacy and imagination animates the 10 songs of I Don’t Live Here Anymore, buttressing the feelings of Granduciel’s personal odyssey. It’s an expression of rock ’n’ roll’s power to translate our own experience into songs we can share and words that direct our gaze toward the possibility of what is to come.
The War On Drugs’ 2022 tour takes the band to some of the largest venues they’ve ever played, including their first headlining show at Madison Square Garden, as well as Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium, the Bill Graham Civic Center in San Francisco, the Ryman Auditoriumin Nashville, two nights at the Chicago Theatre, Philadelphia’s Metropolitan, the House of Bluesin Boston, and beyond. The full North American and European itinerary is below. Tickets are on sale here on Friday, July 23rd at 10am local time.
I Don’t Live Here Anymore Tracklist 1. Living Proof 2. Harmonia’s Dream 3. Change 4. I Don’t Wanna Wait 5. Victim 6. I Don’t Live Here Anymore 7. Old Skin 8. Wasted 9. Rings Around My Father’s Eyes 10. Occasional Rain
The War On Drugs Tour Dates (tickets on sale Fri. July 23 @ 10am local time) Fri. Nov. 12 – Lake Perris, CA @ Desert Daze Wed. Jan. 19 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live Thu. Jan. 20 – Austin, TX @ ACL Live Fri. Jan. 21 – Dallas, TX @ Toyota Music Factory Sat. Jan. 22 – Houston, TX @ White Oak Music Hall Mon. Jan. 24 – Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium Tue. Jan. 25 – Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle Thu. Jan. 27 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Met Philadelphia Fri. Jan. 28 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Met Philadelphia Sat. Jan. 29 – New York, NY @ Madison Square Garden Mon. Jan. 31 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues Tue. Feb. 1 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues Wed. Feb. 2 – Washington, DC @ Anthem Fri. Feb. 4 – Columbus, OH @ Express Live! Sat. Feb. 5 – Toronto, ON @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre Sun. Feb. 6 – Toronto, ON @ Queen Elizabeth Theatre Tue. Feb. 8 – Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore Thu. Feb. 10 – Chicago, IL @ Chicago Theatre Fri. Feb. 11 – Chicago, IL @ Chicago Theatre Sat. Feb. 12 – Milwaukee, WI @ Riverside Theater Sun. Feb. 13 – Milwaukee, WI @ Riverside Theater Tue. Feb 15 – St. Paul , MN @ Palace Theatre Wed. Feb. 16 – St. Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre Fri. Feb. 18 – Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom Sat. Feb. 19 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Union Mon. Feb. 21 – Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre Tue. Feb. 22 – Seattle, WA @ Paramount Theatre Wed. Feb. 23 – Portland, OR @ Theater of the Clouds Fri. Feb. 25 – San Francisco, CA @ Bill Graham Civic Auditorium Sat. Feb. 26 – Los Angeles, CA @ Shrine Auditorium Tue. March 22 – Helsinki, FI @ Helsinki Ice Hall Thu. March 24 – Stockholm, SE @ Annexet Sun. March 27 – Oslo, NO @ Sentrum Scene Mon. March 28 – Oslo, NO @ Sentrum Scene Wed. March 30 – Copenhagen, DK @ KB Hallen Thu. March 31 – Copenhagen, DK @ KB Hallen Sat. April 2 – Berlin, DE @ Verti Music Hall Mon. April 4 – Zurich, CH @ Halle 622 Tue. April 5 – Milano, IT @ Alcatraz Thu. April 7 – München, DE @ Zenith Sat. April 9 – Paris, FR @ L’Olympia Mon. April 11 – Birmingham, UK @ 02 Academy Birmingham Tue. April 12 – London, UK @ The O2 Arena Thu. April 14 – Dublin, IE @ 3 Arena Sat. April 16 – Leeds, UK @ First Direct Arena Mon. April 18 – Edinburgh, UK @ Edinburgh Corn Exchange Wed. April 20 – Köln, DE @ Palladium Thu. April 21 – Wiesbaden, DE @ Schlachthof Fri. April 22 – Amsterdam, NL @ Ziggo Dome Sat. April 23 – Antwerp, BE @ Sportpaleis
Parlophone Records is thrilled to announce the release of IRON MAIDEN’s 17th studio album Senjutsu, their first in 6 years, on September 3rd. It was recorded in Paris with longstanding producer Kevin Shirley and co-produced by Steve Harris.
It was preceded on Thursday 15th July by an already highly acclaimed animated video for the first single ‘The Writing On The Wall’ made by BlinkInk based on a concept by Bruce Dickinson with two former Pixar Executives. It followed a month-long teaser campaign & global ‘treasure hunt’ for clues about the track title and concept.
For Senjutsu – loosely translated as ‘tactics & strategy’, the band once again enlisted the services of Mark Wilkinson to create the spectacular Samurai-themed cover artwork, based on an idea by Steve Harris. With a running time of a little under 82 minutes, Senjutsu, like their previous record The Book Of Souls, will be a double CD/triple vinyl album.
Steve says “We chose to record at Guillaume Tell Studio in France again as the place has such a relaxed vibe. The setup there is perfect for our needs; the building used to be a cinema and has a really high ceiling so there’s a great acoustic sound. We recorded this album in the same way we did The Book Of Souls in that we’d write a song, rehearse it, and then put it down together straight away while it was all fresh in our minds. There are some very complex songs on this album which took a lot of hard work to get them exactly as we wanted them to sound, so the process was at times very challenging, but Kevin is great at capturing the essence of the band and I think it was worth the effort! I’m very proud of the result and can’t wait for fans to hear it.”
Lead singer Bruce Dickinson continues, “We’re all really excited about this album. We recorded it back in early 2019 during a break in the Legacy tour so we could maximize our touring yet still have a long setup period before release to prepare great album art and something special as a video. Of course, the pandemic delayed things more – so much for the best-laid plans – or should that be ‘strategies’!? The songs are very varied, and some of them are quite long. There are also one or two songs that sound pretty different to our usual style, and I think Maiden fans will be surprised – in a good way, I hope! “
The full tracklisting is:
1. Senjutsu (8:20) Smith/Harris 2. Stratego (4:59) Gers/Harris 3. The Writing On The Wall (6:13) Smith/Dickinson 4. Lost In A Lost World (9:31) Harris 5. Days Of Future Past (4:03) Smith/Dickinson 6. The Time Machine (7:09) Gers/Harris 7. Darkest Hour (7:20) Smith/Dickinson 8. Death Of The Celts (10:20) Harris 9. The Parchment (12:39) Harris 10. Hell On Earth (11:19) Harris
Senjutsu will be released on the following formats and available to pre-order from Wednesday, July 21st:
Standard 2CD Digipak Deluxe 2CD Book Format Deluxe heavyweight 180G Triple Black Vinyl Special Edition Triple Silver And Black Marble Vinyl (Selected Retailers) Special Edition Triple Red and Black Marble Vinyl (Selected Retailers) Super Deluxe Boxset featuring CD, Blu Ray and Exclusive Memorabilia Digital album [streaming and download]
James Blunt Announces A Stellar Career-Spanning Greatest Hits Album. ‘The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021)’Out November 19th Includes four new studio songs & four exclusive live tracks
James Blunt today announces a special greatest hits album, ‘The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021)’– out November 19th on Atlantic Records – alongside a huge UK arena tour for 2022 which will see James celebrate songs spanning a stellar 17-year career that has spawned over 23 million album sales, a global smash hit with ‘You’re Beautiful’, two Brit Awards and two Ivor Novello Awards, as well as receiving five Grammy Award nominations.
Amongst the string of hit singles, ‘The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021)’ will also include four new songs (‘Love Under Pressure’, ‘Unstoppable’, ‘Adrenaline’ & ‘I Came For Love’), as well as four exclusive live performances from around the world, including the Glastonbury Festival. It also features stunning tracks from his latest Gold-selling album ‘Once Upon A Mind’, including ‘Cold’, and the heart-breaking ballad for his father, ‘Monster’.
James reflects; “Amazingly, I’m releasing my Greatest Hits. I wanted to call it “Greatest Hit (& Songs I Wish You’d Heard)”, but the good people at Atlantic Records suggested I call it something more sensible, so it’s called “The Stars Beneath My Feet”. If you’d ever wished that James Blunt had only ever released one album – this is that album. It’s 30 awesome songs, including live performances from Glastonbury and elsewhere, and four new songs. To celebrate its release, I’ll be heading out to tour the world all next year. I can’t wait to see you then.”
James’ classic 2004 debut album ‘Back To Bedlam’, was recently named as one of the top ten bestselling albums of that decade, and with ‘Once Upon A Mind’, James Blunt reinforced his reputation for writing honest, emotional songs that people can easily relate to. The album marked a return to what James Blunt does best – writing classic songs that touch both the heart and the head. Another side of James – his wit and charm – have in recent times been showcased via his always engaging Twitter account.
As well as his huge 2022 greatest hits UK arena tour, James Blunt and his band will be one of the highlights of this summer during his string of highly anticipated rescheduled UK dates. The tour includes a must-see date at the Royal Albert Hall on 23rd July, the first full-capacity concert at the venue as part of its 150th anniversary celebrations.
James Blunt plays the following 2022 UK arena dates:
February 2022
Thu 3rd BRIGHTON, Brighton Centre
Fri 4th MANCHESTER, AO Arena
Sat 5th LONDON, SSE Wembley Arena
Mon 7th CARDIFF, Motorpoint Arena
Tue 8th HULL, Bonus Arena
Thu 10th BIRMINGHAM, Resort World
Fri 11th LEEDS, First Direct Arena
Sat 12th NOTTINGHAM, Motorpoint Arena
Sun 13th GLASGOW, SEC Armadillo
‘The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021)’ – Track Listing 1. Love Under Pressure 2. 1973 3. Wisemen 4. Same Mistake 5. You’re Beautiful 6. Monsters 7. Tears And Rain 8. Bonfire Heart 9. I Really Want You (live in New York) 10. The Truth 11. Heart To Heart 12. Champions 13. Postcards 14. No Bravery (live in London) 15. Adrenaline 16. Smoke Signals 17. Unstoppable 18. Goodbye My Lover 19. Coz I Love You (live at Glastonbury) 20. So Long, Jimmy 21. Carry You Home 22. The Greatest 23. High 24. Don’t Give Me Those Eyes 25. OK 26. Stay The Night 27. Bartender 28. Cold 29. Where Is My Mind? (live in Paris) 30. I Came For Love
IRON MAIDEN END WEEKS OF ONLINE SPECULATION TO REVEAL FIRST NEW MUSIC IN 6 YEARS WITH SPECTACULAR, STATE OF THE ART ANIMATED VIDEO: THE WRITING ON THE WALL
PIXAR ALUMNI & BLINKINK DREAM TEAM COLLABORATE WITH MAIDEN TO CREATE A SIX MINUTE VERITABLE FEAST INCLUDING THE LATEST INCARNATION OF EDDIE IN STUNNING 3D FORM
IRON MAIDEN today revealed their brand-new track, The Writing On The Wall, with an eagerly anticipated global YouTube video premiere. The song was written by Maiden guitarist Adrian Smith & lead singer Bruce Dickinson, produced by Kevin Shirley and co-produced by Maiden bassist and founder-member Steve Harris.
Bruce Dickinson initially had a concept for the video which came to fruition in collaboration with two Award-winning former Pixar executives and long-standing Maiden fans Mark Andrews & Andrew Gordon. The pair have over 50 years of animation industry experience between them at the very top-level including work on The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Brave, Monsters Inc & Finding Nemo. With partners lining up to get involved with the project they chose BlinkInk, a London based animation studio celebrated for their work with a variety of global brands from Adidas to Coca-Cola and a number of high-profile music videos.
IRON MAIDEN ft Lauderdale 2010
In BlinkInk director Nicos Livesey, another long-time Maiden fan & kindred spirit, they found a man who shared the collective vision for the track – resulting in the final film which features the very first glimpse of a stunning new incarnation of Eddie in spectacular 3D form.
Bruce comments “I had a pretty clear idea of the concept to accompany the song and when I met Mark and Andrew, on Zoom, it quickly became clear we were all very much on the same wavelength, and this was reinforced with the addition of Nicos and his young BlinkInk team. Our weekly team Zoom meetings were then usually both highly creative and a lot of fun!
I’m very proud of the way the video turned out, it’s more like a mini-film really. I knew it was going to work out as soon as Mark brought my treatment to life with his incredible storyboards – I thought we could make something very special together. I think we did and hope our fans will agree. In fact it’s pretty much created by Maiden fans!! ”
Director, Nicos Livesey takes up the story: “We quickly found the expertise we wanted, and people were literally throwing themselves at me to work on a Maiden video – we had more than 60 people in 13 countries from Brazil to France, & Romania to the USA to add something to the clip and I’d say their love, passion and understanding of the band shines through every frame. They were a dream team for the producers and myself to manage.”
Releasing on October 22, ‘Let’s Just Say The World Ended A Week From Now, What Would You Do?’ forms HONNE’s third studio album following critically acclaimed LPs, ‘Warm On A Cold Night’ (2016) and ‘Love Me / Love Me Not’ (2018), as well as ‘no song without you’ – a surprise 14-track mixtape released last summer.
Pre-Order ‘Let’s Just Say The World Ended A Week From Now, What Would You Do?’ HERE.
To coincide with the announcement, HONNE have also compiled three new album tracks for fans to listen to as an EP, setting the tone perfectly for what’s to come. Available everywhere now, ‘What Would You Do?’ features new songs ‘Now I’m Alone’ ft. Sofía Valdés – co-written alongside recent 3x BRIT Award winner Arlo Parks – and ‘IDGAF About Pain’, as well as recent single ‘What Would You Do?’ ft. Pink Sweat$.
Written throughout the course of 2020, ‘Let’s Just Say The World Ended A Week From Now, What Would You Do?’ captures HONNE in limitless full bloom – as songwriters, producers and collaborators. “In the past, we’ve limited ourselves”, HONNE explain. “We might get to a section of a song and things are getting really exciting, but we then pull ourselves back and say, ‘Can we really do that?’. Now, we’ve sidestepped the rules and done whatever we wanted to do.”
This sense of freedom permeates the tracklist, which is defined as much by its eye-catching collaborations – Khalid (‘Three Strikes’), Griff (‘Back On Top’), 88 Rising’s NIKI (‘Coming Home’) – as it is by its musicianship, shimmering pop feel and intelligent song-writing; Sam Smith (‘Back On Top’) and MNEK (‘Easy On Me’) also co-wrote songs on the album.
Bold and ambitious , ‘Let’s Just Say The World Ended A Week From Now, What Would You Do?’ brings together everything HONNE have worked towards in their career so far, while simultaneously pushing them into broad and exciting new spaces – look out for more from the album coming soon.
Please see below for full tracklisting:
HONNE – Let’s Just Say The World Ended A Week From Now, What Would You Do?
IDGAF About Pain
Coming Home (feat. NIKI)
What Would You Do? (feat. Pink Sweat$)
Dancing On A Cloud
Now I’m Alone (feat. Sofía Valdés)
Three Strikes (feat. Khalid)
Talk To Me
Back On Top (feat. Griff)
Easy On Me
I’m The Lucky One
Heartsong
About HONNE
London duo Andy Clutterbuck and James Hatcher – better known as HONNE – have cultivated a huge and fiercely dedicated global fan base since the release of their critically-acclaimed debut LP, ‘Warm on a Cold Night’, in 2016. Boasting over 150 sold-out shows outside of the UK, collaborations with everyone from Tom Misch to BTS and almost 2 billion global streams, their music is deeply emotive; from the spiralling, sugar-coated highs of international hit ‘Day 1’ (lifted from 2018 album ‘Love Me / Love Me Not’), to the warm, acoustic glow of ‘no song without you’ – the first single to be lifted from last summer’s 14-track mixtape of the same name. Laying themselves bare in their songs, HONNE are also hyper-connected with fans both in the UK and all over the world – in 2018 alone for example, they played a sold-out Brixton Academy for the first time, embarked on an extensive, 26-date US headline tour and saw debut album ‘Warm on a Cold Night’ officially certified as 9x Platinum in South Korea. Their new album, ‘If The World Ended A Week From Now, What Would You Do?’, releases on October 22 – pre-order it HERE.
Multi-instrumentalist, award-winning singer songwriter Sharon Corr today releases the first single from her upcoming third studio album: listen to brand new single ‘The Fool and the Scorpion’HERE. The album, of the same name, is out 24th September and is available to pre-order now.
The new track is a potent depiction of the end of a relationship; a brutally honest yet poetic reflection of life’s imperfections. Written on a plane amidst stormy turbulence, Sharon’s vocals blend beautifully with the rousing piano motif.
Speaking on the new single, Sharon said: I’m sitting in an airplane at the stand in Madrid airport bound for Montreux via Geneva. There’s a terrible storm, thunder and lightning, we cannot take off. I sit in my seat waiting, I am wretched. Torn from the events of the day before, the tears are piercing my skin like icicles. Again I am at one with the elements. Only this time my heart has been shattered into a million fractured pieces, never to return to who I was.
Also announced today were details of Sharon’s third studio album, The Fool and the Scorpion,due to be released on 24th September.
Driven by songwriting greats such as Nick Drake and Joni Mitchell, Sharon drew from a period of time she calls “the biggest storm of her life” for the album’s inspiration. As a result, the record is a cohesive body of work; a journey which centres on the desire to push on, to have faith and belief in yourself and your purpose. The 10-track album was recorded live in just 20 days at The Village in LA, with Larry Klein (Norah Jones, Tracy Chapman, Joni Mitchell) on producing duties and Tim Pierce (Bon Jovi, Celine Dion, Selena Gomez) on guitar. The album’s musicality highlights Sharon’s accomplishments as a multi-instrumentalist with over 30 years of songwriting behind her.
Sharon said: It is my intention that you enjoy listening to the fruits of The Fool and The Scorpion as an entire album. As Albert Camus said: “In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer. And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger – something better, pushing right back.”
Alongside her siblings, Sharon was awarded an MBE in recognition of The Corrs’ musical success and charitable work. The band also secured two GRAMMY nominations and won countless other awards, including Best International Group at the BRIT Awards. In 2019 Sharon was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Open University in recognition of her contribution to education and culture.
As part of The Corrs, Sharon sold in excess of 45 million albums, toured arenas and stadiums across the globe and became a household name on every continent. With two solo albums under her belt, Sharon has enjoyed the freedom of total artistic expression with beautifully crafted melodies and intimate lyrics at the heart of her songwriting. The Fool and the Scorpion promises to be an example of her storytelling prowess as she invites the listener to share in her joy, her heartache, and everything in between.
“When it comes to music, I want to be able to be all that I am without hiding, without fighting with myself. We’re already in what feels like some kind of global claustrophobia – we’re locked in and we need to come out and we need to break out. That’s what this music is to me and I just want to share it. I want people to feel free.” – Laura Mvula 2021
Pink Noise has seen critical acclaim across the board, NME’s ⅘star review hails the record as being “steeped in liberation, not bitterness – it isn’t just a heartening comeback, but an absolutely sparkling pop album”, and The Sunday Times Culture name ‘Pink Noise as their ‘Album of the Week’ saying, “the classically trained Brum composer and songwriter sashays through a sequence of songs that affirm her position as one of this country’s most distinctive artists” Loud & Quiet praised the album’s “sparkly synths, super-tight rhythm section and huge production” with MOJO’s 4 star review calling Laura “a gifted arranger with a distinctive cri de coeur and this is where she soars”.
‘Pink Noise’ explores a side of Laura previously uncharted. As triumphant as ever, the album is a battle cry and stark reminder of the sheer talent of the critically acclaimed artist. This is Laura in a new found light – still reflecting her distinctive signature sound but showing the progression of an artist who has come into her own. It’s an album borne out of both intense struggles and the positive realisations that come when you emerge reborn on the other side. Lyrically it touches on ideas around break-ups – both personal and professional – but also a hard won appreciation.
It’s all there on the album’s delicious lead single, ‘Church Girl’, an 80s-era Whitney Houston-esque slice of effortlessly euphoric pop that turns the spotlight inwards while careening towards the dancefloor.“I was the original pop head in my family, I’m obsessed with pop,” she says, acknowledging the shift from the more experimental, baroque soul of her first two albums, 2013’s Sing to the Moon and 2016’s The Dreaming Room, both of which were Mercury nominated. “For some reason when I made Sing to The Moon that sound became permanently attached to me in people’s heads. Like having the same hairstyle for the rest of your life, which for me is unthinkable. So this album was such a release.”
Dreaming Room won the coveted album of the year award at the prestigious Ivor Novello awards, an accolade that gave Birmingham-born Laura – a classically trained musician, hope for her future in music. Suddenly she had time to look back on how she was perceived, and to look at the bigger picture. “Growing up my parents always said to me and my siblings that as young black people we were going to have to work a hundred times harder just to get in the room, and that for me meant literally attempting to create a new genre of music,” she says. “So if I was going to do this thing I was going to have to invent something to go ‘hey, I’m here’. I was learning that I was perceived as this artist who was very ‘special’ and it was ‘pop but it’s not pop, it’s jazz but it’s not jazz, it’s classical but it’s not classical, it’s black but it’s not black’. I realised that a lot of this game was about justifying being in the room in the first place. Because I was doing something that couldn’t be neatly boxed. With this new album there is something hugely relieving about leaning heavily into a style of music – that 80s cosmic landscape – that has always been in my spirit.”
Contrasting confessional lyricism with compelling and infectious synth pop, ‘Pink Noise’ feels completely and uniquely Laura. Her artistic prowess knows no limits – take the neo-soul meets art pop of ‘Remedy’ for example, or the darker, pulsating ‘Conditional’ that injects bombastic funk into indietronica. She feels rejuvenated too, especially on electro pop stunners ‘Magical’ and ‘Before The Dawn’. This is Laura Mvula at her most ambitious to date, leaving no stone left unturned in this cosmic new realm.
Laura says,“This is the album I always wanted to make. Every corner is made warm with sunset tones of the 80s. I was born in 1986. I came out of the womb wearing shoulder pads. I absorbed the dynamism of the 80s aesthetic right from my first moments on this planet. Wrestling with identity seems to be one of the rites of passage of the established artist. Making ‘Pink Noise’ felt like the most violent of emotional wrestling matches. It took 3 years of waiting and waiting and fighting and dying and nothingness and then finally an explosion of sound. As if it was always here this record is my most honest and unapologetic flying of the freedom flag. In my adult years I had forgotten how important dance was to me as a vital tool of my creative expression. I brought it back, just for me, so I could find my delight in dance again. And now I can’t stop dancing. I can’t wait to play this album live.”
As one of the most exciting musical talents to come out of the UK, Laura has previously won an Ivor Novello Award for Best Album, has been nominated for the Mercury Prize (not once but twice), BBC Sound Poll, the BRITs Critics Choice Award, two BRIT Awards in 2014 (British Female Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act) and won an incredible two MOBO’s in 2013 (Best Female and Best R&B/Soul).
Having caught the attention of her musical hero Prince while performing for the first of two times on the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury, Laura has gone on to travel the world, selling out shows and captivating crowds at every destination. Crowned “Queen of the Prom” and given a five star review from the Evening Standard for her Proms 2014 Late Night performance at the Royal Albert Hall, Laura’s critically acclaimed career has led her to work with real-life inspirations Nile Rodgers and touring with David Byrne.
Laura will be celebrating the release of her new album with a headline show at London’s Village Underground September 2nd. Tickets here.
NEW SINGLE ‘PSYCHO’ CO-WRITTEN WITH ED AND STEVE MAC COMING JULY 2
“I’m a huge fan” –Taylor Swift
“singer-songwriter pop with a purpose” – Clash
“her gift for melody is remarkable”– Sunday Times Culture
“mixes strummed melodies and storytelling to cosmic effect” – Music Week
“one of the most exciting singer-songwriters in the game”– The Independent
“one of those truly authentic talents whose candid, catchy pop numbers are sure to stick in your heart and head”–Notion
Maisie Peters is thrilled to announce that she has signed to Ed Sheeran’s Gingerbread Man Records, and will be releasing her debut album, ‘You Signed Up For This’, on August 27 (pre-order here). In tandem with the announcement, Maisie has revealed that her new single, ‘Psycho’, co-written with Ed and Steve Mac, will be released on July 2.
With her knack for transforming everyday experiences in to vividly written diary-style songs, ‘You Signed Up For This’ is both Maisie’s coming of age story and a love letter to girlhood; penned with the wit, charm and quiet confidence that has seen her ascend from busking on the streets of Brighton, to recently making her US TV debut on The Late Late Show with James Corden. Transporting us directly in to her world as she navigates from small town teenager to adulthood, there’s a universal sense of familiarity and nostalgia as she shares memories of blossoming relationships (‘Outdoor Pool’, ‘My Elvis Song’), being played (‘Boys’, ‘Volcano’), heartbreak (‘Tough Act’, ‘Villain’), and first holidays with her twin sister (‘Brooklyn’).
Maisie treated fans to their first taste of ‘You Signed Up For This’ earlier this year with ‘John Hughes Movie’. The track soared to No. 1 on iTunes the weekend of release, was playlisted across BBC Radio 1 and 2, and has been streamed over 11.5 million times globally to date.
Revered for her songwriting, Maisie has spent the past three years honing her craft in sessions across London, LA and Nashville, creating songs for ‘You Signed Up For This’ alongside the likes of Ed Sheeran, Steve Mac, Fred again.., Johnny McDaid, Miranda Cooper, and producers Joe Rubel (Tom Grennan, Benjamin Francis Leftwich), Afterhrs (Niall Horan, GRACEY), Rob Milton (Easy Life, Holly Humberstone) and Brad Ellis (Jorja Smith, Little Mix).
Maisie says:
“Signing to Gingerbread is a dream come true. I grew up inspired and in awe of Ed, like many other 13 year olds who heard ‘Lego House’ for the first time, so, it’s kind of amazing and hard to believe that I get to be the 21 year old who is able to call him and the whole Gingerbread team now friends, family and mentors for life.
I’m so excited to announce ‘You Signed Up For This’, it really is my (albeit not hugely long) life’s work and my proudest achievement; it is my favourite album maybe ever and whilst I may be biased, I really hope it goes into the world and becomes lots of other people’s favourite too.
It all means the world and is my world and there is nothing I would rather do.”
Ed Says:
“Excited to announce that I’ve signed the wonderful Maisie Peters to Gingerbread Man Records. She’s a very special artist who continues to push her storytelling in new directions. We had a few great writing sessions together and from there I knew I had to work with her. Can’t wait for you to hear her debut album x”
Impressively, ‘You Signed Up For This’ is Maisie’s second full length release in the space of three months, as she recently became one of the youngest musicians in history to write and curate a soundtrack for the second season of Apple TV+ Original Series, ‘Trying’, at only 20 years old. Written in just two months last winter, the stunning body of work includes duets with her friends and favourites, including Griff, James Bay and Bear’s Den.
With a fervent following, over half a billion global streams to date, sold out headline shows in both the UK and US, famous fans (Taylor Swift, Phoebe Bridgers, Sam Smith), and a newly inked deal with one of the most successful musicians of all time, Maisie is seeing her dreams come to life and inviting us along on the journey.
Make sure to catch Maisie performing at some of the UK’s biggest festivals this summer (All Points East, Isle of Wight, Boardmasters, Latitude), and follow the Maisie Peters Book Club on Instagram for monthly interviews with some of the most acclaimed names in literature (Naoise Dolan, Elif Batuman, Julia Samuel).
Setting eternally relevant themes to classic melodies with an ear for modernist production, Gavin James’ unassuming authenticity and songcraft has been the key to him unlocking 1.5 billion streams, 6 million monthly listeners at Spotify, and 32 international Platinum or Gold records. His million+ social media followers are similarly engaged by an artist simply being who he is. Today he shares his new single ‘Sober’.
If you haven’t yet discovered Gavin, his brand new single ‘Sober’ is the perfect introduction. It’s a stadium-scaled expression of the kind of sorrowful sentiment that you’d normally keep close to your chest: the ever-relevant young adult experience of wondering whether a love is fuelled by intoxication or if there’s something more substantial to hold onto.
Gavin says, “Sober is a song about being in love with someone and then in the morning they all of a sudden don’t love you back. It’s pretty much about their sobering reality that you are not for them and you’re left alone replaying the relationship in your head … so you’re sad about it and you sing it real loud with a piano❤️“
There’s a bravery in sharing such an emotion in a song that’s equally at home on the airwaves as it is unifying audiences at shows. And that’s matched by his judgement in deploying the full-strength of his emotive vocals only where it matters the most. Helping Gavin achieve his full potential on the track are some A-list collaborators. Production comes from Patrick Pyke Salmy and Ricardo Muñoz, who have been dominating charts across Europe with Zoe Wees’ hits ‘Control’ and ‘Girls Like Us’. The track was subsequently mixed by Mitch McCarthy (Olivia Rodrigo, Driver’s License).
From early favourites such as‘Always’and ‘Nervous’ to recent releases ‘Man on the Moon’ and ‘Boxes’, Gavin’s talents have been embraced by countless big names. He has played shows with Niall Horan, Ed Sheeran and Sam Smith, while Jimin of BTS amassed 256 million likes when he sang along to ‘Nervous’ on the South Korean streaming service V Live. Gavin’s most recent ‘Boxes’ EP hit number 1 in the album and airplay charts in Ireland last year.
A 29-year-old Dubliner, Gavin James has come a long way from his early days busking on Grafton Street. His international touring has resulted in 250,000 ticket sales for his headline shows, which included two nights at Dublin’s 13,000 capacity 3Arena. As we await the return of live music, Gavin has spent recent weeks sharing footage of some unforgettable moments of his previous shows, with electrifying scenes stretching from Brazil to Ireland’s Electric Picnic festival.
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