Category Archives: Culture

Giant Giant Sand release album track + announce London show | Music News

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American-Danish rockers Giant Giant Sand (formerly known as Giant Sand) have released a free song to download, ahead of the release of their country rock opera, Tuscon, on 3rd June and frontman Howe Gelb’s performance at London’s Village Underground in Shoreditch on 31st May. The album will be released via Fire Records.

In Giant Giant Sand you will recognize the members all hailing from Denmark who have been a part of Giant Sand for the last 10 years (Thøger T. Lund, Peter Dombernowski, Anders Pederesen and Nikolaj Heyman) plus a collection of new members hailing from both Denmark and Tuscon, the place Gelb has called home for the last 40 years.

 

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/43761295″ params=”auto_play=false&show_artwork=true&color=ff7700″ width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

 

 

The Tallest Man On Earth album details announced | Music News

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Swedish troubadour The Tallest Man On Earth has announced details of his forthcoming album and has released a track, ‘1904, available to listen to at Rolling Stone’s soundcloud page.

The album is titled ‘There’s No Leaving Now’ and will be released on 11th June via Dead Oceans Records. Recorded in his home studio in Dalarna, Sweden during the dark winter months at the end of 2011 and start of 2012, his 3rd album is at turns stark and haunting, joyous, wry or reverent, with Kristian Matsson’s wordplay and deft guitarwork front and center.

‘There’s No Leaving Now’ track list:
1. To Just Grow Away
2. Revelation Blues
3. Leading Me Now
4. 1904
5. Bright Lanterns
6. There’s No Leaving Now
7. Wind & Walls
8. Little Brother
9. Criminals
10. On Every Page

The first recordings from The Tallest Man on Earth surfaced in 2006 via a self-titled EP released on the Swedish independent label Gravitation, which was then followed by a full-length, ‘Shallow Grave’, in 2008 to much acclaim. In early 2010, Matsson signed with Dead Oceans and released his second album ‘The Wild Hunt’ and its follow-up EP ‘Sometimes the Blues is Just A Passing Bird’ which took him to an even greater audience, appearing at international festivals like Coachella, Green Man, and Roskilde as well as appearing on Later with Jools Holland, and a sold out show at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire as well as supporting Bon Iver on tour.

The Tallest Man on Earth will be touring throught the rest of 2012, heading to the UK to play various festival shows as well as a gig at the Hackney Empire on 3rd July.

Links:

Facebook page

Official Website

Myspace page

Matt Norris & The Moon – This Kingdom EP | Music Review

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Matt Norris & The Moon formed back in 2009 from the ashes of various other bands, having met at various open mic nights on the burgeoning Edinburgh folk scene. The band have spent the last couple of years honing their sound, played some pretty big support slots (including the mighty Primal Scream) and gained plenty of attention from both the press and radio stations.

This four song EP is sure to gain them even more followers. The release begins with ‘Roots Below’ which begins with strum-strum campfire guitars with solemn trumpeting over the top before building to a rousing folk-pop chorus with a trumpet hook catchier than an STI on a holiday to Magaluf.

‘Eyes of a Storm’ is a more laid-back number, begins with the campfire guitars and really stays there, adding accordian to create a warmer, oakier folk sound. ‘Shadow from the Sun’ has a more urgent pop sound with a nice bit of flute joining the party, sounding like a band driven by something. ‘The Shallows’ wraps things up nicely with more campfire strumming, value-added stings with a five party harmony of detuned opera singing (opera music’s just vowels, right?).

 

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cChp1xsu86s&w=560&h=315]

 

On the evidence of this EP MN&TM are a band to watch. Their sound is an enchanting mix of big hooks and bigger harmonies coupled with an impressive array of instruments. For fans of Fleet Foxes, First Aid Kit and Mumford & Sons this is a band for you. Watch them explode.

 

‘This Kingdom EP’ is released on 17th May via 17 Seconds Records

Links:

17 Seconds Records

Matt Norris & The Moon Twitter

Matt Norris & The Moon Facebook

Matt Norris & The Moon Website

News Kindness video unveiled | Music News

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Kindness, known to his parents as Adam Bainbridge, has announced the new single for ‘House’ taken from his critically acclaimed debut album ‘World, You Need a Change of Mind’.  The single comes backed with a number of b-sides and unheard mixes and we can now reveal the video directed by Adam and Dan Brereton. Have a watch of it here:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmwCxCVsWV4&w=560&h=315]

 

‘House’ is released on 18th June via Female Energy/Polydor Records.

Real Estate to release ‘Exactly Nothing’ as a single | Music News

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Rockers Real Estate will release Exactly Nothing as their next single on 2nd July 2012 via Domino Records. The New Jersey band will be back to the UK to play their biggest show to date at London’s Electric Ballroom on Wednesday June 27th and will be joined by New York’s Frankie Rose and London’s The Proper Ornaments.

The show comes in support of last year’s critically lauded Days album and following sold-out shows at London’s Scala and Koko alongside Kurt Vile.

 

We don’t have a video for ‘Exactly Nothing’ yet but you can watch the band’s full set from Coachella in full here:

 

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKJ9RE1q7Hw&w=560&h=315]

Cass McCombs unveils new video for ‘Bradley Manning’ | Music News

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American folker Cass McCombs has unveiled the video for his latest song, ‘Bradley Manning‘, about the US Army Soldier who has been incarcerated on suspcion of passing classified material to the whistleblower website Wikileaks.

The video is a poignant tribute having been filmed, by director Bradley Beesley, in Manning’s hometown of Crescent, OK on Independence Day, allowing Beesley to capture iconic and patriotic visuals that create a mood eerily complimentary to the song.

Cass heads to the UK to play The Green Man Festival in August.

 

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vhcOn1Yn_U&w=560&h=315]

 

 

We Are Scientists announce UK tour | Music News

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We Are Scientists have announced that they’ll be bringing their extremely entertaining live show back to UK shores following a 2 year break from playing here. The band are currently in the studio putting the finishing touches to their 4th, as yet untitled, album but are heading to the UK in July/August for a full tour as well as some festival appearances, the details of which are below.

 

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vK20cYuFmbM&w=560&h=315]

 

UK Tour:

23/07 – Bristol – Thekla (www.alt-tickets.co.uk)
25/07 – London – The Garage (http://venues.meanfiddler.com/the-garage/home)
26/07 – Portsmouth – Wedgewood Rooms (www.gigsandtours.com)
27/07 – York – Duchess (http://theduchessyork.co.uk/whats-on/detail/978)
30/07 – Norwich – Arts Centre (http://norwichartscentre.co.uk/category/events/month/)
31/07 – Manchester – Deaf Institute (www.gigsandtours.com)
01/08 – Glasgow – King Tuts (www.gigsinscotland.com)

Festival Dates:

22/07 – Sheffield – Tramlines
29/07 – Cumbria – Kendal Calling
03/08 – Scotland – Belladrum
04/08 – Stockton – Weekender
05/08 – Derbyshire – Y Not Festival

Tickets for the tour dates go on sale at 9am on Wednesday 16th May.

 

Links:

We Are Scientists Facebook page

Official Website

Twitter

Rebekah Brooks & Husband to be Charged with Perverting the Course of Justice.

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Rebekah Brooks, the former News International chief executive, and her racehorse trainer husband, Charlie Brooks, are to be charged with perverting the course of justice during the phone-hacking scandal.

Mrs Brooks and her husband revealed the charger themselves in a statement which critiscised the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) decision.

They said: “We have been informed by the Office of the Department of Public Prosecutions that we are to be charged with perverting the course of justice.

“We deplore this weak and unjust decision. After the further unprecedented posturing of the CPS we will respond later today after our return from the police station.”

Four other people are also to be charged which includes the personal assistant of Mrs Brooks’s, Cheryl Carter and Mark Hanna, head of security at News International.

There are a few different charges. Mrs Brooks has three against her, the rest have one. The charges include conspiring to conceal material from Scotland Yard detectives, conspiring to conceal documents, computers and other electronic equipment from detectives and conspiring to remove seven boxes of material from the archive of News International.

Alison Levitt QC, principal legal advisor to the Director of Public Prosecutions, revealed the details of the charges:

“The Crown Prosecution Service received a file of evidence from the Metropolitan Police Service on March 27 2012 in relation to seven suspects: Rebekah Brooks; Charles Brooks; Cheryl Carter, Mrs Brooks’ personal assistant; Mark Hanna, head of security at News International; Paul Edwards, Mrs Brooks’s chauffeur who was employed by News International; Daryl Jorsling and a seventh suspect – both of whom provided security for Mrs Brooks supplied by News International.

“All the evidence has now carefully been considered. Applying the two-stage test in the Code for Crown Prosecutors, I have concluded that in relation to all suspects except the seventh, there is sufficient evidence for there to be a realistic prospect of conviction.”