May Album Guide
From long-awaited returns of established artists such as Arcade Fire and Florence and the Machine, to emerging MC Knucks, to the established legend that is Kendrick Lamar. What an exciting month of music awaits.
Music
whynow New Music Friday - April 29
This week's round up of music also features the first instalment of our creatively named new series, Music Video of the Week. Watch, read and listen below.
Bloc Party ‘Alpha Games’ Review: A Boisterous Band That Haven’t Innovated
★★☆☆☆
With their sixth studio album, Bloc Party have tried to recapture the essence of their brilliant debut they burst onto the scene with. Unfortunately, it merely represents a stunted development in the band’s evolution.
ADMT: ‘Busking has taught me there’s loads of love, but you will get negative people’
Doncaster-based ADMT knows what hard work is. From working on market stalls and various jobs, he’s showed a tenacity to get his music out – even in the depths of lockdown, by busking in his neighboring towns of Manchester, Sheffield and Leeds.
OneDa: ‘I was a rebel without a cause – now I’m a rebel because no one can tell me shit’
With a new track, ‘Vibes’, out now, OneDa wants to put all the self-belief she’s come to learn into the world. We speak to her about her journey into music, her spiritual awakening and her future plans.
Ones to Watch at Sound City 2022
Are you heading to Liverpool’s Sound City this weekend? The world’s most famous city for music is playing host to the three-day festival. Here’s who to watch.
Oasis Guitarist Bonehead Diagnosed With Cancer
Former Oasis guitarist Paul Arthurs has announced he has been diagnosed with tonsil cancer.
Ed Sheeran, Basil Brush Involved in Bizarre Sounding Platinum Jubilee Pageant
With the Queen's Platinum Bubilee celebration just a little over a month away, some of the details from the celebration have been announced. And, well, it all sounds a little weird...
Jack Dorsey Shares Radiohead Track in Response to Musk Buying Twitter
Twitter’s co-founder Jack Dorsey has suggested that all is well with the world, following Musk’s recent $44 billion (£34.5 billion) acquisition of the social media platform.
Tim Westwood Accused Of Sexual Misconduct
Tim Westwood, the former BBC Radio1 DJ, has been accused of sexual misconduct over incidents between 1992 and 2017.
Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra to Perform at Proms 2022
The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra will perform at this year’s Proms, which returns in full for the first time since 2019.
Pusha T 'It's Almost Dry' Review: Old Dog Shows New Tricks
★★★★☆
Pusha T returns with It’s Almost Dry - a typically feisty and eloquent album, with less consistency, but more variety, than 2018’s DAYTONA.
Tyler, the Creator Breaks Record for Rap Album with the Biggest Vinyl Sales
Call Me If You Get Lost has leapfrogged Kid Cudi’s Man on the Moon III to become the biggest-selling rap album on vinyl since figures began.
Kayem2x: ‘I’m sitting on absolute bangers’
Barely out of his teens, Kayem2x has already supported Unknown T and is among a new generation of rappers making their mark, following the success of his track ‘Steady (Birkin Bop)’
Live Music Royalties Fall Again in 2021
Live music royalties fell a further 30 per cent in 2021, with the return of concerts last summer not enough to improve on 2020’s figures.
whynow New Music Friday - April 22
Today's seen some brilliant new albums - with Fontaines D.C. and Pusha T leading the way this week. A number of emerging artists follow, alongside some more well-established names.
Skinty Fia Review | Imperfect, but bold, brave and everything you could wish for
★★★★★
Fontaines D.C.’s latest album is another step forward - in maturity and storytelling, as much as the band’s always impressive breadth of sound.
George Harrison’s Widow to Publish a Book of Poems Dedicated to Beatles Icon
Martin Scorsese has provided an introduction to the collection of poems by Olivia Harrison, releasing June 21.
Pete Doherty to Publish a New Memoir Called ‘A Likely Lad’
Pete Doherty has announced he’ll publish a memoir called A Likely Lad, which will be released on 16th June.
Little Simz Cancels US Tour Due to Financial Pressures as an Independent Artist
Little Simz has had to cancel her North American tour due to the “huge deficit” it would put her in as an independent artist.
Thomas Rhett: ‘My family are brutally honest about the songs they like – and the ones they don’t’
Thomas Rhett is just about everything you want in a modern-day country star; a Grammy-nominated singer who, despite all his successes, still remains firmly rooted in family, home and his everyday surroundings.
British Composer Sir Harrison Birtwistle Dies at 87
Sir Harrison Birtwistle, one of the most celebrated British composers of the 20th Century, has passed away at the age of 87.
Kendrick Lamar Announces Release of New Album, Mr Morale & The Big Steppers
It’s been five years since Kendrick Lamar’s last album, DAMN, and the wait for a follow-up is nearly over, with ‘Mr Morale & The Big Steppers’ set for a release on 13th May.
Sting at the Palladium Review: For Fans Who Love Sting (as Much as he Loves Himself)
★★★☆☆
The former Police frontman shows that he’s aged liked a fine wine at the Palladium – though is perhaps slightly drunk on narcissism as a consequence.
whynow New Music Friday - April 15
The sun is shining and we've got a four day weekend. Better still, it's that time of the week again: New Music Friday. Find this week's selection below.
Ride’s Loz Colbert: ‘Shoegaze visually would be the kind of art Rothko might make’
With reissues of their first four EP’s, as well as their first two studio albums, Nowhere (1990) and Going Blank Again (1992), we speak to the drummer of Ride, Laurence “Loz” Colbert.
Blind Melon: ‘The career was five years and then gone in the blink of an eye’
With a new film out now in the UK, which intimately details the heady rise and tragedy that the band Blind Melon experienced, we speak to guitarist and original member Christopher Thorn.
Ed Sheeran court decision will make 'the little guy' think twice before suing
The ruling announced this morning by Mr Justice Zacaroli is one that sets a precedent for the rest of the music industry – and will make smaller artists think twice before suing such stars of Ed Sheeran’s calibre.
'George Harrison is coming to dinner': The Family Who Introduced the Beatles to Indian Music
When George Harrison snapped a sitar string in 1965, a family from Finchley came to the rescue. This is the story of Ayana and Patricia Angadi and the role they played in shaping 60s British popular culture. Mae Losasso speaks to their daughter, Chandrika Casali, about Paul, peanuts, and swimming in George’s pool.
