Category: Music News

ULU is playing host to some of the best new bands around, and will also have XFM’s Marsha spinning the best indie has to offer.

First up are Ludes, who have recently released an album, The Dark Art Of Happiness, toured with Mystery Jets and even played at Alexander McQueen’s fashion show in Milan.

Then Members Of The Public follow, a band who will appeal to fans of the Super Furries and Spiritualized and who’ve been building their reputation supporting the likes of Editors and The Rakes.

Finally Zero Point Field, who recently supported Kula Shaker at their comeback show, will showcase their talent. You’re really being spoiled.

The event will take place from 10pm til 2am on Saturday May 20th and will cost £6 on the night, or £5 if you add your name to the mailing list by sending an email here. Students can get in for £4 if they bring an NUS card.

John Kastner has done a lot, from film scores, recorded and toured with his band [All Systems Go] and written songs for the likes of Mark Lanegan and Evan Dando, but now he gets a chance to showcase his talent under his own name as he releases a solo record, Have You Seen Lucky, which is due out on June 26th.

Kastner has been through the major label dealings but has decided on his solo stuff to take a different route. He’s using his experience and moulding his releases himself, distributing them first hand all over the world, so make sure you do yourself a favour and check this out!

www.johnkastner.com

Ben Deily, who was a founding member of The Lemonheads before splitting with Evan Dando, is back with a new musical project. Varsity Drag will release For Crying Out Loud on June 26th, which will feature nine songs showcasing the fact he’s not lost the ability to write some diamonds.

Deily has said that Varsity Drag came about thanks to stalkers! A band named Unbalanced got in touch with him over the internet, got him to one of their gigs and eventually got him on stage, and then into the studio, Varsity Drag is the result. With a back story like that, you can’t really afford to ignore them!

www.bendeily.com

Atmosphere live DJ and all round hardcore motherfucker Mr Dibbs has got a new project ready to rock. He’s teamed up with fellow Self Core Records man Rob Viktum to form 9th Circle.

It is due to be a 9 release run and the first will be out soon featuring Murs and Barfly amongst others.

If you wanna have a listen, then head on over to their myspace page and see what you reckon.

McQueen have signed a deal with Demolition Records to release their debut album Break The Silence this summer. The label has been home to the likes of Twisted Sister, Dave Lee Roth and Hanoi Rocks, so the group will be in good company.

The album will be mixed in part by “Evil” Joe Barressi who has produced for American heavyweights Tool and Queens Of The Stone Age. To support the album, the group will be touring globally so look out for dates. For more info check out www.mcqueenmusic.com and www.myspace.com/mcqueen

70’s guitar legend Ted Nugent has slammed former metal heavyweights Pantera for their apparently “soulless” cover of his signature track ‘Cat Scratch Fever’.

The attack came via a posting on his official message boards in which “Hunky Ted” branded the cover as “too white, with no balls and no soul”. Nugent also caused outrage among the rock and metal communities with comments about slain Pantera guitarist Darrell ‘Dimebag’ Abbott, claiming that he: “never thought too highly of anyone foolish enough to take on the nickname of a life-destroying dope product and promote such family-destroying conduct on stage”.

Abbott was gunned down onstage at an Ohio nightclub in December 2004 by crazed Pantera fan Nathan Gale, who reportedly blamed him for the bands’ 2002 break-up. Gale also murdered 4 others including band and venue staff as well as one fan. Gale had a documented history of mental illness, using a weapon bought for him by his mother as a gift.

If you’re up in Sheffield on June 5th, or anywhere nearby, then make sure you hot step it to the upstairs of Takapuna.

If you do, you’ll be lucky enough to witness the awesome talents of the Lightfoot Players – Danny Ward, Steve Brown and Stuart McCallum.

It’s only £3 before 11pm and still cheap at £4 after 11pm. We’ll be watching you, so if you don’t turn up, we’ll be taking names.

Orange County based quartet Bullets And Octane will release their second album, ‘In The Mouth Of The Young‘, on June 5th. Produced by Helmet frontman Page Hamilton, it’s a deeply decadent mix of raw punk and classic hard rock influences, and is an essential listen for fans of bands like Social Distortion and Guns N’ Roses.

Having visited these shores with Avenged Sevenfold back in March, Bullets And Octane are now set to make their debut UK festival appearance at Download on June 9th, where they will play on the Myspace/Gibson stage.

Check out an interview with the band here.

He’s never far from scandal, but this time Doherty really has taken it to the next level. He’s in hot bother with MTV after an incident during an interview for them.

Initially he refused to talk to reporters, leaving bandmates Drew and Adam to answer questions, before he finally decided to join them. Then he took out a syringe of his own blood and squirted it at the camera proclaiming it’d “make a cracking link”.

The incident pissed off Drew so much that he apologised and left telling Doherty that what he did was “fucked up” and left the MTV staff having to sterilise all their filming equipment.

Pimp the video at www.mtv.co.uk/overdrive

www.babyshambles.com

Big Dada’s producer extraordinaire, Diplo, is diving into the UK to play a free show on Thursday May 18th.

The American beatsmith, who has produced for the likes of Kano and MIA, as well as providing one of the finest intrumental albums of the past 5 years with Florida, is bringing over Bonde Do Role from Brazil.

The showcase will start at 7pm at The Old Blue Last in Shoreditch and is absolutely free. This promises to be as colourful and danceable a show as you can get, so make sure you mosey on down there and shake your booty!