Category: Music

Alex James has spoken about upcoming Blur activity which is seemingly set to include estranged guitar player Graham Coxon.

The bass player claimed that the band wanted to give it one last go together, adding that if the reunion doesn’t work out, they will simply split. If the plans for a summer studio session go ahead, it will be their first album since 2003’s Think Tank, which saw Coxon leave the band.

James said:

“We’re all heading into the studio together this summer – Graham’s coming too. We’re gonna see if we’ve still got it. If not, I think we’ll just call it a day.”

www.blur.co.uk

Green Day have released their cover of John Lennon’s Working Class Hero as an iTunes download, to promote Amnesty International’s Lennon covers album, Instant Karma: The Campaign To Save Darfur.

Christina Aguilera, Aerosmith and Jack Johnson will also feature on the album which is out on May 25th. The publishing royalties have been donated to the cause by Yoko Ono who said:

“It’s wonderful that, through this campaign, music which is so familiar to many people of my era will now be embraced by a whole new generation. John’s music set out to inspire change and, in standing up for human rights, we really can make the world a better place”.

www.amnesty.org

Big Boi from Outkast is set to perform an onstage collaboration with the Atlanta Ballet Company.

The rapper will perform at the opening of the ballet’s new season in April 2008. It is reported that Big Boi will team up with choreographer Lauri Stallings and performers from Purple Ribbon Entertainment. Let’s hope his performance doesn’t stank[onia].

www.outkast.com

Lupe Fiasco is set to start recording the follow up to his popular Food & Liquor from last year.

The rapper has said his new record will be called The Cool and has a late October release date planned. Lupe has been busy lately, working with Big O from Japan, a remix of Musiq’s Buddy and Kevin Michaels’ upcoming debut record.

He has also noted that he’s working on a project with “another superstar rapper and someone who is a rapper/producer”. Nice.

www.lupefiasco.com

Strung Out have made their new album’s tracklisting and artwork available.

The album, Blackhawks Over Los Angeles, is due out this June as the follow up to Exile In Oblivion from 2004. The artwork can be seen to the right and the tracklisting is:

1. Calling
2. Blackhawks Over Los Angeles
3. Party In The Hills
4. All The Nations
5. War Called Home, A
6. Letter Home
7. Orchid
8. Dirty Little Secret
9. Downtown
10. King Has Left The Building, The
11. Mission Statement
12. Diver

www.strungout.com

The Ataris will be playing the Vans Store in London this Friday [May 4th]. Make sure you get along!

www.vans.co.uk / www.theataris.com

The Crimea are putting up their second album Secrets Of The Witching Hour as a free download on May 13th.

The free release features Regina Spektor and production from Dave Allen of The Cure. A CD version will also go on sale on June 4th but the plan from the band is to forgo sales revenue in the hope that their popularity will increase on the back of the free download, then make their money back on tour. Their tour dates are:

May:

21st – Bristol Thekla
25th – Stoke Sugarmill
26th – S.Wales Narbeth Queens Hall
29th – Surrey Boiler Room
30th – Reading Fez
31st – Wrexham Central Station

June:

1st – Nottingham Social
2nd – Birmingham Carling Bar Academy
3rd – Liverpool Carling Academy
5th – Leeds Rios
6th – Leicester Charlotte
7th – Wolverhampton Civic
8th – Sheffield Leadmill
9th – Manchester Joshua Brookes
11th – Northampton Soundhaus
13th – Brighton The Barfly
14th – Norwich Arts Centre
15th – Southampton Joiners
16th – Aldershot West End Centre
18th – York Fibbers
19th – Glasgow King Tuts
20th – Edinburgh Cabaret Voltaire

www.thecrimea.net

The Explosion have split up, according to a blog on their myspace.

They didn’t offer any reasons for the split and simply thanked the fans for their support. The band often had trouble in the ranks and had recently left Virgin after a few years on the label.

They still hope to release Bury Me Standing on “some label or another” and are expected to do some farewell shows.

www.myspace.com/theexplosion

Courtney Love is set to auction off some of Kurt Cobain’s belongings.

The former Hole singer has said she plans to sell the Nirvana frontman’s things with auction house Christie’s. She likened her house to a mausoleum and went on to say:

“My daughter doesn’t need to inherit a giant hefty bag full of flannel fucking shirts… A sweater, a guitar and the lyrics to ‘Teen Spirit’ – that’s what my daughter gets. And the rest of it we’ll just fucking sell. “We’ll make a lot of money and give a bunch of it to charity.”

She also made comments about her new record, which will be called Nobody’s Daughter, claiming it was called that because she’s nobody’s daughter or widow, just someone’s mother. There is currently no release date for the album.

www.courtneylove.com