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Music News

Winston Smith ties the knot..

Legendary montage artist Winston Smith and lover Chick Fontaine tied the knot recently in the Washington Square Bar & Grill, North Beach, San Francisco.

Famous for his artwork with the Dead Kennedy’s, Green Day and many more, Winston has always impressed people all over the world with his knack of finding wild images and sowing them all together to make something unique to view.

Look out for an interview with the man himself on this site very soon and congratulations to the new couple.

Check out Winstons incredible books for your living room at www.winstonsmith.com

Categories
Music News

Motorhead Album And Tour!

Legendary group Motorhead have just finished their new album, Kiss Of Death, which is due to be released in August, and are currently touring Europe, wowing crowds everywhere. The group have confirmed they will return to the UK with some live shows and the dates are [all with Clutch]:

October:

31st – Dublin The Point

November:

2nd – Newcastle City Hall
4th – GlasgowAcademy
5th – Manchester Apollo
7th – Bradford St. George’s
8th – Sheffield City Hall
9th – Birmingham Academy
11th – Cardiff University
12th – Oxford New Theatre
13th – Leicester De Montfort Hall
15th – Norwich UEA
16th – Cambridge Corn Exchange
17th – Ipswich Regent
19th – Nottingham Rock City
20th – Bristol Colston Hall
21st – Plymouth Pavilion
23rd – PortsmouthGuildhall
24th – Folkstone Leas Cliff Hall
25th – London Brixton Academy

www.imotorhead.com

Categories
Buzz Chart

The Sleepy Jackson

In 2003, singer songwriter Luke Steele and co delivered The Sleepy Jackson‘s debut album “Lovers”, a record that earnt critical aclaim and went down as one of the records of the year, but where do you go once you have made the lights shine in the ether for that tricky second album?

Well there’s only 2 routes, it’s either going to be downhill from here or simply genius. The latter describes this brand new single “God Lead Your Soul” as this single is practically your soundtrack for the summer right here. Filled with Steele’s trademark vocals and sweeping string solo’s, “God Leads Your Soul” delivers just that, it’s a soulful tune that will have you encapsulated into The Sleepy Jackson formula that we all know works so well and is lifted from the forthcoming album “Personality” that will be released later this month

This record has to be played and owned by anypone who loves to indulge themselves in beautiful pop music with an indie edge as this is simply delicious. Out now on these formats:

Two 7″ singles and a CD with bonus non album tracks…

7″ No. 1 DINS 278
7″ No. 2 DINSX 278
CD DINSDX 278

The Sleepy Jackson are also on tour right now in the UK throughout July.

Wed 12-Jul Leeds, Cockpit
Thur 13-Jul Manchester University 3
Fri 14-Jul Glasgow King Tuts
Sat 15-Jul Nottingham Rescue Rooms
Mon 17-Jul Oxford Zodiac
Tue 18-Jul London, Scala

Categories
Music News

Hawthorne Heights August Live Dates

Hawthorne Heights have just announced a third gig for August. The group, who are already confirmed for the Reading and Leeds festivals, will also play a headline show at the Islington Academy.

The dates for the gigs are:

August 26th – Reading Festical, The Lock Up Stage
August 27th – Leeds Festival, The Lock Up Stage
August 29th – London Islington Academy (headline show)

www.victoryrecords.com

Categories
The Mix

The Mix – 14/07/06

Well, it’s a month later and a shit load has happened: I went to New York and saw a few gangster rappers selling their cd’s on the street (of which I bought two), then I went to Barcelona for the Sonar festival (which was insane, I would recommend it to anyone), & then England were doing so well in the footy and lost on penalties…..again! (Which was total shit). So a lot of ups and downs for me this month.

There’s not loads of cd’s to look at this month but I’ve found or been sent a couple of little beauties for us to take a look at. First up is:

Dubbledge
Fist Of Jah
(Dented Records)

www.casuallondon.com
www.dentedrecords.co.uk
www.myspace.com/edgemuzic

This is Dubbledge’s debut mixtape and it is red hot! This selection of impressive tracks is scrupulously blended together and the result is spot on. Fist of Jah features some of the best UK artists in the business. With Dr Syntax, Skrein, Genesis Elijah, Wordsmith, Foreign Beggars and Micall Parknsun featuring on various tracks how could you possibly go wrong? This cd is pretty damn raw to say the least. Nice to hear some tunes that make you feel like you could actually be in the room while the tunes are recorded. There is some exceptionally tight production coming from Dag Nabbit, Jabba the Kut, Ghosttown and Shlomo (who you should all know by now).

A couple of tracks you should keep your eye out for are “track 2 Perfect Beatbox feat. Shlomo” and the “So Hip-Hop (remix) feat. Genesis Elijah” Top tracks from top people!

Black Grass
Don’t Leave Me This Way
(Catskills Records)

www.black-grass.com
www.catskillsrecords.com

Brighton’s Black Grass, otherwise known as Mex is back with his hard hittin’ new single, “Don’t Leave Me This Way“, taken from the up and coming “A Hundred Days In One“. Dominique Noiret and Mex were brought together by accident. Mex wrote the music while waiting for a session player to show when the words to the unforgettable 1970’s disco tune (yes, you guessed it) “Don’t Leave Me This Way” jumped into his head and Mex realized that this could work well. A collaboration was born after Mex saw Dominique Noiret, on the front of a magazine, in her Noir Alt Country band and persuaded her to get involved. This is the end result!

This single also features slayer mixes by J Star and “Down & Dirty” with UK emcee extraordinaire, Micall Parknsun behind the microphone. Actually I do prefer this track as it is a bit more my style. If you like the tunes I have covered in the past then this track is for you. A bit more rugged, fuck it. A bit more Hip-Hop.

Bare radio
The One Hour Show

www.bare-records.co.uk
www.hhbradio.com

What can I say? An online radio show that plays amazing tracks fused together with some pleasing mixing. I would definitely play most of the tracks out when im on the ones and twos in some club or bar. All of the archived shows will soon be available for download, just keep checking the websites above. If you go into the media section of the bare-records site you can download loads of unreleased tracks, some tracks that have already been released and a couple of videos that are worth watching, quite impressive really. I was sent their first show on cd when I bought some tunes from suspect-packages & I was impressed. These people will definitely be going somewhere, I’ve been hearing more and more about them recently. Keep your ears peeled.

This weeks sites and sounds:

www.bbc.co.uk/1xtra/hiphop – Lots of stuff on here
www.britishhiphop.co.uk – Different kinds of info on this one
www.hiphopwardrobe.co.uk – American style hip hop clothing
www.ukhip-hop.com – some good videos and tunes on here

Well I know that’s not many tunes for you to drool over but they are top tracks so keep yourselves up to date by getting hold of them if you can. In the meantime, take it easy and don’t work too hard.

The Jektmosphere

Welcome to July and thankfully the beautiful hot weather is upon us and though I’m sitting here writing this as the heaviest rain I’ve seen in years is pounding against my window, I’m still going to keep my smiley face on. I’ve got a nice eclectic mix for this month and it should have something for everyone.

Gilles Peterson
Back In Brazil
(Ether Records)

www.gillespeterson.net

Gilles Peterson is this generation’s John Peel. Let’s face it, there isn’t a style of music, that Gilles doesn’t know about or hasn’t championed to the point of exposure. On this Back To Brazil compilation, he serves up a double disc dosage of tunes from the South American country that will strike a note with anyone and everyone somewhere along the way. On the first CD, entitled Das Velhas, he throws in some mellow jazzy sounding stuff, perfect for warm late nights in the summer, kicking back and just chilling with this in the background. It’s not really my cup of tea, but playing it over my stereo when we had guests over seemed to grab their attention, so clearly there’s something there.

It was the second disc, Novas, that was more up my street. This disc had more of a modern feel to it, with some proper vibes on there that are just perfect for this time of year. My particular favourite is Rappin Hood’s Ze Brasilerio which is a nice traditional guitar sample thrown over a nice sharp beat, it gets that body moving without a doubt. Another track you can’t afford to skip past is Zero DB’s A Pomba Girou featuring the talents of Heidi Vogel – It’s typically bassy and fast paced drums that you would expect to hear at Carnivale. Even the ska-tinged Calma Mamma by Echo Soundsystem is a lovely track to kick things off with, and stays true to the old skool meaning of ska, as if you were being transported straight back to the 1950s and 1960s. And with the likes of Bugz In The Attic in there, you know you can’t go wrong.

A-Skillz
Export 02
(Finger Lickin’)

www.fingerlickin.co.uk

A-Skillz is a name I’d heard mentioned around but wasn’t sure where. It turns out the talented 24 year old has been behind the decks for the likes of Madonna and I have a soft spot for the queen of pop so he’s already gone up in my estimation without even having heard him! In fact, he beat Basement Jaxx and Scratch Perverts on Annie Mac’s mini-mix of the year for Radio 1, so he’s clearly got something. And this record certainly doesn’t let him down. A booming opening to Export 02 which features funky guitars, heavy cutting and some samples from the likes of the Jungle Brothers shows he ain’t messing around.

He continues this brilliant combination up throughout the album and that’s one of the reasons why I liked it so much. Often you’d expect to hear some bangers and then have to skip over the lull in the middle, but there isn’t one on this record. His use of drums are brilliant, whether they’re the main attraction or hiding behind the rappers, they always keep that rhythm hyped and moving along. If you’re into funky shit, then this album is for you. It seems like this is the sort of record you could take to a b-boy jam, press play and then just let it rip for the duration of the dancing. A banger.

Dr Octagon
Aliens [Single]
(Casual Records)

www.thereturnofdroctagon.com

Kool Keith has had untold amounts of guises but arguably the most popular one of them all is Dr Octagon, and finally he’s brought that alter-ego back after a gap of 10 years. Trust me when I say this return single doesn’t disappoint. Starting off with a plodding fuzzy beat interspersed with short sharp bursts vibing in the background from various intstruments, the track floats around with a Portishead-esque Mysterons sound and finally gathers speed with off-key pianos as the Doc tells us all about the threat of Aliens.

The innovative sounding scratching which plugs gaps left by the stop-start of the brass samples gives him yet another sound to rap over before the track ends before you know it. This is one that you might need to play a few times but by the end of the day you’ll have that melody throwing itself around your brain making you believe it’s never been 10 years since Dr Octagon was last here. To paraphrase the great man in the track, you’ll love this records: “Two cans of that’s right”.

New Flesh
Wherever We Go [Single]
(Big Dada)

www.bigdada.com

Big Dada have done it again, they just keep on bringing out great tune after great tune and New Flesh’s new single is no exception. The sub-bass on this track is absolutely amazing, and truly reminiscent of Roots Manuva, who was so impressed by this track that he walked out of Big Dada’s offices carrying a CD-R of it to put on a compilation. But its not just the bass that resonates around the ears, it’s the differences in delivery by the rappers. You’ve got a Carribbean sounding emcee, you’ve got a harder rapping style and a more laid back homely sounding emcee opening the track up.

The violins and acoustic guitars which form the basis of the melody never once sound out of place and the deeply sung chorus finishes the track off as one of the most complete sounding singles I’ve heard from these shores in a long while. Make sure you check this group out and cop this single and the album that it’s from, Universally Dirty.

Gnarls Barkley
Smiley Faces [Single]
(WEA)

www.gnarlsbarkley.com

There’s no point in me discussing how massive Gnarls Barkley have become because let’s face it, after Crazy, we all know. But what I can tell you is that if you haven’t got the album and you want more proof that Dangermouse and Cee-Lo can pen a danceable fun track, then Smiley Faces is the one for you.

Choirs chiming in the background, a simple but headnod-inspiring drum beat and a bassline with such an infectious tune you won’t realise until five hours later when you’re still humming it make this new single from St Elsewhere even better than the first. Go on, do yourselves a favour, pick this up. And put on a smiling face for crying out loud!

So there’s the music for this time around, hope there’s something in there you like. As for the art, we’ve got something by an artist called Mark Jenkins, who does embedding art amongst other things. Check out this photo of his fake person with their head supposedly going through the wall, absolutely genius, and something that doesn’t get tiring to look at. If you want to see some reactions by the general public to this, then throw your cursor over this link and check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SBR8XmE4PA

That’s your lot from me this month. But please do keep emailing me, because I want more and more new music and if you feel I should listen to yours, then hit me up with an email here: sam@caughtinthecrossfire.com because I can honestly never get enough hip hop music. Or if you have art you want featured, then again, email me at that address and I’d be more than happy to have a chat!

Until next time, go and get a tan. Peace,

Abjekt.

Categories
Music News

Panic! At The Disco Add Extra Date

Panic! At The Disco’s two dates at London’s Brixton Academy have both sold out and the band have added a third date for the 22nd of October, which is selling out fast too. So make sure you get to buying a ticket if you want to catch the band whilst they’re over this year.

Dates:

22nd October, London Brixton Academy
23rd October, London Brixton Academy – Sold Out
24th October, London Brixton Academy – Sold Out

www.panicatthedisco.com

Categories
Music News

Deftones Album Title Revealed

The Deftones have decided to call their album Saturday Night Wrist after toying with the idea. The album is recorded and mixed and due for release in October though it could be delayed by the label.

www.deftones.com

Categories
Music News

Lamb Of God Album News

The tracklisting for Lamb Of God’s new album Sacrament has been finalised and the tracks are as follows:

01 – “Walk With Me In Hell”
02 – “Again We Rise”
03 – “Redneck”
04 – “Pathetic”
05 – “Foot To The Throat”
06 – “Descending”
07 – “Blacken The Cursed Sun”
08 – “Forgotten (Lost Angels)”
09 – “Requiem”
10 – “More Time To Kill”
11 – “Beating On Deaths Door”

There will be a deluxe edition of the album with a DVD with videos for Redneck and the making of the album and is due for release in August. The band have also posted a track called Nippon on their myspace, which you can hear by clicking here.

Categories
Music News

Uxfest 2006 Update

Uxfest, which is taking place at the Islington Academy on August 6th, has just confirmed that Captain Everything are the last band to be confirmed on the bill, and the line up is now complete. With 2 stages and 21 bands taking place and money going to charity, this is well worth checking out. The bands playing will be:

Skindred, Captain Everything, Exit Ten, B*Movie Heroes, Architects, Outcryfire, PDHM, Engel, Profane, Forever, Sylosis, NWS, Fireapple Red, Biomechanical, Murder One, Head-On, Kingsize Blues, Inner Rage, Mumrah, Shellshock and Eths.

The money raised from this year’s Uxfest will go to the following charities:

Youth Musicwww.youthmusic.org.uk

Natandy Fundwww.natandy.com

Yeldall www.yeldall.org

www.uxfest.com

Categories
Music News

Basement Jaxx New Album!

Basement Jaxx will return with a new album called Crazy Itch Radio, which is due to be released in September this year. A single, Hush Boy, will precede the album at the end of August.

Currently touring Europe with Robbie Williams, Basement Jaxx will hit the UK with their own headline shows before 2006 is out.

www.basementjaxx.co.uk