After returning with the track ‘(Nothing But) Ashes…’ on New Year’s Day, Röyksopp have today released a new one called ‘The Ladder’. The instrumental track comes with a visual directed by Jonathan Zawada. Check it out below.
Torbjørn Brundtland and Svein Berge’s last album as Röyksopp, The Inevitable End, came out in 2014. They declared it their final LP, although they promised to keep making music in other formats. In 2019, they announced a series of rarities that were released periodically as Lost Tapes throughout 2019 and 2020.
Coachella has announced the full lineup for its 2022 edition. Kanye West (officially billed as Ye, his legal name), Billie Eilish, Harry Styles, and Swedish House Mafia will headline the event, which will return in April after two years of postponements and cancellations due to COVID-19. Coachella will take place at Empire Polo Club in Indio, California across two weekends, April 15-17 and 22-24.
The lineup also includes Doja Cat, Lil Baby, Jamie xx, Flume, Run The Jewels, Phoebe Bridgers, Megan Thee Stallion, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Danny Elfman, IDLES, Japanese Breakfast, Carly Rae Jepsen, Freddie Gibbs, BROCKHAMPTON, Denzel Curry, Turnstile, Rina Sawayama, 100 gecs, Spiritualized, Caribou, Madlib, Floating Points, Amber Mark, Vince Staples, slowthai, Mannequin Pussy, black midi, Nilüfer Yanya, Arooj Aftab, PUP, Caroline Polachek, Code Orange, Orville Peck, beabadoobee, girl in red, Channel Tres, and many more.
After a COVID-19-related cancellation, a lineup reveal listed Frank Ocean, Rage Against the Machine, and Travis Scott as headliners for Coachella 2020. Ocean is slated to headline Coachella 2023, while Scott was removed in the wake of the Astroworld 2021 tragedy.
Angel Olsen has offered her take on Karen Dalton’s ‘Something on Your Mind’. The rendition is available today as a 7” single featuring Dalton’s original version on the B-side. In conjunction, a 50th-anniversary expanded reissue of Dalton’s 1971 album In My Own Time is set for release on March 25 via Light in the Attic. Listen Olsen’s version of ‘Something on Your Mind’ below.
Ronnie Spector, the 1960s icon who rose to fame as the leader of the girl group the Ronettes, has died at 78. “Our beloved earth angel, Ronnie, peacefully left this world today after a brief battle with cancer,” her family wrote in a statement posted on the singer’s website. “Ronnie lived her life with a twinkle in her eye, a spunky attitude, a wicked sense of humor and a smile on her face. She was filled with love and gratitude.” Read the full statement below.
Born Veronica Greenfield in 1943 in Harlem, Ronnie led The Ronettes, her pop group with older sister Estelle Bennett and cousin Nedra Talley. She was only a teenager when they started releasing music in the early 1960s and would go on to have such hits as ‘Be My Baby’, ‘Baby, I Love You’, ‘The Best Part of Breakin’ Up’, and ‘Walking in the Rain’. Many of the group’s singles were produced by Phil Spector, who began an affair with Ronnie shortly after he signed them in 1963. In 1964, the Ronnettes released their debut album, Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica.
After the group broke up in 1967, Ronnie married Phil Spector, who reportedly kept his then-wife locked in their Beverly Hills mansion. She detailed the abusive relationship in her 1990 memoir Be My Baby: How I Survived Mascara, Miniskirts and Madness. “As I said many times while he was alive, he was a brilliant producer, but a lousy husband,” she said shortly after the producer died in 2021. “Unfortunately Phil was not able to live and function outside of the recording studio. Darkness set in, many lives were damaged. I still smile whenever I hear the music we made together, and always will. The music will be forever.”
The Spectors split in 1972, by which time Ronnie Spector had begun pursuing a solo career. Her solo records include 1980’s Siren, 1987’s Unfinished Business, 2006’s The Last of the Rock Stars, and 2016’s English Heart. Although Spector’s solo material did not have much presence on the charts in the ’70s, the influence of her previous work continued to grow, influencing artists such as the Ramones and Amy Whinehouse. In 1986, Ronnie sang the chorus of ‘Be My Baby’ on Eddie Money’s hit ‘Take Me Home Tonight/Be My Baby’. The Ronettes’ original also influenced Billy Joel’s ‘Say Goodbye to Hollywood’, and Spector recorded her own version of the song in 1997 with Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band.
Ronnie Spector was inducted into the Vocal Group Hall Of Fame in 2004. In 2007, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the Ronettes.
“Nothing excites me more than just being onstage, having fun and flirting and winking to the guys and stuff like that,” she said in an interview with People in 2017. “I just have so much fun. It’s just the best feeling when I go out and they say, ‘Ladies and gentlemen…’ My heart stops for a minute. ‘…Ronnie Spector and the Ronettes!’ Then I just go out there and the crowd reacts the way they react and I can go on singing forever.”
Family Statement on the Passing of Ronnie Spector:
Our beloved earth angel, Ronnie, peacefully left this world today after a brief battle with cancer. She was with family and in the arms of her husband, Jonathan. Ronnie lived her life with a twinkle in her eye, a spunky attitude, a wicked sense of humor and a smile on her face. She was filled with love and gratitude. Her joyful sound, playful nature and magical presence will live on in all who knew, heard or saw her.
In lieu of flowers, Ronnie requested that donations be made to your local women’s shelter or to the American Indian College Fund. A celebration of Ronnie’s life and music will be announced in the future. The family respectfully asks for privacy at this time.
Midlake have released a new song, ‘Bethel Woods’, taken from their forthcoming LP FOR THE SAKE OF BETHEL WOODS. The single is accompanied by a music video starring Michael Peña. Check out the Brantley Gutierrez-directed clip below.
“’Bethel Woods’ lyrically was born out of a documentary film still of Dave Chandler (Jesse’s Dad) at 16 years old sitting in the massive crowd of Woodstock in 1969,” Midlake frontman Eric Pulido said in a statement. “Dave died a few years ago in tragic circumstances and I was moved to write this song from his point of view with a message of peace in returning to that special place and reuniting with loved ones ‘down the road’.”
Gutierrez added: “When Midlake approached me to direct the video for ‘Bethel Woods’ I knew I wanted to do a take on a ghost story. To play with the idea of returning to a place full of memories. The concept of emotional attachment to the people and the memories in those places, what the confusion might feel like for those who have passed on. Working with the highly talented Michael Peña was an absolute pleasure; he brought something to the character that felt honest and relatable.”
Midlake’s new album, the follow-up to 2013’s Antiphonis, arrives on March 18 via ATO. The band previously shared the lead single ‘Meanwhile…’.
Shamir has released a new song called ‘Reproductive’, the latest offering from his forthcoming album Heterosexuality. The track arrives with an accompanying video directed by Will Schaeffer. Check it out below.
“‘Reproductive’ is a song that holds many meanings,” Shamir explained in a statement. “It’s not as thematically poignant as most of my other songs. It’s a lyrically dense lament that touches on highly personal grievances such as generational curses, karma, and love.”
Heterosexuality is due for release on February 11 via AntiFragile. So far, Shamir has previewed the LP with the songs ‘Gay Agenda’ and ‘Cisgender’, the latter of which made our Best New Songs list.
Christian Lee Huston has shared the details of his new album, Quitters, which will be released on April 1 via ANTI-. The LP was produced by Phoebe Bridgers and Conor Oberst, and its latest single, ‘Rubberneckers’, features backing vocals from Brigders. Check out the song’s Zoe Donahoe and Adam Sputh-directed video below.
“I made the ‘Rubberneckers’ video with my friends Zoe and Adam, who I worked with on the ‘Lose This Number’ video,” Hutson said in a statement. “The last time I danced was at the eighth grade social and it was mainly just swaying to ‘I Don’t Wanna Miss a Thing,’ but I wanted to showcase what a natural, gifted dancer I am.”
Of the album, which follows 2020’s Beginners, he added: “When we made Beginners, the aim was to make simple digital recordings of how I would play the songs in the room. With this record, Phoebe and Conor had an idea that it would be fun to make it to tape. Phoebe is my best friend and making Beginners with her was so comfortable and easy. So I wanted to work with her again.”
“I took a long time with Beginners,” Hutson continued. “I had those songs for 10 years, but these songs came out a lot faster. There was a little bit of insecurity with the lyrics. Having Conor there served the purpose of someone who I really respect as a lyricist and could soothe my anxiety.”
1. Strawberry Lemonade
2. Endangered Birds
3. Rubberneckers
4. Sitting Up With A Sick Friend
5. Age Difference
6. Blank Check
7. Cherry
8. State Bird
9. Teddy’s Song
10. Black Cat
11. Creature Feature
12. OCDemon
13. Triple Axel
UK post-hardcore band Rolo Tomassi have released a new song called ‘Closer’, taken from their upcoming album Where Myth Becomes Memory. It arrives today alongside a video directed by David Gregory. Check it out below.
“We wanted to show a completely different side to the record by releasing this single,” keyboardist and vocalist James Spence said of ‘Closer’ in a statement. “The album is full of lighter, more gentle moments to contrast the darker side to it and none more so than this.”
“The narrative side to the video is about the constant cycle of change,” vocalist Eva Korman added. “For better or worse, we take our past experiences with us into constantly evolving new beginnings.”
Where Myth Becomes Memory, the follow-up to 2018’s Time Will Die And Love Will Bury It, is out February 4 via MNRK. So far, the band has shared the singles ‘Cloaked’ and ‘Drip’.
New Zealand alt-pop band Yumi Zouma have announced their fourth album with the single ‘The Eyes of Our Love’. Present Tense, the follow-up to 2020’s Truth or Consequences, comes out on March 18 via Polyvinyl and includes previous offerings ‘Give It Hell’ and ‘Mona Lisa’. Check out the new track, alongside a video directed by filmmaker Alex Ross Perry, below.
“Recorded at 204bpm, ‘In The Eyes Of Our Love’ is a rip-roaring belter of a track and the fastest song we’ve ever written,” the group’s Charlie Ryder remarked in a statement. “What started out as an homage to Fast & The Furious: Tokyo Drift ended up as a love song set against a backdrop of torture and insurrection stoked by the Nixon administration, so if you like songs with two bridges and strong socialist leanings, then ‘In The Eyes Of Our Love’ could be the track for you!”
“Agreeing to make three interconnected videos was something I should have thought about for longer than 15 seconds before agreeing to it,” Perry added. “The anxiety of conceptualizing a small story, that can be told without dialogue, and set to music, gripped me from the moment my video call with the band ended. Their thoughts were excellent, specific, and unachievable with the time and resources I would be able to pull together. But I began to feel inspired by the concept of taking these vast ideas and situating them within a single location, transforming the aesthetic, visuals and mood to match the three different songs. My only chance for success was to rely heavily on a great cast and crew to create these spaces and film them in a way that felt consistently alive and unique. Fortunately for me, they all over delivered.”
Present Tense Cover Artwork:
Present Tense Tracklist:
1. Give It Hell
2. Mona Lisa
3. If I Had The Heart For Chasing
4. Where The Light Used To Lay
5. Razorblade
6. In The Eyes Of Our Love
7. Of Me And You
8. Honestly, It’s Fine
9. Haunt
10. Astral Projection
Boy Harsher, the Northampton-based duo of vocalist/lyricist Jae Matthews and producer Augustus Muller, have shared ‘Machina’, the third and final advance track from their upcoming album The Runner (Original Soundtrack). The new single performed by Mariana Saldaña of Boan, sung in both Spanish and English. Check it out via the self-directed video, produced by Muted Widows, below.
According to Muller, ‘Machina’ was inspired by the time he spent in Mexico City, at the renowned dance club Patrick Miller. “I was reminiscing about Friday nights at Patrick Miller,” he explained. “I was trying to create an artefact from a club in a far off place and an unknown time. Mariana and I were sending each other old freestyle and Hi NRG videos and just having fun.”
The Runner (Original Soundtrack) is out January 21 via Nude Club/City Slang. Its accompanying horror film arrives on January 16 on Shudder.
