The WAEVE – the duo of Graham Coxon and Rose Elinor Dougall – have released a new single, ‘Broken Boys’. It’s lifted from their upcoming second album City Lights, which has already been previewed by the title track and ‘You Saw’. Check it out below.
City Lights, the follow-up to the WAEVE’s self-titled 2023 debut, will arrive on September 20 via Transgressive Records.
Ahead of the release of their new album Midas on Friday, Wunderhorse have released one more single called ‘Arizona’. They’ve also shared an intimate acoustic rendition of the track, performed by frontman Jacob Slater. Take a listen below.
Following the band’s 2022 debut Cub, the new album was recorded at Minnesota’s Pachyderm Studio with producer Craig Silvey. “When we first went into the studio to make this record, the only thing we were sure about is how we wanted it to sound: very imperfect, very live, very raw,” Slater explained. “We wanted it to sound like your face is pressed up against the amplifiers, like you’ve been locked inside the bass drum.”
London-based group Man/Woman/Chainsaw have dropped a new single, ‘Grow a Tongue in Time’. It’s set to appear on their upcoming debut EP Eazy Peazy alongside last month’s ‘Ode to Clio’. Check it out below.
“[Grow A Tongue In Time] is a stream-of-consciousness look at jealousy, desire and self-pity,” the band explained in a statement. “This began with a very stripped back arrangement on just bass, which gradually grew as we added different elements, from droning violin to creaking bowed guitar. Although It’s a moment of calm in the chaos of the set, the song builds its own intensity without relying on aggression.”
Eazy Peazy arrives November 8 on Fat Possum.
two blinks, i love you – the project of Liverpool songwriter Liam Brown – has released a new single titled ‘my girl‘. Check it out below.
Speaking about the track, Brown said: “It feels lyrically about leaning on someone you love, in good and bad ways. A love between two people that can be so far from each other in style, and this causing a fundamental rift. I think those feelings can ultimately make two people feel lonelier. The video reflects that – it is a kind of insular day in the life diary entry of my time in New York, about feeling a bit lost and aimless being essentially a tiny tiny fish in that massive pond of a city. I think even though there is so much going on in New York and the video, there’s a stillness too that I think has naturally weaved its way through the video because it’s so personal and intimate.”
Orla Gartland has teamed up with Declan McKenna for the new song ‘Late to the Party’. It’s the latest single from her upcoming sophomore album Everybody Needs a Hero, and it comes with an accompanying video. Check it out below.
“‘Late To The Party’ is a big old bratty song about resenting the baggage that you inherit when you love someone and yearning for a time when we were all a blank slate,” Gartland explained in a statement. “I wanted a song on the record that shifted in pace a lot, something fun and loud, something indulgent. I first wrote ‘Late To The Party’ over a couple of solo sittings in my studio, mumbling out the lyrics while playing drums.”
“A few months later I sent the song to Declan – for me he is one of the absolute greats, a properly timeless artist & writer,” she continued. “We worked on the song remotely at first, sending stems back & forth and then jumped in the studio for a day to dismantle the song & put it all back together. Dec’s parts & energy added so much to the track for me and after months of revisiting it ‘Late To The Party’ was suddenly complete.”
Everybody Needs a Hero, the follow-up to 2021’s Woman on the Internet, comes out October 4. Revisit our Artist Spotlight interview with Orla Gartland.
Canadian post-rock titans Godspeed You! Black Emperor have announced a new album called “NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD”, referring to the number of Palestinians killed by Israeli strikes on Gaza since October 7, 2023, as of February 13, 2024. It’s set for release on October 4 via Constellation Records. The record’s first single is its seven-minute closing track, ‘GREY RUBBLE – GREEN SHOOTS’. Check it out below.
The Bandcamp description for the album reads:
THE PLAIN TRUTH==
we drifted through it, arguing.
every day a new war crime, every day a flower bloom.
we sat down together and wrote it in one room,
and then sat down in a different room, recording.
NO TITLE= what gestures make sense while tiny bodies fall? what context? what broken melody?
and then a tally and a date to mark a point on the line, the negative process, the growing pile.
the sun setting above beds of ash
while we sat together, arguing.
the old world order barely pretended to care.
this new century will be crueler still.
war is coming.
don’t give up.
pick a side.
hang on.
love.
GY!BE
“NO TITLE… was engineered and mixed by longtime collaborator Jace Lasek of the Besnard Lakes. Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s last LP was 2021’s G_d’s Pee AT STATE’S END!.
“NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD” Cover Artwork:
“NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD” Tracklist:
1. SUN IS A HOLE SUN IS VAPORS
2. BABYS IN A THUNDERCLOUD
3. RAINDROPS CAST IN LEAD
4. BROKEN SPIRES AT DEAD KAPITAL
5. PALE SPECTATOR TAKES PHOTOGRAPHS
6. GREY RUBBLE – GREEN SHOOTS
— Constellation (@cstrecords) August 27, 2024
Godspeed You! Black Emperor 2024 Tour Dates:
27 Sep – Dublin, IE – National Stadium
29 Sep – London, UK – Troxy
30 Sep – Glasgow, UK – Barrowlands
1 Oct – Manchester, UK – Ritz
2 Oct – Bristol, UK – Marble Factory
3 Oct – Coventry, UK – The Empire
4 Oct – Tourcoing, FR – Le Grand Mix
5 Oct – Esch-Alzette, LU – Kufa
6 Oct – Paris, FR – Le Trianon
8 Oct – Nantes, FR – Stereolux
9 Oct – Nancy, FR – L’Autre Canal (Jazz Pulsation Festival)
10 Oct – Zürich, CH – Volkshaus
11 Oct – Lausanne, CH – Les Docks
12 Oct – Frankfurt, DE – Zoom
14 Oct – Berlin, DE – Huxleys
15 Oct – Amsterdam, NE – Paradiso
16 Oct – Brussels, BE – AB
18 Oct – Athens, GR – Floyd
4 Nov – Hamilton ON – Bridgeworks
5 Nov – Toronto ON – The Concert Hall
6 Nov – London ON – London Music Hall
7 Nov – Grand Rapids MI – Elevation
8 Nov – Chicago IL – The Salt Shed
9 Nov – St Paul MN – Palace Theater
11 Nov – Lawrence KS – Liberty Hall
12 Nov – Fayetteville AR – George’s Majestic Lounge
13 Nov – Nashville TN – The Basement East
14 Nov – Knoxville TN – Bijou Theater
15 Nov – Atlanta GA – The Masquerade
16 Nov – Charleston SC – The Music Farm
17 Nov – Saxapahaw NC – Haw River Ballroom
19 Nov – Washington DC – 9:30 Club
21 Nov – Brooklyn NY – Pioneerworks
22 Nov – Norwalk CT – District Music Hall
23 Nov – Boston MA – Roadrunner
24 Nov – Philadelphia PA – Union Transfer
The Clientele have unveiled a new song called ‘Trains in the Night’. Listen to it below.
Last month, the Clientele performed at the Merge 35 festival in North Carolina, celebrating the 35th anniversary of Merge Records. ‘Trains In The Night’ was given away to festival passholders, but wasn’t available anywhere else until today.
The Clientele released their most recent album, I Am Not There Anymore, last year. Read our interview with the band about the inspirations behind the LP.
As much as we love lazing away on some tropical beach or returning to a favorite city for the tenth time, our passport often requires something more of an adventure travel nature. This challenging trip takes us out of both comfort and experience. If you’re a little more daring, however, adventure travel is the perfect way to both see all there is to offer of this planet and push yourself physically — not forgetting to come back home with stories a lifetime long for your next raucous party.
Some might find your inaugural trip to Svalbard intimidating. This Norwegian archipelago lies halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole, another chilly destination. And the laws in Svalbard—or lack of them compared to the rest of the world—can be a bit different.
The archipelago of Svalbard includes three major islands: Spitsbergen, Edgeøya, and Nordaustlandet. Almost all the tourist activity occurs on Spitsbergen, mainly around Longyearbyen. There is only limited accommodation: primarily traditional hotels, fewer hostel rooms, and self-catering apartments in Longyearbyen.
Spitsbergen, the heart of Svalbard, is situated just 1,300 kilometers (roughly 800 miles) from the North Pole and halfway between Norway and Greenland in extreme Arctic latitudes, where it’s dark for at least four months a year during the Polar Night. The best time to visit Svalbard is from late May to September, the peak season for polar expeditions that take visitors on Svalbard tours and sightseeing excursions, and when locals head into the Seasonal Salothorn and Sebek Mountains.
There are a lot of polar bears around when the pack’s ice melts, and they come looking for food. Tours with dog sleds are also possible then, and daily flights make it feasible to visit Svalbard during months other than winter. Spring in Svalbard provides unforgettable polar wildlife moments as you consider when and how to visit Spitsbergen. You do not have to suffer through crowds while exploring Svalbard. You’ll never be in a crowded port on your Arctic Norway polar expedition.
A veteran polar operator best undertakes a cruise to the unique Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard as an expedition voyage. These cruises provide an exceptional experience of witnessing Antarctica’s raw beauty under experts’ tutelage in polar regions.
Adding state-of-the-art ships with knowledgeable recreational staff, such as wildlife guides, glaciologists, and ornithologists, will enhance your experience. Their collective expertise means that you can immerse yourself in the environment of Svalbard and create bespoke experiences that embody an unforgettable experience.
The northern lights, with all their incessantly changing colors and moving waves, are for sure one of the most impressive things you will ever see! While many of us will have seen the northern lights before, for many tourists, it is their first time. Even so, the combination of minimal light pollution and some wonderfully long winter nights means that Svalbard is also one of the best places to go in search of them. And, when all circumstances collide occasionally, you STILL don’t have to leave Longyearbyen to witness this magnificent sight.
When we think about life in the cold North, dog sledding is most likely one of the first things that comes to mind. Dating back to the native Arctic of North America, mushing is a discipline that has been utilized in Northern Europe for more than a century. There’s no better place to give it a shot than Svalbard.
On the ice, you will be pulled by a leash link to much cuter guide staff—you’ll zip around snowy Spitsbergen (the archipelago’s sole island with full-time residents) on a mushing trip behind some nonhuman sled dogs. There is an undeniable opportunity to familiarize yourself with these hardy creatures when you are here. Then, you will learn to use the dogs and guide them during your trip. Not to mention, you can always give them a few kisses as well.
Svalbard is one of the last great wildernesses on Earth, a veritable haven for wildlife thanks to its minimal human presence and undisturbed environment. You do not want to miss seeing some Arctic animals if you love nature. You must be fortunate to see the most majestic creatures here in Svalbard—the polar bear.
Even though they outnumber people on the archipelago, these kings of the Arctic remain elusive. Arctic foxes are similarly hard to spot when snow blends their coats into the background. Head into the sea, and you might even come across some of Svalbard’s nautical wildlife. During different times of the year, you may see beluga whales, ringed seals, walruses, or even narwhals!
If you visit Svalbard in summer, remember a boat trip. Imagine gliding along the jagged coastline, gazing at glaciers hitting an ice-cold sea. It is also one of the most fantastic ways to come across the wildlife in this region. You will pass cliffs covered in seabirds—imagine adorable puffins and raucous Arctic terns.
If you are lucky—walruses, turtles, and even whales. Of course, there is more to see than just the wildlife. Many boat trips will take you past the ghost towns of Svalbard, including the ruins of Grumant, a Soviet village that has been abandoned, and Pyramiden, a ghost town once used for mining.
Spend at least one night in a remote lodge for the grand finale of your Svalbard visit. If you take three nights or more, try the seriously remote outcropping at Isfjord Radio, on Kapp Linné, west of Longyearbyen. Even in winter, you won’t drive from town because there are no roads to the hotel—instead, take a 90km (56 mi) snowmobile journey. In the summer, you can take your boat.
The Isfjord Radio Adventure Hotel may appear tough on the outside, but it offers a warm welcome (as well as other comforts). In idyllic surroundings, you will explore the cultural sights of nearby villages—at various points; we also use a traditional sauna. There are also fine-dining restaurants as well.
Svalbard offers an unparalleled adventure for those exploring one of the world’s last great wildernesses. From chasing the Northern Lights to experiencing the thrill of dog sledding, spotting elusive Arctic wildlife, taking scenic boat tours, and staying in remote lodges, Svalbard is the perfect destination for those looking to push their limits and create lifelong memories in a breathtakingly wild environment.
Building an Instagram community without any engagement is impossible. Instagram engagement is what boosts your social media numbers and improves your popularity. It gives your brand a voice that people cannot ignore. However, you may have noticed that your Instagram posts fail to attract many likes.
Perhaps your videos or photos take hours before they get one appreciation, or maybe your current audience doesn’t feel like leaving comments on your content. Even your follower count may struggle to grow. You can buy Instagram followers fast delivery, but what other methods can you use?
Fortunately, there are a few effective ways to increase Instagram engagement in 2024 and end up with a large and loyal community. Let’s take a look at some effective methods to raise your Instagram engagement rate and attract new followers.
Whether you’re a business or just someone who hopes to become an influencer, you cannot neglect Instagram engagement and its importance. After all, don’t most famous social media stars and brands have tens of thousands of likes?
Now, you shouldn’t strive to boost your interactions solely to see that high number there. Instagram engagement has more than one role, including promoting your page.
The algorithm works in magical ways. It picks up on content with numerous likes and pushes it to more people’s pages. Having more likes is considered a sign of quality. After all, there wouldn’t be so many people liking a post and leaving comments if the content was bad, right?
Figuring that more people might like to see the post with thousands of likes, the photo or video will pop up for more users. They may also interact with your posts by liking, commenting, or sharing, boosting them even more.
And that’s not all – good Instagram engagement also strengthens your credibility. Just think about it this way – you are looking for a new, waterproof eyeliner. You check out the different business pages that promote their products via Instagram posts. During your search, you stumble upon businesses that get up to a few hundred likes and some that get hundreds of thousands. Most likely, you’ll be more inclined to buy from the one with more likes, as these interactions probably mean that people like these products and they’ve tried them without issues before.
Engagement on Instagram involves the way people interact with your page. It comes in different forms, respectively:
All of these things are taken into account by the algorithm, which then recommends your posts to specific users based on their searches and preferences. The more interactions you get on your Instagram account, the more likely your page will get pushed towards more popularity.
But how can you analyze your engagement on the social media platform? Calculating engagement rates can be done with the help of different formulas.
You can start by calculating your account’s engagement overall. This will tell you what the interactions were for your profile during a specific period. The formula goes like this:
Another thing you can do is calculate the engagement for specific posts only. These interactions can include things such as your comments, saves, likes, and story likes. Here’s how you calculate it:
Good engagement rate on Instagram varies from account to account and niche to niche. Not to mention that the ideal rates for accounts keep changing now and then. What the Instagram algorithm considers a good engagement rate depends on things like your activity on the platform, your industry, your follower count, and what type of content you make.
On average, experts think that the ideal engagement rate sits around 3%. At the same time, things may be different in your niche. The excellent news is that you can boost engagement with various tricks.
Growing your engagement might sound challenging, but a well-established Instagram marketing strategy could help. We have a few tips that will make your posts blow up:
The Instagram stories option gained immediate attention following its launch. Despite being available only for 24 hours, they let you share more exclusive content that only your biggest fans can keep up with. With your stories, you can let your personality shine, interact with your followers, and even share special news about account changes or product launches.
What’s great about stories is that they can be personalized with a series of features, including music and stickers. The latter category represents an excellent way to encourage your audience to interact with you, as it includes quizzes, questions, and polls. You can ask your audience to send you questions or even ask them things about themselves and their preferences.
Adding a call-to-action in a post’s caption is an easy yet often forgotten or underestimated move. This simple trick is enough to encourage users to react to your posts in one way or another, whether by just liking, commenting, sharing or all of them.
Now, just remember that this must be worded carefully unless you want it to have the opposite effect. Make it clear and straight to the point. It’s also up to you to choose the type of call to action you include in the description.
It can either be something simple like “Check out the link in bio for more details” or a question, such as “What are some of the most pleasant moments you’ve experienced at concerts? Share them in the comments below!”
If people are encouraged to check out a link in your bio, you must also optimize your account’s bio section to include it so it’s easy to find and access.
People love to watch Instagram reels and videos. So, aside from posting photos, you can also create videos, especially as long as you ensure they align with your niche and your strategy.
More video content leads to more engagement. Many audiences, especially younger ones, prefer shorter videos that get straight to the point. Videos that are too long often bore viewers, although it depends on the topic.
Don’t hesitate to mix your photos and stories with Instagram reels regularly. And don’t feel intimidated when you see all the big names in your industry with the most beautifully edited videos. It’s not that difficult to edit videos anymore, as the Internet is filled with Instagram apps that make the editing process smooth and enjoyable.
What do you prefer – a business/influencer that never interacts with the audience and focuses on looking professional or one that shows a more human side and isn’t afraid to communicate with fans by responding to their comments and sharing their content? If you choose the latter, you’ll probably like the idea of user-generated content.
Individuals love to see content generated by users who follow the same pages and have the same ideas and tastes. So, why not encourage people to give you more likes and comments by sharing user generated content? Even better, you can tag all the users you share content from to keep them loyal and attract their followers.
It should go without saying that high-quality content is a priority. After all, you cannot expect Instagram users to like your posts when you barely make any effort to make your photos and videos look good and spark the viewers’ interest.
Great content involves materials that are relevant to your target audience and provide value. They must look good aesthetically and be enticing enough to make people want to watch them and read the description. They must also encourage fans to spread the content around and interact with it by liking and commenting.
To make sure the content is good enough, use the right editing programs and effects to improve the look of all photos and videos. Also, create content that is either funny, informative, or relatable.
Using relevant hashtags in a post’s description is one of the most common techniques influencers and brands use to boost their content. But adding a few random hashtags won’t necessarily help you much – you must make sure they are related to your brand and content and that you add the just right number.
The Instagram algorithm uses hashtags to classify your content and help people find your posts more easily. If someone interacts a lot with a certain category or follows a particular hashtag, adding it under your Instagram photos and reels will increase their chances of popping up for potential followers.
Research will help you find hashtags that would be relevant enough for your content. You simply need to analyze your competitors and check out the most popular hashtags in your industry. If you are a company selling clothes, hashtags like “fashion” or anything related should help you reach your target audience.
Did you know that carousel posts may provide better results than single images when it comes to spreading information? This type of content is visually appealing and makes people want to learn more. This is why it works for a wide range of scenarios.
To use carousels, you have to choose the right type of content. They could work with repurposed images, educational content, tutorials, and even user generated posts. If you do this right, you can easily increase your page’s Instagram engagement.
People can judge the quality of your account and your dedication from your bio. A boring bio section that adds no value will keep potential followers away. On the other side, a professional bio will encourage them to follow and browse your posts, even liking and sharing them in the end.
After all, the first thing people see when they open your profile is the bio. So, make sure it’s short and clear while saying something about you and who you are. You can use a few hashtags and add a call to action and a link to your website.
Are you ready to take over Instagram using the tips in this article? Make sure that your Instagram profile features compelling and visually appealing content that your audience and potential followers can relate to. Also, write a captivating bio, use hashtags, and share genuine user generated content. Take your time to apply these tactics, and slowly but surely, people will start engaging with your content.
Slots are a staple in both land-based and online casino establishments and have a fascinating history that spans over a century.
From their humble beginnings as mechanical devices to their transformation into sophisticated online games, Slots have continually evolved with the technology advancements, to bring us games such as Gold Cash Freespins, and so many more.
Below, we explore the origins of Slots and their journey into the digital age.
The first slot machine, Liberty Bell, was invented in 1895 by Charles Fey, a San Francisco-based mechanic. This early machine featured three spinning reels and five symbols: hearts, diamonds, spades, horseshoes, and the Liberty Bell, after which the machine was named.
The Liberty Bell slot offered an automatic payout for matching three symbols, with the highest prize being awarded for three liberty bells.
Fey’s invention became immensely popular and laid the foundation for the future of slot machines. The simple yet effective gameplay amassed a wide audience, and the automatic payout mechanism made it a revolutionary device in the gaming industry.
As slot machines grew in popularity, so did their complexity. In the early 20th century, manufacturers began to produce machines with more reels and a greater variety of symbols, increasing the potential combinations and payouts.
The fruit symbols we often associate with classic Slots—cherries, lemons, plums, and the BAR symbols—were introduced during this time. These symbols originated from a time when slot machines dispensed chewing gum as prizes, with each fruit representing a different flavour.
The first major advancement in slot machines came in 1963 with the introduction of the Money Honey by the manufacturing company Bally. This was the first fully electromechanical slot machine, which operated with electrical components rather than purely mechanical ones.
This innovation allowed for larger payouts and the introduction of features such as multiple paylines and more sophisticated game mechanics.
The next significant leap in slot machine technology came in the 1970s with the development of video Slots.
The first video slot, known as Fortune Coin, was introduced in 1976 by a company called Fortune Coin Co. These machines replaced the physical reels with a video screen, allowing for a much greater variety of game themes and features. Video Slots quickly gained popularity, and by the 1980s, they were a common sight in casinos.
The move to video Slots also paved the way for the introduction of Random Number Generators (RNGs). This technology ensured that each spin was entirely random, making the games fairer and more reliable than their mechanical predecessors.
The late 1990s saw the dawn of online casinos and, with them, the birth of online Slots.
The first online Slots were simple adaptations of their land-based counterparts, featuring basic graphics and gameplay. However, as technology advanced, so did the complexity and variety of online Slots.
They quickly became a favourite among players due to their convenience, accessibility, and the vast array of themes and features they could offer. Advanced graphics, animations, and sound effects were introduced.
Additionally, introducing progressive jackpots, where a portion of each bet contributes to a growing prize pool, added another layer to online slot gaming.
Modern online Slots offer many bonus features, including free spins, multipliers, and interactive mini-games, making them much more than just a game of chance. Developers continually push the boundaries of what’s possible, creating innovative gameplay mechanics.
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