Muna Ileiwat has shared a new single from her upcoming debut EP Twenty-Seven. It’s called ‘JOMO’, and it follows the previously released song ‘Pity Party’ and the title track. Listen below.
“‘JOMO’ is the joy of missing out,” Ileiwat explained in a statement. “This song is about me never wanting to leave my house. While some may experience FOMO, this song is for the introverted, glorifying the joy of avoiding social obligations.”
Brooklyn singer-songwriter Nisa has announced a new EP, Exaggerate, sharing its first single and title track. The EP was produced by Nate Amos (of Water From Your Eyes and My Idea) and comes out on September 30 via Hit the North Records. Listen to ‘Exaggerate’ below.
“I had a bit of a personal reckoning last year that resulted in writing a lot of experimental pop music,” Nisa Lumaj explained in a press release. “Some of these songs began to flourish because I was lyrically all over the place. I started sorting them all out into moments where I felt I was connecting with myself and figuring out ways to communicate. Sometimes I feel like I emotionally have trouble sitting in the present moment. This EP was about wanting to will myself into the present and, like, feel things.”
Exaggerate will follow Nisa’s Time To Plant Tears EP, which arrived last December.
Olivia Newton-John has died at the age of 73. Her husband, John Easterling, confirmed the news in a post on the singer’s social media. “Dame Olivia Newton-John passed away peacefully at her Ranch in Southern California this morning, surrounded by family and friends,” he wrote. “We ask that everyone please respect the family’s privacy during this very difficult time.”
The statement continued:
Olivia has been a symbol of triumphs and hope for over 30 years sharing her journey with breast cancer. Her healing inspiration and pioneering experience with plant medicine continues with the Olivia Newton-John Foundation Fund, dedicated to researching plant medicine and cancer. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that any donations be made in her memory to the Olivia Newton-John Foundation Fund (ONJFoundationFund.org).
Olivia is survived by her husband John Easterling; daughter Chloe Lattanzi; sister Sarah Newton-John; brother Toby Newton-John; nieces and nephews Tottie, Fiona and Brett Goldsmith; Emerson, Charlie, Zac, Jeremy, Randall, and Pierz Newton-John; Jude Newton-Stock, Layla Lee; Kira and Tasha Edelstein; and Brin and Valerie Hall.
Although born in Cambridge, England, Newton-John grew up in Melbourne, Australia, where her father worked as a German professor and as the headmaster of Ormond College. During her teenage years, she formed an all-female vocal group called the Sol Four along with three school friends. After the group split up, Newton-John entered and won a talent contest on the television program Sing, Sing, Sing that earned her a trip to London, where she formed a duo with another Australian singer, Pat Carroll, who left Britain once her visa expired. Newton-John then recorded her first single, a version of Jackie DeShannon’s ‘Till You Say You’ll Be Mine’, for Decca Records in 1966.
Newton-John would go on to join Toomorrow, a bubblegum group formed by producer Don Kirshner that starred in the science fiction musical film of the same name and scored one minor British hit, ‘I Could Never Live Without Your Love’, in 1970. Newton-John’s first solo album, If Not for You, came out a year later. Its first single, a rendition of Bob Dylan’s ‘If Not for You’, became her first international hit, with its follow-up, ‘Banks of the Ohio’, reaching the Top 10 in the UK and Australia.
Although her second UK album, Olivia, never saw an official release in the US, the title track to her next album, Let Me Be There, was a huge success, winning her a Grammy Award for Best Country Female. A series of hit singles followed, including ‘If You Love Me (Let Me Know)’, ‘I Honestly Love You’, ‘Have You Never Been Mellow’, and ‘Please Mr. Please’. After moving to Los Angeles in 1974, Newton-John won the Female Vocalist of the Year award from the Country Music Association; her success in the genre sparked controversy among the industry’s purists, with many members of the CMA quitting the organization in protest.
In 1978, Newton-John’s career skyrocketed when she starred in the movie adaptation of the Broadway musical Grease opposite John Travolta. Its soundtrack album spent 12 non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 and spawned three massive hits: ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You’, ‘Summer Nights’, and ‘You’re the One That I Want’, which topped both the US and British charts. Later that year, Newton-John released her next record, Totally Hot, which boasted a mix of soft rock and disco. Her first film appearance after Grease was in Xanadu with Gene Kelly and Michael Beck; although the film was not a success, its soundtrack – which featured ‘Magic’, the the title track with ELO, and the Cliff Richard duet ‘Suddenly’ – was a hit.
Newton-John continued shifting her image and leaned more towards rock with her next album, Physical. It became her biggest commercial success, yielding the hugely popular title song as well as ‘Make a Move on Me’, a Top 10 hit. She went on to star in another film with John Travolta, the 1983 comedy Two of a Kind; the movie bombed, but a song recorded for it, ‘Twist of Fate’, was another hit. Following her marriage with actor Matt Lattanzi, Newton-John released Soul Kiss, which had a more lukewarm reception. In 1986, she had her daughter Chloe and went on a nearly three-year hiatus, returning in 1988 with the album The Rumour. Her daughter appeared on the cover of her subequent children’s recordm Warm and Tender.
In 1992, shortly after releasing her third hits collection, Back to Basics: The Essential Collection 1971–1992, Newton-John was diagnosed with breast cancer. She recovered after undergoing treatment over the next year and became an advocate for breast cancer research and other health issues. She was also devoted to several environmental and animal rights causes, having canceled a 1978 tour of Japan to protest the killing of dolphins caught in tuna fishing nets. In 2008, she opened the Olivia Newton-John Cancer and Wellness Centre in Melbourne, Australia. In 2012, she reunited with Travolta for a holiday charity album called This Christmas and starred in the Australian comedy A Few Best Men. A few years later, she teamed up with Amy Sky and Beth Nielsen Chapman for the inspirational album LIVE ON. In January of last year, she released a new song, ‘Window in the Wall’, which was recorded with her daughter Chloe.
Everybody dreams of hitting a life-changing prize in a casino. Slot games are among the most popular ones in casinos since they don’t require any skills, and they are fast-paced and entertaining games. The gambling industry moved online, and online slots dominate the offer of any online casino.
Among thousands of titles, those with the progressive jackpot feature are among the most attractive ones. Some of them provide an enormous number of ways to win the prize, and Megaways online slot is the most famous representative.
We have explored its entertaining game and bring you details about the Megaways slot.
The Basics of Megaways Slots
The world of Megaways slots enjoys a big expansion due to the nature of this game. Unlike the traditional slots that provide from ten to 243 winning ways, players have more than 100,000 ways to win a game in Megaways. Some of them go even up to a million possible winning combinations! Therefore, it’s not surprising why these online slots attract so many players.
Software developers and online casinos have recognized this, and players have hundreds of titles of these games at their disposal. One question arises, how do these games provide such a large number of winning combinations? Megaways online slots shift reels to create more paylines, which increases players’ chances to make profits from their Megaways gameplay.
You can try out the game at one of the best Megaways casinos reviewed here. It doesn’t matter if you are an inexperienced player, you can try out your luck and possibly win a massive prize.
The Popularity of Megaways Slots
Megaways slots have spiced up the online casino gaming world with their innovations. Of course, the main reason for their popularity lies in the big potential to win the prize. It’s not strange that gamblers want to try out these games since they provide thousands of hundreds of winning ways. With an increased chance to win a spin as new spaces are added to each reel, Megaways slots offer a huge thrill.
Another reason why Megaways slots are so popular is the innovative moment. These online slot games are relatively new, and players enjoy this concept that differs from the classic one. An increased number of players of Megaways slots contribute to a bigger jackpot, and both casinos and players can benefit from the popularity of these games.
Although winning a progressive jackpot is a one-in-a-lifetime prize that is hard to land, players can still earn as much as 10,000x their stake, or even more in some particular Megaways slots games.
Are Megaways Slots Worth Playing?
As with any other casino game, Megaways slots also have their pros and cons. Nevertheless, with this game craze around Megaways, it is definitely worth trying these slots. You don’t need to be a professional player to win a big prize. Also, you don’t need to play with a lot of money to get significant returns. Even with small stakes, players can make solid profits thanks to numerous ways to win.
You can try something new and unique thanks to Megaways slots, and these online slot games have big potential. The prize you win may not change your life, but you can start accumulating smaller wins since Megaways provide so many paylines. You will experience more consistent payouts, which other games cannot offer.
Also, players can enjoy Megaways on their smartphones and tablets, and they are not restricted to playing this slot game only in the comfort of their homes in front of their PCs. Therefore, Megaways slots will continue being popular among players, at least until something new and more innovative hits the stage.
What Are the Most Popular Megaways Slots?
We’ve already mentioned that players can pick among hundreds of titles of Megaways slot games. Nevertheless, some are more popular than others, mostly due to a more exciting gameplay experience and bigger Return to Player. Perhaps, White Rabbit Megaways is among the most famous ones due to its high RTP that goes almost to 98% (97.72%)! It is quite a tall figure for an online slot game, but the nature of Megaways slots provides an extra advantage compared to other slot games.
Gamblers like to try out their luck at Medusa Megaways and Gorilla Gold Megaways also, while Primal Megaways also finds its place among the most played slots. Eventually, it is up to personal preferences, but nobody can deny that these Megaways slots don’t attract a vast number of players.
Conclusion
After considering all the specifics around Megaways slots, we are not surprised why they gained such high popularity among gamblers. These online slot games offer much more paylines than the regular titles and, therefore, a bigger probability of winning some money.
Try out your luck at some of these games, and even if you don’t win a jackpot, you may collect decent returns and have a lot of fun!
Competition among retailers is fierce. If you have an online store, and you sell products, it’s natural to want to be at the top of the tree. As studies show that over 90% of consumers check reviews before making a purchase, it has never been more important to achieve rave reviews. In this guide, we’ll outline effective steps you can take to boost customer ratings.
Outstanding customer service
Bad customer service is the most common reason consumers leave negative feedback and low review scores. If there are delays, it’s impossible to contact the business, emails go unnoticed, or staff are rude, this can contribute to negative reviews. Over 95% of customers will leave a business as a result of poor customer service. To optimize ratings, aim to provide your customers with outstanding customer service. Provide updates on each order, offer help and advice through responsive support channels and make sure your clients can get in touch. Live chat is brilliant for online stores and websites, and it’s also helpful to check social media feeds and email inquiries. If you run into trouble that is beyond your control, for example, a problem with your delivery company, explain the situation, keep your customers in the loop and offer compensation. You could refund the delivery charge, for example, or offer a discount on the next purchase.
Product presentation
Online shopping has become incredibly popular. Most customers are used to receiving packages through the mail, but this doesn’t mean that their expectations are any lower than they were when online ordering launched. Customers want to be able to open a parcel or a box and find that the product they ordered is in pristine condition. Always ensure that you go the extra mile to present your product well and protect it during transit. Look for companies that specialize in custom packaging for small business operations, and work with reputable logistics and delivery firms. As well as ensuring that products arrive on time in excellent condition, you can also use packaging and added extras to promote your brand and enhance the customer experience. Consider using branding bags or boxes, or including a promotional sticker or free samples for another product from your range, for example.
Quality
Poor quality products are another common reason why shoppers leave negative comments on review sites. Implement quality control, check orders before they leave the store or warehouse and make sure you have policies in place to deal with customers if they receive broken or damaged items. Enhancing quality and using high-quality materials can add value, which will set your business apart. If there is an issue with a product, communicate with the customer and resolve the problem promptly. You could offer to replace the product or give the client a refund.
More than 90% of consumers use reviews to help them make buying decisions. As a business owner, it’s crucial to understand the impact of reviews and to strive for high scores. Provide customers with outstanding service and support, present your products in a way that will appeal to your clients and work with reputable delivery and packaging firms. Check the quality and condition of each item and resolve issues as quickly as possible.
Even without Vol. 1 slapped at the end of its already pretty ridiculous title, a sequel to the first installment of Calvin Harris’ star-studded Funk Wav Bounces series would have always seemed inevitable. It’s not just that the super-producer has rarely pivoted to a new sound after a single album (his first four records can be grouped in pairs); the 2017 collection, while not quite registering as background music, seemed tailor-made to soundtrack summer nights that never end, so another set of chilled-out tracks could only help enhance the experience. It might seem strange that it took half a decade for it to arrive – even stranger that it’s been that long – but now that it’s here, everything about Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 2 makes entirely too much sense.
As is to be expected, the new album retains the formula that made Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 so irresistibly enjoyable: an effortless mix of plush, laid-back R&B and nu-disco that coasts on a certain vibe more than the personality of the artist behind it, or even the impressive cast of A-listers that guest throughout. In promoting the record, Harris has made an even bigger point of his use of live instrumentation, telling Apple Music that he wants “the layers and the grit and the dirt. I don’t want everything to be mixed perfectly.” You can certainly catch some of these new layers on Vol. 2 – the strings on ‘New to You’ and the guitar lick opening ‘Potion’ are particularly nice flourishes – but you’d have to dig pretty deep to find anything resembling “the grit and the dirt.” (For a taste of what he means, check out the grimy guitar tone on ‘Somebody Else’.) For the most part, though, it sounds predictably similar to its predecessor, with a few of the same names – Pharrell Williams, Migos’ Offset, Young Thug, Snoop Dogg – also lending their talents to the new offering.
Funk Wav Bounces Vol. 1 succeeded despite its disinterest in the idea of reinventing dance music, so not changing things up the second time around shouldn’t be to the album’s detriment. Yet Vol. 2, while not exactly missing the mark, pales in comparison to the previous collection, lacking the touch of character and flavour that made it a pleasant surprise. The closest it comes to emulating Vol. 1 standouts ‘Slide’ and ‘Feels’ is ‘Potion’ with Dua Lipa and Young Thug, but like elsewhere on the album, the production is too boilerplate to come across as sultry. While some of the pairings on Vol. 1 were surprisingly effective – Kehlani’s smooth vocals set against Lil Yachty’s rapping, for example – a few here feel surprising but don’t quite work as well, like ‘Obsessed’, in which Shenseea’s strong verses can’t make up for a painfully awkward hook from Charlie Puth. Whatever chemistry there might have been on ‘Stay With Me’, a song with some of the most recognizable names on the planet – Justin Timberlake, Halsey, Pharrell – has been entirely flattened by the vocal layering, prioritizing the hooks of a song that doesn’t really have the best of them.
Some of the most memorable performances on the album stand out in isolation. Even if his rhymes don’t exactly fit the relaxed groove of the record, Busta Rhymes does a lot to turn up the energy halfway through on the straightforward ‘Ready or Not’, while Swae Lee’s melodic crooning adds an unexpected emotional texture to ‘Lean on Me’ just before things come to a close. There are a couple of colourful collaborations, too, among them Stefflon, Chlöe, and Coi Leray’s ‘Woman of the Year’ and the gracefully cinematic ‘New to You’ with Tinashe, Offset, and Normani. But more so than before, Vol. 2 feels less like the kind of breezy, carefree escape you can indulge in at any time and more like a record that needs to find you at the right place at the right time. Everything has to be kind of perfect, which explains why it sounds more polished than any other summer album you’re likely to hear this year. But when the party winds down, you’re left wondering where the real magic is.
Philadelphia guitarist Bill Nace has announced a new LP, Through a Room, which will be released on November 11 via Drag City. Today, Nace has previewed the album with its lead single, ‘Boil First’, which you can hear below.
Nace’s most recent solo album, Both, came out in 2020. Last year, Body/Head, his project with Kim Gordon, put out a collaborative record with experimental musician Aaron Dilloway called Body/Dilloway/Head.
Through a Room Cover Artwork:
Through a Room Tracklist:
1. Intro
2. Les Echoes (Piece For Tuba)
3. Boil First
4. E:E
5. When Orange
6. Crooked Teeth
7. The Giant
8. Ann
9. Outro
Shannen Moser has announced a new album titled The Sun Still Seems To Move. Marking the Philadelphia singer-songwriter’s first new album in over four years, the follow-up to I’ll Sing is set for release on September 30 via Lame-O Records. Check out its lead single ‘Paint By Number’ below, along with the cover artwork and tracklist.
“I wrote this song at a time when days truly just felt like the days were bleeding into one another,” Moser said of the new track in a statement. “I had been experiencing a lot of change in my life and the dichotomy of monotony and chaos at the same time was really confusing – things felt slow and in that I found a lot of comfort despite the sadness and uncertainty. “‘A series of quiet moments makes forever’ you reply” – Leaning into the stillness of those kinds of feelings can be extremely humbling. This song is really an attempt at gratitude for the loved ones in my life and the experience of being able to quiet the darkness for one another.”
Commenting on the album, they added: “At a certain point I was like, let’s just go for it. Let’s just really lean into the sadness of the world. I really wanted to make a thing that I had never made before, because I was feeling a way that I had never felt before.”
The Sun Still Seems To Move features contributions from co-producer Alex Melendez, Tyler Bussey (Thank You Thank You/Strange Ranger), Julia Peters, Maxwell Stern, Tyler Carmody, Mark Nestman, Eric Muth, and Josh Marre (Blue Ranger). “Being able to have a space with my friends and make a record where I was allowed to fully make this art in the face of that pain was really, really beautiful,” Moser explained. “The hands that have touched this record are really special.”
The Sun Still Seems To Move Cover Artwork:
The Sun Still Seems To Move Tracklist:
1. Paint By Number
2. Oh My God
3. Dendrochronology
4. Two Eyes
5. Ben
6. The Sun Still Seems To Move
7. The Bell
8. Foul Ball
9. Liminal
10. Tranquilized
11. Forever
Old Fire, the project of Texas-based composer and producer John Mark Lapham, has announced his sophomore album. Out November 4 via Western Vinyl, Voids includes vocals from Bill Callahan, Adam Torres, Emily Cross, Julia Holter, as well as a host of other musicians. Callahan guests on its lead single, ‘Don’t You Go’, a cover of British singer-songwriter John Martyn that also features Thomas Bartlett on piano, Semay Wu on cello, and Robin Allender on keys and guitars. Check it out below.
“I originally created some ideas for this cover with a composer friend of mine and it laid around without a vocalist for years,” Lapham explained in a statement. “The song really resonated with me so I took my ideas for it and asked Thomas Bartlett to be involved, who in turn recorded a beautiful piano part for it. Bill was the last piece of the puzzle. I set out to find a vocalist who was a little older, someone who could add to the southern gothic feel of the album. I was introduced to him by our mutual friend, Thor Harris, and it evolved from there. Lyrically the themes of loss and mourning of this track fit well into the overall narrative of the album. With the video, I wanted to express those concepts, and portray them as the father being buried alive by his memories and his hurt. As with other elements of Old Fire, the setting had to be West Texas, as there is so much desolation and decay in this area.”
Elaborating on the process of making the album, Lapham said: “I was feeling the brunt of a relationship ending, and the emptiness it left behind. Over the course of compiling the album, I lost both my parents, and the pandemic started. These recordings were born out of that loss, and that isolation. The title Voids was a natural fit.”
Voids Cover Artwork:
Voids Tracklist:
1. All Gone prelude
2. Blue Star [feat. Emily Cross]
3. When I Was In My Prime [feat. Bill Callahan]
4. Corpus [feat. Bill Callahan]
5. Love is Only Dreaming
6. Dreamless [feat. Adam Torres]
7. Don’t You Go [feat. Bill Callahan]
8. Window Without a World [feat. Julia Holter]
9. Void I: Uninvited
10. Void II: Memory
11. Void III: Father as a Child
12. Void IV: Circles
Amsterdam seven-piece Personal Trainer have announced their debut album, Big Love Blanket, which arrives on November 4. Following their 2021 Gazebo EP, the record is led by the new single ‘The Lazer’. Check it out below, along with the album’s cover art and tracklist.
Talking about the track, the band’s Willem Smit explained in a statement:
“The Lazer” was one of the first songs we ever wrote together a band. To me “The Lazer” always felt like my big Personal Trainer anthem. We used to have this shifting line-up situation where I didn’t want to rehearse much, so I wanted to make songs that were very easy to play. “Can you play an A chord and a D chord? Do you want to be in my band?” was the vibe. And that’s “The Lazer.”
It’s easily the oldest song on the record, most trainers hate it – that’s probably because we play it nearly every show, and we played it for an hour straight during our 24-hour show last year – but it always stuck with me. It feels like a logical decision to put it on our first long record.
Big Love Blanket Cover Artwork:
Big Love Blanket Tracklist:
1. Big Love Blanket
2. The Lazer
3. Rug Busters
4. Milk
5. Key Of Ego
6. Texas In The Kitchen
7. Cut Loose
8. The Money Department
9. Former Puppy
10. Vaalserberg Hero
