Music news

• To Kill a King: The Spiritual Dark Age review – skilful indie rockers can't cut loose

  11-01-2018 23:30
  (These Are My Bones)Three albums in, and To Kill a King still feel like they are casting around for an identity, and not quite finding one. The Spiritual Dark Age – a title that betrays the lack of a lyrical light touch at times – flits around, alighting on big American rock (My God & Your God, Bar Fights), heavily emoted piano ballads (And Yet …), scratchy post-punk (The Unspeakable Crimes of Peter Popoff), and Mumfords-esque anthemic stadium folk (the title track), witho
  
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• Shame: Songs of Praise review – seething sarky passion and anthemic pop

  11-01-2018 23:15
  (Dead Oceans)Emerging from the same snot-encrusted, verruca-sock culture of south-east London that bred Fat White Family, this group of articulate, sarcastic but impassioned young men are the ones most likely to cross over into traditional indie circles: there’s a Stone Roses-style naive melody on Friction, and Angie is the kind of epic that closed Britpop albums. But there’s also seething post-punk that recalls early Fugazi, and the lyrics – full of blood, spunk and dirt &ndas
  
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• Børns: Blue Madonna review – glam pop with all the latest add-ons

  11-01-2018 23:00
  (Interscope Records)Synthesised falsetto, snapping snares and the bovine fetishisation of youth: Michigan musician Garrett Borns’s second album sports many of the most ubiquitous tropes of contemporary pop. That can lend it a certain banality – opener God Save Our Young Blood, for instance, is characterised solely by hollow glamour (an aesthetic mastered by fellow manufacturer of listless minimalist pop, Lana Del Rey, who provides guest vocals) – but elsewhere there is slightly
  
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• Black Veil Brides: Vale review – outsider-teen goth metallers go pop

  11-01-2018 22:45
  (Lava/Republic)Once inexplicably dubbed “the most controversial band in the universe”, the LA goth metal types have committed yet another outrage by bolstering their bombastic, operatic glam metal with boyband-type big choruses. Thus, Black Sabbath and Thin Lizzy riffs now nestle happily alongside hard-rocking, pop-punk breakdowns and a whiff of One Direction. Coupled with an industrial-sized bag of “whoa whoa”s, it’s actually possible that Vale may broaden their ap
  
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• Ed Jones: For Your Ears Only review – freewheeling jazz with postbop swagger

  11-01-2018 20:00
  (Impossible Ark)Back in the 90s heyday of Britain’s acid-jazz movement, a hot young saxophonist called Ed Jones shared pole position with new horn heroes Courtney Pine and Andy Sheppard – but Jones preferred the creative sidelines (enhancing rap/soul/jazz outfits such as Us3 and Incognito, among others) and has flourished ever since in settings from free-improv to swing. This is the album debut of his fine, seven-year-old quartet – creatively related to mid-period Coltrane, 70s
  
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• Trichotomy: Live with String Quartet review – vivacious, inventive jazz/classical collaboration

  11-01-2018 19:45
  (Trichotomy)Trichotomy, the 19-year-old Australian piano trio sometimes compared with Sweden’s EST for their smart mixes of jazz intricacy and seductive hooks, explored electronica with last year’s Known-Unknown album. With this free Bandcamp download from a 2014 Brisbane live show, they return to acoustic music in an imaginative string-quartet collaboration built around a specially composed suite. As jazz/classical crossovers go, the set vivaciously balances thematic eloquence with
  
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• Stick in the Wheel: Follow Them True review – precision folk with anger, lust and blood

  11-01-2018 19:30
  (From Here)Traditional folk in 2018 feels urgent and fascinatingly new, thanks to bands who channel the raw rage in old folk songs and present it unvarnished. Stick in the Wheel’s 2015 debut, From Here, felt like a rallying cry, as did last year’s collaborative follow-up, From Here: English Folk Field Recordings, marshalling well-known and contemporary singers (Martin Carthy, Lisa Knapp) to sing about place and identity. Follow Them True marches forward. The musicianship is razor-sha
  
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• Xylouris White: Mother review – exciting third lute-drumming fusion is a real thrill

  11-01-2018 19:15
  (Bella Union)George Xylouris and Jim White are one of the most intriguing fusion duos you’ll come across. Xylouris is a Cretan lute player from a distinguished musical family, while White is an Australian drummer best known for his work with Dirty Three. Their two earlier albums were remarkable for their blend of improvisation and energy, and the new set proves they are capable of treating elegant, thoughtful songs with an equal spirit of adventure. Their latest album starts by showing wha
  
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• Eddie Clarke obituary

  11-01-2018 19:10
  Motörhead guitarist who brought a lithe, blues-influenced playing style to the heavy metal group’s soundMotörhead, the British heavy rock band, were not renowned for their good behaviour. In 1979, after playing a set at the Punkaroka Midnight Sun festival in Finland, the trio were warned by the pilot of the airliner on which they were flying home that they would be arrested if they disturbed the other passengers. On hearing this, their guitarist “Fast” Eddie Clarke po
  
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• ‘Partying runs through everything’: the roots of Manchester’s reggae scene

  11-01-2018 18:22
  In the late 70s, soundsystems began blasting out dub in dancehalls around Moss Side, Old Trafford and Hulme, providing a cultural cornerstone for the city’s black community. Now a reggae scene which rivalled London’s is inspiring a new generation
  In the late 1940s, the roots of reggae and dub arrived in Britain along with Jamaican immigrants, eventually turning the island into a lovers’ rock. As West Indian communities settled in Brixton, Notting Hill and Bristol’s St Pau
  
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• 'Fast' Eddie Clarke: a rock'n'roll revivalist who made Motörhead motor

  11-01-2018 17:10
  With Lemmy’s growl and Phil Taylor’s kick drums, ‘Fast’ Eddie Clarke, who has died aged 67, turned Motörhead into something rock had never seenAnd then there were none. With the death of “Fast” Eddie Clarke, from pneumonia, at the age of 67, all three of the members of Motörhead’s greatest lineup have gone. And to be in the greatest lineup of Motörhead was to be part of one of hard rock’s most uncompromising and important bands.Thoug
  
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• A Woman Escaped Her Kidnapper With The Help Of Her Phone's Location Feature

  11-01-2018 15:49
  This is chilling.
  
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• Get to Know: Shame

  11-01-2018 15:47
  We caught up with the exciting new act to find out a little bit more about them and their music...
  
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• Geordie Shore Episode 2 Spoiler Video: Chloe Ferry Covers The Bathroom In Soil After Raging Over Abbie Holborn And Sam Gowland’s Shower Neck On

  11-01-2018 15:36
  Don't miss brand new Geordie Shore, Tuesdays at 10pm on MTV!
  
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• Someone Made Their Own Map For Overwatch And What Happened Next Is Every Fan's Dream

  11-01-2018 15:32
  We didn't know this could happen... Here are all the details.
  
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• SZA Talks Debut GRAMMY Performance

  11-01-2018 15:27
  The 'Supermodel' singer will perform at music's biggest night...
  
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• You Can Buy Nintendo Games for Really Cheap Right Now

  11-01-2018 14:49
  Nintendo Switch, 3DS and Wii U games are all on sale for a short time. Here's how to get them.
  
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• Taylor Swift, Ed Sheeran and Future Party In 'End Game' Trailer

  11-01-2018 14:03
  The '...Ready For It?' singer is unleashing her next blockbuster tonight...
  
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• Motörhead guitarist 'Fast' Eddie Clarke dies

  11-01-2018 14:01
  The last surviving member of the British rock band’s best-known lineup died after contracting pneumoniaMotörhead guitarist “Fast” Eddie Clarke has died at the age of 67. His death was announced on Motörhead’s Facebook page. According to the post, Clarke died peacefully in hospital after suffering from pneumonia.Continue reading...
  
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• Celebrity Big Brother 2018: Courtney Act Explains The Ins And Outs Of Lube

  11-01-2018 13:53
  The CBB housemate is pretty clued up (and lubed up).
  
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• Floribama Shore spoiler: New MTV reality series gets off to a messy start as one of the housemates gets drunk af and pees the bed

  11-01-2018 13:46
  She’s reminding us of a certain ex-Geordie Shore lass…
  
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• Cardi B Says Her Album Is Coming "Sooner Than You Think"

  11-01-2018 13:36
  The 'No Limit' rapper reveals she has outdone herself...
  
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• Camila Cabello: Camila review – Havana hitmaker makes breakups look easy

  11-01-2018 13:30
  What girl band? The singer who left Fifth Harmony has, against the odds, really come up with the goods – from affecting piano ballads to breezy reggaetonFor connoisseurs of the piquant moment when a manufactured pop band goes awry, Camila Cabello’s acrimonious 2016 departure from US X Factor runners-up Fifth Harmony provided rich pickings. It had it all. First, the curious sound of a manufactured pop band member huffily protesting that being in a manufactured pop band is stifling the
  
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• Ex On The Beach: Body SOS | Check Out These Episode #1 Spoilers

  11-01-2018 13:14
  Don't miss BRAND NEW series Beach Body SOS, starting Wednesday 17th January at 8pm - only on MTV!
  
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• Readers recommend playlist: your songs about dares

  11-01-2018 13:00
  A song list that dares to cross genres, with tracks from Tracy Chapman, Bo Diddley, Ursula Rucker, the Replacements and Esperanza SpaldingHere is this week’s playlist – songs picked by a reader from your suggestions on last week’s callout. Thanks for taking part. Read more about how our weekly series works at the end of the piece.What is the impulse that drives people to take up a dare – or issue one, for that matter? To begin our playlist, we wonder whether it starts ear
  
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• Moor Mother review – howl of apocalyptic fury is kept to a whisper

  11-01-2018 12:53
  The Islington, London
  A weedy sound system prevents the Philadelphian poet, musician and activist from tapping into true dreadPolice brutality, domestic violence, race riots and western imperialism – the raw material for Camae Ayewa’s noise-infested “DIY time travel” performances as Moor Mother could hardly be more bleak. But the Philadelphia poet, activist and self-taught musician possesses a free-form energy and a knack for piercing visual imagery that can bring her sub
  
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• Ariana Grande Now Has 19 VEVO Certified Music Videos

  11-01-2018 12:53
  'Everyday' joins 'Side To Side' and many more...
  
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• Charlotte Crosby's Massive Cleavage Leaves Fans Well And Truly Gobsmacked

  11-01-2018 12:44
  The former Geordie Shore star blessed fans with a sensational swimsuit selfie.
  
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• MTV Presents Gibraltar Calling 2018 Dates Revealed!

  11-01-2018 12:36
  Find out when we’ll be returning to the Rock this year…
  
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• Taylor Swift Hits London In 'End Game' Video Preview

  11-01-2018 12:22
  Will the kebab shop scenes make the final cut?
  
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• Camila Cabello Delivers Stunning Live Debut of 'Never Be the Same'

  11-01-2018 12:14
  You need to see this...
  
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• Gaz Beadle Reveals The Lengths He Goes To So Emma McVey Can Get The Perfect Selfie

  11-01-2018 11:53
  The Geordie Shore lad is officially the boyfriend of the year.
  
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• Khalid and Diplo Are Working On New Music Together

  11-01-2018 11:48
  Is the 'American Teen' going to feature on Major Lazer's new album?
  
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• Love Island's Olivia Attwood Hits Back At 'Vile' Troll Who Branded Her 'Anorexic'

  11-01-2018 11:39
  The Love Island babe totally schooled the troll.
  
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• Little Mix, BTS, Niall Horan and More Scoop iHeartRadio Nominations

  11-01-2018 11:36
  Rihanna, Camila Cabello and Liam Payne have also been nominated...
  
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• Looks Like Khloe Kardashian Is Set To Appear On Celebrity Big Brother To Support Malika Haqq

  11-01-2018 10:55
  Looks like the Keeping Up With The Kardashians star will appear on CBB to support her bestie.
  
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• This Is Why Kylie Jenner Won’t Be Announcing Her Pregnancy Anytime Soon

  11-01-2018 10:51
  The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star is being "stubborn" about the big reveal.
  
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