Pearl Jam cancel US tour after Jeff Ament tests positive for COVID-19

Then founding drummer Dave Krusen performed with the band for the first time in 31 years, earlier this week.

In a statement on Twitter the band said: “Dear PJ fans and ticket holders, while the band battled through Oakland after drummer Matt Cameron tested positive for Covid, and Fresno where Ed and the band got through it with the help of Dave Krusen as special guest drummer, they now have to present the heartbreaking news that this morning bassist Jeff Ament has tested positive for COVID.

(1/4)Dear PJ fans and ticket holders,

While the band battled through Oakland after drummer Matt Cameron tested positive for Covid, and Fresno where Ed and the band got through it with the help of Dave Krusen as special guest drummer, pic.twitter.com/pmonPs99wq

— Pearl Jam 🇺🇦 (@PearlJam) May 18, 2022

“This is horrible for everybody involved and we are especially sorry to those out there who have made plans to attend these shows. Our attention to staying inside the bubble has been constant. We have truly done all that we could have to remain clear of infection.

“Regretfully, the Sacramento and Las Vegas shows are canceled. Ticket refunds will be automatically processed to ticket holders’ method of purchase. We are so very sorry. Be safe out there.”

The band are due to hit the road for a European tour next month kicking off in Amsterdam’s Ziggo Dome on June 13.

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Those dates will also include two shows at London’s Hyde Park on July 8-9 as part of the BST series. You can purchase tickets here.

Stereophonics and Cat Power are among the support acts that have been announced alongside Pixies at the Hyde Park shows this summer.

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Bring Me The Horizon announce US headline tour

SEPTEMBER
22 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life Festival
24 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center 
25 – West Springfield, MA – The Big E Arena
27 – Atlanta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre 
28 – Nashville, TN – Nashville Municipal Auditorium 
30 – Orlando, FL – Addition Financial Arena 

OCTOBER
1 – New Orleans, LA – Emo Nite New Orleans Vacation 
3 – Houston, TX – 713 Music Hall  
6 – Los Angeles, CA – The Kia Forum  
7 – Phoenix, AZ – Arizona Federal Theatre  
9 – Sacramento, CA – Aftershock Festival
12 – Minneapolis, MN – The Armory
14 – Chicago, IL – Wintrust Arena
15 – Detroit, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre 
16 – Pittsburgh, PA – UPMC Events Center 
18 – Dallas, TX – The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory 
20 – Denver, CO – Fillmore Auditorium 
22 – Las Vegas, NV – When We Were Young Festival
23 – Las Vegas, NV – When We Were Young Festival
29 – Las Vegas, NV – When We Were Young Festival

Earlier this month, the band revealed that they’d recorded “about 45 songs” for their next release.

The band’s last project was their ‘Post Human: Survival Horror’ EP, released back in October 2020. The first of several releases, frontman Oli Sykes told NME last year they were “working on parts two, three and four simultaneously” and that they were hoping to “get songs out as soon as we can”.

The Sheffield rock giants then gave fans a taste of what they can expect from ‘Post Human 2’, sharing new single ‘DiE4u’ in September 2021.

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Speaking in a new interview, Sykes then shared an update on the record as well as their forthcoming schedule. “We’re doing lots of gigs hopefully, if the world goes alright,” he told BANG Showbiz (via Contact Music). “Lots of European festivals and we’re going to the States in September. And hopefully a new record.”

He continued: “We’ve been working on it for about a year now, we’ve got lots of music we’re just being quite picky about what we want to release. We must have about 45 songs.”

Last month, Bring Me The Horizon teamed up with Sigrid for a brand new track, ‘Bad Life’.

The song marks the latest in a strong run of collaborations released by BMTH. Prior to ‘Bad Life’, earlier in the month, the band featured on the Masked Wolf single ‘Fallout’, while March marked another team up with Machine Gun Kelly with the release of ‘maybe’.

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Nine Inch Nails reveal 100 Gecs, Yves Tumor and more as US support acts

See the full list of dates below and view ticket details here.

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A post shared by Nine Inch Nails (@nineinchnails)

APRIL
28 – Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater
30 – Atlanta, GA – Shaky Knees Festival

MAY
1 – Franklin, TN – First Bank Amphitheater
22 – Daytona Beach, FL – Welcome to Rockville
24 – Philadelphia, PA – The Met Philadelphia
25 – Philadelphia, PA – The Met Philadelphia
27 – Boston, MA – Boston Calling

SEPTEMBER
2 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
3 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
7 – Troutdale, OR – Edgefield
9 – Bend, OR – Hayden Homes Amphitheater
11 – Berkeley, CA – The Greek Theatre at UC Berkeley
15 – Las Vegas, NV – Zappos Theater
17 – Los Angeles, CA – Primavera Sound
22 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life
24 – Cleveland, OH – Blossom Music Center

This year’s tour follows the band cancelling their 2021 outings, due to uncertainties around the COVID pandemic remained.

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The industrial band also recently announced the details of three summer UK headline shows, in Glasgow, London and Manchester. They’re also set to play a pair of gigs at the Eden Project in Cornwall this June.

Nine Inch Nails have released both ‘Ghosts V: Together’ and ‘Ghosts VI: Locusts‘ since their last live shows.

Reviewing the records, NME wrote: “Much like Reznor said last time Ghosts swung round, ‘Ghosts: V-VI’ is music for daydreams. But it’s only fair and decent for us to let you know that it’s also music for nightmares too.”

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US live music scene: “Without government support, you won’t have independent venues in America”

“I didn’t postpone the shows because of local guidance or venue guidance,” she told NME. “I just decided to myself.”

Credit: Squirrel Flower/Press

Williams has had to conduct her own research on COVID rates and venue safety while out on tour, telling us that’s it’s been hard to make moral decisions for “me, my band, my fans, and for the venue workers because there is no government guidance.”

For her, the lack of guidance for artists is a symptom of the government’s lack of respect and support for the livelihood of Americans in general.

“I don’t think the government gives a shit about any workers in the US right now,” Williams told us. “When you look at [president] Joe Biden he’s not giving [money] to anyone except for already wealthy people and bailing out banks and large businesses.”

In 2020, the government started multiple Federal Unemployment Programs to support those who could no longer work because of COVID. Those benefits expired in September of 2021.

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“At the beginning of the pandemic when the government was offering support, a lot of musician friends of mine were in a comfortable financial position for the first time in their lives,” the singer explained. “We’re now seeing so much amazing music that came from people being able to focus on their craft and not have to worry about being in debt or being behind on rent.”

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When asked how she handles COVID safety concerns without the support of a large team, Squirrel Flower told us: “I am effectively my own tour manager.”

“When you go to a venue, you’re essentially having to advocate for your needs and COVID adds another element to that,” she said. “You’re having to ask people working to wear masks or ask the venue to check proof of vaccination, even if the state doesn’t require it.”

For Williams, touring during COVID also means covering the added cost of masks, COVID tests, and even hotel rooms since crashing with friends could lead to accidentally contracting the virus.

“For anyone going to shows right now: if they have the means to, they should buy merch and support artists in any way they can outside of just buying a ticket,” she told us. “There are a lot more expenses behind the scenes now.”

Despite her frustration over the lack of government guidance across all venues, when asked about recent tour stops at Brooklyn’s Baby’s All Right and Manhattan’s Mercury Lounge, she said “at the root of it, everybody at these venues is doing the best they can.”

Credit: Getty / David A. Smith

Dayna Frank, CEO of First Avenue Productions and president of NIVA, has witnessed the struggle Williams told us about first-hand. “Working class and emerging artists have had the toughest time over the last couple of years without touring revenue,” she told NME.

Formed in March 2020, shortly after the pandemic shuttered the doors of almost every independent venue in the US, NIVA successfully lobbied to obtain $16billion in federal relief funding via the Save Our Stages Act, which passed as part of the COVID-19 relief bill in December of 2020.

“The grants were a god-send,” Frank told us. “I don’t want to swear, but it feels like a fucking miracle. I can’t overstate what the impact has been and will be for decades to come from this grant program. Without it, you wouldn’t have independent venues in America.”

She added: “That’s why you saw everyone fighting so hard in 2020, because we all see our books, we all know what the realities are of keeping our businesses open when there was no business, no resources, and no hope.”

Credit: Caitlin Abrams

Now, the coalition is lobbying for additional funds to deal with “inflation and worker shortages compounded by the fact that COVID is still ongoing.”

“There’s about $2billion left [in funding] and NIVA is advocating for more time [to use those funds],” Frank said. “Because of the shutdowns, there were fewer concerts and fewer events to utilize the money. At the same time, venues in urban areas that were shut down completely, have use for more funds.”

NIVA is also working on a proposal to open its relief program to businesses that were deemed ineligible for the first round of funding. Last month, the organisation spoke before the US House Small Business Committee. At the time, no-show rates for ticket-holders had hit a high of 50 per cent.

“That no-show rate, we call it the drop count, is one of the key metrics we watch for,” Frank said, noting that when rates reach 50 per cent “you can’t operate profitably for artists or venues.” As COVID rates have dropped, however, so has the rate of no-shows.

NIVA shared that currently “on average, across new venues, we’re seeing a 15 per cent [drop count] which is a massive improvement from 50 per cent. Industry standard in the before times was about three to five per cent, so we still have a little bit to go, but it’s certainly trending in the right direction.”

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A post shared by NIVA | #SaveOurStages (@nivassoc)

Independent venue owners are hoping that the rate will continue to drop because, as Frank told us, when attendees don’t show up it’s “impossible to plan, you’re overstaffed, you have too much inventory and the entire economics are askew.”

“Artists and venues rely on customers entering the venue, buying drinks, buying merch, coming with friends, to make all of the finances of a concert work,” she said.

On how fans can assist in lowering no-show rates, Frank said: “If you have a ticket for a show that’s been rescheduled, and you can’t go to the new date or you’re exposed [to COVID] give your ticket to somebody who will go. Let them experience the band, let them experience live music.”

According to NIVA, independent venues have been hard at work ensuring the safety of fans who attend shows during the pandemic. The organisation recently distributed 200,000 KN95 masks to venues across the country, and has also worked with venues, promoters, and bands to push for vaccination checks and cleaning procedures so fans feel safe at shows again.

“The safety of concert-goers and fans are as important to us as it is to them because without them we don’t have a business and we don’t have this magical experience that we’ve worked so hard for,” Frank said. “Every independent venue owner I know is doing every single thing they can to keep everyone safe.”

Squid plays at Empty Bottle Credit: Ricardo E. Adame

Looking back on how his venue endured the past two years, Bruce Finkelman, owner of Chicago’s The Empty Bottle told NME: “I think our perseverance as a people and as a music scene has been amazing.”

Like many venue owners in the US, Finkelman has had to make his own decisions on which COVID protocols to follow for his venue because “a state could go ahead and mandate something and have a certain restriction and then the city could do something completely different.”

The team at The Empty Bottle decided to follow Center for Disease Control guidelines, noting that although they have to adhere to city and state mandates to keep the venue open, their main concern has been to “ensure that our families, our staff, our performers, and our guests are as safe as possible.”

He added: “The only thing that made sense was to take whatever advice we could from medical professionals and actually use that as our guidelines above and beyond the politicians.”

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A post shared by Empty Bottle (@emptybottle)

Now that Omicron is subsiding and “there appears to be a little bit more comfortability with the idea of going back into a venue and seeing performances,” Finkelman is excited to welcome fans back, adding that, “as a venue owner, there’s nothing better than being able to see our spaces utilized as they were intended.”

“The most important thing for all of the independent venues is that we want to be around,” he told us. “I speak from Chicago having one of the best music scenes in the world and groups like CIVL (Chicago Independent Venue League). We’re concerned with making sure our music scene gets preserved for years and years to come.”

Though there’s still uncertainty surrounding how long certain protocols will be in place and if new variants of COVID will arise, the Chicago venue owner said that The Empty Bottle is starting to feel the way it did before the pandemic.

Dry Cleaning perform at The Empty Bottle Credit: Ricardo E. Adame

“There is a spot at the end of the bar where you can see the bartenders working and you can see the band and you can see the people,” he said. “That’s my favourite place on earth.

“One of the things I looked forward to throughout the pandemic was being able to sit on that stool again and see that happen again. It’s been pretty amazing to slowly get more and more glimpses of that as we move towards whatever this post-pandemic normal is.”

Last week, Dr Ross McKinney Jr., an infectious disease specialist, and chief scientific officer of The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), told NME that although “we may be in a quiet period in terms of COVID” during this upcoming music festival season “there’s still no way to tell” if that will last.

Though Dr Mckinney Jr. said he understands why events would “just throw their hands up and say ‘It’s not worth the effort’,” he still thinks that “it’s the right thing to do to require vaccination.”

“When people are vaccinated, they are less likely to get sick themselves and less likely to make others ill,” he told NME. “It’s not perfect, but right after your booster [you can have] as high as 90 per cent protection against getting infected at all and later on you’re still less likely to get seriously ill. Even if you do get infected, your period of being infectious will likely be shorter.”

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Rae Sremmurd’s Slim Jxmmi’s battery case dropped

Now, the charge, which was filed in Miami-Dade County, has been dropped (via Pitchfork).

According to TMZ, prosecutors were unable to proceed with the case after Jxmmi’s girlfriend recanted her testimony. The case was closed yesterday (February 22), online court records show.

Brown’s partner took to social media to deny that she was assaulted at the time.

“Dade County y’all are wrong for this. I told you guys he did not hit me,” she wrote in an Instagram post.

“Every officer you guys had in my face are wrong for this. No hands were put on anybody, I stated it more than once. It was a loud argument and the police were called. You guys turn nothing into something. It’s our sons first birthday tomorrow, what’s wrong with y’all?”

An attorney for Slim Jxmmi told Pitchfork that his client should not have been arrested.

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NME has contacted a representative for Rae Sremmurd for comment.

Under the name Slim Jxmmi, Brown has performed as one half of hip-hop duo Rae Sremmurd since 2008, alongside his brother, Swae Lee.

Known for hits like ‘Black Beatles’ and ‘No Type’, the duo’s last project was 2018’s ‘SR3MM’.

For help, advice or more information regarding sexual harassment, assault and rape in the UK, visit the Rape Crisis charity website. In the US, visit RAINN.

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Sum 41 and Simple Plan announce ‘Blame Canada’ 2022 US tour

“It’s happening! We’re stoked to announce we will be heading out on ‘The Blame Canada Tour’ across the US with our friends @Sum41 and special guests @SetItOff & @Magnoliaparkfl 🤘⚡️🤘,” Simple Plan added. “We can’t wait to kick this one off and play for you all summer!”

The first leg of the tour will see support from Set It Off, while Magnolia Park will back the Canadian bands on the second leg.

We've known the guys in @simpleplan for a very long time, but we've never toured together…. until now! Introducing The Blame Canada Tour! Come celebrate 21 years of 'All Killer No Filler' all across the US! pic.twitter.com/M2AsGrYn1B

— Sum 41 (@Sum41) February 22, 2022

Tickets for the shows are on pre-sale now; general tickets will be available from 10am on Friday (February 25). You can get tickets here and see the full list of tour dates below.

APRIL 2022
29 – Raleigh, NC, Ritz
30 – Myrtle Beach, SC, House of Blues

MAY 2022
2 – Philadelphia, PA, The Fillmore
3 – Pittsburgh, PA, Stage AE
4 – Silver Springs, MD, The Fillmore
6 – Worcester, MA, The Palladium
7 – Asbury Park, NJ, Stone Pony
8 – New York, NY, Pier 17 – The Rooftop
10 – Detroit, MI, The Fillmore
11 – Cleveland, OH, House of Blues
13 – Cincinnati, OH, Andrew J Brady ICON Music Center
14 – Milwaukee, WI, Eagles
15 – Chicago, IL, Radius
17 – Minneapolis, MN, Myth
18 – Kansas City, MO, Uptown
20 – Council Bluffs, IA, Harrah’s Stir Cove
21 – St. Louis, MO, The Pageant
22 – Nashville, TN, Marathon
24 – Atlanta, GA, Tabernacle
25 – Tampa, FL, Seminole Hard Rock
27 – New Orleans, LA, Orpheum Theater
28 – Dallas, TX, So What?! Music Festival

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JULY 2022
29 – Tulsa, OK, Cains Ballroom
30 – Austin, TX, Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater
31 – Houston, TX, House of Blues

AUGUST 2022
3 – Phoenix, AZ, The Van Buren
5 – San Diego, CA, SOMA
6 – Anaheim, CA, House of Blues
9 – San Francisco, CA, The Masonic
10 – Sacramento, CA, Ace of Spades
12 – Portland, OR, Roseland Theatre
13 – Seattle, WA, Showbox SoDo
14 – Spokane, WA, The Knitting Factory
16 – Garden City, ID, Revolution
17 – Salt Lake City, UT, The Complex
18 – Denver, CO, The Fillmore

Last week, Sum 41 frontman Deryck Whibley joined forces with Simple Plan on their new song, ‘Ruin My Life’.

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Smashing Pumpkins announce ‘Rock Invasion 2’ US tour

Tickets for the tour go on sale this Friday (February 25) at 10am local time, with pre-sale launched today (February 23). Get tickets here, and see the full tour schedule below.

Invading select U.S. cities this May, The Smashing Pumpkins Rock Invasion 2 Tour!
Tickets on sale Friday Feb 25 10am local time pic.twitter.com/5gOyzPyw5y

— The Smashing Pumpkins (@SmashingPumpkin) February 22, 2022

APRIL 2022
29-01 Beale Street Music Festival, Memphis, TN

MAY 2022
2 – Tech Port Arena, San Antonio, TX
5 – Teatro Metropolitan, Mexico City, MX
6 – Teatro Metropolitan, Mexico City, MX
7 – Teatro Metropolitan, Mexico City, MX
13 – Santa Barbara Bowl, Santa Barbara, CA*
14 – BeachLife Festival, Redondo Beach, CA
15 – TBA , Tucson, AZ*
17 – TBA, Oklahoma City, OK*
18 – Ozarks Amphitheater, Camdenton, MO*
19 – 22 – Welcome to Rockville, Daytona Beach, FL
20 – Champions Square, New Orleans, LA*
21 – Avondale Brewing Co., Birmingham, AL*
24 – Atlantic Union Bank Pavilion, Portsmouth, VA*
25 – White Oak Amphitheatre, Greensboro, NC*
27 – PromoWest Pavilion at OVATION, Newport, KY*
28 – KEMBA Live!, Columbus, OH*
29 – Summer Camp Music Festival, Chillicothe, IL

Smashing Pumpkins last album was 2020’s ‘CYR’, which in a three-star review NME said: “Corgan has undoubtedly created the ‘contemporary record’ he so craved; it’s far better than anything Corgan produced when he was running with the Pumpkins name on his own.

“It’s also amazing that after all the bad blood and messy break ups, he’s more adept at penning an accessible tune than he’s ever been.”

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Last July, Smashing Pumpkins guitarist Jeff Schroeder said the band were “halfway through working on another big album”.

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Clairo debuts new song ‘Nomad’ on first night of US tour

Back in December, Clairo rescheduled her upcoming UK and European tour due to COVID-related concerns.

The singer was set to tour her recently released second album ‘Sling’ across January and February, but worries around the rise of the Omicron variant means the shows will now take place in September and October.

“I reeeeally hate to do this- but we have decided to reschedule the upcoming January Europe/UK tour,” Clairo told fans on Instagram while sharing new dates.

She added: “as much as we want to get back on the road, everybody’s safety is far more important & i hope you understand.”

See the new list of rescheduled dates below and purchase tickets here.

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SEPTEMBER 2022
19 – Dublin, Olympia Theatre
20 – Dublin, Olympia Theatre
22 – Paris, Le Bataclan
23 – Brussels, La Madeleine
27 – Amsterdam, Paradiso
28 – Amsterdam, Paradiso
29 – Birmingham, O2 Academy
30 – Bristol, O2 Academy

OCTOBER 2022
2 – Glasgow, O2 Academy
3 – Manchester, O2 Academy
4 – London, Brixton Academy

Clairo recently told NME that she wouldn’t tour unless protocols were in place to protect her fans. “If I can’t provide this [security] on tour, then I won’t tour – that’s my mentality at the moment,” she said.

“I really do feel in my heart of hearts that there’s going to be a wave of tours that are really stamped as the ‘safe tour’ and provide all this. Touring is one of the only things that hasn’t changed much. Granted, a lot of things need to change in the industry, but this is definitely one of them.”

Claire explained that there would “most definitely” be someone who isn’t affiliated with any of the venues she plays on future tours to serve as a “point of contact for any misconduct that goes on within the crowd”.

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US cult funk icon Betty Davis has died aged 77

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Kim Gordon announces US, UK and European headline tour

Following those dates, she will then travel over to the UK for four shows – including London’s Koko – and on to Europe for eight more stops. Tickets go on sale at 10am local time on January 28 and can be purchased here. 

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A post shared by Kim Gordon (@kimletgordon)

“I can’t believe the tour is finally happening!” Gordon said in a press release. “Looking forward to playing with my band who are amazing and bringing the music to you. You are the ones gonna make it sizzle.”

Kim Gordon will play:

March 2022 

13 – Boston, MA, Paradise Rock Club
15 – Washington, DC, 9:30 Club
16 – Philadelphia, PA, Theatre Of The Living Arts
18 – New York, NY, Webster Hall
19 – Jersey City, NJ, White Eagle Hall
22 – Asheville, NC, Orange Peel
24 – Atlanta, GA, Variety Playhouse
25 – Knoxville, TN, Big Ears Festival
27 – Boise, ID, Treefort Festival

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May 2022

23 – London, UK, Koko
24 – Manchester, UK, Gorilla
25 – Glasgow, UK, Queen Margaret Union
26 – Bristol, UK, Trinity
28 – Amsterdam, NL, Het Sieraad
29 – Brussels, BE, AB Ballroom
30 – Paris, FR, La Gaite Lyrique
31 – Zurich, CH, Rote Fabrik

June 2022

2 – Barcelona, ES, Primavera Festival
6 – Koln, DE, Gloria Theater
7 – Berlin, DE, Astra Kulturhaus
9 – Porto, PT, Primavera Sound Festival

In a three-star review, NME said of ‘No Home Record: “A tense, abrasive work, [it] injects a hint poppier thrust into Gordon’s no-wave experimentations with her other project, Body/Head (a point of difference most obvious on the juddering ‘Sketch Artist’. Remarkably her first solo album, this is a record that surprises, despite its author’s truly enormous legacy.”

Meanwhile, Gordon teamed up with Dinosaur Jr’s J Mascis last month to release two collaborative tracks as part of the Sub Pop Singles Club. ‘Slow Boy’ was originally released in 2015 by the pair on an EP curated by shoe brand Converse, called ‘CONS EP Vol. 3’. They also originally wrote and performed ‘Abstract Blues’ last year for SMooCH, a benefit for Seattle Children’s Hospital.

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Billie Eilish postpones a number of US tour dates

“Details on rescheduled dates to be announced, and all tickets will be honoured for the new dates,” the tweet shared on Eilish’s official account added. “Thank you for understanding and please stay safe.”

It was also announced that Eilish has had to reschedule her show in Phoenix on April 3 due to a scheduling conflict, after this year’s Grammys were moved from late January to the date in question.

“Billie’s second show in Phoenix on Sunday, April 3rd has been rescheduled to Monday, April 4th due to the new date for the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards,” her team tweeted. “All tickets will remain valid for the new show date and we hope everyone can make it.”

Happier Than Ever, The World Tour
Please see updates below regarding a few stops on Billie’s upcoming tour.

— billie eilish (@billieeilish) January 25, 2022

Billie’s second show in Phoenix on Sunday, April 3rd has been rescheduled to Monday, April 4th due to the new date for the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards. All tickets will remain valid for the new show date and we hope everyone can make it.

— billie eilish (@billieeilish) January 25, 2022

The pop star will hit the UK and Ireland in June, taking in shows in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Glasgow, Belfast and Dublin. The dates include four shows at London’s O2 Arena. You can see the full list of dates here.

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Earlier this month it was announced that Billie Eilish, Kanye West (officially billed as Ye, his legal name) and Harry Styles are set to headline this year’s Coachella.

This year’s iteration – the first since 2019 – is set to run across two weekends (April 15-17 and April 22-24) at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California.

Other artists billed high for this year’s event are Flume, Megan Thee Stallion, Disclosure, 21 Savage, Phoebe Bridgers, Doja Cat, Joji, Jamie xx and Run the Jewels.

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Elton John test positive for coronavirus, postpones US tour dates

“Fortunately, I’m fully vaccinated and boosted and my symptoms are mild so I’m fully expecting to be able to make the Arkansas shows this weekend.”

He concluded the post: “As always, thank you for all your love and support and I can’t wait to see you all soon!”

CREDIT: Instagram/Elton John

The Dallas shows were originally scheduled to take place tonight (January 25) and tomorrow (January 26). The rescheduled dates will be communicated to ticket holders soon.

After multiple delays, John resumed his ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ tour at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana last week (January 19), where he treated the sold-out crowd to a career-spanning, hit-packed set.

The show marked John’s first ‘Farewell Yellow Brick Road’ gig since he performed in Australia in early March 2020. Since then, ongoing COVID-related restrictions have prevented the star from making his live comeback.

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Meanwhile, Yard Act have shared a stripped-back cover of Elton John’s ‘Tiny Dancer’ – you can listen to it here.

Speaking about the cover, which the group told NME about earlier this month and was taken from their recent Apple Music Home Session, Smith said: “We did ‘Tiny Dancer’ ‘cause our new best pal Elton has been so kind about us in the press recently.

“A song like ‘Tiny Dancer’ seems so far removed from what people assume Yard Act is, we thought it would be a really interesting way of showing not only our own versatility, but also the versatility of a song as good as ‘Tiny Dancer’.”

John personally gave his blessing to the group for their cover in a “personal telephone call to frontman James Smith,” according to a press release.

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Story of Meat Loaf trying to push Prince Andrew into a moat goes viral

One story in particular that has garnered a lot of attention is the time he threatened to push Prince Andrew in a moat when he appeared as a contestant on It’s A Royal Knockout in 1987.

The show was a one-off charity event staged on the lakeside lawn of Alton Towers. It featured four teams of celebrities, each captained by a member of the Royal Family, battling it out in a series of games. In one round, for example, the players dressed up as giant vegetables and threw fake hams at each other.

Meat Loaf was on the Duchess of York’s team, and it seemed that Sarah Ferguson was at the centre of tension between the singer and her ex-husband Prince Andrew.

In a 2003 interview with The Guardian, Meat Loaf talked about being in the competition. “It was great fun. I had a great time,” he said. “Fergie wasn’t exactly flirting with me, but she was paying attention to me, and I think Andrew got a little ‒ I could be wrong, I’m just reading into this ‒ I think he got a little jealous.”

He continued: “Anyway, he tried to push me in the water. He tried to push me in the moat. So I turned around and I grabbed him and he goes, ‘You can’t touch me. I’m royal.’ I said, ‘Well, you try to push me in the moat, Jack, I don’t give a shit who you are, you’re goin’ in the moat.’”

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Elsewhere in the interview, Meat Loaf was asked about the Queen, to which he simply replied: “Oh, the Queen hates me.”

In addition to the rock star, other celebrities that took part in It’s A Royal Knockout included Cliff Richard, Toyah Willcox, John Travolta, Eddy Grant, John Cleese, Anneka Rice, Chris De Burgh, Gary Lineker, George Lazenby and more.

Prince Andrew is currently at the centre of a civil sex abuse case in which Virginia Giuffre, one of the victims of late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, has accused the Duke of York of “committing sexual assault and battery” when she was a teenager.

Giuffre has claimed that Prince Andrew sexually assaulted her on three occasions after she was first sex-trafficked by Jefferey Epstein at the age of 16. The prince vehemently denies all the allegations and any wrongdoing.

For help, advice or more information regarding sexual harassment, assault and rape in the UK, visit the Rape Crisis charity website. In the US, visit RAINN.

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Rage Against The Machine postpone selection of 2022 US tour dates

This afternoon (January 20), Rage took to social media to announce they’ve pushed back the start of the tour to July 9 in East Troy, Wisconsin, resulting in the postponement of 19 shows from March 31 through May 23.

“The Rage Against The Machine ‘Public Service Announcement’ North American Tour with Run The Jewels will now start on July 9, 2022 in East Troy, Wisconsin,” the band wrote in a statement posted to Twitter.

“Headline shows scheduled for March 31, 2022 through May 23, 2022 will be postponed and rescheduled. All tickets for the moved dates will be honoured. For fans wishing to obtain a refund for the postponed dates, refunds are available for a 30-fay window from the point of purchase only, starting today.”

The band added that they would be back soon with the rescheduled dates. You can see the affected shows below.

pic.twitter.com/Uu3WnWpUQ6

— Rage Against The Machine (@RATMofficial) January 20, 2022

Both Rage and RTJ will perform at this year‘s Reading & Leeds Festival alongside Arctic Monkeys, Bring Me The Horizon, Halsey, Dave, Megan Thee Stallion.

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They’ve also been given top-billing at this year’s Rock en Seine, alongside fellow headliners Tame Impala, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Jamie xx and Kraftwerk.

Run The Jewels – comprising Killer Mike and El-P – will be touring the UK this June, with dates in London, Glasgow, Manchester and Birmingham. They will also perform at Barcelona’s Primavera Sound festival and Coachella.

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Vinyl albums outsold CDs in US for first time in 30 years in 2021

Some of the biggest sellers included Adele‘s ’30’, (318,000 copies) which was named the biggest-selling album of the year in the US as of November, Taylor Swift‘s ‘Red (Taylor’s Version)’ and Olivia Rodrigo‘s debut ‘Sour’ (268,000 copies).

A vinyl pressing plant. CREDIT: James MacDonald/Bloomberg via Getty Images

In the UK in 2021, vinyl record sales were the highest they’ve been in 30 years, despite widely publicised issues with backlogs and delays.

According to new figures from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), more than five million vinyl records were sold this year, an 8 per cent increase on 2020. It marks the 14th year in a row that the format has increased sales, with vinyl records making up 23 per cent of all albums sold this year.

The biggest-selling vinyl album of 2021 so far is ABBA‘s comeback record ‘Voyage’, while Adele‘s huge ’30’ and Sam Fender‘s ‘Seventeen Going Under’ – NME’s Album Of The Year – also sold big on wax.

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Last year, a new study found that Gen Z buy more vinyl records than millennials. According to a survey conducted by MRC Data, 4,041 people aged 13 and over were questioned over the course of two weeks about their musical influences, inspirations and purchases, with 15 per cent of Generation Z respondents – people commonly identified as being born roughly between 1997 and 2012 – claiming to have purchased vinyl albums in the previous 12 months.

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Hanson announce new album ‘Red Green Blue’ and 2022 UK, European and US tour

“Going into our 30th year as a band we felt like it was imperative we continue to tell our story like only we can, and telling stories in ways that will continue to challenge us to grow and give people new reasons to listen,” said Isaac. “‘Red Green Blue’ is about sharing what has made us a band that has been able to weather so many storms.”

The trio will also be hitting the road for a world tour which includes a host of UK dates including a show at London’s Roundhouse on June 30. Pre-sale tickets go on sale tomorrow (January 15) at 10am local time before going on general sale at 10am local time next Thursday (January 20) – purchase them here.

So excited to finally say we’re going to see you all on tour this year!! Come see us on the Red Green Blue Tour, named after our upcoming project. The https://t.co/3kgsECrFM5 presale starts on Saturday at 10AM local time and the public on-sale is Thursday, January 20th. ❤️ 💚 💙 pic.twitter.com/0uTmNwTieq

— HANSON (@hansonmusic) January 13, 2022

The European/UK leg of the tour will kick off on June 8 in Helsinki before wrapping up in Leeds on July 3. You can view the full list of dates below.

JUNE 2022
8 – Helsinki House of Culture
10 – Stockholm Berns
12 – Oslo Vulkan Arena
13 – Goteborg Pustervik
14 – Kolding Godset
16 – Hamburg Mojo
17 – Koln Gloria
18 – Munich Strom
20 – Milan Magazzini Generali
22 – Paris La Cigale
23 – Brussels AB
24 – Amsterdam Melkweg
26 – Nottingham Rock City
28 – Glasgow SWG3 Galvanisers
29 – Manchester O2 Ritz
30 – London UK Roundhouse

JULY
2 – Bristol O2 Academy
3 – Leeds University Stylus

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On July 12, the group will also hit the road for a huge tour of the US which will wrap up in Dallas on September 14. You can find full details of their US dates here.

Meanwhile, Zac Hanson previously apologised after his deleted Pinterest account, which was filled with controversial and offensive pro-gun memes, was leaked online.

One meme on the account suggested support for George Zimmerman over the 2012 killing of Trayvon Martin, while another compared the right to use an AR-15 rifle with Rosa Parks’ right to sit on a bus.

In an emailed statement to Vice about the Pinterest account, Zac wrote: “The leaked Pinterest page provided a distorted view of the issues surrounding race and social justice, which do not reflect my personal beliefs. I apologise for the hurt my actions caused.”

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Angel Olsen, Sharon Van Etten and Julien Baker announce joint US tour

Announcing the tour, Olsen wrote on Twitter: “Announcing the Wild Hearts Tour! I am heading out on tour this summer with @sharonvanetten & @julienrbaker – 3 sets with our respective bands, with @spencerperiod supporting. Pre-sale starts tomorrow at 10am local.”

She added: “I am so thrilled to be traveling and playing music this summer, sharing the stage with these incredible people as our return to touring. It’s truly a dream, something to hold and to share collaboratively. Hope to see you there!”

Announcing the Wild Hearts Tour! I am heading out on tour this summer with @sharonvanetten & @julienrbaker – 3 sets with our respective bands, with @spencerperiod supporting. Pre-sale starts tomorrow at 10am local. Sign up for pre-sale access at https://t.co/ab7xjPSlLs pic.twitter.com/wHY2Lc2DMt

— Angel Olsen (@AngelOlsen) January 10, 2022

Olsen and Van Etten teamed up last year on the collaborative track ‘Like I Used To’, while Baker also appears in another trio, boygenius, alongside Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus.

Back in September, Van Etten also joined Olsen on stage at Chicago’s Pitchfork Music Festival to perform ‘Like I Used To’ after they performed an acoustic version of the track on late-night US TV the month prior.

“Even though we weren’t super close, I always felt supported by Angel and considered her a peer in this weird world of touring,” Van Etten said at the time of ‘Like I Used To’’s release in May. “We highway high-fived many times along the way…”

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Olsen added: “I’ve met with Sharon here and there throughout the years and have always felt too shy to ask her what she’s been up to or working on. The song reminded me immediately of getting back to where I started, before music was expected of me, or much was expected of me, a time that remains pure and real in my heart.”

Meanwhile, Baker’s boygenius played their first show together in three years for a charity event in San Francisco last November.

The indie-rock supergroup took part in the one-off benefit gig at Saint Joseph’s Arts Society, with all proceeds from the event going to the Bay Area nonprofit Bread & Roses.

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Kid Cudi’s ‘Man On The Moon III: The Chosen’ vinyl breaks US chart record

‘Man On The Moon III: The Chosen’ has re-entered the Billboard chart at Number Four, surpassing its previous peak of Number 10. In the week beginning December 17, the album sold 42,000 copies, 41,500 of which were on vinyl.

According to Chart Data, this means the album has broken the record for biggest vinyl sales week for both a male artist and a rap album in Nielsen history.

.@KidCudi's 'Man on the Moon III: The Chosen' breaks the record for biggest vinyl sales week for both a male artist and a rap album in Nielsen history (41.5K).

— chart data (@chartdata) December 28, 2021

Cudi responded to the news on Twitter, first writing, “Holy shit whats happening”, in response to the album landing at Number Four on the charts. When he found out he had broken a chart record, he tweeted: “Holy FUCK!!!”

Holy FUCK!!! 😭 https://t.co/8ZXun9sng4

— The Chosen One : I 💖 YOU FRESHIE 4EVER (@KidCudi) December 29, 2021

Holy shit whats happening https://t.co/vx1davCFFB

— The Chosen One : I 💖 YOU FRESHIE 4EVER (@KidCudi) December 28, 2021

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‘Man On The Moon III: The Chosen’ has now sold 81,000 copies since its original release, across all available retail formats (physical and digital combined), in the US.

In a four-star review of the album, NME‘s Will Lavin called ‘Man On The Moon III: The Chosen’ a “cinematic masterstroke that electrifies the senses at every turn”.

The review continued: “Kid Cudi gives us every part of himself, laying out his insecurities and inner demons in the hope that it might help someone else, his words etched into a vivid backdrop of intoxicating melodies and palatial riffs. No one does mood music quite like Cudi.”

Meanwhile, Cudi has revealed plans to drop two separate albums next year, saying he has some “tasty surprises”.

While performing as part of the California leg of the Rolling Loud festival for 2021, the rapper delivered a yet-to-be-released song titled ‘Freshie’. Elsewhere in the set, Cudi explained why he was teasing unreleased music during his set.

Kid Cudi – ‘Man On The Moon III: The Chosen’. CREDIT: Press

“As you know, I have ‘Entergalactic’ coming in the summer,” Cudi said – referencing his long-teased album, first hinted at back in 2019.

“I wanna drop another album before that. I got some tasty surprises and I really am excited about all this new shit; this new music to give to you guys. That’s why I’m teasing this shit now, because it’s coming out soon. Tonight, record this shit.”

The news comes after it was revealed that vinyl record sales in the UK in 2021 were the highest they’ve been in 30 years, despite widely publicised issues with backlogs and delays.

According to new figures from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), more than five million vinyl records were sold this year, an eight per cent increase on 2020. It marks the 14th year in a row that the format has increased sales, with vinyl records making up 23 per cent of all albums sold this year.

The biggest-selling vinyl album of 2021 so far is ABBA‘s comeback record ‘Voyage’, while Adele‘s huge ’30’ and Sam Fender‘s ‘Seventeen Going Under’ – NME’s Album Of The Year – also sold big on wax.

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Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ tops US chart for third year running

It now means Carey has had songs sitting at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for a combined 85 weeks.

Mariah Carey appears on the cover of NME this week, discussing her new Christmas special, Mariah’s Christmas: The Magic Continues.

The festive small-screen event – released on December 3 via Apple TV+ – sees the singer collaborate with Khalid and Kirk Franklin for the first and only performance of their new single, ‘Fall In Love At Christmas’.

The special comes in the wake of Carey’s original collaboration with the streaming platform, Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special, which launched in 2020. Narrated by Tiffany Haddish, the event saw Carey joined by guest stars Ariana Grande, Jennifer Hudson and Snoop Dogg.

Elsewhere in the Big Read interview, Carey revealed she once reached out to Britney Spears to offer her support, saying that the latter was subjected to “horrific” treatment from the press.

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“I think everybody on this planet deserves to be free and what [the press] did to her, what I saw, was horrific,” Carey told NME.

“So I reached out to her through a mutual friend because I wanted her to know: ‘Guess what? You’re not alone.’”

Spears was recently freed from her 13-year-long conservatorship, which saw her father, Jamie, take control of her finances and personal life following the singer’s highly publicised mental breakdown in 2007.

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Foo Fighters announce 2022 US stadium tour

Pre-sale tickets will also go on sale at 12pm EST today (November 30). You can see the full list of dates below.

FOO FIGHTERS LIVE IN NORTH AMERICA 2022
Tickets are on sale Friday, Dec. 3rd at 10am local time.
Watch your inbox for pre-sale details!
Pre-sales start TODAY!https://t.co/FCmtxn4srM#FF2022 pic.twitter.com/tU2hov24yc

— Foo Fighters (@foofighters) November 30, 2021

Over the summer, the band will also play four massive UK stadium shows including two nights at the London Stadium, one at Manchester’s Emirates Old Trafford and one at Birmingham’s Villa Park between June 25 and July 2, with rotating support slots from St. Vincent, Courtney Barnett, Shame, Loose Articles and Hot Milk.

Meanwhile, the band recently shared the official video for their latest single ‘Love Dies Young’ starring Ted Lasso‘s Jason Sudeikis as a swimming coach.

Meanwhile, Dave Grohl and Greg Kurstin recently launched their latest ‘Hanukkah Sessions’ sharing covers of Ramones‘ ‘Blitzkrieg Bop’ and Lisa Loeb’s breakthrough hit ‘Stay (I Missed You)’.

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The series launched last year and sees the pair playing eight covers – one for each day of Festival of the Lights.

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Glass Animals make US chart history with ‘Heat Waves’

In the latest update (the week of November 13), ‘Heat Waves’ sits between ‘Good 4 U’ by Olivia Rodrigo (Number Nine) and ‘Levitating’ by Dua Lipa (Number 11). It’s Glass Animals’ first US Top 10 single, as well as their first-ever track to chart on the Hot 100.

Per the Official Chart Company, ‘Heat Waves’ peaked at Number Five in the UK over this summer. It took 35 consecutive weeks to reach the Top 10.

The single’s slow-burning success has been attributed to an increase in popularity on TikTok. Earlier this year, fans shared video clips on the platform based around the ‘Heat Waves’ line, “Sometimes, all I think about is you“.

Glass Animals also transformed the single into a sea shanty as part of an online craze.

Meanwhile, London Grammar recorded a down-tempo cover of ‘Heat Waves’ for a recent Deezer live session.

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Back in September, Glass Animals returned with a new single called ‘I Don’t Wanna Talk (I Just Wanna Dance)’ – their first release since last year’s ‘Dreamland’.

Speaking about the inspiration behind the track, frontman Dave Bayley explained: “Talking is great, don’t get me wrong. But this pandemic has made so many of us look inwards in a way we maybe haven’t before.

“The uncertainty in the world and the inability to go out and create new memories makes you dig deep into the past. It really fed people’s deepest insecurities and rattled our foundations in so many ways. Relationships changed, friendships altered, and self-confidence was warped.”

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Indigo De Souza shares cover of Frank Ocean’s ‘Ivy’, sets US tour to kick off this month

Take a look at the video below:

“I deeply love Frank Ocean’s songs and ‘Ivy’ has a truly special place in my heart,” De Souza said in a statement. “I have cried many times to this song and can see so much of my own inner world in it. I wanted to fully embody the song myself in honor of its gorgeous existence.”

The cover comes as De Souza’s first release since August, when she released her second album, ‘Any Shape You Take’. NME gave it a four-star review upon release, writer Rhys Buchanan calling it “a follow-up that seals [De Souza] as a new icon for outsiders, in whatever shape she takes” and praising the singer-songwriter for “elegantly [weaving] different worlds together while staying true to herself throughout”.

Speaking to NME ahead of its release, De Souza said she was keen to explore a wealth of sonic influences on ‘Any Shape You Take’. “I get really excited about using all different types of tones,” she said, “mostly because that’s how my brain feels. It’s not one dimensional, there are lots of ups and downs so I think I just try to reflect that in music.

“I didn’t know what it would be until we were in the thick of it. Then it all made sense, the way we built the songs felt very in line with my life up until that point. I was in a bad place when we were recording but also a really good place at the same time.

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“I was very isolated but I was finding a lot of self-love and also manifesting really great relationships. I was learning what kind of love I wanted to accept into my life, I realised I was going to have a boundary to anything that would cause me unnecessary pain and that I don’t have to put up with bullshit.”

De Souza’s forthcoming US tour kicks off next Sunday (November 14) in Nashville, with a show supported by Allie set to go down at the Mercy Lounge. She’ll follow it up straight after with two gigs in Asheville – one alongside Ex Gold and the other supported by Truth Club – before hitting the New Brookland Tavern in West Columbia on Wednesday November 17.

After a few months off, the run will pick back up in January with shows in Charlotte, Richmond, Washington, Brooklyn, Boston, Burlington, Camden and Philadelphia. Tickets for all of them are available from De Souza’s website.

Indigo De Souza’s 2021/22 US tour dates are:

NOVEMBER
Sunday 14 – Nashville, Mercy Lounge (with Allie)
Monday 15 – Asheville, The Grey Eagle (with Ex Gold)
Tuesday 16 – Asheville, The Grey Eagle (with Truth Club)
Wednesday 17 – West Columbia, New Brookland Tavern (with Truth Club)

JANUARY
Thursday 20 – Charlotte, Amos’ Southend (with Truth Club)
Friday 21 – Richmond, Richmond Music Hall
Saturday 22 – Washington, Black Cat
Sunday 23 – Brooklyn, Music Hall of Williamsburg
Monday 24 – Brooklyn, Music Hall of Williamsburg
Thursday 27 – Boston, Royale
Friday 28 – Burlington, Higher Ground
Saturday 29 – Camden, Space Ballroom
Sunday 30 – Philadelphia, Union Transfer

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Ned Flanders-themed metal band Okilly Dokilly announce farewell tour

“When we started Okilly Dokilly, our goal was to play maybe two shows,” frontman Head Ned said in a press release. “We imagined being the third or fourth band on a seven-band metal show. We would step out in our sweaters and confuse the 12 or 13 people in attendance, and then have a great story. Things turned out a little differently.”

The band initially formed somewhat half-earnestly in 2015, breaking out as a viral sensation before they’d even played their first show. They minted two albums over six years, with 2016’s ‘Howdilly Doodilly’ followed up in 2019 with ‘Howdilly Twodilly’.

Okilly Dokilly made their UK touring debut in 2018, with their ostensible peak coming less than a year later when their single ‘White Wine Spritzer’ was featured in the Simpsons episode ‘I’m Just A Girl Who Can’t Say D’oh’. At the time, Al Jean, the show’s executive producer, said: “We saw the video and knew they had to be on the show.”

“Okilly Dokilly did way more than I ever expected,” Head Ned continued in his statement. “I’m really grateful for all the people who have been part of it. And especially to everyone who came out to our shows to say howdilly doodilly. We’ve been touring pretty relentlessly since 2016 and, last year, I became a dad. So it’s time for a break. It’s time for me to shave off the Ned mustache and grow the dad mustache.

“We just want to let everyone know that we won’t be touring or making any new music in the next few years. I’m not sure if or when we’ll be back, but for now, it’s ‘toodilly do.’”

Okilly Dokilly’s 2022 US tour dates are:
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APRIL
Thursday 14 – Tulsa, The Shrine
Friday 15 – Memphis, Hi Tone
Saturday 16 – Nashville, EXIT/IN
Sunday 17 – Greenville,The Radio Room
Tuesday 19 – Durham, Motorco Music Hall
Wednesday 20 – Vienna, Jammin Java
Thursday 21 – Brooklyn, Kingsland Bar & Grill
Friday 22 – Boston, Hard Rock Café Boston
Saturday 23 – Rochester, Montage Music Hall
Sunday 24 – Pittsburgh, The Crafthouse Stage & Grill
Tuesday 26 – Columbus, Rumba Cafe
Wednesday 27 – Cleveland, Grog Shop
Thursday 28 – Fort Wayne, The Brass Rail
Friday 29 – Indianapolis, HI-FI Indy
Saturday 30 – Chicago, Beat Kitchen

MAY
Sunday 1 – Cudahy, X-ray Arcade
Tuesday 3 – St. Louis, Red Flag
Wednesday 4 – Springfield, Front of House Lounge
Thursday 5 – Oklahoma City, 89th Street
Friday 6 – Dallas, Three Links Deep Ellum
Saturday 7 – Austin, Empire Control Room

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Kings Of Leon cancel all remaining US tour dates following death of their mother

“We have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support from our fans,” the band wrote on Instagram. “If you haven’t heard, our mom Betty Ann passed away peacefully last week.

“We’ve decided to cancel all remaining tour dates through October to be with our families. Thanks for the kind words and all the love you’ve given to the entire Followill family.”

Kings Of Leon perform live. CREDIT: Getty Images

The dates affected include:

OCTOBER 2021

1 – White River Amphitheatre, Auburn, WA
3 – RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater, Ridgefield, WA
7 – Ruoff Music Center, Noblesville, IN
9 – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, Chicago, IL

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Earlier this month, Kings Of Leon announced a run of UK and Ireland arena shows.

Two of the shows, in Leeds and Newcastle, constitute rescheduled gigs that had previously been announced but delayed by the coronavirus pandemic. Original tickets for those shows remain valid.

It’s unclear whether or not the shows will feature the band’s Matthew Followill, who announced in July that he will be taking time away from the band following the birth of his and wife Johanna’s new baby.

Followill didn’t appear on the band’s recent leg of US dates, with touring member Timothy Deaux filling his place, and former touring member Chris Coleman returning to cover Deaux’s role.

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Louis Theroux’s new documentary to explore US rap and hip-hop

“Many artists become successful through self-promotion online, looking at ways to connect with fans – from feuding online, opening up about their anxieties and fears, and live-streaming their sometimes chaotic lifestyles,” the description adds. “Louis will meet people at different stages of their quest to become successful and followed, from those who have risen fast to those who have fallen hard.”

Louis Theroux (Credit: Getty)

The other two films will look at the far-right and the porn industry as it grapples with its own Me Too moment.

“The world has gone through massive changes in the last few years, in particular from the effects of social media,” Theroux said. “This new series looks at the way those changes have affected people in America who are in different ways involved in dangerous, extreme, or morally questionable lifestyles.

“Far-right groups that have found new influence through gaming and streaming services. Porn performers who have seen power shift to them as they’ve embraced creator-controlled apps and called out alleged predators in the industry. And in the rap world young men with big dreams caught up in feuds and high-risk behaviour in the click-driven world of social media.

Louis Theroux – Credit: Daniel Zuchnik/Getty

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“These three documentaries were tough to make,” he added. “They required delicate access conversations. They feature scenes and confrontations that are shocking and upsetting. But they are also powerful depictions of a world that has become strange in ways we could never have imagined just 10 years ago.

“They show the dangers of the technotopia we all now inhabit, where extremist content can be piped directly into the phones and laptops of millions of children. But they also illustrate some of the positive opportunities the new world has created by disrupting old hierarchies of power.

“I’m very proud of all three programmes and hope viewers will find them as thought provoking to watch as I did making them.”

Theroux recently aired documentary Shooting Joe Exotic, which looks back on the titular controversial figure in the wake of Netflix’s Tiger King as well as his own interview with Exotic 10 years ago.

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Ghost and Volbeat announce joint US tour for 2022

Ghost and Volbeat will play:

JANUARY
25 – Reno, NV, Reno Events Center
27 – Seattle, WA, Climate Pledge Arena
28 – Nampa, ID, Ford Idaho Center Arena
29 – Portland, OR, Veterans Memorial Coliseum
FEBRUARY
02 – Denver, CO, Ball Arena
04 – Lincoln, NE, Pinncle Bank Arena
07 –  Columbus, OH, Nationwide Arena
08 – Hershey, PA, Giant Venter
10 – Newark, NJ, Prudential Center
11 – Worcester, MA, DCU Center
12 – Camden, NJ, BB&T Pavilion
14 – Pittsburgh, PA, Petersen Events Center
15 – Toledo, OH, Huntington Center
16 – Grand Rapids, MI, Van Andel Arena
18 – Chicago, IL, Allstate Arena
19 – Cincinnati, OH, Heritage Bank Center
20 – Milwaukee, WI, Fiserv Forum
21 – St. Louis, MO, Chaifetz Arena
23 – Incependence, MO, Cable Dahmer Arena
25 – Houston, TX, Smart Financial Centre At Sugarland
26 – Dallas, TX, Fair Park Coliseum
28 – El Paso, TX, Don Haskins Center
MARCH
1 – Phoenix, AX, Footprint Center
3 – Anaheim, CA, Honda Center

[MESSAGE FROM THE CLERGY]We wish to inform you that Ghost will be hitting the road in the US with Volbeat starting Jan…

Posted by Ghost on Monday, September 20, 2021

Ghost had teased the forthcoming announcement of a tour with a video, in which the band’s Papa Emeritus IV takes part in a ‘Doom’ (a parody of Zoom) call with Sister Imperator.

A new album from Ghost is expected in the coming months. Last year frontman Tobias Forge said that they were planning on entering the studio at the beginning of 2021, with the aim of releasing their fifth LP towards the end of the year.

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Forge added that the release would coincide with a new tour and that no album would be released until it is safe to resume touring following the coronavirus pandemic.

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TikTok passes Youtube for average watch time in UK and US

“YouTube still leads TikTok in overall time spent, including in the UK,” Jamie MacEwan, from Enders Analysis, explained to the BBC. “YouTube’s mass audience means it’s getting more demographics that are comparatively light internet users… it’s just reaching everyone who’s online.”

He added that the most-invested YouTube users probably “match or surpass” the engagement of TikTok users. “TikTok was spending big to attract users, but they were not necessarily hanging around for long compared to other social media,” he said. “Now we know that in the US and UK, TikTok has overhauled YouTube, and is reeling in Facebook… that’s a huge seal of approval.”

YouTube. CREDIT: Getty Images

App Annie’s report showed that TikTok – which is also currently ranked the most downloaded app worldwide since 2020 – surpassed YouTube in the UK back in June 2020, and has continued to maintain its dominance since. In the US, the two apps traded places a number of times late last year before TikTok emerged on top in April 2021.

Another metric examined included consumer spending. The report suggests that apps with live-streaming – including TikTok – are helping to fuel a surge in money spent on creators. Apps that have live-streaming as “a prominent feature” accounted for three-quarters of money spent in the top 25 social apps in the first half of 2021, according to the report.

App Annie said: “Live-streaming is driving growth in engagement for social apps, which sets them up for consumer spend.”

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App Annie specialises in apps analysis. The “time spent” metric in its report solely accounts for Android phones – and also does not include China, where TikTok – known locally as Douyin – is a major app.

Earlier this summer, TikTok responded to criticism from a comedian which claimed that phrases including ‘Black Lives Matter’ and “Black success” were banned from the platform.

Ziggi Tyler recently called out TikTok in videos showing that the app allowed words including “neo-Nazi”, “pro-white” and “white supremacist” to be included in the bios of content creators on the app’s Creator Marketplace.

The videos went on to show that terms including “pro-Black”, “Black Lives Matter”, “Black success” and “Black people” were flagged as being inappropriate or banned.

In response to the controversy, TikTok shared a statement with Forbes. It read: “Our TikTok Creator Marketplace protections, which flag phrases typically associated with hate speech, were erroneously set to flag phrases without respect to word order.

“We recognise and apologise for how frustrating this was to experience, and our team has fixed this significant error. To be clear, Black Lives Matter does not violate our policies and currently has over 27 billion views on our platform.”

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The Rolling Stones to play US tour as planned despite Charlie Watts’ death

Despite the death, the tour’s promoter Concerts West have revealed that the band will be continuing with the tour, which begins late next month.

“The Rolling Stones’ tour dates are moving ahead as planned,” the statement read.

See The Rolling Stones’ forthcoming ‘No Filter’ tour dates below:

SEPTEMBER 2021
26 – St Louis, The Dome at America’s Center
30 – Charlotte, Bank Of America Stadium

OCTOBER 2021
4 – Pittsburgh, Heinz Field
9 – Nashville, Nissan Stadium
13 – New Orleans, New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival
17 – Los Angeles, SoFi Stadium
24 – Minneapolis, U.S. Bank Stadium
29 – Tampa, Raymond James Stadium

NOVEMBER
2 – Dallas, Cotton Bowl Stadium
6 – Las Vegas, Allegiant Stadium
11 – Atlanta, Mercedes-Benz Stadium
15 – Detroit, Ford Field
20 – Austin, Circuit Of The Americas

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Many drummers have praised Watts in the wake of his passing – among them Pink Floyd‘s Nick Mason, Royal Blood‘s Ben Thatcher, Ringo Starr, Questlove, Alex Van Halen and The E Street Band’s Max Weinberg.

An NME obituary to Watts said: “He was understated but irreplaceable: there’ll never be another Charlie Watts.”

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‘David Byrne’s American Utopia’: Spike Lee’s film is heading to US cinemas

American Utopia is a concert film documenting Byrne’s Broadway show of the same name.

In a five star review of the film, NME said: “It’s hard to pick a highlight but we defy anyone to stay still during a soaring performance of ‘Lazy’ (Byrne’s 2002 collaboration with electro duo X-Press 2). In addition, Janelle Monáe’s 2015 protest song ‘Hell You Talmbout’ gets an urgent workout while images of black lives lost to US police brutality appear on screen.

“It’s a rare concert film that packs in brilliant music, incredible visuals, a vital political message and jokes – but this is one of them. Don’t miss it.”

Meanwhile, Byrne’s ‘American Utopia’ stage show has been confirmed for a re-run on Broadway in 2021 after an initial 17-week return schedule was postponed last year due to the coronavirus crisis.

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The show, which is based on Byrne’s 2018 album of the same name, will this time see a longer, six-month run in New York City’s theatre district, moving from The Hudson to the larger St. James Theatre on 44th street.

The Talking Heads frontman and solo artist is joined by an 11-piece mobile ensemble playing songs from ‘American Utopia’ as well as other tracks from his solo catalog and Talking Heads material.

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Limp Bizkit cancel remainder of US tour over safety concerns

Whilst there were some reports that a member of the group had fallen ill with COVID prior to the group’s concert in Ashbury Park, New Jersey on Friday (August 6), this was later quashed by frontman Fred Durst via an Instagram story.

“1. Wes Boland does not have Covid”, Durst wrote, adding: “2. The system is serious flawed. 3. We don’t care much about the BS.”

Whilst he didn’t elaborate on any further reasons why the tour was cancelled, Durst added: “Times2. we care a lot about you. To the six. ‘They’ can kiss it. Dad vibes coming soon.”

NME has reached out to representatives of Limp Bizkit for comment.

Limp Bizkit backstage at Lollapalooza 2021. CREDIT: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images

Earlier this week, Limp Bizkit saw a huge spike in streams and sales since their much talked about performance at last weekend’s Lollapalooza. The group played at the Grant Park, Chicago event on July 31, sharing a line-up with Post Malone, Megan Thee Stallion, Trippie Redd, Freddie Gibbs, Angels & Airwaves, Marc Rebillet and more.

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After their performance, Limp Bizkit became a trending topic on Twitter for the rest of the weekend which has since led to a rise in the overall consumption of their discography.

Across Sunday and Monday (August 1 and 2), the band recorded a combined 1.9million on-demand streams, according to MRC Data (via Billboard). That was up 27 per cent from the previous Sunday and Monday (July 25 and 26), when the band accounted for a combined 1.5million on-demand streams.

The band’s song sales went up 100 per cent over the same period, although on a much smaller scale – from 500 songs sold to 1,000.

Limp Bizkit concluded their Lollapalooza set by previewing a track from their forthcoming new album.

“This song right here, it’s for you and only you,” Durst told the crowd and those watching the Lollapalooza livestream. “It’s a song off our new album called ‘Dad Vibes’. I want to see everybody out there dancing right now. Let me see how you do it.”

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