sean

if everyone rates the strokes using your user profiles and other bands they like you'll all get recommendations - tho it would be easier for people to just say who, but we got the technology...

if/when i find the press release, i can tell you more..

Originally it was gonna be out about now. But as they went back in the studio (cancelling Reading) i think it's going to be early next year.

thats exactly what i thought. and the last few minutes. i got the impression when i spoke to the band that this may be one of the moments on the record that they had an arguement about... or maybe not. they were keeping tight lipped.

http://www.flashblaine.co.uk/

even Richard and Judy mentioned it tonight. 7:44. details above.

sean

You were so angry you replied to the wrong review, it seems.

You will note that Tom Sykes hasn't reviewed anything since that article.

Sean
now playing: Fevers and Mirrors

Yeah, I probably could have picked a lot more british bands, but I wanted to put the best exponents for people to get behind (and in most cases, are already behind).

Reading was the reason I wanted to do this article. There were so few british bands on the mtv playlist, so, so few bands on the Reading bill. This is not just about being nationalistic, its about giving bands in this country hope, drive and respect.

Having something to push for and against is always important in any movement. And if it takes the Darkness album being in the top 10 for another 10 weeks to wake people up, then so be it. :)

But the fact is, there are a lot of bands who get the bigass american budgets for videos and production, whilst UK divisions of labels have people laid off, when these constipated yanks fail to sell records. As most kids tv is american, most pop is american, pretty much all the unhealthy fast food is america, then yeah, it does start to grind that somewhere along the line we've lost our culture and our identity and place in the world. Especially when the mainstream media becomes obsessed with America, or new york/detroit in particular. Where does that leave us?

Er, to my knowledge Mclusky haven't had an album out in 2003 - unless i've truly missed something.

And Snow Patrol aren't exactly a rock band - not that I've heard the new record...

Here's to another 10 years...

I read it had been postponed by management.
What a crock of shit. They're making it sound like so much more, but it's someone who's got no quality of life, who should be given the right to die. People do it to cats and dogs, so why not assist someone who's running up thousands of pounds in care just to be able to move their eyes and piss themselves through machines?

I'm not just spouting rubbish. I watched my grandad in a coma for 4months before he died and his death really was somewhat of an end not just to his suffering but everyone around him. However, it does all depend on how much hope there is of the person being cured...

Maybe Amazon just have their colours wrong? Maybe the record is actually meant to be the green manky mouldy colour that it sounds like?
Maybe you people should stop moaning about pointless things and start embracing the fact we didn't review B&S as a footnote, that we did give them the time and space a cult band of their status deserves. You could at least have mentioned something, anything at all, which gareth said in the review.
Some people. Sheesh.

I believe bands should opt out of the chart race. Radio and music tv really need to work together with the labels and begin to support the independents a lot more. The government needs to readdress its culture spending and help the flourishing cottage industries which have produced some of our countries recent history and subsequently a lot of revenue for the country. There also needs to be a lot more awareness from everyone about what bridges a big band or scene of music, to another. People need to work together loads more and stop all the petty, self-important, elitism. Money doesnt need to be a dirty word anymore, because when it comes down to it, it's like fucking air, we all have to live in a house, we all have to eat, there are some compromises that ultimately, need to be made by someone, for the sake of others or the sake of yourself. I'm not saying sell out by any means, just people being more aware of what is needed in the world today. I've said too much already. Your turn...

Will it fuck. We've had problems and time constraints and then some... god knows when we'll get issue 2 out now, i've not even got time to think about it...

The thing about single is that the stores and to some extent, the distributors, dictate the price. For instance, The Koreans single should have been £1.99, but over 30% of the places stocking it sold it at £3.99, as thats how much they charge for singles, and others charged £2.99. I still only saw £1.10 per cd (well, when I finally get anything back), no matter what someone in the shop paid for it.

It's the same with albums, unless you've got a big hold over the people selling stuff, you're not gonna be able to dictate price. In a lot of cases the shop gets more than the act itself?!

Sean

there's a FREE BBQ in the Beer Garden too...

See you there?

Sean

They do now infact get their own page, rather than just being a footnote.

The thing is, not a lot of people wanna read about bands they've never heard of, but those that do, no where to go. And it means we can flag up any exceptional demoes much easier.

what do you think of messageboards being down here?

note to pete: this review was writ well over a year ago. not that that stops it being hyperbole, but it does place it a year outside of the context. mutha...

As much as i hate agreeing with Andy and getting into a bitchslap fight on our messageboards... ABSOLUTION IS GREAT.

I don't understand how you can say the Oceansize record is anywhere near as good, because let's face it, they're just another band who we'll all hope will be able to make a living outta putting out their records, but the chances of it happening, and them doing a Tool or being able to bridge the gap from unknown to, well, even the frontcover of Wire or Rolling Stone Japan, is never gonna happen.

This Muse record has every bit of human emotion I've wanted a record to share with me, along with lots of "get off your whiney arses and inspire something special"-ness that every great record through the years has strived to ignite not just hope, but vision in the mind of the listener. This is not just some two-bit band releasing another record <i>that'll do</i>. This is one of, if not THE most important band in the world, placed in a huge context with a lot expected from them, delivering the goods. And then some. They will be as big as Metallica. They will mark history like Hendrix or The Who or Jeff Buckley. Matts guitar playing will influence a whole bunch of bands signed next year and his bridging of Classical with Deftones-chunks-o'-rock will ignite a new, exciting, movement. What's in a name?

Sean

tis a pisstake. genres are boring, dumb and more often than not, wrong.

I aint seeing it in the queue???

And herein lies precisely what this site is all about.

I'd say it's almost the complete opposite.
There's a difference between doing things DIY and doing things without any compromises. Because, choosing to do things DIY means you have to do another job or find some other 'revenue stream' to pay for equipment and to get to gigs, and that usually means working, or expecting diy promoters to pay more than they can afford and it means you're always pinning your own back to the floor. A lot of bands who talk the diy speel, don't realise the arrogance of it, a lot of the time. Because for every band that refuses to compromise, people around them are forced to, I dunno, not promote a gig with the view to break even and not offend a band by offering them a big support slot so that they can play their music to more people.
What's the point of intregrity if there's no-one there to hear it? If a tree falls...

ya fag! :-p

I don't think we were even sent the second album. Or were aware it was released. Can't say they're top of my agenda on the list of bands to annoy the industry until I can get a copy of the record from.

Sean

we weren't far off the mark back in the day, were we?
sorry, just saw this and it made me smile.

I still don't believe the basement is big enough to fit a band in.
Churchs aren't dull when you set them on fire.

I found it via google image search @ http://www.gush-shalom.org/media/pics/vote.gif

Hi Pam,

It's easy to say what you don't like, but what would you prefer? A stale ol' [CENSORED] review that talks more about the cd cover and norweigan hotties in sauna's than the music?

Just curious, as we're constantly trying to develop as a site and collective of writers.

Sean
The Editor

Really? Aint heard owt about that as yet...

depends what you're into.. i'm looking forward to Saves the Day and constrastingly Elbow.. but, er, think thats about it.

I'm not sure if it's cus I'm spoiled by going to so many gigs or whether this year is more of a bag of arse than previous years.

Shame there's nothing very rare or special or even just a band that never come over playing.. all seems like the same list of bands who're constantly touring the uk and playing every other festival or played the past 3 years.. ho hum.

This might come out a little funny, but if it stops just one person buying the nme, my work here is done..


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We were sent the story from a fairly official source, as stated in the story. The basically compile and mailout shitloads of press releases.

The headline contained a question mark. The story was never written saying it was certain.

We never intended to offend anyone.

Sean

The story is now offline.

I wasn't around much today and only just read this story properly (and spent an hour trawling the web looking for some truth... to no avail).

Sean
The Editor

This story has now been taken offline.

Nobody has confirmed it to be true (several people in and around the band don't belive it to be true) and it's obviously a very delicate issue.

Hrm, the media's not that fucked. People like us i taking the power and people are finding alternatives.

But the main problem here is that people are generally too lazy to find their own sound. The generation before us knew how to do it, but kids nowadays sit on kazzaa downloading bands they've just seen on m2 or read about in kerrang. The backlash is starting, but there's a need for everything good that's going on to have some area for the transition to take place. I didn't buy a GreenDay record one week and an Arab Strap record the next, etc.

Also, it's sickening how much work it takes pluggers to get something on the bbc (a public service). Something which i'm investigating for a feature at the mo (tho may wait 'til the koreans are getting some airplay first of all.. o'the politics..!)

The people with passion will find a way. Far too many people, however, are bothered whether they sell out or not. And keep plodding along, talking more than walking, ranting more than doing. Why is that? What's so wrong with being successful? Why the fuck are people accusing me of selling out for releasing records?

Both the reviews you pointed out were mine (Warhols and Biffy).

Maybe singers should sing clearer?

Also, you might like to know that promo's of albums come in either a little plastic sleeve with nowt by the tracklisting or in little card cases with just the tracklisting.

i.e. we don't get sent nice boxes with all the lyrics on and sometimes, just sometimes, it's hard to work out what people are singing. especially mr.taylor-taylors drawl.

surely you'd be better off not getting yer knickers in a twist?

>Boring? Like Biffy Clyro's music?

Howz about wasting our time and space being positive about music you do actually like? It's all too easy to hate and be a negative person, it takes maturity and restraint to sit back and realise every spec of humanity on the planet is different, people like/love/hate different things. Do something positive or piss in the wind. The decision, is yours..

how were s.club @ g-a-y?
or did you REALLY need a poof-it card to get in?

I'm getting really pissed off with this at the moment. There seem to be a bunch of people who come on here purely to slag off the reviews. What's the fucking point?

We're getting sick of it too. Why don't people start being more positive or go write their own alternative reviews, rather than bickering? negative people suckass.

by the joan of arc album is arse. it tries so hard but lacks any kind of conviction but has so many indie-points that it becomes credible with people who'd probably suck steve albini off just to seal themselves in some nerd heaven.

i just wish a lot of these bands would fuck off and get a personality.

ditto shite indie chancers, riding miss black america's piss-soaked coat-tails like the dawn parade and antihero.

dandy warhols were amazing tonight.

On a totally random note, some complete manc prick who claimed to have one been in northern uproar gatecrashed a part i was at in brighton a few months back. he was trying to tell meanwhile back in communist russia that they should get some girl to do spoken monologues over the top of their songs. he also didn't get the hint when we told him to make sure he dont slam the door on the way out. or something.

if they can play tonight (as it says), i suspect they will be.