Calexico’s new album, Algiers, is reviewed in the current issue of Uncut (October 2012, Take 185) – so we thought we’d take a trip back to April 2003 (Take 71), when Uncut’s John Mulvey flew out to Tucson, Arizona to discover more about the duo’s redrawing of the alt.country map.
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After days of online speculation, Led Zeppelin have finally confirmed that their 02 show from December, 2007 is to be released.
The film of the 02 show, titled Celebration Day, after a song on the band's 1970 album, Led Zeppelin III, will be released on October 17 on 1,500 screens in over 40 countries.
Celebration Day will then be available in "multiple video and audio formats" on November 19 from Swan Song/Atlantic Records. Specific details will be announced soon.
God knows we’ve probably written enough about “Tempest” by now (not least these two terrific pieces by my colleagues Allan Jones and John Robinson). Nevertheless, part of Bob Dylan’s enduring appeal is his capacity for provocation: the sense that he tacitly encourages people to at least try and unpick his records, fathom his mysteries. Our almost certain failure is part of the game, for him as well as for us.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said that he thinks the three imprisoned members of the punk collective Pussy Riot should be freed.
Though he admits that he was "sickened" by their 'punk prayer' protest, the Wall Street Journal reports that during a meeting of the United Russia party, Medvedev said: "Prolonging their time in prison in connection to this case seems unproductive."
Foo Fighters played a special unplugged gig at Apple's iPhone 5 launch yesterday (September 12) in California.
After an all new iTunes system and brand new 'ultra-thin' iPod touch and iPod nanos were revealed, Dave Grohl and the rest of the band took to the stage.
"One of the incredible things about being here is that you're meeting people who are shaping our future," said Dave Grohl, according to the Guardian.
Bob Dylan has responded to claims which state he has plagiarised other artists and authors' material.
Rolling Stone asked Dylan about accusations that he previously 'quoted' Junichi Saga's 1991 book Confessions of a Yakuza and the 19th century poetry of Henry Timrod, but didn't 'cite his sources clearly'. Dylan said: "Wussies and pussies complain about that stuff."
Plan B and Richard Hawley have emerged as the favourites to win this year's Barclaycard Mercury Prize wth odds of 4-1 each.
The shortlist of the 12 'Albums Of The Year' chosen by an independent judging panel were announced yesterday afternoon (September 12) at London's Hospital Club. The final award for the £20,000 prize will be announced on November 1.
Alt-J were previously named as the odds-on favourite for the 2012 prize by bookmakers, but their odds have now slipped to 5-1.
Anyway, with the release of Bob Dylan’s Tempest looming, I was thinking the other morning about a time when albums just, you know, came out. What seemed to happen was pretty straightforward. There’d be a story in Melody Maker announcing a new album by one of your favourite bands that usually gave the record a title, track listing and release date. The week the album came out, there’d be a review, maybe an interview and perhaps a full-page ad somewhere in MM, often with tour dates attached.
On the day the album came out, you went to your local record shop – in my case, Derek’s in Water Street in Port Talbot – and you bought it. How simple it all seemed.
Of course, when I actually started working for Melody Maker in 1974, I found there was a bit more to it, although not much more usually than a launch party. This was basically an excuse for the band, their mates and assorted journalists to have a bit of a piss-up and could hardly be described as an integral part of a carefully-plotted promotional campaign, unless you were Led Zeppelin and the party was a debauched affair in Chislehurst Caves involving naked nuns and the like, in which case the event would get a bit of a write-up in the red tops.
