2nd March 2018 – On 2nd April Marillion release ALL ONE TONIGHT the live DVD of their Royal Albert Hall Show filmed in October 2017. On 26th March, there will be screenings of the show in 6 Everyman Cinemas across the UK. Marillion will host the screening at the Kings Cross Everyman. Tickets available from:
On October 13 2017 Marillion played the Royal Albert Hall for the first time in their near forty year career. The show sold out in minutes, a full year before the band took to the stage at the iconic London venue. The audience, many of whom had travelled over oceans for the show, were treated to a Marillion show like no other.
In two parts, ‘All One Tonight’ firstly showcases the band’s acclaimed 2016 studio album ‘F E A R’ in full. Accompanied by an awe inspiring light show and films, Marillion perform their incisive and era defining zeitgeist with unparalleled passion and power.
The second half introduces In Praise of Folly and guests, a string quartet with flute and French horn that throughout the rest of the show inject an extra depth and emotion to some of Marillion’s best loved live material. Once again, with amazing lights and audience participation, Marillion steal the night, proving that they more than belong on the stage that has been trod by the most acclaimed musicians. Directed and edited by Tim Sidwell, recorded and mixed by Michael Hunter, ‘All One Tonight’ is a Racket Records and Toward Infinity production.
Marillion embark on their UK tour on 8th April.
FULL 2018 Tour Dates are:-
Date City Venue
Sun 8th April Belfast Ulster Hall NEW DATE
Mon 9th April Dublin Vicar Street NEW DATE
Wed 11th April Gateshead The Sage last few tickets available
Fri 13th April Cambridge Corn Exchange SOLD-OUT
Sat 14th April Birmingham Symphony Hall SOLD-OUT
Mon 16th April Brighton Dome last few tickets available
Tue 17th April Bristol Colston Hall SOLD-OUT
Thu 19th April Reading Hexagon SOLD-OUT
Fri 20th April Liverpool Philharmonic Hall SOLD-OUT
Sun 22nd April York Barbican NEW DATE
Tickets available from myticket.co.uk, seetickets.com & venue box offices.
TesseracT, a band that sit outside the bounds of any genre specificity, pioneers of the ever-evolving metal scene and unstoppable force of off-kilter riffs, soaring melodies and disorientating atmospherics release their fourth studio album Sonder on April 20th 2018 through Kscope.
Sonderadds significant firepower to the band’s arsenal, blending the harsh abrasiveness of One (2011) and progressive ethereal elements of Altered State (2013) with the accessibility of Polaris (2015). Sonder is streamlined, honest and direct with all the trademark TesseracT dreamy atmospherics and bending grooves. Sonder was recorded in the UK at 4D Sounds, Celestial Sounds and Project Studios, engineered by the band and Aiden O’Brien with mastering by Acle Kahney, and cover artwork designed by Amos Williams.
Vocalist Daniel Tompkins described Sonder as “Conceptually exploring a deep and devouring sense of insignificance, which ties into the overall theme and meaning behind ‘Sonder’”. Also featured is an extended and re-worked version of last summer’s single “Smile”.
Sonder will be released on CD / 2CD – featuring binaural album bonus disc / black LP / Crystal Clear vinyl LP / picture disc (exclusive to the band’s webstores) and digitally (with digital album pre-order receiving “Luminary” as an instant download) and is available to listen to & to pre order HERE
For audiophiles, TesseracT have produced a binaural version which will be available exclusively as part of the 2CD version, this version is a 360-listening experience designed by Klang: Fabrik for headphones listening Amos Williams explains more “the concept is to push past the restrictions of a stereo headphone mix and create an accurate ‘3D’ space in which positioning outside of the normal Left Right axis can occur. This is something that every artist that uses in ear monitors on stage wishes to recreate; the real and accurate positioning of instruments. We immediately felt that this technology could be applicable to us in the studio. TesseracT loves to bring what it does in the studio to the stage, but this time it’s experimenting with bringing a live element to the studio.”
Building on their phenomenal success with worldwide tours in support of Polaris over the last two years, as both headliners and as special guests for the likes of Megadeth, Meshuggah, DevinTownsend Project and Gojira, TesseracT area gearing up to take Sonder to worldwide audiences beginning in North America in April.
“North America is where TesseracT first took off and is always the leg of the album cycle that holds the most sentiment to me. There are a lot of good memories made and good friends discovered along those long and bumpy roads. This time we’re lucky enough to share the road with two boundary pushing bands: Astronoid, a wall of euphoric noise who have a bright and noisy future ahead of them. And Plini, with his genre defying effortless virtuosity. It’s going to be a fun tour for us, especially as we’ve got a bunch of new tunes to add to the set!” Amos Williams.
Fresh from opening for Myrkur over the past week, as well as joining her on stage in her Folkesange project, internationally acclaimed composer and virtuoso cellist Jo Quail has been added to the UK leg of the upcoming Amenra and Boris European tour. Jo comments:
“Supporting Amenra and Boris on the UK leg of their co-headline EU tour – WOW! I cannot wait! It is a true privilege to play these concerts. I’m a soloist, and I perform my music that sits somewhere between contemporary classical, post-rock, avant garde and experimental. It is an honour to be invited to open the stage for two genre-defying bands who are masters of their craft, who have been and continue to be revolutionary in their individual approach to composition, performance and musical ethos and who reach in to the depths of being both spiritually and sonically.
I recently performed with Danish goddess Myrkur on her Folkesange tour, supporting and also joining her ensemble for 4 songs. It was fascinating to step in to her world and to have an opportunity to work with her and the ensemble in realising both the traditional folk songs and her own compositions too. I felt very lucky to receive such a warm response from her audience.”
On this tour Jo will be playing some pieces from her forthcoming 4th album (released later this year) and adds, “I’m looking forward to seeing how these develop during this tour. I find that only when I take a composition on stage do I fully begin to know and understand it; it morphs, develops, and reveals itself with each performance and my audience is as much a part of the writing process as I am. I’ll be recording this album with Chris Fielding at Skyhammer Studios (Electric Wizard, Primordial, Conan) in March, Chris is an outstanding producer and I think we’re going to have a lot of fun making this record!”
Since starting to play solo in 2010, Jo has released three albums, three EPs and a live DVD and toured across the world with the likes of Caspian.
MARILLION have added 3 NEW DATES to their almost sold-out tour in April 2018.
Tickets for the shows in Belfast, Dublin and York go on sale on Friday, 26th January and fans of the prog giants should grab these tickets fast, as Marillion’s recent show at The Royal Albert Hall, sold out in just four minutes.
After nearly 40 years, Marillion have evolved into a vibrant and international musical force, flourishing seemingly outside of fashion and mainstream media exposure. And they are still as popular as ever – their most recent album, F E A R (Fuck Everyone and Run), peaked at No. 4 in the UK album charts and No. 1 in the rock chart last year and was given a 5-star review by The Guardian.
Steve Hogarth says: “I have been part of this band now for 27 years yet we’re as inspired as we ever were and still enjoying creating together. Luckily our music has remained free to evolve and change without the constraints of a corporate music business which otherwise might have killed us!. He continues, We’re really looking forward to this little outing, especially as we’re playing a few places we haven’t visited for a while. It’s long overdue!
FULL 2018 Tour Dates as follows:-
Sun 8th April Belfast Ulster Hall NEW DATE
Mon 9th April Dublin Vicar Street NEW DATE
Wed 11th April Gateshead The Sage last few tickets available
Fri 13th April Cambridge Corn Exchange SOLD-OUT
Sat 14th April Birmingham Symphony Hall SOLD-OUT
Mon 16th April Brighton Dome last few tickets available
Tue 17th April Bristol Colston Hall SOLD-OUT
Thu 19th April Reading Hexagon SOLD-OUT
Fri 20th April Liverpool Philharmonic Hall SOLD-OUT
Sun 22nd April York Barbican NEW DATE
Tickets available from myticket.co.uk, seetickets.com & venue box offices.
Charlie Barnes has announced ‘Oceanography’, his second album for Superball Music. The follow up to 2015’s post-pop monster ‘More Stately Mansions’, ‘Oceanography’ finds Barnes in a different place in his life. The past two years have seen huge change for the musician, he has spent the majority of his time on the road as a touring member of Bastille, performing on some of the biggest stages in the world and travelling all over the globe as well as getting married and relocating from Leeds to the Midlands.
In contrast to his previous LP – largely recorded in one place with producer Oceansize guitarist Steve Durose – ‘Oceanography’ is a story of snatched moments after tour rehearsals, late nights spent in far flung studios from Wales to Virginia, ideas sent back and forth over email and put down in fits and starts while on the road. At points it seemed like it would never come together, so it’s some achievement that it not only matches the attention-grabbing maximalist prog-pop of ‘More Stately Mansions’, but builds and expands on that record’s foundations.
“The last few years have been totally bonkers,” admits Barnes. “I was rarely at home, so I was doing a lot of arrangement work in dressing rooms and hotels on a tiny keyboard. I eventually took to carrying recording gear around with me so that I could make the best use of any free time.”
Barnes had consciously decided even before joining Bastille that he wanted to make an album more honed and streamlined, so it is that much of ‘Oceanography’ is built around pop hooks that although vast in sonics are earworm tight in their structure. There is a more consistent palette of sounds used throughout, with songs comfortable in shifting between newer synth explorations and reverting to long-held influences Oceansize and Amplifier – shining particularly prominently on tracks like Ruins and Maria.
However, there’s no getting away from the impact that working with one of the UK’s biggest touring bands has had on his work. For one thing, Dan Smith himself pops up on backing vocals on Will & Testament – a track that arguably stands out in its pared-down synthetic feel compared to the string-tinged rock grandiosity of much of the rest of the album. Smith’s inclusion came after he’d asked to hear what Barnes had been working on while out on tour with them, but his mark on the album is more diffuse that a guest cameo: “Being with Bastille during the making of their second album, I got to hear how some of those songs took shape over time, from small changes to entire reworks” he says. “I think that helped me to be a bit more cut-throat with my own songs and try to streamline things a bit.”
Charlie has also shared the first single & video to be taken from ‘Oceanography’ which is due out on Superball Music on the 9th of March.
‘Oceanography’ will be released on Superball Music on the 9th of March 2018 and can be pre-ordered now from here.
A full-band UK tour will also take place ahead of the album’s release.
Some words from Charlie on the new tour –
“I’m fully blown kid-in-sweetshop excited about these upcoming dates. It’s going to be a little bit different to anything I’ve done before, so expect to see some new faces (well, one new face…), and the occasional support slot from another familiar face (my face, doing something else). These will be my first live performances with a band since my mate Alex’s wedding a couple of years ago where we played a load of (superbly curated) cover versions (Biffy, Wheatus, Bowie…), so I’m definitely feeling the nerves about getting back to frontman duties. It’ll be okay. Right? Come and say hello. We’re very clean.”
Tour dates are listed below –
· March 7th – Leeds, Oporto (with The Society Pages)
· March 13th – Glasgow, Bloc
· March 14th – Leicester, The Cookie (with The Society Pages)
Following last year’s sell-out Genesis Revisited tour, prog icon and former Genesis guitarist, Steve Hackett, announces a 6-date UK tour in October. Treating fans to many favourite Genesis and Hackett numbers, this time Steve and his band will be accompanied by a 41-piece orchestra.
The decision to undertake this tour was cemented following the critical success of last year’s one-off US performance of the Genesis Revisited music with his band and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by the charismatic Bradley Thachuk.
It went down a storm with the audience and sounded amazing, with the orchestra adding even more texture and colour to these classic tracks, prompting Steve to want to perform more shows in this way. Such was the gusto and verve brought to the performance by conductor, Bradley Thachuk that he will fly over to the UK to conduct the October shows. This show promises to be a transcendent experience!
Steve explains, “I always hoped that the Genesis music would one day involve an orchestra and I’m proud to say I’ll now be able to make that dream a reality on my next British tour, involving my own extraordinary rock band alongside a full-sized orchestra.”
The show will feature some of Genesis’ best-loved songs, including Supper’s Ready, Dancing with the Moonlit Knight, Firth of Fifth and more. Steve will not be neglecting his remarkable solo repertoire and there will be tracks included such as Shadow of the Hierophant, El Niño and The Steppes.
Tour details are as follows: –
Monday, October 1st Nottingham Royal Concert Hall
Wednesday, October 3rd Manchester Bridgewater Hall
Joining Steve on the tour are his regular musicians Roger King (keyboards), Gary O’Toole (drums/percussion), Rob Townsend (saxes/flutes) with Nad Sylvan on vocals. They will be joined on this tour by Jonas Reingold from The Flower Kings on bass.
South London duo VLMV will release their debut album ‘Stranded, Not Lost’ on February 16th, the follow up to their 2016 mini-album which garnered the self-proclaimed “ambient-ish, post-something” outfit praise from the likes of Lauren Laverne, The Independent, Killing Moon, London in Stereo and more.
These previous releases have earned the band tours with post-rock stalwarts Nordic Giants and New Zealand trio Jakob as well as performances at festivals across Europe where their live show, a blend of the delicate, emotional vocals of Keaton Henson, the compositional beauty of Olafur Arnalds and a touch of the crashing and climactic soundscapes of Sigur Ros & Explosions In The Sky have wowed and hushed audiences all over the continent.
The band, up until recently, known as ALMA (until several cases of mistaken identity with the BBC Sound of 2018 nominee necessitated a branding rethink) have announced their new album ‘Stranded, Not Lost’ is to be released on Fierce Panda on the 16th February 2018. A collection of 10 new compositions from the band that perfectly recaptures the fragile, fragrant essence of their esteemed debut ‘ALMA’ album which hoovered up comparisons to fellow explorers Sigur Ros, Patrick Watson and Explosions in The Sky.
‘Stranded, Not Lost’ is a gorgeous and moving record replete with the kind of brooding, ambient soundscapes, soaring vocals and crashing intensity that have earned the band a small legion of dedicated fans and a fearsome live reputation.
The band, which was formed in 2015 by songwriter Pete Lambrou have been described as sounding like “the background music to an ambient explosion in space”, which is perhaps unsurprising when one considers that as mainstay of Codes in The Clouds and Monsters Build Mean Robots Lambrou’s gently cosmic post-rock provenance is impeccable.
Joined by fellow Code In The Cloudser Ciaran Morahan, VLMV deploy a loop station, multiple delay pedals, a piano and strings to create a slow-moving, high-flying soundscape of luscious gravitas.
When asked about the new album, VLMV’sPete Lambrou said: “Stranded, Not Lost is the first album I’ve written as a whole album, and not just songs that are pieced together to form a sort of best of after a certain period. I built a retreat studio in the basement of my house and buried myself there for a while. I wanted to keep this spatial feel that our previous album had, but create something more intimate. Thematically it’s a very inward album, which I haven’t really done for a long time. I think you can really hear the isolation in there. It’s personal, lonely and regretful.”
The band have also announced a set of UK & EU Tour dates in support of the album:
19/02 – LWL Museum – Munster
20/01 – Le caf & Diskaire – Lille
21/02 – Galerie vom Zufall und vom Glück – Hanover
On the heels of their critically acclaimed 2017 release ‘Malina,’ Leprous are excited to announce a US tour alongside progressive metal giants Between the Buried and Me. Also joining the tour are The Dear Hunter making this one of the highly anticipated tours in 2018.
The tour kicks off March 2nd in Chicago.
Pre-sale tickets go on sale now and general tickets go on sale Friday at 10 AM (local time).
3.2 – Chicago, IL – House of Blues
3.3 – Minneapolis, MN – First Ave
3.5 – Denver, CO – Ogden Theatre
3.6 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex
3.8 – Seattle, WA – Showbox
3.9 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
3.10 – San Francisco, CA – The Regency Ballroom
3.11 – Anaheim, CA – House of Blues
3.13 – Los Angeles, CA – Belasco Theater
3.15 – Las Vegas, NV – House of Blues
3.16 – Phoenix, AZ – Marquee
3.17 – Albuquerque, NM – Sunshine Theater
3.19 – Austin, TX – Come and Take It Live
3.20 – Dallas, TX – Canton Hall
3.21 – Houston, TX – Warehouse Ballroom
3.23 – Orlando, FL – The Beacham Theater
3.24 – Ft. Lauderdale, FL – Revolution
3.27 – Nashville, TN – Cannery Ballroom
3.28 – Asheville, NC – Orange Peel
3.30 – Pittsburgh, PA – Mr. Smalls
3.31 – Philadelphia, PA – Electric Factory
4.2 – Albany, NY – Upstate Concert Hall
4.3 – Boston, MA – Royale
4.4 – New York City, NY – Playstation Theater
4.5 – Silver Spring, MD – Fillmore Silver Spring
4.6 – Cleveland, OH – Agora Theatre
4.7 – Mount Clemens, MI – Emerald Theatre
Aviv Geffen, the Israeli singer/songwriter as one half of the rock duo Blackfield with prolific British musician Steven Wilson, is taking their critically acclaimed studio album ‘V’ on a new 9-date European tour in January 2018. Following the successful Spring 2017 tour, which saw a surprise appearance from Steven Wilson on the UK dates, European shows with Biffy Clyro and shows with Jake Bugg, Aviv Geffen has answered the many fan requests for more live performances.
Blackfield’s beloved music was recently celebrated with reissues of their classic first two albums on vinyl and CD, with the second also being remastered by Steven Wilson.
Their latest album ‘Blackfield V’, was written and recorded over 18 months in both Israel and England, and contains 13 linked songs that form a flowing 45 minute ocean themed song cycle. The duo expertly handle the vocals, guitars, and keyboards, with Tomer Z from the Blackfield band on drums, Eran Mitelman on keys, and string arrangements performed by the London Session Orchestra. ‘Blackfield V’ is a powerful journey through catchy melodies, lush arrangements, and stunning production, with legendary producer / engineer Alan Parsons working on three of the album’s key tracks.
The pair make for a formidable musical force; Geffen has worked with legendary producers Tony Visconti and Trevor Horn, has played live with U2 and Placebo, and is currently a judge on the Israeli TV show The Voice. Wilson, after a long tenure as the leader of the hugely influential band Porcupine Tree, has since embarked on a highly successful solo career, achieving 3 UK top 40 albums (the most recent also making the top 3 in Germany, and The Netherlands), and 4 Grammy nominations.
For the release of their latest album ‘V’,Blackfield revealed two music videos, created by long time collaborator Lasse Hoile (www.lassehoile.com), for the Wilson-penned “From 44 to 48” and for “Lonely Soul”.
Paul Draper has announced details of a special edition of his debut album ‘Spooky Action’. The two CD set features the original album alongside a disc capturing Paul’s triumphant headline show at London’s Scala (recorded on 21st September 2017). The gig was part of a sell-out solo tour, Paul’s first live shows since Mansun stopped touring in 2002. The gig featured tracks from ‘Spooky Action’ (featured in the Prog, Louder than War and Guardian writers end of year charts – “the perfect confection for the later days of the 2010s” Record Collector 5*,), his solo EPs and Mansun’s ‘Attack of the Grey Lantern’ and ‘Little Kix’. The entire gig has been mixed by Paul’s long time collaborator P Dub.
Live at Scalafeatures:
1. The Silence is Deafening
2. Don’t You Wait, It Might Never Come
3. No Ideas
4. Feeling My Heart Run Slow
5. Things People Want
6. Disgusting
7. Friends Make The Worst Enemies
8. Grey House
9. Who’s Wearing The Trousers
10. I Can Only Disappoint U
11. Wide Open Space
12. Don’t Poke The Bear
Spooky Action & Live at Scala will be available as a 2CD set on Kscope on 16th February 2018. A single disc of the live album will be available from independent shops and a very limited signed 2 x 12” vinyl edition will be sold exclusively on Paul’s forthcoming UK tour dates. At those shows, Paul and his band will play a set of solo material before performing Mansun’s classic debut Attack of the Grey Lantern in full for the first time ever on the 21st anniversary of its release. The dates are:
Paul Draper was the frontman of Mansun – one of the most iconic bands of the late ’90s. Over the course of three albums (a fourth issued posthumously), they achieved something unique – after fostering a fervent cult following, they managed to maintain critical and commercial success with a series of intensely radio friendly yet increasingly experimental records. Off the back of their biggest radio record, Mansun imploded in 2003 and Paul all but disappeared from view.
Fast forward to 2017 when Paul released his long-awaited debut solo album, Spooky Action, on Kscope in the summer. The album wasthe result of a decade of thinking, tinkering, writing, recording and focusing.
Lyrically, biting and brutally honest – an autobiography set to captivating, addictive melody across eleven songs that peak then peak again, then peak again. Taking its cue from 2016’s two EP releases and recorded in collaboration with Catherine AD (The Anchoress) and long time Mansun collaborator PDub, The record’s eleven tracks veer from warped voodoo psych (Don’t Poke the Bear) to glistening synthetic soul (Things People Want); from warped, razor wire rock’n’roll (Grey House) to glorious widescreen analogue pop music (Jealousy Is A Powerful Emotion). Collectively, they represent Paul’s strongest, most consistent set of songs to date – half a lifetime’s work condensed into just over an hour of perfectly formed music.
2017 also saw Kscope acquire the rights to Mansun’s back catalogue. The ground-breaking label will roll out a reissue campaign over eighteen months that will cover the band’s entire history and enhance their reputation as one of the most iconic and innovative bands of the 90s.
Mansun’s four albums – ‘Attack of theGreyLantern’ (1997), ‘Six’ (1998), ‘Little Kix’ (2000) and the compilation ‘Kleptomania’ (2004) – were originally issued by Parlophone. The Kscope reissues will bring these classic records into the modern age by delving into a treasure trove of previously unreleased audio and visual material while fully remastering the original recordings for 5.1 and deluxe 180gm vinyl. This campaign will begin with ‘Attack Of The Grey Lantern’, to celebrate the 21st Anniversary of the album’s release.
