Jonathan Hatchman (@JonHatchman) picks out the sounds and stories that have been making headlines over the last seven days… and presents them all as a handy playlist
With over three years having passed since their release of their acclaimed Given To The Wild, The Maccabees have finally unveiled the first new song from the long-awaited follow-up. Announced alongside a string of four intimate UK tour dates, including a homecoming show at Elephant & Castle’s Coronet Theatre, Marks To Prove It is a resilient return single from one of the nation’s best-loved indie bands. Listen to the track below.
Also making an unexpected return this week is The National. Having unveiled a brand new song Sunshine On My Back, which features guest vocals from Sharon Van Etten and is the band’s first new single since their 2013 album Trouble Will Find Me. Allegedly recorded during the same sessions for their latest album, the song is available as an instant free download alongside the purchase of The National documentary Mistaken For Strangers.
Thirty-nine years on from starring in The Man Who Fell To Earth, playing a character named Thomas Newton – David Bowie is reportedly working on a brand new stage show, alongside Irish playwright Enda Walsh, which adheres to the same story line and will be named Lazarus. What’s more, the show that’s set to open later this year will feature some brand new songs from Bowie himself, as well as some rearrangements of older Bowie classics.
As if breaking Spotify’s streaming records as well as receiving rave reviews from fans and critics alike, Kendrick Lamar has made headlines once again, this week. This time he’s taken over the Beats billboard at New York’s iconic Times Square in order to premiere the brand new video for his song King Kunta. The video is now online, just in case you missed the official premiere.
Currently on tour of some of the UK’s more intimate venues, The Vaccines have revealed the music video for yet another new single that’s set to appear on their forthcoming third album Physical Graffiti that’s out next month. New single Dream Lover is accompanied by a retro music video that embraces a sci-fi theme in contrast to the Kung-Fu theme for lead single Handsome, and it’s available to stream here.
Jonathan’s Pick Of The Week
Eighteen, the title-track from a brand new five-track EP from Glastonbury’s Dive In, was “born from a loop pedal jam” in the band’s old residence. Featuring an enthralling synth pop backdrop, this may well be the beginning of Vagrant Records’ latest signing’s rise in a similar vein to their previous signing – The 1975.
