Every week we roundup the best music news from the past week!
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Blur debut ‘The Narcissist’
Welcome everyone to another edition of our weekly music News Report!
We start this week with the big news that Blur will be releasing their first new album in eight years!
As the group played a tiny hometown show in Colchester it was revealed that a new record, ‘The Ballad of Darren’, will arrive on July 21st.
The album is preceded by new single, ‘The Narcissist’, which you can check out above!
Damon Albarn said – “This is an aftershock record, reflection and comment on where we find ourselves now.”
Graham Coxon said – “The older and madder we get, it becomes more essential that what we play is loaded with the right emotion and intention. Sometimes just a riff doesn’t do the job.”
Alex James said – “For any long term relationship to last with any meaning you have to be able to surprise each other somehow and somehow we all continue to do that.”
Dave Rowntree said – “It always feels very natural to make music together. With every record we do, the process reveals something new and we develop as a band. We don’t take that for granted.”
Pre-order your copy here.
Listen to ‘The Narcissist’ on our Spotify Hot List!
Greta Van Fleet share ‘Sacred The Thread
Next, we turn our attention to Greta Van Fleet who continue to prepare for the release of their new album, ‘Starcatcher’, on July 21st.
This week the group shared their latest single, ‘Sacred The Thread’, and you can check it out above.
“I always like to think that some people’s first impression of Greta Van Fleet in concert is, ‘Wow, these guys really like dressing to the left and blowing shit up,’” notes frontperson Josh Kiszka, adding, “this song is particularly important to me because it’s about my jumpsuits.”
Pre-order your copy here.
Listen to ‘Sacred The Thread’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
Within Temptation debut ‘Wireless’
Within Temptation treated fans this week to a brand new single, ‘Wireless’, which you can check out above. The track comes ahead of a hotly anticipated new album which is due later this year.
Vocalist Sharon den Adel comments, “Wireless” is a song about a soldier who goes to war convinced that he is going for a good cause. He’s indoctrinated by government-controlled media and thinks he’s going to be welcomed back as a saviour, only to find out he has been used. This has resulted in people seeing him as a brutal conqueror instead, and now he finds himself on the wrong side. His life and the lives of many are deceived and destroyed.”
More here.
Listen to ‘Wireless’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
Skindred release ‘L.O.V.E (Smile Please)
Skindred also had new music on offer this week as they set free their summer reggae anthem, ‘L.O.V.E (Smile Please)’, which you can check out above.
The track got its first public airing last summer via Skindred’s incredible main stage performance at 2022’s Download Festival. There, 60,000 rabid fans turned Donington’s metal fest into one big, happy dancefloor. “What a way for us to bring that song to the world for the first time,” beams frontman Benji Webbe, “on a big stage, in front of a field of maniacs, doing what we do.”
The track comes from upcoming new album, ‘Smile’, which will arrive August 4th!
Pre-order your copy here.
Listen to ‘L.O.V.E (Smile Please)’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
The Dead Daisies to release ‘best of’ collection
The Dead Daisies this week revealed that they will be releasing a ‘Best of’ collection from across their career.
The rotating line-up has also seen the return of singer John Corabi ahead of a run of upcoming live dates.
“It’s been an amazing decade with The Daisies! We’ve rocked out with some of the best in the business, toured the globe, released eight albums and are thrilled to be showcasing the body of work from over the last decade with our upcoming “Best Of” Album release and tour. I’m excited to be welcoming John Corabi back to the band. Can’t wait to get back on the road again in 2023 to perform for our fans!” – David Lowy
Pre-order your copy here.
Read our review of Dead Man’s Whiskey live in Norwich
The Used debut ‘Giving Up’
Up next in our News Report are The Used who this week released new album, ‘Toxic Positivity’.
On the album, vocalist Bert McCracken says “Humans share such similar experiences and similar tragedies and everything in between. This record is quite tough for me to listen to, because it’s a reflection of times in my life that have been some of my lowest ever. I want people to understand that, no matter how bad it gets, you don’t have to give up. Everything always feels different no matter what. So what you’re feeling right now you will not feel later on.”.
The last pre-release single, ‘Giving Up’, debuted this week and you can check it out above.
The band adds, “We think this song is fun and cute. We hope you love it too.”.
Grab your copy here.
Listen to ‘Giving Up’ on our Spotify Hot List!
The Wonder Years share ‘GODDAMNITALL’
To celebrate the decade anniversary of ‘The Greatest Generation’, The Wonder Years have shared a revived b-side called ‘GODDAMNITALL’, which you can check out above.
“‘GODDAMNITAL’ is a song that almost was, and then, for a long time, categorically was not, and now is,” vocalist Dan Campbell says of the track.
“When it came time to find bonus content for this box set, we went grave digging in old hard-drives to find the demos from TGG that didn’t get finished and then exhumed and reanimated this one. It was the closest to being done at the time. All of the music was there. The chorus had lyrics and melody but, for budget and time constraints it got abandoned before it had verses and a bridge. Now, a decade later, it’s finally finished. We asked Steve Evetts to produce it the same way he would have if it were on the original album and it now stands as a spiritual and somewhat literal b-side to The Greatest Generation.”
Pre-order a new ‘The Greatest Generation’ box set here.
Listen to ‘GODDAMNITALL’ on our Spotify Hot List!
Blind Channel share ‘HAPPY DOOMSDAY’
Recent The Full Pelt Music Podcast guests Blind Channel have released another new single, ‘HAPPY DOOMSDAY’, which you can check out above.
More here.
Watch Episode 18 of The Full Pelt Music Podcast with guests Blind Channel
Listen to ‘HAPPY DOOMSDAY’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
Holding Absence debut ‘False Dawn’
It was a big news week for Holding Absence as the group revealed that they will release their third album, ‘The Noble Art of Self Destruction’, will be released on August 25th.
In a message to fans the band said, “We feel like these songs are almost a love letter to everything Holding Absence. We can’t wait to show you just how much space we have managed to cover, and how hard we were able to push ourselves with these songs.”
The band also debuted their new single, ‘False Dawn’, which you can check out above!
On the song the group say, “This song is definitely a personal favourite for all of us on the record. A somewhat defeatist song about denouncing expectations, and coming to grips with failure – this song is a quintessential Holding Absence song, with it’s uptempo energy and downtrodden introspection. We hope you enjoy.”
Pre-order your copy here.
Listen to ‘False Dawn’ on our Spotify Hot List!
Static Dress unveil ‘Courtney, just relax’
Static Dress have signed with Roadrunner Records and this week unveiled new single, ‘Courtney, just relax’, which features World of Pleasure.
As always in our News Report you can check out the track above!
More here.
Listen to ‘Courtney, just relax’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
From Ashes To New share ‘Armageddon’
Our News Report continues with From Ashes To New who have shared their latest single, ‘Armageddon’, which you can check out above.
The song comes from upcoming new album, ‘Blackout’, which is out on July 28th.
Pre-order your copy here.
Listen to ‘Armageddon’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
TEMPT share ‘Roses’
TEMPT have shared new single, ‘Roses’, which you can check out above.
On the song’s meaning, guitarist Harrison Marcello says: “It’s a tribute to the people who uplift you and bring out the best in you. It’s about embracing their infectious energy, being drawn in by them, and becoming part of their spirit.”
“I’m immensely proud of what we’ve achieved with ‘Roses,” shares vocalist Zach Allen. “It’s a song that truly reflects who we are as a band—high-energy, infectious and unapologetically rock n’ roll.”
More here.
Listen to ‘Roses’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
The View debut ‘Shovel in His Hands’
Next up for our News Report is the latest single from The View!
After the band had an interesting week, they premiered new track, ‘Shovel in His Hands’, which you can check out above.
The track comes ahead of upcoming new album, ‘Exorcism of Youth’, which is out August 11th.
Pre-order here.
Listen to ‘Shovel in His Hands’ on our Spotify Hot List!
Dream Wife debut ‘Who Do You Wanna Be?’
Dream Wife continue to prepare for the release of ‘Social Lubrication’, on June 9th.
This week the group debuted their latest single, ‘Who Do You Wanna Be?’, which you can check out above.
The band note that the song is “about running on the capitalist treadmill and falling face first on the pavement. Hollow slogans, social media activism without action, leftist infighting, monetising feminism, ‘girl boss’, all soul crushing nonsense. Capitalism consumes everything. We should tear down the unreachable anxiety filled idea of perfectionism and move from hyper individualised narrative to collective action to create hopeful, rebellious, collective, systems of care. This is a call to arms for change.”
Pre-order your copy here.
Listen to ‘Who Do You Wanna Be?’ on our Spotify Hot List!
Meryl Streek unveils ‘If This is Life’
The final new release in this section of our News Report comes from Meryl Streek.
You can check out standalone new track, ‘If This is Life’, above.
Commenting on the new single, Streek says: “In my mind, it’s a straightforward pop song while still holding onto the same Meryl message. It’s written about the current state of Ireland and how the housing crisis is affecting families across the country on a massive scale. The eviction ban has been lifted and the landlords are evicting families onto the streets once again, with 11,754 people living in emergency accommodation at the start of this year and no sign of it getting any better. That includes 1,609 families, with 3,431 children in homelessness. 55% of them are single-parent families and we’ve still got the same corrupt government turning a blind eye and not admitting their mistakes. It’s an absolute joke, and people need to start speaking up about it.”
More here.
Listen to ‘If This is Life’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
Listen to ‘R.A.T.’ on our ‘Hard & Heavy’ Playlist!
The Stranglers announce 50th Anniversary Tour
We move our News Report on now to the best tour announcements from the past week.
Let’s get started with The Stranglers who have announced a special 50th Anniversary tour for March 2024!
Tickets are here.
Read our review of ‘Hard Cold Fire’ from Therapy?
Demob Happy set new tour dates
Demob Happy also had new tour dates to reveal this week as the band confirmed that they will tour the UK and Europe in September and October.
The band will be releasing their latest album, ‘Divine Machines’ on May 26th.
Pre-order your copy and grab tickets here.
Read our review of ‘Love, Chaos’ from The Pearl Harts
As always we conclude our News Report with the latest additions to our ‘Discover’ New Music Playlist!
rock band from hell – ‘Cloud9’
rock band from hell have announced that their debut album, ‘Music For Late Night Activities’ will be released on September 1st.
Alongside that news the group have shared their latest single, ‘Cloud9’.
The band comments:
“’cloud9’ is a pop-rock anthem that screams out the agony of the outsiders. It’s a song where Nirvana goes pop and Post Malone goes rock n’ roll. It rose from the feeling of being left outside – you feel like you’re not valued or appreciated, while others are living in cloud nine at the same time”.
EXTS – ‘Memories’
Post-hardcore newcomers, EXTS have announced their debut EP, ‘The Fragile Space Between’, is set for release on 23rd June. The group have also shared a brand-new single titled ‘Memories’, which will feature on the EP.
“The track’s about dropping the pretence and owning the truth. Tragedy strikes everyone at some point and we make good and bad decisions in those moments. Life loves to throw us curveballs from time to time & finding a way to keep positive, when it feels like there’s no break in the clouds, it is tough. The whole EP is about overcoming adversity & “Memories” is no different. Lyrically it nods to the old cliche “what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger”, especially in those defining moments in time.” – Vocalist, Jack Flynn.
Lucky Hit – ‘Obvious Sucker’
Pop punk band Lucky Hit have returned with a brand-new single titled ‘Obvious Sucker’.
Many of us often romanticise the past. The lyrics focus on a couple and the way in which they spent their time together and how they felt. The memory of that person often stays with us years after. The song itself is not about an ex girlfriend or a summer fling, the song is about a time in our lives personified. The time we spend in our younger years enjoying ourselves and taking risks and the spend out latter years romanticising it.” – Vocalist, Lawrence Murphy.
Listen, Follow and Discover your new favourite act now with our ‘Discover’ New Music Playlist
Then find out the stories behind the songs on our ‘Discover’ New Music Podcast!
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