Author: Amanda Collins

Idlewild‘s Roddy Woomble has spoken to NME about the fine balance of shunning nostalgia while accepting the band’s own past for their new self-titled album. Released today (Friday October 3), ‘Idlewild’ is the third in a string of consecutive career-high records since the Scottish alt-rock veterans’ reunion over a decade ago. With a forward motion and ever-wisened vision from Woomble’s vivid and poetic lyrics, the group’s 10th album follows on from 2019’s acclaimed ‘Interview Music’ with flourishes of Idlewild’s renowned anthemic past but without ever leaning on pastiche – with Idlewild still living a world entirely of their own making.…

By Jim Barber If you’re looking for dirt. If you’re looking for an insider’s view of the ups and downs, the good, the bad or the seamier underbelly of the music industry, if you’re looking for the proverbial, sex, drugs and rock and roll (and fiddles!!) and hell-bent-for-leather stories of relationship tumult and substance-fueled misbehavior, I Have a Love Story is most assuredly NOT the book for you. If you’ve spent even five minutes with its author, the iconic Canadian fiddler/tunesmith/performer Natalie MacMaster you’d know that this is not the sort of book she would ever write, because that’s not…

A new initiative is elevating Black Canadian artist managers in the industry. F.A.M.E. (Foundations & Acceleration for Management Excellence) is designed to strengthen capacity, leadership and sustainability for Black music managers. Related Started by Toronto-based non-profit, Breaking Down Racial Barriers (BDRB), the eight-week program — running from October 14 to December 4 — will provide intensive training, mentorship and industry access for Black-identifying music leaders. Led by music manager Katrina Lopes, the initiative includes weekly Zoom workshops with management industry leaders, one-on-one mentorship and networking sessions with senior music executives and guest speakers from Canadian and U.S. music markets. Participants…

Rock Band 4 is set to disappear from digital stores this weekend due to its music license agreement expiring. Originally released on October 6, 2015, Rock Band 4 is the fourth and final entry in the beloved rhythm game series. The game’s soundtrack featured 65 songs from artists such as Arctic Monkeys, St. Vincent, Fall Out Boy, U2 and System Of A Down while a number of paid expansions were released in the years that followed. At the start of last year, developer Harmonix announced it would stop updating Rock Band 4 as the studio pivoted to work on Fortnite’s…

Leaders across indie music are once again teaming up to speak out against Universal Music Group’s proposed acquisition of Downtown Music Holdings with a new campaign. Dubbed “100 Voices,” the campaign argues that the deal, which is currently the subject of an investigation by the European Commission, “poses a serious threat to competition, diversity and fair access across the music industry,” according to a press release. Downtown operates distribution platforms FUGA and CD Baby, the royalty accounting service Curve and the indie publishing admin services provider Songtrust, among others — all of which are heavily utilized by independent labels and…

British up-and-coming producer Neon Palm has just unveiled his brand new single Tied Up, a smooth, emotive Progressive House cut.  What I like the most about this song is the delicate, expressive vocal delivery that effortlessly infuses the song with a memorable dose of soul and emotion, making the song perfect to sing along to while dancing. Accompanying those lovely vocals we have an upbeat electronic production that pairs lush strings with catchy pads, delicate piano keys, subtle percussive elements, groovy rhythms and synths that come together to create an emotive and danceable listening experience.  

Lowly Light, the pseudonym of award-winning songwriter and producer Matt Gorny, joins forces once again with singer-songwriter Liset Alea to deliver Find A Way, a sparkling slice of indie dance and nu-disco about hope and resilience.  Find A Way finds the talented artist reminding listeners to hold onto childlike wonder even in the face of uncertainty, a hopeful message wrapped around a shimmering electro-pop production. Liset’s sultry, yet vulnerable vocals infuse the song with a dose of emotion while Lowly Light contributes a sharp ear for infectious rhythm and textured production. I am really enjoyign the tone of Liset’s voice and…

In an interview with Billboard Brazil, Backstreet Boys’ Nick Carter and Howie Dorough talk about the 25th-anniversary Into the Millennium tour, their show at The Town, their love for Brazil, the Swedish influence on their sound, and how they survived the changes in the music industry. And they confirm: “Brazil is our second home.” “Okay, Claudia. Nick and Howie are ready.” I join the Zoom call with two members of one of the biggest pop acts of the last 30 years: Backstreet Boys’ Nick Carter and Howie Dorough. When they emerged in 1993, pop music was operating at the highest…

Showcasing an alluring sophisti-pop sound, Second Mansions is the newly released album from Le Concorde, the project of singer-songwriter Stephen Becker. The memorable sound is propelled further by noted Scottish producer Calum Malcolm, who has worked previously with some of the project’s biggest inspirations in The Blue Nile and Prefab Sprout. The latter is a particularly striking aesthetical reference point here, especially since Becker’s vocals project a smooth, soulful charisma reminiscent of Paddy McAloon — seamlessly accompanied by an array of twinkling synths, warming guitar strums, and harmoniously reflective backing vocals. Second Mansions represents a stirring return for Le Concorde,…

Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs has announced that he’ll be taking a “planned break” from Oasis‘ Live ’25 reunion tour to continue his cancer treatment, after sharing news of his recent diagnosis. The guitarist was given the all-clear from tonsil cancer back in 2022, but has now shared that he was diagnosed with prostate cancer earlier this year, and will be sitting out the band’s upcoming dates in Asia and Australia before rejoining them in South America so that he can have “the next phase of care”. “Early this year I was diagnosed with prostate cancer,” said Bonehead in a statement. “The…