Coldplay’s brand new single, Higher Power, has today been confirmed for release on Friday, May7thvia Parlophone / Atlantic.
Said Coldplay on Twitter:
“Higher Power is a song that arrived on a little keyboard and a bathroom sink at the start of 2020. It was produced by Max Martin who is a true wonder of the universe. It’s out on Friday 7 May. Love c, g, w & j”
The announcement confirms fan rumours that have circulated since last week, when cryptic billboards around the world pointed to a mysterious website called alienradio.fm.
Fans managed to decipher the letter-like symbols to uncover the song title and release date.
The track is available to pre-order / pre-save on streaming platforms, from here.
OK Humans — the time has come to welcome Weezer’s long-awaited homage to metal to the world: Van Weezer will be released on May 7 via Crush Music/Atlantic Records. A new song from the album, “I Need Some Of That,” has been released today as well.
“I Need Some Of That” follows the release of last year’s “Hero” and “Beginning Of The End,” as well as 2019’s “End Of The Game,” all of which appear on Van Weezer. The band also gave fans a sneak peek of Van Weezer song “Blue Dream” in last year’s Simpsons episode, in addition to performing the show’s iconic theme song at the episode’s end. A full track listing for Van Weezer is below.
Van Weezer, the band’s fifteenth studio album, is produced by Suzy Shinn (Panic! At The Disco, Fall Out Boy). The inspiration for this album derives from the deepest roots of Weezer – metal! What has metal got to do with Weezer, you ask? In his earliest years, Rivers was a huge KISS fan; Brian was a big Black Sabbath fan; Pat worshipped at the altar of Van Halen and Rush; Scott loved Slayer and Metallica. The last time this vein of harder rock was mined by Weezer was on their much-loved 2002 album Maladroit; Van Weezer is primed to take that album’s sonics many steps further courtesy of producer Suzy Shinn.
Van Weezer follows the release of the band’s first-ever orchestral album, OK Human, earlier this year. OK Human’s lead single, “All My Favorite Songs,” hit #1 at Triple A radio, and is currently top 5 and growing at Alternative.
Weezer has sold over 10 million albums in the U.S., and over 35 million records worldwide since their debut album’s release in 1994. The catalogue has included such megahits as “Buddy Holly,” “Undone (The Sweater Song),” “Say It Ain’t So,” “El Scorcho,” “Hash Pipe,” “Island In The Sun,” “Beverly Hills,” “Pork and Beans,” and more.
About the song, Bebe revealed, “‘Sabotage’ is one of the most vulnerable songs on my new album, Better Mistakes. It’s just as beautiful as it is painfully honest. I admit to getting in my own way when things are going well. I know I am not alone in experiencing self-sabotage during life’s most precious moments, and this ballad is an acknowledgment that sometimes we are our own worst enemy.”
Bebe set the stage for Better Mistakes with the radio anthem “Sacrifice.” Right out of the gate, it racked up 20 million-plus streams and over 10 million YouTube views on the vampire fantasy music video. Garnering critical acclaim, Rolling Stone described it as “seductive.” Bebe initially teased this chapter with the 2020 single “Baby, I’m Jealous” [feat. Doja Cat], eclipsing 55 million Spotify streams and 53 million views on the blockbuster music video.
Bebe architected a pop opus with Better Mistakes. The opener “Break My Heart Myself” [feat. Travis Barker] hinges on manic bursts of energy and her signature vocal acrobatics uplifted by stadium-ready drums courtesy of legendary blink-182 stickman Travis Barker. Creaky guitar cuts through a glitchy beat on “Die For A Man” [feat. Lil Uzi Vert] as Bebe promises, “I would never die for a man, change who I am.” Meanwhile, elusive galactic hip-hop titan Lil Uzi Vert rolls through with a raw and rare cameo. Then, there’s “Amore” [feat. Rick Ross]. Her confident vocals set the stage for Rozay to pull up and do what he does with a gruff and laidback flow. The record culminates on “Mama.” Massive orchestral strings resound as she delivers one final anthem, this time, for her mom. The final confession says it all, “I messed up again, but I swear my heart is as gold as it gets.” Check out the tracklisting below.
Powerhouse songwriter/producer Justin Tranter and Jeff Levin served as the album’s Executive Producers. Better Mistakes also boasts production from the likes of Mike Elizondo, Jussifer, Michael Keenan, The Six, Lostboy Crow, and more.
With her show-stopping voice and straight-from-the-heart lyricism, Bebe has emerged as pop’s most dynamic, diverse, and disruptive outlier on her own terms. Her vocals and pen powered the RIAA Diamond-certified (10x Platinum) crossover mega-smash “Meant To Be” featuring Florida Georgia Line. Last week, the Grammy®-Nominated smash hit officially joined the extremely exclusive ONE BILLION STREAMS club at Spotify, marking Bebe’s second song to cross this magic line. Bebe and Martin Garrix’s “In The Name of Love” surpassed one billion streams on the platform earlier last year. Bebe now becomes only one of 10 female artists who have achieved two or more billion streaming tracks on Spotify.
Beyond over a dozen platinum singles and collaborations, Bebe’s 2018 debut, Expectations, reached platinum status and spawned two platinum singles—“I’m A Mess” and “I Got You.” Writing at a prolific pace and pushing herself with every subsequent song, she’s sacrificed to get to the forefront of pop—and she’s going to continue to reign there with her new album.
BETTER MISTAKES TRACKLISTING:
1. Break My Heart Myself (Feat. Travis Barker) 2. Sabotage 3. Trust Fall 4. Better Mistakes 5. Sacrifice 6. My Dear Love (Feat. Ty Dolla $Ign & Trevor Daniel) 7. Die For A Man (Feat. Lil Uzi Vert) 8. Baby, I’m Jealous (Feat. Doja Cat) 9. On The Go (Feat. Pink Sweat$ & Lunay) 10. Death Row 11. Empty 12. Amore (Feat. Rick Ross) 13. Mama
FIRST SINGLE, “CRAWLING KINGSNAKE,” AVAILABLE TODAY ALBUM HONORS MUSIC OF MISSISSIPPI HILL COUNTRY BLUES, R. L. BURNSIDE & JUNIOR KIMBROUGH, AMONG OTHERS WHO HAVE INFLUENCEDTHE BLACK KEYShttps://youtu.be/aVMa9TpRxk4
On May 14, The Black Keys release their tenth studio album, Delta Kream, via Nonesuch Records. The record celebrates the band’s roots, featuring eleven Mississippi hill country blues standards that they have loved since they were teenagers, before they were a band, including songs by R. L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough, among others. Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney recorded Delta Kream at Auerbach’s Easy Eye Sound studio in Nashville; they were joined by musicians Kenny Brown and Eric Deaton, long-time members of the bands of blues legends including R. L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough. The album takes its name from William Eggleston’s iconic Mississippi photograph that is on its cover. Delta Kream is available for pre-order on all formats .
Auerbach says of the album, “We made this record to honor the Mississippi hill country blues tradition that influenced us starting out. These songs are still as important to us today as they were the first day Pat and I started playing together and picked up our instruments. It was a very inspiring session with Pat and me along with Kenny Brown and Eric Deaton in a circle, playing these songs. It felt so natural.”
Carney concurs, “The session was planned only days in advance and nothing was rehearsed. We recorded the entire album in about ten hours, over two afternoons, at the end of the ‘Let’s Rock’ tour.”
Today, the band shares Delta Kream’s first single “Crawling Kingsnake.” Auerbach says of the song: “I first heard [John Lee] Hooker’s version in high school. My uncle Tim would have given me that record. But our version is definitely Junior Kimbrough’s take on it. It’s almost a disco riff!” Carney adds, “We fell into this drum intro; it’s kind of accidental. The ultimate goal was to highlight the interplay between the guitars. My role with Eric was to create a deeper groove.”
The band revealed an exclusive first listen of the song to their fan club, The Lonely Boys and Girls Club, earlier this week. Fans can join for free and gain access to special bonus content, exclusive merch bundles and much more.
The music from northern Mississippi, which came to life in juke joints, has long left an imprint on the band’s music, from their cover of R.L. Burnside’s “Busted” and Junior Kimbrough’s “Do The Romp” on their debut album, The Big Come Up; to their subsequent signing to Fat Possum Records, home to many of their musical heroes; and to their EP of Junior Kimbrough covers, Chulahoma.
In addition to paying homage to these Mississippi blues legends with Delta Kream, The Black Keys are working with VisitMississippi, the state’s tourism organization, to sponsor new individual markers for R. L. Burnside and Junior Kimbrough on the Mississippi Blues Trail, which tell the stories of the state’s blues artists both renowned and obscure through words and images. (Both musicians are currently acknowledged on a group marker in Holly Springs entitled “Hill Country Blues.”) The new markers will be erected in the proposed locations of Holly Springs and Chulahoma, MS, places closely associated with Burnside and Kimbrough – a fitting tribute to these architects of Hill Country Blues and further recognition of their enduring contributions to American music. More information about the Mississippi Blues Trail is available here.
Formed in Akron, Ohio in 2001, The Black Keys, who have been called “rock royalty” by the Associated Press and “one of the best rock ‘n’ roll bands on the planet” by Uncut, are guitarist/singer Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney. Cutting their teeth playing small clubs, the band have gone on to sell out arena tours and have released nine previous studio albums: their debut The Big Come Up (2002), followed by Thickfreakness (2003) and Rubber Factory (2004), along with their releases on Nonesuch Records, Magic Potion (2006), Attack & Release (2008), Brothers (2010), El Camino (2011), Turn Blue (2014) and, most recently, “Let’s Rock” (2019), plus and a tenth anniversary edition of Brothers (2020). The band has won six Grammy Awards and a BRIT and headlined festivals in North America, South America, Mexico, Australia, and Europe.
Delta Kream Track Listing:
1. Crawling Kingsnake (John Lee Hooker / Bernard Besman)
2. Louise (Fred McDowell)
3. Poor Boy a Long Way From Home (Robert Lee Burnside)
ANNOUNCE “TWENTY ONE PILOTS – LIVESTREAM EXPERIENCE”
IMMERSIVE LIVE PERFORMANCE TO BROADCAST WORLDWIDE
MAY 21ST AT 8:00PM ET
GRAMMY® Award winning duo Twenty One Pilots have announced their new album, Scaled And Icy, which will be released May 21st via Fueled By Ramen [album artwork / tracklist below]. Today, the band has shared the forthcoming album’s first single, “Shy Away,”which is available on all streaming platforms and is accompanied by a Miles & AJ directed official music video. Available for pre-order today in a variety of formats, with a special edition box set pre-order launching on April 9th, Scaled And Icy is Twenty One Pilots’ first studio album in three years and follows their RIAA Platinum certified LP, Trench.
In addition to the news of the forthcoming album, Twenty One Pilots have also announced their first-ever global streaming event, “Twenty One Pilots – Livestream Experience,” which is scheduled to broadcast worldwide on Friday, May 21st at 8:00PM ET. “Twenty One Pilots – Livestream Experience”promises to be an unforgettable performance from the duo, with a catalog spanning setlist that will also mark the live debut of new material from Scaled And Icy. Tickets for the groundbreaking global streaming event are on sale today at live.twentyonepilots.com where the band has also launched a special pre-show virtual experience for fans to immerse themselves in as they move toward the official live date and performance. The livestream is sponsored by Chipotle and Hot Topic, while the interactive and immersive experiences are conceived and produced by lili STUDIOS, and powered by Maestro’s livestream platform [livestream admat below].
Written and largely produced by Joseph in isolation over the course of the past year at his home studio, with Dun engineering the album’s drums from across the country, Scaled And Icy is the product of long-distance virtual sessions and finds the duo processing their upended routines along with the prevailing emotions of 2020 – anxiety, loneliness, boredom, and doubt. The duo had to forgo their normal studio sessions but reached a new of level of introspection in the process, adopting a more imaginative and bold approach to their songwriting. The result is a collection of songs that push forward through setbacks and focus on the possibilities worth remembering.
In 2020, Twenty One Pilots surprised fans with standalone singles “Level of Concern” and “Christmas Saves The Year.” “Level of Concern” reigned at Alternative Radio for 12 weeks straight and cracked the Top 25 on Billboard’s “Hot 100” chart, while also achieving RIAA Gold certification, and propelling the band to victory at last year’s American Music Awards where they took home the award for “Favorite Artist – Alternative Rock.” “Christmas Saves The Year” arrived at the tail end of 2020 and debuted on Billboard’s “Alternative Airplay” chart becoming the first holiday-themed song to make the list since 2012.
Furthermore, Twenty One Pilots scored one final accolade in the final moments of 2020, officially breaking the GUINNESS WORLD RECORD™ for the longest music video with their history-making regenerative visual for “Level of Concern.” Conceived by the band with interactive director Jason Nickel, and award-winning storyteller / director Jason Zada, the first-ever ‘Never-Ending Music Video’ pulled in fan created content from over 162,000 user submissions, in real time, live on YouTube. Powered by Imposium, every three minutes and forty seconds a new music video was created and streamed live to YouTube, containing brand new content from fans. Besting the previous record holder, Pharrell and his 24-hour long video for “Happy,” Twenty One Pilots’ ‘Never-Ending Music Video’ for “Level of Concern” broadcasted for 177 days straight with a total run time of 4,264 hours, 10 mins, 25 seconds.
Twenty One Pilots’ 2018 LP Trench ushered in a new era for the duo from Ohio. Earning Platinum certification from the RIAA, the album was met withcritical acclaim with Billboard declaring, “Trench revels in the confounding genre-blurring and cavernous conceptualism that has defined Twenty One Pilots.” A true global phenomenon having surpassed two billion streams worldwide, Trench is highlighted bythe RIAA Gold and Platinum certified alternative hits “The Hype,” “Chlorine,” and “Jumpsuit.” “Jumpsuit” stands as the decade’s fastest rising song to reach #1 on Billboard’s “Alternative Songs” chart and earned the duo their fourth GRAMMY® nomination (Best Rock Song). The acclaimed conceptual collection also features the RIAA Gold-certified “Nico And The Niners” and the RIAA Platinum-certified single “My Blood.”
In 2019 Twenty One Pilots announced that their 2013 LP Vessel achieved a Gold & Platinum milestone with every individual track from the album receiving Gold, Platinum or Multi-Platinum certification from the RIAA. Twenty One Pilots’ 2015 LP Blurryface was the first album of the digital era to achieve this feat back in 2018, making the duo the first artist / group with two albums to reach this landmark achievement.
Rising star Nathan Dawe has announced the release of new single ‘Way Too Long’ with Anne-Marie & MoStack – a sparkling, infectious follow up to his latest UK Top 20 single, ‘No Time For Tears’, with Little Mix.
Listen to Nathan Dawe x Anne-Marie x MoStack – ‘Way Too Long’ HERE.
The release of ‘Way Too Long’ follows the news that Nathan’s 2020 dance anthem, ‘Lighter’ ft. KSI, has been nominated for British Single at the forthcoming 2021 BRIT Awards in May. Landing as Nathan’s first ever BRIT nomination, it cements his status as one of the UK’s biggest and most exciting breakout artists of the last 18 months.
New single ‘Way Too Long’ is bright, bubbling, undeniably catchy dance music at its best and builds on a formula that Nathan has made all his own since first turning heads with the release of ‘Flowers’ ft. Jaykae at the back end of 2019. It also sees Nathan collaborate with Anne-Marie – herself riding high in the charts with ‘Don’t Play’ alongside KSI and Digital Farm Animals, which has spent the last 11 weeks inside the UK Top 10 – and coveted rapper, MoStack, who featured on UK Top 10 hits ‘Fashion Week’ & ‘Dinner Guest’ alongside AJ Tracey & Steel Banglez, for the first time.
“I’m so excited for everyone to hear ‘Way Too Long’”, says Nathan. “I’m such a big fan of both Anne-Marie and MoStack, so to have a track with them both is amazing. The record has a real summery vibe and I feel it’s got what people need at the moment.”
The official video, directed by Troy Roscoe and featuring all three artists, sees Nathan, Anne-Marie and MoStack cruising around in a classic red convertible and partying the day away in a country mansion – a fun-loving, carefree ode to being reunited with friends and living life to the fullest.
Watch the official video HERE.
‘Way Too Long’ follows the success of Nathan’s previous singles, ‘No Time For Tears’ with Little Mix, which gave Nathan his third UK Top 20 single in a row earlier this year, BRIT-nominated, Platinum-selling UK #3 single ‘Lighter’ ft. KSI and breakout single, ‘Flowers’ ft. Jaykae, which peaked at #12 on the Official UK Singles Chart early in 2020.
Elsewhere, Nathan was crowned MTV’s Push Artist for 2021 back in January, holding off fierce competition the likes of Griff, Pa Salieu, Arlo Parks and Bree Runway. He was also made an official ambassador of Aston Villa’s Foundation last October – the football club he’s supported since he was a boy – and recently announced his debut ‘Way Too Long’ UK headline tour, with nationwide dates scheduled for November and December. Please see below for more details.
Nathan Dawe – ‘Way Too Long’ UK Tour – November & December 2021
Ed Sheeran has dropped a brand-new, surprise track titled ‘Afterglow’ especially for his fans – the track is available now on all DSPs (listen here). Alongside Ed’s self-created artwork, he has also unveiled a one-take performance video for the song, which you can view here.
Ed Sheeran says – “Hey guys. Afterglow is a song I wrote last year that I wanted to release for you. It’s not the first single from the next album, it’s just a song I love, and hope you love too. Enjoy ! Have a safe and happy festive break and New Year’s. Back to dad land for me now, ciao x”
Recently unveiled as the most-streamed British artist of 2020 in the UK, Sheeran – who is currently on his well-deserved break – wrote the track with David Hodges and FRED (the latter also produced the track together with Ed Sheeran). Co-production comes from PARISI.
It’s been four years since the world was gifted with a new Deftones album and with their ninth studio offering, ‘Ohms’ about to be unleashed this Friday [September 25th], we caught up with bassist, Sergio Vega, to talk about the album and so much more…
Despite the tempestuous events that are happening throughout the globe, small offerings of escapism are at hand to help some of us through the cluster-fuck that is 2020.
In case you’ve been living under a rock, you may have heard that Sacramento visionaries, Deftones are about to release a new album, ‘Ohms‘ this Friday [September, 25th].
Is this cause of a celebration? You bet your ass it does!
Speaking from his apartment in New York, bassist Sergio Vega opens up about the new album, his thoughts on 2016’s ‘Gore‘ LP, the inner workings of the and so much more…
OD -It’s 2020, the world is on fire and disease-ridden, but at least there’s a new Deftones album. With the restrictions on movement and gatherings etc, I know that the album was delayed from a June/July release date to September. During this time, was there anything out of the ordinary that you guys had to reconsider for this album?
SERGIO – No, fortunately for us the album was pretty much done when the lockdown began in the United States. We were in the final states with all the music tracked. Frank [Delgado – Samples, Keys] made a few extra trips to add some keys here and there and Chino [Moreno – vocals] did a few extra guitar tracks. I also made a few trips out there to work out some vocal stuff, but that was only a few weeks after the initial lockdown had begun, so we were in a really fortunate place when it [the pandemic] all got very serious.
OD – Did the lockdown itself inspire any quick decision-making when you all realised that it was going to have a profound effect on the usual promo activities that would normally happen when releasing an album?
SERGIO – We considered a few things but here we are and the album is due very soon. It’s been great to see the reaction online to the tacks that we’ve already released [‘Ohms‘ and ‘Genesis’]. It’s very much appreciated. To see this much excitement for a band that is about to release their 9th album is very rare [Laughing]. Especially in this day and age.
To be not only relevant but also ‘current‘ is a great feeling and one that we all appreciate very much.
OD – One of the things I noticed with the album is that it’s much warmer, with a lot of low-end with big, chunky riffs from Stephen. For example, ‘Radiant City’ and ‘Urantia’, did the tracks just come about that way, or was this the advice of Terry Date [Producer]?
SERGIO – I think this requires a kind of a layered answer here, so, I’ll try and keep it as clear as I can [Laughing]. First of all, we don’t really give ourselves much structure because we don’t want to set any kind of preconceived boundaries when creating new music.
The freedom from these constraints allow for ‘happy accidents‘ and inspires a direction to which we have not anticipated and this allows us to create something that is very immediate, cutting edge and fresh. It’s a system that just really works for us all and we’re beyond happy with the results.
Now, the decision to bring Terry back in on this album was definitely based on the history that the band have with him. I’ve had the pleasure of knowing him from recording this album and it’s been such a great experience. We just knew that he was going to make a very bold-sounding album and he has absolutely achieved that.
Terry has exceeded our expectations on this new album and for me personally, it was a real joy to have the experience of working with him, with both vocals and bass.
OD – Speaking of Terry, how did it come about that he was gonna be working on this album, who made the first contact?
SERGIO – I think it was a kind of; “Right Time, Right Place” situation. It was a perfect storm with the timing between the band vs Terrys’ schedule and it just fit into place so perfectly. In some ways, it kind of felt that we were ‘coming back home‘ with the marriage between the music, the mindset of everyone, and Terry being on board etc..
That’s really where the personal level came into play with the album. There was a conscious effort to put everything into this and get the best out of the experience; from day one.
I think that one of the things that was very apparent was Stephen [Carpenter – guitars] brought back the personal connection of our friendships which was very much involved as a whole, during the writing process. Terry was an expression of that also. He is [Terry] just amazing at what he does and he’s an amazing person also.
OD – With regards to the writing of the album, Chino has said that Stephen was way more connected with ‘Ohms’ than that of “Gore” [2016] and also that there was a wider input from all band members. Was this the first album that all of you were contributing to the writing and if so, does that make this somewhat of a landmark album?
SERGIO – I don’t really know if it’s ‘landmark‘. I look at it from another point of view. For example, when we go into the creative state of mind and we are in our writing space, I’ll fire up the laptop/hard drive and we set up a separate feed for everyone to record all of our individual parts.
There was a bit of a disconnect with ‘Gore‘ but it wasn’t expressed on the amount of contributions from each of the band members, specifically Stephen. I think there was a disconnect because we would come in [for rehearsals] for a couple of weeks and it would be like; ‘work, work, work, work‘, then pause.
I have all the hard drives’ from those sessions and there’s loads of stuff from Stephen and everybody else. Abe [Cunningham – Drums] and I would trail through the audio and edit a lot of ideas. We were championing certain songs/ideas and the genesis of the tracks may have become lost, but I have an acute memory of where they stemmed from because it was very important to bring this record [‘Gore‘]home.
With ‘Ohms‘ we are all stoked. We put a lot of effort into this new album and tried to bring in the element of our history with each other, our history as friends. Don’t get me wrong, we don’t dislike ‘Gore‘, not one bit. It’s not like we weren’t getting along when that album was being created and I don’t like the concept that Stephen wasn’t contributing to the writing process, because it’s not entirely the case. There were songs that he contributed to in a later stage. People have these preconceptions about the roles in the band and its just not true.
We’re all writing all the time. I’m writing from home, we’re writing together, Stephen and Chino are sending over ideas to all of us and likewise. The truth is so much more cooler than binary falsities.
OD – The marketing for the release has been very coded and cryptic, was this just to give more anticipation to the marketing or is there a deeper meaning to it?
SERGIO – I don’t know if I’m using the term correctly but I believe the artwork is ‘impressionistic‘. We prefer to have visuals that leave the interpretation of the individual. We react to things in one way, that will differ from what others may feel, or understand.
The art director, [Frank Maddocks] will present us with several ideas and then we’ll all chime in and give our two-cents and then a little while later, we’ll begin to think about why we like it and what it may remind us of.
For example, some images could subtly remind us of Prince, or the ’80s or some black and white images, which kind of remind us of the early Punk covers etc. We make decisions on images, based on a collective feeling of nostalgia and joy.
We love looking at what people think and how they interpreted the images we use. With ‘Ohms‘ the marketing campaign was very interesting. We channelled our creativity in a new way because we had more time on our hands. We asked ourselves the question; “How can we have a bit of fun with this?” So, the parameters of expression were set in place and we began to role out this online campaign.
To be honest, this was something that I grew to understand and appreciate more. I’m used to the hardcore scene where everybody just puts things out, then play on stage and walk off into the crowd [Laughing]. There’s no mystery with that format.
It’s been a lot of fun checking out what people think about it all and how they are interpreting the images and information we release. I know it’s not the healthiest thing to do, but sometimes I’ll go on a Facebook group and read the comments [Laughing].
OD – Do you snoop around online and see what people are saying?
SERGIO – Yes, but not too often. You can let all your readers know that I’m watching [Laughing].
OD – Is there any particular track that you’re leaning towards as being a favourite on the new album?
SERGIO – Hmmm… Honestly, it never really works that way for me. I know that Abe has a thing for ‘Radiant City‘ because of the way the intro kicks in with the bass, followed by the drums. But for me, I tend to look at the whole album as one piece, if you know what I mean.
The songs work in sequence and it’s just kind of hard for me to carve off one in particular. Usually, when we have a new video coming out, like ‘Genesis‘ [released 18/09/20] that’s been in my head the last few days because I’ve been listening to is a lot.
But it doesn’t mean that I regard it as a higher ranking song than any of the others on the album. It’s just that it’s having it’s day in the sun right now and I’m hearing it a lot.
Actually, speaking of ‘Genesis‘, it’s fun for me to hear that in the wild because the track actually spawned from a little home-demo I made in the middle of the nigh;t when I was living in Harlem, NY.
I woke up with it in my head and I was like; “Oh, man, I gotta get this down. It could be really cool”. I programmed some guitars, drums etc and sent it over to the guys and it pretty much made it… intact! [Laughing].
It’s fun to hear because I can still reference my little demo idea and now I can hear how amazing it sounds in comparison. It reinforces the fact that it’s never really a song until all of us touch it.
OD – Can we talk about the re-issue of ‘White Pony’ aka ‘Black Stallion‘ and when we can expect to see that and also, what exactly will be on that album? Have you guys figured out a release date or is there any other additional information you can share right now?
SERGIO – No, I’ve no new information for you on this [Laughing]. I’ll be honest with you, the way things work with us is, there are ideas and then we figure out how to reveal said ideas. The fact that I’ve heard nothing on the reveal side of things on this [‘White Pony‘ re-mix], I would say that there’s no new info.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I could have missed an email [Laughing], but at this moment in time, there’s no update on when this is gonna come out.
OD – There’s a lot of synergy in the band at the moment, you’ve got the new album coming out, the ‘White Pony‘ re-mix the new beer etc. Do you feel that things are in a very good place right now?
SERGIO – Yeah, things are going well. There are five strong personalities in this band and each of us are very passionate about how we want to do things. So, its par for the course that there will be some friction at times and without that, you don’t get to elevate your game. These guys are some of the best people I’ve ever worked with and they are not only good at what they do, but they are very different from each other, have their own wisdom and experience and we all benefit from that together.
These are people who are genuinely interested in their craft, for example, Stephen is constantly challenging himself, as we all do. The work never stops.
OD – The North American tour with Gojira and Poppy has been postponed, will this tour pick up again when things are safe and also, can we see this line up coming over to Europe?
SERGIO – It’s too early to say right now because of what’s happening, but most of our dates are intact and have shifted over to next year. I was just talking to a friend of mine who got me thinking that larger events are going to be much more difficult to return, than that of the smaller shows.
My friend was talking about someone he knew who is a jazz drummer and he’s been just performing wherever he can, like in the park, or where ever [Laughing]. They literally have no stopped doing live performances during this whole lockdown.
So, the hope is next year we can get back out there and do some live shows. At the end of the day, it’s all about logistics. There has to be some kind of safe, working plan to get things back to where they once were, or even remotely close to that. All we can do is just wait and see what happens.
OD -Since your time in the band, is there any particular moment that stands out more than any other, a moment that had a profound effect on you and your partnership/friendship with the band?
SERGIO – Honestly, not really. We’ve all been friends for such a long time and when I came into the band it was under very painful circumstances. It was not really a happy feeling because obviously everybody was heartbroken with what happened to Chi. For me, I was just being a friend. I wanted to put my best foot forward and do the best I could for my friends; during a very difficult time.
Chi Ling Dai Cheng (July 15, 1970 – April 13, 2013)
We’ve had a lot of years behind us, and I think we all just knew that when Chi [pictured above] went down, we had to keep things moving and I was asked to step in. So, there’s never really been this celebratory moment, I just put my best foot forward and did the very best I could.
OD – Finally, can you please share one of your favourite tracks/videos?
SERGIO – Hmm, let me think. I’m stumped because some of my favourite tracks have pretty uneventful video. I’ll go with anything off ‘Loveless‘ from My Bloody Valentine. Such a great band.
‘Ohms‘, the 9th studio album from Deftones will be released via Warner Music on Friday, September 25th. Pre-orders are available here.
Riding high on the success of their recent single release ‘Survive’ which seemed to be an apt song for radios over the last few months and current single ‘Break the Silence’, True Tides are 3 brothers from Cork, Cian, Conor and Eoghan whose guitar driven synth pop has made them one of the most talked about acts in Ireland this year
Survive’ released in March 2020 hit the top 10 Irish radio charts, peaking at #7 after being playlisted on all major national and local radio stations across Ireland. Their single continues to receive regular airplay nationally with over 45 million airplay impressions on national radio + current single ‘Break the Silence’ looks set to overtake those achievements
The brothers made their national television debut in 2019 on the Late Late Show; had their single ‘Automatic’ reach the Irish top 20 radio play charts and received regular rotation on national and local radio stations for their other 2 singles; were playlisted on numerous Spotify playlists including New Music Friday UK; sold out their City Hall, Cork headline show with the 135-piece Cork Youth Orchestra and choir in December 2019 as well as supporting Picture This for their sold out show at INEC Arena Killarney and The Coronas at their sold out Olympia show in the same month; had their first UK television synch on E4’s ‘Made in Chelsea’ and played their first headline tour packing out venues around Ireland including Whelans, Dublin and Cyprus Avenue, Cork.
