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Arcade Fire on the undying legacy of Taylor Hawkins: “He was just a real-deal rock’n’roller”

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While Arcade Fire were on the ground at this year’s Osheaga Festival in Montreal, Canada – where they filled in for the Foo Fighters – frontman Win Butler and guitarist Richard Parry spoke warmly about the late Taylor Hawkins.

Prior to their headlining set, Butler and Parry sat down with iHeartRadio, where journalist Jason Rockman asked if their role on the festival – filling the space left by the Foos, who dropped out after Hawkins’ passing back in March – had left Arcade Fire feeling any pressure to succeed. Though he didn’t specify whether or not that was the case, Butler did note that he’d met with Hawkins “a couple of weeks before he passed”.

Reflecting on his friendship with the late drummer, Butler continued: “Every single time I ever hung out with them, we were just talking about music, and reminiscing about old shows. He was just like a real-deal rock’n’roller, you know? But I think sometimes people don’t appreciate how much wear and tear… getting up every night, going on stage, and the relentless touring – it’s a lot, you know what I mean? And there’s collateral damage from doing it.”

On how the singer reckoned with Hawkins’ untimely passing, Butler added: “It’s always a reminder that, you know, a lot of this stuff is out of our control… It’s important to appreciate the day to day. I think those reminders are sort of around us all the time – we’re just usually not paying attention to them because we’re just trying to get on with it.”

Have a look at the full interview below:

Hawkins passed away in Bogotá, Colombia on March 25. He was 50 years old.

Though they’ve cancelled all touring plans for the foreseeable future, the Foos will host two shows in Hawkins’ honour – one in London and one in Los Angeles – this September. Both will feature sprawling rosters of special guests, including Nirvana‘s Krist Novoselic, former Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones, Pink, Nile Rodgers and Greg Kurstin.

Meanwhile, Arcade Fire’s set at Osheaga marked their first Canadian show in four years. There, they covered Wolf Parade’s 2005 track ‘This Heart’s On Fire’, and showcased tracks from every one of their six studio albums (including seven from this year’s ‘WE’).

The band’s world tour for ‘WE’ kicks off properly next month, with the band set to perform extensively across the UK, Europe and North America. You can view ticket details and further information here for the UK and here for North America.

Arcade Fire has partnered with the social and environmental justice non-profit PLUS1 on the tour to ensure that £1/$1/€1 from every ticket will go to KANPE, a foundation committed to supporting the most vulnerable communities in Haiti.

Speaking to NME, Win Butler said he hopes the 2022 dates would represent “the definitive Arcade Fire tour”.

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Check out 100 gecs’ new 2023 UK and European tour dates

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100 gecs have announced details of a new UK and European headline tour for later this year – see the dates below and buy tickets here.

The duo – Dylan Brady and Laura Les – will tour on the back of their second studio album, ‘10,000 gecs’, which landed last month.

Beginning on October 8 in Berlin, the tour will then visit Italy, France, Belgium and more before hitting the UK and Ireland for seven shows including a huge London date at the Hammersmith Apollo.

A week later, the gigs will then wrap up with a headline show at the Manchester Academy.

Tickets for the gigs are on sale now – buy your tickets here and see the full list of gigs below.

OCTOBER 2023
8 – Berlin, Astra
11 – Milan, Alcatraz
13 – Paris, Le Bataclan
14 – Cologne, Carlswerk Victoria
16 – Amsterdam, Melkweg
17 – Utrecht, Tivoli Vredenburg
18 – Brussels, Ancienne Belgique
20 – Bristol, Marble Factory
21 – London, Eventim Apollo
22 – Leeds, O2 Academy
24 – Dublin, Olympia
25 – Glasgow, O2 Academy
27 – Birmingham, O2 Institute
28 – Manchester, Academy

Reviewing new album ‘10,000 gecs’, NME wrote: “Though it’s sorely missing some choice cuts from 100 gecs’ current live set (namely ‘Fallen 4 Ü’ and ‘What’s That Smell?’), ‘10,000 gecs’ is insanely fun and impressively ambitious.

“It’s also short but sweet, throwing its turbulent flurry of punches and then dipping out before listeners have a chance to really think about what’s going on. And therein lies the key to making the most of ‘10,000 gecs’: don’t think too hard about it, just take a deep breath and ride the wave.”

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Busted team up with Hanson for new version of ‘MMMBop’

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Busted have teamed up with Hanson for new version of the latter’s classic hit ‘MMMBop’ – listen to ‘MMMBop 2.0’ below.

  • READ MORE: Does Rock ‘N’ Roll Kill Braincells?! – Charlie Simpson

In recent months, the reunited ’00s heroes have been re-working their own hits, collaborating with Neck Deep and Simple Plan on new versions of their biggest hits.

Hanson will support Busted on their 20th anniversary greatest hits tour of the UK later this year, and to celebrate the two bands have come together for the re-worked track.

“It’s been such an honour to sing this ’90s classic song with the band who made it 25 years on from original release!” Busted’s James Bourne said in a statement.

“To have them as special guests on tour with us in September will be really special too, we’re huge fans of Hanson!”

Hanson’s Taylor Hanson added: “It’s been a thrill to reimagine MMMBop with Busted and to see how a song with such history comes to life in a new way. This is a true fusion of Hanson and Busted, we can’t wait to share it.”

Listen to ‘MMMbop 2.0’ below.

As part of their 20th anniversary celebrations, Busted will be unveiling 15 re-worked songs from their back catalogue alongside a host of artists.

The band also recently added extra dates to their 2023 UK reunion tour. The trio are set to hit the road in September to mark their 20th anniversary. They will play a special greatest hits set at arenas across the country, including The O2 in London.

You can purchase any remaining tickets for the tour here, and see the full schedule below.

SEPTEMBER 2023
3 – Cardiff, CIA
5 – Swansea, Swansea Arena
6 – Bournemouth, BIC
7 – Brighton, Brighton Centre
9 – Birmingham, Utilita Arena
10 – London, The O2
12 – Bridlington, Bridlington Spa
15 – Nottingham, Motorpoint Arena
16 – Newcastle Upon Tyne, Utilita Arena
17 – Leeds, First Direct Arena
19 – Aberdeen, P&J Live
20 – Glasgow, OVO Hydro
22 – Liverpool, M&S Bank Arena
23 – Nottingham, Motorpoint Arena (new date)
24 – Manchester, AO Arena
26 – Cardiff, Cardiff International Arena (new date)
27 – London, The O2 (new date)
29 – Birmingham, Utilita Arena (new date)
30 – Manchester, AO Arena (new date)

OCTOBER 2023
1 – Glasgow, OVO Hydro (new date)

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Watch Taylor Swift’s self-directed video for ‘Karma’ featuring Ice Spice

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Taylor Swift has shared a new official video for the new version of ‘Karma’ featuring Ice Spice – check it out below.

  • READ MORE: Taylor Swift’s ‘Eras’ tour kick off: top five moments from the star’s transcendent performance 

Friday (May 26) saw Swift drop a new deluxe version of her 10th album ‘Midnights‘, titled ‘Midnights (Til Dawn Edition)’, featuring the Ice Spice remix of ‘Karma’ among other tracks.

The same night, the rapper joined Swift to close out the first of multiple nights at East Rutherford’s MetLife Stadium for her ‘Eras’ tour.

In the official video for ‘Karma’, which dropped after the performance and was directed by Swift, she appears in a host of different locations including on a yellow brick road, trapped in an hourglass and inside a lightbulb.

Once Ice Spice joins the party, the pair row a boat across the sea.

Check out the video below.

Elsewhere on ‘Midnights (Til Dawn Edition)’, Swift also shared a re-recorded version of ‘Snow On The Beach’ featuring “more” Lana Del Rey.

Besides the Ice Spice and Del Rey tracks, the digital edition also features ‘Hits Different’, which was previously only available on the Target version of the album.

Fans attending the East Rutherford shows on Swift’s ‘Eras‘ US tour will be able to purchase a special edition CD which includes a never before heard ‘Midnights’ vault track called ‘You’re Losing Me’.

In a tweet on May 24 announcing the deluxe edition, Swift called Ice Spice a “brilliant artist”. “After getting to know her I can confirm: she is THE ONE to watch,” she added.

She went on: “In addition to Karma Ft Ice Spice… You asked for it, we listened: Lana and I went back into the studio specifically to record more Lana on Snow on the Beach. Love u Lana.”

Reviewing ‘Midnights’ upon release, NME said the album was “a shimmering return to pure pop”, adding that it “pivots away from her mellow lockdown creations and recent re-recording project, offering up brighter, future-facing sounds”.

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