James Blake Page 3

London electronic artist James Blake launches a surprise new album today (May 6th 2016), entitled 'The Colour In Anything'. It's his third album venture and features a generous 17 tracks, including 'I Need A Forest Fire' featuring Bon Iver with whom he previously worked on 'Fall Creek Boys Choir'. 

James Blake drops his third album 'The Colour In Anything'

Blake has released the new album on Polydor Records, with some epic new tracks such as 'Modern Soul' and 'Timeless'. As well as an appearance from Bon Iver, the record also has input from Frank Ocean and Rick Rubin - Ocean as co-writer and Rubin as co-producer. Perhaps the most fascinating thing about 'The Colour In Anything', however, is the album artwork which has been designed by noted illustrator Sir Quentin Blake, himself most famous for the imagery in the Roald Dahl books. It's a pencil and watercolour piece with dull colours, featuring a lone man stood in a field under some rainclouds.

Continue reading: James Blake Enlists Roald Dahl Illustrator Quentin Blake On 'The Colour In Anything'

Fans and hopeful attendees of Barcelona's Primavera Sound were delighted to discover that the preview app they downloaded was a video game displaying the full line-up for the festival's fifteenth anniversary.

Already announced were Friday and Saturday's headliners Ride and The Strokes, and now they've been joined by a host of other equally incredible artists. Thursday sees The Black Keys leading the bill alongside The Replacements, who are hitting Spanish stages for the first time and Antony and the Johnsons, who've been doing plenty since their last Barcelona gig. Bringing some variation to Thursday proceedings are electronic virtuosos James Blake, Richie Hawtin and Simian Mobile Disco.

Continue reading: The 15th Anniversary Line-Up For Primavera Sound Is Finally Here!

We reported yesterday that two companies tied up in Jabberwocky-gate are taking legal action against ATP - Dash Tickets and The Zeitgeist Agency. But today, ATP have released their own retaliatory statement defending their position as the fallout from the festival's short-notice cancellation continues to unfold. 

James Blake was set to play the event

"In the past 72 hours there have been many accusations thrown at ATP and some so vindictive that we feel it necessary to defend our position," begins the statement, before addressing the first of the two companies claiming to be taking legal action against them in a lengthy announcement designed to deflect the monumental amount of damage done over the past few days.  

Continue reading: ATP Defend Themselves Over The Jabberwocky Fiasco

London Grammar lead the honours at last night's 59th annual Ivor Novello awards in London. The trip-hop trio, Dominic Major, Hannah Reid and Daniel Rothman, won Best Song Musically and Lyrically for their track 'Strong.' The award was significant for the band, who met each other at Nottingham University, because it demonstrates a change of fortune when compared to them being ignored at the Mercury Music Prize.

London Grammar Proved Their Worth At The 59th Ivor Novello Awards.

Speaking before the show, vocalist Reid said of the awards: "It feels really good because it's a songwriter's award and that's why we do what we do, it's a little more chilled than the BRITs as well, it's great."

Continue reading: Ivor Novellos Victory For London Grammar As Mercurys Snub Forgotten

The line-up for this year's Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival has been announced and looks to be more impressive than ever with Elton John, Kanye West, Lionel Richie, Jack White and Vampire Weekend all gracing the Manchester, Tenn. stages across the four-day celebration. The festival, which will be held from the 12th to the 15th June this year, will serve up an enviable mix of genres.

Elton John Will Lead This Year's Incredible Bonnaroo Festival Line-Up.

Bonnaroo Festival is famous for having provided a stage to one of Kanye West's famous rants last time he played in 2008. The rapper and his fans reacted with outrage when Kanye's originally late night set was shifted to a performance during broad daylight, provoking a classic caps-lock tirade from the short-fused star.

Continue reading: Kanye, Elton, Jack And Lionel: Say Hello To Bonnaroo Festival's Line-Up 2014

The nominees have been announced for this year's Brit Awards, which will be presented live in a ceremony on ITV on the 19th February. The annual awards celebrate the year's biggest British music stars, in a competition that is as hotly contested as ever after a thrilling year in music.

Disclosure Could Be About To Get A Lot More Famous With Four Potential Brit Awards Headed Their Way.

Bastille and Disclosure have emerged as the early front-runners after netting four nominations apiece and will go head-to-head in the Mastercard British Album of the Year, British Breakthrough Act, British Single and British Group categories. Though both groups have enjoyed rocketing to success this year, Disclosure and their album Settle may have the edge due to having been also nominated for last year's Mercury Music Prize.

Continue reading: Brit Awards 2014 Nominations: Disclosure, Bastille, Rudimental Emerge On Top

James Blake took home the celebrated Mercury Music Prize last night (30 October) for his second album, Overgrown. Released to wide-spread critical acclaim on both sides of the Atlantic, Blake got his start as a bedroom producer finding success online before achieving modest mainstream attention and widespread acclaim for both of his albums - this years Overgrown and 2011's self-titled release - culminating in last night's win. But he is till a relative unknown to many, so who exactly is James Blake?

James Blake is the Winner of the Mercury Music Prize 2013

With the competition coming under considerable criticism for abandoning it's roots as an award for the underground and unknown, Blake's win shouldn't come as too much of a shock given the mainstream attention given to the majority of his competition.

Continue reading: James Blake Wins Mercury Music Award: So, Who The Heck Is He?

The Barclaycard Mercury Music Prize this week announce the shortlist for it's 12 favourite albums of the last 12 months, albums that it claims are "urgent" and are "reflective" of the evolving sound of contemporary music. Once a haven for alternative acts like Portishead and Gomez, this years awards once again have gone for the most obvious choices and rather than celebrate any "urgent" talent, artists that routinely play on the radio or television have been picked ahead of the Hookworms and Darkstars of the British and Irish music scene.

The Arctic Monkeys are hardly an "urgent" band

The Arctic Monkeys are now a bonafied rock staple, whilst Foals and Laura Marling have each been nominated in the past and are regularly given air time on 6 Music or Jools Holland, etc., not to mention the fact that Marling has been handed a BRIT Award too. As for newcomers Disclosure, Rudimental and Jake Bugg, neither are exactly challenging their respective fields of house, drum and bass and rockabilly, but simply making it more radio-friendly and pop accessible. This isn't a dig either, this is something that all three artists should openly agree with. As for David Bowie; he's David Bowie. Need we say more?

Continue reading: Mercury Prize Shortlist Announced, But Does It Even Matter Anymore?

Jelly and chicken nuggets, Marmite and skittles, gravy and cherry pie. Like food items, there are a few words that should never be put together. Of course, occasionally there are mixtures, like chips and milkshake, that seem grotesque in concept, but in reality are an absolute winner. Taylor Swift and Dubstep are one such vocabulary mix that one might repeal from at first sight, yet will warm to on the sound. Swift's new single 'I Knew You Were Trouble' has a hint of dubstep to it, proving the versatility of this normally strictly-country singer-songwriter.

The genre of 'dubstep' has its roots in urban British music of the '90s drum and bass crowds, but it has increasingly found itself being utilized by mainstream artists such as Ellie Goulding and increasingly popularised by DJs such as Skrillex and other artists like James Blake, Benga and SBTRKT. Hollwood.com has praised the 22-year-old for branching out into new genres, because it “shows how Swift is growing as a musician”. Swift has commented on the sound of the song, saying ““It sounds just as chaotic as the feeling was when I wrote it.” she said it’s about “being frustrated with yourself”.

This is another of the young singer's teaser tracks from her upcoming new album 'Red', which will be available from October 22nd. Unlike her former albums, this one is being co-written and Swift is collaborating with a range of producers to create a more eclectic sound that will hit a far broader reaching audience. Remixes of 'I Knew You Were Trouble' will hit clubs soon, no doubt, and with that Swift's squeaky clean image is bound to change.