Category Archives: Pop and rock

‘Liam hasn’t sounded that good since the 90s’: fans react to the first night of the Oasis reunion tour

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Oasis fans were overjoyed by the performance of the reunited band, a ‘non-stop wild’ set that brought back fond memories

The atmosphere on the concourses in Cardiff after the first Oasis gig of their long-awaited reunion tour was one of speechlessness that the once-estranged Gallagher brothers had pulled it off.

Leigh, from Cardiff, could hardly find the words to describe the two and a half hours he had just witnessed. “They were quiet at the beginning, then the crescendos went wild, then they were non-stop wild,” he said. “It went supernova – crazy. I couldn’t believe it. I don’t know what to say – I was 18 again.”

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Oasis kick off reunion tour in Cardiff with triumphant, nostalgic gig

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Focusing heavily on their 1990s output with only one song from their last four albums, Liam and Noel Gallagher performed together for the first time since 2009

Swaggering, cocksure and incredibly loud, Oasis burst back on to the live music scene on Friday night with an accomplished – if ever so slightly distanced – debut gig on their reunion world tour.

Playing Cardiff’s Principality Stadium, the six-piece impressed at the start of what is arguably the most anticipated tour of the century, focusing overwhelmingly on songs from their 1990s heyday – only one song, Little By Little, was taken from their final four albums.

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Oasis setlist: all the songs played at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium

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With a heavy emphasis on their 1990s heyday, here is every song that Oasis and their support acts played on the first night of their tour

Hello
Acquiesce
Morning Glory
Some Might Say
Bring It on Down
Cigarettes & Alcohol
Fade Away
Supersonic
Roll With It
Talk Tonight (sung by Noel)
Half the World Away (sung by Noel)
Little By Little (sung by Noel)
D’You Know What I Mean?
Stand By Me
Cast No Shadow
Slide Away
Whatever
Live Forever
Rock ’n’ Roll Star

Encore
The Masterplan (sung by Noel)
Don’t Look Back in Anger (sung by Noel)
Wonderwall
Champagne Supernova

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Mick Ralphs, founding member of Mott the Hoople and Bad Company, dies aged 81

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The English guitarist, who had been bedridden after a stroke in 2016, is set to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in November

Mick Ralphs, singer, songwriter, guitarist and founding member of the classic British rock bands Bad Company and Mott the Hoople, has died aged 81.

A statement posted to the band’s official website on Monday announced Ralphs’ death. Ralphs had a stroke days after what would be his final performance with Bad Company at London’s O2 Arena in 2016, and had been bedridden ever since, the statement said. No further details on the circumstances of his death were provided.

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U2 guitarist The Edge becomes Irish citizen – after 62 years in the country

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English-born David Evans, 63, is conferred with ‘long overdue’ Irish citizenship

After decades of finely balanced procrastination, the U2 guitarist The Edge has officially become Irish.

The 63-year-old British subject was conferred with Irish citizenship on Monday, 62 years after moving to Ireland in a step he said was “long overdue”.

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Buy here now: Oasis to open series of merch stores before reunion gigs

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Exclusive: first store opens in Spinningfields, Manchester, two weeks before band’s first gig in 16 years in Cardiff

Will the truce between the Gallagher brothers hold out? Will the most-hyped reunion in British rock history actually come off? And will fans be able to bag themselves an official Oasis tea towel?

The answer to that final question, at least, has arrived. The first Oasis merchandise store will open in Manchester on Friday, two weeks before the band perform their first gig in 16 years at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.

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Ringo Starr labels Roger Daltrey ‘that little man’ after son’s sacking from the Who

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Zak Starkey says his father made the comment after he was fired over a disagreement about his performance

Ringo Starr has reportedly criticised the way “that little man” Roger Daltrey runs the Who after Starr’s son was sacked from the band.

Zak Starkey, 59, who was sacked as the Who’s drummer over a disagreement about his performance, said he was proud that his father had come to his defence.

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Pulp top UK charts for the first time since 1998 with new album More

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Sheffield band were last at the top with This Is Hardcore, while Sabrina Carpenter is at No 1 in the singles chart and breaks an album chart record

Pulp have topped the UK album chart for the first time since 1998, with the release of their new album More.

The Sheffield band, fronted by Jarvis Cocker, were last at the top with 1998’s This Is Hardcore, the follow-up to the similarly chart-topping Different Class in 1995.

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BTS stars RM and V discharged after completing military service in South Korea

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Hundreds of fans, some of whom had travelled from as far away as Mexico, gathered to welcome the band members back to civilian life

K-pop superstars RM and V from the band BTS have been discharged from South Korea’s military after fulfilling their mandatory military service.

They each saluted upon their release on Tuesday in Chuncheon City as about 200 fans, some of whom travelled from Mexico, Turkey and Brazil, cheered.

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Rodeo drive: Beyoncé UK tour spurs cowboy fashion craze

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Singer’s western-inspired Cowboy Carter tour is reminder of pop culture’s sway over shopping behaviour

Rhinestones, cowboy hats and a whole lot of denim; not a hen party entourage, a Glastonbury fit or a Nashville rodeo, but the queues outside Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this week, as Beyoncé kicked off her UK tour. And, seemingly, a new national dress code.

Since the release of the Cowboy Carter album, Beyoncé fans have been quick to adopt the rancher style, sparking a surge in interest for western-inspired fashion. On Vinted, searches for “western” are up by 16% year on year this month, with “rodeo” up 13%. Meanwhile, denim searches have risen 8%.

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Thom Yorke calls Netanyahu an ‘extremist’ in statement on Gaza

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Radiohead frontman makes lengthy statement after he had been criticised over perceived silence on the war, and for previously performing in Israel

After he was criticised for his silence on the subject, Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke has made a statement regarding the war in Gaza, saying Benjamin Netanyahu and his Israeli administration are “extremists” who “need to be stopped”.

He also criticised Hamas, saying the organisation “chooses too to hide behind the suffering of its people”.

I think Netanyahu and his crew of extremists are totally out of control and need to be stopped, and that the international community should put all the pressure it can on them to cease. Their excuse of self-defence has long since worn thin and has been replaced by a transparent desire to take control of Gaza and the West Bank permanently.

I believe this ultra-nationalist administration has hidden itself behind a terrified & grieving people and used them to deflect any criticism, using that fear and grief to further their ultra-nationalist agenda with terrible consequences, as we see now with the horrific blockade of aid to Gaza …

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Bruce Springsteen says Trump is running ‘rogue government’ and ‘siding with dictators’

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Rock’n’roll legend makes series of blistering speeches on stage in Manchester, targeting ‘corrupt, incompetent and treasonous administration’

Bruce Springsteen has made a series of rousing, splenetic speeches castigating Donald Trump and his administration, calling the president “unfit” for office.

In what amounts to one of the most sustained attacks on Trump and American lawmakers from a cultural figure, he made the speeches on stage in Manchester, as he opened his Land of Hope and Dreams tour with the E Street Band.

There’s some very weird, strange and dangerous shit going on out there right now. In America, they are persecuting people for using their right to free speech and voicing their dissent. This is happening now.

In America, the richest men are taking satisfaction in abandoning the world’s poorest children to sickness and death. This is happening now.

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Madonna limited series directed by Shawn Levy in the works at Netflix

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Queen of pop will partner with the streamer and Deadpool & Wolverine film-maker for a project on her life and music

A television series on Madonna is in development at Netflix – with participation from the trailblazing pop star.

The 66-year-old singer is partnering with Netflix and the Deadpool & Wolverine director Shawn Levy for a limited series about her life and music.

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Smokey Robinson denies four housekeepers’ allegations of sexual assault

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The women have accused Motown star of sexual assault and employment violations. His attorney has called the lawsuit ‘an ugly method of trying to extract money’

Smokey Robinson has denied allegations of sexual assault, after four former housekeepers of the Motown star filed a lawsuit with claims including sexual battery, false imprisonment, negligence and gender violence.

The suit was filed in a Los Angeles court on 6 May. It also alleges a series of labour violations, including that Robinson and his wife, Frances, failed to pay the women minimum wage and overtime, submitted inaccurate wage statements and created a hostile work environment. The women are seeking financial damages.

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Brad Arnold, frontman with rock band 3 Doors Down, diagnosed with stage four cancer

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Grammy-nominated and chart-topping singer says he has ‘no fear’ of illness in kidney and lung

Brad Arnold, the frontman with chart-topping US rock band 3 Doors Down, has been diagnosed with stage four cancer.

The singer said he has kidney cancer that has spread to his lungs. He discovered the illness after feeling unwell in recent weeks, “then I went to the hospital and got checked out and actually got the diagnosis that I had a renal carcinoma that had metastasised into my lung”.

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Two arrested over bomb plot targeting Lady Gaga concert in Rio attended by millions

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Two people have been arrested in connection to an alleged planned attack on Brazil’s LGBTQ community at the singer’s Sunday concert, police say

Two people have been arrested in connection with an alleged plot to detonate explosives at a free Lady Gaga concert in Rio de Janeiro, in what authorities believe was an attempt to target Brazil’s LGBTQ community.

The Rio event on Saturday was the biggest show of the pop star’s career. It attracted an estimated 2.1 million fans to Copacabana beach and had crowds screaming and dancing along.

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Jill Sobule, I Kissed a Girl singer, dies in Minneapolis house fire aged 66

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Musician whose hits also included the satirical anthem Supermodel from the Clueless soundtrack died early on Thursday

Jill Sobule, the singer-songwriter whose hits included the satirical anthem Supermodel from the Clueless movie soundtrack and the groundbreaking single I Kissed a Girl, has died in a house fire at the age of 66.

Sobule’s body was found in a home in Woodbury, Minnesota, on Thursday. Authorities are investigating the cause of the fire.

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Gallagher brothers perform together for first time in 16 years in London working men’s club

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Noel and Liam believed to have filmed promo video at Mildmay club in Newington Green ahead of summer’s sold-out Oasis tour

Liam and Noel Gallagher have performed together for the first time in 16 years in a working men’s club in north London, according to reports.

The brothers were pictured arriving at the Mildmay club in Newington Green, north London, on Thursday where they are believed to have filmed a promotional video for this summer’s sold-out Oasis reunion tour.

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David Thomas, anarchic Pere Ubu bandleader, dies aged 71

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The US musician was a major influence on post-punk and alt-rock scenes thanks to his spirited, chaotic style

David Thomas, who fronted the wild and free-thinking American rock band Pere Ubu, has died aged 71.

A statement on Pere Ubu’s Facebook page said that he died “in his home town of Brighton & Hove, with his wife and youngest step-daughter by his side. MC5 were playing on the radio.” The statement continues: “He will ultimately be returned to his [family] home, the farm in Pennsylvania, where he insisted he was to be ‘thrown in the barn’ … We’ll leave you with his own words, which sums up who he was better than we can: ‘My name is David Fucking Thomas… and I’m the lead singer of the best fucking rock and roll band in the world.’”

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Super spicy! Jack Black’s Minecraft song Steve’s Lava Chicken becomes shortest ever UK Top 40 hit

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At 34 seconds, the spectacularly silly song from A Minecraft Movie beats the previous record by two seconds

Actor and musician Jack Black has made UK chart history, with the shortest ever song to reach the Top 40: his novelty track Steve’s Lava Chicken is just 34 seconds long.

The spectacularly silly song reaches No 21 this week, and is taken from A Minecraft Movie, the video game spin-off film, which has earned $570m (£430m) so far at the global box office – and caused cinemas to be overrun by the game’s young and high-energy fanbase.

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