Metallica, You Me At Six and Paramore join Kerrang! Award nominees

Metallica, You Me At Six and Paramore are among the nominees for this year's Kerrang! Awards.

Surrey rockers You Me At Six are up for five gongs for Best Single, Best Album, Best British Band, Best Live Band and Hottest Male, for guitarist Max Helyer, after their album 'Cavalier Youth' hit the number one spot.

Metallica, who are rumoured to be headlining this year's Glastonbury Festival, have been nominated for Best International Band and Best Film for 'Through The Never', while Paramore are up for Best Live Band and Best Event for Parahoy!

The acts join Fall Out Boy, 30 Seconds To Mars, Green Day and 5 Seconds of Summer in a number of categories.

Kerrang! Editor James McMahon said: ''This is the third Relentless Kerrang! Awards I've presided over now, and I don't think I've been quite this excited before.

''There are bands nominated I love, legends lined up that I respect, and the party itself will contain some unforgettable surprises.

''It's a testament to the strength and size of the rock scene right now that bands as diverse as 5 Seconds Of Summer and Behemoth, and Baby Godzilla and You Me At Six can galvanise a community to vote in their thousands.''

He added: ''Respect to Kerrang! readers for remaining the most loyal, passionate, cool-ass music fans on the planet. We hope our 2014 party does you justice.''

The event takes place on Thursday, June 12 at London's Troxy.

Getintothis Music Award judges announced

NME, LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB, VICE MAGAZINE AND MORE
LINED UP FOR GIT AWARD JUDGING PANEL

The Getintothis Award, the premier prize for the Merseyside music scene, has assembled a jury of high quality, highly experienced judges to find the best new sounds in the city.

But then, that’s only befitting an award with an excellent prize and which has been dubbed by the UK music press as 'the Scouse Mercury'.

For the inaugural GIT Award, top names from Liverpool Football Club, NME, Vice Magazine and The Guardian have teamed up with the cornerstones of the region's music scene to judge the finest recordings to be released on Merseyside within the last calendar year.

The winning artist will come from across the musical spectrum reflecting the city’s rich heritage in pop, rock and roll, country, dance, soul, hip hop and jazz plus all stops in between.

Experienced journalists and senior editorial figures from the national and music press make-up the panel and all have plenty of experience of the perennially fruitful melting pot of styles that is Liverpool music.

First up on the panel (in alphabetical order) is Joshua Burke co-founder of Liverpool lifestyle magazine Waxxx, journalist, film-maker and Vice Magazine's global editor Andy Capper and John Doran, editor of the music webzine The Quietus - winner of Record of the Day's 2011 Digital Publication.

The second trio of judges is led by the award’s founder Peter Guy, a journalist with the Liverpool Post and Echo and editor of Getintothis music blog which gives the prize its name. He is joined by Liverpool music promoter, Steve Miller, the man behind club night EVOL, and Paul Rogers, head of content at Liverpool Football Club, a former music journalist who has interviewed a diverse selection of artists including Public Enemy and Kylie Minogue.

The final trio of judges is Craig G Pennington, editor and publisher of Bido Lito! -the Liverpool music magazine, Alexandra Topping, a Skelmersdale-born journalist for the Guardian, who writes about everything from gang violence to pop music, and Matt Wilkinson, new music editor on Britain’s most influential pop music platform, NME.

They will decide who is deserving of an incredible prize which includes recording time at Liverpool studio Sandhills Studio and a showcase at this year’s Sound City and Liverpool Music Week. The winners will also play a gig at Vice Magazine’s London bar The Old Blue Last, as well as having a promo shot by Virgin Media Shorts filmmaker of the Year nominee Ian Gamester to be screened at FACT, the city’s art house cinema and creative technologies centre.

The 12 nominees on the short list will be announced in the coming months and the winner announced at an awards ceremony in April.

Artists can still enter the GIT Award by sending four tracks to getintothis@gmail.com or alternatively post to Peter Guy, The GIT Award, Liverpool Post & ECHO, PO Box 48, Old Hall Street, Liverpool, L693EB.

If you're a business and would like to get involved with the GIT Award, please email
peter.guy@liverpool.com

Editor’s Note
Judges’ biographies

Paul Rogers is Head of Content at Liverpool Football Club, overseeing the editorial direction of the club's website, TV, mobile and social media platforms. A former music journalist, he's interviewed a diverse collection of artists including REM, Public Enemy, Kylie Minogue and Radiohead.

Matt Wilkinson is NME's New Music Editor. He looks after the Radar section both in the magazine and online at NME.COM bringing new and unsigned acts to the fore. He also helps co-ordinate various NME live events and tours.

Andy Capper is global editor of Vice Magazine. Born in Southport, Capper has contributed to wide array of fields related to Vice, as well freelancing for The Guardian, Observer and NME. In recent times he has produced documentaries including Swansea Love Story and Beautiful Liverpool with Leo Leigh and as a part of Vice Records, Capper has released music by Fucked Up and the Black Lips.

Craig G Pennington is the Editor of Bido Lito! - The Liverpool Music Magazine. Since it emerged in May 2010, the magazine has established itself at the forefront of new music on Merseyside. Craig is also founder of independent label Dead Young Records and heads up the music programme at Liverpool's Static Gallery.

Joshua Burke is co-founder of Liverpool lifestyle magazine Waxxx. After living in a damp London flat, then a squat and then a campervan, he moved back to Liverpool to found and co-publish lifestyle and culture magazine Waxxx. With it's fresh approach, infamous house parties and spin-off events around the city, Waxxx has stamped itself at the forefront of the independent scene.

Steve Miller is Liverpool-based promoter behind EVOL. For eight years, Steve or 'Revo' as he is more popularly known, has showcased the cream of under the radar talent and blockbuster headliners. In 2008, Steve became the programmer for Liverpool Sound City festival, now in its fifth year. He has also booked the first multi-day Sound City festival in U.A.E. as well as the inaugural Tromso Sound City festival in Norway.

Peter Guy is a multi-media music and sports journalist at the Liverpool Post & Echo - and founder of the GIT Award. For the last five years Peter's blog, Getintothis, has charted the highs and lows of music on a regional and national scale. Peter edits the official Liverpool Sound City magazine and is media partner with Liverpool Music Week while featuring on industry conference panels around the country.

John Doran, editor of the influential internet music magazine the Quietus
(www.TheQuietus.com) was born in Whiston Hospital, and had his musical education being humiliated by staff at Probe Records. He also writes for The Stool Pigeon, VICE, NME and Metal Hammer.

Alexandra Topping is a Skelmersdale-born journalist for the Guardian who writes about everything from gang violence to pop music. As befitting someone who grew up near Wigan, she was weaned on stomping Northern Soul classics, but she still loves finding new bands and is often seen sloshing pints around at gig venues across the country.

SPONSORS /

A stellar list of sponsors, both from inside and outside the music community, have added theirconsiderable cultural and commercial heft in supporting the inaugural GIT Award, including:Liverpool Sound City, Liverpool Music Week, Cream, Creamfields, Vice Magazine, The Quietus, Liverpool Vision, ACME, It's Liverpool, Liverpool City Council, Culture Liverpool, Liverpool Philharmonic, FACT Cinema and Art Gallery, Liverpool Museum, Probe Records, The Music Consortium, Bido Lito! Magazine, WAXXX Magazine, Sandhills Recording Studios, Elevator Studios, The Motor Museum Recording Studios, Dawsons, Resurrection, Lost Art, Weavers Door, Bold Street Coffee, The Green Cauldron, Cains Brewery, The Bluecoat, Static Gallery, The Picket, The Masque, Leaf, Sentric, CMU Daily, EVOL, Mellotone, Harvest Sun, Samizdat, Behind The Wall Of Sleep, Another Media, Obscenic, Mercy, Hive Collective, Jon Hillcock's New Noise, UR BEATZ, Seven Streets Liverpool Live, Liverpool Acoustic and LIPA.

Justice lead the NME awards 2012

 JUSTICE LEAD THE NME AWARDS SHOWS 2012 WITH 5 SHOWS

FEATURING

JUSTICE / THE BIG PINK / MARINA AND THE DIAMONDS / PURE LOVE /

BAND OF SKULLS / tUnE yArDs / TOTALLY ENORMOUS EXTINCT DINOSAURS / CLOUD CONTROL / KURT VILE / ALABAMA SHAKES /

OH LAND / LITTLE DRAGON / THE DRUMS / CHARLI XCX / SLOW CLUB

Plus More To Be Announced

WWW.NME.COM

@nmemagazine / #nmeawards

www.facebook.com/nmemagazine

The iconic NME Awards Shows explode onto London’s live music scene for 2012 with a line-up so packed full of talent that the Shows have burst out of the Capital and will visit five cities around the UK. This year influential Parisian duo Justice will lead a series of shows that will bring the might of The NME Awards Shows to the whole of the UK.

Kicking off on 9th February and running throughout the month, the Shows will bring some of the most acclaimed acts to the Capital. Spread across some of London’s most iconic and best-loved music venues, with acts including The Big Pink and Marina and the Diamonds, the NME Awards Shows are a month-long blast of the very best established and cutting-edge musical talent around.

Critically acclaimed French dance duo Justice will headline a five-date series of shows that kick off in Bristol on 9th February. Following the release of their long-awaited second album ‘Audio, Video, Disco’ last month, Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay will also bring the pummelling levels of intensity of a Justice live show to London, Birmingham and Glasgow, before bringing the roof down on Manchester Academy on 13th February.

NME Editor and Awards Shows architect Krissi Murison says of the shows: “This year is unprecedented, not only do we have phenomenal bands playing all over London, but we are also thrilled that Justice will be playing an exclusive UK wide mini-tour. It’s going to be amazing.”

Xavier de Rosnay of Justice says: “We’re really looking forward to playing in the UK again – especially in London. One of our favourite memories of playing live was in London when we played at the Astoria just before it closed a few years ago. Since then, we've known just what a great place London is to play. It's really exciting to be playing the tracks from our new album 'Audio, Video, Disco' – we're working on the lightshow now to make sure it looks as amazing as possible."

The Big Pink say: “It’s fantastic to be playing the NME show. The NME have been with us pretty much since day one so to be part of any NME bill is always a pleasure. We’re more excited than we’ve ever been to play live shows, and this time round we’re going to come from a completely different place with it. Last time it was very simple bass, drums, guitars, samples and keyboards, but now we’ve really gone to town with our setup. There’s going to be a lot of effects and walls of noise – I think it’s going to be bigger than ever.”

Marina and the Diamonds says: “I can’t wait to play the show. Obviously I’ve played my old songs a lot live, so it’s going to be nice to perform material from the new album. Now I’ve done one big tour, I know what I’m going to do with this one. There’s going to be a strong cinematic element to it – I can’t really say anything more than that yet, but I know it’s going to be a really important and special show. It’s a one-of-a-kind gig – the first time I’m going to be singing the new songs – so it’s definitely one that hardcore fans should come to.”

Charli XCX will kick off the Shows in style at London Lexington on 8th February followed by Sheffield folk-rock duo Slow Club who will bring their unique approach to London Heaven on the 9th February. Former-Gallows frontman, Frank Carter will bring his new project Pure Love to Bush Hall on 14th February. Southampton trio Band of Skulls will play XOYO on 15th February and O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire will welcome Merrill Garus’ tUnE-yArDs on 15th February. Oxford dance-act, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs will play London Heaven on 16th February whilst The Electric Ballroom plays host to Australian four-piece Cloud Control on 17th February. The Big Pink, who released their new single ‘Stay Gold’ last week will be at The Garage on 20th February.

Philadelphian songwriter, Kurt Vile will play Camden’s Koko on 21st February. Alex Turner endorsed Alabama Shakes hit The Boston Arms on 22nd February with Cinematic electropop Dane, Oh Land taking to the stage at London Heaven on 23rd February. Swedish collective Little Dragon will descend on the HMV Forum on 24th February and Marina and the Diamonds will be showcasing material from her eagerly-anticipated second album at O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire on 26th February. The Drums return to the NME Awards circuit once more to close the Shows by playing Roundhouse on 27th February.

Tickets for the NME Awards Shows 2012 will be available on pre-sale exclusively through www.NME.com from 9am on 16th November and will be on general release from 18th November.

Keep checking www.NME.com for more details. Tag your tweets with #nmeawards to join the conversation.

NME Awards Shows 2012 Dates & Ticket Info:

Feb 8 Charlie XCX - London Lexington

Feb 9 Slow Club - London Heaven

Feb 9 Justice - Bristol O2 Academy

Feb 10 Justice - Brixton O2 Academy

Feb 11 Justice - Birmingham O2 Academy

Feb 12 Justice - Glasgow O2 Academy

Feb 13 Justice - Manchester Academy

Feb 14 Pure Love - Bush Hall

Feb 15 Band of Skulls - XOYO

Feb 15 tUnE-yArDs - O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire

Feb 16 Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs - London Heaven

Feb 17 Cloud Control - Electric Ballroom

Feb 20 The Big Pink - Garage

Feb 21 Kurt Vile - Koko

Feb 22 Alabama Shakes - Boston Arms

Feb 23 Oh Land - London Heaven

Feb 24 Little Dragon - HMV Forum

Feb 26 Marina and the Diamonds - O2 Shepherd’s Bush Empire

Feb 27 The Drums - Roundhouse

Once again this year the NME Awards Shows are brought to London in association with Metropolis Music. Metropolis Music, SJM Concerts and DF Concerts will be presenting the Justice dates

Pre-sale exclusively through www.NME.com from 9am on 16th November

General release via Gigs and Tours and Ticketmaster on 18th November.

All prices subject to booking fees plus a 50p charity donation to Teenage Cancer Trust (excluding Justice tickets)

GIT Award in Liverpool Official Launch this Friday at LMW Closing Party

SOME cities have wonderful pop music histories, some might be lucky enough to enjoy successful periods in the future, but few can confidently say, they have both.

Liverpool is one of a select bunch of cities that can. Like London, New York, Chicago, Detroit and Los Angeles, it can accurately claim to have changed the complexion of modern music.

Now, a new prize, the GIT Award (named after the popular local music blog Getintothis - www.getintothis.co.uk), is about to recognise the best of the future crop of Liverpool musicians who may go on to do what Scousers have been doing for more than half a century – changing the course of history.

As award-winning writer and Word Magazine associate editor Paul Du Noyer, author of the peerless history of the city’s pop music culture, Liverpool Wondrous Place, says, “Music is not just the heritage but the heartbeat of Liverpool.”

But, it’s not just about rock and roll and the guitar bands the city has mostly been famed for, the GIT Award will celebrate Liverpool's current rich musical diversity. From the thriving hip hop scene to its electronica artists, from its long-established country and roots community to punk, folk and metal, the GIT Award is open to all.

Peter Guy, Liverpool ECHO journalist and editor of Getintothis, says, “Think of it as the Scouse Mercury Prize - but, the only criteria being that it has a clear connection with Liverpool; ie: the record was made, produced or recorded by Liverpudlians. "Unlike the Mercurys, there will be a transparent judging panel and as many grass roots musicians won't record a full album during the course of a year, we're asking for four tracks be submitted to be eligible for entry - think of it as an old school four-track EP."

And the prize? It's a little belter. Sandhills Studio is offering a day's free recording time with a top producer, while the winners will play next year's Liverpool Sound City and Liverpool Music Week.

Vice Magazine, meanwhile, has asked Getintothis to promote an exclusive gig at their London-based bar, The Old Blue Last, featuring the winners. On top of this, film-maker Ian Gamester, who has been shortlisted for the prestigious Virgin Media Shorts film, will make the band's video promo which will be screened by Picturehouse at FACT’s boutique Box cinema for the winners and their nearest and dearest.

Further goodies from sponsors will be announced in the coming months.

The GIT Award will have an official launch at Liverpool Music Week's spectacular closing party at the Contemporary Urban Centre on November 11 with the 12 nominees announced next spring before the winner is unveiled days before Liverpool Sound City 2012 where they will feature on the Getintothis stage.

In the meantime, spread the word, The GIT Award is officially ON - musicians, bands and creative types everywhere, send your four tracks to getintothis@gmail.com or alternatively post to Peter Guy, The GIT Award, Liverpool Daily Post & ECHO, PO Box 48, Old Hall Street, Liverpool, L693EB. If you're a business and would like to get involved with the GIT Award, please email peter.guy@liverpool.com.

SPONSORS

A stellar list of sponsors, both from inside and outside the music community, have added their considerable cultural and commercial heft in supporting the inaugural GIT Award, including: Liverpool Sound City, Liverpool Music Week, Cream, Creamfields, Vice Magazine, The Quietus, Liverpool Vision, ACME, It's Liverpool, Liverpool City Council, Culture Liverpool, FACT Cinema and Art Gallery, Liverpool Museum, Probe Records, The Music Consortium, Bido Lito! Magazine, WAXXX Magazine, Sandhills Recording Studios, Elevator Studios, The Motor Museum Recording Studios, Dawsons, Resurrection, Lost Art, Weavers Door, Bold Street Coffee, The Green Cauldron, Cains Brewery, The Bluecoat, Static Gallery, The Masque, Leaf, Sentric, CMU Daily, EVOL, Mellotone, Harvest Sun, Samizdat, Behind The Wall Of Sleep, Another Media, Obscenic, Mercy, Hive Collective, Jon Hillcock's New Noise, UR BEATZ, Seven Streets Liverpool Live and LIPA.

JUDGES

Thus far the judging panel comprises Vice Magazine global editor Andy Capper, Liverpool-based EVOL promoter Steve Miller, Bido Lito! editor Craig Pennington and Getintothis editor Peter Guy. The full panel will be announced shortly.

NME Awards Tour 2012

THE NME AWARDS TOUR HITS THE ROAD

 

 

FEATURING

TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB

METRONOMY

TRIBES

AZEALIA BANKS

 

WWW.NME.COM/AWARDS

?nmeawards

 

The infamous NME Awards Tour is back for 2012 and ready to showcase the year’s most exciting emerging music talent. Renowned for giving the freshest new acts their first taste of national notoriety – past alumni include Arctic Monkeys, The Killers, Florence & The Machine, Crystal Castles and The Vaccines – 2012’s line-up captures the spirit of 2011 and sets the agenda for an explosive forthcoming year of music.

 

Running throughout February, the NME Awards Tour kicks off in Glasgow (8th) and visits 12 venues across the UK, bringing the very best in new music directly to music fans, ending with a show-stopping finale in London (25th).

 

NME editor Krissi Murison says: “As far as NME Awards Tour line-ups go, it’s difficult to imagine one more exciting than this or more representative of the cutting edge sounds that will define 2012. Every week in NME we bang on about how brilliant these bands are, and this is an amazing opportunity to see them all on the same bill. Two Door Cinema Club are one of the most exciting live bands in the world right now, Metronomy recorded arguably the album of the year, Tribes are the future of British indie music and Azealia Banks is, well, pretty much the most exciting new act on the planet. It’s going to be a good one…”

 

Having quietly become one of the UK’s best loved bands, Two Door Cinema Club will headline the hotly anticipated annual tour. Since releasing their debut album ‘Tourist History’ in March 2010, Two Door Cinema Club have rapidly become one of the biggest new success stories in UK music. After selling out headline tours in the UK, US, Europe, Australia, Asia, Japan and South America, playing two successive sold out nights at O₂ Shepherds Bush Empire and selling out the O₂ Academy Brixton in under four hours, the band have deservedly earned both a devoted word-of-mouth live following and huge critical acclaim.

 

Two Door Cinema Club say: "It feels great to be headlining the NME Tour and be amongst what feels like a great line-up as well. We had a taste of the tour when we did the local support slots when the Tour came to Ireland with the Maccabees when we were pretty much just starting out as a band. We feel a real sense of achievement to have made it this far and be one among the incredible list of headliners on the NME Awards Tour."

 

Hailing from the tiny, bohemian market town of Totnes in Devon, Metronomy join the line-up this year. One of the most expansive and visionary pop bands in the country, Metronomy will be supplying the NME Awards Tour with proof that it’s possible for electronic bands to put on a show as authentic as any rock band.

 

Metronomysay: "It's pretty exciting to be part of a travelling tour, a bit like a circus or something. It's been a while since we did a tour this long with the same bands for the whole thing, so hopefully there will be some camaraderie between the bands. Failing that there should be some incredibly violent 'beefs' which will make for good reading in the magazine."

 

London quartet Tribes have gone from prodigious debutant slots opening for their idols The Pixies, to relentless grassroots grafting of the UK dives, to being lauded ‘the future of rock ‘n’ roll’ by the Mystery Jets.

 

Tribes say: “We're really f***ing excited to be going on the NME Tour. We're really happy to be part of it, considering the history of the tour, and the fact the likes of The Vaccines and The Horrors have done it before. Hopefully there'll be some good after parties too – we're all about the partying.”

 

New York producer/MC Azealia Banks, who has been steadily perfecting her craft and making a name for herself, has bagged the coveted opening slot for the NME Awards Tour 2012. Since her first steps as a child in off-broadway theatre productions to her training at La Guardia High School of Performing Arts – a breeding ground for stars – Azealia Banks’ seasoned bars and angelic voice give everybody a reason to rewind that track.

 

Azealia Banks says: “I've been reading NME since I was old enough to ride the trains, where I’d buy it on newsstands... it's almost surreal that I’ve been selected to participate in this tour... it's such an honour.”

 

Tickets for the NME Awards Tour 2012 will be available on pre-sale exclusively through www.NME.com from 9am on Wednesday 9th November. They will then be on general release via Gigs and Tours and Ticketmaster on Friday 11th November.

 

Visitwww.NME.comfor more details.

 

Tag your tweets with ?nmeawards to join the conversation.

 

NME Awards Tour Dates 2012:

 

08 Feb Glasgow O₂ Academy

09 Feb Newcastle O₂ Academy

10 Feb Manchester Academy

14 Feb Nottingham Rock City

15 Feb Leeds O₂ Academy

17 Feb Norwich UEA

18 Feb Birmingham O₂ Academy

19 Feb Cardiff University 

20 Feb Bristol O₂ Academy

22 Feb Bournemouth O₂ Academy

23 Feb Brighton Dome

25 Feb London O₂ Academy Brixton

---

 

Ticket Info:

 

NME pre-sale - on sale 9am on 9th November

www.NME.com/tickets or 0844 858 6765

 

 

Two Door Cinema Club - on sale 9am on 9th November

http://www.artistticket.com/

 

General release – on sale from 9am on 11th November

www.gigsandtours.com / www.ticketmaster.co.uk

24hr CC hotline 0844 811 0051 / 0844 826 2826

 

An SJM Concerts presentation in association with DF Concerts and Metropolis Music

All tickets include a 50p donation to Teenage Cancer Trust

(Registered charity 1062559 in England & Wales, SC039757 in Scotland)

 

Tickets prices start from £19.10 plus a 50p charity donation to Teenage Cancer Trust.

Prices are subject to booking fees.

Seun Kuti live in Liverpool at The Kazimier on 3rd November

SEUN KUTI & EGYPT 80

Nominated for a MOBO Award for ‘Best African Act’ 2011 

New single RISE remixed by Swizz Beatz out 7th November 

Live at Koko 4th November  

‘If Seun and Egypt 80 are performing near you, just get yourself in there’ 

Gilles Peterson (BBC Radio1)

After the acclaimed release of his latest album ‘From Africa with Fury: Rise’ (Because Music) and his rave appearances at the Royal Festival Hall and on BBC Later with Jools Holland earlier this year, Seun Anikulapo Kuti returns to the UK for two live appearances this November. 

Seun Anikulapo Kuti will be appearing with his fourteen-piece band, Egypt 80, on the following dates:

Thursday 3 November

The Kazimier

4-5 Wolstenholme Square 

Liverpool, L1 4JJ

http://www.thekazimier.co.uk/

Friday 4 November 

Koko

1A Camden High Street, 

London, NW1 7JE

Doors 7pm

Tickets: £22.50 https://agmp.ticketabc.com/events/seun-kuti-egypt-80/

The youngest son of legendary Nigerian Afrobeat musician Fela Kuti, leads his father's former band Egypt 80 and effortlessly makes live again the most original incarnation of Afrobeat. Seun began playing saxophone at age 8 and started as a backup singer for his father in Egypt 80 at age 9. He took over the band at age 15 after his father’s death. Since then, Seun has continued his father’s political and social message while adding his own perspective. "I want to make Afrobeat for my generation,” he says. “Instead of 'get up and fight,' it's going to be ‘get up and think.’”

His latest album “From Africa With Fury” which came out this April was produced by Brian Eno, John Reynolds, and Kuti, with additional production by Godwin Logie.The critically acclaimed album captures Seun and Egypt 80’s extraordinary power, fraught with the scorching rhythms and kinetic funk energy that has earned the band – as ever, under the leadership of alto saxophonist Lekan Animashaun – worldwide acclaim as one of today’s most incendiary live acts. 

The success of Seun’s recent activity in the UK has resulted in a MOBO Award nomination for ‘Best African Act’. The results will be annouced at the MOBO Award ceremony in Glasgow on the 5^th October 2011 

In addition, Seun Kuti will release the blistering ‘Rise’, his first single from the album, on the 7^th November. The package features a remix of the track by the US DJ and rapper, Swizz Beatz.  On ‘Rise’, perhaps the album’s most unequivocal battle cry, Kuti impels listeners to fight “the petroleum companies” that “use our oil to destroy our land,” “the diamond companies” that “use our brothers as slaves for the stone,” and “companies like “Monsanto and Halliburton” which “use their food to make my people hungry.”  But where Fela’s work often featured an explicit call to revolution, Seun’s goal is subtler.  He sees his role as that of an educator, speaking truth to power in order to provoke awareness and debate throughout his beloved homeland.

“In Africa today, most people are struggling in silence,” Seun says.  “The systematic oppression of the people has made them blinded to their reality.  Everybody’s just thinking about survival.  Nobody wants to stand up for anything, everybody just wants to tow the line.  So I’m trying to make people think about these things that they are forgetting.  I want to inspire people to want things to change.”

 

 

Creamfields and Kendal Calling win festival awards

Creamfields Wins Again At

UK Festival Awards 2010 and Kendal Calling wins best small festival

Creamfields have scooped the award for ‘Best Dance Event’ for a 2^nd year running in the UK Festival Awards which was held in London’s Indig02 on Thursday night.

This is the fourth time Creamfields has won in the Best Dance Event category since the publicly voted awards were established in 2004. The 2 day festival which takes place in Daresbury, Cheshire on August Bank Holiday weekend, sold out in record time for a second consecutive year, with this award topping off what has been an outstanding year for Creamfields, which also saw the northern dance festival scoop the highly coveted Music Week Award for ‘Festival Of The Year’ beating off the likes of Glastonbury, V and Reading.

On receiving the award Cream CEO James Barton said: “We are delighted to have won the award once again for Best Dance Event, the fact that the UK Festival Awards are voted for by the public makes this win even sweeter. Every year we set out to be better than the year before, and it’s great that people appreciate the festival and the hard work that goes into making it the best dance festival in the country”.

Kendal Calling also won best small festival. A much deserved win for a great little festival.

http://www.kendalcalling.com/

Creamfields 2011 returns on August Bank Holiday weekend and Early Bird camping tickets are on sale now at £100+BF www.ticketline.co.uk / Tel: 0844 888 4401. Info: www.creamfields.com

Other winners at this year’s UK Festival Awards included:-

Best Major Festival - Bestival
Best Medium-Sized Festival - Green Man Festival
Best Small Festival - Kendal Calling
Line Up Of The Year - RockNess
Best Toilets - T in the Park
Headline Performance of the Year - AC/DCat Download
Best Breakthrough Artist - Mumford and Sons
The Lifetime Achievement Award - Geoff Ellis
Promoter of the Year – Glastonbury Festival

Hungry Pigeon are proud to announce that we're nominated for Four Categories in this years UK Festival Awards

The Festival was headlined by Athlete in the centre of Manchester, Piccadilly Gardens, as well as featuring appearances from The Travelling Band, Reverend Soundsystem, Liam Frost, Kid British, Kirsty Almeida and many many more throughout established venues in the Northern Quarter

The event attracted 14,000 people over the May Bank Holiday weekend of May 28th to 30th and the 4 nominations this year follow on from our nomination in the Best Metropolitan Festival in our inaugral year in 2009

The categories Hungry Pigeon are nominated in are:
* Best Medium Size Festival
* Best Metropolitan Festival
* The Grass Roots Festival Award
* Family Festival Award

Hungry Pigeon spokesman Alex McCann says "It's a real honour to be nominated for our festival on a national level, and for the 2nd year in a row. We started Hungry Pigeon as 4 promoters coming together to put Manchester music on the map and create a great festival. We couldn't have got this far without Manchester City Council and Visit Manchester, who help us so much, and this years sponsor HL Jeans Co. And of course it goes without saying the great people of Manchester and those that travel from all over the UK and Europe for Hungry Pigeon"

The public can vote for Hungry Pigeon in the UK Festival awards here

http://uk.festivalawards.com/

Voting ends on Oct 6th

Thanks

Hungry Pigeon Team

*** Hungry Pigeon 2010 sponsored by HL Jeans Co ***
www.hungrypigeon.com

Jarvis Cocker's 6 Music 'rant'

Jarvis Cocker seized the opportunity of winning the Rising Star gong at the Sony Radio Academy Awards 2010 to have a "rant" about the proposed closure of 6 Music.

On collecting the award, voted for by the public, from Frankie Sandford of The Saturdays, the 46-year-old former Pulp star joked that at his age "not many things are rising anymore".

Jarvis added: "Since I am an elected majority you will forgive me if I have a little rant. I said that a vote for me was a vote for 6 Music. The show that I do couldn't exist on any other station. I'm allowed to play whatever music I like, interview whoever I like and record jingles in my cellar."