Thom Yorke

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Hear Two New Songs By Radiohead's Thom Yorke

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BBC Radio 3 premiered the two new songs Yorke was commissioned to write by the Philarmonie de Paris
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Apr 29, 2019 - 3:44 pm

Radiohead's Thom Yorke debuted two new songs on BBC Radio 3's "Unclassified" show. The new original songs, “Don’t Fear the Light” and “Gawpers,” were commissioned by the Philarmonie de Paris, according to a post by Yorke, and performed as part of Yorke's "Minimalist Dream House" show in Paris earlier this month. 

You can hear the new Yorke tunes here. "Don't Fear the Light" comes on around the 27:30 mark and is a three-part work for two pianos, electronics and modular synthesizer at the request of sisters Katia and Marielle Labeque, who also perform the song with Yorke. In a special note written about the song, Yorke talked about collaborating with the French piano duo. 

"The best part for me was watching the basics of what I'd written being brought to life by the [Labeque] sisters and their interpretation, making the notes their's," said Yorke, adding, "I can only take part responsibility for the results. It's been fascinating."

 The other new song, the drone- and piano-based "Gawpers," can be heard starting around 47:20. While Yorke had performed this song on tour in the past, his "Minimal Dream House" performance, also featuring Katia and Marielle Labeque, stands as the first time the song is available in full.

Yorke recently composed music for the recent remake of Suspiria, considered his foray into classical composition. The Radiohead frontman has also promised a new solo album this year.

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Thom Yorke

Thom Yorke

Photo: Alex Lake

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Thom Yorke Announces New Album, 'ANIMA'

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The Radiohead frontman's third solo album will feature several songs he debuted during his Tomorrow's Modern Boxes tour
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Jun 20, 2019 - 12:56 pm

Thom Yorke fans can rejoice, the suspense is finally over. The elusive experimental artist has confirmed details for his follow-up to 2014's Tomorrow's Modern Boxes. ANIMA, the GRAMMY-winning Radiohead frontman's third solo studio album, will be released digitally by XL Records on June 27, followed by a physical release on July 19.

A press release states that the album's nine tracks include "several songs that were debuted live over the course of Thom Yorke, [producer] Nigel Godrich and [audiovisual artist] Tarik Barri's Tomorrow's Modern Boxes performances." As Pitchfork points out, the tracklist contains a song called "Dawn Chorus," which diehard fans may recognize as one of Radiohead's mystery songs they have used but never released.

The trio will be bringing the trippy, immersive Tomorrow's Modern Boxes experience on tour again soon, with new fall North American dates recently announced, to follow the July shows in Europe and Asia. All new shows go on sale to the general public tomorrow, June 21, with venue pre-sales currently open. You can find complete tour info here, and pre-sale info from the specific venues and ticketing platforms.

The new album is currently available for pre-order, which includes several vinyl options, all of which come with a bonus track, "Ladies & Gentlemen, Thank You for Coming." The limited-edition orange deluxe double vinyl comes with a hardcover lyric and art book.

The new album will be accompanied by a visual short of the same name, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, with music by Yorke, featuring three tracks from the LP. The mysterious trailer, which you can watch below, was released today by Netflix, who will host the "one-reeler" video on June 27.

Earlier this year, Yorke released two new instrumental songs, which he was commissioned to write by the Philarmonie de Paris for French pianists Katia and Marielle Labeque, as part of the "Minimalist Dream House." His most recent full-length release was 2018's Suspiria, an instrumental score he recorded for Luca Guadagnino's film of the same name. Radiohead's most recent album is 2016's A Moon Shaped Pool.

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André De Shields of Hadestown

André De Shields of Hadestown

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The Show Must Go On: "Hadestown" & "Waitress" Casts Take To The Streets Amid NYC Blackout

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Even when the lights went out, the Big Apple didn't sleep; the massive Manhattan power outage caused last-minute cancellations on Broadway, but the actors brought the music outside
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Jul 15, 2019 - 2:03 pm

On Saturday night, New York City faced an unexpectedly eventful evening as a massive power outage hit Manhattan's Upper West Side at 6:47 p.m. for five hours. Many events had to be canceled last-minute, including all of the evening's Broadway shows, but that didn't stop many of the actors to take the music to the streets.

The casts of "Hadestown," "Rock Of Ages," "Waitress" and "We Come From Away" all offered impromptu performances for stranded ticket holders and passersby on 42nd Street.

Outside of the Walter Kerr Theater, André De Shields, who plays Hermes in the 2019 Tony-sweeping musical "Hadestown," led his castmates in a blackout-themed version of their opening song, "Road To Hell." Complete with a guy on horns, call-and-response lyrics, dancing crowds and sirens wailing in the background, it was quite the exuberant N.Y.C. moment. New Yorker and Broadway star Lin-Manuel Miranda even retweeted the video, writing; "André freestyling during the Blackout is everything I love."

The charismatic De Shields earned Best Featured Actor in a Musical for his role in the new Broadway play, which is based on Greek mythology and was created from the GRAMMY-nominated concept album of the same name by singer/songwriter Anaïs Mitchell.

Just around the corner, Michael Mahany of "Rock Of Ages," the musical powered by classic '80s music, led his castmates in a raucous rendition of one of their numbers/the classic bar anthem, Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'." Mahany, who plays the amazingly named roles of Joey Primo/Strip Club DJ/Sleazy Producer in the play, tweeted the video out, writing, "How @RockOfAges handled the #NYCblackout, tonight! The show must go on, right?!"

Car horns pepper the pedestrian-enhanced performance, as good Samaritans take to the roads to direct traffic. And they say New Yorkers don't care about each other?

The Twitterverse shared more videos of joyful moments during the blackout, including actors from "Ain't To Proud: – The Life and Times of The Temptations" singing "Happy Birthday" from out of the windows of their theater. The casts of "Waitress" and "We Come From Away" joins the crowd of fans outside to also bring the music to masses; you can watch these three videos below.

 
 

All of this sounds a lot more fun than the experience of the almost-3,000 subway passengers who had to be rescued by the MTA, and almost as fun as Kulture's first birthday party that Cardi B says stayed lit sans lights.

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Keith Urban

Keith Urban

Photo: Michael Hickey/Getty Images

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Keith Urban To Kick Off First Shows At Revamped Caesars Palace Colosseum

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The four-time GRAMMY winner will perform two nights—Sept. 6 and 7—at the newly remodeled Las Vegas venue during his Graffiti U Tour
Ana Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Jul 12, 2019 - 5:38 pm

Today, Ceasars Palace in Las Vegas announced that GRAMMY-winning country star Keith Urban will be launching the new era of The Colosseum, their 4,300 seat theater. The New Zealand-born artist will perform the first two nights—Sept. 6 and 7—at the newly remodeled venue during his Graffiti U Tour.

"Caesars Entertainment could not be more excited to celebrate the relaunch of The Colosseum at Caesars Palace by welcoming Keith Urban to officially unveil many new and state-of-the-art enhancements that we have made to our award-winning venue," Jason Gastwirth, President of Entertainment of Caesars Entertainment told Billboard. "Keith is a remarkable musician, and the general admission area will provide our guests an exciting entertainment experience in the next chapter of The Colosseum."  

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"We knew we had to reopen a venue as iconic as The Colosseum in a big way. Keith Urban was the perfect choice," Amanda Moore, VP Marketing for Live Nation Las Vegas, added. As Billboard reports, in April The Colosseum began a new partnership with concert behemoth Live Nation; AEG formerly ran the venue's shows since its opening in 2003.

Billboard notes that the remodel includes "improved state-of-the-art sound and moving light fixtures along with a completely new high-definition LED video wall measuring 110 feet long and 34 feet tall with more than double the resolution of its predecessor," all of which will be on display during Urban's shows.

The outlet adds that that more special engagements and residencies at the new and improved Colosseum will be announced soon. Previously announced shows include two different residencies from Mariah Carey, three shows from Madonna on her intimate Fall Madame X Tour and Sting's Spring/Summer 2020 residency.

Tickets for Urban's two Vegas shows go on sale to the general public on July 19, with his fan club's pre-sale beginning tomorrow, July 13; more info on his website.

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Jerry Lawson

Photo: Michael Putland/Getty Images

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Jerry Lawson, Co-Founder Of "Kings Of A Capella" The Persuasions, Dies At 75

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After co-founding the group in 1962, Lawson and the Persuasions went on to three decades of successful recording and touring, creating a lasting legacy that continues to resonate
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Jul 12, 2019 - 4:04 pm

Jerry Lawson, original lead singer of a cappella group the Persuasions, has died "after a long illness" according to Associated Press and collaborator and frend Rip Rense. He was 75.

As the group's original lead singer, Lawson formed the Persuasions in Brooklyn in 1962. Six years later they signed a record deal with Frank Zappa in 1968 and released their debut LP Acapella on Zappa's Straight label in 1970. Bruce Springsteen opened for the Persuasions in the early 1970s, and opened for Joni Mitchell in 1979 the group continued to record and tour over the next 30 years, and were known by their fans as "The Kings Of a Cappella."

"Thirty-eight years and we still ain't got no band, man!" Lawson said in a 2000 interview. "That's the story right there."

The Persuasions influence continues to resonate. Jamie xx sampled the group’s “Good Times” from 1972’s Street Corner Symphony  for his song “I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times).” from 2015's In Colour. That same year, at age 71, Lawson released his first solo album, Just A Mortal Man.

Fans of the groundbreaking a cappella group included Rod Stewart, the Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia and the members of Boyz II Men.

"They've never gotten their due," Rense said. "They're the greatest, most enduring American a cappella group. In another country like Japan they'd be declared a living treasure."

A documentary on Lawson is in production and expected to be released later this year. He is survived by his wife and two daughter, and his memory lives on in the music he made.

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