NEWS WRAP

• It’s hard to believe that it’s already two years since the gang at General Pants Company decided to try their hands at the music business, launching their Major Label brand. The label has subsequently gone on to unearth and release a swag of fantastic homegrown tracks, the latest of which is by Melbourne four-piece Mildlife (pictured). To celebrate Major Pants’ second birthday, the electro outfit’s single ‘Milk & Wool’, which is a wonky electro affair, is the track up for highlighting this month – and you can stream it free RIGHT HERE.
• Rapper Ice Cube is heading back to the city of churches. Yes, he’ll hit up Adelaide’s Thebarton Theatre on Friday April 20 to play all the hits for his South Australian fans. Tickets are on sale now.
• Connie and Black Angus from Sneaky Sound System have announced that they’re heading out on the road for a brief run of dates early next month. They’ll kick things off in Brisbane on Good Friday eve, before playing Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. Tickets for all dates are on sale tomorrow.
• Jonathan Boulet’s forthcoming sophomore album has appeared on Universal Music’s upcoming release schedule. Yes, it’s still a while away (three months, to be precise), but the album, featuring the latest single ‘Trounce’, is due to drop at retail on Friday June 08.
• The Butterfly Effect has announced the upcoming release of a best-of compile entitled ‘Effected’. To co-incide with the album’s April 23 release, the band will tour nationally throughout April, May and June. Tickets for all shows are on sale now through their OFFICIAL WEBSITE.
• Stan Walker’s new tune ‘Music Won’t Break Your Heart’, the cover art to which broke late last month, is one of a number of new tracks serviced to Australian media this week. Also out in the media ether are Breathe Carolina’s new single ‘Blackout’, John Mayer’s aforementioned new single ‘Shadow Days’ and a re-service of Enrique Iglesias’ ‘I Like How It Feels’ to co-incide with its use in the latest campaign for the AFL.
• Queensland outfit Busby Marou have already woven their way into our hearts here at home, but now they’re hoping to seduce the Americans and the Canadians, announcing shows as part of both SXSW and Canadian Music Week. The band’s self-titled debut was released digitally Stateside yesterday.
• There’s seemingly no slowing down Gotye’s all-conquering ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ on the UK charts this week, with the track still perched atop the UK singles chart, holding off a fast-charging Dappy who, along with Queen’s Brian May, debuts in the No.2 position with ‘Rockstar’. Kelly Clarkson’s ‘Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)’ and Ed Sheeran’s ‘Drunk’ appear in the top ten.
• And on the UK albums chart, the female singer-songwriter battle has this week been won by Emeli Sande, whose album ‘Our Version Of Events’ has reclaimed the No.1 spot, edging out Adele’s smash ’21’. The highest debut of the week appears at No.5 – a belated UK release of Meat Loaf’s new album ‘Hell In A Handbasket’, while an ‘Essential’ Whitney Houston package spends its third week in the charts at No.7.

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