• Here comes single No.2 from Alison Wonderland’s recently-released ‘Calm Down’ EP. ‘Cold’ follows on from ‘I Want U’ and was officially serviced to media this week, while the DJ is halfway through her national tour. She’s already visited parts of New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia, but the ‘Rural Juror Touror’ lands in Mackay this Saturday night. Shows in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth were recently added to the run of dates.
• Other big name releases doing the rounds with media this week include Sam Smith’s new track ‘I’m Not The Only One’, Angus & Julia Stone’s ‘Get Home’, the new Nicki Minaj single ‘Anaconda’ (featuring THAT cover image), Bluejuice’s ‘I’ll Go Crazy’ and The Kooks’ ‘Forgive And Forget’. Drop by our FACEBOOK page tomorrow to check out a larger list of this week’s new tunes.
• My Chemical Romance may be no more, but their former lead singer Gerard Way will continue in the music industry with the release of his debut solo album ‘Hesitant Alien’ next month. “My intention was to make 100 percent uncompromised art, using the currently least radio-friendly instrument, the guitar. I knew there would be lots of fuzz pedals. I knew I would play Fender instruments,” the singer said of the new release, which is due in Australia on Friday September 26.
• Yep, you found him. Congratulations, you. One of our more bizarre entries, surely… Lovable character Where’s Wally has created his very own official Spotify playlist. We kid you not. And, it includes a fair share of Aussie talent too. Among the 21 tracks featured are Angus & Julia Stone’s ‘Big Jet Plane’, Little Birdy’s version of ‘These Boots Are Made For Walking’ and Crowded House’s ‘World Where You Live’. Look for ‘Where’s Wally Official’ on Spotify to check out the rest of the chosen tunes.
• Icehouse has added two new Melbourne shows to their upcoming national tour. Already confirmed to play the city’s The Palms At Crown on January 30 and 31, Iva and the gents will now also play February 02 and 03. The ‘Platinum’ concert series kicks off at Canberra’s Southern Cross Club on Wednesday September 03.
• Applications are now open in the prestigious 2014 Vanda & Young Songwriting Competition. Entries are sought from talent across the country, with the winner set to take home a cash prize of $50,000, the runner-up bagging $10,000 and third place picking up $5000. Past winners of the competition include Megan Washington, Kimbra and The Preatures. Head HERE for all the guff.
• It was a No.2 hit here in Australia in December last year and although it’s taken eight long months to rear its head in the UK, its success there has surpassed its chart reign down under. We’re talking about Magic!’s single ‘Rude’, which claims the top spot on the British singles chart this week, knocking Cheryl from the No.1 position after a week. Similarly, Zhu’s ‘Faded’ hit No.3 here two months ago, but it debuts at No.3 in the UK this week. ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ third place-getters Bars & Melody premiere at No.5 with ‘Hopeful’ and it’s ‘Kisses For Breakfast’ from Melissa Steel that debuts at No.10.
• Ed Sheeran reigns supreme again on the UK albums chart this week, ‘X’ maintaining its No.1 heading ahead of Dolly Parton’s ‘Blue Smoke’ and the new Eric Clapton release ‘The Breeze’. Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers debut in the No.7 spot with ‘Hypnotic Eye’ ahead of premieres for Neon Jungle (‘Welcome To The Jungle’ at No.8) and David Guetta (‘Nothing But The Beat’ at No.9). Cher Lloyd’s career doesn’t seem to be doing too well; New album ‘Sorry I’m Late’ debuts at a worrying No.21.
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