Author: Press Room
These days, Anthony Gonzalez is feeling wistful for his own back catalog. His 2023 LP Fantasy was pitched as a sequel to 2005’s Before the Dawn Heals Us, so based on that calculus—and all but confirmed by the piano refrain that closes “Blister Sunrise”—I Wrote You a Letter is the spiritual successor to 2008’s Saturdays=Youth. It’s also relatively subdued for an M83 record. After the verbose Fantasy, Gonzalez is again content to let his big sounds handle the big feelings: dueling choirs and saxophones on “Siren Behold… Beasts,” a string quartet on “Soldiers of Lust,” and, of course, every synth…
George Michael was on top of the world in the late Eighties. He’d made it big as the creative half of Wham!, his U.K. pop duo with his school friend Andrew Ridgeley. But for his solo flight, he wanted to prove himself as an adult. That meant sex. It meant sin. It meant stubble. George came back strong with his 1987 solo classic Faith, reborn as a black-leather stud, shocking the music industry that had always seen him as a disposable joke. Instead of burning out, he seduced the planet with the innovative hitcraft of “Faith,” “Father Figure,” and “I…
What happens when you give 50 songwriters, producers, creators, and collaborators free rein in one marathon creative session? E.l.f Cosmetics has the answer to this question – “Mirror Mix,” its second original music compilation album that features a bevy of rising talent across pop, R&B, Latin, and rock. It’s an endeavor that honors e.l.f’s commitment to supporting and empowering the next generation of culture makers and creators, especially for those independent artists that are often underserved in the music industry. The challenges that face independent musicians these days can be daunting: 1 in 3 artists say that lack of exposure…
Twenty-five years after her VMA performance, Spears’ Neptunes-produced song has become a hit with Gen Z It’s been 25 years since Britney Spears stormed the VMAs stage with a snake on her shoulder to perform “I’m a Slave 4 U,” but new Spotify data shows a majority of the track’s listeners weren’t even born when the song came out. While millennials grew up with Spears, Spotify says the majority of recent streams for “Slave 4 U” were from Gen Z listeners — e.g. those born between 1997 to 2012. More than 55 percent of global streams in the past month…
Taylor Swift has shared her bittersweet new single ‘Patient Zero’, alongside three more songs on ‘The Life Of A Showgirl: The Encore’. The expanded edition of Swift’s 2025 album arrived today (September 25), adding ‘Patient Zero’, ‘Cleveland!’, ‘Pink Clouding’ and ‘Babylon’ to the original tracklist. All four songs were written with Max Martin and Shellback after Swift travelled to Sweden to celebrate the record-breaking success of ‘The Life Of A Showgirl’. Lead single ‘Patient Zero’ is a glossy pop track built around electronic percussion and a swooning string line, with Swift using infection as a metaphor for a destructive relationship.…
Nothing But Thieves have spoken to NME about their new album ‘Stray Dogs’ and latest single ‘#5’, as well as reflecting on how they’re “still making it up” 10 years on, using their platform to support grassroots venues, and more. Out today (Friday September 25), the LP marks the fifth full-length project from the Southend five-piece – following on from 2023’s ‘Dead Club City’, and sees them lean into themes of introspection, reflection and gratitude. Written over five months as they were out on the road, Conor Mason and co. retraced their roots for the recording process, heading back to…
Oasis fans have begun sharing their reactions as the first tickets for the band’s huge ‘Live ’27’ tour went on sale this morning (September 25). The first ticket window opened at 9am BST today and will run until midday, with two further sales taking place from 1pm to 3pm and 5pm to 8pm. The staggered process will then be repeated on Saturday and Sunday. Unlike the huge initial rush for the ‘Live ’25’ reunion tour, there is no open general sale. Fans were required to pre-register for the chance to receive a unique buying code. Successful applicants were then allocated…
When Tinashe released ‘Too Easy’, the lead single of her eighth studio album ‘Popstar’, the internet was lit aflame, hallmarking and revisiting the 33-year-old’s continued influence on other artists, particularly K-pop’s moodboards, visuals and wider discographies. But Tinashe’s impact spans much further; she also helped to spawn the alt-R&B renaissance of the 2010s – alongside peers including Jhené Aiko, The Weeknd and Miguel – and recent singles like ‘Crash Out’ re-centred a signature brand of west coast bounce and trap that leaps out across her discography (see 2020’s ‘Hopscotch’). Fundamentally, the singer has always been an all-encompassing pop and wider…
Jarvis Cocker has spoken to NME about Pulp‘s new film What Do You Do For An Encore?, the unique DNA and history of the band, and what the future holds for the Sheffield indie icons. Directed by Garth Jennings – who helmed the classic music videos for Pulp’s ‘Help The Aged’ and ‘A Little Soul’ – the 90-minute movie captures the band’s two sold-out shows at The O2 in London last summer, featuring narration from the group, unseen archive material and rare behind-the-scenes footage. The movie also follows the group’s “extraordinary journey from obscurity to cultural touchstone” up to the…
Abbey Road held its fifth annual Abbey Road Music Photography awards last night in London and announced its 2026 winners. Joshua Halling won Music Moment of the Year for his photograph of Oasis fans, which was shot during the band’s 2025 show in Buenos Aires. Gabrielle Ravet won for Behind the Scenes, while Tom Pallant won for Live Music. Frances Carter won for Portrait, AF Cortés won for Underground Scenes, and Giulia Spadafora won Festivals category. Dara Petrova was named Emerging Photographer of the Year for a photograph of a techno rave Laboratorium in Ukraine. Joshua Halling’s winning shot for…
