This Week's Top Releases

Music, Money, Madness… Jimi Hendrix Live In Maui

The trippy story of how Jimi Hendrix ended up playing a concert in front of a few hundred spectators at a windy cow farm next to a Hawaiian volcano features a cast of characters that could come from a Thomas Pynchon novel. There’s Chuck Wein, aka The Wizard, a Leary-lite Harvard graduate who dated Edie Sedgwick and made films with Warhol before dropping into the hippie world. There’s Michael Jeffery, Hendrix’s manager, a shady operator with a line in tall stories about his career in the British Army. And there’s Hendrix, who found himself committed to making a soundtrack...

Jeff Tweedy Love Is The King

During the enforced idleness of the early months of the Covid-19 pandemic, many people hatched ambitious plans: reading unreadable books, mastering a language, baking virtuous sourdough. For Jeff Tweedy, the global crisis truncated a Wilco tour, and he found himself at home with his family. His son Spencer lives at home anyway, and his other son, Sammy, returned from New York to do remote schooling. Tweedy had tuned in to the discussion about creativity during times of quarantine, and had learned (the arguable fact) that Shakespeare wrote King Lear while sheltering from the plague. What to do? Well, in...

The Damned reunited: “We make an explosive sound together”

Last year, Dave Vanian admitted to Uncut that a reformation of the classic Damned line-up was unlikely, describing the relationship between fellow original members Captain Sensible and Rat Scabies as a “powder keg”. But it seems that the fuse has been re-lit, with the foursome announcing a reunion tour for July next year. In the latest issue of Uncut – in shops now, or available to buy online by clicking here – all four original Damned members tell Peter Watts why they decided the time was right to get back together. “Everybody wants to do it and life is...

Grandaddy The Sophtware Slump 20th Anniversary Collection

Jason Lytle has always been drawn to the wilderness, but civilisation seems to have a way of drawing him back again. After years in his hometown of Modesto, California, in 2006 he headed to Montana for the best part of a decade, before relocating to Portland, then Modesto again and now Los Angeles. When Uncut speaks to the songwriter, he’s out in the wilds again, having left the smoke and traffic of Southern California for a camping trip in Idaho. “I’m in the mountains,” he says, “and I’m about to drive further into the mountains today.” It’s this see-sawing...

Cabaret Voltaire Shadow Of Fear

It may have taken 20 years, but observant fans of Cabaret Voltaire might not have been entirely surprised to see Richard H Kirk bringing the name out of cold storage in 2014. As far back as 2005 he admitted he was considering reactivating CV but “planning to get some young people involved”. But judging by some dismayed reactions online, few realised this would mean rehabilitating the band as a one-man operation, without long-time creative partner Stephen Mallinder, and that Kirk would take an uncompromising “year zero” approach on re-emerging. Given that, on the face of it, CV were coming...

Jarvis Cocker: “There’s not a lockdown on the human imagination”

From domestic discos to a new brand of tea, Jarvis Cocker has tackled the past 12 months in typically unpredictable fashion. In the latest issue of Uncut – in UK shops now or available to buy online by clicking here – Stephen Troussé hears about cave gigs, staying optimistic and how he made a lockdown anthem by accident. Here’s an extract from that typically entertaining encounter… It feels like a strange question to ask after the year we’ve all had, but how has 2020 been for you, Jarvis? It’s been a very creative year for me, but I do...

The Music Video For FG Figueroa’s “Odio” Is The Most Satisfying Aspect Of 2020

When a music video transcends you to a certain emotion and desire, it has definitely managed to achieve its creative purpose. Florida-based Puerto Rican urban singer and songwriter FG Figueroa’s new release “Odio” has visuals that make you dream of new trips and new destinations. Even in the worst moments, remembering the music video helps to see that beauty still exists. The inspiring visuals directed by talented creators of Flowercop show the utmost beauty of Florida and its architecture. The color blue is dominant in the whole video. The open sky and ocean satisfy the mind, and the last...

Icebeatchillz & Beenie Man Make A Great Contribution To The Music Industry With Their Joint Project “Area”

“Area,” the fresh symbol of cohesion and a sweet idealism is the latest offering by multi-genre music producer and artist Icebeatchillz who connected to his project the Dancehall legend Beenie Man. However, it didn’t take him any effort since immediately after hearing the beat, Beenie Man found himself in the studio freestyling to the song, which in the end turned out to be this sun-filled, uplifting piece of music titled “Area.”It may safely be said that if happiness can be achieved by dancing, this is the very track to spin. Whatever Icebeatchillz is doing, the results are fantastic: rich...

Acclaim The Brand New Bop By Broward Native, Rapper Dirty Harry – “Shake Back”

With his determination to take over the national and global markets, Dirty Harry has been working hard on refining his art since 2008. Over the years, releasing several mixtapes and albums, Dirty Harry has paced up a little bit this year releasing two tracks with their sizzling hot visuals. Recently, Dirty Harry released an in-no-way inferior follow up to his previous releases “Blue Face” and “Sleepless Nights.”“Shake Back” – the brand new release by the rapper demonstrates Dirty Harry’s impressive skill of making his vocals—which sway among hard-hitting verses melt into deft melodies.Mature and consistently satisfying, “Shake Back” is...

The 11th Uncut New Music Playlist Of 2020

The latest issue of Uncut – in shops now or available to buy online by clicking here – is inevitably more retrospective than most, containing as it does our comprehensive musical review of 2020. But those seeking fresh musical adventures shouldn’t be put off – we still review upwards of 50 new albums and throw the spotlight on up-and-coming talents such as Alex Maas and Black Country, New Road. You can sample their wares below, along with plenty of other tunes we’ve been enjoying over the past couple of weeks: the imminent return of Mogwai, The Besnard Lakes, Julien...