Latest news with #Cocker
The Advertiser
3 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Advertiser
Pulp is back for More with first album in 24 years
Pulp has returned with a new album, their first in 24 years. Who could've predicted that? Not even the band, it turns out. The ambitious Britpop-and-then-some band emerged in the late-'70s in Sheffield, England, artistic outsiders with a penchant for the glam, grim, and in the case of Cocker, the gawky. Fame alluded them until the mid-'90s, and then it rushed in with Cool Britannia. Their songs varied wildly from their contemporaries, like the recently reunited Blur and soon-to-be back together Oasis. Instead, Pulp's David Bowie-informed synth-pop arrived with humour, ambiguity and intellect - songs about sex and class consciousness that manage to be groovy, glib, awkward and amorous all at once. Then, and in the decades since, Pulp has inspired devotion from loyal fans across generations. They've charmed those lucky enough to catch band members in their heyday before a kind of careerism led to a hiatus in 2002 - and those who saw them for the first time during reunion tours in 2011 and 2022. With all that reputation on the line, it's reassuring that the band has decided to give its audience More, due for release on Friday. There were a few catalysts for More. The first: "We could get along with each other still," jokes drummer Nick Banks. "It wasn't too painful." The second: The band worked a new song into their recent reunion show run - The Hymn of the North, originally written for Simon Stephens' 2019 play Light Falls - and people seemed to like it. The third and most significant: The band's bassist and core member Steve Mackey died in 2023. "It made me realise that you don't have endless amounts of time," Cocker says. "You've still got an opportunity to create things, if you want to. Are you going to give it a go?" And so, they did. Cocker assured his bandmates Banks, guitarist Mark Webber and keyboardist Candida Doyle that the recording process could be done quickly - in three weeks, lightspeed for a band that has infamously agonised over its latter records, like 1998's This Is Hardcore. The 11 tracks that make up More are a combination of new and old songs written across Pulp's career. The late Mackey has a writing credit on both the sultry, existential Grown Ups originally demoed around This Is Hardcore, and the edgy disco Got to Have Love, written around "the turn of the millennium," as Cocker explains. Maturation is a prevalent theme on More, delivered with age-appropriate insight. "I was always told at school that I had an immature attitude. I just didn't see any point in growing up, really. It seemed like all the fun was had by people when they were younger," said Cocker. "But, as I said on the back of the This Is Hardcore album, it's OK to grow up, as long as you don't grow old. And I still agree with that, I think. Growing old is losing interest in the world and deciding that you're not gonna change. You've done your bit and that's it. That doesn't interest me. "You have to retain an interest in the world and that keeps you alive," he adds. "So, you grow up. And hopefully you live better, and you treat other people better. But you don't grow old." Pulp has returned with a new album, their first in 24 years. Who could've predicted that? Not even the band, it turns out. The ambitious Britpop-and-then-some band emerged in the late-'70s in Sheffield, England, artistic outsiders with a penchant for the glam, grim, and in the case of Cocker, the gawky. Fame alluded them until the mid-'90s, and then it rushed in with Cool Britannia. Their songs varied wildly from their contemporaries, like the recently reunited Blur and soon-to-be back together Oasis. Instead, Pulp's David Bowie-informed synth-pop arrived with humour, ambiguity and intellect - songs about sex and class consciousness that manage to be groovy, glib, awkward and amorous all at once. Then, and in the decades since, Pulp has inspired devotion from loyal fans across generations. They've charmed those lucky enough to catch band members in their heyday before a kind of careerism led to a hiatus in 2002 - and those who saw them for the first time during reunion tours in 2011 and 2022. With all that reputation on the line, it's reassuring that the band has decided to give its audience More, due for release on Friday. There were a few catalysts for More. The first: "We could get along with each other still," jokes drummer Nick Banks. "It wasn't too painful." The second: The band worked a new song into their recent reunion show run - The Hymn of the North, originally written for Simon Stephens' 2019 play Light Falls - and people seemed to like it. The third and most significant: The band's bassist and core member Steve Mackey died in 2023. "It made me realise that you don't have endless amounts of time," Cocker says. "You've still got an opportunity to create things, if you want to. Are you going to give it a go?" And so, they did. Cocker assured his bandmates Banks, guitarist Mark Webber and keyboardist Candida Doyle that the recording process could be done quickly - in three weeks, lightspeed for a band that has infamously agonised over its latter records, like 1998's This Is Hardcore. The 11 tracks that make up More are a combination of new and old songs written across Pulp's career. The late Mackey has a writing credit on both the sultry, existential Grown Ups originally demoed around This Is Hardcore, and the edgy disco Got to Have Love, written around "the turn of the millennium," as Cocker explains. Maturation is a prevalent theme on More, delivered with age-appropriate insight. "I was always told at school that I had an immature attitude. I just didn't see any point in growing up, really. It seemed like all the fun was had by people when they were younger," said Cocker. "But, as I said on the back of the This Is Hardcore album, it's OK to grow up, as long as you don't grow old. And I still agree with that, I think. Growing old is losing interest in the world and deciding that you're not gonna change. You've done your bit and that's it. That doesn't interest me. "You have to retain an interest in the world and that keeps you alive," he adds. "So, you grow up. And hopefully you live better, and you treat other people better. But you don't grow old." Pulp has returned with a new album, their first in 24 years. Who could've predicted that? Not even the band, it turns out. The ambitious Britpop-and-then-some band emerged in the late-'70s in Sheffield, England, artistic outsiders with a penchant for the glam, grim, and in the case of Cocker, the gawky. Fame alluded them until the mid-'90s, and then it rushed in with Cool Britannia. Their songs varied wildly from their contemporaries, like the recently reunited Blur and soon-to-be back together Oasis. Instead, Pulp's David Bowie-informed synth-pop arrived with humour, ambiguity and intellect - songs about sex and class consciousness that manage to be groovy, glib, awkward and amorous all at once. Then, and in the decades since, Pulp has inspired devotion from loyal fans across generations. They've charmed those lucky enough to catch band members in their heyday before a kind of careerism led to a hiatus in 2002 - and those who saw them for the first time during reunion tours in 2011 and 2022. With all that reputation on the line, it's reassuring that the band has decided to give its audience More, due for release on Friday. There were a few catalysts for More. The first: "We could get along with each other still," jokes drummer Nick Banks. "It wasn't too painful." The second: The band worked a new song into their recent reunion show run - The Hymn of the North, originally written for Simon Stephens' 2019 play Light Falls - and people seemed to like it. The third and most significant: The band's bassist and core member Steve Mackey died in 2023. "It made me realise that you don't have endless amounts of time," Cocker says. "You've still got an opportunity to create things, if you want to. Are you going to give it a go?" And so, they did. Cocker assured his bandmates Banks, guitarist Mark Webber and keyboardist Candida Doyle that the recording process could be done quickly - in three weeks, lightspeed for a band that has infamously agonised over its latter records, like 1998's This Is Hardcore. The 11 tracks that make up More are a combination of new and old songs written across Pulp's career. The late Mackey has a writing credit on both the sultry, existential Grown Ups originally demoed around This Is Hardcore, and the edgy disco Got to Have Love, written around "the turn of the millennium," as Cocker explains. Maturation is a prevalent theme on More, delivered with age-appropriate insight. "I was always told at school that I had an immature attitude. I just didn't see any point in growing up, really. It seemed like all the fun was had by people when they were younger," said Cocker. "But, as I said on the back of the This Is Hardcore album, it's OK to grow up, as long as you don't grow old. And I still agree with that, I think. Growing old is losing interest in the world and deciding that you're not gonna change. You've done your bit and that's it. That doesn't interest me. "You have to retain an interest in the world and that keeps you alive," he adds. "So, you grow up. And hopefully you live better, and you treat other people better. But you don't grow old." Pulp has returned with a new album, their first in 24 years. Who could've predicted that? Not even the band, it turns out. The ambitious Britpop-and-then-some band emerged in the late-'70s in Sheffield, England, artistic outsiders with a penchant for the glam, grim, and in the case of Cocker, the gawky. Fame alluded them until the mid-'90s, and then it rushed in with Cool Britannia. Their songs varied wildly from their contemporaries, like the recently reunited Blur and soon-to-be back together Oasis. Instead, Pulp's David Bowie-informed synth-pop arrived with humour, ambiguity and intellect - songs about sex and class consciousness that manage to be groovy, glib, awkward and amorous all at once. Then, and in the decades since, Pulp has inspired devotion from loyal fans across generations. They've charmed those lucky enough to catch band members in their heyday before a kind of careerism led to a hiatus in 2002 - and those who saw them for the first time during reunion tours in 2011 and 2022. With all that reputation on the line, it's reassuring that the band has decided to give its audience More, due for release on Friday. There were a few catalysts for More. The first: "We could get along with each other still," jokes drummer Nick Banks. "It wasn't too painful." The second: The band worked a new song into their recent reunion show run - The Hymn of the North, originally written for Simon Stephens' 2019 play Light Falls - and people seemed to like it. The third and most significant: The band's bassist and core member Steve Mackey died in 2023. "It made me realise that you don't have endless amounts of time," Cocker says. "You've still got an opportunity to create things, if you want to. Are you going to give it a go?" And so, they did. Cocker assured his bandmates Banks, guitarist Mark Webber and keyboardist Candida Doyle that the recording process could be done quickly - in three weeks, lightspeed for a band that has infamously agonised over its latter records, like 1998's This Is Hardcore. The 11 tracks that make up More are a combination of new and old songs written across Pulp's career. The late Mackey has a writing credit on both the sultry, existential Grown Ups originally demoed around This Is Hardcore, and the edgy disco Got to Have Love, written around "the turn of the millennium," as Cocker explains. Maturation is a prevalent theme on More, delivered with age-appropriate insight. "I was always told at school that I had an immature attitude. I just didn't see any point in growing up, really. It seemed like all the fun was had by people when they were younger," said Cocker. "But, as I said on the back of the This Is Hardcore album, it's OK to grow up, as long as you don't grow old. And I still agree with that, I think. Growing old is losing interest in the world and deciding that you're not gonna change. You've done your bit and that's it. That doesn't interest me. "You have to retain an interest in the world and that keeps you alive," he adds. "So, you grow up. And hopefully you live better, and you treat other people better. But you don't grow old."
Hamilton Spectator
16 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Pulp is back for ‘More,' their first album in 24 years. Even the Britpop band is surprised
NEW YORK (AP) — Pulp has returned with a new album, their first in 24 years. Who could've predicted that? Not even the band, it turns out. 'It took us by surprise as well,' dynamic frontman Jarvis Cocker told The Associated Press. 'Why not?' If there are casual Pulp fans, they don't make themselves known. The ambitious Britpop-and-then-some band emerged in the late-'70s in Sheffield, England, artistic outsiders with a penchant for the glam, grim, and in the case of Cocker, the gawky. Fame alluded them until the mid-'90s, and then it rushed in with the trend of Cool Britannia. Their songs varied wildly from their contemporaries, like the recently reunited Blur and soon-to-be back together Oasis. Instead, Pulp's David Bowie-informed synth-pop arrived with humor, ambiguity and intellect — songs about sex and class consciousness that manage to be groovy, glib, awkward and amorous all at once. Then, and in the decades since, Pulp has inspired devotion from loyal fans across generations. They've charmed those lucky enough to catch band members in their heyday before a kind of careerism led to a hiatus in 2002 — and those who saw them for the first time during reunion tours in 2011 and 2022. With all that reputation on the line, it's reassuring that the band has decided to give its audience 'More,' their first new album in over two decades. Give them 'More' There were a few catalysts for 'More.' The first: 'We could get along with each other still,' jokes drummer Nick Banks. 'It wasn't too painful.' The second: The band worked a new song into their recent reunion show run — 'The Hymn of the North,' originally written for Simon Stephens' 2019 play 'Light Falls' — and people seemed to like it. The third and most significant: The band's bassist and core member Steve Mackey died in 2023. 'It made me realize that you don't have endless amounts of time,' Cocker says. 'You've still got an opportunity to create things, if you want to. Are you going to give it a go?' And so, they did. Cocker assured his bandmates Banks, guitarist Mark Webber and keyboardist Candida Doyle that the recording process could be done quickly — in three weeks, lightspeed for a band that has infamously agonized over its latter records, like 1998's 'This Is Hardcore.' Webber describes a 'reticence to get involved in a yearslong process' that was alleviated when they started to work on new songs which came 'quite easily.' That's at least partially due to the fact that, for the first time in the history of the band, Cocker elected to 'write the words in advance. … It's taken me until the age of 61 to realize it: If you write the words before you go into the studio, it makes it a much more pleasant experience.' The 11 tracks that make up 'More' are a combination of new and old songs written across Pulp's career. The late Mackey has a writing credit on both the sultry, existential 'Grown Ups' originally demoed around 'This Is Hardcore,' and the edgy disco 'Got to Have Love,' written around 'the turn of the millennium,' as Cocker explains. 'I did have words, but I found myself emotionally unable to sing them.' 'Without love you're just making a fool of yourself,' he sings in the second verse. 'I got nothing else to say about it.' It makes sense, then, that the romantic song was held until 'More,' when Cocker believed them — coincidentally, after he was married in June of last year. A pop band reflects Maturation — the literality of growing up on 'Grown Ups' — is a prevalent theme on 'More,' delivered with age-appropriate insight. 'I was always told at school that I had an immature attitude. I just didn't see any point in growing up, really. It seemed like all the fun was had by people when they were younger,' said Cocker. 'But, as I said on the back of the 'This Is Hardcore' album, it's OK to grow up, as long as you don't grow old. And I still agree with that, I think. Growing old is losing interest in the world and deciding that you're not gonna change. You've done your bit and that's it. That doesn't interest me.' 'You have to retain an interest in the world and that keeps you alive,' he adds. 'So, you grow up. And hopefully you live better, and you treat other people better. But you don't grow old.' In addition to 'More,' 2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the song that defines their career, 'Common People.' 'That one, we've never really fallen out of love with,' says Webber. 'Because of the way it affects people, really, you can't fall out of love with it,' adds Cocker. 'More,' produced by James Ford (Arctic Monkeys, Fontaines D.C.), arrives Friday. The band will immediately embark on a U.K. and North American tour. Then, who knows? Is this the beginning of a new, active era for the band? 'The next one is going to be called 'Even More,'' Cocker jokes. 'Nah, I don't know. The album wasn't conceived of as a tombstone. … The jury is out.' 'It wouldn't be good for it to end up feeling like you're stuck on a treadmill,' Banks adds. 'And at the moment, it's still pretty exciting.'
Winnipeg Free Press
16 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Winnipeg Free Press
Pulp is back for ‘More,' their first album in 24 years. Even the Britpop band is surprised
NEW YORK (AP) — Pulp has returned with a new album, their first in 24 years. Who could've predicted that? Not even the band, it turns out. 'It took us by surprise as well,' dynamic frontman Jarvis Cocker told The Associated Press. 'Why not?' If there are casual Pulp fans, they don't make themselves known. The ambitious Britpop-and-then-some band emerged in the late-'70s in Sheffield, England, artistic outsiders with a penchant for the glam, grim, and in the case of Cocker, the gawky. Fame alluded them until the mid-'90s, and then it rushed in with the trend of Cool Britannia. Their songs varied wildly from their contemporaries, like the recently reunited Blur and soon-to-be back together Oasis. Instead, Pulp's David Bowie-informed synth-pop arrived with humor, ambiguity and intellect — songs about sex and class consciousness that manage to be groovy, glib, awkward and amorous all at once. Then, and in the decades since, Pulp has inspired devotion from loyal fans across generations. They've charmed those lucky enough to catch band members in their heyday before a kind of careerism led to a hiatus in 2002 — and those who saw them for the first time during reunion tours in 2011 and 2022. With all that reputation on the line, it's reassuring that the band has decided to give its audience 'More,' their first new album in over two decades. Give them 'More' There were a few catalysts for 'More.' The first: 'We could get along with each other still,' jokes drummer Nick Banks. 'It wasn't too painful.' The second: The band worked a new song into their recent reunion show run — 'The Hymn of the North,' originally written for Simon Stephens' 2019 play 'Light Falls' — and people seemed to like it. The third and most significant: The band's bassist and core member Steve Mackey died in 2023. 'It made me realize that you don't have endless amounts of time,' Cocker says. 'You've still got an opportunity to create things, if you want to. Are you going to give it a go?' And so, they did. Cocker assured his bandmates Banks, guitarist Mark Webber and keyboardist Candida Doyle that the recording process could be done quickly — in three weeks, lightspeed for a band that has infamously agonized over its latter records, like 1998's 'This Is Hardcore.' Webber describes a 'reticence to get involved in a yearslong process' that was alleviated when they started to work on new songs which came 'quite easily.' That's at least partially due to the fact that, for the first time in the history of the band, Cocker elected to 'write the words in advance. … It's taken me until the age of 61 to realize it: If you write the words before you go into the studio, it makes it a much more pleasant experience.' The 11 tracks that make up 'More' are a combination of new and old songs written across Pulp's career. The late Mackey has a writing credit on both the sultry, existential 'Grown Ups' originally demoed around 'This Is Hardcore,' and the edgy disco 'Got to Have Love,' written around 'the turn of the millennium,' as Cocker explains. 'I did have words, but I found myself emotionally unable to sing them.' 'Without love you're just making a fool of yourself,' he sings in the second verse. 'I got nothing else to say about it.' It makes sense, then, that the romantic song was held until 'More,' when Cocker believed them — coincidentally, after he was married in June of last year. A pop band reflects Maturation — the literality of growing up on 'Grown Ups' — is a prevalent theme on 'More,' delivered with age-appropriate insight. 'I was always told at school that I had an immature attitude. I just didn't see any point in growing up, really. It seemed like all the fun was had by people when they were younger,' said Cocker. 'But, as I said on the back of the 'This Is Hardcore' album, it's OK to grow up, as long as you don't grow old. And I still agree with that, I think. Growing old is losing interest in the world and deciding that you're not gonna change. You've done your bit and that's it. That doesn't interest me.' 'You have to retain an interest in the world and that keeps you alive,' he adds. 'So, you grow up. And hopefully you live better, and you treat other people better. But you don't grow old.' In addition to 'More,' 2025 marks the 30th anniversary of the song that defines their career, 'Common People.' Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. 'That one, we've never really fallen out of love with,' says Webber. 'Because of the way it affects people, really, you can't fall out of love with it,' adds Cocker. 'More,' produced by James Ford (Arctic Monkeys, Fontaines D.C.), arrives Friday. The band will immediately embark on a U.K. and North American tour. Then, who knows? Is this the beginning of a new, active era for the band? 'The next one is going to be called 'Even More,'' Cocker jokes. 'Nah, I don't know. The album wasn't conceived of as a tombstone. … The jury is out.' 'It wouldn't be good for it to end up feeling like you're stuck on a treadmill,' Banks adds. 'And at the moment, it's still pretty exciting.'
Wales Online
21 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Wales Online
Pulp's Jarvis Cocker says his writer's block ‘led the band to grind to a halt'
Pulp's Jarvis Cocker says his writer's block 'led the band to grind to a halt' The Britpop band, best known for their hit song Common People, will release their first album in over two decades, More, on June 6 Jarvis Cocker performs during the Pulp concert at Kings Theatre on September 14, 2024 in New York (Image: Rolling Stone, Rolling Stone via Getty Images ) Pulp singer Jarvis Cocker has said his writer's block "led the band to grind to a halt". The Britpop band, best known for their hit song Common People, will release their first album in over two decades, More, on June 6. The frontman, 61, said he wrote the lyrics before going into the studio to "make things easier". Speaking to the Big Issue, Cocker said: "It's weird because we don't hang around with each other outside of the band any more, but I was aware of what the others were up to with various projects. But when you've made music with people for that many years, you have an unspoken understanding. "I tried to make things easier by writing my lyrics before we went into the studio, for the first time ever. Because that's what kind of led the band to grind to a halt in the first place. "It was taking me so long, I just felt embarrassed that the rest of the band were hanging around waiting for me to get my finger out." Article continues below The group split in 2002 but got back together for occasional live performances including headlining Wireless Festival in Hyde Park and playing at Glastonbury in 2011. They reunited again in 2023 for a series of UK and Ireland dates, but months before the tour was due to start bassist Steve Mackey died at the age of 56. Cocker added: "It sounds a bit crass, but Steve passed away just before our last tour and it made me realise that we only have a finite amount of time to do the things you want to do. And for Steve, it was no longer an option, but it was for us." Speaking about raising his son amid conversations about toxic masculinity he said: "Women brought me up. All the males in our family just disappeared, and that had a significant effect on me. "As for Andrew Tate, I did worry when my son first got his phone that he would encounter weird ideas about stuff. I thought, 'If I don't discuss certain subjects with him, then who will he learn from?'" The Sheffield group formed in 1978 and is currently made up of singer Cocker, keyboard player Candida Doyle, drummer Nick Banks and guitarist Mark Webber. The band struggled to find success in their early days, releasing It (1983), Freaks (1987) and Separations (1992), before finding their audience during the 1990s Britpop era with their first UK top 40 single, Do You Remember The First Time? and subsequent His 'N' Hers album, in 1994. In 1995, they gained nationwide fame with the release of the single Common People and the critically acclaimed Different Class album as well as their Glastonbury performance. They have since had five UK top 10 singles and two number one albums. Article continues below The new album More is dedicated to bassist Mackey and is due to be released on June 6.
Rhyl Journal
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Rhyl Journal
Pulp's Jarvis Cocker says his writer's block ‘led the band to grind to a halt'
The Britpop band, best known for their hit song Common People, will release their first album in over two decades, More, on June 6. The frontman, 61, said he wrote the lyrics before going into the studio to 'make things easier'. Speaking to the Big Issue, Cocker said: 'It's weird because we don't hang around with each other outside of the band any more, but I was aware of what the others were up to with various projects. But when you've made music with people for that many years, you have an unspoken understanding. 'I tried to make things easier by writing my lyrics before we went into the studio, for the first time ever. Because that's what kind of led the band to grind to a halt in the first place. 'It was taking me so long, I just felt embarrassed that the rest of the band were hanging around waiting for me to get my finger out.' The group split in 2002 but got back together for occasional live performances including headlining Wireless Festival in Hyde Park and playing at Glastonbury in 2011. They reunited again in 2023 for a series of UK and Ireland dates, but months before the tour was due to start bassist Steve Mackey died at the age of 56. Cocker added: 'It sounds a bit crass, but Steve passed away just before our last tour and it made me realise that we only have a finite amount of time to do the things you want to do. And for Steve, it was no longer an option, but it was for us.' Speaking about raising his son amid conversations about toxic masculinity he said: 'Women brought me up. All the males in our family just disappeared, and that had a significant effect on me. 'As for Andrew Tate, I did worry when my son first got his phone that he would encounter weird ideas about stuff. I thought, 'If I don't discuss certain subjects with him, then who will he learn from?'' A post shared by Pulp (@welovepulp) The Sheffield group formed in 1978 and is currently made up of singer Cocker, keyboard player Candida Doyle, drummer Nick Banks and guitarist Mark Webber. The band struggled to find success in their early days, releasing It (1983), Freaks (1987) and Separations (1992), before finding their audience during the 1990s Britpop era with their first UK top 40 single, Do You Remember The First Time? and subsequent His 'N' Hers album, in 1994. In 1995, they gained nationwide fame with the release of the single Common People and the critically acclaimed Different Class album as well as their Glastonbury performance. They have since had five UK top 10 singles and two number one albums. The new album More is dedicated to bassist Mackey and is due to be released on June 6.
