Latest news with #PeterGabriel
BBC News
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
The Amazons on new album 21st Century Fiction
The Amazons have found fresh sounds on their fourth album 21st Century Fiction, heralded by some critics and fans as their best yet. But could it be their last?Last year I discovered the future of The Amazons was far from certain, and that album number four was taking much longer than singer Matt Thomson heeded caution against the ambition of stardom, which had once been an essence of the band, when he told me: "The key is survival."As we sit down together to dissect their new LP, it is clear that it has remained a rough road for the band musically, financially, and emotionally. The Amazons had been building an entirely different body of work, when the inspiration for the album's lead single Living A Lie struck. Bassist Elliot Briggs was playing around with a drum loop for another song, but by transposing it to a synth part, it came to life as a new, thudding riff. Matt recalls: "It was weird, it was strange… we had to go down this route. A whole world opened up. I felt aligned with the music for the first time in ages. We ended up jamming it for hours."Enthralled, they scrapped almost everything they had been working on to focus on the new sound. It was a process that also involved a studio adjustment. The band had recorded some parts at Peter Gabriel's Reel World Studios, but moved to the "intimate" Chapel Lane Studios. Matt reflects on this "completely necessary" direction change: "We could be a lot more reactive and expressive. There wasn't much delay between idea and execution." The band also looked to collaborate to take the project to another level, working with rock peers Royal Blood in writing and production. Matt says: "Rock isn't where it was… People online were telling us to stop. My bank balance was telling me to stop." The completed album leaves no opportunities to spare, including country rock nod Love Is A Dog From Hell, and fresh sound design ideas complemented by brooding, eerie string soundscapes from composer Quentin Lachapele. Classically-trained singer Ella McRobb joined Matt on vocals to provide operatic performances, and Matt says while that was a "thrill", it meant he had to up his result is a record which is a far cry from the band that started out in the Readipop rehearsal rooms in Reading, crafting raucous, radio friendly, guitar-led anthems like Junk Food Forever and Black while the album sees the band take in a new sonic influence fit for 2025, it combines it with a richer heritage, a pairing most evident in second single Pitch Black, which picks from The Beatles' Come Together in its rhythm, and, as Matt reveals, Travis Scott's SICKO MODE in its jagged synth bassline. Drummer Joe Emmett departed the band in 2022, but its remaining members make the most of the resulting new sound, and lead guitarist Chris Alderton shines with solos that gracefully dovetail with the more orchestral instrumentation around him. Matt believes the band are more in sync than ever: "This is our platform for Chris… one of my fears is that we get through this journey and Chris isn't recognised as one of the best guitarists in the world." Vocally Matt shows more emotion too, something he credits to producer Pete Hutchings: "Our entire career I have been disappointed with my voice… I've now found someone who understands it, or knows how to frame it." Matt even tells me he's starting to use an alter-ego, River, as a device to "push the lyrics to places" he could not access before. The inspirations are not only musical, but literary as well. He talks fondly of Hemingway's process and Bukowski's grit. This storytelling progression is most evident in Joe Bought A Gun, which arrives ominously after a string-based Intermission, and is a moody, foreboding exclamation mark. But under the surface there is another layer of self-reference. The album starts with a realisation that The Amazons are disappointed by their musical legacy. But in their final stand Go All The Way, which grows from an earnest piano ballad, backed by birdsong, to a swelling, motivating symphony, ends with conviction. This is not born through Matt's hope that this album will sell - the last three all reached the Top Ten - but with an inner acknowledgement that the band themselves have given everything they could."The peace I am experiencing comes from the work being pushed to its complete limits," he says."We left everything on the page." If 21st Century Fiction is their last album, it leaves us with something that redefines them, but is still uniquely The Amazons.21st Century Fiction is out now. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
The Onion
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Onion
Romantic Teen Stands Outside Crush's Window Holding Up Peter Gabriel
VAN NUYS, CA—Using a grand gesture to reveal his feelings to the object of his affection, local teenager Eddy French reportedly stood outside his crush's window Friday holding up Peter Gabriel. 'As soon as I pulled back my curtain and saw Eddy in the rain with the original frontman of Genesis held high above his head, my heart just swelled,' said Lola Simmons, 17, telling reporters that despite feeling nervous that her overprotective dad would hear songs from the multiplatinum album So blaring from the lips of the 75-year-old musician and human rights advocate, she was overtaken by the romantic action. 'No boy has ever done something like this for me before. Once in junior high I had a boyfriend who left me a Maroon 5 singer in my locker for Valentine's Day, but this is a whole other level. The fact that Eddy would go to all this trouble lets me know he really cares about me.' At press time, French had reportedly tossed Peter Gabriel aside into a nearby bush after Simmons ran up to embrace him passionately.
Scotsman
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
The Flaming Lips, Edinburgh review: 'a technicolour extravaganza'
Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The Flaming Lips, Usher Hall, Edinburgh ★★★★ Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips |Every Flaming Lips gig is an occasion but this show was a particular celebration of the Oklahoma alchemists' 2002 quasi-concept album Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. This joyful, thoughtful collection has inspired a stage musical, though it was hard to imagine a more vivid theatrical performance than the one delivered by the band themselves. 'Three minutes until showtime,' announced a disembodied voice which sounded a lot like frontman Wayne Coyne. Just enough time to play a Cocteau Twins track, emit some excited whoops and inflate some giant pink robots, which were manually swayed during the first song Flight Test. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips |What followed was a rapturous technicolour extravaganza, with rainbow spectrum lasers, pink robot-shaped confetti showers, a dazzling disco ball and an inflatable rainbow. Also, existential pondering on In the Morning of the Magicians, lysergic odes to sentient AI on (One More Robot) and exultant pop paeans to active love (Do You Realize??). And that was just the first half. The post-intermission jukebox choice of The Proclaimers' I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) heralded a second set of fan favourites, kicking off with singalong She Don't Use Jelly, profound in its dorkiness. Playtime props included a petal headdress to rival Peter Gabriel for cosmic country track Flowers of Neptune 6, the time-honoured human hamster ball during sci-fi miniature A Spoonful Weighs a Ton, a Wonder Woman costume for the bittersweet Waitin' For Superman, dancing sun and aliens during The Golden Path, inflatable eyeballs and lips for a turbo-charged take on The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song and many more confetti showers.
Daily Mirror
01-05-2025
- Daily Mirror
Boy sliced man with 8-inch knife after what he agreed to buy from shop
A 15-year-old attacked a man who bought him cigarette rolling paper, as he and his friends chased after him down a street in Everton, Merseyside, and attacked him with a knife A man who bought teenagers cigarette rolling paper from a shop was stabbed in the head and back with a huge hunting knife, suffering severe injuries which left him permanently scarred. Peter Gabriel was on his way to meet a friend in Everton, Merseyside, when he saw three youths near a shop. After a brief chat he agreed to go inside the store and buy them Rizla paper using change given to him by the group. When he came out Liverpool Crown Court heard how he followed them around a corner when he was punched in the chin, causing him to fall, before they started chasing the victim. He was chased toward his home by the three as they "challenged him as to why he was in the area", the court heard, with one warning "go before I stab you in the neck lad". The defendant then produced a "huntiny style knife" with an eight-inch blade from a sheath, using it to strike the victim four to five times in the back, Liverpool Echo reported. The blows caused Mr Gabriel to stumble to the floor and left him "screaming for help". The teen's friends were "encouraging the attack", as they urged the boy to "chop him up" before the youth approached him once more and stabbed him in the head. His attackers fled as neighbours came to help. Mr Gabriel was said to have suffered a "number of stab wounds to the back" which were closed with sutures, although the "most significant injury" was sustained to the top of his head. The court was told the youth, who cannot be named for legal reasons, committed a series of offences over a "short space of time" between September and December last year, including attacking Mr Gabriel. In one incident the now-15-year-old carried out "unprovoked" assaults against three members of staff at the care home wher ehe was living and damaged an internal door. He had been speaking to a friend on FaceTime in a communal area when he was "asked to calm down" by one of the workers, Helen Chenery, prosecuting, said. The prosecutor said he responded by racically abusing the carer before attempting to headbutt and bite him kicking him in the shins and repeatedly punching him in the head and body. He went on to hurl further slurs at the staff member before kicking the door to an office which he had "barricaded himself" inside. Two employees intervened, with the boy biting one on the forearm and punching him twice in the left eye before spitting in the face of a female staff member who had stepped in. Another incident included breaking into the home of a 76-year-old man, along with two "significantly older" men, one of whom went on to brandish a hammer toward the OAP, demanding money. The victim handed over £240 from his pocket, while a second offender took the keys to his £25,000 Jaguar from his briefcase. The three climbed back out through the broken window and "sped away" in the vehicle. The car was later written off after being involved in a head-on crash that same evening. The defendant, who suffered serious injuries including a broken leg in the collision, was found in the front passenger in possession of £50 in cash, the complainant's wallet and a knife. He has one previous conviction for three charges of theft and assaulting an emergency services worker, for which he received a youth referral order in August 2024. The youth admitted robbery, theft of a motor vehicle, possession of a bladed article in a public place, two counts of racially aggravated assault, assault, criminal damage and possession of cannabis in relation to a small quantity of the class B drug which was seized from him during an unrelated arrest in October 2024. He was found guilty of wounding with intent following a trial before the youth court. Appearing in the dock wearing a black shirt, he was handed four years and seven months in youth detention. A judge told the teen today that the man could have been killed during the shockingly violent episode. Martine Snowdon, defending, told the court: "He is only just 15 years old. There are some very real features of his upbringing and circumstances that bear on his behaviour last year and the prospects of his rehabilitation, his dangers and risks and how long it will take to achieve rehabilitation. Judge David Potter said the youth's term would have been 10 years if the offences had been committed by an adult. He added in his sentencing remarks: "I have seen the injuries. They are horrible. One stab wound is enough to kill a man. Mr Gabriel was extremely lucky not to be more seriously injured or worse, killed. "You led the charge on Mr Gabriel and used a highly dangerous weapon to inflict injuries. Mr Gabriel did suffer a grave injury. It has caused no doubt permanent scarring. "You are still very young. You have the capacity to grow and mature. I have read a lot about your background. I accept that you have had a very difficult start to life and that your experiences have affected you and your opportunities in life.'
Forbes
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Peter Gabriel's Album 'OVO' Debuts A Quarter-Century After It Was Released
Peter Gabriel scores a new smash with OVO, which reenters and debuts on multiple U.K. charts decades ... More after its original release. British Pop and Rock musician Peter Gabriel performs onstage at the Rosemont Horizon, Rosemont, Illinois, June 13, 1986. (Photo by) Peter Gabriel has been a legend in the music industry for decades, with a career that spans multiple generations and genres. Known both for his pioneering work with Genesis and his acclaimed solo work, he remains one of the most respected musicians still working today. This week, he's back on the charts in his home country, thanks to a special Record Store Day reissue that turns his quarter-century-old effort into a bestseller. The set in question, OVO, returns to the spotlight more than two decades after its initial release. This week, it makes appearances on a trio of U.K.-based charts, including a pair of debuts. On the Official Vinyl Albums ranking, which tallies only those full-lengths released on wax, OVO just manages to sneak into the top 40, opening at No. 39. The reissued LP also finds space on the Official Albums Sales chart, where it launches at No. 49. That ranking looks strictly at pure purchases across all formats — vinyl, CD, and digital downloads — and this time around, Gabriel is featured among many of today's biggest names. Despite his status as one of the U.K.'s most beloved and critically acclaimed musicians, Gabriel doesn't flood the charts with endless releases. His discography is relatively small compared to many of his peers, and that quality-over-quantity approach is reflected in his history on some of these lists. With OVO now present, Gabriel has sent 13 titles to the Official Vinyl Albums chart. He's reached the Official Albums Sales ranking with just six titles to date, including this one. In addition to its brand new placements, OVO also returns to a familiar home: the Official Physical Albums chart. The collection reappears on that tally at No. 48 this frame, more than 20 years after it was first released. Back in June 2000, the album peaked at No. 24 on this same list, where it spent a brief three-week run before slipping off entirely. Like many of the vinyl-specific successes on this week's charts, OVO benefited from a limited-edition Record Store Day drop. The recent collectible pressing featured a double LP with one disc in blue and the other in orange. The release follows the album's original June 2000 debut, which was tied to Gabriel's contributions to London's Millennium Dome Show—making it as much a multimedia project as a traditional album.
