In today’s Soundbites – our look back at the past week’s news, features, videos and tabloid nonsense – Mumford & Sons show their teeth, we gaze over the cliff edge into the pop world, John Lennon’s an icon, a stand-out album gets reviewed, and the most popular video of the week is highlighted.
Are Mumford & Sons trying to tell us something? The first reviews of their new album ‘Babel‘ are barely starting to trickle in, but they’ve already had some strong words for anyone who dares to utter a negative word about the big-selling band. Speaking in The Sun this week, that mild-mannered chap Ben Lovett made sure he got the first blow in of any future ruckus: “The cynics can just all fuck off. We think this new record will attract a different audience, which is really exciting. And broaden people’s view of us.” So there you go, like it or else.
Allow us to gaze blurry-eyed into the bright lights of the pop world for a moment…It appears the shadowy-figure of Robbie Williams is making a most unwelcome return, and he’s a bit of envious of the latest bunch of teen idols who are taking up his chart place. “I’m jealous of them and I wish I was doing it all with them,” he has told BBC Newsbeat of Simon Cowell pocket-liners One Direction. “I’ve met all the boys, but it was a long time ago. I’m looking forward to seeing where the road takes them for many years to come I hope. They do perform like they’ve never met each other and there’s a certain charm to that too. It’s brilliant.”
Let’s return to more interesting matters, namely the release of what looks like being one of Live4ever’s favourite releases of 2012. Grizzly Bear reemerged from a few years’ break this week with their fourth album ‘Shields‘ – we’re big fans already. “Shields’ reasserts Grizzly Bear’s position as masters of complex melodic soundscapes, navigating deeper into unchartered territory in search of bold new textures and tones,” our review reads. “True, there are enough trademark musical signposts here to not make you feel completely overwhelmed, but ‘Shields’ is a beast that can only be tamed by patience.” Check the review out in full here.
NME’s enjoying a bit of personal back-slapping at the moment after 60 years on the nation’s shelves, and this week those that still bother to read it have come up trumps by voting John Lennon as the ‘Ultimate Musical Icon Of The Last 60 Years’. One place behind his idol, and getting a little early 40th birthday present in, is former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, while David Bowie, Alex Turner and Kurt Cobain complete the Top 5. The Top 10 can be found here.
35 years in the waiting it might have been, but it was great to see the forgotten classic Sex Pistols single ‘Holidays In The Sun‘ get its own promo this week. Edited by Julien Temple, the video is built from previously unreleased footage which will feature on the super deluxe box-set version of the impending reissue of ‘Never Mind The Bollocks…’, and it’s proved to the most popular on Live4ever this week. Visit our Videos section, and our news round-up, to sample all of the latest new and classic videos.