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Flight of the Conchords return to tour Australia
The Telegraph February 21, 2012

FOLK comedy duo Flight of the Conchords have announced they will tour Australia in 2012.
The NZ act haven't played on Australian shores in three years thanks to their hit HBO TV series which has seen increased international demand.

In an interview with Billboard.com one half of the band, Brett McKenzie, said they were preparing for an Australia and NZ tour this year.

Although their TV series, which produced two chart topping albums, ended in 2009, the duo have kept busy with US tours and their own side projects.

McKenzie is returning to Middle Earth in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey while band mate Jemaine Clement recently finished filming Men In Black III where he plays an alien villain.

A Flight of the Conchords movie is also in the works.

McKenzie, who is nominated for the best original song Oscar next week for his work on The Muppets movie, said they have been making preparations for the tour via Skype.

He also revealed that Australian audiences will hear new material on the tour.

Show dates will be announced on their website later in the year.

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Adele has applied for a chopper landing license
BANG Showbiz February 22, 2012

THE 'Someone Like You' hitmaker is tired of dealing with traffic when she commutes from her rented $22,000 a month country estate in Sussex, South East England, and has decided to make flying her primary form of transport if a chopper can land in the grounds.
A source told The Sun newspaper: "Adele's property has so much land she thought, 'Why not?'

"It will cut down her journey time by some distance and it also means she won't have to rely so heavily on cars. She is a busy woman and needs to get places with minimal disruption."

Until she moved into the palatial pad - which 10 bedrooms, two swimming pools, a helipad cellar, tennis courts, a games room and its own media centre - Adele had been living with her mother in Tottenham, north London.

She has previously said: "After my first record I moved out of my mum's to Notting Hill on my own.

"My life fell apart. My phone got cut off, my credit card got cut off, the house was a mess. It was awful.

"I couldn't function without my mum so I moved back in with her. I'd rather be defeated than one day come in and the rats would be eating me. It was basically a bedsit with walls."

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Mike Patton's keeping the faith with his fans
Chris Hook From: The Daily Telegraph January 17

IN his latest musical incarnation, you get the sense Mike Patton is exactly where he wants to be: on stage surrounded by pretty women and great musicians, doing whatever he wants.
The frontman, best known for his time with Faith No More, has taken a crooner turn with project Mondo Cane (which translates as "a dog's life") and with it drawn a wider legion of fans to his enigmatic presence.

His show saw a mix of indie post-slackers, vintage-wearing wallflowers and silver-haired baby-boomers take up seats in the State Theatre on Monday night - the setting providing the perfect backdrop for a besuited Patton and his 22-person strong strings section, conductor and band.

He kept punters waiting for 25 minutes before taking to the stage and lulling the audience into his world of traditional Italian songs from the 1950s and '60s.

It wasn't until he let rip with the screams on Che Notte! that we were reminded of his stunningly varied musical pedigree that has run from everything from soundtracks to experimental alt-metal.

From that point on, the audience was riveted, never quite sure what Patton would do next. He seemed to lure the crowd into a Faustian pact, displaying devilish charm alongside his musical virtuosity.

 

His over-the-top theatrics seemed to inspire the audience as well. When a middle-aged woman wafted up to the front to encourage the rest of the crowd to dance, the mild-mannered audience at the State Theatre seemed to lose their middle-class minds.

Cue punters breaking every rule in the house: leaving behind their allocated seating, pushing politely past flustered ushers to dance in front of the stage, taking pictures, and a mini-stage invasion that saw Patton offered a lit cigarette.

For his part, Patton looked like he was having the time of his life right until the final song - playing Prom King to all the vintage-clad lovestruck lonely hearts that swooned on his every note.

 

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Twelve albums you need in 2012
the courier mail
Cameron Adams From: National Features January 05, 2012

CAMERON Adams investigates the new music the kings and queens of pop will unleash this year.
1. MADONNA
Title: LUV (rumoured)
Release date: March

What we know: An over-eager fan leaked the demo of first single Give Me All Your Lovin last year, to worrying indifference. Madge has since sued him and tweaked the track, adding rent-a-rappers MIA and Nicki Minaj.
 
It's now re-named Gimme All Your Luvin for fans of grammar. The demo mixed new-wave guitars with an Avril Lavigne-esque cheerleader chant of 'L-U-V Madonna!' The song was co-written with French DJ Martin Solveig, who has worked on most of the album.
 
Italian DJ Benny Benassi (Chris Brown, Kelis) and David Guetta cohort Sandy Vee are also linked to the record, with rumoured song titles including Bang Bang, Girls Gone Wild, Turn up the Radio, Birthday Song and ballad Masterpiece, which is already out.

What we want: Less gyms, perfumes, movies and clothing, just classic Madonna pop. Preferably a game changer. Producer William Orbit, the man behind her career-defining Ray of Light, is on board. This is good.

After the bandwagon-missing R&B of Hard Candy, fans are curious to see whether Madge, 53, will still try to compete for radio airtime with pop stars half her age or find a vintage-appropriate pop sound. Expect an Australian tour - her first since 1993 - soon.

2. LANA DEL REY
Title: Born to Die
Release date: January 27

What we know: Del Rey's single Video Games was one of last year's most alluring releases - a Nancy Sinatra-esque breath of fresh air in a world of LMFAO.
 
The story behind Del Rey is mysterious - she's a millionaire's daughter whose real name is Elizabeth Grant and whose pumped-up lips and old Hollywood glamour have seen Video Games clock up more than 15 million views on YouTube alone. She's exactly what record companies dream of: an album artist before she's even released an album.

What we want: More of the same. The album contains the already-heard Blue Jeans and new single Born to Die - both have an eerie vibe.

There's live versions of most album tracks, including Radio, Million Dollar Man and Summertime Sadness, on YouTube, suggesting more vocal-driven ballads.

But leaked track Off to the Races has intense hip-hop-meets-Massive Attack production that suggests Del Rey won't become the new version of that chick who sang the Twin Peaks theme back in the '90s.

3. THE STONE ROSES
Title: TBA
Release date: TBA

What we know: The Manchester band put years of feuding behind them for a hefty payday. They will start touring in the UK in June and have already signed lucrative record deals for what will be only their third album. An Australian tour is locked in for March 2013.

What we want: More The Stone Roses, less Second Coming.

4. MISSY HIGGINS
Title: TBA
Release date: TBA

What we know: After a long break, Missy Higgins recorded her third album in Nashville last year. Co-written and co-produced with Adelaide musician Butterfly Boucher (who releases her own album this year), Higgins is promising her most fun, upbeat record.

"I've moved away from the acoustic singer/songwriter thing," she told Hit. "It's still very lyric-driven, but I've experimented with some Beach Boys-esque harmonies and electronic beats. It still sounds like me... it's more of a creative fun vibe. But there's still some slow, depressing songs on there; it wouldn't be a Missy Higgins album without them!"

What we want: Polished versions of songs she has previewed live, including Tricks (Lyric: "I'm gonna find me someone to believe only the versions I show them of me"), If I'm Honest and Deep Red Dirt.
 
A song about her late grandmother called Cooling of the Embers is a guaranteed heartbreaker, with lyrics such as: "What you've become is not what I remember". "All my friends are in tears after I play it to them," Higgins says. The first single is due in March.

5. HILLTOP HOODS
Title: Drinking From the Sun
Release date: March 9

What we know: The first single, I Love It, featuring Ade-lady Sia, is already a hit and - the two aren't necessarily connected - really good. This is the Adelaide hip-hop act's second album since signing with Universal. Band member Suffa told Triple J the record is "darker" than the single.

What we want: Previews of new tunes at the Big Day Outs.

6. NICKI MINAJ
Title: Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded
Release date: February 14

What we know: After such a big build-up, rapper Minaj's debut album Pink Friday was quite disappointing. Her breakthrough hit Super Bass wasn't even on the album originally, but later included on a deluxe edition. The two tracks released from the new album so far, Roman in Moscow (Roman Zolanski is her alter-ego) and Stupid Hoe, have both failed to crack the US Top 50, reverting to the edgier side of Minaj's musical output.

What we want: Hooks, like Super Bass, please. Stuff for little girls to sing on Ellen.

7. GARBAGE
Title: TBA
Release date: About March

What we know: After an indefinite hiatus started in 2005, Garbage singer Shirley Manson made a solo album. Her record company passed on it; they wanted hits, she didn't want to write any.
 
That album was scrapped and Garbage reunited last year. Their fifth album will be released on their own label. Manson and Butch Vig tweeted working titles including Blood for Poppies, Time Will Destroy Everything, T.R.O.U.B.L.E and Automatic Systemic Habit. A new single is due any day.

What we want: Old-school Garbage full of electronic angst. Butch Vig says it recalls their first and second albums, with "lots of elements of things we've always loved: noisy guitars, big electronic beats, atmospheric film moments". Sounds good.

8. DELTA GOODREM
Title: TBA
Release date: TBA

What we know: Delta Goodrem has taken the "It's ready when it's ready" approach to her fourth album. But the clock is ticking - her previous album came out in 2007.

Co-writers include long-time collaborator Vince Pizzinga as well as John Shanks (Take That), Gary Clark (Natalie Imbruglia) and her boyfriend Nick Jonas. Terms like "raw", "back to basics" and a "return to Innocent Eyes" were thrown around at one point. Certainly post-Adele and Christina Perri, strong female vocals and pianos are back in fashion.

What we want: Something released by the time she's a judge on the Australian version of The Voice, which is due on TV in February or March.

9. MUMFORD & SONS
Title: TBA
Release date: TBA

What we know: Plans to release an album last year were scuppered when their album unexpectedly became one of the biggest sellers in the US. They've been steadily writing on the road for a second album, with new songs Whispers in the Dark and Ghosts That We Knew aired live and subsequently posted on YouTube.

What we want: A folk you to the haters who think they'll be a one-album wonder.

10. ROBBIE WILLIAMS
Title: TBA
Release date: TBA

What we know: Co-writers include Gary Barlow, but importantly, Robbie has the hunger again. He told his website last month of the content: "You want guitar/ piano/ heart-on-my-sleeve stuff.

OK, you got it. I made the last couple of albums for me and had a great time doing it, but my raison d'etre (world domination) was missing... It's back. It's very important for me to feel like I am competing, more so than ever. I haven't wanted to go out there and be the best in the world since 2005.
 
I am looking forward to going out on tour, doing promo and kicking a---. Someone has to be the best in the world right now, and I want to aim for that. And if I don't make it, I want to be somewhere near it. This year will be the best year of my life."

What we want: Vintage Robbie. Is his old co-writer Guy Chambers free?

11. THE TEMPER TRAP
Title: TBA
Release date: About June

What we know: The Melbourne band wrote most of their second album in London and have been recording in LA. They've tweeted prospective titles such as Everyone Leaves in the End, Trembling Hands and Repeater.

What we want: Something with the depth of their debut, a record that got a little swamped by the globe-charming brilliance of Sweet Disposition. And some secret shows to roadtest new material.

12. KANYE WEST
Title: TBA
Release date: Who knows?

What we know: Yeezy is sitting on all manner of projects. He has done an album with artists on his label G.O.O.D, including Kid Cudi, John Legend, Common and Mr Hudson.

There's another solo record - he aired a snippet of a track featuring Rihanna during a New Year's Eve DJ set. And West has also said a second Watch the Throne collaboration with Jay-Z could surface in 2012. And he likes to release stuff with very little warning.

What we want: Yeezy knows what we want.