Sharleen Spiteri hasannounced a sizeable UK tour for early next year, which will see her stop off just about everywhere around the UK.

The former Texas frontwoman is trying to make it on her own, with her debut solo release “Melody” released in July this year.

Tickets are on sale now, priced at £27.50 each apart from London which is £30 a ticket.

Saturday 24th January 2009 - Aberdeen Music Hall
Sunday 25th January 2009 - Edinburgh Playhouse
Tuesday 27th January 2009 - Glasgow Academy
Thursday 29th January 2009 - Newcastle City Hall
Friday 30th January 2009 - Sheffield City Hall
Sunday 1st February 2009 - Manchester Apollo
Monday 2nd February 2009 - Harrogate International Centre
Tuesday 3rd February 2009 - Ipswich Regent
Thursday 5th February 2009 - Brighton Dome
Friday 6th February 2009 - Bournemout International Centre
Sunday 8th February 2009 - Birmingham Symphony Hall
Monday 9th February 2009 - Nottingham Royal Centre
Tuesday 10th February 2009 - Llandudno Venue Cymru Theatre
Thursday 12th February 2009 - Plymouth Pavillions
Friday 13th February 2009 - Bristol Colston Hall
Sunday 15th February 2009 - London Hammersmith Apollo

The only band to have a frontman who can give Johnny Borrell a run for his money in the irritating self-important front man league, Snow Patrol, have announced a unique 48 hour tour around the UK and Ireland around release day of their new album, A Hundred Million Suns which is out on Monday 27th October.

The ‘Take Back The Cities Tour’ will see the band play four capital cities across the UK and Ireland in a 48 hour period stopping off in Dublin, Belfast, Edinburgh and London.

Tickets for these shows are priced £22.50, and due to the intimate nature of the events are available exclusively to members of their fan club via a lottery draw. Each lucky ticket holder will also get an exclusive free Live CD of the show they attend, picking up an artworked CD on the night, which will contain details of how to download highlights of the show the next day.

Sunday 26th October - Dublin Gate Theatre (Lunchtime show)
Sunday 26th October - Belfast Empire (Evening show)
Monday 27th October - Edinburgh Assembly Rooms (Midday show)
Monday 27th October - London Bloomsbury Theatre (Evening show)

The wonderful Das Wanderlust have announced their largest tour to date around the UK starting in just 7 days time.

However, if you haven’t heard of Das Wanderlust, let us introduce them…

Das Wanderlust are Laura Susan Simmons on vocals and keyboard, Andrew Richard Elliott on more Keyboard and guitar and Wesley John Stephenson on drums. Critics opinions of them have veered between avant-garde experimentalism and super-melodic noise, but the band prefer the more simplistic term ‘Wrong Pop’.

Oh, and if that wasn’t enough, they were featured in the Guardian last month.

So, what are you waiting for? Tickets are on sale now for all dates around the £4 mark - catch them at the below dates / venues:

Thursday 9th October - Glasgow Barfly
Friday 10th October - Edinburgh Cabaret Voltaire
Saturday 11th October - Aberdeen The Tunnels
Tuesday 14th October - Cambridge Portland Arms
Wednesday 15th October - Brighton Club NME
Thursday 16th October - Manchester The Green Windmill
Thursday 30th October - Nottingham Junktion 7
Friday 31st October - Derby The Venue

Side image comes from obo-bobolina’s flickr stream under the Creative Commons License.

We all know that I have a love for a lot of shoegazy stuff at the moment, with stuff like Kyte, Sigur Ros and Trespassers William having all perked up my ears in recent times.

Now there’s a new one to add to the list - Manchester’s Spokes, a fivesome who make one hell of a beautiful noise that draws from the likes of Sigur Ros, Broken Social Scene and Arcade Fire - all amazing bands in their own right.

“The emotional intensity and waves of melody heard in their songs sound like they come as naturally to the band as breathing.” (Drowned In Sound)

“Spokes were next and could well be my new favourite band. This 5-piece had me absorbed from the second they stepped on stage to the second they finished. With all the vigour and natural emotion of say, a temperate Broken Social Scene, their poignant waves of unassuming melody and up-tempo variation was captivating.” (Narc Magazine)

They’re off on a pretty sizeable tour in November, stopping off at some of the murkier venues in our country, but none the less if they’re playing at a venue near you be sure to stop off and take in their beautiful music - tickets for the below dates are on sale now from the local venues. So why not download the free MP3 below, and then pop out to see them to warm up a November evening?

MP3: Spokes - Young People All Together

Thursday 6th November - Darlington Forum
Friday 7th November - Halifax Royal Oak
Saturday 8th November - Newcastle Arts Centre - Basement Theatre
Sunday 9th November - Glasgow Captain’s Rest
Monday 10th November - Dundee The Doghouse
Tuesday 11th November - Aberdeen The Tunnels (with Volcano!)
Wednesday 12th November - Leeds The Library
Friday 14th November - Sheffield The Casbah
Saturday 15th November - Leicester Sumo
Monday 17th november - London The Big Chill House
Tuesday 18th November - Lampeter University of Wales
Wednesday 19th November - Preston Mad Ferret
Thursday 20th November - Manchester Night & Day
Saturday 22nd November - Barrow Canteen (with Mogwai DJ Set)

The complete lineup for this year’s Swn Festival in Cardiff has been announced. The event, which runs around a number of venues in the Welsh capital boasts The Pipettes, Future Of The Left, Goldie Lookin Chain and Pete And The Pirates amongst it’s 130 artist strong lineup.

The event, which runs from Friday 14th - Sunday 16th November, is the brainchild of BBC Radio 1’s Huw Stephens. Featuring bands, DJs, conferences, art, film, workshops, Scrabble and exhibitions, this is the festival’s 2nd year.

Wristbands cost £45 and allow free entry to all events on a first come, first served basis. Each event at Swn will also be priced individually for cash payments on walk up, however priority will always be given to wristband holders. The opening party on 13th November will be for wristband holders only.

Alongside an amazing few days of music, the festival will also feature two days of seminars on Thursday 13th and Friday 14th November at The Atrium with a bundle of music industry experts, movers and shakers, and will include Huw Stephens interviewing the band Scouting For Girls ahead of their sellout show at the CIA. Stephens will quiz them on their meteoric rise from nowhere to becoming a chart-topping act.

After the jump: the full list of artists and bands playing.
Read the rest of this entry »

White Lies, the rapidly getting big NME hype band have announced another string of UK tour dates for late November.

Two days after their Koko show they’ll be back off around the UK, supporting Glasvegas on their trek around the UK.

Tickets are on sale now, priced between £6 and £11.50.

Thursday 20th November - Gloucester Guildhall
Friday 21st November - Southampton Joiners
Saturday 22nd November - Hull Welly Club (Club NME)
Sunday 23rd November - Stoke-On-Trent Sugarmill
Wednesday 26th November - London Koko

Basement Jaxx have announced their first UK tour in two years.

Tickets go on sale on Thursday (2nd October) at 9am. Catch them at:

Wednesday 11th February 2009 - Manchester Apollo
Thursday 12th February 2009 - Manchester Apollo
Saturday 14th February 2009 - Newcastle Carling Academy
Sunday 15th February 2009 - Leeds Carling Academy
Wednesday 18th February 2009 - Birmingham Carling Academy
Thursday 19th February 2009 - Birmingham Carling Academy
Friday 20th February 2009 - London Roundhouse
Saturday 21st February 2009 - London Roundhouse

The Kaiser Chiefs have announced a massive string of UK tour dates for next Spring as they gear up to release their third album.

Their new album, “Off With Their Heads” is out on Monday 20th October and is probably going to go massive, so I’d reccomend getting your tickets when they go on sale!

Tickets go on sale at 9am on Friday (3rd October).

Catch Ricky and co at:

Sunday 22nd February 2009 - Nottingham Trent FM Arena
Monday 23rd February 2009 - Sheffield Arena
Tuesday 24th February 2009 - Birmingham NIA
Thursday 26th February 2009 - Edinburgh Corn Exchange
Friday 27th February 2009 - Aberdeen AECC
Saturday 28th February 2009 - Newcastle Metro Radio Arena
Monday 2nd March 2009 - Manchester MEN Arena
Tuesday 3rd March 2009 - Liverpool Echo Arena
Wednesday 4th March 2009 - Cardiff CIA
Friday 6th March 2009 - London Wembley Arena

As much as I love to hate Johnny Borrell, Razorlight’s new single is pretty darned good. And to celebrate the release of their shiny new album in November they’re back on the road.

Johnny reportedly said that “we’re playing the best venues in the country, a proper rock and roll tour. We’re going to give it everything”. So expect a reasonable show that inflates his ego to epic proportions! Let’s just hope it means he can buy some more clothes instead of his usual white babygrow.

Tickets go on sale on Thursday (2nd November) at 9am for the below dates:

Monday 10th November - Exeter University
Tuesday 11th November - Bristol Academy
Thursday 13th November - London Brixton Academy
Friday 14th November - Portsmouth Guildhall
Sunday 16th November - Edinburgh Corn Exchange
Monday 17th November - Leeds Academy
Tuesday 18th November - Glasgow Barrowlands
Thursday 20th November - Manchester Apollo
Friday 21st November - Cambridge Corn Exchange
Sunday 23rd November - Lincoln Engine Shed
Monday 24th November - Wolverhampton Civic

You probably remember my (rather big) love for new kids on the block, Red Light Company after we first found them, and then when we caught them live. Well now they’re off on the road again for a fairly dauntingly big new tour throughout October and November.

Tickets are on sale now, priced between £5 and £7 each. Catch the lads at:

Monday 20th October 2008 - Sheffield Shakespeare
Tuesday 21st October 2008 - Liverpool Barfly
Wednesday 22nd October 2008 - Manchester Night & Day
Thursday 23rd October 2008 - Stoke Sugarmill
Saturday 25th October 2008 - London Electric Proms Camden Barfly
Sunday 26th October 2008 - Nottingham Bodega
Monday 27th October 2008 - Edinburgh Cabaret Voltaire
Tuesday 28th October 2008 - Aberdeen Café Drummond
Wednesday 29th October 2008 - Inverness Madhatters
Thursday 30th October 2008 - Glasgow Captains Rest
Saturday 1st November 2008 - Middlesbrough Arena
Monday 3rd November 2008 - Oxford Zodiac
Tuesday 4th November 2008 - Leicester Firebug
Wednesday 5th November 2008 - Bristol Louisiana
Friday 7th November 2008 - Cardiff Barfly
Saturday 8th November 2008 - Plymouth Hub
Sunday 9th November 2008 - Portsmouth Cellars
Tuesday 11th November 2008 - Southampton Joiners
Wednesday 12th November 2008 - Brighton Coalition (Free Show!)
Thursday 13th November 2008 - Guildford Boileroom
Sunday 16th November 2008 - Bedford Esquires
Tuesday 18th November 2008 - Colchester Arts Centre
Wednesday 19th November 2008 - Birmingham Rainbow
Thursday 20th November 2008 - Leeds Cockpit
Friday 21st November 2008 - York Fibbers