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Eight months after going on hiatus, comedy rock duo Tenacious D are back. Sort of. The Jack Black-fronted two-man band appear on a new compilation album benefitting victims of last month’s deadly Los Angeles wildfires, Good Music to Lift Los Angeles. The contribution is a cover of REO Speedwagon’s 1980 power ballad “Keep on Loving You,” a song they’ve performed live in their patented urgent acoustic style before.
The 90-track compilation released today (Feb. 7) contains previously unreleased recordings, new songs, covers, remixes, live versions and demos from Animal Collective, Blondshell, Perfume Genius, R.E.M., Dawes, Death Cab For Cutie, TV on the Radio, Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, MJ Lenderman, My Morning Jacket, Interpol, Mudhoney, Manchester Orchestra, The New Pornographers and many more.
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It was unclear at press time when the band — which also features guitarist/singer Kyle Gass — recorded the song; you can buy the album exclusively now on Bandcamp. The compilation will be available for one day only, with proceeds going to the L.A. Regional Food Bank and California Foundation’s Wildfire Fund.
At press time it did not appear that Black or Gass had commented on the song’s inclusion on the compilation, which comes after they announced a break and cancelled a planned Australian tour following Gass’ controversial on-stage joke about the assassination attempt against then-presidential candidate Donald Trump.
After the comment, Black apologized and announced that the group would take a break in light of criticism from Australia’s right-wing over the joke Gass made at a show in Sydney in July when Black rolled out a birthday cake for his longtime musical mate and asked him to make a wish. “Don’t miss Trump next time,” Gass quipped, just weeks after a 20-year-old gunman opened fire on a Trump rally in Butler, PA, grazing Trump’s ear and killing a rally attendee.
In a deleted post, Gass apologized, writing, “I don’t condone violence of any kind” and saying he was “incredibly sorry for my severe lack of judgement.” Shortly after, Gass was dropped by his agent and the remainder of the Australian tour, as well as a planned fall run of U.S. shows in swing states ahead of November’s presidential election, were cancelled.
Black also posted an apology on Instagram at the time, writing, “I was blindsided by what was said at the show on Sunday. I would never condone hate speech or encourage political violence in any form.” At the time of the tour cancellation, Black’s statement said that “all future creative plans are on hold.”
In August, Black told Variety that the duo needed “to take a break. Everybody needs a break sometime,” while also promising “and we’ll be back.”
In the meantime, earlier this week, Black posted a video from the set of his new movie Anaconda in which he sang the names of his co-stars while one of them, Paul Rudd, accompanied him on a hand drum.
Check it out below.
K-Pop girl group NewJeans announced that they’ve changed their name to NJZ in the midst of their long-running dispute with their label, ADOR. Singer Hanni spoke to CNN about the change, saying that the five-member group decided to rebrand as a means of “turning this rough period of time into something more exciting.”
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The first public outing under the new banner will come at the three-day ComplexCon Hong Kong in March, where Hanni, Haerin, Minji, Hyein and Danielle said they will debut a new song.
“We are working a lot to resolve everything so that we can go… back to normal,” Hanni, 20, added, saying that the band doesn’t want their legal spat with ADOR to “be the focus of our careers.”
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In a statement announcing the name change and upcoming gig, Minji said, “We are thrilled to be stepping onto the stage for the first time as NJZ and share something new with everyone. It’s a big moment for us and we can’t wait for fans to be a part of this journey with us and show the world our new music that we have been eagerly waiting to share.”
Back in November, NewJeans announced that they were parting ways with ADOR, a subsidiary of the K-pop management firm HYBE, over allegations that the label violated their contract. “Once we leave ADOR, we’ll aim to proceed freely with the activities that we really desire,” Danielle said at the time. “We really wish to be able to release new music for Bunnies, next year, as soon as possible, whenever,” she added, in reference to their fan group nickname. “We really hope that we have the opportunity to meet you guys from all around the world.”
They also noted in November that due to their contract termination, they might no longer be able to use the group name they’ve performed under since 2022. ADOR responded to the news, maintaining that its contract with NewJeans “remains in full effect,” urging the group to continue collaborating with them on upcoming projects. ADOR has disputed the allegations from the group, who’ve accused the label of “manipulation,” “deliberate miscommunications” and workplace harassment and have filed a lawsuit against NewJeans, and, according to CNN, filed for a court injunction that would prevent NJZ form signing advertising deals.
The band’s announcement of their split came after months of rancor in a management dispute between HYBE and ADOR’s former CEO, Min Hee-jin, who also serves as the group’s creative director. Last year, HYBE accused Hee-jin of attempting to take the company independent, a claim he denied; NewJeans said in November that they would like to continue working with Hee-jin.
In response to NewJeans’ announcement of their new name, ADOR told CNN, “we regret the escalation of this matter to court and believe that most claims advanced by NewJeans members thus far have arisen from misunderstandings… We worry that announcing an unauthorized new group name or engaging in entertainment activities before a legal judgement is reached… could constitute a material breach of the exclusive agency contract.”
CNN reported that the group began posting content under the new name on the jeanzforfree Instagram page, which at press time had a “sorry, this page isn’t available” note.
A preliminary court hearing for the injunction is scheduled for March, with the lawsuit set to be heard by a judge in April. While they wait, Haerin said the group are working on making and performing their new music, which she described as having a “very unique and different sound… there’s nothing holding us back anymore.”
Hanni added that they thought long and hard about the new name, considering fans’ suggestions and landing on a moniker that retained the “essence” of their original one. “Even though we have to leave our previous name behind us for a bit, we’re not fully moving on from it,” she said. “And we don’t want to either, because (being NewJeans) was still a very special period of time to us, and it’s something that our fans also probably hold really dear.”
She also said their new era will be “very different” from what fans have come to expect from the group whose 2023 Get Up EP hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart. Hanni promised that the new image will also come with “different types of performances,” explaining, “Beforehand, we were very focused on being the kind of ‘girl next door’… So, we’re going for a (look that’s) a lot more sharp, a lot more bold,” said the singer, who along with her bandmates serves as an ambassador for global luxury brands Chanel and Louis Vuitton.
“And fashion wise: We love wearing streetwear and non-gendered kind of clothing. I think that concept and aspect is going to play a really strong role in our (new) fashion as well.”
There’s a feeling that something around Inhaler has shifted in the past 18 months. The Irish quartet, made up of Eli Hewson (vocals, son of U2’s Bono), Ryan McMahon (drums), Bobby Keating (bass), and Josh Jenkinson (guitars), has welcomed a new influx of young, passionate fans into their world, no doubt helped by their support slots on megatours with Arctic Monkeys and Harry Styles at their respective stadium shows. Those gigs followed a chart-topping debut on the U.K.’s Official Albums Charts with It Won’t Always Be Like This (2021) and its follow-up Cuts & Bruises (2023), which landed at No. 2.
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But the new tunes that make up third LP Open Wide, released via Polydor, are bright, expansive, and the group’s best yet. The venues keep growing at home and abroad, with tickets being snapped up and sold-out in minutes. Why’s it all come together at this moment?
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“I think we know what we want from our music now,” frontman Hewson responds to Billboard UK. “Maybe when we were a bit younger, we wanted people to like us and wanted people to connect with it – and we still want that – but I think that’s different from making music that we love.”
Open Wide was produced by Kid Harpoon, who had a huge hand in the easy-going sound of Styles’ Grammy-winning LP Harry’s House, as well as the One Direction alum’s 2019 album Fine Line. Elsewhere Kid Harpoon has credits on Miley Cyrus’ Hot 100 chart-topper “Flowers,” and with HAIM and Florence + The Machine.
There’s also an appearance on Open Wide for hit songwriter Amy Allen, a close collaborator of Kid Harpoon with songwriting credits on Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” and “Please Please Please,” as well as on ROSÉ and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” She recently snagged the songwriter of the year award at the 2025 Grammys, becoming the first woman to win the category.
The decision for the Dublin-born band to head to L.A. during the album’s writing phase gave them clarity and space away from their tried and tested methods. “We sound a lot more like how we’ve always wanted to. It gave us peace and quiet to listen to our gut instincts. When we were in London when we were writing and recording [the first two albums], it always felt like things were up in the air. With this one, we felt very calm all the way through and enjoyed the process. We just heard ourselves out. We weren’t listening to external anxieties; it felt satisfying.”
No wonder there’s a lightness and confidence in these songs. The LP’s title track is built on a pulsing, subtle EDM beat before it hits a typically explosive chorus. Likewise, “A Question of You,” and “Billy (Yeah Yeah Yeah)” do away with the moody reverb heard on 2023 LP Cuts and Bruises and aren’t afraid to embrace a more mainstream-friendly sound.
In February the group will head out on the road in the U.K. for some of its biggest shows yet, including sold-out nights at London’s O2 Academy Brixton. They’ll then play in North and Latin America, Europe and then a massive homecoming show in Dublin to 20,000 fans.
Speaking from Amsterdam while on the press trail, the band discusses the input from Kid Harpoon and Allen, the ever-shifting indie scene, global success for Irish artists and more.
This is your third LP – does release week get any easier or more enjoyable?
Eli: It’s always in the last week before it’s out that the doubts start to come in. We did an album playback yesterday with some fans who heard it for the first time, and they seemed to enjoy it.
Ryan: Yeah, but they wouldn’t say it to your face, though, would they? I’m sure we would have some fans that wouldn’t have a problem with that though…
You’ve mentioned that the pressure was off this time. Why did it feel that way?
Josh: We didn’t have a deadline or tour that we had to be ready for. We had the freedom to create whatever we wanted to and assess it after we made it, instead of getting it straight out.
Eli: With Kid Harpoon, his whole ethos was – which was really shocking given the records he’s worked on – that he didn’t want any labels or managers in the room when recording: “It’s just us making this album and we’ll think about the singles when we’re done.” I found that really refreshing because he was putting the album before anything. We hadn’t really had that approach before. We were chasing singles a lot of the time, and we just wanted to get out and tour, so this was a big opportunity to step back and reflect on what we were making.
What made you want to change things up and work with a new producer?
Eli: Initially there was perhaps fear in all of us. It was the first time that we’d worked with someone different. With our last producer [Antony Genn], we’d been going to him since we were 17. We felt it was the right time to graduate from that, as it felt like our working relationship had gradually run its course for the time being. So it was important for us to work with something new for us to see what else they could bring out of us.
Josh: [Kid Harpoon] is a great person to be around. Initially we wondered if he could work with a band like us, but we when we realised that he did that Kings of Leon album [2024’s Can We Please Have Fun] that really eased all our stress. When we were working with him, he was going darker than us. He’d say, “Don’t put that in, it’s too poppy!”
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What were the sessions like in L.A. and then back in London?
Josh: They were very efficient. We didn’t waste any time. We had about nine days in L.A. before heading to RAK Studios in London, but we made a plan, and we stuck with what we set out to do. We also had a lot of fun with it too.
Ryan: He also wouldn’t send us what we’d done and recorded that day. He’d say, “Yeah, Brian, the engineer, will send it,” but just never did it. But once we got to the end, we realized we’d been going into the sessions totally fresh and hearing the songs and recordings again for the first time. You’re not constantly overthinking it. In the past, we’ve been known to get tunnel vision and overanalyze things.
Amy Allen also had a part to play. What was her contribution like?
Josh: She came in to listen to the songs while we were in L.A. It was so cool to see someone at that level of songwriting and with all of her achievements come in and say, “You guys have got some pretty good tunes.” Hearing her come in and sing some of them was so inspiring.
Eli: It was amazing. She’d just hum something quickly, and you’d think, ‘That’s f—ing amazing.’ We were lucky enough that she was able to stop by because she’d canceled another session, and Tom [Hull, Kid Harpoon] invited her to come in. Whatever she’s tapped into at the minute, she’s doing really well with.
Josh: She had such a beautiful voice, and she came in on a day when we were so tired, and it was much-needed…
Ryan: …it was like a visit from an angel!
How has the band’s dynamic developed over the years? It feels like you’re all pulling in the same direction with this album…
Eli: We’ve managed to keep it all together. It’s a sacred place being in this band. We fight less now than we ever have. We got all of that out when we were teenagers! It’s always felt like the center of everything we do together.
Ryan: We just love to make music naturally, and anything that feels right in the moment we follow. There’s never a discussion about setting rules on an album or doing a certain thing. We’ve never felt any joy out of a situation like that – that’s where it feels like the arguments begin, and ego starts getting in the way. Making music and saying less is what we do better.
It feels like there’s an openness from indie artists and fans to embrace new sounds and to work collaboratively with hit songwriters and pop producers. The question of ‘authenticity’ in these spaces feels quite outdated…
Josh: It’s refreshing to feel like you don’t have to do the same thing over and over again. You can progress how you want to. People can support you and still be open to change. That’s exciting.
Ryan: As long as you’re happy with what you want to make. There are no rules that go with writing a good song, and people are a lot less closed off to how a band should sound in their head; no one knows – neither do we – what they want until they get it.
There has been considerable support and acclaim for Irish artists like Fontaines D.C., Hozier and Kneecap among others over the past few years. Why are these kinds of acts exploding right now?
Eli: The biggest reason is that they’re good! In years past, you’d have to do “the American album.” It was the thing to do because everyone adheres to American culture. But now, if the country has its own indigenous culture, style and tradition, people are finding that interesting and want to know more about it. It definitely makes for better music and art. I doubt it’s something in the water…
It feels like there’s a lot of support for one another…
Eli: There’s always been a strong sense of camaraderie among Irish artists. I don’t think we’ve ever felt like we fit into a particular scene with other Irish artists, so it’s never felt like there’s a sense of competition between anyone. Everyone’s just happy to see other people succeed.
Bobby: I think that support also comes from the fact that we’re a small country as well. Everyone goes to the same venue to get to the next stage and wants the best for everyone else. We played the same venues that Fontaines, Hozier and The Murder Capital have all played. Especially when we’re in the U.K. and see people around and playing shows. I think Irish people really take the idea of playing abroad very seriously. When we first started playing abroad and in London, it felt like the real thing and a real achievement.
What will the new material bring with the live show?
Josh: It’s going to give us some depth and shape shows in a way that we haven’t done before. We’ve always been very ‘go go go’ at our shows, then there might be some slower moments or something a bit groovier, we now have a broad spectrum of songs to choose from.
Ryan: It’s also nice to freshen things up. We’ve been playing some of these songs for so long and it’s nice to have something new to play.
What did you learn on those big tours with Harry and Arctic Monkeys that you’ll take forward?
Josh: I think we learned that it would be something that we loved to do. But also the attention to detail that goes into every show and how it’s set-up, and the amount of work that goes into shows of that scale. It made us want to take things a lot more seriously.
The Weeknd continues his streak of dominance on the ARIA Albums Chart, debuting at No. 1 with his sixth studio album, Hurry Up Tomorrow.
This marks his fifth consecutive studio album to top the chart, following Beauty Behind The Madness (2015), Starboy (2016), After Hours (2020), and Dawn FM (2022). His 2021 greatest hits collection, The Highlights, which peaked at No. 2 in 2021, also sees a boost this week, rising to No. 8. The album, which The Weeknd has described as the final installment in a trilogy, arrives amid speculation that he may retire his moniker and release future music under his real name, Abel Tesfaye.
Meanwhile, Luke Combs’ ongoing Australian tour has reignited interest in his catalog. His 2017 album This One’s For You reaches a new peak at No. 5, surpassing its previous best of No. 7, while his latest album, Fathers & Sons, re-enters the top 10.
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Luke Combs continues to see a major surge on the ARIA Albums Chart thanks to his ongoing Australian tour. His 2017 album This One’s For You climbs to No. 5, hitting a new peak after previously reaching No. 7 in both 2019 and 2022. His latest album, Fathers & Sons, also returns to the top 10, moving up from No. 13 to No. 11.
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Over on the ARIA Singles Chart, British singer-songwriter Lola Young holds onto the No. 1 spot for a second consecutive week with “Messy,” continuing an unprecedented run of female artists dominating the top position since mid-August 2024. This streak has included No. 1 hits from Charli XCX, Billie Eilish, Sabrina Carpenter, Rosé (with Bruno Mars), Gracie Abrams, and Mariah Carey.
Rosé and Bruno Mars’ “APT.” remains strong in the runner-up position at No. 2, while Gracie Abrams’ “That’s So True” holds at No. 3. Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars’ collaboration “Die With a Smile” sits at No. 4, with Chrystal’s “The Days – Notion Remix” rounding out the top five.
On the ARIA Vinyl Albums Chart, Hurry Up Tomorrow lands at No. 1, proving its demand across all formats. Luke Combs’ Fathers & Sons follows at No. 2, with Birds of Tokyo’s Universes at No. 3, Gracie Abrams’ The Secret of Us at No. 4, and Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard and Soft at No. 5.
Poppy has put her own spin on “Taste,” Sabrina Carpenter’s sultry viral hit, delivering a stripped-down yet edgy reinterpretation for Like A Version, the long-running cover series from Australian radio station triple j.
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The performance, which was recorded during her recent Australian tour with Bad Omens, also featured an unexpected nod to The Divinyls’ “I Touch Myself,” seamlessly woven into the chorus. “I love her voice, and I think she’s very pretty,” Poppy said of Carpenter, explaining her song choice. “And the song is really fun to sing, so here we are.”
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Dressed in a sleek all-black outfit, Poppy’s performance brought a darker, moodier edge to “Taste,” stripping back its glossy pop production in favor of a more industrial-tinged arrangement.
Adding to the intrigue was the masked presence of Jordan Fish, formerly of Bring Me The Horizon, handling production duties. The unexpected interpolation of “I Touch Myself”—an Australian classic originally released in 1990.
“The first time I heard [‘Taste’], I thought it sounded like ‘I Touch Myself’, which is also my favourite karaoke song, so combining it made sense,” Poppy said of her choice to add the twist to Carpenter’s track.
The cover arrives as both Poppy and Carpenter celebrate major career milestones. Poppy was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 2025 Grammys for “Suffocate,” her collaboration with Knocked Loose that reached number 50 on Billboard’s Hot Rock & Alternative Songs. Meanwhile, Carpenter took home her first two Grammy Awards for Best Pop Solo Performance and Best Pop Vocal Album.
“Taste” has been a breakout moment for Carpenter, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song, featured on her album Short n’ Sweet, which held No. 1 for four weeks on the Billboard 200.
Poppy, meanwhile, continues to push genre boundaries, evolving from her early YouTube days into an avant-garde force within the metal and alternative scenes.
Poppy’s Like A Version session adds to a long history of memorable covers on the program, which has hosted artists like Billie Eilish, Arctic Monkeys, and Childish Gambino reworking unexpected tracks. Whether this signals a future collaboration between Poppy and Carpenter remains to be seen, but for now, the metal provocateur has put her own mark on one of the year’s biggest pop hits.
Watch Poppy’s Like A Version cover of “Taste” below.
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, PJ Harvey, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, DEVO, Primal Scream, and more have joined forces for Los Angeles Rising, a new benefit album raising funds for musicians affected by the recent LA wildfires.
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Spearheaded by Kevin Haskins of Bauhaus and Love and Rockets, along with producer Nick Launay, the compilation features previously unreleased tracks from some of alternative music’s most influential artists. All proceeds from the album will go directly to Sweet Relief, a non-profit organization that provides financial assistance to career musicians in need.
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The album, which is available exclusively on Bandcamp, includes a reimagined version of “California Dreamin’” by Jarvis Cocker, an alternate take on Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Turn Into” from Show Your Bones, and a new track from Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds titled “Michelangelo.” Primal Scream contributed an orchestral version of their song “False Flags,” while Danny Elfman added his own surreal spin with “Monkeys on the Loose.” DEVO, Gary Numan, and Flea also feature on the 16-track compilation.
Haskins and Launay, both longtime LA residents, were personally affected by the fires and said the project came together quickly as they watched the devastation unfold.
“As the wildfires were raging and destroying thousands of homes around Los Angeles, both my neighborhood and Nick’s were instructed to evacuate. But we were the lucky ones,” Haskins said in a press statement. “The fire threatening our homes and recording studios was thankfully extinguished by firefighters just minutes away, but countless musicians and friends lost everything.”
Launay added, “This harrowing experience and witnessing the monumental destruction of entire communities inspired Nick and I to team up to create a compilation album to raise money for the less fortunate. We reached out to our musician friends for unreleased recorded gems and the response was incredible! PJ Harvey, Nick Cave, Jarvis Cocker, Primal Scream, Gary Numan, and Devo are just some of the artists that rushed in to help.”
“Nick and I were lucky. We had to evacuate, but our homes and studios survived,” Haskins said in a statement. “So many musicians we know lost everything.” The two reached out to artists who had worked with them over the years, asking if they had unreleased tracks that could help raise money. “The response was incredible,” Launay added. “These musicians didn’t hesitate to contribute to something that could directly help their peers.”
The album arrives amid a broader industry-wide effort to support wildfire relief. Bandcamp recently announced that all proceeds from purchases made on Feb. 7 would be donated to MusiCares, while a separate benefit album—featuring contributions from R.E.M., Death Cab for Cutie, The Postal Service, and more—is also in the works.
Los Angeles Rising is available now on Bandcamp, with vinyl pressings and limited-edition merchandise set to be released later this month. As wildfires continue to impact communities across California, the music industry is once again proving its ability to rally support when it’s needed most.
GELO has teamed up with Lil Wayne on the remix of his 2025 runaway hit “Tweaker” on Friday (Feb. 7). The NBA G-League hooper and middle Ball brother (real name LiAngelo Ball) released the original song at the top of the year after it was previewed on popular streamer N3on’s platform last December and it officially […]
Pardison Fontaine and Cardi B dropped their highly anticipated “Toot It Up” collab on Friday (Feb. 7) via Hitmaker Music Group. “You guys keep asking for ‘Toot It.’ Where’s ‘Toot It’? Where’s ‘Toot It’ at? Can we get ‘Toot It’? Here go the song, here go ‘Toot It.’ Take it, play it, do whatever y’all […]
Legendary hip-hop outfit the Wu-Tang Clan are teaming up with producer and group DJ Mathematics to release their first new record in eight years.
Set for release on Record Store Day, on April 12, the album’s full title is Black Samson, The Bastard Swordsman: Wu-Tang, The Saga Continues Collection, and brings to mind their last joint effort, 2017’s The Saga Continues.
A somewhat controversial entry in the band’s discography, the release was issued without the word ‘Clan’ in the group’s name, and described as a ‘compilation’ album due to the absence of U-God. “It can’t be a complete Wu-Tang Clan album without UG,” Mathematics said at the time.
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The forthcoming record, however, has seen Mathematics recruit the entire group for the project. As Variety reports, Method Man, Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Cappadonna, U-God, Masta Killa, Inspectah Deck, GZA and RZA all confirmed to appear, along with guest spots from Kurupt, Kool G. Rap, Benny the Butcher, and more.
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“You can be sure of a great body [of] work,” Raekwon said to Variety. “Mathematics is a top tier producer who makes music with his soul attached.”
“Wu-Tang has always been about pushing boundaries — musically, artistically, and culturally. With Black Samson, The Bastard Swordsman, I’m giving fans not just an album, but a piece of history — something truly one of a kind,” Mathematics explained in a statement. “This is more than music; it’s innovation, storytelling, and legacy all in one. I am excited for everyone to hear the music and see the artwork around this album.”
5,000 copies of the album will be made available for Record Store Day. According to its dedicated page on the RSD website, “Every album jacket features unique ‘1 of 1’ cover art, making each design truly distinct and highly collectible – a first in the vinyl record industry.” A digital release is also expected, with final track “Charleston Blue, Legend of a Fighter” described as a vinyl-only bonus track.
Black Samson, The Bastard Swordsman will mark the first Wu-Tang Clan record to feature the full current lineup of the collective since 2015’s Once Upon a Time in Shaolin. To date, no widespread commercial release for that album has been announced since its controversial sale to the notorious so-called “pharma bro” Martin Shkreli. It did, however, receive a debut public airing at the Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart, Australia last year.
Heavy metal pioneer Ozzy Osbourne has revealed he can no longer walk as he heads towards his final live performance.
The 76-year-old made the admission on his SiriusXM program Ozzy’s Boneyard, where he discussed what fans might be able to expect from his recently-announced farewell show.
“I have made it to 2025. I can’t walk, but you know what I was thinking over the holidays? For all my complaining, I’m still alive,” he said. “I may be moaning that I can’t walk, but I look down the road, and there’s people that didn’t do half as much as me and didn’t make it.”
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On Wednesday (Feb. 5), Osbourne announced his final live performance, which will take place at his hometown of Birmingham, England on July 5. The biggest headline is the inclusion of Black Sabbath, who will play their first show since Feb. 2017, and their first with the band’s original lineup since 2005.
Dubbed ‘Back to the Beginning’, the high-profile event will also include performances from Metallica, Slayer and Anthrax, as well as the likes of Pantera, Lamb Of God, Mastodon, Alice In Chains, Halestorm and recent Grammy Award-winners Gojira.
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Songwriter and former Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, meanwhile, will serve as music director for “Back to the Beginning.” In a press release, he described the upcoming gig as set to be “the greatest heavy metal show ever.”
The event is also described as a charitable affair, with profits going towards the likes of Cure Parkinson’s, a U.K. charity working to end the disease which Osbourne was diagnosed with in 2019.
Speaking to the BBC, Osbourne’s wife and manager Sharon explained that the show was a chance for Osbourne to end a career which has been affected in recent years by numerous cancellations and health issues.
“He’s doing great. He’s doing really great,” she said. “He’s so excited about this, about being with the guys again and all his friends. It’s exciting for everyone.”
“Ozzy didn’t have a chance to say goodbye to his friends, to his fans, and he feels there’s no been no full stop. This is his full stop.”
In another interview with The Sun, Sharon added that Ozzy would be match-fit for the highly-anticipated event despite his ill health.
“He’s very happy to be coming back and very emotional about this,” she said. “Parkinson’s is a progressive disease. It’s not something you can stabilize. It affects different parts of the body and it’s affected his legs. But his voice is as good as it’s ever been.”