From sharing cheeseburgers to sharing a bill with Korn and Puddle Of Mudd, it’s been a big year for Geffen signingsTrust Company, and they’re loving every minute of it
Derry four-piece, cuckoo, have caught the proverbial worm, landing a world-wide deal with Geffen, and are finally ready to set the world on fire. Birdwatcher: john walshe.
When My Little Funhouse signed on the dotted line with Geffen, they were precisely 12 gigs old and probably knew more about the inner workings of a thermo-nuclear reactor than they did a recording studio. Since then they’ve toured the world, taken on the same heavyweight management as Guns N’ Roses and moved to Los Angeles where Slash and Matt Sorum are among their best buddies. Brendan Morrissey tells Stuart Clark why the Kilkenny metallers will either end up filthy rich or six feet under.
With her own debut album, Eleanor McEvoy, one of the stars of A Woman s Heart , has come out of the folk closet and revealed herself to be a real rocker feedback, distorted guitars and all. Interview: Colm O Hare.
Court cases! Vintage wines! Smack! Bad craziness! A burst pancreas! And a chart-topping album! It can only be the posthumous but never-ending saga of the defining rock band of the ’80s and ’90s. Stuart Clark gets the latest from Duff McKagan
Age has not withered them. twenty years after they rose out of the new york underground, Sonic Youth have managed to grow old and stay hardcore. Thurston Moore and Kim Gordon reveal how it’s done
New Nirvana best-of, including the previously unreleased 'You Know You're Right', to hit the shelves before Christmas, says Courtney Love. News to us, say Universal Records
The Critics Panel who voted for the Top 30 Albums and Singles of the Year are as follows: Bill Graham, Liam Fay, George Byrne, Stuart Clark, Lorraine Freeney, Tara McCarthy, Gerry McGovern, Neil McCormick, Dermot Stokes, Oliver P. Sweeney, Siobhan Long, Steve Averill, Andy Darlington, Colm O’Hare, Joe Jackson, Niall Crumlish, Olaf Tyaransen, Patrick Brennan, Nicholas G. Kelly, Jackie Hayden and Niall Stokes.
Five years after the sublime I'm With Stupid and Aimee acolytes are now having to contend with the shock of Manna from heaven in the shape of her contributions to the Magnolia soundtrack and this more focused, full-length release.
THE CRITICS PANEL WHO VOTED FOR THE TOP 30 ALBUMS AND SINGLES OF THE YEAR ARE AS FOLLOWS: BILL GRAHAM, LIAM FAY, GEORGE BYRNE, STUART CLARK, LORRAINE FREENEY, TARA McCARTHY, GERRY McGOVERN, NEIL McCORMICK, DERMOT STOKES, OLIVER P. SWEENEY, SIOBHAN LONG, STEVE AVERILL, ANDY DARLINGTON, COLM O’HARE, JOE JACKSON, HELENA MULKERNS, DAN OGGLY, CATHY DILLON, NIALL CRUMLISH, OLAF TYARANSEN, PATRICK BRENNAN, JACKIE HAYDEN AND NIALL STOKES.
Rock has become the preserve of the nice guy. The rock trio, once synonymous with the emotive and dynamic primal noise of the likes of The Jimi Hendrix Experience, Husker Du and Nirvana, is now populated by safe, catchy indie-by-numbers popsters such as Stereophonics.
Anyway, the Dirty album proper hasn’t dated one second: Vig and Wallace had keen radar when it came to knowing just how much to sugarcoat the Sonics’ dissonant assault without compromising on raw power.
After two years of being that bloke who used to be in the Stone Roses, John Squire is back in the saddle with The Seahorses. On the eve of their Heineken Green Energy appearance at Dublin Castle, Madchester s answer to Jimmy Page talks to Stuart Clark about old friends, new challenges and his penchant for obscure Belfast punk bands.
With her own debut album, ELEANOR McEVOY, one of the stars of 'A Woman's Heart', has come out of the folk closet and revealed herself to be a real rocker - feedback, distorted guitars and all. Interview: COLM O'HARE
Aimee Mann is one of the most interesting and distinctive songwriters of the past 20 years. Just don’t ask her what she thinks of the Mercury shortlist!
Following in the footsteps of Green Day and Good Charlotte Blink 182 are the latest punk outfit to massively expand their remit and radically alter their direction on their eponymous new album.
Neil Jordan's controversial new film Interview With The Vampire has angered both the gay community, who objected to the dilution of the movie's homoerotic content, and the author of the novel from which it is adapted, Anne Rice, who disagreed with the choice of Hollywood golden boy Tom Cruise in the starring role.
However, with Anne Rice conspicuously recanting and the critics in the U.S. responding rapturously, signs are that this is one Vampire which won't lay down and die. Report: Helena Mulkerns
John Lennon is back but trust him to deflate the expectations that have been invested in his return. The message of Double Fantasy is that he and Yoko won't be anybody's heroes if they can't be each other's. This is a family album, Yoko's as much as his.
Having undergone a punishing regime of drink, drugs and debauchery during Guns N’ Roses’ heyday, few thought that iconic guitar-slinger Slash would ever again venture out into the mainstream rock arena. But having put together a motley crew of collaborators in Velvet Revolver, he’s now back at No. 1 in the album charts and rocking harder than ever.
ave Fanning: We just played "Wild Things Run Free" (sic) and as you say yourself you are "back in the harness". Now, except for the vocals would it be a fair assumption to call the music on the new album pop with a rock steady beat?
Ted Hawkins, in Dublin recently to play a never-to-be-forgotten gig in Whelan’s, talks about his journey down the long and winding road which led him from an early, joyless life of petty crime and racial discrimination to his belated fame as one of the most respected of contemporary blues men. Interview: Gerry McGovern.
In a year that saw events which will forever change the world in which we live, selected hotpress contributors offer some personal recollections of the past twelve months. We begin by listing the critics’ choice of 2001’s single and album releases
In the second and final part of an extensive interview, MIKE SCOTT discusses inspiration and influences, recalls his difficult solo years and explains the death and resurrection of THE WATERBOYS. Interview: PETER MURPHY
The wild rise and fall of the coke-snorting, heavy boozing, rampantly horny music biz mogul who knew Dylan, Jagger, Jackson, Springsteen and Streisand better than most. And now he’s ready to tell all.
It s re-introductions all round, as the Starman embarks on a hazardous solo mission. Stuart Bailie records him taking one giant leap for a man.
The Starman walks into a public bar in Chorlton and looks for a quiet spot. The old regulars at the back are nudging each other. They re sure that they recognise the face
and the style of a traveller who s been all the way up there and back.
Blow me down, it’s that chirpy Counting Crow adam duritz again, flapping his vocal chords on everything from bunking off the MTV awards, why the Rolling Stones are still “fucking great” and why he won’t be emigrating to Utah just yet. Witness for the defence: Niall Crumlish.
Occasionally, music from Derry effects the wider scheme of things with spectacular results. This year, the fun centred on the use of D:Ream?s ?Things Can Only Get Better? as a Labour Party anthem. The touchy-feely, get-off-your-arse-and-participate message of the song was just what Tony Blair wanted for his born-again campaign theme.
While 2004 has not been an especially spectacular year to date, there is good reason to believe that rocks big guns are likely to deliver the kind of records that will revive spirits in the industry. Chris Donovan previews some of the albums that are likely to top the sales – and the critical – charts before 2004 is out...
Greetings From LA
beck and tom petty get together in Los Angeles for an impassioned rap on songs, songwriting, showbiz, the Unplugged phenomenon and how too much music can boggle the mind. mark rowland listens in.
While 2004 has not been an especially spectacular year to date, there is good reason to believe that rocks big guns are likely to deliver the kind of records that will revive spirits in the industry. Chris Donovan previews some of the albums that are likely to top the sales – and the critical – charts before 2004 is out...
BLOODHOUND GANG might not be paragons of good taste, but they do live out the rock n roll lifestyle like no other band. JIMMY POP talks to STUART CLARK about swearing, drugs, porn stars and amusing Germans! Pop Pic-er: Declan English
You might think that the Crash Test Dummies are a strange bunch now but you should have seen them four years ago! Dan Roberts and Mitch Dorge tell Stuart Clark how a big-haired Winnipeg bar band with a penchant for the Clancy Brothers have managed to hit the big time. Pix: Cathal Dawson
When the offer came to produce the new Rolling Stones album in Dublin what answer could Don Was give but a resounding ‘Yes’. Mick, Keef & Co. are the latest in a long and impressive list of the man’s studio credits which includes Bob Dylan, The B-52’s, Willie Nelson, Bonnie Raitt and Paula Abdu. But throw in the small matter of the career of Was (Not Was) and the musical rehabilitation of errant Beach Boys’ genius Brian Wilson and we’re talking major industry player here. Bill Graham takes up the story . . .
Dropped by Warners, but buoyed up by mega-sales of a soundtrack hit, Nick Lowe is back with a great new album, The Impossible Bird, and lots to say about Johnny Cash, Elvis Costello and a benevolent devil with the feet of a chicken. Interview: Joe Jackson.
STUART CLARK travels to New York to see and hear ONEIDA - the best American band you haven't heard of, yet - and to take the eve of the millennium pulse of the city that never sleeps. Pics: PETER MATTHEWS.
The Waterboys are back, with arguably their most complete record yet, Book Of Lightning. In this remarkably open and honest interview, Mike Scott talks about his songwriting genius, about relationships, his family, his boozy years in Galway - and turning U2 onto Greenpeace.
John Walshe talks to Counting Crows frontman Adam Duritz about love, fame, journalism, nervous breakdowns, dating the cast of Friends and the band s special relationship with their Irish fans. Birdwatcher: Declan English
BECK is one of the most eclectically talented musicians of his generation. STUART CLARK sees the man play a stormer at Witnness and hears him talk about fame, musical obsession, heroes like Bowie and Black Sabbath and 'Britney fascism'
From a darkened studio in Artane to the bright lights of Top Of The Pops and beyond that 'Orinoco Flow' has taken Enya and all who sail with her on an unprecedented voyage of discovery. Niall Stokes joins the key figures as the flow swells into a torrent of success and is pleased to report that nobody on board is in danger of losing their bearings.
Stuart Clark, whose middle name is “Intrepid”, recently spent 48 hours on tour with PET LAMB, grindpopcore merchants extraordinaire. His liver and tympanic membranes survived intact, and after a mere six weeks recuperation, he filed this report.
Q: Which top Irish quiz-masters’ pathological obsessions include Something Happens, Shamrock Rovers and the amount of shopping days left to the next Suede gig? A: George “You Started, So I’ll Finish” Byrne
If you want to make a demo that won't be used to blackmail you a few years down the road to fame and fortune, there are a few things you should know. Here, the experts tell Niall Crumlish what they are.
Sex? Yep. Drugs? Uh-huh. Rock 'n' Roll? Yesireebob! Aerosmith were no strangers to the unholy trinity of debauchery during the '70's and early '80's but find that having cleaned up ten years ago they're now cleaning up with the punters. Not that they're beyond having fun, fun and, er, more fun as our resident boogiemeister Stuart Clark finds out.
It’s Christmas time and, as far as the hotpress journalistic elite are concerned, there’s not a turkey in sight. JOHN WALSHE, COLIN CARBERRY, CHRIS DONOVAN, EAMON SWEENEY and BARRY O'DONOGHUE report on the Irish acts who are going to be huuuuuuuuge!
over the next 12 months.
In the second part of his examination of the cult of CHARLES MANSON, PETER MURPHY looks at the cult leader s trial, his continuing influence of left-field heroes and the controversy over his recordings. Also: BONO on U2 s decision to include Helter Skelter in their Rattle And Hum set.
Eleven years on from their debut and New York avant-garde guitar manglers Sonic Youth have reached an ever-growing audience without compromising their ideals of integrity. Here, GERRY McGOVERN offers a personal testimony to their recorded output in anticipation of their appearance at Sunstroke '93.
On Tuesday 23rd November, at the National Concert Hall in Dublin, the Church & General Insurance Company present The Celebration Concert, featuring an extraordinary array of Ireland's finest contemporary songwriting and composing talents. In this four-page special, Jackie Hayden explores the background to the event and we profile the leading players.
The recent murder of
the notorious b.i.g., following the killing of Tupac shakur six months ago, has been linked by many to the prolonged East Coast-West Coast feud which threatened to tear the US hip-hop community apart. jonathan o brien reports on how life
chillingly imitates art in the gangsta rap wars.
Nirvana - Ten years after. Peter Murphy talks to producer Butch Vig, musician Mark Lanegan and critic Greil Marcus, and gets the inside story of the making of Nevermind, the classic album that changed the face of music, unveiled the anthem 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' and brought the world face to face with a screaming soul called Kurt Cobain.
It’s been a long, strange trip for David Grohl, from Nirvana drummer to Foo Fighters frontman, via Queens Of The Stone Age and Tenacious D. Now he’s back with a new Foo album, he’s buried the hatchet with Courtney Love and he’s still as rock’n’roll as ever
From “Outspan” to Glen Hansard, from Grafton Street to Hollywood – and onwards to Lisdoonvarna 2003. A portrait of The Frames as a most unusual band. Part one of a two-part special feature by Peter Murphy. [Main Photos: Mick Quinn]
Last issue we profiled a selection of Irish acts who released records for the Christmas market. Here JACKIE HAYDEN, GERRY McGOVERN AND COLM O’HARE PROFILE five more who've come up trumps – from Jimmy MacCarthy, one of Ireland's best known songwriters, to young hopefuls, Sunbear.
When Nirvana exploded out of Seattle with the classic grunge album Nevermind, they were hailed as modern primitives, punk upstarts whose hard musical edge and authentic street style were the antithesis of the dominant ethos of corporate rock. Two years on however, their reputation as Rock 'n' Roll rebels is somewhat less secure. Bill Graham sifts through two new biographies of the band, and talks to Victoria clarke, the co-author of a third which has been effectively surpressed by the Nirvana 'corporation'.
Prince may be content just to party but in a four-page special the Hot Press journalistic elite takes a look at everything 1999 has to offer. And then some.
With the death of Kurt Cobain in April casting a shadow over the following months 1994 will hardly go down as one of the most joyous in Rock history. Your guide to a month-by-month account of the names and events of the past year. Stuart Clark.
There are those who believe that the future of music as an art form is seriously under threat from the rise of music piracy. Where will it all end? The truth is that no one truly knows.
