Blog: The Line Of Best Fit

Photos by Matthew McAndrew

Two Best Fit favourites collide, as Jessie Ware announces Mikky Ekko as the support for her leg of this year’s  Summer Series at Somerset House . The pair are set to perform at the beautiful London outdoor venue on 18 July, following on from stints by First Aid Kit, Richard Hawley and more. Check the full series billing below, with tickets and more info available  here . July [...]

• Mikky Ekko - tracks

Macmillan Cancer Support's The Big Mix festival returns this year to venues around London's Shoreditch area, with the line-up newly announced. The fest, celebrating the best in music, comedy, film and more, is set to take place between 1-2 June. Among the musical acts are the likes of Slow Club , playing an intimate stripped-back set, singer-songwriter Nadine Shah and Jesca Hoop . You can buy a 'golden ticket' for the entire festival for just £25 here , or gain entry to individual shows here . [...]

Danish trio, Efterklang are to follow 2012 album Piramida with a special live album release. The LP, simply entitled The Piramida Concert , was recorded with the Copenhagen Phil orchestra, as conducted by André de Ridder. The recording took place at Copenhagen’s Royal Academy of Music Concert Hall during October 2012. The record comes out on double vinyl on 10 June. Pre-order the release over at Efterklang's online shop . Before then, you can take a listen to one of [...]

• Efterklang - The Living Layer + Vælv

The first ever Ja Ja Ja festival , celebrating the best in Nordic music, has been announced for 2013. London's premium Scandi-orientated club night will host a special two-day event at the Roundhouse in Camden between 8-9 November, with the first acts confirmed as legendary Danish band  Mew and Iceland’s  múm . It'll also be Mew's first London outing in four years. More artists will be announced shortly, with ticket details and info available here .

Blur bassist and cheesemaker, Alex James is set to add TV host to his ever-expanding CV, with it announced that the Britpop musician will present a spin-off programme based around long-running BBC 2 show Never Mind The Buzzcocks . The show takes the name  What a Load of Buzzcocks  and will focus on "highlights from the past 17 years" from the music quiz. Executive producer Dan Baldwin says that it'll "provide the perfect retrospective look at our ever changing world through the eyes of Britain's funniest music quiz". [...]

Latitude festival have revealed a host of new acts scheduled to appear at this year's event. Among the big names are Bobby Womack , performing a special Sunday afternoon set, along with Eddie Izzard confirmed for the comedy tent. Some of the new music acts added are Best Fit favourites DIIV , MØ , Deptford Goth , Wolf Alice and Joanna Gruesome . They join Latitude's headliners, already confirmed as Kraftwerk, Foals and Bloc Party. Check out the full list of added acts [...]

Aussie psych-rock outfit, Pond have announced details of their upcoming new album. Hobo Rocket is scheduled for a 5 August release date in the UK, dropping in North America a day later and in the home country on 2 August. The release is the Perth group's fifth and follows on 2012’s Beard, Wives, Denim . Listen to one of the cuts, 'Giant Tortoise', beneath the LP's full tracklisting below: 1. Whatever Happened To The Million Head [...]

• Pond - Giant Tortoise

Having previewed upcoming album opener 'High Art' featuring Jay-Z last week, The-Dream has now revealed some more details surrounding IV Play . The album comes out 28 May and will feature Beyonce , Pusha T , 2 Chainz and Kelly Rowland all on guest spots. You can check out the full tracklisting below. That's the record's artwork above. 1. High Art (Feat. Jay-Z) 2. IV Play 3. [...]

End of the Road festival have confirmed that The Walkmen will play this year's event. Also among the Dorset fest's last line-up announcement are the likes of Braids, El Perro Del Mar, Wall, Duologue, Evans The Death and more. EOTR runs at the Larmer Tree Gardens, North Dorset, from 30 August to 1 September. The full list of newly-added acts is as below: The Walkmen William Tyler Crocodiles Landshapes Duologue Filthy Boy Anna Von Hausswolff El [...]

One of the many collaborators on Daft Punk 's comeback record, Todd Edwards has confirmed he'll be airing a Essential Mix for BBC Radio 1 this coming weekend. The house producer made the announcement via Twitter that the mix will feature "lots of classics and some new surprises & exclusives". Edwards  also revealed that it was made with a little help from Daft Punk themselves, plus Giorgio Moroder. It'll broadcast on Radio 1 at [...]

The function room of the New Oxford pub seems somewhat undersized to host two of the finest contemporary purveyors of different strands of American folk tradition on a rare trip to the UK and an even rarer to trek to the North. The cosy confines soon turn out to be a blessing in disguise, however. M.C. Taylor – the North Carolina-based songwriter operating under the Hiss Golden Messenger banner – has barely made it through a beguiling version of ‘Jesus Shot Me in the Head’ (one [...]

Fish & Chips, Ice-Creams, Ghost Train Rides and arcade games on the pier, Brighton offers up a classical get-away on any normal weekend of the year - this coming weekend, however, is anything but normal. As hundreds of revellers prepare their schedules, the seaside town prepares itself for The Great Escape Festival. We'll be down their alongside just about every exciting new band to have emerged in the last 12 months and while we'll mostly be running around like headless chickens attempting to see everything, there is no need for you to because our soon to be writers-on-the-ground Dan Carson [...]

• bluehawaii - Try to Be
• RainyMilo - Don't Regret Me

Last time round, Dirty Beaches was looking out across the states. His breakout record Badlands was a brief 27-minute detour through the dark underbelly of Americana, littered with reference points that suggested someone deeply intimate with the subject. The title evoked the double-denimed menace of Martin Sheen in the Terrence Malick film of the same name. Taiwanese born, Montreal based man Alex Zhang Hungtai’s hiccuping vocal brought to mind a ghoulish Elvis turned wild by too many thrusting gyrations. ‘Sweet 17’ seemed to draw on the [...]

Chapel Hill alt-rockers, Superchunk have announced a new album - and it's called I Hate Music . The LP follows on from 20102s Majesty Shredding , which was the band's first since 2001, and is said to be a "dark companion" to that release. I Hate Music will come out via Merge on 20 August, with the deluxe edition offering an extra 73 of non-album tracks, plus an "I Hate Music stencil". Which is always good. Check [...]

With Four Tet 's third, and breakthrough, album Rounds turning 10 years of age this week, Kieran Hebden is marking the occasion with a special reissue. It could have been much more special, however, as the producer wanted to include this version of track 'Unspoken'. The cut originally featured a Tori Amos sample taken from her song 'Winter', however Hebden had to alter the piano part after Amos' label resisted clearance attempts. Her label also blocked the right to include the [...]

• Four Tet - Unspoken (promo version)

With All Tomorrows Parties confirming that their upcoming weekend events at Camber Sands in November and December will be their final outings , it's now been confirmed that Mogwai will be the last band to ever play the holiday camp fests. Speaking to BBC Radio 6 Music earlier today, organiser Barry Hogan said that it was a natural choice for the band who first curated an ATP festival to close the event. The Glasgow post-rock outfit headlined and curated [...]

Photos by  Howard Melnyczuk

Having finally broke out of her sister's shadow with her recent True EP, Solange has shared her latest single taken from the short-play release - with an added guest verse thrown in to boot. This new re-jig of 'Looks Good With Trouble' features a cameo spot from none other than hip-hop's brightest upstart, Kendrick Lamar . You can take a listen in full below, via XXL :

Before heading down to Brighton for UK showcase festival The Great Escape festival this week, brand new Kissability signings, Glitches have unveiled their new single 'Only Time Will Tell'. The East London three-piece, often reported to live above a night club in close proximity to the, erm, African mafia, have constructed a song a world away from that urban setting. Opening with shimmering guitar lines and bursting, suddenly, into festival-ripe anthemic indie pop. There's an immediate emotional resonance here from the hopeful vocals and soaring repeated [...]

• Glitches - Only Time Will Tell