The Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt releases collection of early recordings

The Magnetic Fields' Stephin Merritt is set to release 'Obscurities', a 14-track collection of his early material on October 10.

'Obscurities' is made up of songs which were all released prior to 1999’s triple album,'69 Love Songs' and features five previously unreleased songs.

Three of the five come from The Song >From Venus, an unfinished sci-fi musical by Merritt and Daniel Handler, the US author who writes under the pen-name Lemony Snickett.

Five songs from The Magnetic Fields’ 7” vinyl singles are also included as well as '69 Love Songs' outtake 'The Sun And The Sea And The Sky’. "This song didn’t go on'69 Love Songs' because it wasn't actually about romantic love," says Merritt.

'You Are Not My Mother And I Want To Go Home', a song written by Merritt for the audiobook version of Coraline by Neil Gaiman is also included.

The tracklisting for 'Obscurities' is:

'Forever And A Day' (previously unreleased)
'Rats In The Garbage Of The Western World' (The Magnetic Fields)
'I Don't Believe You' (The Magnetic Fields)
'Plant White Roses' (Buffalo Rome)
'Rot in the Sun' (the 6ths)
'The Sun And The Sea And The Sky’ (previously unreleased)
'Yet Another Girl' (the 6ths)
'Scream (Till You Make The Scene)' (previously unreleased)
'The Song from Venus' (previously unreleased)
'Beach-A-Boop-Boop (The Magnetic Fields)
'When I'm Not Looking, You're Not There' (The Magnetic Fields)
'Take Ecstasy With Me' (The Magnetic Fields)
'When You’re Young And In Love' (previously unreleased)
'You Are Not My Mother And I Want to Go Home' (The Gothic Archies)

Summer Camp to release debut album on Halloween

Summer Camp have announced plans to release their debut album, 'Welcome To Condale', on October 31.

Working with Pulp’s Steve Mackey, who helped produce the 12 track album, the record includes debut single 'Ghost Train', as well as song named after a character from 1990s teen drama My So-Called Life, 'Brian Krakow'.

The duo part-financed their debut by offering mixtapes and homemade chocolate brownies to fans in exchange for contributions to the recording process.

The London based act, made up of former anti-folk singer songwriter Jeremy Warmsleyand Elizabeth Sankey release the album on their own Apricot Recording Companyimprint, with support from Moshi Moshi and Pledgemusic.

The album will be preceded by a single, 'Better Off Without You', which will be released on September 12.

The 'Welcome To Condale' tracklisting is:

'Better Off Without You'
'Brian Krakow'
'I Want You'
'Losing My Mind'
'Summer Camp'
'Nobody Knows You'
'Down'
'Welcome to Condale'
'Done Forever'
'Last American Virgin'
'Ghost Train'
'1988'

Arctic Monkeys' Matt Helders talks solo album - video

Arctic Monkeys' drummer Matt Helders has jokingly made it known that he wishes to release a solo album.

The band were speaking to NME at V Festival where they played at the weekend and were joined onstage by Miles Kane, click above to watch the video.

When asked where they wanted to be in five years, Helders said: "Doing my debut record, or celebrating four years since I've done my debut record."

Helders has previously done backing vocals for the band and most recently taken the lead for the track 'Brick By Brick'. The drummer also curated an album as part of the 'Late Night Tales' series in 2008.

On that album he covered the Livin Joy dance anthem 'Dreamer' with vocalist Nesreen Shah.

During the interview Alex Turner also spoke about being one of few guitar bands on the weekend's bill. He said:"It not like you make a plan want to play V Festival and save rock and roll, but it's cool that you get a guitar band, because not many play it."

"I'm sure a lot of people who saw us play in the arenas would see us here."

Owner of 'Amy Winehouse Foundation' website name refusing to give it up

Amy Winehouse's father Mitch has become embroiled in an argument with a Londonbusinessman over the domain name 'Amywinehousefoundation.com'.

According to The Sun, Martin McCann, who purchased the domain name hours after plans for the foundation were announced, is refusing to sell the name and has said he believes he is "not exploiting anything."

Asked why he had bought the web domain name and if he believed he was exploiting anything, McCann replied:
I'm not exploiting anything yet. I've just bought some domain names. Anybody could have. It only takes the click of a mouse. I'm not ashamed or embarrassed. Detach yourself from emotions and think business. He [Mitch Winehouse] is making every effort to hijack this charity to satiate his own needs for the charity. She's not the only Amy Winehouse in the world.



McCann also criticised Mitch for calling him a 'dickhead' on Twitter. He said of this: "I'm not the dickhead. The dickhead is sitting over there without the name in his possession." He has also said he will not sell the name until Mitch apologises to him.

The late singer's father revealed recently that they had been forced to start handing donations back after delays to the foundation being set up and this is sure to push the start date back even further.

Good Charlotte on Pukkelpop tragedy: 'It was horrible' - video

Good Charlotte have spoken out about the Pukkelpop festival tragedy.

The band who were at the festival the day the tragedy took place (August 18), spoke toNME at the V Festival, click above to watch the video.

Benji Madden said: "It was terrible, nobody knew what was going on at the time. It got worse as the day progressed."

Joel Madden added: "The storm was crazy but it was a five minute blast. Even backstage it was chaos and then waking up the next day to find that people died, no one wants that."

His brother continued: "People going to shows, it's the reason why we all have jobs you know? It's terrible, the last thing you want is people getting hurt at a show, all bands feel that. You don't want to think about a kid going to a show and not coming home. We definitely feel for all the kids who didn't make it home. It's really weird and sad."

'Ain't No Mountain High Enough' songwriter Nickolas Ashford dies aged 69

Nickolas Ashford, who co-wrote hit singles for the likes of Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin and Diana Ross, has died at the age of 69.

The songwriter passed away yesterday (August 22) at a New York hospital after a lengthy battle with throat cancer, reports BBC News.

Ashford, who worked as a co-writer alongside wife Valerie Simpson, began his career in 1966 when he and Simpson's song 'Let's Get Stoned' was made a hit by Ray Charles. Then they went on to compose hits across four decades, including Chaka Khan's 'I'm Every Woman', Diana Ross' first solo single 'Reach Out And Touch (Somebody's Hand)' and Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's 'Ain't No Mountain High Enough'.

Ashford and Simpson also had their own musical careers, with a string of albums across the '70s and '80s. They most famously produced the 1984 hit single 'Solid'. The pair were inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame in 2002.

Alicia Keys paid tribute to Ashford on Twitter, writing: "I'm so sad that he's gone. What a legacy of infectious music."

Beyonce to play Michael Jackson tribute concert via satellite link- up

Beyonce has announced that she will be appearing at the Michael Jackson tribute concert in Cardiff in October, but only via a satellite link-up.

According to the event's Facebook page, the singer will perform a cover of Jackson 5song. It does not state whether the link-up will be live or pre-recorded.

The announcement of the 'Run The World' singer's performance reads:
A unique, never-before-seen performance by Beyoncé of one of her favourite Jackson 5 songs will be shown at the concert. A lifelong Michael fan, Beyoncé really wanted to be involved in this tribute concert. Due to scheduling issues she can't be there in person, but this performance is not to be missed.

The singer joins Christina Aguilera, Leona Lewis, JLS, Cee Lo Green, Smokey Robinson and Craig David, who will all be physically performing in person at the gig. The event is scheduled for October 8 at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium.

Kiss have now been removed from the event's bill after pressure from fans and the singer's estate.

'Hound Dog' and 'Stand By Me' songwriter Jerry Leiber passes away aged 78

Jerry Leiber, the songwriter who penned global hits for the likes of Elvis Presley andThe Drifters, has passed away at the age of 78.

According to Yahoo News, Leiber passed away yesterday (August 22) as a result of heart failure in the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Members of his family were by his side.

Leiber, along with songwriting partner Mike Stoller, wrote over 200 songs during his career, which were covered by the likes of Elvis Presley, Buddy Holly, The Beatles,The Rolling Stones, James Brown, BB King, the Drifters and Peggy Lee. Elvisalone recorded over 20 songs written by Leiber and Stoller during his career.

Among the tracks they composed were 'Hound Dog' and 'Jailhouse Rock', which were both made famous by Elvis. They also penned 'Stand By Me' with Ben E King, 'Poison Ivy', which was a hit for The Coasters and 'Love Potion No.9', which The Cloverscovered to great success.

Mike Stoller paid tribute to his friend and writing partner in a statement. He said:
He was my friend, my buddy, my writing partner for 61 years. He had a way with words. There was nobody better. I'm going to miss him.

Red Hot Chili Peppers stream new album 'I'm With You' for free on iTunes

Red Hot Chili Peppers are streaming their new studio album 'I'm With You' online ahead of its formal release on Monday (August 29).

The Los Angeles quartet have made the whole album available to stream via iTunes. Click on the option to 'View on iTunes' and you can listen to the album in full on the pre-order page.

The band have also recently announced that they will be broadcasting a screening of them playing 'I'm With You' in its entirety at a live show. This will take place in cinemas across the UK on August 30.

'I'm With You' is the band's first album since 2006's double LP 'Stadium Arcadium' and is also the band's first with former Warpaint man Josh Klinghoffer on guitar. He replaced longtime player John Frusciante in 2009.

Red Hot Chili Peppers will undertake a UK and Ireland arena tour in November, which will take in nine shows, including two nights at London's O2 Arena.

Noel Gallagher adds three more UK dates to October tour - ticket details

Noel Gallagher has added three shows to his debut UK solo tour.

The ex-Oasis man, whose first solo tour sold out in just six minutes earlier this summer, has added two new shows in London and one in his home city of Manchester.

Gallagher will play Manchester's O2 Apollo on October 26 and has also added two shows in the UK capital in different venues. He will play the HMV Forum on October 30 and the Roundhouse on October 31.

'Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds', the singer's debut solo album, will be released on October 17 through his own Sour Mash Records.

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds will now play:

Dublin Olympia Theatre (October 23)
O2 Apollo Manchester (26)
Edinburgh Usher Hall (27)
HMV Hammersmith Apollo London (29)
HMV Forum London (30)
London Roundhouse (31)

Tickets for the shows on October 26, 30 and 31 go onsale on Thursday (August 25) at 9am (BST), the others are already sold out. To check the availability of Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds tickets and get all the latest listings, go to NME.COM/TICKETS now, or call 0871 230 1094.

Cornershop post new single 'Don't Shake It (Let It Free)' online – video

Cornershop have posted the video for their new single 'Don't Shake It (Let It Free)'online – scroll down and click to watch.

The band worked on the video for the track with the non-profit organisation Free Tibet, which campaigns to bring an end to the country's occupation by China and fights for rights on behalf of Tibetans.

The video features footage of the recent protests in Tibet which have coincided with the 60th anniversary of China's invasion of the country and are caused by belief that the government are suppressing Tibetan culture, with the BBC reporting that a Tibetan monk had burnt himself to death in Sichuan last week (August 15).

The release date of 'Don't Shake It (Let It Free)' is September 19. It is the final single to be taken from 'Cornershop And The Double 'O' Groove Of', the band's collaborative LP with Bubbley Kaur which was released earlier this year and was the follow-up to their 2009 effort 'Judy Sucks A Lemon For Breakfast'.

Carl Barat: reports of Libertines reunion are a 'complete fabrication'

Both Carl Barat and his management have dismissed tabloid reports that The Libertinesare reuniting for a UK tour.

It was reported in the Sunday Mirror that Pete Doherty and Carl Barat had reconciled and were on the brink of announcing a tour, after Barat tweeted a picture of him andDoherty together, but the prospect of a reunion tour has now been completely ruled out.

Barat posted a message on his Facebook page Facebook.com/carlbarat which reads: "So that "story" in the Mirror yesterday? Complete fabrication, folks."

NME also contacted management of the band, who said of the reports:
None of us are aware where this is all coming from beyond the fact the pair of them met for a tea and had a nice time. Carl posted a picture of them on Twitter and that's that really.

It continues:
Truth of the matter is there are NO plans whatsoever in the pipeline and both of them are committed to other things for the next year anyway. Carl leaves for Paris next month for rehersals on his opera which will keep him busy until next June and Peter is away on tour.

Hard-Fi criticised for 'misrepresenting' Staines after calling it a 'ghost town'

Hard-Fi have been heavily criticized by a councilor for their hometown of Staines after they said it was turning "into a ghost town."

In an interview with The Times, Hard-Fi frontman Richard Archer said of his hometown: "Staines is in a dark place at the moment, like a ghost town. A lot of the bars are closing, Habitat went into administration, Jane Norman, Thorntons. It's all starting to fall to bits."

However, local councillor Colin Davis said that the singer had got his facts wrong, telling BBC News:
Far from Staines being a 'ghost town', retail vacancy rates in Staines are running at 8 per cent which is less than half the national average. This has not increased to any great extent during the poor economic climate, in contrast to many other towns.

He also pointed out that the town had never had a branch of Habitat and that their branch of Thorntons wasn't closing either.

Alex Tribick, chairman of local pressure group Spelthorne Business Forum, also layed into the band, saying:
It's frustrating to see the town being misrepresented. These sorts of comments can give a wholly unfair and inaccurate picture of Staines, so it's only right that they should be swiftly corrected.

Hard-Fi have not responded to these comments as yet.

Lil Wayne rushed to hospital after skateboarding accident

Lil Wayne was rushed hospital last night (August 21) after injuring himself while skateboarding.

According to Fox News, the rapper, who is currently on a US tour, was admitted to hospital in St. Louis and received nine stitches to a nasty cut above his upper eye. Another patient told the network that a member of the rapper's entourage had said he had sustained the injuries while skateboarding.

The rapper also tweeted about his injuries, writing on Twitter.com/liltunechi: "Busted my fuggin head at the skate park! 9 stitches! Gnarly gash over my left eye!"

Lil Wayne has also revealed the tracklisting for his new album 'Tha Carter IV'. The album features 15 tracks, with Nas, Busta Rhymes, Drake and Rick Ross among the guest rappers.

The tracklisting for 'Tha Carter IV' is as follows:

'Intro'
'Blunt Blowin’
'MegaMan'
'6 Foot 7 Foot' feat. Cory Gunz
'Nightmares Of The Bottom'
'She Will' feat. Drake
'How To Hate' feat. T-Pain
'Interlude' feat. Tech N9Ne
'John' feat. Rick Ross
'Abortion'
'So Special' feat. John Legend
'How To Love'
'President Carter'
'It's Good' feat. Drake and Jadakiss
'Outro' feat. Bun B, Nas, Shyne and Busta Rhymes

Lostprophets reveal two collaborations with Labrinth

Lostprophets have revealed that they have worked with Labrinth on a two new tracks

The band, who have been working on their fifth album, said that they were "pumped" to be working with the producer who won a Brit Award for his writing and production work on Tinie Tempah's 'Pass Out'.

The band had previously said that they were collaborating with him, but guitarist Mike Lewis revealed to NME.COM, during a conversation at V Festival, that the band had worked on not one but two tracks with Labrinth, one for his album and one for theirs.

Lewis said:
Labrinth sent us a track he was doing on his album. He sent us a loop that we were working on for our record. We'll see what happens. It's pretty good, we're really pumped for it. It was cool to do something different. It was a different way of working for us.

Lewis added that the fifth album was "finished" but his bandmates didn't reveal much about its contents.

Bassist Stuart Richardson said: "We've only got working titles, we haven't got anything to get out there. We took a two week break to do some club shows (and) V Festival. This was a break after being solidly in 'album mode'."

Alice Cooper admits Rolling Stones influence on new single 'I'll Bite Your Face Off'

Alice Cooper has admitted that his new single 'I'll Bite Your Face Off' is a tribute to the early work of The Rolling Stones.

The singer revealed that the track – which is released on August 22 along with another new track, 'Caffeine', and is the first single to be taken from his new album 'Welcome 2 My Nightmare - was similar to Rolling Stones material from the mid 1960's, and insisted that he had no problem "showing people where I get my songs from".

He said:
This is my tip-of-the-hat to early Rolling Stones. Like in 1964/65 when their songs were very Chuck Berry orientated. They just feel so good, in the pocket. This song was begging to be in the live show. We've done it in four different continents now and no one had ever heard it. By the second chorus, the whole audience is singing'I'll Bite Your Face Off'. It's the perfect little three minute hit single.

He added:
I don't mind showing people where I get my songs from. I can guarantee there were times when major acts took an Alice Cooper song and said 'we want it to sound like that. Because I've heard it and recognised it. I see it as a compliment.

Cooper also spoke about 'Welcome 2 My Nightmare', which is a sequel to his 1975 album 'Welcome To My Nightmare' – his first record as a solo artist, and not as frontman of the Alice Cooper Group - and claimed it was more humorous than its predecessor.

He said:
This is Alice's nightmare 35 years later. Bob [Ezrin, producer] and I created this character and we know how to write for him. I play the part but we're not writing for me, we're writing for Alice. We kept the first 'Nightmare' album very personal to us, on this one we found more humour and we were more open.

The release date of Alice Cooper's new album 'Welcome 2 My Nightmare' is September 12.

'The Inbetweeners Movie' sets record opening for UK comedy

The Inbetweeners Movie has smashed the UK Box Office with first week sales of over £13 million.

The movie, the first big screen outing for the Channel 4/E4 comedy, has taken £13,196,422 from 455 cinemas, making it the biggest opening for a UK comedy ever.

The achievement knocked former biggest opener Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason off the top spot. Speaking about the success producer Chris Young said:
We are thrilled that 'The Inbetweeners Movie' is the biggest opening of all time for a UK comedy. We really want to thank all the cinema goers out there who have made the film such a huge success.

Capitalising on the strong opening day of £2.5m, the comedy didn't let up throughout the weekend, taking in approximately the same figure each subsequent day.

In an exclusive interview with NME.COM, the makers of the show said they thought much of The Inbetweeners success is down to the four young actors, with writer Iain Morris saying:
Those four men are four of the best comic actors of their generation, if not the four best. To get them all together in one show has been amazing.

You can read our take on The Inbetweeners Movie over at the Film Section, and watch our interview with the writers below.

Razorlight's Johnny Borrell: 'I quit music for four months'

Razorlight's Johnny Borrell has admitted that he quit music for four months.

Speaking at the V Festival, he told us that he wanted to get out of the music business following 2006's 'Razorlight'.

He said:
I went to live on an Hebridian island for four months with a population of 250 people. I wasn't doing that to be cool, I was doing that because I didn't want to be around anything to do with making music or anything like that.

Speaking about the band's 2008's album 'Slipway Fires', Borrell said that it was misunderstood at the time. He said: "It was the break up record in every way. I think a lot of people were trying to turn 'the break up record' into 'the party record', and that wasn't going to happen."

The singer recently admitted that the mood in the band's dressing room eventually became toxic.

Speaking about the tense relationship between band members he said:
The Razorlight dressing room has been a horrible place to be in the past and that’s not good for anyone. You all have to bring a good energy. I’ve always been positive – I just love being in a band and love making music. I always just wanted my band to get somewhere and as soon as we did I was pretty chilled.

Pixar movies about dinosaurs and the human brain on the way

Pixar studios have announced two more projects headed for the silver screen within the next few years.

At D23, the Disney company's very own film convention, the animation studio gave details of two films in active development.

While neither film has been named as yet, the projects do have brief synopses attached with the first movie, as reported by Empire, poses the question: 'What if that life-changing asteroid missed Earth? The hilarious tale depicts a world where dinosaurs never went extinct.'

The Untitled Pixar Movie About Dinosaurs is due out November 27, 2013, just a few months after Mike and Sulley return for Monster University, the sequel to Monsters Inc.

The second feature will be directed by Pete Docter, the man responsible for Up andMonsters Inc., and will tell the story of how are brain works and how we come up with ideas.

Currently known as the Untitled Pixar Movie That Takes You Inside The Mind, it will be due for release in May 2014.

Pixar's next film Brave, which tells the tale of a Scottish princess, is due for release in the UK on October 17, 2012. You can watch the trailer below.

Emma Stone film 'The Help' beats up 'Conan' to take top spot at US Box Office

The Help, a southern drama about life in sixties Mississippi, has become an unexpected summer Number One in America.

Opening last week to the tune of $26 million (£15.7 million), the film – which received glowing reviews and is already garnering Oscar talk – took a further $51 million (£30.9 million) to take the top spot from Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes.

Despite the rising star of Emma Stone, the film's success is somewhat unexpected in the midst of the summer blockbusters. The film stars Stone as a young writer who causes controversy in her small Southern town by interviewing African American women who have lived their lives working as housekeepers for rich, white families.

Elsewhere in the US charts, the reboot ofConan The Barbarian took a disappointing estimate of $10m (£6m) opening in fourth spot two places ahead of another remake,Fright Night starring Colin Farrell and former Dr. Who, David Tennant.

Spy Kids 4 beat both to open third with a below expectations $12 million (£7.2 million).

The adaptation of the David Nicholls best seller One Day, starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess also opened poorly, with a predicted weekend total of $5.1 million (£3.1 million).

The Help is due for release in the UK on October 28.

For more box office statistics visit BoxOfficeMojo.

Kaiser Chiefs: 'We predicted the riots'

Kaiser Chiefs have said that they predicted the riots in the UK.

Speaking to NME.COM at the V Festival, lead guitarist Andrew 'Whitey' White said that their lyrics foretold of the civil unrest around the country, click above the watch the clip.

In the video which can be seen above, White said: "It's funny, if you listen to our lyrics and give it a fucking chance, we did predict this. We sing about culture and the state of city centres and the state of society for five years."

Singer Ricky Wilson added: "I was reading an article about a moaning old rock star who was saying that no one writes about culture anymore and I was thinking 'who are you listening to?'"

Wilson said that the band had flown back from Australia and stayed up watching the rolling news of the riots. "It was pretty shocking stuff. The next day we had a day off (so) we had a bit of a look round and clean up with brooms."

Clive Barker slams new 'Hellraiser' film

The creator of the horror franchise Hellraiser has lambasted the latest instalment in the series and distanced himself from it completely. Posting on his Twitter page Barker said:
Hello, my friends. I want to put on record that the flick out there using the word Hellraiser IS NO FUCKIN' CHILD OF MINE! I have NOTHING to do with the fuckin' thing. If they claim its from the mind of Clive Barker, it's a lie. It's not even from my butt-hole.

As reported by Empire, the new film, Hellraiser: Revelations, was a 'stopgap release' to prevent the lapse of the series rights for film company Dimension.

The new film, due for a limited theatrical run in the US, is the ninth movie in the series that began in 1987.

The English horror and fantasy writer has only had a credited hand in four of the nine films in the franchise, directing the first and producing the first three sequels.

It has been reported that Clive Barker will be back on board in some capacity for next year's intended reboot to be made by Drive Angry's Patrick Lussier.

Hellraiser: Revelations is due for release in America on September 2, you can watch the trailer below. No UK release date has been announced.

'The Inbetweeners' success down to 'four best comic actors of their generation' - video

In an exclusive interview with NME.COM, the writers of The Inbetweeners have spoken about why they think the comedy has been so successful. In the video, which you can watch above, Iain Morris and Damon Beesley lay much of the kudos at the feet of the four main actors. Morris said of Simon Bird, James Buckley, Blake Harrison and Joe Thomas:
Those four men are four of the best comic actors of their generation, if not the four best. To get them all together in one show has been amazing.

The new film, out last Wednesday (August 17) tells the story of the four friends, Will, Simon, Jay and Neil, taking a lads holiday to Malia, Crete.

In the exclusive interview the creators of the show went on to say how they came to the conclusion that a film would be the best step forward for all involved. As Iain Morrisexplained:
We always wanted to make a film, we always wanted to make a teen film. We love those actors, we love those characters. It felt like the right thing to do.

The Inbetweeners Movie took over £2.5 million on its opening day and brought in a further £10m over the weekend, earning a staggering opening box office of £12.5million.

Glasvegas: 'There's no need for us to have a label right now' - video

Glasvegas have spoken for the first time about being dropped from Columbia Records.

Speaking to NME backstage at V Festival in a video interview which you can see at the top of your screen, guitarist Rab Allan said that the band weren't concerned afterColumbia let them go earlier this year, saying that they didn't "need a label right now", but had received plenty of offers from other record companies. He also dismissed rumours that the band were on the verge of splitting up.

He said:
We're definitely not breaking up. We're thinking about what we want to do, which is probably why people think we're breaking up. People have come in about signing us, but there's no need for us to have a label right now, James [Allan] is writing the third album and when its ready we'll probably sign. The people who want to sign us will still be there in four months time.

Asked if the band would go it alone without the support of a label in the future, Allanreplied:
I think we need the support of a label, we were lucky because our label gave us support so we now don't need a label, but we're quite lazy and we don't like doing things ourselves, so we'll probably still use one. The label were great for some things and they were awful for some things.

He also revealed that the band would be recording a U2 cover this week for a special reissue of the band's classic album 'Achtung Baby'.

Glasvegas endured a difficult weekend at V Festival. They ended their set early on both sites, leaving the stage after only four songs at Hylands Park after a member of the crowd threw bottles and ending after only six songs at Weston Park.

Mitch Winehouse forced to return donations made to the Amy Winehouse Foundation

Mitch Winehouse has been forced to return donations made to the foundation set up to honour Amy Winehouse as he does not own the rights or have a bank account in the name of 'The Amy Winehouse Foundation'.

The late singer's father took to Twitter to tell people that he was having to return cheques he had been sent to the foundation as his solicitors worked on resolving the situation.

Mitch revealed last week (August 19) that another person had "pinched" the name of the 'Amy Winehouse Foundation' before he had been able to register it, which had forced him "to hold off" on his plans.



Speaking over the weekend (August 20) onTwitter, he said:
Instead of concentrating on allocating funding I am having to send cheques back cos we don't haven't got bank ac in that name.



He went on to add:
Our solicitors are all over this, but it takes time. Meanwhile we can't get on with foundation.



Mitch also claimed that the person who had registered the rights to the name was offering to sell it on a website, and had been trying to get in touch with Winehouse's former husband Blake Fielder-Civil, adding:


He was also trying to get in touch with Blake to set up the foundation. Blake? Can you imagine?



An investigation into Winehouse's death is still ongoing, with more results expected in the autumn after an initial autopsy with unable to establish a cause of death.

Her goddaughter Dionne Bromfield joined Mark Ronson and Lady Gaga in paying her own tribute to the singer at V Festival this weekend.

Reading and Leeds Festivals stage times revealed

The stage times for this weekend's Reading And Leeds Festivals have been revealed.

The event, which takes place from August 26 - 28, will be headlined by My Chemical Romance, Muse and a co-headline effort from Pulp and The Strokes.

See NME.COM/festivals/reading-and-leeds, Readingfestival.com andLeedsfestival.com for more information.

Reading on Friday August 26/ Leeds on Saturday August 27

Main Stage

22:00 My Chemical Romance
20:10 Thirty Seconds To Mars
18:35 The Offspring
17:20 Deftones
16:10 Rise Against
15:05 Bring Me The Horizon
14:00 New Found Glory
12:55 The Blackout
12:00 Architects

NME/Radio 1 Stage

22:30 Beady Eye
21:10 White Lies
19:55 Noah & The Whale
18:45 The Vaccines
17:40 Metronomy
16:35 Patrick Wolf
15:30 The Naked And Famous
14:30 Mona
13:35 Miles Kane
12:45 Frankie & The Heartstrings
12:00 Pulled Apart By Horses

Dance Stage

22:15 Uncle Sounds
21:10 SBTRKT (DJ Set)
19:50 Simian Mobile Disco
18:45 Nero (DJ Set)
17:35 Sub Focus
16:30 Devlin
15:25 Crystal Fighters
14:20 Mount Kimbie
13:15 Does It Offend You, Yeah?
12:15 D/R/U/G/S

Festival Republic Stage

22:30 The Horrors
21:20 Digitalism
20:15 Tom Vek
19:15 White Denim
18:15 Anna Calvi
17:25 The Antlers
16:35 Foster The People
15:45 Cerebal Ballzy
15:00 Dry The River
14:15 Royal Bangs
13:30 The Computers
12:45 Islet
12:00 Mini Mansions
11:20 Cherri Bomb

BBC Introducing Stage

20:40 General Fiasco
19:55 Don Broco
19:10 Milk Maid
17:40 These Furrows
16:55 Kirk Spencer
16:10 Clock Opera
15:25 The Boy Wonders
14:40 A Genuine Freakshow
13:55 The Minutes
13:10 The Bronze Medal
12:25 Circles
11:40 Heart-Ships

Alternative Stage

17:55 Henry Rollins
17:25 The Petebox
15:45 Al Pitcher
15:15 Stephen Williams
14:00 Hypnotist Hugh Lennon
12:45 Saul Williams
12:20 Dizraeli
12:00 Brigitte Aphrodite

Reading on Saturday August 27/ Leeds on Sunday August 28

Main Stage

22:15 The Strokes*
20:15 Pulp*
18:45 The National
17:25 Jimmy Eat World
16.05 Madness
14.55 Two Door Cinema Club
13.50 Seasick Steve
12.55 The Pigeon Detectives
12:00 The Joy Formidable

*The Strokes will play second headline at Leeds, with Pulp in the later slot

NME/Radio 1 Stage

22:00 Jane's Addiction
20:30 Crystal Castles
19:15 Bombay Bicycle Club
18:10 Glassjaw
17:05 Everything Everything
16:00 The Kills
14:55 OFWGKTA*
13:50 Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
12:50 Yuck
12:00 Funeral Party

*Not appearing at Leeds Festival

The Lock Up Stage

22:30 The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
21:10 The King Blues
20:00 The Bronx
18:55 Capdown
17:50 Leftover Crack
16:45 Comeback Kid
15:50 Boysetsfire
15:00 Street Dogs
14:15 Letlive.
13:30 Teenage Bottlerocket
12:45 Title Fight
12:00 Sharks

Festival Republic Stage

22:30 The Midnight Beast
21:20 Rival Schools
20:15 And So I Watch You From Afar
19:15 Little Roy
18:15 Smith Westerns
17:25 Cloud Control
16:35 Cults
15:45 Mariachi El Bronx
15:00 Grouplove
14:15 Tribes
13:30 Big Deal
12:45 She Keeps Bees
12:05 Yellowire
11:30 The Coopers

BBC Introducing Stage

20:40 Fixers
19:55 Discopolis
19:10 Spector
18:25 Daughter
17:40 Tomahawks For Targets
16:55 Anguish Sandwich
16:10 Black Diamond Bay
15:25 The Kill Van Kulls
13:55 Rainy Boy Sleep
13:10 Castrovalva
12:25 The Simon Pollard Band
11:40 Arthus Rigby & The Baskervilles

Alternative Stage

17:30 Lee Nelson
17:00 Rob Rouse
16:00 Doc Brown
15:30 Paul Chowdhry
15:00 Michael Fabbri
14:00 Tom Stade
13:30 Late Night Gimp Fight
13:00 Daniel Sloss
11:00 Mark Thomas

Reading on Sunday August 28/ Leeds on Friday August 26

Main Stage

21:30 Muse
19:50 Elbow
18:35 Interpol
17:20 Friendly Fires
16:15 Enter Shikari
15:10 The View
14:05 Frank Turner
13:00 Taking Back Sunday
12:00 We Are The Ocean

NME/Radio 1 Stage

22:00 2manydjs
20:20 The Streets
19:00 Death From Above 1979
17:50 Panic! At The Disco
16:45 Warpaint
15:40 Chapel Club
14:35 Cage The Elephant
13:40 Best Coast
12:45 Fucked Up
12:00 Dananananaykroyd

The Lock Up Stage

22:30 Descendents
21:10 Flogging Molly
20:00 Special Guests
18:55 Face To Face
17:50 Hot Water Music
16:45 Bedouin Soundclash
15:50 Off!
15:00 The Black Pacific
14:15 The Menzingers
13:30 Your Demise
12:45 Spy Catcher
12:00 Fighting Fiction

Festival Republic Stage

22:30 Peter Doherty

21:20 Viva Brother
20:15 Ed Sheeran
19:15 Young Legionnaire
18:15 Cocknbullkid
17:25 Twin Atlantic
16:35 Fight Like Apes
15:45 Benjamin Francis Leftwich
15:00 Little Comets
14:15 Dutch Uncles
13:30 Nightbox
12:45 Flats
12:05 Romance
11:30 Our Fold

BBC Introducing Stage

20:40 Rizzle Kicks
19:55 Cuba Cuba
19:10 The Winchell Riots
18:25 Sam Sure & Giacomo
17:40 Murkage
16:55 Ham Sandwich
16:10 Courage Have Courage
14:40 Rae Morris
13:55 Save Your Breath
13:10 Funeral Suits
11:40 The Mexanines
12:25 Original Rudeboys

Alternative Stage

18:25 Nirvana 92 Live At Reading Screening
17:30 Rubberbandits
17:00 Tom Wrigglesworth
16:30 Marlon Davis
15:30 Tim Minchin
15:00 Jarred Christmas
14:30 Steve Hughes
14:00 Mixtape and Disco
13:30 Tom Deacon
13:00 Seann Walsh
12:30 Josh Widdicombe
11:30 Popcorn Comedy

'Amy Winehouse Dead' named most searched Google term of the summer

The death of singer Amy Winehouse was the most searched for phrase on search engine giant Google this summer.

When online rumours that the singer had died began it caused frenzy of googling, with 'Amy Winehouse dead' ultimately becoming the most searched term of the summer. She was sadly found dead last month aged 27.

News of the 'Back To Black' singer's death came above the search engine's own new service 'Google+' in the tally, as well as Harry Potter spinoff website Pottermore' and the tragic death of Jackass actor Ryan Dunn.

Cheryl Cole was the only other musician in the list, coming in at Number Nine. She was sandwiched in between scandal hit footballer Ryan Giggs and his alleged former loverImogen Thomas, who were at Number Eight and Ten respectively.

An investigation into Winehouse's death is still ongoing, with more results expected in the autumn after an initial autopsy with unable to establish a cause of death.

Her goddaughter Dionne Bromfield joined Mark Ronson and Lady Gaga in paying her own tribute to the singer at V Festival this weekend.

Marina And The Diamonds post comeback video for new single 'Radioactive'

Marina And The Diamonds have posted the video for their new single 'Radioactive'online.

The track, which has a release date of October 3, will serve as a stop gap before the second album from Marina Diamandis, which is set for release in early 2012. You can hear the track at the bottom of the page.

Speaking about the song, Diamandis claimed that her approach to songwriting had "changed completely" and that her new material was more "streamlined" and "minimalistic".

She said:
I wrote 'Radioactive' in New York in the middle of a heat wave. Introduced to a glittering new nightlife, I fell in love with New York; it has this magic, fizzing white energy that no other city in the world has. I felt happy and was inspired to write a song that felt light and euphoric, a more streamlined, minimalistic style of songwriting.

She added:
I have changed my approach to songwriting completely, and as a result, written songs that I would never have written on my on (i.e on my shit Argos keyboard alone in my bedroom in London).

The singer also dropped another hint that her new album would be called 'Electra Heart', after the phrase was also included in thevideo teaser for the LP that was posted online earlier this month.

Diamandis said:
I've been working hard on my new album for a year and a half and hope'Radioactive' can tide you over until it's ready… (Argos still features on some of the songs). I'd love to introduce you all to something soon. An Ancient Greek tragedy, old Hollywood fantasy… 'Electra Heart'. M x x

My Chemical Romance set to return to the studio in the autumn

My Chemical Romance have reportedly said that they will be returning to the studio in the autumn to begin work on their fifth album.

According to Absolute Punk and various online news reports, the New Jersey rockers frontman Gerard Way said from the stage in Chicago on Saturday night (August 20) that the band wouldn't be back for some time as they were heading to the studio as soon as they finish with their touring commitments.

The band are currently on a US tour with Blink-182 and headline Reading And Leeds Festivals next weekend.

They had previously indicated that their double bill of festival shows were likely to be their final UK commitments in promoting their fourth studio album 'Danger Days (The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys)' and it appears it will be their final commitment for the whole cycle.

You can watch NME's countdown of the ten best My Chemical Romance tracks at by scrolling up to the bottom of the page and clicking.

What's The Best My Chemical Romance Track? - Vote Now!

Booking Your Wedding DJ

Finding a wedding DJ for your big day can be time consuming and a challenge, but take a look online and you'll find there are all kinds of wedding entertainers out there just waiting for you to book them! Choosing the perfect one from the wide choice you're faced with is the next task so take a quick look at the tips below for some guidance.

Any established and professional DJ for wedding will have their own website where videos and photos of them can be viewed. This is much more convenient and quicker than having to go along to watch them play live or arranging meetings to get a sense of their style. Just watch a few videos by different DJs and draw yourself up a short list of the ones you like.

Before making any final decision you should always take a look at what past clients have said about entertainers, this feedback can be found on their websites and is invaluable in helping you make up your mind. Also arrange to meet up with them so you can see if you get on, a good entertainer will have an easy-going sense of humour and be friendly and easy to talk to. Some also offer you the ability to plan your reception online with an online planner that allows you to build music lists, select songs and ask for particular requests. Compile your own playlist via the website, fill in basic details and get an instant online quote.

Christmas Party Theme Ideas

Whilst Christmas itself is often enough of a theme for any seasonal party, having a different approach is a great way to break away from tradition and do something new, fun and interesting for your event. From the invitations through to costumes and fancy dress down to the music and food, your chosen theme can be carried on throughout the whole party planning process.

• Disco 70's themed Christmas party A 70's inspired party is all about the clothes and the music, from the giant bell-bottom flairs to the Saturday Night Fever dance floor. Encourage guests with fancy dress ideas of disco platform shoes or knee high boots, loud colourful trousers with velvet, velour or hippy style fringed suede. Set up a mirrored disco ball above the dance floor and position lighting to reflect off the ball for maximum effect, strategically placing lava lamps in darker corners. For full authenticity, go for classic drinks of the era such as Martini, Chinzano or all time favourites like piña colada's and tequila sunrise. It almost goes without saying, music is key to any disco themed party and Leo Sayer's "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing", the Bee Gees "Night Fever" and Abba's "Dancing Queen" should get guests on the dance floor.