Chairlift will leave us dangling

Chairlift doing their bit to make Christmas a little less jolly:

pic.twitter.com/qu699dItfE

— CHAIRLIFT (@Chairlifted) December 16, 2016

Franz Ferdinand: Walk away, walk away

Nick McCarthy, who was with Franz Ferdinand before anyone had heard of them, and was still with them now people don't remember them, has quit the band. There was an official statement on Facebook, which explained Nick wanted to spend more time with his family.

The conclusion was amusing:

We'd love to say this is a result of personal or musical differences, but it's not. Those differences are what we formed the band around in the first place.

One Direction split

The news, of course, has rumbled through the day: One Direction have announced they're going to sort-of split, or at least go on hiatus, to allow the individual members to experiment with a solo career and find out how it feels to get a number 29 chart hit for a few months.

Someone's making a nice quid or two out of it, though:

Unscrupulous sellers are cashing in on the shock announcement from the group, which includes Wolverhampton-born Liam Payne and Harry Styles, from Redditch.

The Barclaycard Arena is already a complete sell out for Saturday October 10 and the following two nights have just a few tickets left, 1D fans will have to scramble to be among the Birmingham crowds.

Ticket prices are more than three times the price of the original face value tickets, with users of the popular ticket selling site StubHub.com selling tickets for prices of up to £1,298.

People prepared to pay over a grand to see them must be some sort of mega-fan, although not so mega that they were that arsed about getting tickets when they only cost fifty quid.

Alice Glass isn't happy

Alice Glass has been being upset on Twitter at the idea of Ethan Kath continuing Crystal Castles without her. NME storified the tweets:

Kath, for his part, describes Glass as "my former vocalist":

"I wish my former vocalist the best of luck in her future endeavors. I think it can be empowering for her to be in charge of her own project. It should be rewarding for her considering she didn't appear on Crystal Castles' best known songs, (she's not on 'Untrust Us'. 'Not In Love', 'Vanished', 'Crimewave', 'Vietnam', 'Magic Spells', 'Knights', 'Air War', 'Leni', 'Lovers Who Uncover', 'Violent Youth', 'Reckless', 'Year of Silence', 'Intimate', '1991', 'Good Time', 'Violent Dreams' etc.). People often gave her credit for my lyrics and that was fine, I didn't care."

Now, even though true, that's a pretty shitty statement. It reeks of someone in an atrophying domestic relationship listing petty items to try and prove something that doesn't matter: "when it rained that time and the bathroom leaked, I was the one who rigged the saucepans to catch the drips. And it was always me who had to ring the pizza place. And if it wasn't for me the cats would never have been wormed ever, would they?"

It seems like even Kath realised what he sounded like, because he later revised this statement:

"I wish my former vocalist the best of luck in her future endeavors. I think it can be empowering for her to be in charge of her own project. It should be rewarding for her."

You can still hear the muttering "last summer I was the only one who even seemed bothered about flea collars" underneath, but it's a lot less douchey.

How quickly can Zayn be photoshopped out of One Direction history

Tour posters? He's gone already. "Perfume" ads? Ironically still hanging about like a bad smell.

Black Sabbath say goodbye to farewell gig

Black Sabbath's supposed farewell gig at Ozzfest in Japan has been dropped amidst confusion about whether they were going to play their last gig there at all.

Instead of Sabbath, fans will now see Ozzy Osbourne and some different blokes. Which is pretty much the same thing.

Presumably there will be another farewell in a different place and time, but... nobody really seems to know what's going on. Probably as a tribute to Ozzy.

No year's time

Noah And The Whale have split.

The Guardian effectively sums up their career as having started on the edges, they drove into the middle of the road and disappeared.

There's a response to Zayn Malik quitting you didn't expect

You might have thought what with the struggle Universal Credit is proving to roll out, the Department of Work And Pensions might have been too busy to pass comment on boyband splits.

You'd be wrong:

Hi @zaynmalik, heard your news. Around 735,000 vacancies available at any time. Get job seeking tips here: http://t.co/7MxPeMGLrA #ZaynMalik

— DWP Press Office (@dwppressoffice) March 25, 2015

I think Zayn should heed this tweet. Given the way the DWP slap sanctions on people at the merest opportunity, ignoring that Tweet will probably leave Zayn unable to draw down his pension in the future.

Placebo cuts Forrest

Placebo have - somewhat close-by the upcoming UK tour - parted ways with Steve Forrest, who has been drumming with them since 2008.

It's an amicable split (they say) and he's going to pursue his own musical projects (he reckons); the drum stool will now be occupied by Matt Lunn, late of Colour Of Fire.

The Black Crowes split

Upsetting news for people who never got out of 1996: The Black Crowes have split up. Guitarist Rich Robinson broke the news:

"It is with great disappointment and regret that after having the privilege of writing and performing the music of the Black Crowes over the last 24 years, I find myself in the position of saying that the band has broken up," Robinson said in a statement.

image: http://nme.assets.ipccdn.co.uk/images/article/1991TheCrowes_Getty85238532160115.jpg
"I hold my time with the Black Crowes with the utmost respect and sincerest appreciation. It is a huge swath of my life's body of work. I couldn't be more proud of what we accomplished and deeply moved by the relationships people created and maintained with my music.

"That alone is the greatest honor of being a musician. I love my brother and respect his talent, but his present demand that I must give up my equal share of the band and that our drummer for 28 years and original partner, Steve Gorman, relinquish 100 percent of his share, reducing him to a salaried employee, is not something I could agree to."

Financial markets are unaffected by the news; David Cameron claims this would never have happened if we just let him read everyone's emails.

The end of a long, historical mistake

Oh, we have waited for this moment:

Beady Eye are no longer. Thanks for all your support. LGx

— Liam Gallagher (@liamgallagher) October 25, 2014

Can it really be true? Can we get a second source?

Thanks to all the Beady Eye fans. I had a blast. See you on the other side. Big Love Andy B X

— Andy Bell (@Andybebop) October 25, 2014

Beady Eye formed when the leftovers of Oasis weren't thrown away quickly enough and started to become semi-sentient.

The hope is that Liam is now going to throw himself into his expensive trouser shops; the fear is that decks are being cleared to allow Oasis fans to be shaken down for a few quid on a reunion tour.

Crystal Castles split. Maybe.

So it's all over for Crystal Castles, then:

I am leaving Crystal Castles.

— ALICE GLASS (@ALICEGLASS) October 8, 2014

My art and my self-expression in any form has always been an attempt towards sincerity, honesty, and empathy for others.

— ALICE GLASS (@ALICEGLASS) October 8, 2014

For a multitude of reasons both professional and personal I no longer feel that this is possible within CC.

— ALICE GLASS (@ALICEGLASS) October 8, 2014

Although this is the end of the band, I hope my fans will embrace me as a solo artist in the same way they have embraced Crystal Castles.

— ALICE GLASS (@ALICEGLASS) October 8, 2014

The band last played together on October 5th, 2013, so it's almost as if Glass has invoked some sort of 'if you're on the run for a year and a day you're a free person' clause.

It's too bad they've split; what's worse is that Crystal Castles might struggle on without Alice:

Speaking to NME the duo's manager commented: "There will be twists and turns ahead for Crystal Castles, I wouldn't bury the dead just yet!"

Glass' comments don't sound like she's biddable for a return; the management's line seems to be that she's replaceable. Which probably tells you as much as you need to know about the split.

Take That split, a bit

It's turned out that Jason Orange is leaving Take That, the tax-avoidance scheme created by Gary Barlow and some accountants.

Orange issued a statement earlier today revealing that he found out he didn't really exist, and that he was created by Barlow "in order to claim child benefit. In light of this discovery, I must leave the band."

Talking to the media, Barlow was effusive in his farewell to Orange, praising what he'd brought to the band - "without Jeremy... Jason, Jason, we'd have... uh... oh, yeah, when we did that advert for Marks And Spencers, we'd not have been able to show off quite so many suits at the same time. And... well, we'd not have been able to call our album The Eight Legged Groove Machine. Although that wasn't us. But if it had have been, that wouldn't have been possible without James. Jeremy. Jason." Barlow concluded the statement by getting all present to sign a form allowing him to recoup the cost of providing Luncheon Vouchers for all of them.

Here's the actual statements:

‘I want to start by saying how proud I am of what we have achieved together over the years. However, at a band meeting last week I confirmed to Mark, Gary and Howard that I do not wish to commit to recording and promoting a new album. I have spent some of the best years of my life with Take That and I’d like to thank everyone who has been a part of my journey, including my band mates, who I feel are like brothers to me. Most especially my gratitude goes to all of the good and kind, beautiful and ever-loyal fans of the band, without whom none of this could have been possible.Thank you.’

‘At the end of The Progress Tour I began to question whether it might be the right time for me to not continue on with Take That. At the start of this year and with my full knowledge and blessing the guys began writing new material. There have been no fallings out, only a decision on my part that I no longer wish to do this. I know how much Mark, Gary and Howard enjoy writing and making music, and they know that they have my full support and encouragement to continue on with what is to be another chapter for the band.’ - Jason Orange

‘This is a sad day for us. Jason leaving is a huge loss both professionally and even more so personally. We first became aware of Jason’s reservations a couple of years ago but had hoped that by giving him the desired time and space he may begin to feel differently. This has not been the case and we now have to accept and fully respect his decision which we know hasn’t been an easy one. Jason’s energy and belief in what this band could achieve has made it what it is today, and we’ll forever be grateful for his enthusiasm, dedication and inspiration over the years.’ - Mark, Gary and Howard

Before popping that in the fax machine, Gary rang Mark and asked "are we sure that we've got the right one who's going, and it's not meant to be Jason commenting on Howard's departure?"

Darkside falls

Darkside are going on hiatus, says the 405:

They took to Twitter to share the news, saying "darkside is coming to an end, for now,” before sharing information for their final shows. They'll be performing at the Masonic Temple in Brooklyn on 12 September and they'll be at the sold out FYF Fest this weekend in Los Angeles.

They dropped off two songs at the same time:

The Civil Wars is over

Given they've been on hiatus for a couple of years, the final act of The Civil Wars will come as little surprise:

The Civil Wars—made up of duo partners Joy Williams and John Paul White—have regretfully decided to permanently part ways. The difficult decision ends a tumultuous period for the four-time Grammy Award-winning band, who has been on indefinite hiatus since late 2012.

As a thank you gift and farewell, the band is offering a download of their rendition of “You Are My Sunshine.” Recorded in 2010, the track was originally released in 2011 as a b-side to the band’s limited edition Barton Hollow 7” vinyl. This is the first time the song has been available digitally in the U.S.

Both Joy and John Paul have added their personal words on disbanding here below.

Joy Williams comments, “I am saddened and disappointed by the ending of this duo, to say the very least. JP is a tremendous musician, and I will always be grateful for the music we were able to create together.

I sincerely hope that ‘You Are My Sunshine’ will be accepted as a token of my gratitude for every single person that has supported our duo throughout the years. I’m so thankful and my heart is full.

Looking ahead, I’m excited to share the music that I am writing and recording in the midst of this difficult transition. I’ve loved being back in the studio, and have missed performing live. I look forward to seeing you soon.”

John Paul adds, “I would like to express sincere thanks to all who were a part of the arc of The Civil Wars—from the beginning, to the end, and all points in between. My deep appreciation goes out to all who supported, disseminated, and enjoyed the music. Whatever shape or form the next chapter takes, thanks for being a large part of this one.”

Full statement and "You Are My Sunshine" download at http://thecivilwars.com/

I'm not sure you can be both tumultuous and on hiatus at the same time, but somehow they managed it.

Death by napkins: Death grips Death Grips

Death Grips have decided they're at their best, and that's a good point to stop:

As the napkin says, there's still a double album to come. But then that will be it.

Unless there's a second announcement scrawled on the back of a McDonalds carry-out bag we've missed, of course.

Stephen Pearcy: Rat leaves sinking RATT

All is not happy in the RATT camp, and founder member Stephen Pearcy has had enough:

"After 30 years creating the band RATT and losing a real brother, Robbin [Crosby, late RATT guitarist], it's time that I personally part ways with the band.

"I am officially done with having anything to do with them due to the constant turmoil, unresolved business, personal attacks/threats in the public forum, and most of all, the disrespect to the fans.

"I'm very content and proud of the legacy and the music I’ve created. This music will live well beyond any of our lifetimes.

"I owe no one anything but a huge heartfelt thank you for coming to the party for the last 30 years.

"With much respect, life goes on and the music I created will continue to be heard for years to come despite the dark clouds that have lingered for far too long.

"I will personally continue to make music and perform live shows."

Remaining RATT member Bobby Blotzer has sighed, rolled his eyes and said "oh, he's off again, is he?":

"To our/my RATT fans and friends... I will say to you guys, I am sorry that I brought you guys into our personal world and turbulation.

"I've been so personally driven to a breaking point with our band being held hostage every year that I've kind of been snapping.

"I wish we were still all four together and doing business as great as we have been doing. Especially last year. This is why it's so nonsensical to me to have this disruption in a business we've built for the last 33 years.

"Reality sits at, Stephen and I have gotten along since his return in '07. Aside from the fact that he basically quits every year. It's been hard to deal with.

"I feel bad that I might have put a dividing line out here, and for that I'm feeling bad about and I, to a certain level, feel the need to apologize to YOU, guys. My words were true, but the words should have stayed in my mind. And again, I state that I was only kidding about this picture thing with Steve, dumb joke.

"You ever done that? Exactly.

"When this news popped today, my phone was blowing up all day while I was trying to enjoy an afternoon with friends and I just lost it. I was going to come home and tear into that release line by line. I read your thoughts and realized that it's time to shut the fuck up. As hard as that feels, because we, the four other guys in this band, did nothing to merit this whole behavior from Stephen.

"Thanks for understanding. You guys know I, we love you so much. RATT is my life and I'll live and die fighting for the mothership.

"My Facebook is going bye-bye here soon. So, look to see what happens in a short time...

"RATT is bigger than the sum of the parts!"

I'm not entirely convinced that Ratt even has enough parts to sum up right now, but still: good news for Ratt fans that the band goes on. Probably.

(You can hear every Ratt fan sighing at the way they were nearly free, but have been dragged back into the band for another go-round.)

What the pop papers said: Bernard Butler

We find ourselves at the end of a slightly underwhelming BBC-mandated 20th Anniversary of Britpop (marking the point when Johnny from Menswear first said the words '... and if we bung a picture of, I dunno, a Mini or Ena Sharples on the sleeve, I reckon it's money in the bank').

BBC Four, rather than showing the old compilation of Britpop performances at the BBC with the introduction from Damon Albarn, edited a new set of Britpop performances together, and slapped the old Damon Albarn intro on the front. Still: Pulp meeting Trev and Simon.

In the end, though, it was just a further coagulation of the Britpop narrative: John Humphrys in front of the Blur and Oasis logos, announcing a state of permanent warfare, forever.

Which is a pity, as by now you'd hope they'd be finding space to tell some of the more interesting stories of the time.

Like the acrimonious Suede split - which did get touched on, accidentally, on one of those late-night repeats from the Evening Session this week.

It's worth spending a little bit of time digging back into that awkward period. John Mulvey's interview with Bernard Butler from the NME in 1998 gives just a flavour of what went wrong:

It was around this time, probably, when Bernard starting doubting himself. Even today, you can see a potent and battling combination of confidence and shyness in his character: sure of his own gifts, but reluctant to express himself. Surrounded by people telling him he was wrong when he wanted to expand the band's musical parameters, struggling with a producer (Ed Buller) who he disagreed with over everything, alienated from a band he had nothing in common with something had to crack... Him.

"I don't necessarily think that a nice personality makes a nice record. There's a lot of bastards around that make great records, and that's the one thing that kept me going after Suede, because they trashed me so much personally, saying so much bullshit.

"It was really cowardly to do it when they knew I wouldn't answer back. They knew I'd flip and I did, I pissed off to France 'cos I couldn't hack it. I cried a lot, because it really hurt. I've got a lot of good memories of Brett and it really f--ked me up that I never said goodbye to Simon. The last time I was with Simon we were getting stoned, having a nice time, having a laugh like we always did. Next minute he's saying I should have my head chopped off or something, I should be put down like a dog."

"But I just said to myself, 'They'll get through it, just don't answer back'. You can't answer back when someone's calling you a wanker. What do you say? 'I'm not a wanker! I'm alright!'"

Bernard, bravely, rose above it all, and always carried that regret that he never got to say goodbye to Simon. Can you explain some more about how you rose above it, and - I dunno - maybe try to show Simon he was wrong to be so rude about you, Bernard?

[Were you] a control freak?

"No. I wasn't a control freak and never have been."

If you were, you wouldn't have Ed Buller produce the records?

"Right. Exactly. I tried to stop him making 'Stay Together' and then I tried to stop him making 'Dog Man Star'. No-one would let me. So, at the end of the day, that's why I left. There were lots of bad vibes between me and Brett and stuff, but they'd always been there. He was going off in one direction, shooting off as this star, and I was shooting off as this songwriter somewhere else. Unfortunately we were going totally the wrong way.

"At the end of the day, I was with the wrong people: I had the wrong manger, the wrong record company, the wrong road crew, the wrong band... I didn't think the drummer was very good, can you imagine what that was like? Simon Gilbert, the rock star drummer in Suede, I think is very average. Mat Osman: he's not a great bass player, he should've been Jeremy Paxman, he should've been reading the news. He should never have been a bass player 'cos he's just a theorist.

"Those are my biggest problems: standing there with a whole set of ideas about what I wanted the record to sound like and I wasn't allowed to say them. I'd have this great idea about what the hi-hat should do in bar four, but if I said it I'd piss off the drummer. There were times when I remember Simon taking his drums and throwing them down the stairs saying, 'I'm not being told how to play the drums'.

Oddly, Bernard would be later surprised to discover that Simon said some negative things about him.

All a long time ago, and bridges have sort-of-been rebuilt since then, of course. We were all much younger.

But the stories have got to be worth hearing, more than seeing that rack of Country House next to the rack of Roll With It in HMV for the 33,000th time?

Embed and breakfast man: Aggi Doom

Now is precisely the wrong time to be discovering Aggi Doom, as they played their last gig a couple of weeks back.

Put your arms around a memory:
The Loving Kind single
Aggi Doom on Soundcloud

In 2012, Scottish Fiction asked "if it were all to end tomorrow, what would you say has been your greatest achievement?":

It's great to us that we're actually able to play together and make songs because you always want to play music with your best pals but it rarely works quite so fluidly and happily as this has, famous last words. Putting out the single with Soft Power is obviously a major achievement for us, they're such good people.

Vivian Girls to play two more shows, stop

Oh, bugger, no:

Brooklyn, New York, March 2007: we started making music together and became what we know as Vivian Girls. It's been a long and crazy journey in the seven years since, and we feel as though the time has finally come to let our band rest in peace. It's been an experience that we'll look back on and cherish and we'd like to thank you for sharing it with us. We have had such an amazing time being a band, touring the world, releasing records and meeting all of you.

We've booked some ALL AGES shows as a goodbye. The first will be on February 14th at The Church on York in LA. The second will be on March 1st at Death by Audio in Brooklyn.

This is the sort of thing that this means the end of:

And this:

And this:

Good night, and good luck, Vivian Girls.