Nick McCabe is literally a NIMBY

Nick McCabe, out of Verve and The Verve, has recently moved to Shropshire. He's not entirely happy, though, as builders are trying to smash into his view:

The site, between the Beechfields estate and the A41 Newport Bypass, is one of 100 areas supposed to be protected from development by Telford & Wrekin Council.

But that has not stopped developers Redrow from consulting the estate’s residents on a scheme for two, three and four bedroom houses.

McCabe is worried:

“When I was growing up I would be climbing trees and playing outside with friends, rather than sat at home watching TV and that is what I want for my son,” said Mr McCabe, 44

When you were a kid, Nick, there were only three channels and little choice but to go outside. It's not entirely clear that a field out the back is the thing that will swing the difference between playing on an X Box or not.

Andrew Loog Oldham still eating out on the Verve story

Yes, yes, we know it's hilarious how you managed to turn a cleared sample into a non-cleared sample and made a fortune out of The Verve's Bitter Sweet Symphony, Andrew Loog Oldham. But that was over ten years ago, and you hadn't really done anything much for ages before that. Is that why you still have to tell and retell the tale this deep into the following century?

Glastonbury didn't think that The Verve are as good as Keane or something

Richard Ashcroft's suggestion that Michael Eavis didn't think The Verve would be as good as Keane have been scoffed at by Emily Eavis:

Speaking to the BBC, Emily Eavis said that Ashcroft's comments were “not true at all" and were “not a big deal.”

"We've liked The Verve for ages and we were really pleased to have them on," she added.

That doesn't quite answer the suggestion that Michael prefers Keane, though, does it?

Everything is just noise

We could be scabby about the new Verve single* but, in the spirit of fairness, you could make up your own mind: Love Is Noise is streaming off of their MySpace now.

Zane Lowe claims he was blown away after thirty seconds, although nothing happens at the half minute mark that hadn't already been happening.

* If we were going to be scabby, we'd suggest it was the sort of song a band who knew they once wrote tracks that were better than anyone would have ever expected trying to desperately remember how it is they did it; it's like watching someone who won a lottery jackpot trying to win it back after they'd burned through the cash, confusing a lucky break with innate talent.

And didn't the United Nations mandate that if love is anything, it's a Big Scary Animal?

The Verve stop by for T

Making the Glastonbury line-up seem even less special, it's been confirmed that Richard Ashcroft will be double-dipping by having The Verve as one of the headliners at T in the Park as well.

Joining Dickie will be REM and Rage Against The Machine. No, we checked, this is definitely the 2008 line-up.

Who wouldn't want to see Zack yelling about individuality and corporate evils at an event which simply wouldn't exist if it wasn't promoting lager.

That pdf document, by the way, is quite interesting as it shows exactly what Tennnets gets out of the deal. In 2005, the 10th anniversary, it brought:

The brand’s integral position to the festival and the heritage that this represents was communicated excellently, with consumers encouraged to celebrate the milestone with Tennent’s Lager.
Over £6.5 million media coverage was reached – editorial and promotional coverage, no
including any advertising spend:
- £4.2 million press coverage
- £2.3 million broadcast coverage

Presumably this is some different machine to the one being raged at.

Other bands playing this year:

Kings of Leon
The Fratellis
Stereophonics
Kaiser Chiefs
Prodigy
Kooks
Primal Scream
Chemical Brothers
Interpol
Ian Brown
The Raconteurs
Biffy Clyro
Counting Crows
KT Tunstall
Feeder
Pigeon Detectives
The Enemy
The Feeling
Amy MacDonald
Panic At The Disco
Hot Chip
Aphex Twin
The Charlatans
The Pogues
Ben Folds
Wombats
Reverend and The Makers
Pendulum
Justice
DJ Hell
Erol Alkan
The National
Band of Horses
Seasick Steve
Eddy Grant
Alabama 3
Sons and Daughters
The Courteeners
Slam
Paul Heaton
Lightspeed Champion
Ting Tings
Black Kids
Sergeant

Kings of Leon - Glastonbury headliners, remember - are taking second billing here. You have to wonder if Glasto is really interested in tempting younger audience, if they'd be better off hiring someone from the organisers of T rather than a bloke from Mendip Council.

Glastorumours: Thin pickings?

The ever-expanding range of festivals and the limited supply of big names looks like denting Glastonbury's line-up this year, with rumours suggesting that Jay-Z will be joined topping the bills by The Verve and, seriously, The Kings Of Leon. The Kings Of Leon? Headlining? And The Verve, who even Richard Ashcroft's head must register as having passed their peak by now?

It's a good job nobody who cares that much about music can afford to go to Glastonbury anymore.

Coachella for both sides

They're not calling the East Coast Coachella the East Coast Coachella, of course - that would be too simple. No, it's going to be called All Points West Music And Arts Festival. But everyone will call it Coachella East, so they might as well get used to it.

No details beyond a vague 'August 8th - 10th in New Jersey's Liberty State Park' for Coachella East - actually, that's not that vague; but there is now a full line-up for Coachella Proper, which happens on the West Coast in April.

What's coming now is a long list of bands, so jump over if you could care less.

Friday, April 25:
Jack Johnson
The Verve
Raconteurs
The Breeders
Fatboy Slim
Tegan and Sara
Madness
The Swell Season
The National
Animal Collective
Slightly Stoopid
Mum
Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings
Stars
Battles
Aesop Rock
Midnight Juggernauts
Does it Offend you, Yeah?
Minus the Bear
Spank Rock
dan le sac Vs Scroobius Pip
Diplo
Adam Freeland
Santo Gold
Jens Lekman
John Butler Trio
Vampire Weekend
Dan Deacon
Architecture in Helsinki
Sandra Collins
Busy P
Cut Copy
Black Lips
Datarock
Professor Murder
Reverend and the Makers
The Bees
Porter
Rogue Wave
Modeselektor
American Bang
Lucky I Am

Saturday, April 26:
Portishead
Kraftwerk
Death Cab for Cutie
Cafe Tacuba
Sasha & Digweed
Rilo Kiley
Dwight Yoakam
M.I.A.
Hot Chip
Cold War Kids
Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks
DeVotchKa
Flogging Molly
Mark Ronson
Turbonegro
Scars on Broadway
Islands
Enter Shikari
Calvin Harris
Boyz Noize
Junkie XL
Cinematic Orchestra
Jamie T
The Teenagers
VHS or Beta
Carbon/silicon
Erol Alkan
Yo Majesty!
Little Brother
Bonde Do Role
St. Vincent
Akron Family
MGMT
Institubes DJs (Surkin, Para One and Orgasmic)
James Zabiela
Sebastian
Kavinsky
Dredg
The Bird and the Bee
Grand Ole Party
New Young Pony Club
120 Days
Yoav
Electric Touch
Uffie

Sunday, April 27:
Roger Waters
Love & Rockets
My Morning Jacket
Spiritualized
Justice
Gogol Bordello
Chromeo
The Streets
Metric
Danny Tenaglia
Simian Mobile Disco
Booka Shade
Murs
Dmitri from Paris
Autolux
The Field
Linton Kwesi Johnson
Les Savy Fav
The Cool Kids
Sons & Daughters
Sia
Holy Fuck
Black Kids
Black Mountain
The Annuals
Kid Sister w/A-Trak
Man Man, Duffy
I'm from Barcelona
Manchester Orchestra
Deadmau5
The Horrors
Austin TV
Shout Out Louds
Plastiscines
Brett Dennen

Love And Rockets? Blimey. We're surprised that The Breeders are coming further down the bill than The Verve - and, much as we love Portishead, that they're above Kraftwerk. But not as surprised at the appearance of Jack Johnson on the bill at all, never mind headlining a day. Roger Waters, we can understand - he used to be in a band with Syd Barrett, which buys him a certain degree of kudos. But Johnson? The man who ruined Curious George for us? Really? Have they thought about that one?

Ashcroft throws his hat onto the Pyramid Stage

Richard Ashcroft has heard the rumours about The Verve headlining Glastonbury next year. In fact, he probably started them:

"I think it would be a travesty if we didn’t," he laughed. "Because I think what’s missing from a lot of the headliners is we’re one of the few bands that can jam without sounding like Lynyrd Skynyrd on a bad night, so we can actually take people on a proper journey, rock n roll wise.

"I think that’s what’s great", he continued. "If you can do that on the big stage the big tunes can get 60,000 people singing, but you’ve also got the capacity to change a standard rock gig into something else. I suppose that’s what's been exciting about playing and we’ll be excited about playing then."

Actually, Richard, Glastonbury isn't a "standard rock gig" by any measure, and some might argue that - if any of the spirit of the festival has survived intact - it's the surroundings that supply the transcendence while all the headline band is asked to do is turn up and play some songs for the Mums and Dads to remember their courting days to. The Verve, admittedly, could do that well, but there's still a sense that if the best Eavis can do is Ashcroft and his team to provide the defining, closing moment, it might be better to take another fallow year.

Free stuff

With Radiohead effectively allowing you to steal their album, and the Charlatans foisting it on you for free whether you want it or not, the prospect of a free, limited-time single download is slightly less exciting. But the new Verve single is probably worth a listen, if nothing else. And it is being given away free (unless you place a value on your contact details - and you should) by the NME.

More Verve

Apparently, when he insisted there be more Verve dates as part of their comeback tour, Richard Ashcroft spat "or Shed Seven will win" before pulling on a balaclava and yelling "an' I ain't gonna let Shed Seven win."

You can see the shows:
London Millennium Dome - December 13
Glasgow SECC - 15
Belfast Odyssey Arena - 17
Manchester Central - 20
although, in venues that size, you won't be able to tell if Rick Witter's head is sat on the amps.

All farewells should be sudden, but not final

The Verve are embarking on their second reunion, apparently, with Richard Ashcroft digging out his cheesey trousers, making it up with Nick McCabe and booking a studio and some tour dates.

The reunion - which has generated slightly less excitement than the Spice Girls one, but more than East 17's - is expected to last until their mutual loathing once again reaches the point where they think they'd be better off solo and split again.