The NME–which has taken to branding itself as “The World’s Fastest Music News Service,” which I guess is their way of sidestepping allegations about its accuracy–will hold the American version of its Shockwaves Awards on April 23 in Los Angeles, and you aren’t invited. But don’t worry! You can stream the whole thing on MySpace, thanks to one of those partnership deals that press releases trumpet as “exclusive” and jaded eyes read as “last-ditch attempts to make people on this side of the pond care about a brand that doesn’t really mean much to them unless they’re really into overly breathless prose and/or Billy Childish.” MORE »
Posts Tagged ‘Nme’
everybody's a winner
“NME” Attempts To Establish Its Brand In US By Piggybacking Off Other Brands
Can The <em>NME</em> Survive Until Its Next Scheduled Awards Show?
Thanks to its zombie-like grip on a dwindling but loyal number of British indie schmindies, U.K. tabloidstitution the New Musical Express has yet to be shuttered, despite those three words that everyone in the publishing world just loooooves to hear: “steadily declining sales.” In fact, sales for the latter half of 2007 were apparently “the lowest ever” because British whiteys can now get ’round the clock updates on their favorite British whiteys (who can play guitar) for free anywhere there’s decent Wi-Fi. But the occasion of the NME’s august uh 56th birthday has sent the yearly crop of rose-colored doommongers onto the blogs and into broadsheets to fret over its imminent demise, but the folks at the NME insist they can keep the pulped-wood version rolling off the presses until the damn Blur reunion or the brandy-fueled Gallagher brothers incest scandal finally breaks. MORE »
everybody's a winner
NME To Bring Its Incessant Arctic Monkeys Lauding To The US
Hot on the heels of its Alex Turner-loving, George Bush-hating awards show last week, the NME has decided that it’s going to bring a version of the NME Awards to the United States, and that said awards will be “in recognition of great American alternative talent past, present and future.” The voting process–which is going on right now, and which will allow the magazine to harvest even more e-mail addresses in its attempt to become a force in the American “alternative/independent” music scene, even though the precise definition of that slashed term is still a bit dodgy thanks in part to the past few years’ watercolor-like runniness between “indie” and music that is actually, y’know, independent–will culminate in a private ceremony held in Los Angeles next month. (What, you thought that voting would get you in? Silly kids! That’s not how pseudo-event-styled democracy works!) The full list of categories that you can nominate artists for, after you offer up your name, address, year of birth, and blood type to the mag’s publishers, is after the jump. MORE »
The NME Shockwaves Awards: Those Brits Sure Do Like The Arctic Monkeys
The only awards show anywhere that could pit Hero Of The Year Pete Doherty against Villain Of The Year George W. Bush: The NME Shockwaves Awards, the 55-year-old ceremony that honors the breathless British tabloid’s favorite–and least favorite–artists and albums. The Arctic Monkeys came up as the big winners this time out, winning Best Band, Best Video, and Best Track (but losing Best Album to the Klaxons); also the Manic Street Preachers were awarded the Godlike Genius Award, which will no doubt get some old-school Britpop fans out of the messageboard woodwork. Of course, the NME being “cheeky” means that there were some least-faves as well, and among them are Worst Band recipients the Hoosiers (who I keep thinking are “the Hooters”) and the Worst Dressed honoree Amy Winehouse. Full list of winners after the jump. [NME] MORE »
Is The “Surprise” Bonnaroo Headliner Going To Be All That Surprising?
So NME’s Web site is announcing one of the Bonnaroo headliners at midnight EST, and according to their claims said headliner is going to be surprising! MORE »
year-end analysis
“NME” Makes Some Noise For The Klaxons
Thumbing their nose at British legends, Canadian upstarts, and America in general, the NME has named the clattering debut from dance-rockers the Klaxons as the best album of the year and the band’s “Golden Skans” as the year’s best single. (But don’t worry, because Radiohead and the Arcade Fire both find their way into the Top 5.) The tabloid’s picks for its 50 favorite albums and 50 favorite songs are after the jump, but first our thoughts on a publication that really liked the nu-rave.
THE GOOD: Les Savy Fav’s Lets Stay Friends, an unexpected comeback from a favorite band that I initially filed away as “pleasantly non-embarassing” but that sounds better with every spin, makes a surprising (but not undeserved) appearance at No. 5.
THE BAD: Even accounting for my age and citizenship, the singles list is something of a foreign language. Totally willing to give it a fair shake, of course, but given the NME’s blog-shaming track record for mercurial hype and band names like the “Ting Tings,” I feel more comfortable than usual with my cranky suspicions.
THE WHAAAA? “Umbrella” is once again a rock mag’s only cop to radio pop (as defined in the U.S.) or R&B (unless you count Ms. Winehouse). Did everyone just raise the white flag during its reign of terror earlier in the year? MORE »
clara peller dept.
Morrissey To <em>NME</em>: Racism Is “Beyond Common Sense” (Also, You Suck Now)
Well, the NME learned a valuable lesson this week: Never corner Morrissey, because he’ll put you on blast with a volubility that shames just about anyone you currently have on staff. Responding to the accusation that statements he made during a recent interview were racist and in addition to the lawsuit he’s reportedly bringing against the tabloid, Morrissey has penned a withering 1,800-word NME take down for The Guardian that’s mostly designed to clear his name, but also turns out to be one of the more eloquent summations of the rag’s post-’90s/Britpop irrelevance. MORE »
Corrections
Thanks to AnnaGawan for pointing out that the British gossip list Popbitch is now retracting yesterday’s rumor about NME going Web-only: “Yesterday we reported a rumour that the print version of the NME was to close. MORE »
Corrections
Thanks to AnnaGawan for pointing out that the British gossip list Popbitch is now retracting yesterday’s rumor about NME going Web-only: “Yesterday we reported a rumour that the print version of the NME was to close. MORE »
Is “NME” Going To Abandon Its Print Edition?
Tucked below the “Steven Tyler wears beige Crocs and has painted toenails” item in today’s issue of the British gossip e-rag Popbitch was this nugget: “Rumours abound that the print version of the NME is to be closed, leaving the 55-year-old music paper as a web-only operation.” Oh, realllllly? Well, given that the cover of the current issue is at left, maybe moving to an online-only perch would at least help the British rag stay a little more abreast of today’s music. But will a Web-based NME carry the same clout that the print edition does? Some recent anecdotal evidence suggests that it might not, as the Popbitch item goes on to point out. MORE »
