Upcoming Gig: Ether 2010 – Gil Scott-Heron + Speech Debelle, Royal Festival Hall

Where Did The Night Go

Gil Scott-Heron’s I’m New Here represents one of the most talked-about and most welcome artistic comebacks of recent years. Stark, tough, modern, wise and utterly uncompromising Scott-Heron’s new record has had praise lavished on it from all corners of the music press, The Observer declaring:

‘This is as striking a return as we’re likely to hear all year’

with Pitchfork giving the album it’s ‘Best New Music’ accolade and noting:

‘We could be looking at one of the most memorably resurrected careers of our time – a man renewed’

Me and The Devil

Produced by Head of XL Recordings Richard Russell, who provides dark flickering almost industrial arrangements lending rhythmic structure to Scott-Heron’s rich broken baritone. Exchanging production nods with Kanye West who sampled Scott-Heron on Late Registration, I’m New Here opens with a sample of West’s ‘Flashing Lights’, whilst Scott-Heron speaks of the broken home of his childhood it’s clear his eyes and ears are still trained on contemporary America. Almost 30 years since he laid the blueprint for modern rap with ‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised’ Scott-Heron’s music remains as compelling and important as it has ever been.

Download ‘Where Did The Night Go’

Thanks to XL we can offer a free download of ‘Where Did The Night Go’ from I’m New Here

Download ‘Where Did The Night Go’ [Mp3]

See Gil Scott-Heron Live at Royal Festival Hall as part of Ether Festival 2010

Gil Scott-Heron will play two shows as part of Southbank Centre’s Ether Festival this April, a few tickets are still available for the 24th April date, but will not be around for long – to book visit:
http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/ether

Win a copy of his new album I’m New Here

Just tell us what your favourite Gil Scott-Heron track is in the comments box below and we’ll pick a winner at random. There’s a wealth of brilliant music to pick from before you even reach his incredible new album…

Line-up Announced for Ether Festival 2010

‘The revolution will not be televised. The revolution will be live’
– Gil Scott-Heron

Ether, Southbank Centre’s annual music festival of innovation, art, technology and cross-arts experimentation, returns from 16 – 24 April this year with a mix of rock iconoclasts, rap pioneers, audiovisual experimenters and contemporary-classical innovators.

This year’s festival features a very special show from Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Trio based on Reed’s radical and controversial 1975 album Metal Machine Music and a rare Gil Scott-Heron London gig in which he’ll be showcasing material from his brilliant new album I’m New Here (released on XL Recordings), alongside support from 2009 Mercury Prize Winner Speech Debelle. Kicking off Ether is a one-off collaboration between Stereo MCs and The Bays, plus The Herbaliser opening the gig, while on Friday 23 April film director and video artist Chris Cunningham performs a live show of original and remixed music and film, with support from BEAK>, the new project of Portishead’s Geoff Barrow.

Also playing at this year’s festival are one of the greats from the Warp roster, Broadcast, who are joined on the bill by Micachu and The Shapes and young cellist Oliver Coates. Meanwhile, LA art-noise band HEALTH team up with the genre-trashing, visually-spectacular Chrome Hoof for a mouth-watering double-bill, and Will Dutta plays with special guests Plaid, Max de Wardener and John Richards.

Always a platform for showcasing new work, Ether in 2010 features an evening of premieres of music by Mark-Anthony Turnage (UK premiere) and Philip Glass (European premiere) plus Henryk Gorecki’s Symphony No. 3 played by the London Philharmonic Orchestra. In addition, the festival features Varèse 360° – the complete works of musique concrète pioneer and formative influence on Frank Zappa, Edgard Varèse.

There’s more to be announced including a series of talks and discussions so keep look out for further updates here and at:

www.southbankcentre.co.uk/ether