The album, entitled Foal Tapes, features an eclectic mix of artists and songs that reflect the various quirky tastes of the Oxford band.

Keyboardist Edwin Congreave said: “It’s easy to throw some random music together and call it a DJ mix but I wanted to make something more ambitious than that.

Explaining the various musical styles on the LP, he added: “We wanted it to reflect the taste of the whole band so I picked music from the last five years of shared listening. We used to tour in an ex-royal mail delivery van – the DIY band cliché – and we drove ourselves to shows listening to each other’s playlists on a ropey old cassette player. 90s math rock, Greek folk music, Kompakt compilations, early Metronomy demos, endless Arthur Russell… sometimes infuriatingly eclectic, but it stretched our minds wide open.

The Bibio remix of ‘Ted’ by Clark, in particular, sounds like the early days of the band to me, in all its hazy weirdness. It’s hugely nostalgic for all of us,” he added.

‘Foal Tapes’ is released on July 2nd and will be launched at XOYO in London on July 7th.

The tracklisting for Foals Tapes is show below;

Side A:  1. Nicolas Jaar – Variations, 2. Clark – Ted (Bibio Remix), 3. Dorian Concept – Tropical Hands, 4. Condry Ziqubu – Confusion (Ma Afrika), 5. The Invisible – London Girl, 6. JR Seaton – Way Savvy (Gatto Fritto Remix), 7. Blood Orange – Dinner, 8. Tanner Ross – B Side, 9. Teengirl Fantasy – Cheaters (John Talabot’s Classic Vocal Refix), 10. Château Flight feat. Marie Daulne – Superflight (Maurice Fulton Remix), 11. In Flagranti – Effective Placebo Affect, 12. Tony Allen – Kilode (Carl Craig Remix)

Side B:  13. Art Department feat. Soul Clap & Osunlade – We Call Love, 14. Cerrone – Give Me Love (Frankie Knuckles Remix), 15. Arnold Jarvis – Take Some Time Out, 16. Oni Ayhun – OAR003-B, 17. Sepalcure – Every Day Of My Life (Jimmy Edgar Remix), 18. Marshall Jefferson vs. Noosa Heads – Mushrooms (Justin Martin Remix), 19. Julio Bashmore – Battle For Middle You (Maurice Donovan Dub), 20. Caribou – Sun (Midland Edit), 21. Konono Nº1 – Paradiso, 22. Gospel Comforters – Yes God Is Real

Words by David Huxley.

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

The debut feature by critic Mark Cousins is a documentary called What Is This Film Called Love? and will feature two new songs (entitled Horse and Bobby Don’t Steal) by the Mercury Prize-winning songwriter.

The press release reads: “It is made more like a piece of music … It’s about a guy, film-maker Mark Cousins, in a city alone, getting drunk, walking, dreaming.”

Speaking about Harvey’s involvement, Cousins wrote on his official Twitter page: “Her music gives the film storm clouds, power.”

Meanwhile, Harvey’s Facebook page says: “it begins as a film about the soviet director Sergei Eisenstein, and then, using his ideas, opens up to look at memory, landscape and the pleasures of walking.”

A preview of the documentary will screen at All Tomorrow’s Parties in London on May 27 with Louis Theroux curating the screenings.

Words by David Huxley.

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

The Mercury Prize-winning band performed a new untitled track during their appearance last night (15 May, 2012) at the small Chats Palace venue in Hackney, London – which you can listen to below!

The threesome band hit Battersea Arts Centre on Friday (18 May, 2012) for the final date on their brief tour of small London venues.

Meanwhile, you lucky sods can listen to the exciting new (poorly recorded) track by The xx below:

Words by David Huxley.

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

The producer was working on the band’s new album, ‘A Joyful Noise’, and has told MTV that the death of Winehouse last year meant that he was unable to bring himself to go back to work on the LP.

Speaking about leaving the sessions, Ronson said: ”It was really strange. It was almost like a turning point. When I found out that Amy passed I was in disbelief. I walked out of the session and I never fully came back.”

Mark added: “I think the main thing, the chemistry of what we had going on with the Gossip album wasn’t really amazing and being reminded about how good it is when it’s good, maybe I thought I was forcing something.”

The Mark Ronson-produced album ‘Back to Black’ catapulted Amy Winehouse to fame in 2006 and she contributed to his Version album in 2007 with a cover of The Zutons single Valerie.

Xenomania, who previously worked with Girls Aloud, finished off the production duties for ‘A Joyful Noise’.

Words by David Huxley.

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

The 4-date mini tour will begin in Margate on 1^st August and will pass through Wolverhampton and Plymouth before the big finale in London’s Hyde Park on 12^th August. Here the band will headline a special Olympic closing ceremony concert, which will also feature sets from New Order and The Specials.

In recent interviews, frontman Damon Albarn has hinted that these could be the last shows that band will play together so tickets are expected to sell quickly.

With no new album expected, Blur will instead be releasing a box set at the end of July featuring all seven albums of the band’s career, as well as lots of exclusive rarities.

Full Blur tour dates are as follows:

Aug 1st – Margate Winter Gardens
Aug 5th – Wolverhampton Civic Hall
Aug 6th – Wolverhampton Civic Hall
Aug 7th – Plymouth Pavilions
Aug 12th – London Hyde Park (Olympic Closing Ceremony Concert)

Tickets will be priced at £35.50 and go on pre-sale at 9am on Wednesday 16^th May and on general sale at 9am on Friday 18^th May.

Words by Lucy Richardson

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

Liam Gallagher and the boys will be playing the Cheshire town on 28th June 2012, with tickets being available via a lottery on the band’s website from 9am on Wednesday 16th May.

Ticket winners will be announced via email from Monday 21st May, who will then be able to purchase 2 tickets per person for for the band’s only headline show of 2012.

Visit www.beadyeyemusic.com/ticketlottery to enter the lottery.

Beady Eye had previously confirmed that they would be supporting The Stone Roses at Heaton Park in Manchester on 30th June 2012.

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

The snap, which shows The Fabs walking from right to left (opposite to the famous Abbey Road album front cover), has other notable differences from the album cover, such as Paul McCartney wearing sandals instead of being bare footed and without a cigarette in his hand.

The print, among a set of 25 shots of the group, is being sold by a private collector. It was taken by the photographer Iain McMillain whilst  he was up a ladder and was composed in ten minutes.

Sarah Wheeler of Bloomsbury Auctions, speaking about the photograph, told The Guardian “It’s a very simple, stylised shot and is a shot people can relate to”.

It will go to auction on May 22nd.

Words by Luke Cloherty

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

The Swedish band are releasing their new album ‘Lex Hives’ on June 4th.

The new album is a significant departure from their earlier records but still “sounds like the Hives.” The band’s frontman told NME “There’s no formula, but it definitely sounds like The Hives. Every good band there is has a certain sound. There are a few songs that couldn’t have been on any of other Hives album, that are sort of a departure, but I’d say that kind of happened on the last time album too. But I’d also say that they couldn’t have been on any other album by anybody else either.”

The brief tour is as followed;

December
Mon 10th – Bristol, Academy
Tue 11th – Birmingham, Academy
Thu 13th – Glasgow, ABC
Fri 14th – London, Roundhouse
Sat 15th – Manchester, Academy

The band will also be playing Reading and Leeds Festivals at the end of August.

Tickets will go on sale on Friday May 18 at 9am.

Words by Gemma Wyer.

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

The Hollywood actor has predicted that his band’s third studio album, entitled Rize of the Fenix, will not be given a proper critical appraisal by the mainstream music press.

Speaking about his current favourite albums, Black said: “I do love [Jack White's] Blunderbuss, I love the Foo [Fighters], I love Tom Waits, his new record is incredible… and Goyte… but our album is better than all of those, and because we’re clowns, we don’t get that kind of love.”

Black then went on to (jokily) claim his contemporaries will fail over the long term compared to Tenacious D – who will be remembered long after they have disbanded.

Jack quipped: “In a hundred years’ time, no-one will remember Gotye or the rest, but the shining beacon of The D – they’re going to start religions after us.”

Rize of the Fenix? No wonder they are not getting critical appraisal!  The D’s spelling is appalling.

Words by David Huxley.

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.

The new LP, entitled Centipede Hz, is the follow-up to 2009′s critically acclaimed Merriweather Post Pavilion album and is set to be released on September 3 in the UK. Watch the (bizarre) trailer for the album below.

Animal Collective leader Panda Bear had previously suggested (back in 2010) that the experimental psychedelic band were close to splitting up.

The full tracklisting of the album is as follows:

1) Moonjock
2) Today’s Supernatural
3) Rosie Oh
4) Applesauce
5) Wide Eyed
6) Father Time
7) New Town Burnout
8) Monkey Riches
9) Mercury Man
10) Pulleys
11) Amanita

Eagle-eyed fans will notice that recent double-A-side single ‘Honeycomb/Gotham’ is not included. Congratulations if you noticed. You clever little thing.

Words by David Huxley.

Keep up to date with all the latest music news, gossip, and give-aways from Electric Banana by following us on Twitter and liking us on Facebook.