Latest news with #Yungblud
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Yungblud's new rock-opera is ambitious but confused
While the music press has been busy grieving the death of rock 'n' roll, a 27-year-old from Doncaster has managed to become his generation's breakout guitar-wielding star. Chuck Robbie Williams, the Prodigy's late frontman Keith Flint and Dennis the Menace into a blender and after a few seconds of whizzing you'd have Yungblud (real name Dominic Harrison); now he's back with a fourth album, Idols, that will inevitably follow its predecessors to the top of the charts. Idols is the first half of a double album, a concept first pioneered (like pretty much everything else in pop and rock) by the Beatles and Jimi Hendrix and that has grown increasingly popular among artists who rely on the thirsty internet hype-machine to make their records sell: everyone from Taylor Swift to Kendrick Lamar is at it. It's a record that spans big, soaring melodies, angsty pop-rock ballads and even the gutsy theatrics of Queen. The album's opener, Hello Heaven, Hello, is a sprawling, nine-minute rumination on death and belonging ('So tell me / Are you gonna die in the pain that they all inflict on you / Or are you gonna swim through the storm?'); Ghosts features Yungblud's best attempt at Freddie Mercury's famed 'Ay-Oh' and culminates with a crescendo of claps, We Will Rock You-style. The latter should go down a storm with a live audience – perfect timing, considering the second edition of Harrison's very own festival, Bludfest, will take place in Milton Keynes this weekend. A quick disclaimer: I have never really got Yungblud. The propensity for over-the-top costumes and snarling vocal delivery; the sheer spread of influences; or maybe I'm just too old – the majority of moshing fans you'll find at his raucous live shows are teenagers. On the first point, his vocals have significantly improved – though the tattoos and jet black hair remain – with his strong South Yorkshire accent peeking pleasingly through the high notes; there's an endearing vulnerability to be found, too, in the moments when Harrison's voice momentarily cracks, as on melancholy closing ballad Supermoon. He sounds more mature and assured than he did on earlier songs such as I Love You, Will You Marry Me (from his 2018 debut, 21st Century Liability) or The Freak Show, an operatic call to arms for society's weirdos and misfits from 2020 album Weird! But overall, Idols fails to quell that second reservation: you're left wondering whether Harrison has really accepted who he is as an artist. The Greatest Parade could well be Placebo. Lovesick Lullaby sounds like Liam Gallagher howling through Slide Away. The influence of The Verve's seminal Urban Hymns is evident throughout, and proven by the fact Harrison decided to cover Bittersweet Symphony in the Radio 1 Live Lounge while on the promotional trail. Earlier this year, the star told the Telegraph: 'Bowie, Freddie, Bono – I'm trying to reach for that'. They're all great artists to admire – but perhaps a degree of separation from his idols would help to carve out a more self-assured identity. Poppie Platt Also out: Loyle Carner, Hopefully! ★★★★☆ Rap has often been unfairly marked as the music of the angry and disenfranchised, but naysayers might have to bite their tongue when it comes to Loyle Carner 's discography. The south London-raised rapper's mix of soft beats and emotional lyricism has made him stand out as a unique voice on the hip-hop scene. As the 30-year-old prepares for a headline slot on The Other Stage at Glastonbury, Carner's latest album Hopefully! combines jazzy, RnB riffs with a level of mellow self-reflection in his writing that continues to make him one of British music's most unique and poetic voices. In his previous album Hugo, Carner tried to break away from his 'nice guy of hip-hop' persona by directly dealing with racial politics in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement – he is of Guyanese heritage. Elements of that are still present here. Notably on the titular track, he samples the late British poet Benjamin Zephaniah (a figure the artist has cited as one of his heroes), who talks of an uprising when it comes to social class and status in the black community. But this is a more introspective work as Carner uses the LP to work through his own anxieties. The rapper, who has two young children, deals with the responsibilities of fatherhood throughout the album. On Strangers, his vocal intonation is more akin to a lullaby than the more aggressive tone of Hugo. One line from the track stands out: 'Letters escape you' works as a candid double entendre of both children learning to use and develop language, but also for the artists' personal struggles with dyslexia. Other tracks point to broader points of his psyche. In My Mind deals with Carner's issues with self-esteem and self-image. The rapper even draws on imagery from Harry Potter as an intertextual reference point on the track Horcrux, about the reconciliation between touring and home life. If Hugo felt more like a step forward lyrically and tonally, Hopefully! feels like a return to familiar territory. It has more in common with Yesterday's Gone, his debut album, that served as an affectionate tribute to his own mother. It felt like the work of a loving son. Now, it has come full circle, Carner has matured and Hopefully! represents the poetry of a loving father. Ollie Macnaughton Best new songs By Poppie Platt Amaarae, Sl-t Me Out (S.M.O) The superb Ghanaian-American singer returns with an upbeat track about sexual empowerment, set to an infectious blend of hyperpop, kpanlogo and zouk. Her set at Glastonbury next Saturday – preceding Doechii on West Holts – is shaping up to be one of the weekend's hottest shows. Benson Boone, Mr Electric Blue Unless you've been living under a rock (aka don't spend hours scrolling through TikTok), you'll have noticed that pop-king Harry Styles has been, for the moment, usurped. Benson Boone, an all-American ex-Mormon who had the biggest hit of last year with Beautiful Things – and is as famous for his backflips as his tunes – released his hotly anticipated new album American Heart today; this stomping, synth-heavy anthem is the standout. CMAT, The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station The Dublin rising star's songs are witty, flirty, camp, sometimes emotional – with a power tool of a voice to match. Her latest is a meta reflection on how her tendency to get annoyed by people is holding her back, told through the lens of her irrational beef with TV chef Jamie Oliver ('That man should not have his face on posters'). Haim, All Over Me Everyone's favourite indie-pop sisters – Alana, Danielle and Este Haim – are back with a new album, I Quit: a funny, fearless dissection of bad relationships and missed opportunities that reaches a high point on the funky All Over Me, a celebration of 'friends with benefits'. Miles Kane, Love is Cruel The man who has been trying to keep mod fashion alive for the past decade, the Last Shadow Puppets co-frontman returns with a slick new track (produced by the Black Keys' Dan Auerbach) about finding solace in your own company. PSA: Kane will play the last ever show at Sheffield's famous Leadmill next Friday. Sam Fender and Olivia Dean, Rein Me In Fans begged for this duet to be released after Fender and Dean performed it live at his recent stadium shows in London and Newcastle; the blend of Fender's gravelly vocals and Dean's honey-smooth tones is gorgeous, as his original tale of traversing a town filled with the memories of past lovers ('And all the bars 'round here serve my ghosts and carcasses') takes on new poignancy with Dean's verse, in which she begs him to open up. Wednesday, Wound Up Here (By Holdin On) A body being pulled from a West Virginia creek doesn't sound like the most obvious of song inspirations – but unpredictability is just what makes US Southern rock band Wednesday so exciting. Rough riffs and sardonic lyrics delivered with a snarl by vocalist Karly Hartzman lend this new track echoes of early Pavement bangers.
Perth Now
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Perth Now
Yungblud put 'every single molecule of energy and emotion' into his new album Idols
Yungblud put "every single molecule of energy and emotion" into his new album Idols. The Fleabag rocker has shared the first of two albums in the series and told fans this is only "halfway through the story" that he encourages them to "immerse" themselves in and share with those they love. Upon the first side's release, Yungblud penned on Instagram: "I've gone back and forth so many times on what I should say in this post that always holds such unprecedented pressure but, ultimately, as I look inside at the end of a crazy 4 year expedition, everything I have wanted say to lies within this music. "I have put every single molecule of energy and emotion into this uncompromising adventure." He continued: "All I can hope for is that you close your eyes and alone, with your friends, or family, immerse yourself in this journey from start to finish. "I set out to create a story that would write itself along side you, travel with you throughout time and give you something you can pass on to the people you love in the same way that I am to you tonight. "What is most beautiful about this is normally, at this point, the album campaign seems finished - I give it to the world and I let it go but this time we're only halfway through the story." Yungblud started writing Idols four years ago after his album Weird! topped the charts but he admitted the people around him tried to get him to work on something else in order to capitalise on his commercial success, but he refused. He told The Sun newspaper: 'I was dissuaded from doing Idols after Weird! because Weird! was so commercially successful. 'I went and worked with a load of songwriters — and when you do that, you've got seven people a week telling you what Yungblud should do next. I had to figure that out for myself. 'I didn't want to make vapid songs that sound great on the radio. Yeah, we've got a couple of f***** radio bangers on this record, but I wanted to make one album that's a through line — classic and timeless. "There's no gimmicks, man. None. This is me leaving everything on the table, showing the world what I can do. "That's why I orchestrated everything. I did everything I could to make it as deep and five-dimensional — lyrically and musically — as I possibly could.' 'I've been all over the world and spent a lot of time in America, but for this album I needed to come home."
Sydney Morning Herald
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
A pop-rock lightning rod returns, as polarising as ever
Yungblud, Idols Ever since he exploded onto the scene with his 2018 breakout hit, I Love You, Will You Marry Me, Yungblud has been a lightning rod. An outspoken, gender-bending, genre-hopping pop-punk emo from the English suburbs, Yungblud – real name Dominic Harrison – is a magnet for curiosity and controversy. He's been accused of queerbaiting and fetishising the working class. He has been both celebrated and chastised for his political activism, affronting sincerity, and chameleonic approach to music and fashion. Depending on who you ask, he's a trailblazer or a poser, inauthentic or unapologetically himself. His music runs the gamut – he bounces like a pinball, pinging off David Bowie into Billy Idol, hitting Blink-182 and Machine Gun Kelly, grazing Robert Smith and Harry Styles. He's less an enigma than a graffiti wall, painted over until it becomes something messier and grungier but unmistakably fun and oddly beautiful. The 27-year-old's newest album sees Yungblud embracing his contradictions, whirling through the chaos in search of meaning, and emerging with a carpe diem-style optimism. It's ambitious, diverse and sprawling. But like a restaurant with too many items on the menu, you never quite know what you're going to get. The album opener is Yungblud's most impressive artistic achievement yet. Hello Heaven, Hello is a nine-minute statement of intent, and unlike Green Day's Jesus of Suburbia (which is effectively five mini-songs sewn together), it feels like a complete product from start to finish. It moves seamlessly from early-2000s pop-punk to '80s arena rock, and then shifts down into '90s Britpop. And, somehow, it absolutely works. From there, the album is almost Tarantino-esque, a technicolour pastiche. Yungblud wears his influences on his sleeve, for better and worse.
The Age
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Age
A pop-rock lightning rod returns, as polarising as ever
Yungblud, Idols Ever since he exploded onto the scene with his 2018 breakout hit, I Love You, Will You Marry Me, Yungblud has been a lightning rod. An outspoken, gender-bending, genre-hopping pop-punk emo from the English suburbs, Yungblud – real name Dominic Harrison – is a magnet for curiosity and controversy. He's been accused of queerbaiting and fetishising the working class. He has been both celebrated and chastised for his political activism, affronting sincerity, and chameleonic approach to music and fashion. Depending on who you ask, he's a trailblazer or a poser, inauthentic or unapologetically himself. His music runs the gamut – he bounces like a pinball, pinging off David Bowie into Billy Idol, hitting Blink-182 and Machine Gun Kelly, grazing Robert Smith and Harry Styles. He's less an enigma than a graffiti wall, painted over until it becomes something messier and grungier but unmistakably fun and oddly beautiful. The 27-year-old's newest album sees Yungblud embracing his contradictions, whirling through the chaos in search of meaning, and emerging with a carpe diem-style optimism. It's ambitious, diverse and sprawling. But like a restaurant with too many items on the menu, you never quite know what you're going to get. The album opener is Yungblud's most impressive artistic achievement yet. Hello Heaven, Hello is a nine-minute statement of intent, and unlike Green Day's Jesus of Suburbia (which is effectively five mini-songs sewn together), it feels like a complete product from start to finish. It moves seamlessly from early-2000s pop-punk to '80s arena rock, and then shifts down into '90s Britpop. And, somehow, it absolutely works. From there, the album is almost Tarantino-esque, a technicolour pastiche. Yungblud wears his influences on his sleeve, for better and worse.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Your next Traitors fix, and Yungblud's new album: What's coming up this week
Are you missing the drama of The Traitors? Fear not because the New Zealand version drops on BBC Three and iPlayer on Monday. But that's not all the next seven days have in store. Yungblud's new album is out, 28 Years Later is released in UK cinemas, gaming fans have Date Everything to look forward to, and Benson Boone is also dropping a new album. Read on for what's coming up this week... This Monday, we're gearing up to watch 22 New Zealanders lie, cheat and betray their way to winning up to $100,000 (£44,000). That's right, it's time for series two of The Traitors NZ, filmed at Claremont Manor at the foot of Mount Horrible (no, really). As with the British version, the show is a study in human nature, as alliances form early on, and suspicions run rife. The series already aired in NZ, with the New Zealand Herald saying it could be 'the reality TV hit of the year'. But one thing it doesn't have is Claudia Winkleman and her epic wardrobe. Instead, it's hosted by New Zealand broadcaster Paul Henry. Don't worry, his outfits are just as fabulous. Yungblud, the chart-topping singer who set up his own festival, is dropping his new album Idols on Friday. I was lucky enough to see him at a party in central London recently, where I got a sneak preview of the new album - a blend of his signature pop-punk and emotional depth. The 27-year-old artist - whose real name is Dominic Richard Harrison - was there alongside Florence Pugh, who stars in the music video for one of his new songs, Zombie. He said the new record, made in the north of England with his best mates, was his "most ambitious and exciting music to date". Yungblud is known for his committed young fanbase and, with his new album, he's said he wants to make that community even bigger. Harking back to the sounds of Queen and David Bowie, he told my colleague Mark Savage that it would "reclaim the good chords" (Asus4 and Em7, in case you're wondering). "The shackles are off," he said. By Alex Taylor, culture reporter Batten down the hatches and don't make a sound - this week sees director Danny Boyle and writer Alex Garland unleash 28 Years Later. It's a long-awaited return for the UK-based zombie horror series that first infected audiences in 2002 with 28 Days Later. The protagonist, 12-year-old Spike (Alfie Williams), lives with his parents Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Isla (Jodie Comer). He's only ever known life on an island connected to the quarantined British mainland by a single, heavily defended causeway. I've seen a sneak preview, and while I can't say much, the trademark realism and unrelenting tension persists. Fans of The Last of Us will love this. As for those fan theories sparked by the trailer? Despite speculation that Cillian Murphy appears as a zombie, Boyle has confirmed to IGN that the Oscar-winner, who made his name in the original film, will only reprise his role as Jim in the next instalment - already shot and due for release next year. By Tom Richardson, Newsbeat reporter It is perhaps not so surprising that a video game created by two veteran voice actors opens with the main character at risk of losing their job to AI. But where Date Everything! goes next is somewhat more unexpected. Players don a pair of high-tech glasses called "Dateviators" that turn household objects including fridges, doors and lamps into potential love interests. Creators Robbie Daymond (Critical Role) and Ray Chase (X-Men '97, Jujutsu Kaisen) obviously raided their contact books, as each item is brought to life in the form of a human cartoon avatar created by a star from the worlds of gaming and anime. In a bit of fortuitous timing, this celebration of their craft arrives on consoles and PCs from Tuesday, just days after a months-long video game acting strike was suspended. By Mark Savage, music correspondent King of the backflip Benson Boone had the most-streamed track in the world last year with Beautiful Things - earning enough money to buy his first house - but now he's ready to move on. "I'm getting to the point where I just want people to know that there's more than just that song," he told Rolling Stone earlier this year. The results have been mixed. His comeback single Sorry I'm Here For Someone Else, a propulsive new wave anthem, peaked at number 20 in the UK charts, while Beautiful Things still continued to remain stubbornly lodged in the top 10. But his new album, American Heart, is worth your attention. The title track is a widescreen anthem about a near-fatal car accident he got into as a teenager; Mr Electric Blue is a spirited tribute to his dad (featuring the lyric, "Watch the way you talk to me/If you want to keep your two front teeth"); and the second single Mystical Magical features a falsetto so ridiculous its almost endearing. Repackaging the sounds of Queen and Elton John for the TikTok generation, it's efficient and catchy – though I'd avoid the saccharine Momma Song if you have an aversion to schmaltz. Untold Legends: Hedy Lamarr drops on the BBC World Service on Monday Gianni Versace Retrospective opens at Arches London Bridge on Monday Supersonic, a documentary about Oasis, is re-released in a limited number of cinemas on Monday Royal Academy Summer Exhibition opens on Tuesday Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, series two, drops on Netflix on Wednesday Sheffield DocFest starts on Wednesday Heston: My Life with Bipolar is released on BBC Two and iPlayer on Thursday The Isle of Wight Festival starts on Thursday Haim's new album, I Quit, drops on Friday Grenfell: Uncovered is released on Netflix on Friday
