For fans of The Cure, today — April 21 — is significant for two reasons: It’s Robert Smith’s 53rd birthday and it’s the 20th anniversary of the release of ‘Wish’. So, as we wait for the alleged deluxe reissue of that 1992 album, here’s a little something to bide your time: the out-of-print VHS release ‘Play Out.’
On Saturday, Public Image Ltd. will release its first new music in 20 years in the form of the ‘One Drop’ EP, a Record Store Day release featuring four tracks off the band’s upcoming full-length album ‘This Is PiL.’ We’ve already heard lead single “One Drop,” but now comes a second new PiL track: “Lollipop Opera.”
Seminal British shoegazers Ride — signed to Creation Records in the late ’80s — next month will release a 20th anniversary reissue of their sophomore album ‘Going Blank Again’ that will packaged with the DVD debut of the 1992 VHS release ‘Going Blank Again: Live at Brixton Academy’ featuring newly mixed audio.
Our latest link round-up features sad news about Men at Work’s Greg Ham, who was found dead today in his Australian home, plus a 1990 interview with Mark E. Smith about his record collection, a chat with Lee Ranaldo about the future of Sonic Youth, and a webstream of the new electronic Dinosaur Jr project.
As you may have heard on this week’s Slicing Up Eyeballs show on Strangeways Radio, the ever-quirky Devo has recorded the theme song to the new Syfy series ‘Monster Man,’ a show that goes behind the scenes of a Hollywood prop shop. You can stream and/or download the track here.
With Squeeze, er, squeezing in some U.S. dates between and around the band’s appearances at the two-weekend Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival, the group also managed to fit in an appearance on the ‘Ellen’ daytime talk show yesterday (‘I’ve loved their music for a long time,’ Ellen Degeneres says).
Dick Clark, who died Wednesday at age 82, and ‘American Bandstand’ played an important role in the ’80s, too, helping bring the burgeoning New Wave and college rock scenes to mainstream America at a time when the still-nascent MTV wasn’t universally available on American cable networks.
Q&A: Daniel Ash on Love and Rockets’ reunion, his new band — and figuring out how to play “So Alive” 
Q&A: Chris Frantz talks Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club and new book ‘Remain in Love’ 
Q&A: Steve Wynn on The Dream Syndicate’s first new album in nearly 30 years 
Q&A: Bauhaus’ David J on his ‘accidental’ concept album ‘Not Long For This World’ 
Q&A: Peter Murphy on ‘Ninth,’ Bauhaus’ break-up, reuniting Dalis Car 
Q&A: Joey Santiago on Pixies’ ‘Doolittle’ tour, possible ‘Surfer Rosa’ shows, new album talk 
Q&A: Prefab Sprout’s Paddy McAloon on new album, changing the world with music 
Q&A: Peter Hook talks ‘Unknown Pleasures’ tour, re-recording Joy Division 