Blur to debut new material live on Twitter!

For the first time, Blur will debut new material live on Twitter when they perform two new songs via a worldwide live video stream Monday 2nd July at 6.15pm UK time (for our Aussie readers, that's Tuesday 3rd July at 3.13am AEST. God knows what that time is in the US. Sorry, you'll have to do the math).

Filmed and streamed completely live from a secret UK location, the two new songs - which the band have never publicly performed - are Under The Westway and The Puritan. Damon Albarn said “I wrote these songs for Hyde Park and I’m really excited about getting out there and playing them for people.”

Go to @blurofficial at 6:15pm UK time on Monday to hear the first track and an exclusive band interview, followed by the second track an hour later.

Also, there is a swanky collector's item on its way! 21 years since the release of their debut album Leisure in 1991, Blur’s body of work has been personally compiled by the band and gathered together in one pretty fuckin awesome box. All seven studio albums are collected with over 5½ hours of unreleased material including 65 (65!) previously unreleased tracks and more than twice as many rarities, three DVDs, a collector’s edition book featuring rare and unseen photos and a new and exclusive interview with the band, and a special limited edition Seymour 7-inch vinyl. The box will also include a digital download code for the albums and all bonus material. Got all that? Because there will be a written test on all this at the end, you know.

Highlights of the box include early versions of tracks recorded for Leisure, bare bones early demos of the classic singles For Tomorrow and Beetlebum, previously unheard songs Saturday Morning and Hope You Find Your Suburbs and never released sessions with Bill Laswell and the legendary session with XTC’s Andy Partridge. There are heaps of other rarities too, but we're getting tired of all this typing, so head here for all the deets.

Steve Smyth at The Slaughtered Lamb, London

Sometimes you just know that you have witnessed something seminal. The Slaughtered Lamb pub, tucked away in the labyrinthal back streets of Central London, offered up one such occasion on a cold, dark Wednesday night, as Sydney's Steve Smyth played an exceptional show for the UK launch of his debut album, Release.

Beginning with one of the most exciting songs put out by anyone this year, Barbiturate Cowboy & His Dark Horses, Smyth (pictured, above) demonstrated his vocal range and captivating stage presence as an ethereal opening was barged aside by a lung-busting, gravel-throated Tom Waits bark. He howled, approached the mic from every angle, stomped his feet and dropped to his knees on the beer soaked carpet as droplets of sweat rained from his brow. On A Hopeless Feminist, the troubadour treated his guitar with the gentle caress of a lover while during the raw blues of No Man's Land, he bashed the living hell out of it. Counterbalancing this, he further illustrated the nuances of his vocal with a beautiful A Cappella version of Leadbelly's Sylvie.

As well as being backed by Howling Bells drummer Glenn Moule on drums for much of the set, Smyth was also joined by Moule's London-based Australian band-mate Juanita Stein (pictured, above) for the sweet and gentle duet Stay Young. The Howling Bells singer's pretty delivery floated elegantly through the silenced room and juxtaposed the show's more visceral moments. The night closed with Smyth being joined by Kitty, Daisy & Lewis (pictured, below) for a fun Howlin' Wolf-esque romp, Chocolate For Breakfast, which had been created in the London siblings' home just the day before.

Calls for an encore were reluctantly denied by Smyth. “How can you top that?” he asked of his triumphant closing jam with the North London trio. And so, with a drink in each hand and a smile the size of the Thames visible through his epic beard, he disappeared through the packed room to a multitude of back-slaps and a cacophony of cheers.

On this showing, and judging by the quality of his debut LP, the charismatic Steve Smyth has an incredibly exciting future ahead of him and this love-in between himself, his musical mates and a wooed audience is sure to be one of those occasions where those in attendance will, in the future, boast “I was there.” The singer/songwriter certainly seemed overwhelmed and humbled by the turnout and reception and, as the crowd stepped out into the freezing London streets, their breath dancing in front of their faces, they did so in the knowledge that they had witnessed something truly special.

Review and photos by Bobby Townsend.

Wolf & Cub release double A-side single and announce launch shows

Two years since the release of their acclaimed second album Science and Sorcery, Adelaide's Wolf & Cub are back with a double A-side single featuring the tracks See The Light and All Through The Night, available now, exclusively through iTunes and Bandcamp. Because we are nice to you, you can stream the little blighters here on Bobbysix.com too. Just at the bottom of this post, in fact.

Produced, recorded and mixed by studio wunderkind Burke Reid (Gareth Liddiard, Jack Ladder, Dan Kelly) at Big Jesus Burger in Sydney, both See The Light and All Through The Night offer documented aural proof of an evolving band. See The Light is primarily driven by a snaky bass line, the reverb rich vocals deliver a subtle but persuasive hook tempered by chiming delayed guitars. Meanwhile, All Through The Night is dreamy pop floating on a fragile falsetto vocal, with amphetamine bass pulse, broad sonic guitar brush strokes and sparse drumming.

See The Light//All Through The Night Single Launch Shows:
Fri – 9 Mar - Arcade Lane - Adelaide (Moshtix: 1300 438 849 www.moshtix.com.au)
Sat – 24 Mar - The Espy – Melbourne (www.espy.com.au)
Thu – 5 Apr - GoodGod - Sydney (Moshtix: 1300 438 849, www.moshtix.com.au)