[News] The xx Announce UK Tour

It's hard to deny the fact that The xx have been absolutely everywhere the past few months in the build up to their recently released album, Coexist.  In turn the trio have now announced a small handful of UK tour dates set for December this year. Their minimal sounds will be gracing just 5 venues with their presence, including stops in Brighton, Bristol and Brixton. Check them out below to see if they are visiting a town near you.

The xx December UK Tour

Brighton Dome, 6th

O2 Academy Newcastle, 11th

Wolverhampton Civic Hall, 12th

Bristol Colston Hall, 14th

O2 Academy Brixton, 16th

[News] Ghostface Killah Announces New Album: 'Twelve Reasons To Die'

With his recent foray into the world of films and directing, RZA has been the focus of all the Wu-Tang Clan attention, but Ghostface Killah looks to bring some attention his way. On November 20th Ghostface will release his tenth studio album Twelve Reasons To Die, with Adrian Younge serving as producer and RZA taking on excutive production duties. Accompanying the album will be a comic (his second following 2009's Cell Block Z), which will be released in December. Stay posted for more info on the upcoming album.

[News] Major Lazer Delays 'Free the Universe'

Sad news for Major Lazer fans. As previously reported, Diplo was set to release the next Major Lazer LP on November 6th, but now the sophomore effort has been delayed till next year. Complex reports that Free the Universe has been pushed back to February 26th, where it will be released through Diplo's own Mad Decent imprint.

The project will see Diplo collaborating with Vampire Weekend's Ezra Koenig, Wyclef Jean, Bruno Mars, Tyga, Flux Pavilion, Shaggy, Winter Gordon, Dev, as well as Amber Coffman of Dirty Projectors on the previously released single "Get Free".

[News] The Weeknd Signs to Republic Records, Releasing 'Trilogy' in November

The Weeknd is making power moves! In what is described as a "strategic partnership", Tesfaye and his label XO have signed with Republic Records, a subsidary of Universal Records. The partnership will see The Weeknd's trio of mixtapes released physically this fall. House of Balloons, Thursday, and Echoes of Silence will be released as Trilogy on November 13th, with all three being mixed and mastered for the first time. The physical and digital versions of the release will also include never before released material

Below, you can read the official statement from the press release:

The joint venture between Republic Records and the Canada-based XO sees The Weeknd’s vision preserved and magnified on a much larger scale. The XO initiative has grown from a small collective– with roots based in the metropolitan streets of Toronto– to a marquee business partner, and it will only evolve further within this structure."

Leading up to the release of Trilogy, The Weeknd will be embarking on a massive North American tour, which kicks off on September 18th in Camden, NJ. Check out the full tour itinerary after the jump.

The Weeknd 2012 Tour Dates:
09/18 – Camden, NJ @ Susquehanna Bank Center *
09/19 – Columbia, MD @ Merriweather Post Pavilion *
09/21 – Chicago, IL @ Congress Theater
09/24 – Winnipeg, MB @ Burton Cummings Theatre
09/26 – Edmonton, AB @ Edmonton Event Centre
09/27 – Calgary, AB @ Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
09/29 – Vancouver, BC @ Pacific Coliseum
10/04 – San Diego, CA @ Cricket Wireless Ampitheatre *
10/05 – Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Ampitheatre *
10/07 – Los Angeles, CA @ Hollywood Bowl *
10/10 – Phoenix, AZ @ Celebrity Theatre
10/13 – Austin, TX @ Austin Music Hall
10/14 – Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
10/16 – Orlando, FL @ House of Blues
10/17 – Miami, FL @ The Fillmore
10/19 – Atlanta, GA @ Atlanta Civic Center
10/20 – Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore
10/22 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues
10/25 – New York, NY @ Terminal 5
10/26 – New York, NY @ Terminal 5
10/27 – Bronx, NY @ Paradise Theater
10/29 – Montreal, QC @ Metropolis

[Download] Benjamin Francis Leftwich Covers M83 and Frightened Rabbit

We've seen Benjamin Francis Leftwich deliver stellar sounding covers for the past 12 months. He's been touring relentlessly since the release of his brilliant debut, Last Smoke Before The Snowstorm, last July. He's not ready to slow down yet either as he's just announced a huge amount of UK dates and North American dates and what better way to celebrate than to share a few covers with fans? Below you can check out not one, but two truly great covers.

First up he takes on the still fresh sounding M83 track "Midnight City" before tackling one of his favourite bands tracks, Frightened Rabbit's "Swim Until You Can’t See Land". Both deserve a moment of your time as Ben puts his own signature sounds into the tracks making them feel slightly different while keeping the foundations in tact. You can download them over here. Tour dates can be seen after the jump for those of you wanting to check him out on the road this Autumn.

Benjamin Francis Leftwich 2012 UK Tour

01/10 – BRIGHTON – Concorde 2
02/10 – BOURNEMOUTH – Old Fire Station
03/10 – EXETER – The Phoenix
04/10 – FALMOUTH – Princess Pavilion
05/10 – SWANSEA – Sin City
06/10 – BRISTOL – O2 Academy
08/10 – OXFORD – Town Hall
09/10 – NEWCASTLE – Northumbria Uni
10/10 – EDINBURGH – Pleasance Theatre
11/10 – ABERDEEN – Lemon Tree
12/10 – INVERNESS – Ironworks
13/10 – GLASGOW – Oran Mor
15/10 – LEEDS – Varieties
16/10 – SHEFFIELD – Plug
17/10 – BIRMINGHAM – Irish Centre
18/10 – CAMBRIDGE – Junction
19/10 – NORWICH – Waterfront
20/10 – NOTTINGHAM – Rescue Rooms
22/10 – CARLISLE – Brickyard
23/10 – LIVERPOOL – Stanley Theatre
24/10 – LONDON – KOKO
25/10 – MANCHESTER – HMV Ritz
26/10 – STOKE – Sugar Mill
27/10 – YORK – The Duchess
29/10 – WREXHAM – Central Station
31/10 – GALWAY (Ireland) – Roisin Dubh
01/11 – CORK (Ireland) – Cyprus Avenue
02/11 – DUBLIN (Ireland) – Whelan’s
03/11 – BELFAST (Ireland) – The Limelight

North American Tour Dates

11/08 – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom of the Hill
11/09 – Los Angeles, CA @ Bootleg Bar
11/10 – San Diego, CA @ Soda Bar
11/12 – Eugene, OR @ Cozmic
11/13 – Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
11/15 – Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern
11/16 – Vancouver, BC @ Media Club
11/17 – Kelowna, BC @ The Habitat
11/18 – Canmore, AB @The Communitea
11/21 – Calgary, AB @ Palomino
11/22 – Edmonton, AB @ Brixx
11/23 – Regina, SK @ The Exchange
11/24 – Winnipeg, MB @ Park Theatre
11/26 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
11/28 – Chicago, IL @ Schubas
11/29 – Indianapolis, IN @ (venue TBD)
11/30 – Louisville, KY @ Uncle Slaytons
12/02 – Nashville, TN @ 3rd n Linsly
12/03 – Columbus, OH @ The Rumba Café
12/05 – Lansing, MI @ Mac Bar
12/06 – Toronto, ON @ Rivoli
12/07 – Montreal, QC @ Petit Campus
12/08 – Albany, NY @ Jacks Place
12/09 – Boston, MA @ Club 939 Berkeley
12/12 – New York, NY @ Studio @ Webster hall
12/13 – Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
12/14 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Club Cafe
12/15 – Washington, DC @ BlackCat
12/16 – Charlottesville, VA @ The Southern
12/18 – Raleigh, NC @ The Pour House
12/19 – Atlanta, GA @ Vinyl

[News] Mercury Music Prize Nominations Announced

Last night the nominations for the Barclaycard Mercury Music Prize were announced and it's full of some of our favourite albums from the past 12 months. In past years we've seen PJ Harvey, The xx and Arctic Monkeys take the honour and the £20000 cheque home but this time it'll be be between the list below. Let us know how you feel about the list and who you'd have win the prize.

Alt-J’s An Awesome Wave

Ben Howard’s Every Kingdom

Django Django’s Django Django

Field Music’s Plum

Jessie Ware’s Devotion

Lianne Le Havas’ Is Your Love Big Enough

Michael Kiwanuka’s Home Again

Plan B’s Ill Manners

Roller Trio’s Roller Trio

Richard Hawley’s Standing at the Sky’s Edge

Sam Lee’s Ground of Its Own

The Maccabees’ Given to the Wild

[News] Das Racist Announce U.S. Tour

After spending the majority of this year focusing on their own respective solo albums, Heems, Kool A.D., and Dapwell are coming together once again for a U.S. tour next month. The Das Racist trio will kick off the tour in Lexington, KY for Boomslang on September 20th, keeping proceedings going until October 14th. They'll also be appearing at Virgin Mobile FreeFest on October 6th. Check out their full tour schedule after the jump.

Das Racist 2012 Tour Dates:
09/20 – Lexington, KY @ Boomslang
09/25 – Toronto, ON @ Wrong Bar
09/26 – Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom
09/27 – New York, NY @ Irving Plaza
10/01 – Boston, MA @ Royale
10/06 – Columbia, MD @ Virgin Mobile FreeFest
10/08 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
10/10 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox at the Market
10/12 – San Francisco, CA @ DNA Lounge
10/14 – Los Angeles, CA @ Roxy Theatre

[News] Haim Announce UK Tour

The Los Angeles sisters Haim have announced their first ever UK tour set for November this year. The band are also set to support Ellie Goulding at her date on the iTunes Festival next month at The Roundhouse in London. Get excited for the girls to be on UK soil with the dates below.

Haim UK Tour 2012

September
26 The Roundhouse, London (iTunes Festival (w/ Ellie Goulding)

November
10 Constellations Festival, Leeds
11 Stereo, Glasgow
13 Deaf Institute, Manchester
14 KCLSU, London
16 Bodega, Nottingham
17 The Cooler, Bristol
18 Audio, Brighton