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The only people who separate music into categories are fans.   Witness Chris Martin of Coldplay. He and his missus, the lovely and talented Gwyneth Paltrow, took in the New York Philharmonic last week in their first outing since baby Moses was found floating in the rushes along the Hudson River. Martin told the New York Post he may turn to classical music. But only "when I'm 40, and too old to be a rock star."   So, what does he think Mick Jagger is doing, hollering, "Hey, you. Get off of my law

Bluetooth specialist CSR saw profits jump 137 per cent in the first-quarter, ahead of market expectations, boosted by strong demand for the wireless technology.   CSR, which said it expects a ‘strong’ performance in 2006, said pretax profits for the three months to the end of March had more than doubled to $25.8 million (£14.1 million), compared with $10.9 million in the same period a year ago.   Revenues for the quarter jumped to $134.9 million (£73.6 million) from $66.4 million in 2005. The te

I consider myself an authority on what is funny and what is stupid. It would behoove the reader to follow my advice.   “Brokeback Mountain” was released about four months ago and people are still making jokes about its sheep-herding, homosexual male leads. These jokes are not funny. In fact, they are stupid, immature, lame and unoriginal. Essentially, the people who make these jokes simply substitute the word “gay” with “Brokeback” or “Brokeback Mountain,” which doesn’t make grammatical sense.

Liam Gallagher says that the Arctic Monkeys make him feel "awkward."   Although the 38-year-old things they’re a decent band, he’s put off by how young the teenagers are. Speaking about Alex Turner, he told Q Magazine: "I like him, I do, and he is definitely a bit of a genius lyricist, but he is still a kid. He was eight when 'Definitely Maybe' came out. What the fuck am I, a 38-year-old supposed to say to that? They make me feel awkward."   In the candid interview, Liam also lamented about how

The Glastonbury Festival is hoping to expand its capacity by 20,000 for the 2007 festival.   The event is taking a break this year, as it does every five years, but organisers are now trying to work out how to get more punters through the gates.   All 112,500 weekend tickets sold out in less than three hours last year, reflecting the festival's growing popularity. The total capacity is 153,000, including passes for staff, media, artists, locals and guests. Melvin Benn, who runs the operational

Singer Will Young has beaten a host of British acts to be voted the most popular UK artist of all time in a poll of radio listeners.   The annual chart celebrates the best of UK music counting down the 40 most popular artists of all time, as voted for by listeners of commercial radio.   Former Beatle Sir Paul claimed third position followed by the Spice Girls at number four and Coldplay at five.The 27-year-old, who was catapulted to fame in 2002 after winning the inaugural Pop Idol contest, fo

With an unforgettable debut album and a soaring sound that conjures comparisons to U2 and Coldplay, it’s easy to understand why the Editors have had such a quick rise to fame.   In the span of approximately a year and a half, the British group has gone from relative anonymity to being one of the top-selling bands in the UK. Their platinum disc, “The Back Room,” reached the second spot on the UK charts in early 2006, and now the band’s trying to win over US audiences as well.   “I don’t think the

Phoenix Foundation's Luke Buda will happily admit to Vangelis and Queen as inspirations, but just don't say a word about Coldplay, writes Grant Smithies.   Luke Buda is gutted. The Wellington musician has just found out that Chris Martin from Coldplay and his missus Gwyneth Paltrow have named their new son Moses.   Buda and his partner called their own son Moses six months ago. "It's awful!" he splutters. "It's so embarrassing! What if people think we chose the name because they did? I feel I n

If they haven't already, Snow Patrol are about to find out that the pressures of success can be every bit as oppressive, draining and potentially hazardous as those of failure.   Their fortunes were transformed by the two million selling Final Straw, a last throw of the dice for a band who, before it was made, had no money, no label and seemingly no future.   Now their future is alive with all sorts of possibilities - they have done the ground work for an assault on America, and the next, tantal

When the Happy Mondays crowded the Edinburgh Venue's hallowed stage, the ever on-the-ball Shaun Ryder began with a bellowing "Good Evening... Glasgow!" before tripping over a monitor and falling flat on his grizzly face.   Fifteen minutes later the gig descended into a scrum with Ryder and Bez brawling on the floor. Still, that's another story, and one of many of the Venue's torrid tales. Coldplay were signed a week after playing a support slot there in the late Nineties and when the Strokes fi

The teenage son of a Paisley chip shop owner has landed a five-album contract with one of the world's most famous record labels in a deal that industry insiders claim could be worth up to £1m.   Singer-songwriter Paolo Nutini has signed with Atlantic Records, which currently has stars James Blunt and Björk on its books and introduced the world to rock band Led Zeppelin.   The 19-year-old has already entered the studio - with Coldplay producer Ken Nelson - to record his debut album, which is du

At 28, Fiona Apple is no longer the fragile teenage flower who languidly strummed her pain on her debut album Tidal. She is no longer the angry, angsty ranter that Chris Rock dubbed Fiona X. She is no longer the combustible performer who might storm off stage minutes into a show.   Question: The SunFest show is the beginning of a few solo dates for you before the start of a longer tour. You were out with Coldplay — what was that like after not touring for so long?   Apple: {.......} the crowds

US pop diva Mariah Carey has been drawn into a spat involving a Kiwi musician who claims he has not been paid royalties for her use of music he helped write.     Auckland musician Dominique Leauga arranged, co-produced and played many of the instruments on eight of the 13 songs on top Kiwi vocal duo's Adeaze's chart-topping debut album, including the platinum single "A Life With You", for which he is registered as a co-composer.   The song, which reached No 5 on the local charts in 2003, was u

When Coldplay released its second hit album, A Rush of Blood to the Head, the band said that part of the environmental damage caused by its production would be offset by the planting of 10,000 mango trees in southern India. More than four years after the album's release, however, many of Coldplay's good intentions have withered in the arid soil of Gudibanda, Karnataka state, where the saplings it sponsored were planted.   The idea of saving the world while making music was proposed by Future F

Football and music are a volatile combination, in my opinion. Separately they bring out the best and worst of their loyal supporters; from the collective pride of a community seeing their team run rings around the opposing side, to the violent riots accompanying all-to-many international matches. From the excitement of a live gig, to controversial bands given demi-god status, usually with a so-called 'disenfranchised' youth following. Not that I'm mentioning any names, Mr Doherty.   So, where d

The farmer behind the Glastonbury Festival has been awarded the highest possible honour by an organisation representing record industry managers.   Michael Eavis has been inducted into the Roll of Honour of the Music Managers' Forum.   He said it was "quite thrilling to know that after 34 years of organised chaos, I am deemed worthy of this award". He added the festival - which began in 1970 - was so successful because its mix of arts and culture was unique. "We do a whole lot of expression in

Festival impresario Michael Eavis said he hoped nearly 175,000 people will attend in 2007.   He revealed plans to expand the site beyond his own Worthy Farm, taking in an extra 100 acres from neighbouring farms. Mr Eavis said he hoped the extra space would make life more comfortable for festival-goers if the 2007 event is hit by bad weather similar to the rains that turned the site into a quagmire in 2005.   He said: "We are looking at having 10,000 extra people involved like performers, backsta

Crazy Frog where are you now? Well, here he (it) is...   The criminal masterminds behind the Crazy Frog have appropriated the Queen anthem ‘We Are The Champions’ for the upcoming football World Cup.   The track, officially titled ‘We Are The Champions (Ding A Ding Dong)’, will go head-to-head with British band Embrace’s official England team song, ‘World At Your Feet’. Crazy Frog will be looking for another chart scalp, after topping the charts ahead of Coldplay in 2005.‘We Are The Champions’ wa

The Ruse has a distinctive, mature sound that will speak to your heart and cry to your deepest emotions.   These four guys should already be rich and famous. John Dauer, Jim Bilus, Mark Stolze and Jason Young make up this imaginative, new band.   Their current album, "Light in Motion," radiates with brilliance and endless possibility. Get this album and you will hear an intriguing combination of U2, Coldplay and Sting all very cleverly meshed together.   Read the full review here

Here's another reason to envy Gwyneth Paltrow: She just had another baby, and she's slimmer than ever.   "Last time you saw me, I was out to here," the 33-year-old mother of Moses told friends at the Food Bank for New York City's Can-Do Awards dinner Tuesday honoring REM front man Michael Stipe. She put her hands out a foot in front of her - then patted her perfectly flat tummy.   The lithe Gwyneth, in black slacks and jacket, sported open-toed heels with a matching dark maroon manicure-pedicure

Eisley sounds like a fairy tale. The band — composed of home-schooled family members from small-town Texas — formed about a decade ago when keyboardist/singer Stacy DuPree was only 7.   The quintet — sisters Stacy, Sherri and Chauntelle, their brother Weston and a friend, Jon Wilson — released a pair of stunning, dreamy rock EPs in 2003, which set the stage for tours with Coldplay and Snow Patrol. The full-length debut, 2005's "Room Noises," led to tours with New Found Glory, Hot Hot Heat and Sw

Cities is a good record from a good young band with loads of potential. It's not brilliant, as some Triangle scene advocates hoped, but it's not bad, as jealous detractors of the Chapel Hill band and its record deal hoped. It's solid.   But what Cities lacks in apogean excellence it makes up for, by default, with local relevance: I doubt this will be the best record released in the Triangle this year, but it just may be the most important.   Of course, the natural response is "Why?" Why would a

Topics - Rap, Hip Hop, Support. Find more related articles under the related topics section shown in the box to the right.   Boost Mobile RockCorps (BMRC), the national youth volunteerism movement that motivated more than 6,000 young people to get involved and help their community last year...is back! RockCorps, an organization harnessing the power of music to inspire volunteerism, and Boost Mobile, a wireless telecommunications brand dedicated to boosting the lives of today’s youth, announced t

The social contract between musicians, audience and venues is a strange one. All parties agree to endure discomfort for a few hours in exchange for catharsis or enrichment (monetary or otherwise). If everything goes well, the bonding over shared deprivations (oxygen, hearing, shoes shed in moshpits) is part of the reward of deliverance.   Tuesday night's sold-out Bloc Party concert at Fort Lauderdale's Revolution nightclub was one of those nights. You could see the satisfaction in the giant smil

Playing to screaming fans at a free gig in the middle of the day in one of the capital's most impressive venues might not be the most risky way of introducing your new album. Better be good then...   Fortunately for Snow Patrol they haven't got the attention of the world, God, and his dog detailing every note and jaded falsetto every time they release an album, a la Coldplay.   Having been round the block several times with their shoe-laces undone as great record after greater record has passed