• Hello Saturday edition of The Purge… we’ve been expecting you. What with your lead story about the new Potbelleez single and all. Yes, the Aussie dance favourites return with their new single ‘Shout (Say That You Want Me)’ this week. It’s a cover of the Isley Brothers classic (which in turn was covered by the likes of The Beatles, Johnny O’Keefe and Lulu) and is already being used in the latest ‘Kmart’ advertising campaign.
• DJ Fresh is back with another massive superstar collaboration. On ‘Bang Bang’, released just yesterday, the UK bass music star once again teams up with Diplo, but also ropes in the services of R City, Selah Sue and Craig David. Take a listen to the single HERE.
• Thundamentals have a new album coming at you. To be released through their own label High Depth (and distributed by the team at Universal Music), the album is called ‘Everyone We Know’ and ropes in a range of collaborators including Peta & The Wolves, Hilltop Hoods, Mataya and Laneous. It features 15 tracks in total and is due to land at your favourite retailer from Friday February 10.
• Sydney songstress Holly Throsby has also confirmed the release of a new album early in the new year. Hers is entitled ‘After A Time’, it’s due out on February 17 and featurs lead single ‘What Do You Say?’. She’s described the new LP as “a collection of songs from the past five years of my life”, lyrically inspired by some of the same topics covered in her first novel ‘Goodwood’. To celebrate the album’s release, Holly will play shows across the country throughout March, kicking off with a show at the Clarendon Guesthouse in Katoomba on March 09. Tickets are on sale now.
• Melbourne act Kingswood will release their new sophomore album ‘After Hours, Close To Dawn’ on Friday March 03, and, like Holly, they’re going to hit the road in support of it. Tickets went on sale yesterday for the 14 date whip around the country, which begins at Sooki Lounge in the outer Eastern suburbs of Melbourne on March 23 and wraps at the Capitol in Perth on Saturday April 29.
• Aussie MC Illy will celebrate the release of his No.1 album ‘Two Degrees’ with a tour across the five main capital cities from late March. The ‘Two Degrees’ Australian tour kicks off at Metropolis in Fremantle on Saturday March 25 before making stops in Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and, finally, Brisbane on Saturday April 08. A Telstra Thanks pre-sale kicks off at midday on Monday December 12 before general public tickets go on sale from 10am on Friday December 16.
• The Tea Party will collaborated with the Sydney Youth Orchestras for a special Sydney show at the Star Event Centre on April 21. They’ll be delivering a unique experience; employing a range of different instruments, many of which have featured in their back catalogue. Tickets are on sale from 10am on Thursday December 15.
• A Day On The Green have announced a huge line-up for two regional dates in March. Hoodoo Gurus, Violent Femmes, The Whitlams, Tim Rogers and the Models are all on the bill for the two shows; at All Saints Estate in Rutherglen in Victoria on March 18 and at Annie’s Lane in the Clare Valley in South Australia on March 25. Tickets are on sale this Friday at 10am.
• WA natives Pond have been added to the Falls Festival line-up across the country. The band has been added to the bill in Lorne, Byron Bay, Marion Bay and Fremantle for this year’s event. Organisers have promised us that the all-important playing times will land with punters next week.
• The top four on the UK singles chart this week is entirely steady, with Clean Bandit and their smash ‘Rockabye’ maintaining their No.1 position for a fifth successive week. Neiked’s ‘Sexual’ edges from No.6 to No.5 before, just like clockwork, Mariah Carey’s seminal Christmas classic ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ comes storming back into the countdown (No.29 to No.6) some 22 years after its original release. Rag N Bone Man’s ‘Human’ is into the top ten, improving from No.11 to No.8. And in case you weren’t aware that Christmas is just around the corner, check The Pogues and Kirstie McColl’s ‘Fairytale Of New York’ jumping from No.66 to No.16 and Wham’s ‘Last Christmas’ bulleting from No.75 to No.19.
• It could only possibly be The Rolling Stones in the No.1 spot in the UK this week. The boys’ new album ‘Blue & Lonesome’ premiering in the top spot ahead of Michael Ball & Alfie Boe (steady at No.2), Little Mix’s ‘Glory Days’ (down from No.1 to No.3), Elvis Presley’s ‘The Wonder Of You’ and Olly Murs’ ’24 HRS’. Michael Bublé’s ‘Christmas’ is back into the top ten (No.11 to No.6) and it’s followed by Robbie Williams’ ‘Heavy Entertainment Show’ (No.12 to No.7) and Emeli Sandé’s ‘Long Live The Angels’ (No.14 to No.10).
• Stateside, meantime, we’ve got Rae Sremmurd and Gucci Mane sitting pretty at No.1 for the fourth successive week with ‘Black Beatles’, with the rest of the top ten on the move behind them. Though everything moves a maximum of two places either up (Ariana Grande’s ‘Side To Side’) or down (Twenty One Pilots’ ‘Heathens’). The Weeknd’s ‘Party Monster’ is in a big hurry in the northerly direction, bulleting from No.39 to No.16, ahead of Machine Gun Kelly x Camila Cabello’s ‘Bad Things’, which leaps from No.28 to No.17. The Weeknd’s other new track, ‘I Feel It Coming’, also improves this week (No.48 to No.22), just ahead of a new entry (see : re-entry) for Mariah Carey’s classic ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ (No.23).
• Over on the Billboard album chart, meantime, we’ve for The Weeknd’s album ‘Starboy’ premiering in the No.1 position, making it two No.1 albums on the fly for the Canadian R&B superstar. ‘A Pentatonix Christmas’ improves from No.4 to No.2, while Metallica’s ‘Hardwired…To Self-Destruct’ drops from top spot to No.3. There’s improvement for the ‘Moana’ soundtrack (No.16 to No.5); so too for Pentatonix’s other festive set ‘That’s Christmas To Me’ (No.12 to No.7) and Michael Bublé’s ‘Christmas’ (No.19 to No.8). But not every Christmas album is on the rise. Garth Brooks & Trisha Yearwood’s ‘Christmas Together’ takes a seven place tumble to No.14 (probably because it’s been bundled up with Garth’s new album ‘Gunslinger’ for the festive season – and that double album pack bullets from No.134 to No.21. ‘Gunslinger’ itself is new at No.25.
• The Purge is almost at an end for another week, but we’ve got one more Saturday salvo to fire; that’s our weekly ARIA Chart Watch, in which we’ll take a close look at what’s been happening on this week’s ARIA top 100s. It’s live at 6pm on the East Coast tonight. Guess we’ll see you then!