Music News

Weekly Round Up: Friday 17th October

Friday 17th October, 2014 4:31PM

There were some great tour announcements coming out of the woodwork this week. We will have hip hop minstrel Sage Francis visiting these shores for two shows in December in support of his most recent album Copper Gone. Troubadour Delaney Davidson has planned an extensive nationwide tour that will kick off in mid-November. Queensbridge rapper Nas has announced a two-date trip to New Zealand in January to celebrate the 20th anniversary of his debut album Illmatic, which changed the face of hip hop following its release in 1994. Reggae superstar Jimmy Cliff is also coming over for two headline shows, visiting Tauranga and Auckland in March. Eighties icon Billy Idol will be making his way to New Zealand for the first time since 1987 for three shows in April. Also in April, Auckland will be getting a good dose of the funk when George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic land for a special sideshow to the Bluesfest in Australia.

In release news, Dictaphone Blues shared the second single from the forthcoming album Mufti Day and it's a wee gem featuring the talents Emily Edrosa of Street Chant (whose own debut solo EP came out today). Wellington's Mongo Skato let loose single 'Gimme Some' as a teaser from forthcoming EP I Don't Give It, which will be out December through Canadian label 1080p. Also coming out of Wellington is the first single from the impending album by experimental artist Antony Milton, who is putting out a release via new label End Of The Alphabet Records. Auckland garage duo Dad Jokes are sharing their new EP Bad Friends, which is the first offering from the pizza-loving pair since they signed to Muzai and is due out officially next week. Looking overseas, Foxygen unveiled a hazy new video for 'Coulda Been My Love', taken from their new album ...And Star Power. And finally, Run The Jewels will be recreating their sophomore album RTJ2 using cat sounds following a crowdfunding campaign that raised $40,000 to make it happen. Read our interview with Killer Mike and EL-P where they discuss the process of auditioning cats over here, and watch a teaser trailer for Meow The Jewels over here.