On August 4, 2019, The Chainsmokers took the Lollapalooza stage in Chicago and delivered exactly what a festival crowd at peak summer demands: relentless energy, chest-rattling drops, and a light show built to match. Hits like “Don’t Let Me Down” and “Call You Mine” hit differently at that scale, with the duo’s polished EDM production turning Grant Park into one massive dancefloor for the duration of the set.
Watch Wet Leg’s Intimate 2022 Studio Session Capturing a Breakthrough Moment Before the World Caught Up
Right in the middle of their breakthrough year, Wet Leg stepped into the 3voor12 studio in Hilversum for a 20-minute session that distilled everything sharp and sardonic about the Isle of Wight duo into one compact, crackling performance. With just guitars and synths in a minimalist space, Rhian Teasdale and Hester Chambers delivered the garage post-punk energy of their self-titled debut, including the deadpan viral hit “Chaise Longue,” with the kind of focused intensity that made it clear this was a band built for stages far bigger than the one they were standing on.
Watch Pearl Jam Bring Beyoncé, and a Central Park Crowd to Their Feet in 2015
Pearl Jam’s 2015 headlining set at the Global Citizen Festival on Central Park’s Great Lawn was never just a concert. The Seattle rock legends brought their full catalog and their convictions to a crowd of thousands of activists, tearing through “Alive,” “Better Man,” and “Do the Evolution” before closing with covers of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song,” John Lennon’s “Imagine,” and Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World.” The night’s defining moment came during the encore, when Eddie Vedder was joined on stage by Beyoncé for a duet on “Redemption Song,” a collision of two artists at the peak of their powers, on a night built around something bigger than music.
Québécois Math Rock Duo Angine de Poitrine Is Breaking Every Formula AI Tries to Follow
Essayist Will Francis took a close look at Angine de Poitrine, the Québécois experimental rock duo whose elaborately dissonant math rock has been quietly breaking the internet, and his conclusion is pointed: their music is so structurally unpredictable that generative AI simply can’t replicate it. As Francis puts it, AI is trained on the formulas that dominate modern music, and Angine de Poitrine have deliberately walked away from all of them. The ripple effect has been real, with YouTube musicians including Charles Cornell and a very exasperated Rick Beato both responding to fan requests to weigh in on the duo’s KEXP performance.
Watch Motörhead’s 2015 Resurrection Fest, One of the Last and Loudest of Lemmy’s Life
This one matters. Motörhead’s performance at Resurrection Fest in Viveiro, Spain in the summer of 2015 is one of the final recorded concerts of Lemmy Kilmister’s life, and he spent every second of it proving exactly why Motörhead were unlike anything else in rock. Flanked by Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee, Lemmy tears through an uncompromising set of classics including “Damage Case,” “Stay Clean,” “Ace of Spades,” and “Overkill,” his thunderous Rickenbacker bass and gravelly roar holding the Spanish crowd completely in hand. It’s raw, it’s loud, and it’s irreplaceable.
Video: The Killers Bring the House Down in a Triumphant Las Vegas Homecoming Set
Few bands carry a city the way The Killers carry Las Vegas, and their headlining set at the Life is Beautiful Festival in September 2023 made that connection impossible to ignore. Filmed professionally at the festival’s 10th anniversary celebration in downtown Las Vegas, this performance captures Brandon Flowers commanding a massive crowd through a set full of stadium-sized anthems, with the band’s signature blend of heartland rock, new wave, and post-punk revivalism hitting harder than ever on home turf.
Lizwi and Tommy Veanud Deliver a Transcendent Afro House Single With ‘UNqamlezo’
Two of Afro House’s most distinctive voices have connected on something genuinely powerful. Lizwi and Tommy Veanud release ‘UNqamlezo’ on April 30 via TV Recordings, a track built on organic percussion, tribal rhythms, and rich melodic layering that pulls from the deepest wells of African music tradition. Pre-save it here.
The track is sung in IsiZulu, with ‘UNqamlezo’ translating as “The Cross.” It carries a message of faith, protection, and presence, with Lizwi’s raw, emotionally charged vocals driving every moment. The production builds a hypnotic atmosphere where spiritual weight meets dancefloor momentum, and the two elements don’t compromise each other. This one earns both.
Lizwi’s standing in Afro House is well established. Early collaborations alongside Da Capo, a release on Armada Music, and consistent support from Black Coffee set the foundation. Her catalogue spans MoBlack, Get Physical, and more. Her 2024 collaboration with Joezi, “Amathole,” generated significant online traction and led to a Russian-language version with Filatov & Karas that pulled strong radio support. She’s played over 200 shows across Russia and toured the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Bali, Mykonos, and beyond.
Tommy Veanud is the alias of Artem Dunaev, also known as Prime Punk, a DJ and producer with over 15 years of experience and more than three million streams under the Tommy Veanud project. Beatport chart support has been consistent, with backing from Hugel, Meduza, and Marco Carola. He performed at Ultra Europe in 2024 and has toured across 12 countries and 25 cities, from Ibiza and Amsterdam to Tokyo and Goa.
Faouzia Takes Her Cinematic ‘Film Noir’ World on a Major International Tour
Faouzia has announced the Film Noir Tour, her first international run in four years, and it covers serious ground. The Winnipeg-born vocalist, songwriter, and classically trained multi-instrumentalist kicks things off June 17 in Berlin before moving through Amsterdam, Paris, and London, then sweeping across North America through July and August.
‘Film Noir,’ her debut independent album, is the spine of this whole run. The 11-track record has already pulled in over 110 million global streams, charted on Apple Music’s Top Pop Albums chart, and landed her on the cover of Spotify’s Pop All Day playlist. “UNETHICAL” went viral. “PORCELAIN” announced her independence. “PEACE & VIOLENCE” added another dimension to a record that sounds like nothing else in pop right now.
The touring resume backing this up is substantial. Faouzia has collaborated with John Legend, Kelly Clarkson, David Guetta, Galantis, Alan Walker, and most recently Illenium and G.E.M. on “Still Breathing.” Variety spotlighted her as an Artist to Watch and called her “an international artist in the truest sense.” In 2024, she was a finalist on China’s hit competition series Singer, making her the second most-streamed international artist in that country behind Taylor Swift.
The Film Noir Tour includes festival stops at Montreux Jazz Festival, Lollapalooza, and Outside Lands, plus three Canadian dates: Vancouver on August 3, Toronto at The Danforth Music Hall on August 19, and Montreal at Beanfield Theatre on August 21. Tickets go on sale to the public Friday, April 24 at 10AM local time, with artist, venue, and Spotify presales running April 21 through 23..
Film Noir Tour Dates:
06/17/2026 – Berlin, Germany – Heimathafen Neukölln
06/19/2026 – Cologne, Germany – Luxor
06/20/2026 – Brussels, Belgium – Botanique
06/23/2026 – Amsterdam, Netherlands – Melkweg
06/25/2026 – Paris, France – Alhambra
06/29/2026 – London, United Kingdom – Islington Assembly Hall
07/12/2026 – Montreux, Switzerland – Montreux Jazz Festival*
07/28/2026 – Detroit, MI – The Shelter
07/30/2026 – Chicago, IL – Lollapalooza*
08/01/2026 – Minneapolis, MN – Fine Line
08/03/2026 – Vancouver, BC – Hollywood Theatre
08/05/2026 – Seattle, WA – Neumos
08/07/2026 – San Francisco, CA – Outside Lands Music Festival*
08/09/2026 – Los Angeles, CA – El Rey Theatre
08/12/2026 – Atlanta, GA – Vinyl
08/14/2026 – Washington, DC – Union Stage
08/16/2026 – Boston, MA – Royale
08/17/2026 – Brooklyn, NY – Warsaw
08/19/2026 – Toronto, ON – The Danforth Music Hall
08/21/2026 – Montreal, QC – Beanfield Theatre
*Festival performance, not included in ticket onsale
SiriusXM’s “99% Invisible” and BBC Studios Announce New Series Exploring America Through 100 Objects
SiriusXM and BBC Studios today announced a major new original series, “A History of the United States in 100 Objects,” produced by BBC Studios Audio and the award-winning team behind SiriusXM’s acclaimed podcast about the hidden design and architecture shaping everyday life, “99% Invisible.”
Hosted by “99% Invisible” creator Roman Mars and premiering on May 19, “100 Objects” echoes the BBC’s 2010 landmark series, “A History of the World in 100 Objects,” by telling the story of America not through a single narrative, but through 100 distinct and surprising objects.
Each episode examines an ordinary object from America – sometimes overlooked, sometimes discarded – to uncover the human stories, contradictions, and cultural forces it reflects: a gold coin retrieved from a shipwreck in 1857 that triggered a financial panic; an antebellum schoolbook that became an instrument of Black liberation; a tiny screw that shows how the US created a hidden industrial empire; and 97 more. Blending meticulous reporting with immersive storytelling, “100 Objects” poses a central question: what if the objects that rarely make the history books say more about our country than those that do?
Throughout the series, Mars will be joined by a wide-ranging group of celebrated contributors, including historians, journalists, and acclaimed podcasters, as well as individuals with personal connections to the stories being told.
The project brings together some of the most respected voices in narrative storytelling for a rare, large-scale collaboration, including: “Radiolab” founder Jad Abumrad; Dan Taberski, investigative journalist and host of “Hysterical,” “Missing Richard Simmons,” and “9/12”; Song Exploder creator Hrishikesh Hirway; former MythBuster Adam Savage; current “Radiolab” co-host Latif Nasser; historian and New Yorker writer Jill Lepore; National Book Award winner Imani Perry; and a whole host of Peabody Award-winning journalists and producers, including Jack Hitt and The Kitchen Sisters, with additional contributors to be announced.
“The history of America can’t be captured in a single story,” explains Roman Mars. “So instead, we’re telling one hundred. By looking closely at the things we’ve made – and the things we’ve thrown away – we’re hoping to reveal a richer, more complicated picture of who we are.”
Helen Pendlebury, BBC Studios Audio’s Commercial & Content Partnerships Director, says, “SiriusXM and the ‘99% Invisible’ team are the perfect partners for this ambitious project which will reflect the best of all of us”.
“Roman Mars and the team behind 99% Invisible have a rare ability to take the seemingly ordinary and reveal something profound,” said Adam Sachs, SiriusXM’sSVP of Podcast Content. “Partnering with BBC Studios on a project of this scale allows us to bring that storytelling to an even broader audience.”
Beginning May 19, new episodes of “A History of the United States in 100 Objects” will drop every Friday in the “99% Invisible” feed on the SiriusXM app and wherever podcasts are available. Episodes will additionally be available a week early for SiriusXM Podcasts+ subscribers. More information available at siriusxm.com/podcasts-plus-subscription.
“100 Objects” is produced for SiriusXM by BBC Studios Audio with Roman Mars and the “99% Invisible” team. The series is executive produced by BBC Studios Audio’s Annie Brown (producer of the groundbreaking “1619” history series for The New York Times) and Courtney Harrell (producer of Wondery’s award-winning “9/12” series). The EP for SiriusXM is Kathy Tu.
“99% Invisible” is distributed on the SiriusXM Podcast Network, and SiriusXM Media, the company’s advertising division, has exclusive ad sales rights to the podcast. The SiriusXM Podcast Network, the #1 podcast network by reach, represents more of the top 20 podcasts than any other network* and reaches 1 in 2 U.S. podcast listeners each month.
Blow by Blow: The Jeff Beck Story Is Getting the Biography It Deserves
Jeff Beck never made it easy on anyone, including the people trying to write about him. That changes July 14 when ‘Blow by Blow: The Jeff Beck Story’ arrives from Da Capo Press, a full narrative biography built from roughly 30 hours of interviews with the late guitarist himself, plus extensive conversations with collaborators, friends, and family.
Brad Tolinski and Chris Gill are the right people for this. Tolinski spent over 25 years as editor-in-chief of Guitar World, the best-selling musician’s magazine in the world, and previously co-wrote ‘Eruption,’ the critically acclaimed oral history on Eddie Van Halen. Gill worked alongside him. Together, they know how to get guitar legends talking.
Beck’s story is genuinely one of a kind. Six decades of music, zero compromises, and a career that somehow included Luciano Pavarotti, Kelly Clarkson, and Guns N’ Roses without ever feeling incoherent. Jimmy Page once said Beck “shifted the whole sound and face of electric guitar music.” This book finally gives that legacy the depth it’s earned.
Beck himself put it plainly: “I’m an awkward son of a bitch when it comes to doing the expected.” That quote alone tells you why a biography this thorough took this long, and why it’s worth the wait. The hardcover runs 400 pages and retails for $32.50, with ebook and audiobook editions also available.
‘Blow by Blow: The Jeff Beck Story’ is available for preorder now at major retailers.