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Fred Armisen To Host CNN Original Series Exploring Universal Music Group’s Underground Archives

Eric Alper
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Fred Armisen To Host CNN Original Series Exploring Universal Music Group’s Underground Archives

CNN and Universal Music Group announced that Peabody Award-winning comedian, actor, writer and musician Fred Armisen will lead a new CNN Original Series giving fans an unprecedented, behind-the-scenes look into Universal Music Group’s vaults, which form the world’s largest music archives. Produced by UMG’s film and television division Polygram Entertainment, TIME Studios and Known Originals, the untitled music docuseries will premiere later this year as part of CNN Originals’ anticipated 2026 programming slate. With Armisen as their dynamic and knowledgeable host, viewers will explore pivotal moments in pop culture and the stories of the iconic artists and songwriters who changed the course of history. UMG’s archives include a massive, highly secure vault within the Iron Mountain facility in Boyers, Pennsylvania, located 220 feet underground in a former limestone mine.

The series will unearth priceless artifacts encompassing original recordings, master tapes, rare photos and performances, alternative album art and music videos, many of which have not been seen or heard publicly before. Amy Entelis, executive vice president of talent, CNN Originals and creative development for CNN Worldwide, shares: “This series opens the doors to one of the most extraordinary music archives in the world, and Fred Armisen is the perfect guide. His deep connection to music and natural sense of wonder allow viewers a chance to experience music history up close, discovering the unexpected stories behind some of the most iconic sounds ever created.” Will Tanous, EVP and Chief Administrative Officer at Universal Music Group and Executive Producer, adds: “This series was born from a desire to show fans what it’s like to mine the greatest underground musical archive in the world, giving them a sense of the hunt, the challenge, the thrill of this work, as well as direct access to the dedicated experts who preserve and champion these incredible musical legacies. Fred’s singular blend of humor, fandom, and musical talent make him the ideal storyteller to reveal the intimate era-defining moments and unheard gems that form the foundation of popular culture.”

Executive producers for the series are Fred Armisen, Will Tanous and David Blackman for UMG, Amy Entelis, Lyle Gamm and Katie Hinman for CNN Original Series, Jeff Smith for Time Studios, and Doug Pray. The series is produced by Nicole Avant and Brad Roth, with co-producers Bruce Resnikoff and Madeline Post for UMG. Executive Producer Ted Skillman will also serve as show runner. This series extends CNN Originals’ award-winning tradition of celebrating legendary artists and music history, joining a library of premium programming streaming on the CNN app.

Dry Cleaning Perform Songs From ‘Secret Love’ At WFUV FM Live Session

Eric Alper
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Dry Cleaning Perform Songs From ‘Secret Love’ At WFUV FM Live Session

Dry Cleaning’s ‘Secret Love’ is 2026’s first truly great album of this still-young year, a brave and nimble third album that distills these times of catastrophic chaos with gravity, rough beauty, and unflinching insight. All 11 songs masterfully lash together the personal and the political into a taut bow of confessional anguish and resistance. Dry Cleaning’s wit is still discernible, but so is the hurt of witnessing a world riven by war, deception, and rhetorical aggression. Florence Shaw on vocals, Tom Dowse on guitar, Lewis Maynard on bass, Nick Buxton on drums, and touring keyboardist Josh Eggerton arrived at WFUV to play a trio of songs from the band’s third album: lead single “Hit My Head All Day,” recent single “Joy,” and “Evil Evil Idiot.” They also chatted about working with producer Cate Le Bon and a shared goal of changing the ways they’ve played or vocalized in the past, their Wilco studio connection, and the tsunami of current events that drove the evolution of ‘Secret Love’ and what Dry Cleaning wanted and needed to express. Shaw explains: “A small alarm goes off when something needs to be said.” Major global events have always trailed Dry Cleaning, and on March 6, 2020, the quartet, who’d just signed to 4AD on the back of their two EPs, 2018’s ‘Sweet Princess’ and 2019’s ‘Boundary Road Snacks and Drinks,’ was the last band to play in FUV’s Studio A before the pandemic lockdown.

Gina Waggott Chronicles The Remarkable Rise Of Scatman John In New Biography

Eric Alper
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Gina Waggott Chronicles The Remarkable Rise Of Scatman John In New Biography

Gina Waggott explores one of pop music’s most improbable success stories in ‘Scatman John: The Remarkable Story of the World’s Unlikeliest Popstar,’ available February 5. John Larkin, a fast-living, hard-playing, stuttering jazz pianist, overcame abuse, addiction, ageism, and obscurity to stage one of the most improbable debuts in pop music history by turning his greatest pain into his purpose. At 52, Larkin was a recovering alcoholic and veteran pianist haunted by shame because of his lifelong stutter. His stutter meant he could scat-sing better than anyone else on the planet, grabbing and firing syllables like bullets, yet he couldn’t even say his own name. But when a small, indie record label took a gamble on an oddball fusion of John’s scat-singing and dance music, his life changed overnight as Scatman John was born.

In 1995, his singles “Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)” and “Scatman’s World” shot to number one across Europe and Asia, turning a man who’d spent his life hiding into a global star. Audiences were captivated by the absurdity and charm of a middle-aged man in a fedora machine-gunning syllables over a dance beat, but behind the novelty was a deeper story: John’s scat-singing was creative camouflage for his stutter, his music a last-ditch attempt to survive. When fame finally found him, he chose to reach others who felt broken or silenced, especially stutterers like him, by harnessing the one thing he was most afraid of: his voice. Based on rare archives and interviews with those who knew him best, this authorized biography is a redemptive, deeply human story of struggle, heartbreak, and triumph with a powerful message: your deepest fear can become your greatest strength, and your pain can become your purpose.

Lily Allen Announces Australian And New Zealand Tour Performing ‘West End Girl’ In Full

Eric Alper
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Lily Allen Announces Australian And New Zealand Tour Performing ‘West End Girl’ In Full

Lily Allen announces her Australian and New Zealand shows for October and November 2026, marking the English star’s biggest headline tour of her career. The highly acclaimed album ‘West End Girl’ has become a massive global success with over 275 million streams, and these shows will see the singer-songwriter perform her new album in its entirety as the songs appear on the record. Presented by Frontier Touring, the West End Girl Tour marks her first Australian and New Zealand shows in over seven years, following her last visit in 2019 on the No Shame Tour. Allen’s tour kicks off at Auckland’s Spark Arena on October 21, followed by a run of Australian dates hitting Brisbane Entertainment Centre on October 23 and Sydney’s TikTok Entertainment Centre on October 25, before heading to Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne on October 28. The trek concludes at Perth’s RAC Arena on November 1. Presales start on February 4, ahead of the general sale on February 9 at 1pm local time.

Long a defining and maverick voice of contemporary pop, Lily’s first two albums, her 2006 debut ‘Alright, Still’ and its follow-up ‘It’s Not Me, It’s You,’ reimagined pop stardom for the internet age, selling more than 5 million copies worldwide. Her Mercury-nominated 2018 album ‘No Shame’ and explosively candid memoir ‘My Thoughts Exactly’ cemented her reputation as one of music’s sharpest truth-tellers, before she announced she was stepping away from music. In her absence, Allen’s influence only deepened. Billie Eilish has spoken about crying the first time she heard “Smile,” Olivia Rodrigo credits her with showing how to “say what the fuck you want,” and PinkPantheress put it simply: “Allen made sounding like yourself feel cool.” Allen herself turned to new stages and formats, starring in sold-out runs of ‘2:22 A Ghost Story’ and ‘The Pillowman,’ plus a recent starring role in a new adaptation of Ibsen’s ‘Hedda Gabler.’ She also became the co-host of the award-winning podcast Miss Me alongside her best friend Miquita Oliver.

Now with the critically acclaimed ‘West End Girl,’ Lily’s fifth studio album and first for seven years, Allen pivots the spotlight back on herself, using her move to New York as the basis for a narrative journey within 14 new songs, an outstandingly candid and accomplished fusion of fact and fiction which is undoubtedly the most expansively empathetic work of her career. All 14 songs were written by Lily, mainly in collaboration with her musical director Blue May. The album’s executive producers were Lily Allen, Seb Chew, Kito and Blue May. The cover art and illustrations were created by renowned Spanish artist Nieves González. ‘West End Girl,’ out now via BMG Australia, was released digitally in October 2025 with a physical release last week, and debuted at No. 6 on the Australian ARIA Albums Chart and No. 5 on the official New Zealand Albums chart. This marks Lily’s fifth consecutive Top 10 album on the ARIA Album chart.

Lily Allen Performs West End Girl 2026 Australia & New Zealand Tour Dates:

Oct 21 – Auckland @ Spark Arena

Oct 23 – Brisbane @ Entertainment Centre

Oct 25 – Sydney @ TikTok Entertainment Centre

Oct 28 – Melbourne @ Rod Laver Arena

Nov 1 – Perth @ RAC Arena

Rick Wakeman Joins Nuclear Messiah For Blistering Single “Dice And Thunder”

Eric Alper
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Rick Wakeman Joins Nuclear Messiah For Blistering Single “Dice And Thunder”

Rick Wakeman ventures into his heaviest territory yet on “Dice And Thunder,” the latest single from all-star metal and prog aggregation Nuclear Messiah. The track sees Wakeman joining forces with Megadeth maestro Chris Poland, Steve Di Giorgio of Testament, Rainbow frontman Ronnie Romero, Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal, and Fred Aching of Dead Groove, Kings of Thrash, and BulletBoys for three minutes of blistering, seething mayhem. A sonic detonation that could crack the sky, “Dice and Thunder” is a driving skull-splitter with Poland’s screaming guitar to the fore, while Wakeman’s keys give as good as they get, igniting the carnage with a portentous overture and embedding themselves so deep inside the performance that his organ leads the track to its fade.

A thunderous all-star concept set, the full Nuclear Messiah album is called ‘Black Flame’ and arrives April 24. Arthur Brown starred on Nuclear Messiah’s first single, a cover of Lucifer’s Friend’s classic “Ride The Sky” before Christmas, and the new year opened with the incendiary title track “Black Flame” itself. Like that track, “Dice and Thunder” is a Chris Poland original, and for anyone schooled in the art of Megadeth’s most combustible albums, you can already guess what that means. The heart of Nuclear Messiah, Poland’s melodic fluidity, experimental phrasing, and sheer command of tone have inspired generations. From Megadeth’s ‘Peace Sells… But Who’s Buying?’ to his work in OHM and Damn the Machine, Poland’s guitar sound remains one of the most distinctive in modern music.

Brian Perera, Cleopatra’s founder and the album’s executive producer, explains: “Chris isn’t just a guitarist, he’s a spirit of sound. Nuclear Messiah was built around his brilliance and brought to life by an army of legends who share his passion and precision.” Poland isn’t the only Megadeth alumnus in sight, either. Elsewhere on the album, we hear from Marty Friedman, David Ellefson, Shawn Drover, Glen Drover on guitar and Chris Adler on drums, alongside 30 more metal and prog legends, truly the greatest and heaviest ensemble ever gathered for one single project. Wakeman has recorded with some of the greatest legends in rock history including David Bowie, Lou Reed, Cat Stevens, Al Stewart, Elton John, and both Black Sabbath and Ozzy Osbourne, but his latest excursion might well be the heaviest record he has ever performed on.

Sophia Tice Explores Toxic Relationships On Art Pop Single “Way Out”

Eric Alper
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Sophia Tice Explores Toxic Relationships On Art Pop Single “Way Out”

Rising singer-songwriter Sophia Tice captivates audiences with her unique vocal tone and intimate songwriting on her latest single “WAY OUT,” represented by Decent Music PR. A compelling foray into art pop and indie pop, the track marks an exciting evolution in Tice’s ever-expanding musical journey. Written from the perspective of a friend escaping a toxic relationship, “WAY OUT” is a raw and emotional exploration of chaos, fear, empowerment, and reflection. The track’s production, crafted in collaboration with producer Jackson Lowe, blends live instrumentation, including striking piano lines, with textured indie pop elements, resulting in a sound that feels both polished and immediate, capturing the intensity of its narrative.

The song was conceived with a visual story in mind, and its accompanying music video brings the song’s themes vividly to life, translating the emotional push and pull of staying versus leaving into cinematic imagery. Tice explains, “I wanted to explore what it feels like to be caught in that internal battle. This song is a little darker, a little louder, and a bit more experimental than what I’ve released before, and I’m thrilled to dive further into the indie pop world with this new direction.” “WAY OUT” draws inspiration from artists such as Lorde, Billie Eilish, The 1975, Remi Wolf, and The Japanese House, while still showcasing Tice’s signature blend of vulnerability and sonic creativity.

Sophia Tice is a multi-genre singer-songwriter whose music spans pop, R&B, indie rock, and folk. Known for her emotive vocals and deeply personal songwriting, Tice continues to push creative boundaries, blending live instrumentation with experimental production to craft songs that resonate both sonically and emotionally. While her previous work has spanned multiple genres, “WAY OUT” represents an exciting step forward, a bold experiment in mood, storytelling, and production that signals her artistic growth and willingness to take risks.

Steven Blush Explores Rock And Hip-Hop Fusion In ‘When Rock Met Hip-Hop’

Eric Alper
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0
Steven Blush Explores Rock And Hip-Hop Fusion In ‘When Rock Met Hip-Hop’

Steven Blush examines one of the most important events in modern music with ‘When Rock Met Hip-Hop: How Run-DMC, Aerosmith, Anthrax, The Beastie Boys, and More Crossed Cultural and Musical Boundaries,’ available February 5. The book chronicles the late 80s cross-collision of rock and hip-hop, exploring landmark moments like the Aerosmith and Run-DMC collaboration, the Beastie Boys’ ‘Paul’s Boutique,’ the Public Enemy and Anthrax partnership, and the groundbreaking production work of Rick Rubin and Russell Simmons. De La Soul and Third Bass also figure prominently, alongside the 318 hip-hop records that sampled Billy Squier’s “The Big Beat,” exemplifying how sampling evolved into an art form while influencing all other forms of popular music.

One of the themes Blush explores is the way the fusion of rap and rock gave hope to a sense of interracial harmony during a culturally divided era. In keeping with ‘When Rock Met Disco’ and ‘When Rock Met Reggae,’ this title relates the musical cross-collision and cultural fallout that changed music for the better, and remains an influence through today. The book documents how these collaborations broke down barriers and created new possibilities for artists across genres, reshaping the sonic landscape and proving that creative partnerships could transcend traditional boundaries.

Peter Gabriel Releases “Put The Bucket Down” From Forthcoming Album ‘o\i’ With Artwork By Tomás Saraceno

Eric Alper
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Peter Gabriel Releases “Put The Bucket Down” From Forthcoming Album ‘o\i’ With Artwork By Tomás Saraceno

Peter Gabriel releases “Put the Bucket Down,” the second track from his forthcoming album ‘o\i.’ Written and produced by Gabriel, the first version to be heard is the Bright-Side Mix by Mark “Spike” Stent. With its shuffle groove and infectiously catchy hook and chorus, the track conjures dream-like imagery of mind reading, thought reading and thought writing, all of which are possible through the brain/computer interface. The character singing is getting very confused as they navigate the blurred lines between their own consciousness and external influence.

Gabriel explains the concept: “As a side project, I am working on a show with the brain as the central core and there are a number of songs, some on ‘i/o’ and some on ‘o\i’ that will be part of that. This is one of those and it’s a point in the narrative where we can both read and write thoughts and the person singing is not sure whether he has his own thoughts or not. Is he inside his own mind or inside someone else’s? The ‘bucket’ is all the crap that goes around our head all the time, so it is putting the bucket down to find your way forward.”

Gabriel continues about the musical construction: “I started building rhythmic elements around, what I call, a lop-sided loop, and got quite excited. When we had the band play it, it really came to life so that feels good for me. The band and me working away is the bulk of the song, but when we were in the orchestral sessions, I asked John Metcalfe to come up with a part, it was scribbled out on the day in the studio, which is ridiculously simple, but it serves the song nicely. We’re also blessed with horn players. I was very lucky on the last record to play with Paolo Fresu and then Josh Shpack on the tour and they’ve both done a version of the instrumental melody on this too.”

This month’s art comes from Tomás Saraceno and three different types of spiders: Cyrtophora citricola, Nephila senegalensis and Holocnemus pluchei. The work is called Cosmic Spider/Web. Gabriel shares his delight: “I’m delighted this month that we have an artwork created by Tomás Saraceno and 12 spiders who are credited with authorship on this. He’s a really interesting artist and his Aerocene project was the first thing that I came across. This work, integrating with nature and co-creating with spiders is fascinating. I think it’s a beautiful thing and somehow there seems to be a connection with webs and nature and the brain, so for me, it fits right in. In this case, Tomás heard the music and chose this image as something that he thought was appropriate.” Seeing spiders not as threats, but as oracles, architects, even guardians underpin Arachnophilia, the project-community founded by Tomás Saraceno. Tchad Blake’s Dark-Side Mix of “Put the Bucket Down” will be released later in the month, on the new moon.

Cream’s ‘Royal Albert Hall London May 2-3-5-6 2005’ Reissued For 20th Anniversary

Eric Alper
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Cream’s ‘Royal Albert Hall London May 2-3-5-6 2005’ Reissued For 20th Anniversary

The legendary 2005 reunion performances by Cream at Royal Albert Hall receive a 20th anniversary reissue celebrating one of rock’s most significant comebacks. Ginger Baker, Jack Bruce, and Eric Clapton ended a 37-year hiatus to deliver four nights of explosive performances in London, proving their chemistry remained intact despite the decades apart. The reissue captures the peak moments from those May concerts, preserving the energy and musicianship that made these shows unforgettable. Available now on blue and green splatter triple vinyl and blue and orange double CD, the collection showcases why Cream’s influence on rock music endures.

‘Royal Albert Hall London May 2-3-5-6 2005’ Tracklisting:

  1. I’m So Glad
  2. Spoonful
  3. Outside Woman Blues
  4. Pressed Rat and Warthog
  5. Sleepy Time Time
  6. N.S.U.
  7. Badge
  8. Politician
  9. Sweet Wine
  10. Rollin’ and Tumblin’
  11. Stormy Monday
  12. Deserted Cities of the Heart
  13. Born Under a Bad Sign
  14. We’re Going Wrong
  15. Crossroads
  16. White Room
  17. Toad
  18. Sunshine of Your Love
  19. Sleepy Time Time (Alternate)

Toronto’s Double Eyelid Shares Darkwave Tribute Cover Of David Bowie’s “No Control”

Eric Alper
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0
Toronto’s Double Eyelid Shares Darkwave Tribute Cover Of David Bowie’s “No Control”

Marking just over a decade since David Bowie’s passing, Toronto’s Double Eyelid shares a tribute cover of “No Control.” Originally found on Bowie’s ‘Outside’ album, his 1995 return to working with Brian Eno, the song is reimagined for today’s goth and darkwave listeners. During this period, Bowie departed from previous works as he embraced the industrial sound of the ’90s, and later toured with Nine Inch Nails. The 2026 version of this classic deep cut blends a tense, low-end groove with a warm, layered sound that hints at Depeche Mode in the early ’90s, paired with an impassioned vocal performance.

Double Eyelid’s central member Ian Revell explains the background of the song: “I started listening to Bowie around 1993, and his work spoke to me so deeply that I dove head-first into everything he released, and found he had so many different sides. It was difficult to reconcile the bleakness of the Berlin trilogy with the warm and sunny vibes of the Bowie that was out in the world making ‘Black Tie White Noise.’ When ‘Outside’ came out a couple of years later, I was thrilled he was working with Eno again, and over the moon to see him play live with Nine Inch Nails. ‘Outside’ is still a challenging album, but it has aged remarkably well. “No Control” is a layered song that says a lot without revealing anything; covering it was entering into an enigma. It’s personal, it’s global, it’s all deranged, indeed!”

Double Eyelid is a songwriting-focused goth and darkwave art rock project with singer Ian Revell as its central and consistent member. Debuting in 2012 with the underground hit “Dead is Better,” the widely acclaimed first album ‘Seven Years’ was released in 2014, followed by the 2016 remix album ‘Broken Mirror’ featuring contributions from Psyche, Leæther Strip, nTTx, and Double Echo. In the years since, the project has made numerous live appearances, including goth and industrial festivals Mechanismus, Absolution, and Morecambe’s Bats in the Attic, alongside acts like Light Asylum, Empathy Test, Priest, and Cold in Berlin.

Single releases between 2020 and 2023 featured production work from Live Evil Productions and Adoration Destroyed’s Erik Gustafson. 2025 finally saw the release of a new long-form work, an ambitious retelling of Edgar Allan Poe’s ‘The Tell-Tale Heart.’ Double Eyelid is currently in studio-focused mode, and more releases are expected soon.

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That Eric Alper

Eric Alper is a 6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week and has overseen the publicity campaigns for over 183 JUNO Award-nominated albums (and 16 in 2025), 45 Grammy-nominated albums, including 47 JUNO Award, 58 Canadian Folk Music Award, 126 Maple Blues Award-winning albums and is also truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.

Contact me: eric@thatericalper.com

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