I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post includes blurbs on Cyndi Lauper, Lily & Madeleine, U2, Taylor Swift, Meduza, Smiling Friends, and POV.
- Cyndi Lauper's new song for the series "Oh, Dolores" is now available on all digital platforms. Co-written by Cyndi Lauper and Ben Hopkins, and produced and performed by Lauper, the song release coincides with the series premiere, in which Lauper plays the character Ruthie. Click HERE to listen! Based on the hit Spotify podcast series of the same name The Horror of Dolores Roach is a contemporary Sweeney Todd-inspired urban legend of love, betrayal, weed, cannibalism and survival of the fittest. Dolores Roach (Justina Machado) is released from prison after 16 years and returns to a gentrified Washington Heights. She reunites with an old stoner friend, Luis (Alejandro Hernandez), who lets her live and work as a masseuse in the basement under his empanada shop. When the promise of her newfound stability is quickly threatened, “Magic Hands” Dolores is driven to shocking extremes to survive.
- Indianapolis-based folk-pop duo Lily & Madeleine announce their enchanting fifth studio album Nite Swim available to pre-order now. Alongside the announcement, the band share the soothing official first taste of the project, the track and video, "Windowless Bedroom" out everywhere now. Plus, the pair will hit the road this summer with stops in Columbus, OH and Nashville, TN and tickets are on sale now via lilandmad.com. Nite Swim, Lily & Madeleine's forthcoming fifth studio album is an expansive journey introducing the listener to various vignettes of the duo's lives over the past five years. Its central thesis explores vulnerability, acceptance, embracing shame and acknowledging one's feelings rather than running from them. Lily says the project dives into the feeling of "wanting to be intimate with someone but feeling like they’ll reject you when they see how complicated you are inside." Over ten tracks, the listener is led through intimate scenes of Lily & Madeleine's lives, collectively as sisters and individually as artists. The foundation of the songwriting was built when the band began taking stock of their lives and who is important to them. Madeleine explains, "As we go through personal hardships, it’s worth noticing the people who remain at our side and the people who disappear. What would it have been like if they stayed? Are we truly better off without them?" The album was produced by longtime friend and collaborator Shannon Hayden and other instrumentation was provided by Devon Ashley, Heidi Gluk, and Jared May.
- Island Records, Interscope, and UMe announce the release of Zooropa – 30th Anniversary Limited Edition Gatefold – a transparent yellow vinyl pressing celebrating three decades of U2’s Grammy-winning eighth studio album. This very special release is coming in October 2023 to coincide with the band’s next ambitious project, their long-awaited live return with U2:UV Achtung Baby Live At The Sphere, which kicks off on September 29, 2023, for a run of shows in Las Vegas. Pre-order Zooropa - 30th Anniversary Limited Edition Gatefold HERE Produced by Flood, Brian Eno, and The Edge, Zooropa was released on July 5, 1993, on Island Records. U2 began writing and recording Zooropa in Dublin in February of that year, during a six-month break between legs of the industry-defining ZOO TV Tour. Initially intended as just an EP, Zooropa became a fully-fledged album with 10 tracks – including singles “Numb,” “Lemon,” and “Stay (Faraway, So Close!)” - recorded in just six weeks, making it the fastest U2 album ever produced. Inspired by the band’s experiences on the ZOO TV Tour, Zooropa expanded on many of the tour’s themes of technology and media oversaturation. The album went to Number 1 in Ireland, the USA, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Sweden, Austria, France, Switzerland, Germany, Holland, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland. In 1994, Zooropa saw the band collect the Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Album.
- Taylor Swift released Speak Now (Taylor’s Version). The 22 track album of new recordings is the third instalment of Taylor’s Version albums. All songs on Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) are written by Taylor Swift. Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) includes six never before released songs, including “Castles Crumbling” (From The Vault) featuring Hayley Williams, “Electric Touch” (From The Vault) featuring Fall Out Boy and “I Can See You” (From The Vault). LISTEN TO SPEAK NOW (TAYLOR’S VERSION) HERE
- Multi-platinum selling global hitmakers Meduza return with new single “Phone”, featuring Sam Tompkins and Em Beihold, listen HERE via Island UK / Republic Records. A slamming house beat with melody at its heart, “Phone” is the story of a frustrated relationship told through an endlessly ringing phone. The track’s rousing groove and signature atmospheric sonics provide the perfect setting for a stunning duet between rising British star Sam Tompkins and platinum-certified US singer-songwriter Em Beihold.
- Turn that frown upside down! From creators Zach Hadel and Michael Cusack, go on a journey across a bizarre and colorful world with SMILING FRIENDS: The Complete First Season on Blu-ray™ and DVD August 29, 2023. You’ll be grinning ear to ear while you binge on all 8 episodes, alongside a bonus special and audio commentary. The series is available now to purchase Digitally. The quarter-hour animated series is co-created by Cusack (YOLO: Crystal Fantasy) and Hadel (Hellbenders) and animated by Princess Bento Studio. SMILING FRIENDS has been viewed over 7 million times across linear, digital, and streaming.
- Following its award winning festival run, While We Watched directed by Vinay Shukla (An Insignificant Man) and produced by Luke W. Moody (founding producer, Lono Studio) and Khushboo Ranka (co-director, producer, An Insignificant Man), will make its national broadcast premiere on Monday, September 4, 2023 at 10pmET/9C (check local listings) and will be available to stream until December 3, 2023 at pbs.org, and the PBS App. In addition to standard closed captioning for the film, POV, in partnership with audio description service DiCapta, provides real time audio interpretations for audiences with sensory disabilities. Now in its historic 36th season, POV continues to share bold, visionary stories as America's longest running non-fiction series with Vinay Skukla’s timely look at the increasing threats to independent journalism and the public’s trust in news.
