Around the Tubes: January 20, 2024

   

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 Ariana Grande, Sister Hazel, Zara Larsson, Kool and the Gang, Marcus King, Modern English, The Thread, and The Last Repair Shop.

- GRAMMY® Award-winning, multi-platinum recording artist and international superstar, Ariana Grande announces her highly anticipated seventh full length album, eternal sunshine, to be released on March 8^th via Republic Records and available now for pre-order HERE.  Last Friday, Ariana Grande released the album’s lead single “yes, and?” - written and produced by Ariana Grande, Max Martin, and Ilya Salmanzadeh - accompanied by an official video directed by Christian Breslauer.

- Kicking off 2024, platinum-selling, iconic country/rock band Sister Hazel announced the release of their new track, "Love You More," on Glide Magazine earlier this week. "We wanted this song to be fun and to represent a positive way forward after hard times. Life keeps going and there can always be a person that loves you for who you are," said band's guitarist Ryan Newell when he explained the personal message of the song to Glide Magazine. Sister Hazel is not afraid to be vulnerable, and that shows on their new single about taking a chance on love after being burned. "Love You More" was written by Andrew Copeland, Ryan Newell, and Jack Sizemore, and was produced and mixed by Ben Jackson. The song is being released today by Nashville-based label Rock Ridge Music, with distribution via Warner/ADA. "Love You More" is available for streaming and download here.

- Multiplatinum chart-topping global pop powerhouse Zara Larsson has premiered anthemic new single, “You Love Who You Love.” Get it HERE. The song is the latest track to be taken from her upcoming new album VENUS, due February 9, 2024 Sommer House/Epic Records. Get “You Love Who You Love” HERE and pre-order/pre-save VENUS HERE. VENUS’ goddess-energy is exemplified on “You Love Who You Love,” where Zara summons the Scandi pop-rock anthems of Max Martin in this cautionary tale on toxic relationships. Produced by rising duo MTHR and penned with Larsson’s frequent collaborator MNEK, Zara recalls that “we started writing over PRIDE, and began talking about how amazing it is that anyone can love anyone - but that doesn’t mean you always should! We’ve all had that friend, or been that friend, who keeps going back to someone who’s bad for them, and ‘You Love Who You Love’ is saying enough is enough.”

- The Norwegian Pearl will be sparkling with mirror balls, glitter, and a full-lighted dance floor as The Ultimate Disco Cruise & Beyond embarks from Miami, Florida, on February 19, 2025, for its 5-day voyage. Music lovers from the 70’s era of Disco will take a journey back in time as they relive some of the most fun-loving songs that everyone sings along to.  Filled with non-stop music entertainment that includes award-winning hitmakers KOOL & THE GANG, the latest members of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame THE SPINNERS, SHALAMAR featuring HOWARD HEWETT, CAROLYN GRIFFEY, and JEFFREY DANIEL, TAVARES, ROSE ROYCE, THE BROTHERS JOHNSON, LISA LISA, THE LEGENDARY BLUE NOTES, THE TRAMMPS featuring EARL YOUNG, ORIGINAL STONE CITY BAND, GEORGE McCRAE, DOUBLE EXPOSURE, BEE GEES GOLD, and BOOGIE WONDER BAND among others.

- Marcus King announced the release of his new Rick Rubin-produced song “F*ck My Life Up Again,” via American/Republic records. Listen to the song, HERE. Watch the visualizer video, HERE.  The new song marks a significant sonic shift for Marcus King, who has historically been hailed for his virtuosic guitar riffs and preternatural talent. But on “F*ck Up My Life Again,” King lets the spotlight shine on his deeply soulful and arresting vocals, perfectly enhanced with r&b percussion, shimmering organ, lush string arrangements and even a Marcus King guitar solo, though in true Rick Rubin experimental fashion, glitched up and played backwards. The hook is unshakeable, harkening timeless symphonic soul with a decidedly modern take. King lays his feelings bare, reflecting on his tendency to chase unhealthy codependent relationships.

- Modern English is excited to announce the Friday, February 23 release of 1 2 3 4,  the legendary British new wave/post-punk band’s first album of new material in eight years. Produced by Mario J. McNulty (David Bowie, Lou Reed, Nine Inch Nails), mixed by Cenzo Townsend and mastered at Abbey Road, 1 2 3 4 retains the intrinsic spirit of its early post-punk days, and is also a sterling sonic example of what Modern English have always done best.   The album encompasses seething songs with a punk bite (“Long in The Tooth,” “Plastic”), keyboard-forward melodic rockers ("Not Fake,” "Crazy Lovers") and simmering, darkwave-meets-post-punk gems (“Exploding,” “Out to Lunch”). With a touch of subtle themes lifted from After the Snow (1982) and Ricochet Days (1984) that include the environment, aging, failed relationships, love and more, 1 2 3 4 finds the legendary band delving into nostalgia but, as always, exploring new creative territory. With singles “Long in the Tooth” and “Crazy Lovers” released in advance of the announcement, today the band offers “Not My Leader,” a scathing observation on politics in both the U.S. and the UK and how they aren’t dissimilar. 

- Life Stories, a nonprofit media organization that produces and distributes films about people whose lives inspire meaningful change, announced it will stream THE THREAD, a new documentary interview series on YouTube in which exceptional individuals share the different paths they have taken to lead meaningful lives.  16 episodes of THE THREAD will premiere weekly from March 4 - June 17, 2024 and feature interviews with Gloria Estefan, Martin Sheen, Kurt "Big Boy" Alexander, Tony Hawk, Katie Couric, Mitt Romney, and other notable figures. THE THREAD will be made available to the public through the Life Stories website (LifeStories.org), Life Stories YouTube channel, and as a podcast across all major platforms.  THE THREAD: Season One trailer can be seen here: https://youtu.be/jE6blJo48Sw

- ALLBLK, the popular streaming service for Black television and film from AMC Networks, presents the world premiere of new sci-fi movie, Lunar Lockdown. The movie premieres on ALLBLK on Thursday, February 1, 2024.  In the year 2075, the Earth is no longer the home of the United States’ most violent criminals. These convicts are sent to the moon to serve their time under the rule of Warden Felicity Myers (LisaRaye McCoy, A House Divided, Single Ladies). When inmate Christina Jenkins (Laila Odom, Salt-N-Pepa) arrives at the prison she quickly finds out that serving her time quietly is not an option. The women of Orion Colony Prison are used in every way a human can be for personal gain. When an opportunity arises, Jenkins and a group of inmates come together to fight to regain their freedom and dignity.  Additional cast includes Cameo Sherrell (The Haves and the Have Nots), Janeshia Adams-Ginyard (Station 19), Jhone Y. Lucas (The Gen Zone), Leila Weisberg (Deadly Desire), Erica Peeples (All American: Homecoming), Mark Fleischmann (Infinite), and Nari Blair- Mangat (Cinderella).

- From Oscar® and Grammy®-nominated and Emmy®-winning filmmaker, musician and LAUSD star alumni Kris Bowers (A Concerto is a Conversation, Green Book, King Richard, Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story) and Oscar® winning director Ben Proudfoot (two-time Oscar® nominee for The Queen of Basketball and A Concerto is a Conversation), comes THE LAST REPAIR SHOP, a film about LAUSD’s unique free and freely-repaired musical instrument repair shop, which helped launch countless illustrious careers and millions of music lovers.  Watch Now Here (Full 39-Minute Film): https://youtu.be/xttrkgKXtZ4?si=HO02BhzJAZPN5rMO

Previewing the Woman in the Wall

 

You know you are in for an interesting show when it starts off with a whisper before a woman wakes up in the middle of the road, surrounded by cows, with a little blood on her white nightgown.  When she gets home, “Stay awake” is scribbled on a door and a knife in the picture of Jesus.  Oh yeah, and by the end of the first episode, there will be a woman in the wall.  Hence the title: The Woman in the Wall.

 

The woman who wakes up in the middle of the road is played by Ruth Wilson (The Affair).  She has a long history of trauma-based sleepwalking that goes back to her time in the infamous Magdalene Laundries, institutions that housed promiscuous woman who were forced to work without pay aside from some meager food provisions.  They were essentially prisons.  Wilson’s painful time there is resurrected when she receives note saying, “I know what happened to your child” with a phone number on the back.

 

Around the same time, Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters) is investigating the death of a priest of whom he has a history with.  It does not take very long before the woman and the wall and the dead priest start to interconnect.  The Woman in the Wall is a harrowing tale focusing on one of Ireland’s deepest shame which is only heightened by an unreliable narrator who’s ever growing sleep problems are making her mental state get worse as the show goes along.

 

The Woman in the Wall airs Sundays at 9:00 on Showtime with Paramount+.  Episodes are streaming the previous Friday on Paramount+ with the Showtime plan.

57 Channels and Only This Is On: January 14: 2024

  

Percy Jackson and the Olympians:   I typically only subscribed to Disney whenever a Marvel and/or Star Wars show was on, but I am now getting it for free so I was able to catch up on this show.  I never read the books, but saw the movie.  It seems like they are taking 10-15 minute scenes from the movie and turning them into 35-45 minute episodes, just with actual children instead of casting adults to play teenagers.  This show really could have used some Daddario because the kids are kind of annoying, especially the titular character.  At least some of the Gods are fun.  Jason Mantzoukus as Dionysus is one of the most inspired casting choices.  Professional wrestler Edge as Ares is another on the nose casting choice that worked.  Shame they did not get Daddario to be Medusa.  Oh well.

 

La Brea:  So Eve was lost to time last season (how gullible do you have to be to believe she just happened to still be in the same time being held by whoever those evil people are), Josh and Riley are also in some TBD time (why were they so certain they are going to a place with a hospital) and Ty somehow warped to two weeks before the show began.  What a wild start.

 

Fargo:  YMCA as the soundtrack to the militia rounding up certainly was an inspired choice.  But I do wonder how the weirdo was able to enter the farm undetected with another person, but Dot, whom I have to assume knows the farm, could not sneak out undetected.

 

The Challenge: Battle for a New Challenge:  Can we just end Chaos already?  It has been a full month since anyone went home.  We at still have at least CT left for the Champs.  It seems like a safe bet he is going to choose "Chaos" get revenge on the time Jay sent him home.  For Jay's sake, hopefully they will not be competing in Hall Brawl or Pole Wrestle.

 

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters:  If they needed the ball to get home, how exactly did young Kurt Russell get home?  Will he not be able to get home the same way now?  Sigh.  This was a failed experiment; hopefully they do not do any more of this.  Just stick to the mildly entertaining movies.