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Rocker’s new Americana track features Jack Lawrence, Sierra Hull, Julian Doro, and others.
Foo Fighters’ Chris Shiflett Shares Origins of New Single “Long Long Year”: Exclusive
Ben Kaye
Origins is our recurring new music series that gives artists the opportunity to share exclusive insights into their latest music. Today, Foo Fighters’ Chris Shiflett digs into his latest solo offering, “Long Long Year.” Chris Shiflett may be known primarily as the lead guitarist for rock icons Foo Fighters, but…
Please click the link below to read the full article.
Foo Fighters’ Chris Shiflett Shares Origins of New Single “Long Long Year”: Exclusive
Ben Kaye
From building a vast visual universe to creating an alter-ego to reckon with his mental health, DPR Ian is owning his craft
The author said his symptoms are “minor”
The post George R.R. Martin misses ‘House Of The Dragon’ premiere after testing positive for COVID-19 appeared first on NME.
George R.R. Martin missed the premiere for Game Of Thrones spin-off House Of The Dragon after testing positive for COVID-19.
The author confirmed he wouldn’t be attending the Los Angeles premiere on Wednesday (July 27) in a short video, after testing positive for the virus following his appearance at San Diego Comic-Con.
“My symptoms are minor,” Martin said. “I have some sniffles, I cough once in a while. I’m being well taken care of. I’m taking the drugs and I should be good.”
HBO chief content officer Casey Bloys addressed Martin’s absence at the premiere (via Variety), saying: “I was going to start today by introducing George R.R. Martin and tell you how great it is to have George on the journey with us. Unfortunately, George got COVID at Comic-Con, so he’s not here. I think he’s feeling fine, so nothing to worry about.”
Speaking at Comic-Con from the House Of The Dragon presentation last week, the author confirmed his main priority is completing The Winds Of Winter, the long-awaited next book in his A Song Of Ice And Fire saga.
“You may not know but there’s this book that I’m writing, it’s a little late,” Martin said at Comic-Con. “I don’t see me visiting a set or doing anything until I finish and deliver that book.”
House Of The Dragon is the first spin-off from HBO’s Game Of Thrones, which is set to premiere on August 21.
Based on Martin’s novel Fire & Blood, House Of The Dragon is set 200 years before events in the main show and follows the Targaryen family during the Dance of the Dragons – a civil war among House Targaryen for the Iron Throne.
There are many other Game Of Thrones spin-offs in the works. A Jon Snow sequel series was announced earlier this year, while shows based on Dunk And Egg, The Sea Snake and Ten Thousand Ships, are all in early stages of development. Three animated shows are also in the works, including The Golden Empire, set in the land of Yi Ti.
The post George R.R. Martin misses ‘House Of The Dragon’ premiere after testing positive for COVID-19 appeared first on NME.
Shaun Ryder said the collection “showcases the unique musical talent” of his late brother and bandmate
The post Happy Mondays release special ‘Tart Tart’ EP in tribute to Paul Ryder appeared first on NME.
Happy Mondays have released a new EP, ‘Tart Tart’, in tribute to their late bassist Paul Ryder.
Ryder passed away on July 15 at the age of 58. In a statement, his surviving bandmates described him as “a true pioneer and legend” who will be “forever missed”. A cause of death is not yet known.
Today (July 28) Happy Mondays have shared details of a new three-track EP that contains two previously unreleased live versions of ‘Tart Tart’, the original of which appears on their debut album ‘Squirrel And G-Man…’ (1987).
The first comes from a 1989 John Peel session on BBC Radio 1, while the second was recorded at a live show at Sheffield University that same year.
Paul’s brother, Happy Monday’s vocalist Shaun Ryder, said: “This special release of ‘Tart Tart’ showcases the unique musical talent of our brother Paul Ryder who passed from this world … we will all miss you Horse.
“He brought the funk and the rock n roll to Happy Mondays … love you long time R kid.”
You can listen to the EP above via Spotify, or tune in via other streaming platforms here.
Additionally, fans can pre-order a special seven-inch vinyl edition of ‘Tart Tart’ from Happy Mondays’ official store. The physical version is due for release on November 18.
All profits from the release will be donated to MusiCares, a charity chosen by Paul’s daughter Amelia, who explained: “MusiCares is a charity that helps people in the music industry who are struggling with addiction issues.
“Fourteen years ago, Paul was given help and support from the organisation who helped fund extended outpatient care and therapy that enabled him to have 14 subsequent happy and productive years.”
She added: “Just two weeks ago he mentioned them in an interview and often expressed his gratitude and desire to pay their support forward so others could be helped too.”
Paul formed Happy Mondays alongside Shaun Ryder in 1980, playing through until their initial split in 1993. While not joining the band for their reunion in 2004, he did reunite with the Mondays for a further run of comeback gigs in 2012, which had continued until the present day.
Upon the news of Paul’s death, the likes of Ian Brown, Andy Bell and Haçienda DJ Dave Haslam paid tribute on social media. Brown hailed the late musician as “a great friend, a great musician [and] a great fella”.
The post Happy Mondays release special ‘Tart Tart’ EP in tribute to Paul Ryder appeared first on NME.
Quality-of-life improvements including gamelists are also being added
The post PS5 system beta introduces 1440p support and more appeared first on NME.
A new PS5 system software beta is rolling out today, and it includes 1440p support, gamelists, and more.
The 1440p support allows players to access a native 1440p output if the game being played supports it. It’s also noted that if a game is running at a higher native resolution, then there may be “improved anti-aliasing through supersampling down to down to 1440p output”. Compatibility can simply be checked in the “Screen and Video” option screen within the system settings.
There is also now an option to compare 3D audio and stereo audio, making it easy to decide on a preference.
The update comes with plenty of other quality-of-life features, with the aforementioned gamelists being one of them. This can be accessed by going to the Your Collection tab and selecting ‘Create Gamelist’. Players can create up to 15 lists and include a total of 100 titles in each.
Others include the addition of notifications for when a party member is playing a game that you own, which can be used to immediately join the game that they’re playing, and in-progress activities being shown more prominently when resuming a game.
It’s now also possible to request party members to share their screen so you can watch their game footage and send stickers and voice messages in Game Base. Lastly, you can view a new friend’s profile from the ‘Accepted Requests’ list.
The beta is only limited to select invited participants in certain countries, with emails for access being handed out today (July 28). It’s noted that “some features available during the beta phase may not make it into the final version or may see significant changes”, and there is currently no specified date for the full release.
In other news, Xbox head Phil Spencer has expressed his excitement for the upcoming PlayStation exclusive God Of War Ragnarok.
The post PS5 system beta introduces 1440p support and more appeared first on NME.
“We appreciate and value your feedback, but it does not mean that feedback will always change the design principles Mojang Studios adheres to – this includes the upcoming reporting system”
The post Mojang says highly controversial ‘Minecraft’ reporting system is here to stay appeared first on NME.
Mojang has acknowledged the Minecraft community’s “pushback” over a controversial reporting feature that could see players banned from their own servers, but says it is “not planning” to change it.
Back in June, Mojang announced that Minecraft was getting an all-new reporting system that could see reported players banned from all multiplayer servers – including their own.
While the move would stop toxic players from repeating their behaviour across various servers, the update was highly controversial within the Minecraft community for several reasons, including an argument that Mojang should not be able to ban players from their own servers.
Yesterday (July 28), a Mojang community manager addressed the update’s controversy in a Reddit post, acknowledging that “there has been pushback to the player reporting system”.
“We appreciate and value your feedback, but it does not mean that feedback will always change the design principles Mojang Studios adheres to – this includes the upcoming reporting system,” continued the statement, which added that “while we understand this may not be the answer some of you were hoping for, we are not planning on changing it.”
The post goes on to decry Minecraft players who have been “following” Mojang employees on Reddit and commenting about the update on unrelated post:
“This behaviour does not encourage employees to reach out to the community, nor will it bring about the changes you’re wanting. If you feel strongly about something in Minecraft, please tell us in the appropriate locations (such as these threads) because we want to hear what you have to say! However, harassment does not help anyone: not the devs who receive it, nor the players who are passionate about an upcoming change. We want to maintain a constructive and open dialogue with you, and this kind of behaviour inhibits that.
The Minecraft community’s response to the statement has been critical, and players have argued that Mojang is not sufficiently listening to the community’s feedback on the matter. Players have also raised concerns with how long it will take to appeal a false ban, while some believe that Mojang should leave moderation to server hosts.
Despite the backlash, Minecraft update 1.19.1 is out now and includes Mojang’s new player reporting system.
In other gaming news, August’s PlayStation Plus lineup has been confirmed.
The post Mojang says highly controversial ‘Minecraft’ reporting system is here to stay appeared first on NME.
Dee Snider says that he cannot “legally or morally” stop controversial Arizona GOP gubernatorial hopeful and election denier Kari Lake from using TWISTED SISTER’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It” at her campaign events.
The classic TWISTED SISTER song was pla…
The convicted criminal’s downfall is covered in a Netflix documentary
The post Hunter Moore: where is ‘The Most Hated Man On The Internet’ now? appeared first on NME.
Following The Tinder Swindler and the online manhunt of Don’t Fuck With Cats, Netflix has released another docuseries about the darkest corners of online activity. The Most Hated Man On The Internet, a title handed to Hunter Moore by Rolling Stone in 2012, follows the genesis of his revenge porn website IsAnyoneUp.com and his subsequent downfall.
The three-part series features interviews with the victims he profited from and exposed, along with Charlotte Laws, the mother of one of the victims who investigated Moore for over two years to bring him to justice. Following his release from prison in 2017 though, where is Hunter Moore today?
The full story
From Sacramento, California, Hunter Moore created IsAnyoneUp.com – described as one of the earliest examples of a revenge porn website. The site, launched in 2010, allowed users to share sexually explicit images of people online without their consent, along with personal information like names and addresses. According to the victims, Moore, aged 26 at the time, refused to take down the pictures despite their requests.
According to Rolling Stone, “15 to 30” pictures a day were posted to the site over its 16-month life span. Despite numerous cease-and-desist letters (which he sometimes responded to with a simple “LOL”), Moore claimed he was protected by the Communications Decency Act of 1996, which doesn’t allow websites to be held accountable for user-submitted content, the same laws which protect social media sites like Facebook.
Moore revelled in his rising fame with numerous interviews and media appearances, including on Anderson Cooper’s CNN chat show in 2011 where he was confronted by two victims and argued it was their fault they had allowed the pictures to be taken. He dubbed himself a “professional life ruiner” and compared himself to Charles Manson, attracting “followers” who supported him. Facebook banned him for life, while PayPal blocked his account.
Charlotte Laws, the mother of a victim who had her photos posted onto the site in January 2012 after her email and Facebook accounts were hacked, compiled evidence of other hacked victims and handed it to the FBI. Speaking to The Guardian, Charlotte, who had been shrugged off by police beforehand, said the FBI only took the case seriously due to the hacking angle. “If a hacker hadn’t been involved, there would have been no case to answer and the site would still be up. But because there was, they took it seriously.”
The FBI officially began an investigation into Moore later in 2012. After becoming aware of the investigation, Moore closed the site in April 2012 and sold it to an anti-bullying group. Charlotte continued to help compile evidence for the FBI over the next two years.
In January 2014, Moore and Charles Evens were arrested on charges of conspiracy, seven counts of unauthorised access to a protected computer to obtain information, and seven counts of aggravated identity theft.
In a statement outlining the charges, the FBI wrote: “To obtain more photos to populate the site, Moore allegedly instructed Evens to gain unauthorised access to – in other words, to hack into – victims’ email accounts.
“Moore sent payments to Evens in exchange for nude photos obtained unlawfully from the victims’ accounts. Moore then posted the illegally obtained photos on his website without the victims’ consent. The indictment alleges that Evens hacked into email accounts belonging to hundreds of victims.”
In February 2015, Moore pleaded guilty to identity theft and aiding and abetting in the unauthorised access of a computer. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. He also received a $2,000 fine and $145.70 in restitution fees.
Evens, who pleaded guilty to the same two felony counts, was sentenced to 25 months in federal prison.
He’s released some projects
Moore was released from prison in May 2017. While he’s mostly withdrawn from public life, he’s promoted some projects since. He released a single in 2017 titled ‘Make The Internet Great Again’ (as reported by Substream magazine), along with a book titled Is Anyone Up!? The Story Behind Revenge Porn in 2018.
On social media, he described that he’s “living my life peacefully now” in April this year.
“Look guys, I did my time behind bars,” Moore wrote on Twitter. “Living my life peacefully now, it’s been a decade about what happened, some of you loves me and most of you hates me, if you want me to apologise well I wouldn’t. I don’t owe anyone anything.”
Since the series debuted on Netflix this week, Moore has tweeted several times about it. In a video posted on release day (July 27), he reflected on his previous fame, calling himself “a little prick” and asking users to “go watch” the show. “If you love me, you hate me… tell me what you think… and let’s fight about it in the comments”, he added.
Initially, he was
According to Netflix, Moore initially agreed to participate in The Most Hated Man On The Internet documentary, “but later declined” for unknown reasons.
The post Hunter Moore: where is ‘The Most Hated Man On The Internet’ now? appeared first on NME.
Spencer also revealed his all-time favourite game
The post Xbox head Phil Spencer isn’t immune to ‘God Of War Ragnarok’ hype appeared first on NME.
Xbox head Phil Spencer has stated that PlayStation exclusive God Of War Ragnarok is the game he wants to play next.
Spencer confirmed this in a response post to the official Xbox Twitter page (via VGC), which asked people several gaming-related questions, including their first game, last game, and the game people want to play next. Regarding the last question, Spencer answered God Of War Ragnarok.
First game: Pong
Last game: Road 96
Favorite game: Robotron: 2084
Game you play the most: right now….FH5 Hot Wheels
Game you want to play next: God of War Ragnarok
First game you'd show a caveman: Lumines: perfect mix of mechanics, music, style and replayability— Phil Spencer (@XboxP3) July 26, 2022
This comes as a bit of a surprise, given that Xbox currently has big hitters such as Redfall and Starfield slated for release in 2023. Ragnarok isn’t coming to Xbox platforms, and a PC release hasn’t even been announced yet. As of the time of publication the game is only slated to release for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 on November 9.
While we’ve only received one trailer for the game showing off in-game footage, a story description for the title has confirmed that all nine realms will be appearing in the game, as opposed to the six that players could explore in the original.
“Kratos and Atreus must journey to each of the Nine Realms in search of answers as Asgardian forces prepare for a prophesied battle that will end the world,” reads the description. “Along the way they will explore stunning, mythical landscapes, and face fearsome enemies in the form of Norse gods and monsters.”
There are also five different versions of the game: the PS4 version, which costs £59.99, the PS5 version for £69.99, the digital deluxe edition which costs £79.99, and the Collector’s Edition and Jotnar Edition, which go for £179.99 and £229.99 respectively.
In other news, August’s PlayStation Plus titles have been announced, including Yakuza: Like A Dragon, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 and 2, and Little Nightmares. All three are available to download from August 2.
The post Xbox head Phil Spencer isn’t immune to ‘God Of War Ragnarok’ hype appeared first on NME.
Steven Knight said the film will feature some “surprising” new faces
The post ‘Peaky Blinders’ film is nearly written, creator confirms appeared first on NME.
Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight has confirmed he’s almost finished writing a feature length spin-off film.
Speaking on the Heart Breakfast show with Jamie Theakston and Zoe Hardman, Knight shared an update on the film’s progress.
“Yes, I’m writing it right now,” Knight said. “I’m nearly done writing it, and we’re going to shoot it… I’m setting up some film and television studios in Digbeth in Birmingham.”
He added: “We’re going to shoot it at the studios in Digbeth, and on location in Digbeth in Birmingham. Digbeth and Small Heath is where the Peaky Blinders actually roamed. So it’s like Peaky’s coming home basically.”
Asked if we’re going to be seeing any familiar faces, Knight replied: “Of course, and some new faces that will hopefully be quite surprising.”
Knight also reiterated his previous comments that the film will likely start shooting in 2023, adding: “I’m hoping that we’ll be shooting in… within 18 months.”
“But I’m just really looking forward to having a Peaky event where people can watch it communally,” Knight added. “I mean, the social media community is so strong and people talk to each other. But to actually be together physically will be really interesting.”
The sixth and final season of Peaky Blinders concluded in April this year. Knight previously confirmed a feature film is in the works, which will be a “very specific story” that’s “based on a true story from the Second World War”.
Speaking in June this year, Cillian Murphy, who plays Tommy Shelby in the series, expressed his interest in reprising the role for the planned film.
“I’d be as excited as anybody to read a script,” Murphy told Deadline. “But I think it’s good for everyone to have a little break. That’s always a healthy thing and then we can regroup.
“Steve is an insanely busy and in-demand writer, but I know that he loves writing Peaky above all. He adores it. So I think when the time comes, if there’s more story to be told, I’ll be there.”
The post ‘Peaky Blinders’ film is nearly written, creator confirms appeared first on NME.
