Niki N. Phaser » reunion

Alan Wilder Is Still ‘Somebody’ For Depeche Mode

Niki N. Phaser — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 14:59:41 +0000

Depeche Mode history was made recently, on February 17, when the band performed a special show at the Royal Albert Hall, for Teenage Cancer Trust. Before performing Somebody, Martin Gore invited a special guest on stage, none other than Alan Wilder, who accompanied Gore on piano. Wilder left Depeche Mode in 1995, after the strenuous tour for Songs of Faith and Devotion, which nearly broke the whole band, claiming that relationships within the band “have become seriously strained, increasingly frustrating and, ultimately, in certain situations, intolerable”. After his departure, he devoted himself full-time to side-project Recoil, which is still touring and releasing albums. As expected, the brief reunion caused a lot of joy among Depeche Mode fans, but this was a one-off. No rumors of a full-on Wilder return should come of this.

SOMEBODY is here Recoil – Allelujah

Soundgarden – Head Down : Taken From The Joker’s iPod

Niki N. Phaser — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 11:58:25 +0000

With a Soundgarden reunion in the works, this is a good time to take a look at one of their non-single masterpieces. It’s no wonder that they agreed on this comeback only if all the original members would be in it, considering that each of them had an essential contribution to what this band is. Head Down, from their breakthrough album, Superunknown, is penned by bass player Ben Sheperd and, though in the neighbourhood of such classics as Black Hole Sun or Spoonman, it stands out as an unique sound and feel. It has the schizo riffs and the chainsaw guitars that defined Soundgarden and helped Soundgarden define grunge, but Chris Cornell’s possessed vocals and the ambiguous lyrics create the feeling of your little devil standing on your shoulder and whispering f#%^ed up shit in your ear: “We see you try, We see you fail, Some things never change”. The constant use of the first person plural enhances the impression that these demons are watching you, ready to settle in your body at any moment. The drumming filled with crashes, the absence of a genuine chorus, they back-up the evil chant quality of this prog-grunge masterwork.

HEAD HERE

Soundgarden ‘reopens’

Niki N. Phaser — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 21:38:14 +0000

Chris Cornell certainly entered the new year with joyful news for all. “The 12 year break is over & school is back in session. (…) Knights of the Soundtable ride again!” was his first post of the year on Twitter. You don’t have to be a master of deciphering to know that he is hinting at a Soundgarden reunion. They disbanded in 1997 and apparently, promised themselves that there will be no reunion, unless they all agree, thus avoiding a Guns N’ Roses/Smashing Pumpkins type of situation. Since then, Cornell released several solo records as well as revived old-school hard-rock with Audioslave. Considering that Cornell’s career was going well, there is no reason to believe that there are unhonorable grounds for this reunion. Hopefully, the band will work on new material and not just tour, though that will be welcomed by quite a few (millions of) people. For more info:

RIDE HERE

The Cranberries Will Linger Once More

Niki N. Phaser — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 11:22:18 +0000

Irish 90′s wunderkinds, The Cranberries might just take their recent reunion to the next level, meaning they are working on new material. In an interview with the Chicago Sun-Times, singer Dolores O’Riordan stated that both she and Noel Hogan have been writing new music and the possibility of a new album seems appealing to the recently reunited gang.

Currently, the band are on an approximately one month tour of North America, enchanting fans, old and new, with The Cranberries hit-list of honour, as well songs from O’Riordan’s solo albums. Due to a personal matter of the singer’s, a recent gig in Detroit had to be cancelled, but now the tour is back on track. 2010 will bring two other legs on their reunion tour, one in South America for the winter and then, Paris in the springtime… plus other major European cities.

Hopefully, the audience’s response will encourage the Zombie authors to grace us with new material. Their last album was 2001′s Wake Up and Smell the Coffee. See a performance of their 1996 classic, When You’re Gone, played in Philadelphia, on November 17:

Reunited

Reunited Skunk Anansie Premiere New Video

Niki N. Phaser — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 09:39:14 +0000

There is some new material on the reunited front of 90′s alternative idols, Skunk Anansie. After an eight years break for solo efforts, the four members got together again. They are about to release a somewhat delayed best of album, entitled Smashes and Tashes, that will be promoted through a full-on European tour, which will have them rocking some of the major cities on the continent, like Berlin, Vienna, Zurich, Paris, Amsterdam, Brussels, Madrid, as well as some familiar places in the UK. Still, they are not going to rest solely on past laurels, but are also offering some new material. After releasing a free download new song as a sign of good faith, Tear the Place Up, Skin & co. are gracing us with a new single from the aforementioned best of album. It’s called Because of You and already has a video to go along with it. For what it’s worth, this is quite a good song, which proves that Skunk Anansie are not into the reunion bussiness just to right their financial situation, but also to explore new places in their musical creativity. It’s a departure both from their Female Rage Against the Machine days of Little Baby Swastikkka and from their d’n'b flashes of Charlie Big Potato. Smashes and Tashes will also feature a third new track, Squander.

WATCH THE VIDEO FOR Because of You