THE WEEKLY WRAP | 08/03/2024
The Weekly Wrap is a look at the biggest stories in music all collected in one place for your reading ease.
By Tobias Handke
Raye Dominates the 2024 BRIT Awards
British songstress Raye smashed the record for most single wins at this year’s BRITs by taking out awards in six categories. The previous record was held by big hitters Adele, Harry Styles and Blur, who have all claimed four trophies on a single night. Raye won British Album of the Year, British Artist of the Year, New Artist of the Year, Song of the Year, R&B Artist of the Year and Songwriter of the Year. During her acceptance speech for Album of the Year, Raye came to the stage with her grandmother Agatha. “All I ever wanted to be was an artist and now I'm an artist with an album of the year,” she gushed. “This is too much, come on grandma, let's go.”Elsewhere, our very own Kylie Minogue was recognised for her incredible 40-year career with the Global Icon BRIT Award. “There's a part of me that's still the 14-year-old girl dreaming in her room of making music and being in this industry,” she said in her acceptance speech. “Here I am with this and everything's possible, so thank you to each and every person who has been a part of my journey.”Other notable winners on the night were Jungle for Group of the Year, Bring Me the Horizon for Best Alternative/Rock Act, Dua Lip for Best Pop Act and Boygenius for International Group of the Year. Lykke Li Returns with Johnny Cash Cover
It's been two years since we’ve heard from Lykke Li, and while her latest release isn’t exactly new music, it does make for a welcome return. The Swedish singer-songwriter has this week dropped a cover of Johnny Cash’s classic ‘Ring of Fire’.The tune was recorded as part of the soundtrack for the Netflix movie Damsal, a dark fantasy starring Millie Bobby Brown, Ray Winstone and Angela Bassett. Discussing her reinterpretation of the song with Variety, Li has this to say: "To be honest, the only version I’ve ever heard in my whole life is the Johnny Cash version, so I had no real history. I just went into it pretty blank. I sat down at the piano and the first thing that came out of my mouth was what I recorded."Li goes on to say she was originally approached to cover the song last year shortly after the birth of her second child. She went into the studio with producer Andrew Sarlo (Big Thief, Bon Iver) and did it in one take. "I was very inspired by June Carter," she says. "What I read was that she wrote this when they were both married to other people and she was like, shit, I’m about to fall in love and it’s going to blow up and ruin my life. But also there’s no other way. So there’s this haunting quality that it is to fall in love. It really is like stepping into a ring of fire. And then I think the beauty of the song, what I realized too when you break it down, is that Johnny Cash’s version has tempo and all of those other things. It’s him. It could even be a lullaby. But that goes for every great song. It’s a classic. Timeless."Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds Announce New Album
Having announced a 13-date Australian tour (selling out more than half the shows already), Nick Cave has revealed a new album with his band the Bad Seeds is on the horizon. Wild God is the band’s 18th record and features ten tracks, led by the majestic self-titled first single. The album, produced by Cave and Warren Ellis and mixed by David Fridmann, was recorded at Miraval in Provence and Soundtree in London and is set for release on Friday, August 30."I hope the album has the effect on listeners that it’s had on me. It bursts out of the speaker, and I get swept up with it," Cave said in a press release promoting the album. "It’s a complicated record, but it’s also deeply and joyously infectious. There is never a master plan when we make a record. The records rather reflect back the emotional state of the writers and musicians who played them. Listening to this, I don’t know, it seems we’re happy."He continued, "Wild God… there’s no fucking around with this record. When it hits, it hits. It lifts you. It moves you. I love that about it."Wild God is available for pre-save/pre-order here. Daft Punk’s ‘Random Access Memories’ Named Most Collected Album By Discogs
A new report released by Discogs has revealed Daft Punk’s 2013 album Random Access Memories is the most collected release logged on the site. 68,000 Discogs users have obtained the original 2013 2xLP vinyl pressing for their record collections.Random Access Memories, Daft Punk’s fourth and final album, was a huge hit, topping the album charts in 21 countries and winning the electronic duo five Grammy Awards.The Discogs report, released to celebrate 750 million catalogued records on the site, also revealed several more fascinating results. Other highlights included rock being the most collected genre with 53% (53,000,000 albums), the Beatles being the most collected artist (4,700,000 albums collected) and Taylor Swift having the top five most collected albums since 2020. Check out the full report here. Iconic Aussie Label Elefant Traks Closing Down
In sad news for the Aussie hip-hop and electronic community, iconic label Elefant Traks is closing its doors after 26 years in business. The brainchild of computer programmer Kenny Sabir, the Sydney-based independent label came about in 1998 when Sabir enlisted some friends to help create a mixtape, Cursive Writing, for a friend overseas. Since then Elefant Traks has released 1300 songs, 66 albums and 40 EPs and championed the likes of Hermitude, The Herd, L-FRESH The LION, Horrorshow, B Wise, Sietta, and Urthboy, aka Tim Levinson, who is also the co-founder and manager of the label. Taking to social media to break the news, Levinson said "It's sad but it's also a cause for celebration," with a big party celebrating the label set to be announced in the future. Several artists and former employees have expressed their sadness at the label’s closure while simultaneously praising ElefantTraks for the impact it has had both on the local scene and their own careers. Check out Levinson’s video opposite for a trip down memory lane and read the comments for tributes from a stack of Aussie music legends. Vampire Weekend Now Have a Podcast
The latest musicians to get their own podcast might be the most surprising yet. New York indie project Vampire Weekend has announced their podcast 'Vampire Campfire', with the first episode out now. As the title suggests, the podcast features the band – Ezra Koenig, Chris Baio and Chris Tomson – sitting around a fire chatting about their career and important topics such as the best taco shells and which reality show is better: The Real World or Road Rules.A statement regarding the new podcast series says it will be "released semi-regularly for the foreseeable future" and fans who watch will be "invited behind the scenes into a longstanding and formerly private Vampire Weekend ritual: the frequent campfire chats where Baio, CT and Koenig convene to discuss and brainstorm all things Vampire Weekend – and so much more."The podcast comes ahead of the release of the band’s fifth album, Only God Was Above Us, which is set to arrive on April 5. You can pre-save/pre-order the album here. Post-Hardcore Rockers CASKETS Announce First Headlining Australian Tour
UK post-hardcore act CASKETS return Down Under in 2024 with their debut headlining tour. After traversing the country supporting Windwalker last year, the melodic upstarts will play seven dates across Australia with US funk rockers The Home Team along for the ride. "Coming to Australia to play our own headline shows is more than a dream come true!" vocalist Matt Flood said in a press statement."It’s something every musician dreams of but never really expects it to become a reality. We’re very proud and very lucky to have this opportunity to come back to Australia and rip up some shows with some insanely talented bands; but first, I must hug a koala!"CASKETS play Lion Arts Factory on Saturday, May 11. Tickets are available via Destroy All Lines, with pre-sale starting Tuesday, March 12 at 11am and general sale starting on Wednesday, Mach 13 at 11am. Friday Five
This week's Friday Five is WOMADelaide themed and includes five amazing songs from acts playing this year's festival. 1. Jose Gonzalez – ‘Crosses’
2. Pongo – ‘Doudou’
3. Thee Sacred Souls – ‘Can I Call You Rose?’
4. Angélique Kidjo – ‘Agolo’
5. Cymande – ‘Bra’
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