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Lost World reviews video

By craigjparker.blogspot.com
Published On :: Thu, 07 Nov 2024 01:52:00 +0000

Reviews of The Cure's Songs of a Lost World. Video sent out by The Cure via Whatsapp.


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Mark Gardener and Kevin Shields at Troxy

By craigjparker.blogspot.com
Published On :: Thu, 07 Nov 2024 12:07:00 +0000

From Ride Appreciation Society.

Robert Smith with Mark Gardener of Ride and Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine at Troxy London.



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Interview with Ben from Polydor

By craigjparker.blogspot.com
Published On :: Fri, 08 Nov 2024 18:46:00 +0000

From Music Week:

"Robert Smith is beyond passionate": Polydor's Ben Mortimer on The Cure's triumphant return to No.1

by George Garner

It was very much a case of Friday, The UK's In Love for The Cure, as the iconic group and their label Polydor celebrated an incredible charts results day on Friday, November 8. 

More than 32 years after their only previous No.1 album, Robert Smith’s band marked an emphatic return to the top of the chart with their 14th studio release – and first for 16 years – Songs Of A Lost World.

Indeed, Polydor co-president Ben Mortimer has told Music Week that even when held against their own lofty expectations, the response from the public has been "overwhelming". Songs Of A Lost World has effectively done seven times the first week sales of 2008's 4:13 Dream, and outsold three of their last four albums' entire lifetime sales in one week. 

So, how does it look when broken down?

Well, for one, The Cure outsold the rest of the Top 5 combined, with a stellar opening frame of 51,362 sales (19,838 CDs, 23,182 vinyl albums, 1,219 cassettes, 4,546 digital downloads and 2,577 sales-equivalent streams) according to Official Charts Company data.

First week sales of Songs Of A Lost World are, in fact, the fifth highest on debut for any album in 2024, trailing only Taylor Swift’s The Tortured Poets Department (270,091), Coldplay’s Moon Music (236,796), Sabrina Carpenter’s Short N’ Sweet (89,658) and Billie Eilish’s Hit Me Hard & Soft (67,111). 

For further context, let's turn to Music Week charts analyst Alan Jones' breakdown: “[The Cure] also exceed the to-date sales of The Cure’s last studio album, 2008’s 4:13 Dream, which debuted and peaked at No.33 on consumption of 7,360 units, 16 years ago last week, and has to-date consumption of 35,123 units. Songs Of A Lost World’s 597.85% increase on that album’s first frame is due to many factors, including the fact it has been so long since an album by The Cure; the multiplicity of its physical formats (two CD, two cassette and six vinyl); a live stream of their 1 November gig at The Troxy; a BBC Radio Two ‘In Concert’ performance; and the popularity of Songs Of A Lost World singles Alone and A Fragile Thing. The latter track has provided the band’s highest radio airplay chart position – No.26 – for more than 20 years last week, including attracting 59 plays from the aforementioned Radio Two so far.”

Robert Smith wanted to know how much we believed in the record before he'd commit to working with us, so we didn't hear a note until the deal was signed – which was a touch that I loved and respected

On top of this, Polydor have actually secured a chart double this week, with their act Gracie Abrams also topping the UK singles chart with That's So True jumping to No.1 on sales of 40,798.

Here, Polydor president Ben Mortimer, talks about working with Robert Smith, getting the band back to the top, and more...

Before we get into the campaign, what has it meant to you personally to work on The Cure's first new record in 16 years? And what has it been like working closely with Robert Smith?  

“First off, I am the hugest fan. Disintegration got me through a tough period in my early teens. I've always loved the band's ability to be so mournful and despairing and marry it with such beautiful melodic pop songs, so it meant huge amounts to me personally to get to work on this. And working with him has been a privilege. Robert is so dedicated to his craft, he's beyond passionate about the band and its legacy. He wanted to know how much we believed in the record before he'd commit to working with us. So we didn't hear a note until the deal was signed, which was a touch that I loved and respected. He is hands on in every part of his business in the most inspiring way.”

The Cure have returned, obviously, to a massively different music landscape compared to the one they operated in with 4:13 Dream. What were Polydor’s hopes and expectations for week one given there's not been a new album for so long, and have the actual sales surprised you? 

“I had a feeling it would do well. We're lucky enough to work The Cure catalogue, so are well aware of how well their music streams and across so many generations. But this has been an overwhelming response that in truth we didn't completely predict. But then again it's an incredible record, with 5/5s across the board. As predictable as this sounds, the greatest music always finds its way to people in the end.” 

It’s interesting how you achieved the result without a very long pre-order period compared to most albums. What did you have to work with in terms of data/fanbase for the campaign? There's obviously their incredible catalogue too – how have you reactivated that in the run-up? 

“Whether intentionally or not, the band have been running the smartest teaser campaign. It would be worthy of a Music Week marketing award! He teased the record was coming years ago. Something he says he regrets, but it created a sense of folklore around the album, and the band have been playing songs from it on tour for several years. Clips have been all over the internet. All of this created feverish demand amongst the fanbase.” 

There looks set to be huge international success with the album as well, what role did Polydor play in connecting all the dots globally for that to happen? Did you have any specific territories outside of the UK that you really wanted to target?

“They're huge in Europe, Australia, North, Central and South America. As soon as we told our partners this was coming there was palpable excitement and demand. We zoned in on Germany, France, Holland, and several other key markets, and they've all delivered. It's testament to the power of the global company.”  

The Troxy show was another big moment of the launch week, not least because they played the whole album in full. Why are intimate launch shows still so effective in your mind? 

“Our partnership with YouTube on the live stream made it possible. And they recorded insane levels of traffic on it. They're a stadium and festival band, so to see them this intimate, was a special experience even for those on the live stream. Playing for over three hours… It was truly my 2024 highlight.”

On top of The Cure, Polydor also have the No.1 single this week with Gracie Abrams. What does that say about Polydor right now in terms of your roster, and your ability to get top results for veteran and new artists alike? 

"The Polydor roster is well renowned as one of the best in the UK business. We have long relationships with so many artists whose careers continue to flourish. Lana Del Rey is nine albums in, Michael Kiwanuka is four. The Cure and Snow Patrol recent successes are current examples of how seriously we take career longevity. Gracie's first number No.1 single shows how we are equally committed to the next generation of artists coming through. They are after all the lifeblood of our business."

(Photo, L-R): Ali Tant, Robert Smith, Jim Chancellor, Ben Mortimer, Faye Jordan and Fred Stuart) 


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Robert's interview with NPR

By craigjparker.blogspot.com
Published On :: Sun, 10 Nov 2024 00:04:00 +0000


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Inside the Cure’s Big Halloween Comeback: Concert, BBC Takeover and ‘Lost World’ Album

By craigjparker.blogspot.com
Published On :: Mon, 11 Nov 2024 15:25:00 +0000

From Variety:


Brit Beat: Inside the Cure’s Big Halloween Comeback: Concert, BBC Takeover and ‘Lost World’ Album

By Mark Sutherland

It’s been 16 long years since legendary British alternative rockers the Cure last released a studio album, but the campaign for the band’s new outing, “Lost World,” has made it feel like they’ve never been away.

And the band has also returned “home” to the Fiction-via-Polydor label, which released the band’s recordings up until 2004’s self-titled album. The most recent two Cure albums came out via America on Geffen, but Polydor Label Group President Ben Mortimer says he made it his “mission” to bring the band back to the record company.

“I actually can’t believe it’s happened because it’s been a conversation that’s been going on for so long,” Mortimer tells Variety. “Robert Smith sits alongside Paul Weller, who we brought back to Polydor a few years ago, as one of those people who are really in the fabric of the label. [The return] has really energized the whole label and tapped into the soul of what we do.”

Mortimer says “huge credit” should also go to Fiction Records Managing Director Jim Chancellor, “who has had a brilliant relationship with Robert for a long time.” Smith manages the band himself and Mortimer says the release plan came together over numerous emails featuring Smith’s trademark “all caps firmly on” style.

Key to the strategy was a suitably gothic Cure takeover of the BBC on Halloween, the day before “Songs of a Lost World” dropped, with a live session on BBC Radio 6 Music and a career-spanning BBC Radio 2 “In Concert” recording, which was also televised as part of a BBC 2 Cure night on November 2. The “In Concert” recording reportedly received the most ticket applications of any show in the long-running series.

“One of the stipulations Robert had on doing the deal was that the album to come out straight after Halloween,” Mortimer says. “Our production team had to jump through hoops to deliver vinyl and everything in time. It was really touch and go but Robert was very clear, unless it’s coming November 1, we ain’t doing this!”

The band also made a spectacular full live return with an intimate show at London’s Troxy venue on November 1, which featured a full rendition of the new album as well as many other songs. It was livestreamed around the world on YouTube and attended by many other musicians, from Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong to Culture Club’s Boy George.

All that attention – and some of the best reviews of the band’s career – has also translated into record sales, with the album set to debut at No.1 in the Official U.K. Albums Chart on November 8. It had already passed 40,000 units by Monday, according to the Official Charts Company. That’s despite this being the band’s first album release of the streaming age – previous studio album “4:13 Dream” came out in 2008 – with Mortimer saying the band racked up huge numbers of Spotify pre-saves.

“The Universal catalog team, alongside Robert, have done a very good job of keeping things alive for years, but it’s more than that,” says Mortimer. “If you look at their streams, there are tracks at over 700 million on Spotify, so there is a young audience there that streams the Cure.

“We’ve brought in new ideas – Robert’s remarkably open to modern ways of thinking, he’s such an intelligent man, he grasps things so quickly – but I don’t think it changed his strategy,” Mortimer adds. “Some artists are able to speak to different generations, and the Cure are one of those.”

With the band likely to announce further touring plans, Mortimer is expecting a long campaign for the album, one of the first big releases through the new Polydor Label Group, after a major Universal U.K. restructure: Mortimer now also oversees the Capitol U.K. and 0207 Def Jam labels, run by Jo Charrington and Alec Boateng respectively.

“It’s been a crazy year across the whole business, but I’m really thankful about the new responsibilities that I have,” says Mortimer. “Working with Jo and Alec is just an absolute dream, they’re some of the best A&R executives of recent generations and they’ve brought so many brilliant artists into our system, so I’m feeling really lucky. Everyone complements each other really well.”

Meanwhile, the American release of “Songs of a Lost World” goes through Capitol, meaning Mortimer has reunited with his former Polydor co-president Tom March, now chairman/CEO of Capitol Music Group (“Tom’s wonderful – having a Brit over there who gets it has been really helpful”). The pair revived Polydor’s fortunes in the 2010s and Mortimer is hopeful the Cure’s renewed success could also bring back the buzz to music from this side of the pond.

“It feels like there’s real interest in what the U.K. and Ireland does really well again,” he says. “You look at Oasis, the Cure, plus we’re getting such an explosion of interest on Sam Fender at the moment and we’re seeing growth on a band like Inhaler… We’ve been talking about it for 15 years but it’s genuinely happening now.”


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Joel McHale Really Loves Coffee, The Cure, and Meat Pies

By craigjparker.blogspot.com
Published On :: Tue, 12 Nov 2024 14:03:00 +0000

From Food & Wine:

On the genius of The Cure's Robert Smith

"Disintegration is one of my favorite albums. Young people listening to this podcast right now, are like, 'What the f--- are they talking about?' It's the 'Friday I'm in Love' guys. Check it out. 'Just Like Heaven' is a perfect pop song. It is like carbon on the periodic table of perfectly executed, joyous, catchiest, most perfect things. 'Pictures of You' is probably one of the most tragic pop songs ever written, and it's perfect. 'A Forest' — I remember when Nouvelle Vague covered that, and I was just like, 'Oh my gosh.' I don't know why The Cure doesn't get more recognition for how important they were.

To go from punk into New Wave, into — I think at any moment if Robert Smith wanted to, he could be like, 'I can write the poppiest song of all time.' Like Kurt Cobain, where it's just, 'I can do this all day long. But I'm going to put sandpaper in it and make your brain turn upside down.' But then you're like, 'What just happened to me?'"


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Adarsh Shah on "Continuous Delivery for Machine Learning" (September NYCDEVOPS Meetup)

By everythingsysadmin.com
Published On :: Wed, 16 Sep 2020 19:03:41 -0500

Come one, come all! nycdevops does its first virtual meetup! All are invited!

Hope to see you there!


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Oct 15 NYC DevOps Meetup: "Introduction to Site Reliability Engineering" by Nathen Harvey

By everythingsysadmin.com
Published On :: Wed, 14 Oct 2020 15:17:59 -0500

This month's nycdevops meetup speaker is Nathen Harvey of Google, who will give a talk titled "Introduction to Site Reliability Engineering".

The talk starts at 5pm sharp! (NY is in US/Eastern)

Please RSVP! See you there!

https://www.meetup.com/nycdevops/events/272956481/

(This is a virtual meetup. Everyone around the world is invited!)


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Thu, Nov 19 NYCDEVOPS meetup: John Allspaw on "Learning From Incidents"

By everythingsysadmin.com
Published On :: Tue, 20 Oct 2020 15:23:39 -0500

November's nycdevops meetup speaker is John Allspaw, who will give a talk titled "Findings From the Field: 2 Years of Learning From Incidents".

The talk starts at 5pm sharp! (NY is in US/Eastern)

Please RSVP! See you there!

https://www.meetup.com/nycdevops/events/273826675/

(This is a virtual meetup. Everyone in the world is invited!)


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Thu, Nov 19 NYCDEVOPS meetup: John Allspaw on "Learning From Incidents"

By everythingsysadmin.com
Published On :: Mon, 16 Nov 2020 15:25:39 -0500

Don't forget!

November's nycdevops meetup speaker is John Allspaw, who will give a talk titled "Findings From the Field: 2 Years of Learning From Incidents".

The talk starts at 5pm sharp! (NY is in US/Eastern)

Please RSVP! See you there!

https://www.meetup.com/nycdevops/events/273826675/

(This is a virtual meetup. Everyone in the world is invited!)


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What to give your loved one for April Fools Day?

By everythingsysadmin.com
Published On :: Wed, 24 Mar 2021 10:03:46 -0500

April Fools Day is coming up!

Time to order your coffee-table book of April Fools RFCs!

More info here: https://www.rfchumor.com

Makes a great gift for nerds that own coffee-tables!

Order it today!


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  • The Complete April Fools' RFCs
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Usenix LISA is no more. Here's my retrospective.

By everythingsysadmin.com
Published On :: Sat, 12 Nov 2022 11:34:18 -0500

The Usenix LISA conference is no more. After 35 years, I have a lot of good (and some not good) memories of the conference. It was a big part of my career and I'm sad to see it go. However I'm proud of what LISA accomplished.

I wrote my personal reflections on the conference in a new article published on the Usenix website. Warning: this article includes some over-sharing.

Read it here: LISA made LISA obsolete (That's a compliment!)


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Article: "Split Your Overwhelmed Teams"

By everythingsysadmin.com
Published On :: Sat, 12 Nov 2022 12:12:29 -0500

After a 2-year break, my column in ACM Queue magazine returns! It has a new name "Operations and Life".

For many years I wrote a column in ACM Queue Magazine. It was called "Everything Sysadmin" and covered devops, IT, and basically anything I felt like. I stopped writing in 2020 due to the pandemic and a general lack of motivation. My last column was published Nov 2020. Two years later I finally feel like writing again.

The new column is called "Operations and Life". I'm going to write about the intersection of devops and personal life. I believe that most techniques we use at work can apply in our personal life and vice-versa.

These columns will be shorter and more to the point. While my old column would often be 10 or more pages long, my goal now is to keep things to about 2000-3000 words. This will make them easier to read and digest. This format is more web-friendly.

The first article in this new format is out!

Read it here: Split Your Overwhelmed Teams: Two teams of five is not the same as one team of ten


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Health Nut Vegan Chili

By www.101cookbooks.com
Published On :: Fri, 08 Nov 2024 02:21:50 +0000

A special, triple-bean, vegan chili inspired by Jess Damuck’s new cookbook. It’s bold, flavor-packed and uses a technique to achieve the best texture of any chili I’ve eaten. It’s time to schedule a big chili night.

Continue reading Health Nut Vegan Chili on 101 Cookbooks


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  • 100+ Vegetarian Recipes
  • 260+ Vegan Recipes
  • Dinner Ideas
  • Fall
  • Gluten Free Recipes
  • High Protein Recipes
  • Main Course Recipes
  • Whole Food Plant-Based Diet Recipes
  • Winter
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Kaputter US-Journalismus, Streit um § 353d StGB, Grönemeyer vs. CDU

By bildblog.de
Published On :: Tue, 05 Nov 2024 07:54:38 +0000

1. “Wir müssen uns von der Vorstellung lösen, dass Journalismus gleichbedeutend mit Content ist” (journalist.de, Leif Kramp & Stephan Weichert) Bei journalist.de ist ein lesenswertes Interview mit dem US-amerikanischen Journalismus-Experten Jeff Jarvis erschienen, der gleich in der ersten Antwort ziemlich direkt wird: “Während wir die US-Wahlen durchlaufen, frage ich mich, ob es Zeit ist, den […]


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  • 6 vor 9
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X-Bots und US-Wahlkampf, Schunkeln für Millionen, Hollywoodfilme diverser

By bildblog.de
Published On :: Wed, 06 Nov 2024 07:54:26 +0000

1. Automatisierte Bots auf X greifen in den US-Wahlkampf ein (zeit.de, Eva Wolfangel) “Die Sorge, dass das Internet von Bots zersetzt wird, gibt es schon lange. Jetzt gibt es erstmals klare Belege für solche KI-Accounts – manche machen Stimmung für Trump.” Eva Wolfangel gibt einen Einblick in die derzeitige Forschung zu Bot-Netzwerken. Weiterer Lesetipp: Elon […]


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  • 6 vor 9
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Werbeaktivitäten der Fraktionen, Sturmreif, “Nius” stockt auf

By bildblog.de
Published On :: Wed, 13 Nov 2024 07:54:02 +0000

1. Bundestag will die Öffentlichkeitsarbeit der Fraktionen neu regeln (netzpolitik.org, Martin Schwarzbeck) Der Bundestag plane, noch vor der nächsten Wahl die Regeln für die Öffentlichkeitsarbeit der Fraktionen zu überarbeiten. Der Bundesrechnungshof habe festgestellt, dass viele Social-Media-Aktivitäten der Fraktionen, die eigentlich die parlamentarische Arbeit darstellen sollen, in der Vergangenheit parteipolitische Werbung enthielten. Eine breite Mehrheit der […]


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  • 6 vor 9
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23:06 1st November 2024

By b3ta.com
Published On :: 2024-11-01T23:06:00+00:00

B3ta newsletter 928, out now "FRANKIE SAYS EX-LAX: SHART THE UNEMPLOYED" This Week: * ARE HOLIDAYS GOOD? - find out now * IMAGE CHALLENGE - sitcom monster mashup results * CONTROL PACMAN - with your own face, at last


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19:57 8th November 2024

By b3ta.com
Published On :: 2024-11-08T19:57:00+00:00

B3ta newsletter 929, out now "ONCE AGAIN THE HAM MARKETING BOARD REJECT OUR SLOGAN: SNORTY BUT SLICED" This Week: * LOST CONSONANTS - legendary B3ta challenge back * PRIME NUMBER PROJECT - can you count? Then count * OFFICIAL AMSTRAD NOSTALGIA SITE - thanks Alan


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How to see the invisible: Using the dark matter distribution to test our cosmological model

By www.princeton.edu
Published On :: Mon, 03 Apr 2023 11:00:00 -0400

A Princeton-led team of astrophysicists has measured a surprising value for the “clumpiness” of the universe’s dark matter.


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New map of the universe’s cosmic growth supports Einstein’s theory of gravity

By www.princeton.edu
Published On :: Tue, 11 Apr 2023 10:07:00 -0400

Research by Princeton scholars at the Atacama Cosmology Telescope collaboration has culminated in a significant breakthrough in understanding the evolution of the universe.


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Princeton research activity hits new milestone

By www.princeton.edu
Published On :: Wed, 12 Apr 2023 11:16:00 -0400

National survey highlights vibrancy and growth of campus research


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Jo Dunkley, Suzanne Staggs and colleagues awarded $53M to upgrade prominent observatory

By www.princeton.edu
Published On :: Thu, 18 May 2023 14:55:02 -0400

The National Science Foundation has awarded a $52.66 million grant to fund a major infrastructure upgrade to the Simons Observatory in the Atacama Desert of Chile. Upgrades are expected to take about five years; the resulting facility will be known as the Advanced Simons Observatory (ASO).


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