Although we still have Christmas and New Year to contend with, NME has inspired many to invest in a 2011 diary early with the announcement of their 2011 NME Awards Tour. Each year the influential taste makers at the magazine pick four acts to trek across the UK, delivering an unmissable line up of live music. The tours are notorious for booking bands that are just about to blow up, with the likes of Arctic Monkeys; The Horrors; The Ting Tings and Florence + The Machine all making up the lower parts of the bill over the last few years.
Last year’s lineup was noted for being an extremely indie friendly affair, with The Maccabees; Bombay Bicycle Club; The Big Pink and The Drums all taking part. This year the line up is a far more eclectic affair with Crystal Castles taking the headline slot with more than capable support from Dubstep supergroup Magnetic Man; electro tinged guitar outfit Everything Everything and catchy punk purveyors The Vaccines opening the bill.
Read on for our 5 Minute Guide to the bands and full tour details:
At the start of each year, inevitably the music world offers up a wave of potential new acts that attract varying amounts of attention. One of the more intriguing of these was Magnetic Man, the dubstep supergroup consisting of Skream, Benga & Artwork. All members in the trio hailing from Croydon, South London, were instrumental in the early days of the genre and were also involved in the Big Apple Records scene where dubstep was conceived. It seems only right that they should be part of what is likely to become the genre’s biggest cross over band. Arguably interest in the group has risen ever since Skream lent his inimitable bass frequencies to La Roux’s ‘In For The Kill’, which combined with the fact that they appeared on the front cover of the NME before releasing any track has made Magnetic Man one of the most hyped bands of the year.
Their debut single ‘I Need Air’ saw the light of day this week. Pushing forward the boundaries of bass driven dance music, the track sees the trio collaborate with Angela Hunte; who originally composed the colossal ‘Empire State Of Mind’. It proves a great taster for the album and shows – if we had any doubt – that Magnetic Man will more than justify the praise they’ve already been given. We caught up with Artwork to chat about living up to the pressure of hype and to discuss how they found time to record an album in between their hectic schedules.
After much hype and anticipation, the first single from Magnetic Man will be released on 25th July through Columbia Records. The coming together of Dubstep bigshots Skream, Benga and Artwork has been tipped by many to produce one of the albums of the year and ‘I Need Air’ provides a strong preview of their forthcoming debut. Featuring the vocal talents of Angela Hunte – who co-wrote the massive Alicia Keys single ‘New York State Of Mind’ – the track opens with pulsating synths stabs before welcoming a lairy bassline into the proceedings. Treading a line between dubstep and hands aloft electro pop, ‘I Need Air’ is sure to appeal to dance music fans from across the board – not simply to followers of their previous work.
‘I Need Air’ signals the start of a hectic period for the band. Not only do they have to fit their touring schedule around Skream and Benga’s hectic DJ schedule, but Skream has also readied his second solo album ‘Outside The Box’ for release later this year. Magnetic Man will play the following dates later this year. Head to their website for more details.
26th October – Waterfront, Norwich. 28th October – Trinity, Bristol. 29th October – Warehouse Project, Manchester. 30th October – Sub Club, Glasgow. 2nd November – Concorde II, Brighton. 3rd November – Heaven, London. 4th November – Cockpit, Leeds. 5th November – Trent University, Nottingham.
Although we still have Christmas and New Year to contend with, NME has inspired many to invest in a 2011 diary early with the announcement of their 2011 NME Awards Tour. Each year the influential taste makers at the magazine pick four acts to trek across the UK, delivering an unmissable line up of live music. The tours are notorious for booking bands that are just about to blow up, with the likes of Arctic Monkeys; The Horrors; The Ting Tings and Florence + The Machine all making up the lower parts of the bill over the last few years. 
