The Finnish 8-piece ska/reggae outfit 'The Capital Beat' have just released their new single 'Sweet Sweet.' The song is taken from their forthcoming, yet untitled, second studio album, due to be released in February/March 2011.
The single is accompanied by one of the most respected choirs to date, the Grammy Award winning Soweto Gospel Choir from South Africa. The choir has worked with artists like Bono, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Diana Ross, Celine Dion and Aretha Franklin. They have also collaborated with U2 on 4 songs for ESPN's World Cup 2010 television broadcasts.
The song Sweet Sweet is also a collaboration with Finnish rap-champ Cstar, bringing the song a fresh, exciting and, above all, sweet twist.
The cover art was again done by Ben Sherman's own Brand Ambassador Matt B / Eight Bit (you can follow him on Twitter)
New promo pictures of the band in their Ben Sherman shirts and gear:
It is cold, it is very cold. It is so cold that I’m afraid to stay in one spot for too long for fear of being frozen to the ground. So what better way to warm up than partaking in one the most unusual Leagues that London has to offer. The Pie-n-Mash club is what it says on the tin, the plan is to meet, greet and then plough in to the finest cuisine that has epitomised the cockneys for so long.
The Rules are simple. Eels and Pies are 4 points, Mash 2 points and Liquor 1 point. Eat as much as you can without leftovers and the points are yours. Then, over the course of a “season”, spent visiting various establishments around London, the winner is the person with the most points (funny that).
Now, i know what you’re thinking. Why! And to be honest there is no right answer. Sitting in Cookes Pie house in London Fields, you would be just as likely to see a sharp suited ‘city boi’ walk in as you would a bricklayer. And herein lies the secret, Pie and Mash is....... wait for it..... just food. Yep that’s it. It’s just a pie with some mash (not forgetting the liquor) nothing fancy, nothing to get Heston Blumenthal worked up about, it’s just meat, pastry and potatoes.
What was originally seen as the cheap filling meal of the 18th century, has gradually found its self a niche market in modern London. Cockneys for far and wide will travel just to get a decent one, locals will pop in for something warm, tourist’s will try it ‘with the green stuff’ and all will enjoy it, well most will. So widespread is the appeal that if you should happen to walk into Bow Locks pub in Tenerife on a Saturday, you will find yourself surrounded by a swarm of West Ham fan’s all tucking into a pre-match pie’n’mash, freshly shipped in from London that day.
The quintessential British meal is always a Sunday roast, the north has chips and gravy and the south east has the greatest of them all Pie and Mash, and here in this very pie house the word is spreading nationwide. BBC cook show The Great British Menu is here to cover the story, talk to the people who eat it and the people that cook it and to try and work out why on earth people like it to the point where they would join a club and eat it to get points. I’ll be dammed if I know but one thing’s for sure: I’m having 3 pies, 2 mash and plenty of Liquor. 17 points, easy!!
Carnaby street was the setting for Ben Shermans Late night shopping extravaganza in association with Grazia, one of the live acts dj'ing that night Man Like Me were kind enough to sit down and give us a little interview.
Even with all the attention they are getting from the current Ikea ad, the mid twenties london natives Johnny and Pete a.k.a Man like Me are refreshingly frank, down to earth and if anything, still a little shocked from the surge of stardom. They joke about how people might see it as them selling out for featuring in an ad, but as Johnny points out, after years of constant gigging, hard graft and saving everything possible to get into the studio, they feel that this is just the next step in the evolution of their musical career and why should they feel bad for all their hard work paying off? "After all, if we started getting paid for our music we wont have to work real jobs to get by and finally can realise our musical dream."
This is not to say that the guys are resting back on their laurels whilst riding the waves of success, on the contrary, they are still holding down multiple jobs. Johnny tells us they have, and will continue to work all hours of the day to gather the funds necessary to migrate from bedroom recording to the studio for the release of their second album next year.
Delving into their past over the past 5 years Pete explains that Man like me has had a series of lineups but Johnny and himself have been the mainstay of the band since day one, knowing each other since school and have grown up to be what appears to be the best of friends. Because of this tight camaraderie, a wanton desire to succeed and great work ethic they see small set backs are nothing but bumps in the road to their success.
Man Like Me's songs as well as their videos are known for being quirky and inventive, based mainly around the seemingly mundane social lives of characters in London, but in a way that is entertaining and far less boorish than perhaps some of their other piers do. This ingenuity coupled with some theatrics make a Man Like Me live show quite animated and entertaining, though they did say they have scaled back a little on some of the dramatics since there was a bloody incident during a routine where Pete had a gash on his eye from a staged slap to the face.
On describing their musical style, "it's certainly very diverse" explains Johnny, mixing electro with elements of hip hop and new wave to create something truly unique. Surprisingly though, when talking about their influences and admirations they explain they draw from the great soul and funk singers like Gaye, Mayfield and The Meters, basically who they describe as "true artists".
Both Johnny and Pete obviously have their heads screwed on pretty tight and take a rather studious approach to their work being full aware of the pitfalls of the music industry and even though they are currently working on their next album, they don't see themselves slugging it out for years and years down the line in the charts, but would prefer to be on the other side of the mixing desks as producers. Saying that, expect a lot from these guys in the not too distant future and even though it's been 5 years already for them, Man Like Me are just getting started.
If you are in Boston this Saturday Evening, we think you should make your way to our store on Newbury Street as we have Atlantic/Pacific playing for us from 5.30pm-6.30pm. A set not to be missed...
Scott, one of our Ben Sherman Brand Ambassadors, has been out scouring the new music scene again and has found another emerging British band that our Ben Sherman fans should take note of. See what he has to say about them below. Introducing, The Universal....
Liverpool, that world famous hub of musical creativity spawning such greats as The Beatles, The Coral, The La's and of course the best of them all, A Flock of Seagulls. And now as we approach the end of the first decade of this new century, the city has come up trumps yet again. The Universal are making waves and they are reaching further afield than just the Mersey estuary.
Old fashioned "Mod-Rock" is where the quintet are based but this isn't a tribute act to the mod revival bands of the 80's, a doff of the cap, yes, but see them live and you will clearly see this is very much a band for the here and now. Debut Single "Day In Day Out" is a bass heavy thumping song that tells you all you need know about this band in an electric two and a half minutes. Front man Terry Shaughnessy's early influences of The Jam and The Small Faces are evident in the vocal and guitar style, but a hit on their myspace page will give you the chance to listen to tracks Stand Up, Revolution and Shine On which give up but just a taste of what these lads can really do. A grown up The Enemy with a bit of the polish worn off is my evaluation and I’m sticking to it. Download the album now and decide for yourself.
With dates all around the country from now until June, should you get the chance to see this band live, do it, you will not be disappointed as this is when they really come alive. The Universal may not revolutionise the British music scene but trust me, they are doing their bit.
LightsGoBlue are a two man electronic-pop-punk-rock band hailing from Gravesend, Kent in the United Kingdom.
Throughout 2009/2010, LightsGoBlue have toured the UK as main support on tours with Enter Shikari, Hadouken, Canterbury and Feeder side-project Renegades, as well as appearing at UK festivals such as The Great Escape, Sonishphere, Redfest and Hevy. In 2009 the band were invited to perform at 'Stage Dive Day Out Festival' in Sweden… and were subsequently invited back this year to play a higher slot at the renamed 'Moshpit Open Festival'.
At time of typing this, the band are preparing for an appearance at the Incubate Festival in Holland and a mammoth six week tour of the USA & Canada opening for Enter Shikari.
In light of the word of stateside dates spreading, US labels, agents and lawyers have started contacting the band and management for guestlist to shows… which is hopefully a positive sign that buzz across the pond is growing!
Although never having had a 'official' release up until now, early LightsGoBlue demos have been played regularly on BBC Introducing and Kerrang Radio etc, and the band have had a toe dipped into the world of major label releases when the LightsGoBlue's remix of Enter Shikari's 'No Sleep Tonight' was included on the CD/digital release of their single and subsequently on the on 2010 'Tribalism' mini-album on Atlantic/Warners label, alongside remixes by High Contrast, Qemists and Nero.
LightsGoBlue have released their debut E.P/mini-album ‘This Is Spectrum’ this September 2010. All tracks were written, recorded, produced, scrapped, re-written and hammered into shape by LightsGoBlue in their bedroom studio in Kent.
Check them out on our Unsigned page where they have two tracks ready to be listened to http://brand.bensherman.com/unsigned/ or at any of these sites --->
When the MAY68's remix to 'They May Talk'- Driver Drive Faster graced the Ben Sherman Office, it brainwashed all of us into the inability to stop foot tapping and head bopping; and it created fans in many of us. We even chose it as our soundtrack to our recently released 'Ben Sherman Gets Nicked in New York' video! So we were excited to hear that MAY68 has just released another single.
MAY68, a Mancurian band who formed in early 2009 with their debut single 'My Ways', has now released their new single 'The Prisoner'- which is out today. The track serves up an eccentric mix of New York disco scene sounds, post-punk, Chicago House, mixed in with some classic pop.
These are definitely ones to watch this next year...
On the 11th October, the world's most prestigious tailoring location, Savile Row, will close to traffic for the day so Exmoor Horn and Bowmont sheep can graze on specially laid turf... No this is not a crazy dream but infact it is 'Savile Row Field Day'- highlighting The Campaign for Wool, which is supported by it's Patron His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales.
Savile Row Field Day aims to increase the demand for wool, which has been declining recently in spite of its recognised natural qualities and characteristics and is the start of a project that will run for the week after 11th October.
Make sure you visit our Ben Sherman Store on Savile Row (Number 39) and see what we are getting up to for this project!
Back In July, we gave our Ben Sherman fans the chance to win a weekend trip away to the Big Apple, by signing up for our fountain of all Sherman knowledge newsletter, INBOX.
With the chance to receive up to date information about our brand, and the added incentive of a trip to New York- we were obviously flooded with names. However, the lucky winner was Toby Oliver.
Toby wrote us a little blog about his time in New York, courtesy of Ben Sherman:
I was thrilled when I found out I had won a break to New York. I jetted off to the Big Apple last Friday with my friend, Karim. The hotel we stayed in, The Strand, was located in the Garment district in Midtown Manhattan, right near the Empire State Building. It had an amazing rooftop bar - in the evening you can go up and have a drink with the famous skyscraper looming right over you. After settling in, we went to explore some of the surrounding area including a walk through Central Park and dinner at a diner.
Saturday was very hot and sunny – we decided to take the subway to downtown, the financial district. Walking past Ground Zero we saw the progress they’re making on the Freedom Tower, the replacement for the Twin Towers. We went through Wall Street and past the Stock Exchange, and paid a visit to Trinity Church – an English-style church located in the heart of Downtown – it was once the tallest building in Manhattan, but now dwarfed by vast skyscrapers. We then walked through Mulberry Street in Little Italy, near the Lower East Side, where many immigrants in the early 20th Century settled on arriving in the USA, and happened to catch an Italian-American parade. After that we checked out the shops on Broadway.
On Sunday we visited Times Square and Macy’s - the famous department store including the Ben Sherman section. We then climbed to the top of the Empire State building and saw spectacular panoramic views of New York from every direction, from Brooklyn and Queens in the East to New Jersey in the West. After relaxing in Bryant park for a while we caught the plane back to the UK from Newark Airport. Thanks to Ben Sherman for a fantastic weekend!
To make sure you are in with a chance of winning one of our fab prizes, make sure you have joined our Ben Sherman Facebook Page and signed up to our Newsletter INBOX for our latest competitions and Global brand news.
