Bright Eyes and The Killers are both back with new albums. For Bright Eyes, Down In The Weeds, Where The World Once Was is their first album in nearly a decade, and one that Steven Hyden says might be a little too grandiose for its own good.
On the other hand, The Killers’ Imploding The Mirage reinvigorates the veteran band after 2017’s underwhelmingWonderful Wonderful, leaving Hyden to ask the question: “Are The Killers… kinda great again?”
These two albums are the focus in this week’s new episode of Indiecast, wherein Hyden and Ian Cohen go deep on the new material, all the while examining where it fits into the bands’ respective careers as a whole, and where both bands can go from here. In the Recommendation Corner this week are retro Saddle Creek bands Now It’s Overheard and The Good Life, as well as two new singles from Father John Misty that seem to be thematically connected… could there be a new album on the way? Only time will tell.
New episodes of Indiecast drop every Friday. Listen to Episode 4 above and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts here. Stay up to date and follow us on Instagram and Twitter.
Fortnite‘s abrupt battle with Apple and Google over payment methods erupted last week, complete with a parody of a very famous Apple commercial and a lot of legal paperwork.
It’s a fascinating dispute between companies that has sparked a legal battle, one that will have a huge impact on the future of the gaming industry and the tech world at large. But for gamers who just want to get those Victory Royales on their various consoles, the conflict is largely an inconvenient turf war that has some impact on item prices and how easy it is to play on mobile devices.
Fortnite is trying to make the most of it, however, by introducing an anti-Apple tournament in the battle royale game. Called the “Free Fortnite Cup,” the competition is slated for August 23. As Fortnite‘s blog explained it, the event is the last chance for the Fortnite community to participate in the same event together, before Apple iOS gamers are left behind by the game’s ban from the app store.
These are the final days of the entire Fortnite community’s ability to play together. Apple has blocked Fortnite from the App Store, preventing players from updating to new versions. Players on iOS devices will be left behind on Chapter 2 – Season 3 while everyone else jumps into the Chapter 2 – Season 4 launch on August 27.
Celebrate the quest for one more Victory Royale with friends across all platforms in the #FreeFortnite Cup this Sunday, August 23. Drop in for an opportunity to win more prizes than ever before including the new Tart Tycoon Outfit, gaming hardware, and exclusive apparel.
The “Tart Tycoon” is a very cheeky swipe at Apple, of course, tying in narratively with the commercial the company put out last week that portrayed the $2 trillion tech giant as the bad guy in this story of corporate infighting. Epic is encouraging fans to use the #FreeFortnite hashtag and directly linked Apple’s App Store account on Twitter. The game maker is directly telling its players to tell Apple to back down, mobilizing its considerable fanbase to their corporate clash. There is even some anti-Apple merch, like this hat that vaguely looks like a retro Apple logo but is actually a Fortnite llama.
Epic Games
Other prizes include other hardware on which to play Fortnite, which at this point is basically any tablet, computer or video game console that isn’t made by Apple. It’s another chapter in what’s becoming a very public fight between massive corporations, and Epic’s side of the tale is definitely more colorful.
It turns out Roddy Ricch isn’t just antisocial — he also hates being compared to anyone else, even when there’s a pretty good reason for it. When fans on Twitter began suggesting that another rapper had copied the cover from Roddy’s debut album, Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial, the Compton rapper stepped in to remind them that “it’s only ONE Roddy,” although he made sure to clarify that he wasn’t trying to disrespect the younger rapper, Youngboy Never Broke Again — aka NBA Youngboy.
Youngboy, who has steadily grown in popularity over the past several years despite spending much of that time either incarcerated or under investigation for a litany of violent crimes including domestic assault of his girlfriend in 2018, announced his major label debut album Top yesterday, posting the album’s cover to his social media. Almost instantly, fans picked up on the similarities between Top and Antisocial, from the desaturated hue to their similar wardrobe and disaffected facial expressions.
Twitter lit up with memes and jokes, as fans lit into Youngboy for “stealing Roddy’s flow.” Some joked that they thought the cover was for a deluxe version of Roddy’s album, making light of the trend of nearly every major label rapper releasing new music as a “deluxe version” of a released album to goose streaming stats and generate revenue without touring to rely on.
While Youngboy fans were quick to point out that Roddy was hardly the first artist to use a simple black-and-white photo for an album cover, that didn’t stop the memes from reaching Roddy’s eyes, prompting the above mentioned response. He followed up 30 minutes later to elaborate that while he “been f*cced wit dude,” he was just “tired of all this comparing sh*t.” He then deleted both tweets, perhaps looking to avoid extending the attention the situation would get — a good practice for any public figure online to get into, actually.
In the end, it probably wouldn’t be too surprising if Youngboy — who is 20 — was at least a little inspired by Roddy, who’s 21. With the accelerated cycle of stardom created by streaming and the democratization of hip-hop, more and more young stars have been counting their peers among their influences as much or more than their predecessors. It’s no great shock if a kid barely out of his teens knew more about his contemporaries and took some creative cues from them — after all, they do it musically all the time. It’s just a short walk to extend it to other aspects of their brands. Hip-hop is all about creating and following trends, so who knows: maybe we’ll see even more artists taking the plain and simple approach to their album covers in the future.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Ben Mendelsohn‘s portrayal of Talos, the leader of the shape-shifting Skrulls in Captain Marvel, quickly became a fan-favorite following the film’s release, and the character went on to make a surprising cameo in Spider-Man: Far From Home. However, in a new interview, Mendelsohn reveals that Talos almost didn’t make it out of his first MCU appearance alive.
“[Talos] was gonna die at around page 60 [in the script] originally and he survived that, so he’s done pretty well.” Mendelsohn told NME. “And if that f*cking shapeshifter rears his ugly head again, I’ll do my best to be inside it.”
Thanks to the decision to keep Talos alive, the character is now primed play a role in the future of the Marvel universe following the events of Avengers: Endgame. When we last saw Talos, he was disguised as Nick Fury for the events of Spider-Man: Far From Home while the real Fury supervised the construction of S.W.O.R.D., a defensive space station orbiting Earth that serves as Captain Marvel’s headquarters in the comics. The base was also being built by Talos’ people, the Skrulls, who will presumably factor into the plot of Captain Marvel 2.
Speaking of the eagerly anticipated sequel, Marvel recently announced that Candyman director Nia DaCosta will helm the Brie Larson pic, making DaCosta the first African-American woman to direct an MCU film. Unfortunately, details on the Captain Marvel sequel are scarce. WandaVision writer Megan McDonnell is working on the script, which is an interesting choice. The upcoming Disney+ series will feature a grown-up version of Monica Rambeau, who was a child in the first Captain Marvel film. In the comics, Monica also assumed the mantle of Captain Marvel for a brief period, so it certainly seems like there will be a significant connection between the sequel and WandaVision.
For now, Marvel will do what Marvel does by keeping everything under lock and key.
Today, The Killers made a surprising comeback with their new album, Imploding The Mirage. Before the band’s sixth album was released worldwide, though, the band offered one last preview of it on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, where they performed the album track “Blowback.”
The performance looked a lot more like traditional late-night TV appearances than most have recently, as the group packed on a very late-night-looking stage to play the anthemic rocker, although there was no audience to cheer them out to commercial. This actually wasn’t the songs television debut, though, as they premiered it on CBS This Morning back in April.
Meanwhile, the band recently addressed the sexual assault allegations made against their touring crew, for which the band launched an internal investigation. Brandon Flowers told NME of the situation, “I feel relieved that we were actually able to get to the bottom of it, actually find this woman and make sure that she was OK. The most important thing is that there was no assault. That’s just nothing but relief. From what we see backstage, the people we hire and the people in the band, we’ve never witnessed anything like that happen. If something like that did happen, we would want to know.”
Watch The Killers perform “Blowback” on Colbert above, and read our review of Imploding The Miragehere.
Imploding The Mirage is out now via Island. Get it here.
Soul-searching moral dilemmas asides, Tenet is one of the year’s most anticipated movies. But does Christopher Nolan’s time-bending thriller, starring John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, Elizabeth Debicki, and a mustache-less Kenneth Branagh, justify the hype? Well, the reviews are out, and the answer is: mostly?
Tenet is currently sporting an 87 percent “Fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes, which is in line with Nolan’s other films, including The Dark Knight (94 percent), Memento (93 percent), and Dunkirk (92 percent). In case you’re worried about the reviews spoiling the plot, you shouldn’t be, because seemingly no one can make sense of it.
“For once, spoiler sensitivity might be the reviewer’s luckiest break, absolving me of even attempting an explanation of a plot so contorted it’s best not to worry about it. Even the scientist played by Clémence Poésy, here exclusively to deliver exposition, eventually cops out. ‘Don’t try to understand it, feel it’ is the best advice anyone offers,” Jessica Kiang writes for the New York Times, while the Hollywood Reporter‘s Leslie Felperin notes, “If it seems like this review is shying away from describing the plot, that’s not just out of concern to avoid spoilers. I watched the movie twice for this review, and still feel very confused about what is supposed to be going on and why.” Here’s more:
Yet if the characters incur no jetlag, we soon do, a bamboozling consequence of how Nolan’s screenplay withholds even basic information from us. Who are these people? How do they get from here to there so quickly? Why is Washington’s protagonist called The Protagonist? (Seriously.)
Besides, there is one solid reason why Tenet could make a profit: Even if not many people pay to see it, some of those people will pay to see it again and again and again in the hope that, eventually, they will be able to work out what on earth is going on.
There’s something grating about a film which insists on detailing its pseudo-science while also conceding you probably won’t have followed a thing. We’re clobbered with plot then comforted with tea-towel homilies about how what’s happened has happened.
You get the idea… or maybe you don’t [Inception noise].
Tenet opens in the United Kingdom on August 26 and the United States on September 3.
Check out the rest of the best new rap music this week below.
Beat Boy — “Salty” Feat. Fatboy SSE & Rob Vicious
LA producer Beat Boy dropped a video for his “Salty” single, which features Fatboy SSE and Rob Vicious trading bars over a soaring synth composition.
Brasstracks — “Golden Ticket” Feat. Masego & Common
Earlier this week, Brasstracks released the title track from their Golden Ticket album (which is out today). The feel-good single features Common and Masego having fun over a lush assortment of horns.
Flee Lord & 38 Spesh — “The Lord & The God” Feat. Fred The Godson
Queens rapper Flee Lord paid homage to Fred The Godson by releasing their “The Lord & The God” collaboration out ahead of Flee and Spesh’s Loyalty & Trust 2 project. Fred’s verse is true to his legacy, as his slick confidence shines over the neck-snapping instrumental.
JackBoy — “Married To My Enemies” Feat. Tee Grizzley
This week JackBoy and Tee Grizzley linked up for “Married To My Enemies,” a track where their heavy menace rests atop a lithe bed of pianos and fluttering hi-hats.
Jay Park & H1ghr Music — “How We Rock”
It’s a bar fest on H1ghr Music’s “How We Rock,” which features seven of the label’s MCs vying for lyrical supremacy over an uproarious, 808-based production. The single is from H1ghr Music’s upcoming The New Chapter album, the latest exploit for Korean-American star Jay Park.
Lil Reese — “They Don’t F*ck With You” Feat. Kevin Gates
Lil Reese went to the vault and released “They Don’t F*ck With You,” a smooth collaboration with Kevin Gates that shows the two talking big over a beguiling instrumental.
The Lox — “Bout Sh*t” Feat. DMX
It’s a Yonkers thing on The Ruff Ryders’ “Bout Shit,” where The Lox and DMX unleash bars over a mesmerizing vocal sample and a thick snare.
Namir Blade — “The Head”
Namir Blade released his Mello Music Group debut single this week, and “The Head” is a grand opening. The lead single from his upcoming Aphelion’s Traveling Circus is a 3-part sonic adventure that displays the range of the multi-instrumentalist’s gifts.
Pink Siifu & Fly Anakin – “Dollar Dr. Dream”
Pink Siifu and Fly Anakin (of Virginia’s Mutant Academy) display seamless chemistry on “Dollar Dr. Dream,” where they trade urgent verses over an Animoss piano loop ripe for their reflection.
Rock Abruham — “Heel”
Rock Abruham is set to release his first project in two years. The introduction to From The Mud is “Heel” with Quelle Chris, where he proclaims, “The closest to mainstream is when I hit the urinal.”
Rich Brian — “Don’t Care”
Rich Brian’s 1999 project is set to release next Tuesday. He delivered another single (and video) this week with “Don’t Care,” a track showcasing his burgeoning mastery of bars and melody as he does internal excavation.
RZA — “Fighting For Equality” Feat. Ghostface Killah
Wu-Tang Clan comrades RZA and Ghostface connected on “Fighting For Equality,” from the soundtrack to RZA’s upcoming Cut Throat City film. RZA notes, “I knew from my history, that God is no mystery,” while Ghost is “Liam Neeson swan-divin’ off of big boats.”
Stockz — “Manhattan”
On Stockz’s “Manhattan,” he explores all the ways he “paid the rent,” while Lute reminds posers “you ain’t bout that sh*t that you post.”
Wifisfuneral — “Ocean” Feat. Smoove L
Wifisfuneral and Smoove L get sultry on “Ocean,” where they take turns crooning about the woman on their mind over a bass beat.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
Megan Thee Stallion is recovering from her recent run-in with Tory Lanez, but that won’t stop her from putting on a show for her fans. Today, she announced her first-ever virtual concert taking place Saturday, August 29 at 6pm ET / 3pm PT/ 11pm BST. Tickets are on sale now at $15, giving purchasers a single-use code to login and watch the performance. For more information, visit Universe.com’s event page.
Megan’s had what have been the most eventful year in hip-hop after 2019 saw her go from viral sensation to XXL Freshman to bonafide star. Starting the year off with a label dispute that caused the delay of her Suga EP, she landed what looked like the viral hit of the summer when Suga standout “Savage” became a TikTok sensation. “Savage” then became Megan’s first No. 1 hit when she was joined by Beyonce for the song’s remix, bringing OnlyFans into the mainstream along with it.
Unfortunately, she had to have surgery on both feet after being shot after a party. She later confirmed the culprit was Tory Lanez after a month of rumors, speculation, and tasteless memes. Then, she hit No. 1 again — and basically broke the internet — with her appearance on Cardi B’s new single “WAP,” which has become one of the most popular singles of all time. If there’s anything we’ve learned about Meg this year, she certainly knows how to swing that pendulum back in her favor when the chips are down, and her virtual concert will be just one more way for her to make sure she remains in control of her own narrative.
Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Groups
The Lakers-Blazers series has given us some incredible moments so far, but one of the best came midway through the fourth quarter of Game 1. Portland found itself down by three, and as he is wont to do, Damian Lillard came around a screen and calmly knocked down an impossibly deep triple to tie the game.
It was one of several 30-foot-plus bombs Lillard drained on the night, cementing himself as one of the league’s most unconscious long-range bombers. But arguably the best moment came in the aftermath, as Lillard was making his way back down the court on defense.
With the DJ playing Too Short’s “Blow the Whistle,” Dame couldn’t help himself and broke into a dance to celebrate the moment and acknowledge his Bay Area rap godfather.
It was a moment you might have expected during a home game, under normal circumstances. Of course, there’s no such thing as normal in Orlando, and partly as a response to this, bubble DJs now say they will be more cognizant about not playing favorable tracks for players who are ostensibly on “road” games. Note that the Lakers held the No. 1 seed in the West and would’ve played their first two games at home at Staples Center.
The DJ contributes to the game-day experience by creating an atmosphere intended to hype up the “home” team.
Obviously, these DJs have to sometimes perform against the teams by which they’re employed. In a Trail Blazers “home” game, tracks by Dame D.O.L.L.A. are in heavy rotation.
DJ M.I.L. worked Tuesday’s Lakers-Blazers game and happened to have “Blow the Whistle” on his playlist. Moving forward, sources said, emphasis will be placed on going through playlists to make sure certain tracks aren’t iconic to the “visiting” team or to opposing star players who are supposed to be on the “road.”
The atmosphere inside the arena is already heavily manufactured, with fake crowd noises throughout the game and virtual fans appearing on large television screens in the background. So far, though, they’ve done an admirable job of creating the illusion of a regular basketball game, and if that illusion can be extended to the idea of road-versus-home games, then sure, why not?
Throughout the 2020 election season, you’ve probably heard just about every insult and insinuation thrown Joe Biden’s way when it comes to the former vice president’s speaking style. Everything from implications that he’s “lost a step” to open and unfounded claims that he is suffering from dementia. The truth is, Joe Biden has always struggled with public speaking and for very good reason: He was born was a severe stutter that he spent years working on.
Putting politics aside, it’s an amazing trajectory that someone who struggled to form basic words and sentences as a child is now giving a 20-minute acceptance speech as the presidential nominee for a major political party. And all while, countless armchair quarterbacks analyze every imperfect syllable or offbeat cadence as evidence of “decline.”
Honestly, if you haven’t seen this, it was easily the most powerful moment during the convention and it had nothing to do with the coronavirus, taxes, immigration or anything remotely political. It was the measurement of a man and his profound impact on a young stranger.
“We stutter,” Harrington says simply near the top of the 1 minute and 40-second video, creating an instant and powerful bit of connective tissue between himself and Biden. “It’s really amazing to hear that someone became vice president,” Harrington says.
The video itself is instructional for anyone unfamiliar with just how tricky a stutter can be, obviously for the person speaking, but also for their audience. As Harrington works through his short speech, he is incredibly articulate and measured, then suddenly hanging on a seemingly simple “s” for moments that can feel like an eternity.
It’s not simply the act of physically articulating but simultaneously grappling with the anxiety and stress of knowing you are being watched, analyzed and judged. And yet, Harrington powers through it with a clear sense of bravery most of us could only imagine demonstrating.
Harrington goes on to explain how Biden gave him a personal tip for how he learned to work through his stutter. “He told me about a book of poems by Yeats that he would read out loud to practice,” Harrington said, recounting how they met during a CNN town hall back in February while Biden was still competing in the Democratic primary.
During their one-on-one meeting, Biden went into further detail about his strategies for coping with his stutter, even showing him the speech he gave at the CNN town hall, which included special markings throughout the speech where Biden anticipated needing to pause or stop in order to mitigate likely challenging passages. “It has nothing to do with your intelligence quotient. It has nothing to do with your intellectual makeup,” Biden told him.
“I’m just trying to be a kid,” Brayden says near the end of the video. “And in a short amount of time, Joe Biden made me feel more confident about something that’s bothered me my whole life. Joe Biden cared. Imagine what he could do for all of us.”
Needless to say, it’s impossible to not instantly compare the anecdote to President Trump, who infamously mocked a disabled man while campaigning for president in 2016. Does anyone honestly expect to see a video like this during the Republican convention next week?
Is there anyone in this world with a story of how Trump personally helped them that doesn’t involved a business deal or a beauty pageant? It’s a stark contrast that tells us everything about today’s political debate, even if the video itself was on the surface about everything but politics.
But more than that, it’s a simple story about bravery and how one person used their position of immense power and privilege to connect with a child in a way that has clearly changed this young man’s life in a very meaningful, and positive, way. When we talk about “public service” there might not be a better example than this during the entire 2020 election.
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