Verve's return at Glastonbury

Watch the finale set here.

"Mover" free download

Can be found at www.theverve.tv for one week only.

Newsblast

• BBC article - "Love is Noise" digital download. Read article here.
• NME album tracklisting - To date, different sources have reported different tracks. "I See Houses" may be one of the previously mentioned songs going under a different name. Pitchfork has the same info.
• BBC listings - Glastonbury 2008: The Verve's headlining set should be broadcast live. The band should take the stage around 10:15 UK time. The performance will be on BBC3 or BBC Interactive TV.
• "Mover" studio version - a studio version of "Mover" will be available as a free download for all fans as of Monday for one week.

Song titles revealed

The Verve will consummate the reunion they started last year with the release of their fourth album. The record is titled 'Four,' and according to a Billboard.com report, it comes out internationally August 18 via EMI and August 19 in North America via the band's 'On Our Own' imprint with distribution from MRI/Megaforce/RED.

As if an 11-year wait for the follow-up to Urban Hymns wasn't enough, the Verve will build more anticipation for Four with a world tour of summer festivals.

Four:

01 Sit and Wonder
02 Love Is Noise
03 Rather Be
04 Judas
05 Numbness
06 I See Houses
07 Noise Epic
08 Valium Skies
09 Columbo
10 Appalachian Springs

Live Dates:

06-27 Cornwall, England - The Eden Project
06-29 Glastonbury, England - Glastonbury Festival
07-04 Werchter, Belgium - Rock Werchter Festival
07-05 Bobital, France - Bobital Festival
07-11 Balado, Scotland - T in the Park
07-16 Livorno, Italy - Italia Wave Festival
07-18 Barcelona, Spain - Summercase Festival
07-19 Madrid, Spain - Summercase Festival
08-09 Tokyo, Japan - Summer Sonic Festival
08-10 Osaka, Japan - Summer Sonic Festival
08-16 Weston Park, England - V Festival
08-17 Chelmsford, England - V Festival

Source: Pitchfork

Verve's new LP is Towering

THE VERVE are back. Ten years after their bitter split, the Wigan lads have returned with a towering, psychedelic rock album.

I’m one of the few journalists on the planet to have heard Four and can confirm that, while a bit bleak in places, it’s still a triumphant return.

The release by RICHARD ASHCROFT and the boys still has a taste of the terrace-slaying anthems of their classic ’97 release Urban Hymns.

Love Is Noise is a throbbing rock gem. It’s like THE KILLERS jamming with FLEETWOOD MAC. And Mona Lisa is the most similar to old classics like Lucky Man.

Massive guitar chords echo SLADE’s hit Cum On Feel The Noize while Rich mulls over celebrity, singing: “Fame picked a man with so much sorrow.” The eerie blues of Numbness and the STOOGES-like Noise Epic, though, point to a band not content to merely trot out an album of comfortable crowd-pleasers.

It’s out on August 18 — and I’ll give it Four out of five.

Source: The Sun

First listen

Looks like the Verve's publicists have sprung into action this week. Check tomorrow's NME for an exclusive article on the first listen of Verve's new album.

Single and Four

Love Is Noise single to be released August 4th on Parlophone in the UK (6 weeks from now).

According to Billboard:

"The Verve has christened its reunion album Four and will release it before the end of the summer.

The set is due Aug. 18 via EMI internationally and a day later in North America, where it will come out on the Verve's On Our Own imprint with distribution via MRI/Megaforce/RED."

"Love is Noise"

The full track is available to stream on Myspace right now.

www.myspace.com/thevervetv

The track is listed as a Parlophone single.

The complete 2 hour broadcast of the band on the Zane Lowe show can be heard at BBC.co.uk now for one week only. Click 'listen again' to Monday's show (it's about half an hour into the show).

New single announcement

Love is Noise, single premiere

This coming Monday (June 23rd) will see the world premiere of The Verve's new single "Love Is Noise." The track will be played by Zane Lowe on his BBC Radio One show which runs from 7 – 9pm UK Time. You can listen live via the BBC Radio One website and select 'listen live.' Check the official site for more details and some new pictures.

Verve on Radio 1 Zane Lowe show Monday night

From the website:

Hype Night makes a welcome return on Monday night with a very special exclusive from The Verve. Sigur Ros' brand new long player is our Album of the Week and Cage The Elephant make their debut at Maida Vale for this Wednesday's session. Thursday sees Zane gearing up for Glastonbury with archive live tracks from the legendary festival.

And don't forget, you can catch the Hottest Record in the World every night at 7.30pm and it's a belter this week with The Verve, The Chemical Brothers and Beck. Plus, we'll have your daily dose of The Sunsetter after 8pm...

US, UK, and all global friends can check the BBC Radio 1 website for the show.

Pictures

New Verve promotional pictures from June 2008 have been added to the official site. Looks like they're gearing up for something.

From Verve's management

Big news is on the way. There will be a mail-out over the weekend and look out for something Verve related occurring on Monday.

Also, the August dates for the album release may stand. We'll just have to wait for the weekend.

More information on the upcoming album

UK release: August 18
US release: August 19

Other details about the album are still in the air. Single to be confirmed soon. Link here.

Album potential release date, August 19

Just had word from a fellow contributor of an August 19 release date for the album. As with most news from the past week, it is unconfirmed by either record label or management. However, the news must have come from somewhere because other sources are reporting the same.

Update (June 20): The August 19 date was taken from a press release delivered by the band's management.

Footage from 1992

Interview and footage on Rapido, March 1992, promoting the debut single "All in the Mind." I have this on VHS somewhere.

The Verve and the Rock Doc, 1998

More speculation

Some unofficial news on the upcoming record. This site here has a worldwide release of the forthcoming Verve album on 30 June. Another site has the release date set sometime in September. A member of the Trinity Street Direct Team has said "We have had no word from the band's management as yet. Keep checking the official site over the next few weeks." If something comes up, I'll be sure to post it here.

Single news

Just received word that a single will precede the album. No dates to report yet. With the album release set for August, July seems like a safe bet. Rumors about a future "Love is Noise" have floated about, but whether it'll be the first single (or even one) is uncertain for now.

Positive word on the new album

Seems like someone at Big Life Management thinks the new album is brilliant. Meanwhile, the label is still organizing a release date.

Cool commercial

Here's the recent iTunes commercial featuring Coldplay. The colorful animations in the background are pretty sweet. Strangely, I'm reminded of "Love is Noise" when I see it. Its been too long since the last Verve album.

Potentially good news from the Verve recording vaults

EMI are looking to release thousands of hours of previously unreleased material by their artists. If The Verve are still associated with EMI (the Singles album was released through EMI in 2004), then this could be good news for Verve fans.

'BBC Worldwide and EMI Music have struck a deal to release the music, stored in an extensive archive of TV and radio recordings, which has been locked away for years at the BBC.'

• Source: NME

Label issues HAVE delayed the album

The band have already begun recording their fourth album and plan to release it in August. A June release was put on hold due to financial insecurities at their label EMI. Majors aren't doing that well these days.

Further commentary:

It would make sense that the tours/festivals have been planned to coincide with the album release rather than precede it. But, due to the labels money problems the earliest new material will surface in August. Given that The Verve have covered quite a large area already with their touring so far this year, the live shows will be enough to keep The Verve in people's minds until the album is released.

Soup Collective and their future Verve documentary

Have just heard word that Soup Collective have finished their Verve documentary. It is now in the band/label/management's hands. No further information is available on a release date; only that the footage and work is now complete and has been handed over.

1997 tour home video footage

Experiences on tour in with The Verve in 1997. Kudos to furrylewis1.

U.S. tour sponsored by Uncle Joe's mint balls 

  

  
A day out in Paris

  

The Verve, the truck stop, Allen Ginsberg, and the monkey

The Verve trying to get to a rehearsal in 1996

  

The Verve and the rock doc 1998

  

The Verve, Letterman and the storm in Denver

Festi'Neuch and Coke Zero

Coke Zero festival is to be rescheduled.

Setlist for Festi'Neuch in Switzerland, 30 May 2008:

1. This is music
2. Space and time
3. Sonnet
4. The Rolling people
5. The Drugs Don't Work
6. Weeping willow
7. Life's An Ocean
8. Sit And Wonder
9. Lucky Man
10. Bitter Sweet Symphony
11. Love Is Noise/new song/Si & Nick jam