18.04.15 Fire
reissues for Record Store Day 2015
The biggest reissue of Pulp's music on vinyl since 1996 took place
today with Fire Records raiding the back-catalogue for Record Store
Day. Six releases were pressed in limited quantities of 1,000 each.
The three albums, It (white vinyl), Freaks (red vinyl) and
Separations (green vinyl) were essentially the same as Fire's 2012
reissues. Unless you've a penchant for coloured vinyl you're better
off tracking down the 2012 reissues since they were all pressed on
heavyweight vinyl.Perhaps most surprising of all, Fire also decided to reissue Little Girl, Dogs Are Everywhere and They Suffocate At Night on 12". All three are pressed on coloured vinyl and have slightly different artwork to the mid-80's originals. As is the way with Record Store Day, all six records are now available to buy on eBay at even more inflated prices.
07.01.14 The Big Melt
The Big Melt gets its first cinema screening tomorrow night at the
Curzon cinema in Chelsea. It comes ahead of a BBC4 broadcast on 26
January and a DVD release on 17 March. The documentary was jointly
directed by Pulp collaborator Martin Wallace and Jarvis Cocker with
Jarvis also providing the soundtrack. Cocker and Wallace also
appeared on BBC Radio 4's Front Row last week which is available here.
Here's what the promotional blurb says:
A special commission as part of the 100 years of Stainless Steel celebrations, The Big Melt is a feature length elegy to the men and women who toiled in Sheffield's steelworks and a hymn to Britain's proud industrial past. Working with Sheffield's own musical hero Jarvis Cocker, acclaimed director Martin Wallace has woven an exquisite tapestry of steel industry-related archival footage drawn from the BFI National Archive. Jarvis also provides the film's stirring musical accompaniment, collaborating with a raft of Sheffield's finest musicians, including a string quartet, a brass band, members of Pulp, Richard Hawley, The Forgemasters and a youth choir. Performed live at Sheffield's celebrated Crucible Theatre on 12 June at Doc/Fest 2013. The DVD includes the full archive-based film, plus a recording of the live event.
26.01.13 After You gets official release
Pulp's re-recording of After You gets an official release this
Monday and will be available to buy as a download through iTunes,
Amazon and other sites. The track was originally given away to fans
who'd attended Pulp's show at Sheffield Arena. The song gained a
favourable reaction from critics and was playlisted by BBC 6 Music
during January.Pulp are expected to perform After You when they appear on the Jonathan Ross Show which will be recorded on Wednesday evening (30 January). The show will be broadcast on ITV1 on Saturday 2 February.
05.04.12 Jarvis interview in Shortlist Magazine
Jarvis features on the cover of today's Shortlist
Magazine and hints in the interview that there may be
some new Pulp songs on their way. Jarvis was asked if there are any
new Pulp songs on the horizon: "It took us long enough to relearn
the old songs, so we'll have to see about that. But I've got ideas.
I keep my little notebook, I've always got that with me [fishes a
small notepad titled 'Stuff + Nonsense' from his jacket].
Hopefully there's more stuff than nonsense in there." The interview
was to promote Jarvis' new Radio 4 series Wireless
Nights the first episode of which airs tonight at 11pm.Meanwhile, and in advance of Pulp's opening shows in the US, it's rumoured that Jarvis will resurrect his alter ego Darren Spooner for a Relaxed Muscle collaboration with the Michael Clark Company at New York's Whitney Museum (April 5-8). It'll have to be seen to be believed!
09.10.11 Last Pulp Concerts Due in 2012
Jarvis appeared at the Cheltenham Literature Festival last night to
promote his new lyric book Mother, Brother, Lover. As part
of an hour long interview, Jarvis was asked about the 2011 reunion
and Pulp's future plans, and here's what he had to say: "We'd
been asked to do it loads of times and it just seemed like the
right time to do it. We knew it wasn't forever. Some of it was
intimations of mortality and thinking 'well, in a few years' time
I just won't be able to prance about on stage'. I'm pretty sure
that it won't turn into a heritage act. We were very gratified
with the response and it couldn't have been a better response. But
I think what made it special was knowing that it wasn't going to
be there forever. We may do a couple of shows in the spring and
then hopefully we can bow out graciously."
After the event Jarvis signed copies of his book in the Waterstones marquee where hundreds of fans patiently queued to meet him. Jarvis' book, which is due to be released on 20 October, starts off with a short essay on lyric writing and is followed by the lyrics for 68 Pulp and non-Pulp songs. The final part of the book contains a fascinating section of background notes relating to each of the songs. The publishers, Faber And Faber, have promised us a signed copy of the book so check back later in the week for a competition to win it. [Update: See the homepage for details]
Earlier this week Jarvis delivered a presentation to school children at his old high school on Stradbroke Road, Sheffield. The Cheltenham event is followed by an appearance at the Manchester Weekender (Manchester Town Hall) on 16 October.
24.09.11
Everything Must Go
Furniture from Pulp's rehearsal rooms is up for sale on eBay. The
furniture, which is a mixture of vintage 20th century items, was
sourced for the band by Sheffield firm Bullet and adorned
Pulp's rehearsal rooms from February to June this year. According to
Bullet, "[we] were asked by Pulp to design and kit out their
studio in Sheffield earlier this year, with a clear brief from all
the band members as to what they needed in their space, as they were
to spend five months in this building and wanted something very
Pulp."Photos from their rehearsal rooms show the vintage furniture, a number of Pulp's instruments and a couple of song lists showing which songs the band had been rehearsing for this summer's tour. You can see Bullet's YouTube videos of the rehearsal rooms here and here and bid on the furniture here.
02.06.11
Pulp Reissues
A mere nine years after their last It is expected to contain five bonus tracks (Looking For Life, My Lighthouse (Single Remix), Please Don't Worry, Blue Girls (Alternate Mix) and Sink Or Swim). Freaks and Separations are expected to have bonus tracks that have already been released: Freaks will include all tracks from the Little Girl (With Blue Eyes) and Dogs Are Everywhere EPs while Separations will include b-sides from the Countdown and My Legendary Girlfriend singles. More info here.
More importantly, the new film by Eve Woods The Beat Is The Law - Fanfare For The Common People is released this week and makes for compulsory viewing as it tells the story of Pulp's rise to fame. Expect lots of great archive footage and interviews with the band.
01.01.11
Pulp's New Year Message
Dear Friends,
Thankyou very much for your interest in the concerts that Pulp will be presenting in 2011. We will not let you down. The fact that so many of you have shown interest is an inspiration - we knew it was a big part of OUR lives, it's exciting to know it's a big part of YOUR lives too. We have played the songs and the songs sound good. We can have fun together, get to know each other again. Christ, it's been too long - we'd almost forgotten what you look like. Don't ever let that happen again. Cross your heart?
And so it grows... each day that passes brings us closer together. It's exciting isn't it? So much to say, so much to share. Is that a new haircut? You know what? Let's cut to the chase - at the risk of being corny: let's all meet up in the Year Two Thousand - & eleven. Promise? We do if you do.
And we never break a promise. It's official: it's a date.
Pucker up, xxxxxxxx.
17.11.10
NME Cover Stars
For the first time since 2001 Pulp have made the cover of the NME,
which is published today. Inside is a five-page feature which is
well worth checking out. Pulp are also confirmed as Saturday night
main-stage headliners at next year's Isle
Of Wight festival on 11 June. As if that wasn't enough, Jarvis
will also be narrating a live production of Peter And The Wolf at London's
Southbank Centre on 29 and 30 December.
08.11.10
They're Back!
Press Release: Pulp have decided to get together and play some
concerts next summer. The shows will involve all the original
members of the band (Nick Banks, Jarvis Cocker, Candida Doyle, Steve
Mackey, Russell Senior & Mark Webber) & they will be playing
songs from all periods of their career. (Yes, that means they'll be
playing your favourites).
The first shows to be announced are headline slots at the Wireless Festival in London's Hyde Park on Sunday 3rd July 2011 and the Primavera Sound Festival in Barcelona, Spain on Friday 27th May 2011.
This will be the first time all the original Pulp members have been on stage together since 24th August 1996.
If you wish to know any more then please visit www.pulppeople.com where you will be subjected to a barrage of cryptic questions. In the meantime, ask yourself this: "Do You Remember The First Time?" Thank you for your attention.
01.07.09 Question Time
Jarvis will be a panellist on tomorrow night's Question Time which is being filmed in Cambridge. He'll be joining the likes of Harriet Harman, Iain Duncan Smith and Charles Kennedy. The show will be broadcast on BBC2 at 11pm.27.06.09 Glastonbury Festival
BBC 6Music are playing Pulp's set from the 1995 Glastonbury Festival tonight at midnight. Tune in an hour earlier and they'll also be playing highlights from Jarvis' set at this year's festival.11.05.09 Jarvis to Perform In-store Gig at Rough Trade
Jarvis will be performing an in-store gig at the Rough Trade East record shop in London this Saturday at 7pm. Entry to the event is by wristband only, and these'll be handed out to people buying his new LP which'll be on sale at the shop two days before its official release. Rough Trade are also promising that Jarvis will be helping out behind the shop's counter from 4pm onwards which means you should be able to buy your Jarvis record directly from the man himself!
05.05.09
Jarvis Roundup
At last Jarvis now has his own official website - www.jarviscocker.net
- which is offering a free download of Angela and features a great
introductory video clip of Jarvis arranging the letters of his name
(see right). Each afternoon from today until Sunday they'll be
broadcasting Jarvis' residency at the Galerie Chappe in Paris where
punters can drop by and join in the various musical activities. The
NME
report that as well as soundtracking yoga and pilates classes,
activities will include a relaxation session, musical improvisation
and various guest performances.Jarvis interviews are also hitting the news-stands this month as part of the promotion effort for his new LP. Worth checking out are the interviews for last Saturday's Herald Magazine and the June edition of Q Magazine. Bizarrely GQ have passed off their editor's 1998 interview with Jarvis as a new interview (almost word-for-word!) in their June edition. They've interspersed it with a handful of new quotes and a few leading political questions which Jarvis has since distanced himself from having been quoted selectively.
And finally, The Sun tactfully reported Jarvis and Camille's marriage split under the headline 'Jarvis' Marriage Pulped'. None of our business of course, but it does seem to have influenced a number of the lyrical themes on his new LP.
24.03.09
Jarvis' Underwear Up For Auction
Jarvis has donated a signed pair of briefs for an online
charity auction in aid of destitute asylum seekers. They're
currently fetching £133 on eBay having attracted a staggering 20
bids - and there's still another seven days before the auction
concludes! Other celebrities who've agreed to take part in the
fundraising efforts by customising pieces of underwear include Ricky
Gervais, Nick Cave, Helen Mirren and Nick Hornby. Proceeds from all
39 auctions will go towards buying food and other essentials for
those supported by the New North London Synagogue's Destitute Asylum
Seeker Drop In. [Update: the auction finished on 31 March and after
28 bids his briefs fetched £227.]
17.03.09 New Jarvis LP and Live ShowsWhile we've been fiddling with the cables at the back of acrylicafternoons.com as part of the switch to a new server, a tonne of welcome Jarvis news has emerged.A week last Thursday saw the announcement that Jarvis' new LP, Further Complications, will be released on 18 May. Produced by Steve Albini and recorded in Albini's Chicago studio in January, 15 tracks were recorded in the sessions. The full song list - though not the final running order - appears to be: Angela, Apparently, Caucasian Blues, Fuckingsong, Further Complications, Girls Like It Too, Homewrecker! Hold Still, I Found Myself Looking For God, I Never Said I Was Deep, I Told You Twice (Leftovers), Pilchard, The Night They Left Me Out Of The Home, Slush and You're In My Eyes (Discosong). Jarvis explains the inspiration behind many of these songs in a rather entertaining press release he appears to have written. May also sees the start of a UK and European tour which stops off at: Barcelona Primavera Sound Festival (29 May); Copenhagen Vega (31); Hamburg Fabrik (2 June); Luxembourg Rockhal (3); Paris Bataclan (4); Brussels Ancienne Belgique (6); Amsterdam Paradiso (7); Prior to the tour, he'll be performing an unplugged set at the John Lennon Imagine Appeal Concert on 16 April at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. With any luck, he may be tempted to play some of the Pulp songs he performed acoustically on the recent Songbook documentary on the Sky Arts channel (where he played Joyriders, Babies, Sorted, Something Changed, Shakespeare Rock and From A to I). Finally, this week also sees the release of Marianne Faithfull's new LP of cover versions, Easy Come Easy Go, produced by Hal Wilner. Jarvis and Marianne duet on a song called Somewhere from the West Side Story musical. If you don't want to buy the entire LP, you can download the single track from both iTunes and Amazon. |
 
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