You can't go see Slowdive play live anytime soon, but you can check out Rachel Goswell. The former Slowdive and Mojave 3 girly takes to the road in the US this week in support of her first solo album, "Waves are Universal". The album, released on Beggars Banquet/4AD, was co-written with Joe Light and produced by David Naughton to praise from several critics...

"Waves Are Universal proves that Goswell can carry a whole record on her own without any trouble. " - All Music Guide
"Each song is meticulously constructed, and feels like a musical soundtrack to lush, magical worlds -- from the sound effects of birds chirping on "Gather Me Up," to the strings gently floating on the sunrise-glare of "Thru the Dawn" and "Hope," a Beth Orton-esque pastoral country strum." - Billboard

And not so much praise from others...

"From an album I expected so much of, this is a frankly dire effort. She totally overdoes the 'twee' effect, tries to over-instrument her songs to divert attention from her lacklustre melodies and has obviously spent no time whatsoever on the lyrics." - BBC Collective
"Goswell deserves praise for putting together a solid album that could appeal to both fans of her previous work and others; this is no rank piece of collector bait. But having at long last stretched her compositional and performing muscles, let's hope next time she builds on the stronger songs here." - Stylus Magazine

Regardless of the mixed reviews, live performances by Ms Goswell are a rare thing on this side of the Atlantic (or actually any side)...

Man, this is becoming a rough week. One of the brightest new stars in progressive house, Adam Spears aka Starkid, was killed over the weekend in a car wreck in his native Texas. The Starkid single "Crayons" (Release Records) was one of the most well-known progressive house tracks of the past year and has been prominent on Global Underground mix discs and in live sets from the likes of Paul Oakenfold and others. Spears, a charismatic kid who posted frequently on dance music message boards and forums under the alias "Jeyjeydigga," was one of leading new producers on the scene and had his hands in several current projects. Known for pushing the boundaries with his mixes, bootleg sets can be found across the internet that showcase Spears' talent at adding artists like Dntel and Radiohead alongside more traditional club fare. A memorial site is being constructed at longlivestarkid.com. Release Records has given permission for the original version of "Crayons" to be openly shared and downloaded in Starkid's memory, so look for it posted on many dance music sites right now. A remix of "Crayons" will be released later this year on Release, with all proceeds going to his family. The saddest bit? Spears was just 18 years old.

Sad news. A posting on the band's official website confirms that THE BETA BAND are to split following an autumnal UK farewell tour. The group, critically acclaimed but commercially ignored, cites just that reason for their breakup: "Sadly, eight years of hard work and critical acclaim but little return in terms of commercial success inevitably takes its toll and a group decision was made to finally lay the band to rest."

The band are still following through with plans to release a retrospective DVD in 2005, while Beta frontman Steve Mason has already announced plans for a solo career, as well as the continuation of his King Biscuit Time side project.

The music buying public has seen quite a few re-releases and compilations as of late of the early 90s shoegazing "scene". None has been quite as puzzling as the forthcoming 2 disc compilation of Slowdive material 'Catch The Breeze' due out on Sanctuary in the UK on September 24. From some reports the band (now either gone solo or members of Mojave 3) have been actively participating in the release process, and yet other reports claim the band has absolutely no say in this? With no news from Sanctuary yet, it's hard to tell... but we can tell that with this compilation joining Best Of's from Ride, Chapterhouse, House of Love and Curve... it looks like someone's out to show the kids of today why we were staring at our shoes in the first place. We've got a preliminary tracklisting for you that you can argue it's contents over with other Slowdive fans on the Mojave 3 Msg Boards...

OZMA, the band that started off sounding a LOT like Weezer and now only sound a LITTLE like Weezer but in a fairly good way, have split. A post on the band's forum over at Ozma Online from the band's frontman, Ryen Slegr, announced their split... and it didn't sound like a particularly happy one, either. Fairly sad news, as the band were just beginning to mature musically, as evidenced on their (now final) 2003 album, "Spending Time on the Borderline." G'bye, Ozma, and best of luck to future projects.

In what has to be a historically unprecedented phenomena, Ticketmaster has dropped ticket prices and removed their service charges and 'convenience' fees. Before you get too excited, we can only see that they've done this for one show... the Curiosa Festival's date in suburban Chicago (Tinley Park to be precise). What does this mean? The Cure, Muse, Cooper Temple Clause, Interpol, The Rapture, Mogwai and more for $15. Not $21.89 with service charges, not $27.38 with 'convenience' fees but a flat $15.00. Don't believe that Ticketmaster could ever do something this cool? Check out the Lawn Ticket Special.

UPDATE: Sorry all... Ticketmaster have already taken the offer down.

Are you sick of the Jay Z mash ups? DJ Danger Mouse's Grey Album opened up the floodgates of copycats which include Jay Z remixed with Metallica and Weezer. Now there's one more to add which remixes Jay Z's Black Album with Pavement's classic Slanted and Enchanted. The Slack Album available for download now. I can't imagine any repeated listening, it's a cool novelty but nothing exceptional. It's still worth downloading.

Oh those pesky Frenchmen, AIR are headed back stateside for a few dates with Frenchwoman/Englishkids STEREOLAB. Still in support of their latest album, Talkie Walkie, Air will be playing with Stereolab for three September shows in San Diego, Santa Barbara and Los Angeles. The last date with Stereolab will ALSO be the debut of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra as members of the AIR entourage. Roger Neill (who worked with Air on 10,000 Hz) will be conducting the LA based orchestra. Dates can be found in our tour section and keep an eye out as more bands are expected to be added to the bill.

The line-up was finally revealed for the Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle, WA. The event takes place at the Seattle Center each Labor Day weekend. The good news: The Festival has Death Cab For Cutie, Lou Barlow, American Music Club, Nancy Sinatra, Pedro The Lion, Robyn Hitchcock, The Black Keys, Liz Phair, Public Enemy, The Beta Band, The Walkmen, Built To Spill, The Killers, and The Pixies. The Bad news: these bands are spread out over the course of 4 days. If only they were on one, maybe two nights... I would be inclined to make the trip up from Portland. If only.

The Mercury Music Prize shortlist nominees were announced today to limited fanfare. The members of the Excellent Mailing List have been split as to who is deserving of the UK's highest prize for 2004's best record. So what is the list this year?

Basement Jaxx - Kish Kash
Belle and Sebastian - Dear Catastrophe Waitress
Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
Jamelia - Thankyou
Keane - Hopes and Fears
Snow Patrol - Final Straw
Joss Stone - The Soul Sessions
The Streets - A Grand Don't Come For Free
Ty - Upwards
Amy Winehouse - Frank
Robert Wyatt - Cuckooland
The Zutons - Who Killed....The Zutons

Music industry insiders, artists and journalists will be voting for the final prize which will be announced September 7th. Who do you think is deserving?