Music Biz Headlines, April 2, 2018

By Kerry Doole

The queen of “quiet storm”: Tracey Thorn on the return of Sade

Sade mixed slick soul with social realism to create a unique sound. Now, after eight years, she’s back  –  Tracey Thorn, The New Statesman

Arcade Fire: 'People have lost the ability to even know what a joke is. It is very Orwellian'

The indie rockers rolled out their last record, Everything Now, with a satirical ad campaign. The result? Mass confusion and bad reviews. As they hit UK arenas, frontman Win Butler is defiant: ‘Let’s see if we can break through the noise’  –  Laura Barton, The Guardian

the Canadian-born, New Zealand-based singer-songwriter’s sixth album, Sassafrass! is all for the women  –  Bridie Kelly, Stuff

Here’s a 1994 commercial for Spin that features Beck, the Breeders, and…Tony Bennett

An old commercial from the Clinton administration hawked a year’s subscription to our now-deceased print magazine for the reasonable price of $14.95  –   Maggie Serota, Spin

Lorde proves she's wise beyond her years with artful ACC performance

Lorde’s current tour has been dogged by reports of slack ticket sales, but the crowd at the ACC looked pretty close to a sellout  –  Ben Rayner, Toronto Star

The legacy of Lil Peep Lives on at Sus Boy pop-up shop

As Peep’s close friends and family continue to grieve, we’re presented with the opportunity to celebrate the late rapper in a new form  –  Shirley Ju, LA Weekly

Rocker Handsome Dick Manitoba ditches signature punk look, dresses up for court appearance

The 64-year-old Lower East Side bar owner and ex-Dictators frontman is arraigned after a domestic spat  –  Marco Jacobs, NY Daily News

Kacey Musgraves on her stunning new album and how psychedelics made a 'giant impression' on her

These days, Musgraves, 29, is more dreamy than she is cheeky. Later she’ll tell me about the “giant impression” psychedelics have made on her, but the reality of her life today is pretty marvellous as it is  –  Natalie Weiner, Billboard

How grebo rivalled Britpop as the sound of the '90s

In the early 1990s, blokes with questionable haircuts, tartan suits and a ragbag of influences sold millions of records, until Britpop spoiled the ‘grebo’ party. Now, after mental strife and ‘personal differences’, the likes of the Wonder Stuff and Ned’s Atomic Dustbin are back  –  Harry Sword, The Guardian

‘I had something to say for myself’ Annie Lennox on battling self-doubt and the risk that paid off

Now, as part of her retrospective release, the singer reflects on her incredible 30-year career, documenting the hits, highs and lows  –   You

Retro rocker Jerry Leger ready for takeoff

Local musician and his band the Situation have laboured for years and now, with their cult audience going international, they’re off on their first  European tour –  Ben Rayner, Toronto Star

Superorganism is as charming as their origin story

The eight members of the strange and buzzy indie pop band were never all in the same room until after the album came out. Now they all share a house  –   Cam Lindsay, NOW