In Memoriam: Film And TV Actor "Anthony Head" Dies Aged 72

Iconic British actor Anthony Head, best known for his roles in TV shows including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Ted Lasso, Merlin and Little Britain, has died at the age of 72. Head found international fame as Rupert Giles in hit supernatural teen show Buffy in the late 1990s.

 

He went on to have a recurring role in sketch show Little Britain as the prime minister, he played king Uther Pendragon in the BBC's Merlin, and appeared as former football club owner Rupert Mannion in Ted Lasso. "He passed away peacefully of complications due to pneumonia, surrounded by his family," his daughters Emily and Daisy said.

His daughters' statement said "it is with heavy hearts that we announce the death of our extraordinary father".

"It has been, and forever will be, an honour and a privilege to be his daughters, and to have witnessed firsthand the impact both he and his work have had on so many."

They also said they knew "how dearly he will be missed by friends, colleagues and fans of the show he was in", adding that he "loved his job very much" and "always considered himself incredibly lucky".

His family acknowledged that "his legacy will live on" and said they considered themselves "lucky" to have watched him doing what he loved throughout his career.

Head's other credits included playing Geoffrey Howe in The Iron Lady and appearing in Doctor Who, Persuasion, The Inbetweeners and Manchild.

He also starred in Ted Lasso from 2020 as former Richmond FC owner Rupert Mannion, the ex-husband of Hannah Waddingham's character Rebecca Welton. Brett Goldstein, their co-star and a writer on the show, said: "Anthony Head was a brilliant actor who played the worst person in the world, which was an incredible skill because he was the best person."

Head first found fame in the UK in the 1980s as the face of Nescafe coffee adverts on TV. He was part of the Gold Blend couple alongside Sharon Maughan, with their coffee-themed romance ads becoming popular between 1987 and 1993. 

Head starred in numerous popular British shows during his career, also including Motherland, Silent Witness and Doctor Who. His last acting credits included Bridgerton in 2022, in which he starred in one episode in series two. He joined the cast of BBC Radio 4's long-running drama The Archers in 2018, playing Robin Fairbrother. The actor also enjoyed a long stage career, performing in several iterations of The Rocky Horror Show and musicals such as Godspell and Chess.

Born in Camden, London, in 1954, Head's mother was actress Helen Shingler, best known for BBC TV series Maigret, and his father Seafield Head, a documentary maker. He trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA).

Head lost his long-term partner Sarah Fisher, who was an animal welfare campaigner, in December 2025 at the age of 61. His daughters Emily, 37 and Daisy, 35, both work as actors - with Emily best known for playing Carli D'Amato in The Inbetweeners. Daisy has appeared in TV shows including Harlots and Shadow and Bone. His brother Murray is also an actor, who appeared in the Oscar-nominated 1971 film Sunday Bloody Sunday and the musical Chess.

New Music: Give It A Try

           

The Ocean Blue has just shares a new concert video of  "Give It A Try" from The band's album "Ultramarine" directed by Zeke Anders. Filmed Summer 2025 on the rooftop of the Hewing Hotel in Minneapolis, MN.

In Memoriam: The Canadian Disco Dance Legend "Denyse LePage" Dies At 75

 

Denyse LePage, the Canadian singer, songwriter and disco performer best known as one-half of the influential dance duo Lime, died May 20 after suffering a stroke. She was 75.

Family members, fans and music industry figures confirmed her death in online tributes this week. Messages posted on social media described her passing as sudden and noted that she died shortly before a planned birthday celebration.

 

LePage helped define the Hi-NRG and post-disco sound of the early 80s through her work with Lime, the iconic Montreal-based group she formed alongside then-husband Denis LePage. Together, the pair produced a string of club hits that became staples in dance venues across North America and Europe.

Born in Canada, LePage built her music career during the rise of disco and electronic dance music. Before forming Lime, she and Denis LePage collaborated on several musical projects in Montreal’s vibrant club scene. Their work drew inspiration from European electronic acts and producers such as Giorgio Moroder while developing a distinctly Canadian dance sound. 

 

Then it came Lime to rose to international prominence in 1981 with the hit single "Your Love," peaked No. 1 on the Billboard Dance chart and earned gold-record status in the United States. The duo keep releasing successful dance-floor favorites such as "Babe, We're Gonna Love Tonight," "Unexpected Lovers," and "Angel Eyes."  Critics and DJs praised the duo for combining pulsing synthesizers with LePage's commanding vocals.

 

Fans remained devoted to the duo's energetic sound, and modern DJs frequently sampled or remixed Lime tracks for contemporary dance audiences. Music historians often credited the group with helping shape the development of electronic dance music and Hi-NRG production.

 

LePage's death comes less than three years after the death of Denis LePage, who died of cancer in 2023 at age 74. The pair remained closely linked in the public imagination because of their decades-long musical partnership and influence on disco culture.

New Music: Secret Dreams Of Thieves

           

The Liverpool-based band Ladytron are back again to release their new single track "Secret Dreams Of Thieves" taken from the band's new album, it's a tune soaked into 80's synth new wave, the video has been Directed by Daniel Hunt. 

New Music: No Fear

            

The Danish outfit Iceage has released their new album, For Love of Grace & the Hereafter. And yet, the Danish band's return to basics isn't necessarily a return to their basics instrumentation and mixes certainly depart from the complex arrangements and higher production values of recent work. Also, the band shares "No Fear" that opens with an engaging juxtaposition between a Young Marble Giants-esque bass line and clean guitar runs that trendily cross roadhouse rock and studio country. The video has been directed & shot by Mishael Oladipo Fapohunda.

 

New Music: Dark Eyed Junco

           

Kristin Hersh has announced new solo album Sugar on Blackstone  due out August 18 via Fire Records. She produced it herself and made it with regular collaborators Rob Ahlers on drums and cellist Pete Harvey. The album draws on themes of memory, home and displacement, with Hersh revisiting the home and neighborhood of her adolescence. The first single from the album is "Dark Eyed Junco," a typically eerie Hersh number.

New Music: Liars

           

The legendary Manchester post-punk act, The Durutti Column are back and have announced Renascent, their first new studio album in 16 years. The new record, led once again by the unmistakable guitar work of Vini Reilly, is due this summer via London Records, with Bandcamp currently listing the digital release for July 10 and physical editions shipping around July 31. The album follows 2010’s A Paean to Wilson and arrives after the recent expanded reissue campaign surrounding the band’s Factory Records-era catalog. Alongside Reilly, Renascent features longtime Durutti Column percussionist Bruce Mitchell and producer/multi-instrumentalist Keir Stewart. To mark the announcement, The Durutti Column have shared the first single, “Liars,” a graceful return set to a low, downtempo beat with a faint trip-hop sway and a touch of dream-pop atmosphere. Reilly’s smoky, close-miked vocals are counterbalanced by feminine sighs and warm electronic washes, but the center remains that guitar: clean, fluid, and instantly recognizable, with elaborate yet controlled melodic phrases that breathe like poetry.

News: The Durutti Column Announces First Studio Album Since 2010

The Durruti Column will release a new studio album, Renascent – their first in 16 years – in July. The initial single from the album, "Liars", is out now.

As with 2010's A Paean To Wilson, Vini Reilly is backed by Bruce Mitchell (drums/percussion) and Keir Stewart (producer/multi-instrumentalist). The album took shape over several years, with sessions often taking place in Reilly's own kitchen. This time around, they’re joined by Manchester-based singer-songwriter Caoilfhionn Rose, who sings on "Agonistes" and plays piano on "Sargasso Sea". Long-standing fans of Reilly will be intrigued by "For Friends Everywhere", which rearranges ‘For Belgian Friends' (from 1980’s A Factory Quartet) for an orchestral octet. 

Every single piece of music writes itself,  Reilly comments in the album's press release. "From the moment we're born we're never ever instigative, only ever reactive. It's like Newton's law of motion, if you’re not pushing against anything, you lose momentum."

Renascent also looks to Reilly's roots, with artwork from Factory Records designers Mark Holt and Hamish Muir of 8vo. Meanwhile, the album will carry a ‘Factory Too’ catalogue number. The album will be available on CD (with bonus track "All They See is Fire"), three vinyl variations (yellow vinyl; bottle green vinyl with alternate artwork and booklet; and Rough Trade exclusive split purple / green vinyl with flexi-disc featuring ‘All They See Is Fire’, limited to 500 copies. There's also a white cassette. 

Renascent is out 31 July 2026 via London Records.

Track List:  

Echoes In The Memory

Your Shadow At Morning

Time Present And Time Past

Agonistes

Liars

Vapour In A Matchbox

Your Shadow At Evening

Sargasso Sea

Scammer

For Friends Everywhere

All They See Is Fire (CD / digital bonus track)

Rocktrospectiva: The Indie Classic "EVOL" Turns 40

Released on May 1986 "EVOL" was the 3rd., studio álbum by the US alternative rock band Sonic Youth, the album was Sonic Youth’s first album on SST Records, and also their first to feature drummer Steve Shelley, who would remain a member of the band until their dissolution in 2011. The album spawned the single "Starpower."

By this point, the band had developed a cult following in the underground US music scene, but their style had begun to evolve from their earliest recordings. In retrospective reviews, critics cite EVOL as marking Sonic Youth’s transition from their no wave roots toward a more pop-influenced sensibility, with Shelley's drumming style a key aspect of this change.

Sonic Youth was coming off of a string of underground hits, becoming a popular underground live act as well as earning critical acclaim. In June 1985, during the Bad Moon Rising tour, Bert left the band and was replaced by Shelley. The new lineup quickly began working on new material for their third album.

The band signed to SST as, by 1986, label founder Greg Ginn was anxious for the label to move away from its American hardcore roots. Sonic Youth took a break from the tour and finished the writing for EVOL. In March 1986, the band recorded the album at BC Studio with Martin Bisi. EVOL was the second time that the band had worked with New York singer and performance artist Lydia Lunch. Lunch had shared vocals on Bad Moon Rising's "Death Valley '69", and on this record, she co-wrote the song "Marilyn Moore".

Mike Watt played bass guitar on the tracks "In the Kingdom #19" and the band's cover of "Bubblegum". The band encouraged him to play on the former track shortly after Watt's Minutemen bandmate D. Boon died in a car crash. Watt had entered a severe depression following Boon's death and was considering leaving music; he credited the time he spent with the members of Sonic Youth during the recording of EVOL as a major factor in his decision to resume his music career. Watt's next band, Firehose, would support Sonic Youth on their Flaming Telepaths tour.  

During this time, the band began the Ciccone Youth side project, which featured all members of Sonic Youth and Watt. They released a single consisting of three tracks: "Into the Groove(y)" (a cover of Madonna's "Into the Groove") and the short "Tuff Titty Rap" on the A-side (both performed by the Sonic Youth members), and "Burnin' Up" (performed by Watt and Ginn) on the B-side. The project later resulted in 1988's The Whitey Album.

On the vinyl version of the album, the time length for "Expressway to Yr. Skull" was indicated by the infinity symbol (∞); the final moment of the song featured a locked groove. The CD and cassette versions added a cover of Kim Fowley's "Bubblegum" as a bonus track. According to Watt, he and Shelley played the basic rhythm track over Fowley's recording, which was afterwards removed when the other members added their parts.

The album cover features a picture of model/actress Lung Leg in a still taken from the Richard Kern film Submit to Me. Leg had previously appeared in the "Death Valley '69" music video (directed by Kern and Judith Barry). The back cover shows a black-and-white picture of the band in a heart-shaped frame. The album's 10 songs are listed in a different order than the actual track listing. The members' names are listed on the back cover as well, although no instruments are assigned for them. It reads "guitars, vocals, drums", with "bass" hidden beneath the photograph of the band. 

The insert features the lyrics to the songs and the A-side depicts Thurston Moore, with eyes drawn on his hands, holding them up to his face. This photograph was later used for the cover of the "Starpower" single. To the left of this photograph is a panel from the Marvel comic book The New Mutants (found on the second page of issue #14, published April 1984). The other side contains pictures from horror films Friday the 13th Part 2 and Children of the Corn, with a still photo from the 1962 film House of Women featuring Constance Ford and Barbara Nichols. This image is only featured on the initial SST vinyl pressing and vinyl reissues after 2010, and was blacked out for all other releases.

The album has been well received by critics called it a remarkably strong effort, and sets the stage for crystallizing ideas that would soon result in what many considered the band's finest work." Like most Sonic Youth albums, EVOL is packed with so many ideas, so much rigor and obsession, it is too absurd to begin to wonder what they would have done in our current era of endless information. EVOL was described as a noise rock album and a "art punk masterwork" and it was considered as the true departure point of Sonic Youth's musical evolution – in measured increments, Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo began to bring form to the formless, tune to the tuneless, and with the help of Steve Shelley's drums, they imposed melody and composition on their trademark dissonance.

 

EVOL Track List: 

 

1. Tom Violence

2. Shadow Of A Doubt

3. Starpower

4. In The Kingdom # 19

5. Green Light

6. Death To Our Friends

7. Secret Girl

8. Marilyn Moore

9. Expressway To Yr. Skull

Rocktrospectiva: The Spiritual "Gish" Turns 35

 

Released on 28 May 1991 "Gish" was the debut studio album by the US alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins, released on May 28, 1991, by Caroline Records. The album was produced by Butch Vig and frontman Billy Corgan, with the latter describing Gish as a "very spiritual album" and "an album about spiritual ascension". The album spawned two singles "Siva" & "I Am One". 

Despite initially peaking at only number 195 on the Billboard 200 upon its release, Gish received critical acclaim, with particular praise directed at the band's distinctive psychedelic sound. It has since been ranked by multiple publications as one of the best rock albums of the 1990s, with Pitchfork deeming "without Gish, there would probably be no Nevermind as we know it."

Musically, Gish has been described as an alternative rock,  hard rock, grunge, stoner rock and art rock album. As a writer, Billy Corgan wanted to find the balance between classic rock of bands playing heavy riffs like Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, and the sensuality and grace of alternative bands like the Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and My Bloody Valentine. 

"For us, it was trying to become this balance point between what felt like dumb riff rock and then the stuff we were really attracted to coming out of the U.K. And then we put those pieces together with the Beatles somewhere in the middle". A song like "Rhinoceros" reflected that balance and what Corgan wanted to achieve: "we could be beautiful, pretty, psychedelic, and then flip the switch and be heavy and play a ripping lead." When composing the songs, Corgan was experimenting taking LSD to get a psychedelic feeling: "LSD gave me the confidence to attempt these things on kind of a weird tightrope wire act".

Gish was recorded from December 1990 to March 1991 in Butch Vig's Smart Studios in Madison, Wisconsin, with a budget of $20,000. Vig and Corgan worked together as co-producers. At the time, Vig was still a relatively unknown producer. The longer recording period and larger budget were unprecedented for Vig, who later recalled: (Corgan) wanted to make everything sound amazing and see how far he could take it; really spend time on the production and the performances. For me that was a godsend because I was used to doing records for all the indie labels and we only had budgets for three or four days. Having that luxury to spend hours on a guitar tone or tuning the drums or working on harmonies and textural things... I was over the moon to think I had found a comrade-in-arms who wanted to push me, and who really wanted me to push him.

The inclusion of a massive production style reminiscent of ELO and Queen was unusual for an independent band at the time. Whereas many albums at the time used drum sampling and processing, Gish used unprocessed drum recordings, and an exacting, unique guitar sound. Corgan also performed nearly all of the guitar and bass parts on the record, which was confirmed by Vig in a later interview.

Regarding the album's thematic content, Corgan would later say: The album is about pain and spiritual ascension. People ask if it's a political album. It's not a political album, it's a personal album. In a weird kind of way, Gish is almost like an instrumental album—it just happens to have singing on it, but the music overpowers the band in a lot of places. I was trying to say a lot of things I couldn't really say in kind of intangible, unspeakable ways, so I was capable of doing that with the music, but I don't think I was capable of doing it with words.

The album was named after silent film icon Lillian Gish. In an interview, Corgan said, "My grandmother used to tell me that one of the biggest things that ever happened was when Lillian Gish rode through town on a train, my grandmother lived in the middle of nowhere, so that was a big deal

The record was met with largely enthusiastic reviews and credited producer Butch Vig for helping the band achieve a "clearly defined" and "big, bold, punchy" sound for the album, the eclectic mix of musical style on Gish as well, complementing its "pummeling hard rock", "gentle interludes", and "psychedelic crescendos".

 

Gish Track List:  

 

1. I Am One

2. Siva

3. Rhinoceros

4. Bury Me

5. Crush

6. Suffer

7. Snail

8. Tristessa

9. Window Paine

10. Daydream