After 17 years of kicking out increasingly dancy garage-punk with the Gossip, Beth Ditto will make her solo debut with Fake Sugar, set for release on June 16 via Virgin Records. “Fire,” the album’s leadoff track and first single.

Ditto – who will play sold-out shows in Berlin, Paris and London in April – enlisted Jennifer Decilveo (Andra Day, Ryn Weaver) as her primary collaborator on Fake Sugar. The producer masterfully balanced out Ditto’s punk bias with pop flare and perspective. As Ditto puts it, "She was the rollerblades to my roller skates. We'd argue all day long and I loved it."

On Fake Sugar, Ditto approaches love, loss, looking back and moving forward with all the sexiness, poignancy, power and beauty befitting such an iconoclastic artist. The album is a mash-up of driving blues, malt-shop pop, swooning rock and countrified soul.

In addition to releasing six acclaimed albums with the Gossip, Ditto has recorded with such artists as Blondie, disco legend Cerrone and drumstep DJ Netsky, collaborated with Jean Paul Gaultier on her eponymous plus-sized luxury clothing line, modeled for Marc Jacobs and appeared in Tom Ford's Oscar-nominated film, Nocturnal Animals. She’s also a newlywed, which has given her a fresh perspective on romance that informs several songs on Fake Sugar. "This is adulthood, baby," she quips. "You fought for marriage equality, now you gotta live in it."

Fake Sugar – Track Listing

Fire

In And Out

Fake Sugar

Savoire Faire

We Could Run

Oo La La

Go Baby Go

Oh My God

Love In Real Life

Do You Want Me To

Lover

Clouds

Beth Ditto Solo – Live:

05.04            Berlin @ Lido

10.04            Paris @ Flow

11.04            London @ Omeara

We know festival season has arrived when our favourite festival band drop in to our inbox. Nix Moon combine complex rhythms and genuine lyrics that merge progressive rock, jazz, reggae and folk. We first got to know them at last year’s Vantastival, where they were so good we went to see them twice and caught up with them the following day for a chat.

They’ll release three live videos, recorded at Windmill Lane Recording Studios, on May 7th, May 21st and May 28th. Formed in 2013, Jonathan Fahy and David Joyce are the founding members and core songwriters of the group with Daire Stanley, Gavin Murphy and Darragh Brannigan completing the quintet. Based in Dundalk, Nix Moon are regular performers at The Spirit Store, IMRO’s Music Venue of The Year 2016.

Since forming, Nix Moon have featured on highly esteemed festival line ups including Electric Picnic, Knockanstockan, Vantastival and many more. They are moulding and adapting authentic Irish elements and indigenous instrumentation with current, comprehensive themes while oozing energy and enthralling crowds with their melodic sound. Last October, the band won ‘Best Performers’ at the Busker Fleadh 2016.

The upcoming live video releases are;

 May 7th - ‘Autumn Night’,

May 21st - ‘When the Devil Opens the Door’,

May 28th - ‘Hua Hin’.

In the meantime, you can enjoy Nix Moon’s Live Performance on 98FM's Big Breakfast