ThePensmith

Just done a little bit of further investigation. It would appear, as per his bio on his site here, that as of last year Peter has knocked music journalism on the head altogether and is now moving into therapy and coaching: https://www.peterrobinson.net/

Something tells me the dramas that happened on there regarding Taylor Swift / her team verbotening any images of her being posted on there at all last autumn that I read about have accelerated towards this set of circumstances, and that it was getting harder to run and regulate effectively. I was very briefly on the Popjustice forums during my late teens, but only briefly because it was, much like today, a bit cliquey and rife with the kind of cultural snobbery and eliteism that the blog itself was pushing back against, certainly where pop music was concerned. The actual blog itself however, back in the day, was essential daily reading for me, and Peter Robinson is a fantastic journalist and authority on pop music, in fact he remains one of my biggest inspirations with my own writing and blogs I've done. But I suspect his heart simply is no longer in keeping a website alive that, if we are all honest, passed its overall wider apex of excitement and relevance in the wider pop cultural landscape well on a decade ago. It's all too easy to forget that similar conversations were being had 20 years ago when Smash Hits magazine closed, about how it was the end of days etc, when with hindsight it was obvious that it was a shadow of what it once was. There will always be spaces championing pop music and communities that fans can share and connect on. These will look different to future generations and evolve with the times, but they will carry on.

Quite the plethora of classics on tonight's shows and the skipped ones which are on YouTube! LOVED Bran Van 3000, Texas, Supergrass, TLC and Travis, also Groove Armada "At The River". Like most of the songs to come between now and the end of 1999, many of them were on my first Now (Now 44) so I feel nothing but fondness for them and that time of music. My favourite year of music by far. Having softened on Westlife since they returned in 2019 (I was very anti them to begin with, largely by dint of the fact they always got number ones on quiet release weeks), "If I Let You Go" is actually one of their better singles for me I'd say. Good as well that Geri got her first solo number one with "Mi Chico Latino" after being denied it with "Look At Me". I know so much gets said about her these days but on the Schizophonic era at least she was huge, and deservedly so.

Five's reaction (but mainly J and Scott's) to Ricky Martin beating them to number one with "If Ya Gettin' Down" at the end of the second episode tonight was funny 🤣 I do remember them being so salty about that though - and rightly so in a sense as it had been midweek number one all week. I mean they didn't have much longer to wait as it turned out and another #2 was still very respectable. Ditto Steps the week before with "Love's Got A Hold On My Heart".

Sadly this was always going to get to this stage. The fact the only marker of their 30th anniversary is through £5 coins that aren't actual tender says it all. Mel's obviously accepting what is and moving on. Probably time for everyone else to do the same and just live with the memories of what was.

I think everyone on that second week was just staying well clear of Ricky Martin, it was obvious that it was going to be massive on its first week certainly so there was little point in any major acts going the same week as him. As for Gary Barlow... there was definitely expectation for him to continue where he'd left off on his "Open Road" era (two number ones, number one album), but obviously Robbie being so hugely successful / laying into him every five seconds and the press subsequently doing open season on him made that ten times harder. Even watching that performance of "Stronger" it's obvious from his own body language that he'd accepted defeat before it even came. I've never heard Twelve Months Eleven Days beyond the two singles that came from it (and also "Lie To Me" that was due to come out beginning of December and got cancelled before he was dropped) but from what I gather it was a product of by committee and compromise that Gary himself had little say in.

Got the first O2 date on presale this morning. A second one has been added on 3rd October and a second date in Belfast in November!

Given today's news there's a very realistic possibility we're about to have pretty much all of the August episodes skipped over...

Because, much like Jesus, he too, breathes again 🤣

Re: the 1999 episodes being skipped over. Turns out they've been uploaded to YouTube so you can still see them, if not next Friday! How that Gouryella video didn't get past any one questioning it at the time in 1999 I don't know(!) 1999 really was that year, wasn't it? Especially loved ATB and Whitney Houston. Adam Rickitt casually releasing the most homoerotic sounding pop song in the 90s with barely six months of the decade left 🤣 Did always have a soft spot for Lolly though (who is on the first of the skipped episodes above) she was really fun. Funny to think that it was nearly Rachel Stevens who was her and not Anna Kumble!

Sort of - there's a clip from It's An S Club Thing (a video they released that Christmas) which has got footage from the day when they found out that they were number one, and Paul says they sold 90k on the Saturday the week of release - near enough what they sold throughout the rest of that week. So really it was a foregone conclusion in hindsight - but Miami 7 being as successful as it was, 3m viewers a week, sold to 50 countries just weeks after it debuted on CBBC (and 110 in total eventually). Plus the added attention of Simon Fuller being their manager and it being his first big project after the Spice Girls (although he was also involved with 21st Century Girls as discussed above. I bought their single!) it just had all the right components to be an instant success. There'd obviously been North and South with No Sweat a couple of years before that, and more or less the same components were in place for that, but some of them didn't work as well with hindsight which is why it didn't last as long. Their show was set in Brighton, and it lacked the kind of aspirational feel that S Club had being set in Miami and then later LA and driving along the beach front in their red Chevy convertible. The music was a lot stronger as well and it was more a vibrant mix of people in the band, all of whom had different strengths, and together it just worked. That's why they appealed to me so much, and I dare say so many others going on that first week sale. They were just right place right time. Madonna's single was excellent as well though, I dare say had she bought it out closer to the actual release of the Austin Powers movie she probably would have had another number one easily.

On the lineup for Radio 1's Big Weekend in Sunderland in May on the Sunday.

Yeah Boyzone absolutely didn't deserve this one. They were basically on their "For fecks sake Shane, stop moving, they'll think we're a boyband" autopilot era by this point, where no one but Ronan mattered. Although that said, I recently discovered that Jewels & Stone - remixing and production team who were to have their first production for another artist chart about a month on from this - did a remix of this which improved it immeasurably. It's that remix I've got on my own 1999 playlist in place of the original mix. Geri would probably say by her own admission that there was a lot of ego and "F-you" in "Look At Me" but that's part of why it was such a killer first solo single and video. I remember really well that TOTP video premiere they showed a couple of weeks ago on the reruns and it being the talking point of my entire year group. I think in recent years only Jade has matched anywhere near that same uncompromising energy when launching a solo career from a successful girl group.

Guests on the second show (20th March) are Niall Horan, Joanne McNally and Guz Khan. I'm intrigued to see what format this show will take.

Sounds good from the clips I've heard so far! He's a guest on Claudia Winkleman's new chat show on BBC One the day this single comes out (not performance though, by the looks of it).

Confirmed that they are opening for JLS on a couple of their summer shows at Derby and Colchester in August. I've booked for the latter already so that'll be fun!

Re-enters at #68 this week on account of its physical release. There is a rather lengthy feature on them in Music Week that feels rather planted, yes: http://www.musicweek.com/interviews/read/inside-the-rise-of-december-10-with-the-band-simon-cowell-cassandra-gracey-louis-bloom-more/093540 Whilst I don't wish to continue to pour schadenfreude on this, this really is being delivered with no actual clue of what works in this era in terms of release. I mean Sam Fender only just got to number one with a song released nine months ago.

I think if what's been reported previously is true then in all likelihood I could see them announcing something further - tour etc - around the time they do this Boyzone show. Good gig for them to have though and also a reasonable percentage of Boyzone's audience would more than likely be there for their own shows.

Their Radio 2 Piano Room set was gorgeous, it's on iPlayer now. They did "Falling Into You", "Black Coffee" and also a cover of "Wichita Lineman" by Glen Campbell:

I agree, it's nice that they're doing it gradually by the looks of things! And yeah the Radio 2 support and also with their slot on Piano Room tomorrow is another big tick. The reason why "Falling Into You" works for me is because it's a natural continuation / progression from what they did on Everything's Eventual, and it sounds timeless yet still of their sound. Working with Gareth Young who was a big part of that album, and in particular "Fantasy", underlines that. I'm almost wondering if they might do well to get a support slot on tour for another band from their same era? It served All Saints well when they did the Backstreet Boys and Take That tours. Trouble is I can't think of anyone touring this year (to my knowledge) that might be a good fit?

Nice new interview with Emma Bunton on her Heart radio show last night: Nic is also the guest on Sophie Ellis-Bextor's podcast Spinning Plates this week. I listened to it this afternoon and again, very insightful!

Now on the A List at Radio 2. There's a new interview with them on the UK Rolling Stone site - they'll be announcing more gigs soon by the looks of things although the album might be a while away yet: https://www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/nicole-and-natalie-appleton-on-their-return-as-a-duo-its-a-dream-come-true-58335/

Girl Thing all the way back in 2000 is the proof, if any were needed, that projects which are just a front for Simon's own hubris and ego never end up gaining traction because, as half the comments attest here, people see right through it. Of course it's not the boys' fault, and one hopes they'll be able to springboard to other opportunities after this. Because I don't honestly see this lasting beyond the next 10 months.

Record Store Day release list for this year (18th April) is out: https://irp.cdn-website.com/67794b89/files/uploaded/RSD26+Releases+PDF.pdf Quite a few Buzzjack favourites - among them, Mel B, Perrie, Demi Lovato - all seeing releases this year. Don't think I'll be bothering this year, there's nothing here I'd be absolutely desperate to own compared to recent years.

Penny has finally dropped for me tonight that it's Marvin who is Can of Worms. I reckon Davina has it right that Mica Paris is Toastie. Moth is Keisha, no question.