Has The NME Got Good?

From the looks of them I would only listen if they were called the Murds.

if you go to their show & provide me with visual evidence that you spent at least some of the time down front yelling "the murds! the murrrrrrrrrds!" between songs, I'll reimburse you for your ticket

MUSE + JACK WHITE: HOW TWILIGHT SCORED THE COOLEST SOUNDTRACK EVER

I love that even in 2010 the NME cover still features both the Stone Roses and Liam Gallagher

they have to cover themselves incase this new american invasion doesnt work out obviously.

The Drums are an American band from Brooklyn, New York,[1] with members stemming from the shortlived band Elkland (formerly Goat Explosion)

Now there's a name.

OH MY GOD NME HAS AN AMERICAN BAND ON THE COVER

I GUESS IT MUST BE FED UP WITH BRITISH MUSIC

The Drums are seriously fucking terrible

The issue still on the stands at Borders is a Joy Division tribute. How long ago did it shrink in size and get a glossy cover? I haven't paid much attention in a long time. Flipping through it reminded me of late 70s Creem. If they would offer an actually affordable subscription in the U.S. I would read it.

The most recent issue with all the American stuff was done by a stand-in editor while KM was on holiday. The others are markedly different in the sort of music they cover. I think it's improved massively since the redesign, but I would say that I guess.

It doesn't make me cringe quite so much when I see it in Sainsburys.

The Strange Boys are dope though real talk

I do wonder if "young people" really do want an Ian Curtis tribute issue, though?

Lots of "young people" listen to Joy Division.

Ian Curtis' 'stock' is probably as high now as it was in the early 80s. Just count the number of people you see wearing JD T-shirts at gigs.

didn't they run a cover not even 18 months ago with vampire weekend on the cover that was all AMERICA IS COOL AGAIN & then listed 20 american bands

I think Hermann still thinks it's 1995.

lolling at animal collective being buried there in b/w avi buffalo & the dum dum girls

cover is kinda cool visually tho -- whole redesign has gone a long way towards making the magazine look less like a music tabloid & instead like an actual journalistic endeavor

ok so it was about 18 mons ago - lol @ lil wayne

http://cdn.stereogum.com/files/2008/08/nme-top_25_bands_making_america_cool.jpg

Yeah that old cover style was appalling, I think a lot of the recent covers have been a lot better.

'how twilight scored the coolest soundtrack ever' is a bold claim!

but it does seem (from the covers n e way) to be better than under conor mack.

has nme forgot that someone made a famous movie about ian curtis

'Joe Lean - Why I canned my debut album'

A nation holds it's breath while we await it's appearance.

I do wonder if "young people" really do want an Ian Curtis tribute issue, though?

― djh, Monday, May 31, 2010 9:10 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Lots of "young people" listen to Joy Division.

― billstevejim, Monday, May 31, 2010 9:20 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Ian Curtis' 'stock' is probably as high now as it was in the early 80s. Just count the number of people you see wearing JD T-shirts at gigs.

― Duran (Doran), Tuesday, June 1, 2010 11:01 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

^^^ truth

the thing about young people is that Joy Division is still a novel thing to them

the Miami Dance Conference

is this still a thing?

http://www.nme.com/images/10524_115720_nmemagpageusindie240510.jpg

^^ I like that they picked Colorado to fill in the west

I can't read what any of those are (except possible The National in New York?). Is there a link?

IN FACTS WE TRUST

NME is logical positivists now, u c.

You've changed, Pacific Northwest. You used to be cool.

http://altreport.hipsterrunoff.com/2010/06/avey-tare-escalates-personal-brand-named-alt-american-icon-by-nme.html

I guess those ass holes across the ocean are trying to ‘take over’ the indie brand. Guess they can have it since it is irrelevant/dead n e ways. USA is rlly conceptcore/chillwave/bleep bloopy these days, so I am not sure if we are into ‘ghey bands’ like The Muse of The Kings of Leon [via the Lion Kings]. h8 u NME for trying to act like the USA doesn’t produce the best music in the world. AnCo is gonna take yall down in the World Cup of post-indie bands.

WORST WORLD CUP EVER.

I love that even in 2010 the NME cover still features both the Stone Roses and Liam Gallagher

Don't forget the Beatles!

Geir will never let you forget, don't worry ilxor!

Was going to be snarky and post this in the worst NME cover ever, but I'm feeling charitable and think that on balance it's a good thing that NME are looking at acts that try to push the envelope rather than the usual Oasis/Pete Doherty/Arctic Monkeys stuff.

http://www.nme.com/images/1068_105439_kelenmecover070610.jpg

KELE

BOLDLY GOING WHERE BLOC PARTY NEVER DARED

Cover still features Oasis = yep, it's still the NME.

Baby steps.

On first glance, I thought that the cover above listing the American bands said "Warrant" instead of "Warpaint."

I dunno if it's a good thing or not that a 50+ Paul Weller is making more risky and interesting music than most NME approved "indie bands" have been doing in recent years. Hopefully things will improve in UK indie though. I did think his days of NME coverage was gone though.

j3ff I thought the exact same as you when I first saw it!

what a weird cover

KELE

BEATING BLOC PARTY AT A GAME THEY WEREN'T EVEN BOLD ENOUGH TO PLAY

lol

it looks terrific, which is a huge step up from the past couple years. all they need to do now is... cover decent acts?

terrific is not etc.

That Kele single would be pretty good if it wasn't for his direction-free vocal.

for a second i thought it was Lethal Bizzle on the cover

Grindie Revival

oh for the halcyon days of grindie

Today I saw the NME with a whole issue on THE 100 BEST ALBUMS YOU'VE NEVER HEARD.

I looked through it. I had heard some of them, heard of others, didn't want to hear of some.

But the whole exercise seems to be admirable. Yes, I really think that the NME has improved. In a virtually impossible media climate, they are trying, in their way, to be more serious about pop and its history, than they have been in the past decade, even though probably none of what's left of their demographic cares much about it.

They even had a para on The Bodines and 'Therese'!