The Bulletin: Arts & Culture News | 6 December

DAS RACIST ANNOUNCE SPLIT
They first captured our hearts in 2008 with the riotously funny Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. Then they proved they were no mere joke-rap phenomenon, with two critically acclaimed mixtapes – Shut Up, Dude and Sit Down, Man, which featured weed-laced, improvisation-based rhymes and beats. They signed to Sony and released Relax in2011, and had planned a second album for next year. But band-member Heems announced at a show in Germany that the trio have officially split, and will not be recording any new material. News of the split was due to be announced, but it seems that Heems took the initiative.

After Heems' shock announcement, band member Kool A.D. tweeted: "For the record, I quit Das Racist two months ago and was asked by our manager not to announce it yet. Apparently [Heems] wanted to do it though." He later told Rolling Stone: "We did our thing, we had a good time, and I think it was time for it to end." The group had all started pursuing solo projects and releasing mixtapes, so the end of DR does not mean the end of Heems, Kool A.D. and Dapwell. Ancillary member Dapwell was perhaps the most shocked and upset by news of the split. He told Spin: "We had just signed this record deal and we were going to put out one proper album and then go on a farewell tour, release a proper breaking up statement that could have been really funny, maybe a weird, stupid video. Now, all of that has gone to shit." 

THE HORRORS ANNOUNCE NEW HIGHER BOX SET
The Horrors have just announced the March 2013 release date for a deluxe box-set and remix package, which will see their album Skying reimagined by the likes of Andrew Weatherall, Blanck Mass and Andy Blake. The box set, titled Higher, is available now for digital download, and can be pre-ordered at The Horrors website. The band's Tom Furse enthuses about the project: "We were driving through the deserts of California when we hatched the plan to release a boxed set of the singles from Skying, unaware that it would balloon into the monster that it did. We started off small, just one version per single. However, through chance encounters and wanting to involve more people whose music excited us, the box soon grew into an impressive collection of sonic tapestries and hypnotic grooves and it became apparent that this was no longer about the singles. It was now about this new music which had used the different elements of Skying as a springboard to other ideas. We encouraged everyone involved to be as obtuse as possible, to get as far away from the original source material as they could. The results are stunning, and I think it's just a shame we couldn't have done more."

R.I.P. OFFSHORE 
Aberdeen-based producer Offshore, aka Ewan Robertson, has died aged 27. His mini-album Bake Haus got high praise from us just two months ago. Robertson, who was also a graphic designer, was heavily involved in the visual aesthetics of Ninja Tune and Big Dada, designing covers for Wiley, Roots Manuva and Bonobo. It is not known how he passed away. Big Dada's statement says: An incredibly subtle man, part of his talent was to make difficult things look easy... We will miss him terribly." 

KRAFTWERK AT THE TATE
Returning to London for the first time in eight years, German electronic pioneers Kraftwerk have announced a series of eight live performances at the Tate Modern in February next year. Their residency, entitled KRAFTWERK: THE CATALOGUE 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8, will showcase the band's seminal back catalogue in chronological order, with projections, animations and 3D effects. Tickets go on sale on 12 Dec.

ZERO DARK THIRTY: WATCH THE TRAILER
Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker swept the board at the Oscars in 2009. She's back with Zero Dark Thirty, which is hotly tipped for this year's awards, and has already picked up awards at ceremonies such as the New York Critics' Circle Awards. The film tells the tale of the assasination of Bin Laden, and the military and political machinations which took place around the operation. The film's out in the UK in January - watch the trailer below. Inside movies have an interview with screenwriter Mark Boal and Bigelow.