The Bulletin: Arts & Culture News | 15 April

RIP CHI CHENG
Today the music world mourns the passing of founding Deftones bassist Chi Cheng, who died in the early hours of Saturday morning at the age of 42. Cheng had been in a semi-conscious state since late 2008, when he suffered grave injuries as the result of a car crash.

Members of the rock fraternity paid tribute to their friend, with producer Matt Bayles summarising the plethora of tributes via Twitter by saying: "Reading the love for Chi Cheng on social media justifies the Internet for me. I got to work with Deftones on Around the Fur and he was a slice of Zen I welcomed every day." Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine meanwhile remembered Cheng as "a very sweet and talented guy."

A statement signed by Cheng's mother and Deftones frontman Chino Moreno stated: "He fought the good fight. You stood by him sending love daily. He knew that he was very loved and never alone." Cheng was a poet as well as a bassist, releasing a spoken word album in 2000. His last work with Deftones, an album tentatively titled Eros, remains as yet unreleased.

NEW MUSIC: THE NATIONAL, DRE SKULL & MEGAN JAMES, XXXY, WISE BLOOD, JAI PAUL, JD TWITCH
Fans of complex, melancholy indie rock will be thrilled to hear that The National's fifth full-length album, Trouble Will Find Me, will be released on 21 May through 4AD. The band have unveiled one more track from the new record, Don't Swallow The Cap. 

Purity Ring's Megan James has collaborated with dancehall producer Dre Skull on a new track, First Time. Dre Skull is a collaborator of Snoop Lion and Major Lazer among others. The track also features dancehall artist Popcaan. The single is released today. 

xxxy's new single is out today - the RinseFM favourite has debuted both tracks from the new 12" on his Soundcloud page. The Progression is pretty epic, but for our money it's the vocal-led Thinkin' Bout, from the B-side, which wins the toss.

Pittsburgh's Wise Blood has finally got his debut album ready to go - id is co-produced by Nicholas Vernhes, who has also worked with Black Dice, Animal Collective and Dirty Projectors. The first track to be revealed is Rat, alongside a delightfully weird album promo. 

Speaking of long-awaited debuts by experimental singers/beatsmiths, London's Jai Paul, signed to XL several years ago but still without a debut album, this week dropped a beat tape on Bandcamp that is currently blowing minds from Artrocker to the Quietus. According to music blog Crack in the Road, this is not Jai Paul's debut album proper - but it certainly is a bit special, and shows great promise.

And finally, Optimo's JD Twitch has this week shared a beatless mix of cinematic, atmospheric gems, curated by Glasgow clubland scenesters Vitamins. The mix also features a Q&A with the legendary DJ and label-head. Listen and download here.

NEW VIDEOS: DAFT PUNK, KING MIDAS SOUND, FRANK OCEAN, BLACK PUS
As anticipation builds for the new Daft Punk album Random Access Memories, the duo premiered the first new material from the release during their Coachella set last week. Featuring an extended excerpt of the disco-flavoured track Get Lucky, which features Pharrell Williams and Nile Rodgers, the clip also confirms the full lineup of guests on the album.

Random Access Memories will feature contributions from Panda Bear, Julian Casablancas, Todd Edwards, DJ Falcon, Chilly Gonzalez, Giorgio Moroder and Paul Williams. Nile Rodgers spoke to the NME, telling them: Ninety per cent if not higher of all recordings that I've ever made in my life have been the result of a very impromptu initial meeting that feels so natural and so organic that you have to take it to the next level." He praised the duo's high standards, saying: "They make you up your game, even if your game is pretty good." A full track from the album is expected to premiere online this week. On the band's website, you can watch videos with collaborators Nile Rodgers, Todd Edwards and Giorgio Moroder talking about the making of the album.

King Midas Sound is the secondary project of Kevin Martin, aka The Bug. Recently signed to Ninja Tune for their second album, the band have a Record Store Day release lined up, and last week they revealed a video for the lead track, Aroo, featuring vocalists Kiki Hitomi and Roger Robinson.

Frank Ocean's new video sees the singer travelling the world in the wake of the success of Channel Orange, visiting everywhere from the pyramids to the Eiffel Tower, the tourist footage intercut with live performances and shots of Orange in the studio.

Black Pus, the experimental side-project of Lightning Bolt's Brian Chippendale, also have a new video out - Hear No Evil is taken from his album All My Relations, which is out now. 

FESTIVAL WATCH: TECTONICS, DOUNE THE RABBIT HOLE, ATP: I'LL BE YOUR MIRROR, OPTIMUS ALIVE, LOUNGE ON THE FARM, INCUBATE
The big festival news this week is the rescheduling of Grizzly Bear's half of ATP: I'll Be Your Mirror. The event, due totake place in London on 5 Maym has been re-scheduled for 2 November. ATP issued a statement, saying: "The main reason for this is that two of the anticipated headliners pulled out-- making this day's event unviable at this current stage, and rather than putting on a day that isn't worthy of our headliners and of the standard of ATP events, ATP and Grizzly Bear have decided that rather than cancelling, their show will be moved." The earlier date, curated by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, remains scheduled for 4 May. For info on refunds and ticket viability, go here. 

Optimus Alive (12-14 Jul), taking place in Porto, Portugal, has added more names to its bill - Vampire Weekend and Jamie Lidell join an already-strong bill featuring Depeche Mode, Kings Of Leon, Green Day, Disclosure, Gold Panda, Death From Above 1979, Japandroids and Crystal Castles. Details and tickets here.

Lounge On The Farm (26-28 Jul) in Kent has also announced a few more acts - Jessie Ware, the Scratch Perverts, Justin Robertson and Hidden Orchestra have all joined the bill. Details and tickets here. Finally, the electronica-oriented Incubate (16-22 Sept), in the Netherlands, will this year feature Front 242, Built To Spill, Tim Hecker, Vatican Shadow, Cut Hands, Vessel and WIFE, as well as an acid-house themed day, featuring 808 State, A Guy Called Gerald, and Ceephax Acid Crew. Details and tickets here.

Scottish festival Doune The Rabbit Hole (22-25 Aug) festival have announced their lineup, with a strong cohort from the indie-folk scene including Alasdair Roberts & Friends, Rick Redbeard, Steve Adey, Clinic, The Pastels, The Monochrome Set, Washington Irving, Randolph's Leap, Panda Su and Stanley Brinks, along with the harder-edged sounds of PAWS,  Galoshins and The Cosmic Dead. There's a strong slant towards female performers with the inclusion of Rachel Sermanni, The Banana Sessions, Jo Mango and Siobhan Wilson too. Details and tickets here.

And finally, the Tectonics Festival (11-12 May) comes to Glasgow's City Halls and Old Fruitmarket with a bill of experimental, rock and orchestral music, staged by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and curated by conductor Ilan Volkov. The bill includes exclusive new works by Aidan Moffat and Stuart Braithwaite, alongside classical and neo-classical performers such as David Fennessy, Martin Suckling and John de Simone. Sunn O))) guitarist Stephen O’Malley will also be playing compositions devised by Iancu Dumitrescu and joining with Oren Ambarchi for the Lucier World Premiere. Tickets are available here. 

ON TOUR: WU-TANG CLAN
Following news of their return this summer with a new album, titled A Better Tomorrow (in reference to a John Woo film of the same name), Wu-Tang Clan have announced a select few tour dates to accompany the first release featuring the whole team since 2007's 8 Diagrams. The album and tour coincide with the 20th anniversary of their seminal debut, Enter The Wu-Tang: 36 Chambers. The Clan play the O2 Academy in Manchester on 25 July. 

KING OF SNAKE: SKIN-POPPING VENOM
Taken from the VICE series 'Fringes,' the video below tells the story of Steve Ludwin, a man who has dosed himself with deadly snake venom every day for 20 years. VICE claim that "regular exposure to the venom results in the body developing an immunity," going on to report: "Steve claims to not only never get ill, but that cobra venom is the ultimate pick me up, with effects lasting a days after injecting, making Steve stronger, faster and more resilient." WARNING: This clip is not for those who are feart of needles. Read the full article here.

NEW SHORT FILM SCORED BY JEFF MILLS
Detroit techno originator Jeff Mills has released the second of his collaborations with video artist Heleen Blanken, under the banner of his new audio-visual label Alpha Centauri (a sub-set of Axis). The second film is titled The Alignment, and features a Mills score over textured, abstract visuals. In a short interview with Blankeen on the Axis site, she reveals the video's theme: "The film is about telepathic communication between three sources.It's about alignment in many forms; arranging the right setting for communication; aligning multiple frequencies and creating the perfect environment for a transfer."

KNEEL BEFORE ZOD
Finally, a new viral promo for the forthcoming Man of Steel film was unleashed this week – it takes the form of a video threat from a familiar Kryptonian General. Watch below. General Zod is played in the film by Michael Shannon, best known for his role as Agent Van Alden in Boardwalk Empire.

LIVE! TONIGHT! GLASGOW'S FRIDGE MAGNETS PLAY SILENT GIG INSIDE A MASSIVE TRANSPARENT BOX!
Lastly, tonight fans of Glasgow electro rockers Fridge Magnets can get a rare look at the band as they park up at St Enoch Square in a transparent perspex box, in which they'll be seen but not heard (unless you get down early enough to pick up a set of 'silent disco' headphones before 17:30). The tour rolls into Manchester tomorrow, where The Ramona Flowers take their place. See here for more on how to claim a ticket for that.