From the British music industry journal, “Music Week”: Pet Shop Boys are facing a close battle with Ronan Keating as they look to score their first number one album in the UK in more than 15 years. The duo’s new Parlophone-issued album “Yes” is presently around 1,200 units ahead of Keating’s Polydor release “Songs For My Mother”, according to early retail reports, but the story is made more complicated by the PSB album having accidentally ended up on iTunes three days early last week. It is understood around 2,500 sales of the album achieved on the Apple site following its premature release there last Friday will not count towards this coming week’s chart as they will be recognised as sales from last week instead. Pet Shop Boys, who won the outstanding contribution award at this year’s Brits, have only topped the albums chart once before. “Very” reached number one in October 1993.
Pet Shop Boys today release the expanded edition of their acclaimed new album, “Nonetheless”.
Recent Pet Texts
In the latest Official Physical Singles Chart in the UK, CD singles by Pet Shop Boys are at numbers 1, 4, 13, 20, 41 and 60! Link to chart below.
Last night, Pet Shop Boys and their long-term manager, Angela Becker, received the Artist & Manager Partnership Award “in recognition of their shared impact on music and culture” at the culmination of the Artist & Manager Awards in London. Thanks to the Featured Artists Coalition and the Music Managers Forum for the award and the nice evening! xx
Photo: Paul Hampartsoumian
The limited-edition tea set, which commemorates 40 years of PSB and includes a teapot, cups and saucers, a milk jug and a sugar bowl, starts shipping today and is available to order at the link below.
The bespoke fine bone china set was designed by Farrow with PSB and manufactured by Duchess China in Stoke-on-Trent, as part of the new “Pet Shop Boys since 1984” range — more products to be announced in due course.
Repression of dissent continues in Hong Kong. Brave people sentenced to jail. Full story at the link below.
Very happy to hear that Boy Harsher’s haunting remix of “New London boy” has been added to the BBC Radio 6 Music playlist.
It was great appearing on the TV institution that is “Strictly Come Dancing” yesterday on BBC TV! You can watch the performance at the You Tube link below. Thanks to choreographer Jason Gilkison, music producer Ian Masterson and the brilliant Strictly team and dancers for producing such an epic performance. BTW we’re on again tonight performing “All the young dudes”.
Photo: Guy Levy
