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On a recent afternoon in a cinderblock-walled rehearsal room in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park neighborhood, a gem of the British folk-rock movement is returning to life. Fronting a small band, Tammy Faye Starlite, a petite blonde with a commanding voice, is throwing herself into Richard and Linda Thompson’s “Hokey Pokey,” jumping up and down during instrumental breaks.

As Starlite sings, a small, thin woman — in khakis, crisp white sneakers, a blue polo shirt and a sky-blue baseball cap, her brown hair pulled back — rises from her seat on the sidelines.

Rufus Wainwright won’t hit age 50 until July 22, technically, but he started the festivities a few days early with “Fifty Isn’t the End,” a three-hour show at Long Island’s East End that was a tribute to Wainwright’s career, his family lineage and, inadvertently, some of the other children of famous musicians who happen to be among his pals.

With a lineup that included Jimmy Fallon, comic Tig Notaro, Laurie Anderson and members of Wainwright’s family, including his sister Martha and his father Loudon III, the show...

Rufus Wainwright has announced his upcoming album Folkocracy will arrive June 2 and released its lead single “Down in the Willow Garden” on Monday. The track features Brandi Carlile, and is described by Wainwright as a “blatantly brutal and masochistic” folk ballad.

“I chose us a cheery little number — not! The song is so blatantly brutal and masochistic that I had to sing it with a woman. Sadly, we still live in a violent world,” Wainwright said in a statement. “The amazing thing about so many folk songs is that, content wise,...

Loudon Wainwright III is letting me in on the realities of life at 75. “Just the other night I was moaning and groaning about my orthopaedic problems, my bad back and my hip which is probably going to be replaced,” he says, a subtle smile playing at the corners of his mouth. We’re speaking via video call from his home on Long Island. Over his left shoulder, an antique map sketches an aerial view of his surroundings in Suffolk County, the easternmost tip of New York state. “I was doing what we call the ‘organ recital’,” he says. “How many times I have to pee in the middle of the night, and all that.”

Pondering this irrefutable evidence of physical deterioration, Wainwright turned to his partner Susan Morrison, an editor at the New Yorker, and came up with some words of reassurance. “I found myself saying: ‘The good news is,...

Rufus Wainwright has released a studio performance of Judy Garland’s “Over the Rainbow,” to be featured in the upcoming virtual concert Rufus Does Judy at Capitol Studios. The show will be a virtual revisit of his 2006-2007 live tribute to Garland, Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall.

Renée Zellweger, who won an Oscar for her portrayal of Garland in the 2019 biopic Judy, can be seen in the clip applauding after Wainwright’s performance. Zellweger will be appearing as the sole “micro-audience” member during the entire virtual concert, which will be hosted on Thursday,...

The National, Kurt Vile, Damien Rice and more have contributed cover tracks to Songs For Australia, a compilation album put together by Julia Stone to benefit brush fire relief efforts. Stone, an Australian singer-songwriter best known as one half of brother-sister duo Angus & Julia Stone, brought together local and international bands for the album, out March 5th on digital and in June on CD and vinyl.

The National’s contribution is a cover of Inxs’ “Never Tear Us Apart” while Vile has taken on Nick Cave’s “Stranger Than Kindness.

It all started, naturally, in the Hamptons. As they sat by her pool in Amagansett two summers ago, watching their children play, Sarah Jessica Parker told Rufus Wainwright about the new movie she was producing and starring in, an updated take on Cléo from 5 to 7, a 1962 French film about a singer who’s awaiting a potentially devastating medical diagnosis. Parker would play the chanteuse in this new version, Here and Now — opening November 9th, it costars Common as her longtime manager, Simon Baker (as her ex) and Renée Zellweger (as...

Beck performed his “Where It’s At” alongside the Bird and the Bee and Dave Grohl sitting in on drums during Swing Left‘s The Last Weekend event Thursday in Los Angeles.

Grohl was a surprise guest at the Palace Theatre outpost of the event, which aimed “to spur get-out-the-vote efforts on the last weekend before the midterm elections in key races up and down the ticket… with the goal of taking back Democratic control of the House of Representatives and transforming our government,” Swing Left said.

The extended “Where...

There are a lot of movies to see this year at the Toronto International Film Festival — 340, to be exact — but that doesn’t mean it has to be all screenings and no play.

From Thursday’s opening night party for Netflix’s “Outlaw King” to the third annual B.L.A.C.K Ball, as well as Julia Roberts celebrating her film “Ben Is Back” and her new Amazon Prime series “Homecoming,” the fest is packed with cocktail soirees, dinners, and late-night parties.

Here, Variety gives you the ultimate guide to Tiff’s hottest parties…

Thursday, Sept. 6

“Outlaw King” Party: The Netflix film starring Chris Pine, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Elizabeth Pugh opens Tiff, Patria, 10:30 p.m.

“Fahrenheit 11/9” Dinner and Party: Dinner for Michael Moore’s new Donald Trump doc, Peter Pan Bistro, 6 p.m.; Premiere party, Speakeasy 21, 11 p.m.

Rbc Tiff Kick-Off Party: hosted by RBCxMusic in partnership with Live Nation,...

It's been ages since we played our favorite time wasting game of imaginary hang outs with celebrities. So let's do it. 

So would you rather

...have a kickbox with Vincent Rodriguez?

...play hood ornaments w/ Billy Magnussen?

...fly the friendly skies with Luca, Armie, and Timothée?

...do an accessories check with Nicole Kidman?

...make it a trio at Sundance with Maggie Gyllenhaal & Martha Wainwright?

...visit the Blue Lagoon in Iceland with Lewis Tan?

...enjoy millinery with Juliette Lewis?

...study up on "self care for the real world" with director Sam Taylor-Johnson?

...interior decorate with Sarah Michelle Gellar?

...fight insomnia with Tom Holland?

...or do a little risky Diy cat grooming with Kat Dennings?

Pictures are after the jump to help you decide...

Maggie Gyllenhaal and Martha Wainwright (Rufus’ sister) sang “Papa Was a Rodeo” together on Saturday at a party for the Autograph Collection Hotels & The Black List. “I need one more drink of tequila,” she said after admitting, “my brother and I sometimes try to figure out the harmonies that and her brother sing on some of her albums.” It’s my party and I’ll DJ if I want to, DJ if I want to… DJ Idris Elba took over the decks on the second floor of the Grey Goose Blue Door on Saturday night during his party for “Yardie,” his feature...

Music makes such a huge difference when it comes to enjoying TV’s top shows, on a level that goes well beyond a theme song. Great composers create an aural language that’s as tangible and essential as the actors or sets on screen, aided by music supervisors who discover undiscovered tracks as well as essential classic gems —without which the show’s most powerful moments would have no impact.

Even the Television Academy agrees: For this first time, this year the Emmy Awards handed out a prize for outstanding music supervision. Susan Jacobs won the award for the “Big Little Lies” episode “You Get What You Need.”

There were so many shows that changed the way music was used on television this year — whether it was Tom Petty’s “American Girl” becoming a shout of protest, an obscure Elvis Presley cover becoming one of our favorite tunes of the year,...

Canadian singer Martha Wainwright – the younger sister of Rufus Wainwright – was one of the five pedestrians injured in New York City’s scaffolding collapse but has since revealed she is okay. On Sunday, strong gusts of wind caused scaffolding on a building on Broadway and Spring St. in Manhattan to fall on passersby below. […]...

Lorde performed a full, incredible set Friday at Osheaga, pulling out all the stops. The 20-year-old performed a beautiful, emotional acoustic cover of Martha Wainwright’s “Bloody Mother F***ing A**hole”. Related: Lorde Drops Glamorous Music Video For ‘Perfect Places’ She then followed it up with “Homemade Dynamite”, from her new album Melodrama, and for a special surprise […]...

For the first time ever, the 2017 Primetime Emmys will hand out an award for Outstanding Music Supervision, acknowledging the creative contributions made by the music supervisors on TV series. It’s an award that’s long overdue; music supervision is an often misunderstood art form thought to be as simple as pulling songs off an iPod. “There’s so much work that goes into it that you don’t see on the screen,” says Amanda Krieg Thomas,...

We can try to hide it, but we’re all going to miss Big Little Lies deeply after it wraps its all-too-brief run on Sunday.

RelatedBig Little Lies: I Want a Season 2 and I Want It Now Please and Thank You

And so, we Bll obsessives here at TVLine have compiled the ultimate playlist, featuring some of our favorite tunes from the HBO miniseries — including that irresistible theme song. What follows is an assortment of tracks sprinkled throughout the episodes, including artist and album information in case you want to add them to your personal collection.

Spoilers abound,...

Excited for the finale of “Big Little Lies” on Sunday? Here’s one more thing to get you in the mood.

Listen to the Spotify playlist below for the songs heard on HBO’s addictive mystery series. Put these tracks on to immediately evoke the feel of living in Monterey, where looking at the ocean is a way of life. Shouldn’t we all have the privilege of chilling with our girlfriends at a seaside cafe while indulging in champagne and possibly a muffin?

Read More: ‘Big Little Lies’: Shailene Woodley on American Repression, Violence and Why ‘Every Parent Is Afraid of Their Kid’

On the series, Reese Witherspoon plays busybody mother Madeline, who welcomes newcomer Jane Chapman (Shailene Woodley) to the seaside town of Monterey, California. Together with Celeste (Nicole Kidman), they form a tight group of friends who must deal with the drama at their kids’ school,...

Celebrate the legendary singer-songwriter, Leonard Cohen, when the fascinating and critically acclaimed documentary, Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man, arrives for the first time on Blu-ray™ (plus Digital HD) onFebruary 7 from Lionsgate. Narrated by Cohen himself, the film features performances of Leonard Cohen songs by such luminary artists as U2, Rufus Wainwright, Nick Cave, Jarvis Cocker, Antony, Martha Wainwright, and Beth Orton, among others. Bonus features on this Blu-ray™ include exclusive performances not seen in the movie by Martha Wainwright, Perla Batalla, The Handsome Family, and Teddy Thompson, as well as a conversation with Leonard Cohen and audio commentary with the director! Making its debut just before the 2017 Grammy® Awards, the Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man Blu-ray™ will be available for the suggested retail price of $14.99.

Sure to please both die-hard Cohen fans and the newly initiated, this film is full of captivating music and offers an...

Olive Kitteridge, HBO's four-part miniseries directed by Lisa Cholodenko from playwright Jane Anderson’s script, is adapted from Elizabeth Strout’s Pulitzer Prize-winning collection of 13 stories and was set in motion by Frances McDormand as, as Frank Bruni puts it in the New York Times, "her answer to an industry and a society that she finds perverse in their fixation on youth." The magnificent cast features Richard Jenkins, Bill Murray, Zoe Kazan, Martha Wainwright, Peter Mullan and John Gallagher Jr. We're collecting reviews (raves, mostly) and we've posted the trailer and a clip. » - David Hudson...

Olive Kitteridge, HBO's four-part miniseries directed by Lisa Cholodenko from playwright Jane Anderson’s script, is adapted from Elizabeth Strout’s Pulitzer Prize-winning collection of 13 stories and was set in motion by Frances McDormand as, as Frank Bruni puts it in the New York Times, "her answer to an industry and a society that she finds perverse in their fixation on youth." The magnificent cast features Richard Jenkins, Bill Murray, Zoe Kazan, Martha Wainwright, Peter Mullan and John Gallagher Jr. We're collecting reviews (raves, mostly) and we've posted the trailer and a clip. » - David Hudson...

Frances McDormand and Bill Murray both wear knit caps like nobody's business in the first trailer for HBO's upcoming film Olive Kitteridge. McDormand stars as a strong-willed teacher who has difficult relationships with her husband and son. The film's narrative spans 25 years and focuses on Olive's interactions with the various denizens of their New England town.  In a memorable scene, McDormand convinces a young girl that she's a witch and is about to eat her.  Read more 'Olive Kitteridge': Venice Review Richard Jenkins, John Gallagher Jr., Zoe Kazan, Martha Wainwright and Murray co-star. Lisa Cholodenko (The Kids Are

read more...

The HBO miniseries adaptation of Elizabeth Strout’s novel, Olive Kitteridge, premiered recently at Venice Film Festival, where Frances McDormand was honored with a Visionary award. The four part series stars Frances McDormand as the titular character and features an outstanding cast of Richard Jenkins, Bill Murray, Rosemarie DeWitt and Ann Dowd. The series is brought to screen by The Kids Are All Right director Lisa Cholodenko and tells the story of a cold abrasive Math teacher and her mild mannered husband as they live together in a sleepy coastal town in Maine.

The teaser trailer does not reveal too much about the actual plot of the miniseries but looks very promising with a gloomy yet hopeful tone featuring music performed by singer Martha Wainwright. Watch the teaser trailer below.

The first two parts of the miniseries will premiere on November 2nd 2014 to be followed the next night with the closing two installments,...

The teaser for HBO’s upcoming miniseries Olive Kitteridge only allows for a glimpse of Frances McDormand’s take on the title character in the adaptation of Elizabeth Strout’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. But it’s certainly a tantalizing one, giving audiences a sense of how director Lisa Cholodenko interpreted Strout’s fictional setting of Crosby, Maine. And it’s all set to a haunting cover of Olivia Newton-John’s “Magic” by Martha Wainwright, who is in the series.

Strout’s novel consists of 13 interconnected short stories. However, the miniseries consists of just four parts. But that’s actually not a huge drawback,...

Prestige drama at film festivals is no longer just the domain of movies. Television is now becoming a regular part of fest programming (Jane Campion's "Top Of The Lake" at Sundance and Bruno Dumont's "P'tit Quinquin" at Cannes Directors' Fortnight are recent examples) and this week at Venice, HBO's "Olive Kitteridge" will get a glitzy premiere. And you can now catch a glimpse of the forthcoming miniseries with three new clips. Based on the book by Elizabeth Strout, directed by Lisa Cholodenko, and starring Frances McDormand, Richard Jenkins, Bill Murray, Zoe Kazan, John Gallagher Jr., Martha Wainwright, Rosemarie Dewitt, Peter Mullan and Brady Corbet, with a score by Carter Burwell (yes, those are some damn good credits), the show is a sprawling tale of life in a small town. Here's the official synopsis:  Olive Kitteridge tells the poignantly sweet, acerbically funny and devastatingly tragic story of a seemingly...

“The Last Time,” a duet with Snow Patrol’s Gary Lightbody and Taylor Swift, is one of “Red’s” stand outs, in part because it sounds like it could come straight off a Snow Patrol album. It doesn’t have quite the atmospherics of “Set the Fire to the Third Bar,” a tune from Snow Patrol’s “Eyes Open” album featuring Martha Wainwright, but it has the same moody build of any number of Snow Patrol tunes. Instead of a conceptual clip, the Terry Richardson-directed video features Lightbody and Swift performing the song live in concert. They keep their backs to each other for much...

Disco! Who doesn't love it, eh? Well, one of tonight's acts probably won't be feeling so fond of the good times or the boogie by the end of the evening as another X Factor elimination looms.

With the Flash Vote gone, not only are audiences deprived of bursts of Queen at regular and inappropriate intervals during live shows, but we have absolutely no bloomin' idea who's going to be in the sing-off tonight. Could there be Deadlock drama on the horizon? We will have to wait and see.

One thing's for sure - expect performances from 2011 X Factor winners Little Mix and trouble herself, Ms Taylor Swift. Join Digital Spy from 8pm to find out who's going home.

20:57Next week, we are to expect a full orchestra, Robbie Williams and Celine Dion. But it's the End of the (Kingsland) Road for Josh, Matt, Jay, Thompson and Connor - and their busy patterned shirts.

The Sundance Institute today announced the fifteen independent films that will make their digital debut this fall via the Institute's Artist Services program, which provides access to self-distribution for artists supported by the Institute. Titles will come out between August 13 and September 17. There is a very diverse range of films, but perhaps the most exciting is "Sing Me The Song That Says I Love You: A Concert For Kate McGarrigle," the recorded tribute concert for renowned Canadian singer-songwriter Kate McGarrigle featuring her well known musical family – children Rufus and Martha Wainwright, older sisters Anna and Jane – and musical friends including Emmylou Harris, Norah Jones, and Antony (of Antony and the Johnsons). Directed by Lian Lunson, the film made its world premiere at Sundance London in 2012 and had a theatrical run earlier this summer. See below for the full list of releases. For details visit sundance.org/nowplaying. Titles Available August 13 "An.

The miracle of Rufus Wainwright's voice—that it can be at once so strong and so tender—is also the miracle of Wainwright's family, both in temperament and talent, right back to the singing and songwriting of Rufus and Martha Wainwright's mother, Kate McGarrigle, and her sister Anna. A song like Kate's "Talk to Me of Mendocino" unfolds like a map of plaintive, universal feeling, even as the exact destinations it charts it are wholly specific to her. That song and a host of other sun-touched folk numbers from the late Canadian singer receive stirring treatment in Lian Lunson's Sing Me the Songs That Say I Love You, a stirring performance film documenting a Town Hall tribute concert organized by the Wainwrights and Anna McGarrigle in 2011, a year after Kate's death. Tho...

If there were an Emmy category for rawness, Andrew Lincoln wouldn’t just be under consideration for a nomination, he’d be the frontrunner for the win. The work the actor did on AMC’s The Walking Dead this past season as grieving Sheriff Rick Grimes felt so real that, at times, it was difficult to watch. (He didn’t even watch himself!) Here, the 39-year-old Englishman opens up about how he approached his widowed character’s breakdown and whether he thinks Emmy voters will be able to overcome their genre bias to give him and his hit cable series a chance.

The Sundance Institute and London’s O2 venue announced this week the programme of panels, feature films and short films for the second Sundance London film and music festival which is schduled to run from the 25-28 April. The Sundance Institute, which annually presents the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, U.S.A., selected the film and panel programming, bringing its unique blend of indepedeant cinema and music to the heart of London. The programme continues its 2012 focus on presenting new work by independent filmmakers and exploring the interplay between independent film and music.

The programme announced today includes 18 feature films and nine short films across four sections, including a new UK Spotlight. Twenty-three films will make their international, European or UK premieres at Sundance London. Ten are by female filmmakers and six are by first-time feature filmmakers. The films collectively received 12 awards when they premiered at the...

Interested in knowing what Andrew Lincoln listens to on his iPod before stepping into the role of Rick Grimes? We talked music, working out, Season 4, catching up on the comic book series, and much more during my exclusive interview with the star of The Walking Dead. *Minor Spoiler Warning: We cover events that happened in the first half of Season 3, so you should be caught up on at least the first four episodes before reading this interview.

When I visited the set, I was amazed by how many times the same scene was filmed over again. I was told stories about you having to run up and down the prison entrance all day long, and imagine that the role must be incredibly demanding, physically. What kind of training do you do to prepare to play Rick every day on set?

Andrew Lincoln: Once you’re up to speed, the...

The Sundance Institute and The O2 announced today the programme of panels, feature films and short films for the second Sundance London film 2013. Last years event was a cracker, so let’s crank up that press release.... Sundance Institute, which annually presents the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, U.S.A., selected the film and panel programming. For the 2013 programme, continuing its 2012 focus on presenting new work by independent filmmakers and exploring the interplay between independent film and music. The programme announced today includes 18 feature films and nine short films across four sections, including a new UK Spotlight. Twenty-three films will make their international, European or UK premieres at Sundance London. Ten are by female filmmakers and six are by first-time feature filmmakers. The films collectively received 12 awards when they premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, U.S.A.. Among the artists expected to...

When Glee returns, Sue and Blaine are going to be feuding. According to Jane Lynch, "I’m blackmailing him to get back on the Cheerios. Because I want his ass on my Cheerios.” Lots of people want Blaine's ass, Sue, but to my knowledge only Kurt and Eli C. have managed to get it.

If you know your comics history, you know that Fredrick Wertham's Seduction of the Innocent kicked off decades of anti-gay animus in the industry and led to the strict editorial code that removed any subtext of things like a relationship between Batman & Robin, plus destroying many careers. But a new study of Wertham's data that he based his book on show he fabricated most of the information. For example, "In another famous passage from Seduction, Wertham suggests that Batman and Robin inspire homosexuality in young readers who identify with Robin. As evidence, he offers the story...

At several points throughout the evening, I Am Kloot singer, songwriter, guitarist and spokesperson John Bramwell alludes to the extensive length of time they’ve been playing together. The statement’s always coupled with a thanks for those who have been there from the start. “Some of you have been following us for years,” he says. “And some of you look like you have, too.”

The cheek. Seeing as taking as good as you give is indicative of strong character (and Bramwell is certainly strong of character), I’m sure he wouldn’t mind if I described him,in turn, as resembling Paul Weller; had The Modfather lived through a war or two and seen a few things he’ll never unsee.

His voice, too, is like that of a grainier, less polite John Lennon (if such a thing were possible). Indeed, in the 13 years that I Am Kloot have been touring together,...

The concert doc Sing Me the Songs That Say I Love You, Rufus and Martha Wainwright’s moving tribute to their recently deceased mom, Canadian folk singer Kate McGarrigle, screened to a packed theater at the Berlinale last week. (Participants in the film, directed by Lian Lunson, include Anna McGarrigle, Kate’s sister and writing partner; Norah Jones; and Jimmy Fallon, who tap-dances and does a song using a washboard and spoons.) Though Rufus was a bit jet-lagged and partied-out after a long night at the Paris Bar — “a fantastic institution of classic Berlinism,” as he put it — he was happy to be back in the city where he first got together with his husband, Jörn, and recorded his 2007 album Release the Stars. We spoke to him and Martha about the film, their competitive streak, and fame.Sing Me the Songs doesn’t have a lot of talking heads — most...

In honor of Valentine’s Day and in anticipation of their forthcoming album Hands, Super Human Happiness has released a live mix tape featuring covers of love songs. “The tunes are all songs from our youth in the 80s and might seem un-hip, but we aren’t being ironic. These songs first offered us glimpses into adult intimacy when we were just little dudes,” said band leader Stuart Bogie. The band includes members who have been involved with acts ranging from Iron & Wine and Martha Wainwright to TV on the Radio and Antibalas, so it’s natural that the band would have...

This weekend, New York magazine and Vulture hosted a screening of Sing Me the Songs That Say I Love You, Rufus and Martha Wainwright's concert documentary honoring the work of their late mother, Kate McGarrigle. "This film is really about losing your mother," Rufus told us at the after-party at the Tribeca Grand Hotel. "Although it’s sad and very painful, it’s something that we all relate to. And luckily for us, our mother left a tremendous legacy in song ... we really feel it’s important to share that." Our talk with the siblings wasn't all sad, though: When asked if they agreed with Jimmy Fallon, who makes an appearance in the doc and compares their family to the von Trapps, Rufus said, "Well, we’re certainly all very good-looking. I think we were a little less square. A little more Irish von Trapp — there was no Von,...

One of the highlights of my year has definitely been Sundance London, the first time Robert Redford’s film festival ever took its name outside of the Us, and brought it to our shores here in the UK.

For a weekend in April, we got the chance to see just over a dozen feature films that had debuted in January at Sundance in the Us, including the likes of Ry Russo-Young’s Nobody Walks, Josh Radnor’s Liberal Arts, and one of my personal favourite films of the year, Colin Trevorrow’s Safety Not Guaranteed.

In the intervening months, we’ve been awaiting confirmation on the festival’s fate for next year, and now Sundance have officially announced that Sundance London will not only be returning to the capital in 2013, but in 2014 as well.

The second Sundance London will be held from 25th-28th April, 2013, with passes and ticket packages...

Robert Redford says his Sundance London will be back next year after warm UK welcome for independent film festival

Robert Redford's Sundance film festival is to return to London for the second year running, the Oscar-winning actor and film-maker has announced. The event, which features films from Redford's annual celebration of independent movie-making in Park City, Utah, will take place from 25 to 28 April 2013 at the O2. It will also be returning in 2014.

"Sundance was warmly welcomed to London by engaged and adventurous audiences eager to take a chance on independent film, and this makes a second year all the more exciting for us," Redford said in a statement.

"The vibrant arts community in London has informed this decision as much as anything. Seeing what comes of nurturing a broader global community for new voices and varied perspectives in American independent film and music seems a worthy 21st-century endeavour."

The...

"One day you will come to Montauk ... hope you won't turn around and go," Rufus Wainwright sings on the piano-driven ballad "Montauk" (from his latest album, Out of the Game) about his favorite seaside town. On Thursday, friends and family flocked to the rustic beach community at the end of Long Island to see the singer marry his longtime partner Jorn Weisbrodt. And no one left early! Wainwright, 39, and Weisbrodt, the German-born artistic director of the Luminato Festival, wore custom Viktor & Rolf Monsieur and were married by a longtime friend, the artist Justin Vivian Bond. The Salome Chamber Orchestra and...

It's wedding week for Rufus Wainwright and longtime boyfriend Jorn Weisbrodt. The New York Post reports that the singer-songwriter will be saying "I do" to his German arts-administrator fiancé on Thursday at Wainwright's home in Montauk, New York. Among the some 250 wedding guests expected at the splashy wedding are Yoko Ono and Carrie Fisher. Wainwright, 39, is also expected to perform at the wedding.

Wainwright and Weisbrodt have been dating since 2007; the couple became engaged in late 2010. In February 2011, Wainwright announced that he and Lorca Cohen (daughter of famed musician Leonard Cohen) had welcomed a baby girl, Viva Katherine Wainwright Cohen; Wainwright, Weisbrodt and Cohen share custody over the baby girl.

Wainwright hails from a legendary family of musicians that includes sister Martha Wainwright, mother Kate McGarrigle and father Loudon Wainwright III.

Martha Wainwright has announced details of her upcoming third studio album. Come Home to Mama will be the follow-up to her 2005 self-titled debut LP and 2008's I Know You're Married But I've Got Feelings Too. The album will be released on October 15. It was recorded at Sean Lennon's studio in New York City, and was produced by Yuka C Honda of Cibo Matto. Nels Cline of Wilco appears on guitar, while husband Brad Albetta plays bass. Speaking about the record, Wainwright said: "This record is a culmination of my life experiences so far. Everything changed for me a couple of years ago and this record is a representation of that and a return to the reason I started writing songs." On working with Honda, she added: "Making this record was a totally different (more)...

London - a multi-generational dynasty of folk-rock royalty gather onstage to celebrate the late Quebecois singer Kate McGarrigle in this poignant music documentary, which received its world premiere at the inaugural Sundance London festival last week. Shot at New York’s Town Hall theatre in May 2011, this all-star concert is hosted by McGarrigle’s famous musical offspring, Rufus and Martha Wainwright. Their involvement should ensure the film has an appeal beyond specialist music-fan circles. An immersive experience shot in both lush colour and crisp monochrome, it plays well on the big screen, where it deserves to be seen

read more...

Music can make an average ad great. So why, Robin Hicks asks, is music the last thing a creative thinks about when writing an ad?

My favourite TV ad of the year so far is the Let Yourself Go spot for Kangaroo Island.

When it didn’t win Mumbrella’s Ad of the Month for March (it came third) I felt aggrieved for the agency that made it. But less so a week later when it emerged that the agency had paid celebrities to tweet nice things about its work.

Let Yourself Go is a stunning spot with lots of pretty images. But it would probably have had a similar effect on me if I’d watched a blank screen for 60 seconds.

John Baker of Adelaide ad agency Kwp!, which made the ad, told me that the music (Rise by Pearl Jam singer Eddie Vedder) “is 50% of the communication”. For me,...

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Reading up on her back story, as is the professional thing to do, I’ve come to the realisation that, if I were a woman, Hannah Cohen would be the kind of woman I’d hate. Mainly through relentless envy, but instead, as a man, I’m mostly smitten with her, if a little envious that I have a penis and am not her, or more sensibly that I’m not some kind of male variant of her. Sounds a little extravagant and over the top, I’ll admit, but if I explain the back story to this artist and to this album, you might see why.

So, we’ll start at before the start with her grandfather. Said grandfather went by the name of Bertie Rodgers, who by profession went by the way of acclaimed poet and BBC broadcaster, and who socially went by the...

To celebrate the first Sundance London, Film and Music Festival, we’ve teamed up with official Presenting Partner, Sony Entertainment Network, to offer you the chance to win 1 x pair of tickets for the Film Music From The Composer’s Point Of View – An Afternoon with Harry Gregson-Williams panel discussion which screens on Sunday 29 April.

Sony Entertainment Network brings you the very best films, music and games, all available through one easy account. From the latest hits to all time classics, you’ll have access to brilliant entertainment you can enjoy anywhere, across so many of your favourite devices. Simple.

Hosted at The O2, Sundance London takes place 26 – 29 April 2012, and will feature the Opening Night event An Evening With Robert Redford and T Bone Burnett; a rare intimate concert performance by Placebo; Tricky and Martina Topley-Bird performing Maxinquaye; a performance by Rufus and Martha Wainwright; and screenings of 14 feature-length and eight short films.

Sundance London has announced a series of panels and special events for its inaugural edition, including a performance by Rufus and Martha Wainwright. Running April 26-29 at The O2 arena in London, the event will see the Wainwrights performing and participating in a Q&A after the world premiere screening of "Sing Me The Songs That Say I Love You - A Concert for Kate McGarrigle." Other announced events include the theatrical premiere screening of a documentary about band Placebo, Robert Redford introducing a film about the environmental work of Hrh The Prince of Wales, and a 25th anniversary screening of "River's Edge." Previously announced events and performances for Sundance London include the Opening Night event An Evening With Robert Redford And T Bone Burnett, Placebo perform a rare intimate concert and Tricky and Martina Topley-Bird performing Maxinquaye. Full press release below London, 20 March 2012 — Sundance Institute...

Rufus Wainwright has revealed more information about his upcoming seventh studio album. Out of the Game will be released on April 23 through Polydor, and has been produced by Mark Ronson. Wainwright describes the LP as his "most pop" record to date, while Ronson has said that it contains the best production work of his career. Sean Lennon, Martha Wainwright and Andrew Wyatt of Miike Snow are among the artists who also contributed to the album. Rufus Wainwright became engaged to long-term (more)...

Guy Garvey, Isaac Julien, Martha Wainwright and other artists give their top tips for unleashing your inner genius

Guy Garvey, musician

• For fear of making us sound like the Waltons, my band [Elbow] are a huge source of inspiration for me. They're my peers, my family; when they come up with something impressive, it inspires me to come up with something equally impressive.

• Spending time in your own head is important. When I was a boy, I had to go to church every Sunday; the priest had an incomprehensible Irish accent, so I'd tune out for the whole hour, just spending time in my own thoughts. I still do that now; I'm often scribbling down fragments that later act like trigger-points for lyrics.

• A blank canvas can be very intimidating, so set yourself limitations. Mine are often set for me by the music the band has come up with. With The Birds,...

The Opera House is hugely recognisable – but there are literally millions of people who visit it each year, who have never been to an actual performance there,” says Caroline David, producer of the Ship Song Project. Based upon Nick Cave’s “The Ship Song”, it is an online campaign that invited Australian and international musicians to pay homage to the theatre.

“The Opera House like all businesses needs to make money to survive, so the aim with this project was to de-mystify the House and make it accessible to everyone and in particular the youth market,” explains David, a producer at Exit Films. The film moves through both back and front of house, introducing performers such as Silverchair’s Daniel Johns, Kev Carmody, Sarah Blasko, Martha Wainwright, Sydney Symphony, The Temper Trap, The Australian Chamber Orchestra, and John Bell of Bell Shakespeare who all offered their time for free. On their scheduled shoot day,...