Pet Shop Boys Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Pet Shop Boys‘ Neil Tennant has admitted that he finds Taylor Swift‘s music “disappointing” following the release of her new album ‘The Tortured Poets Department’. Despite Swift’s massive success in recent years, with her new double album becoming the fastest-selling of 2024, Tennant said in a Guardian Live event An Evening with Pet Shop Boys that he thought the quality of her music didn’t hold up to her popularity.“What is Taylor Swift’s ‘Billie Jean’?” he asked.

Pet Shop Boys have revealed that their track ‘Feel’ was originally offered to The Killers‘ frontman Brandon Flowers.While speaking to Record Collector in an interview, duo Chris Lowe and Neil Tennant shared that the second track from their latest release ‘Nonetheless‘ was offered to Flowers while he was working on his solo album.“We sent it to him when he was making his solo album with Stuart Price, but we don’t know if it reached him – and then, during lockdown, I read a book about the spy, George Blake, escaping from prison,” he said. “For some reason, it inspired me to return to this, so now it’s about visiting a loved one in prison.”The Killers frontman teamed up with Price back in 2010 for his debut solo LP ‘Flamingo’.

Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant has said that the duo’s performance at Glastonbury in 2022 was the “worst moment” of his life.The electronic duo’s performance on The Other Stage on the Sunday of the festival was marred by technical difficulties which saw Tennant have to perform solo for six songs.Although they also delighted fans by bringing out Olly Alexander to perform ‘It’s A Sin’, Tennant has now reflected on how difficult that moment was in a new interview.“In our show there’s a screen and the screen goes up briefly, Chris and I appear and walk forward,” he told BBC Breakfast. “Glastonbury of course is live on television, we were headlining the Other Stage on the Sunday night, there’s 70,000 people there.“And the screen rose by about 10 inches and stopped and we just looked at each other and we couldn’t talk because you have the music in your headphones then.“So we both made a dash for it and ran around the front, Chris couldn’t get to his front keyboard in time so he went to a second keyboard positioned at the back and suddenly I run around and I think “I’m here by myself on live on television”.’He continued: “I didn’t know what had gone wrong, no one tells you and I had to do the first six songs by myself with an empty keyboard next to me.”“There’s was a real adrenaline rush off that.

Pet Shop Boys have spoken out about their namecheck in Eminem’s diss track ‘Can-I-Bitch’, joking about the good “humour” of the rapper.Released on ‘Straight from the Lab’ bootleg album, Eminem’s ‘Can-I-Bitch’ – a diss track aimed at fellow rapper Canibus – included Eminem mimicking the sound of a car hitting someone and the lyric, “What was that? Pet Shop Boys”, implying he and producer/mentor Dr Dre had mowed down the 2017 NME Godlike Genius award recipients.‘Can-I-Bitch’ is thought partly to be an answer-song to Pet Shop Boys’ ‘The Night I Fell in Love’, the penultimate song on their 2002 album ‘Release’ – detailing the story of a teenage boy who has a one-night-stand with his rap idol after a gig.Despite Eminem never being explicitly mentioned by name, it includes lyrical references that appear to point to Marshall Mathers as inspiration – including ‘Over breakfast made jokes about Dre and his homies’, and ‘Then he joked: ‘Hey man, your name isn’t Stan, is it?’ (as a nod to Eminem’s 2000 chart-topping single). Reacting to ‘The Night I Fell In Love’ in 2002, Dr Dre hinted at Eminem’s forthcoming response-track when he commented: “We needed another song anyway.

Pet Shop Boys have responded to the recent comparisons of their classic single ‘It’s A Sin’ to Olly Alexander’s Eurovision entry ‘Dizzy’.Alexander released the track last month ahead of the Years & Years singer representing the UK at the Eurovision Song Contest in Malmö, Sweden next month.‘Dizzy’ was co-written by Alexander and electronic producer Danny L Harle (Charli XCX, Dua Lipa, Caroline Polachek). Upon the track’s release, the former explained that it was “inspired by a lot of music we love from the ’80s like Erasure, Adamski and of course Pet Shop Boys”.Some listeners have pointed out similarities to Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe’s 1987 hit specifically.

Olly Alexander is set to make an appearance on EastEnders next month.The Years & Years singer is this year’s UK Eurovision Song Contest entrant, and will be visiting Walford as part of his rehearsal process.According to the BBC, Alexander will be heading to the fictional Queen Vic pub after finishing up rehearsals for his Eurovision performance nearby.Alexander has spoken about the opportunity to feature on the UK’s most popular TV soap, saying: “I’m thrilled to be making my first appearance on EastEnders and in the most iconic pub in the UK.”The It’s A Sin star continued: “I’m so happy I got to meet some true screen legends and spend time on set with the brilliant cast and crew.”Alexander shared how he had initially wanted the appearance to be kept secret from his mum: “I wanted to surprise my mum as it’s her favourite show but I guess the cat is out of the bag now, she’s gonna love it!”

Pet Shop Boys have spoken out about Drake’s unauthorised sample of one of their tracks in a new interview.The comments come after the band claimed last October that the rapper used a sample of their hit ‘West End Girls’ without their knowledge or permission.The alleged infringement was included in Drake’s latest album ‘For All The Dogs’, on a track called ‘All The Parties’ in which the Canadian artist sings: “East End boy and West End girls.” The lyrics and melody mirrored the Pet Shop Boys’ own song, in which they sing: “In a West End town, a dead end world/ The East End boys and West End girls.”Following its release, the London duo took to X/Twitter to write: “Surprising to hear Drake singing the chorus of ‘West End Girls’ in the track ‘All the Parties’ on his new album. No credit given or permission requested.”Now, in a new interview with NME, Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe have shed more light on the debate, and said that it has all been resolved.They began by making a nod towards the topic, recalling the differences between modern and ‘80s rap.

Johnny Marr was joined on stage by Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant at London’s Eventim Apollo last night (April 12) – check out footage from the show below. Marr’s The Spirit Power Tour arrived at the Hammersmith venue, and welcomed Tennant at the end of the set for covers of David Bowie’s ‘Rebel Rebel’ and Electronic’s ‘Getting Away With It’, a song on which Tennant himself sang the original lead vocals.

Pet Shop Boys have announced an intimate show at London’s Koko next month – find out all the ticket details and information below.The 80s synth pop legends recently announced the details of their new album ‘Nonetheless’, and shared lead single ‘Loneliness’. The album comes out on April 26, with James Ford acting as producer.The band will celebrate the release of the show with a small show at London’s Koko on May 26.

Pet Shop Boys have covered David Bowie’s ‘All the Young Dudes’ in a performance for BBC Radio 2 – check out the video below. The duo played a session at Maida Vale Studios on Friday (February 23) with the BBC Concert Orchestra for the station, also playing their new single ‘Loneliness’ and their 1988 classic ‘Left to My Own Devices’. The 80s synth pop legends recently announced the details of their new album ‘Nonetheless’, and shared lead single ‘Loneliness’.

Paul Mescal lead romantic fantasy film All Of Us Strangers.Written and directed by Andrew Haigh (Weekend, 45 Years), the film is the second screen adaptation of the 1987 novel Strangers by Taichi Yamada.A synopsis for the film reads: “One night in his near-empty tower block in contemporary London, Adam (Andrew Scott) has a chance encounter with a mysterious neighbor Harry (Paul Mescal), which punctures the rhythm of his everyday life.“As a relationship develops between them, Adam is preoccupied with memories of the past and finds himself drawn back to the suburban town where he grew up, and the childhood home where his parents appear to be living, just as they were on the day they died, 30 years before.”During a scene set a few days before Christmas, Adam (Scott) joins his parents at the tree to help put up some decorations, when a radio can be heard playing the Pet Shop Boys‘ cover of ‘Always On My Mind’.The track, which Elvis Presley made a hit in 1972, was released by the Pet Shop Boys in 1987.

Pet Shop Boys have shared an exclusive clip of them performing ‘It’s A Sin’ for their new ‘Dreamworld’ Copenhagen live movie – watch it exclusively on NME above.The band’s new live film – recorded during their 2023 ‘Dreamworld: The Greatest Hits Live’ world tour – will hit cinemas on January 31 and February 4.“This cinematic celebration of Pet Shop Boys’ unparalleled career promises to be an unmissable experience for fans and music enthusiasts alike,” said Marc Allenby, CEO of Trafalgar Releasing who are sharing the film.“Join us in celebrating four decades of musical innovation as we bring the magic of ‘Dreamworld: The Greatest Hits Live’ to the big screen.”Tickets for the screenings are available here.In a five-star review of Pet Shop Boys’ ‘Dreamworld’ gig in Hull in 2022, NME praised “the band’s infallible greatest hits collection, and their ability to constantly stay ahead of the pack”.It added: “[The concert] shows the range of styles and subjects tackled in their canon, and is a two-hour joyous celebration of their decades of holding pop to a higher standard.”The band also recently extended the ‘Dreamworld’ tour into 2024 with new UK and Irish dates.Find any remaining tickets here and see the dates below.JUNE 202404 – OVO Hydro, Glasgow06 – Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham08 – Utilita Arena, Birmingham 09 – Co-op Live, Manchester 11 – SSE Arena, Belfast22 – Isle of Wight Festival 2024, Newport

Sleaford Mods have shared their cover of Pet Shop Boys’ ‘West End Girls’, with all profits for the new track set to go towards homeless charity Shelter.The Nottingham duo received the blessing of Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe to release the track – who also decided to remix the cover for an additional new version that will feature on the limited edition single.Sleaford Mods recorded their take of the 1986 classic between tours for their latest album ‘UK GRIM‘.The song – which is accompanied by a music video directed by Ewen Spencer – is available to stream now, ahead of a physical release that will be available to purchase during Sleaford Mods’ current tour and in shops from December 15.Check out the track below.A limited edition, seven-inch vinyl will be sold at the merchandise stand on the duo’s upcoming UK tour dates. A 12-inch edition single, featuring remixes from the Pet Shop Boys, HiFi Sean and Extnnddntwrk, can also be pre-ordered now on the website.“West End Girls is a song that’s very close to my heart, my coming-of-age track in so many ways,” said Sleaford Mods’ Andrew Fearn in a press statement.Jason Williamson added: “I’ve been listening to the Pet Shop Boys’ albums ‘Please’ and ‘Actually’ a lot, the music still fits this landscape so well.

Pet Shop Boys have announced a run of UK and Ireland headline shows for 2024 – you can find all the details below.The synth-pop duo – comprising Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe – took their ‘Dreamworld: The Greatest Hits Live’ show out on the road this summer, with performances taking place across the UK and Ireland.They also topped the bill at this year’s edition of the Eden Sessions series in Cornwall.Today (November 7), Pet Shop Boys confirmed that they’ll return to these shores next summer for a run of five ‘Dreamworld’ concerts. The group are set to play arena dates in Glasgow (June 4), Nottingham (6), Birmingham (8), Manchester (9) and Belfast (11).Tickets go on general sale at 9am GMT this Friday (November 10) – you’ll be able to buy yours here.

Isle Of Wight Festival has announced the first line-up for its 2024 edition, with Green Day, Pet Shop Boys and The Prodigy set to headline.The iconic event is due to take place at Seaclose Park in Newport between June 20-23.

Pet Shop Boys have claimed that Drake used a sample of their hit ‘West End Girls’ without their knowledge or permission.Yesterday (October 6), Drake released his eighth studio album ‘For All The Dogs‘. On a track titled ‘All The Parties’, the Canadian rapper sings: “East End boy and West End girls.” The lyrics and melody mirror the Pet Shop Boys’ own song, in which they sing: “In a West End town, a dead end world/ The East End boys and West End girls.”The London duo took to Twitter the same day, writing: “Surprising to hear @Drake singing the chorus of “West End Girls” in the track “All the Parties” on his new album.

Primavera Sound has announced that it will debut in Peru this year, marking the festival’s latest expansion.The festival, which also hosts editions in Barcelona, Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Bogotá and more, will debut in its newest South America territory in November.Primavera Sound in Lima will take place on November 22 and December 2, 7 and 8, where The Cure, Bad Gyal, Pet Shop Boys and Bad Religion will headline.

Primavera Sound Madrid 2023 has cancelled its opening day due to safety reasons amid “severe” weather.As explained in a statement posted to the festival’s social media pages, the first day (June 8) has been called off “due to the persistent severe weather experienced in recent weeks that have affected the pre-production of the festival and in view of the adverse forecast that is expected for Thursday with heavy storms during the afternoon”.“Primavera Sound Madrid continues and will open its doors in the Ciudad del Rock in Arganda del Rey on Friday, June 9 and Saturday, June 10,” they added. “We will continue to keep you informed of any new developments through the festival’s official communication channels on the website and social networks.

Pet Shop Boys‘ Neil Tennant wrote and sent to the late Janice Long in the ’80s has been discovered at a record shop in Altrincham, Trafford.As BBC News reports, the frontman thanked the Radio 1 DJ for playing the synth-pop duo’s debut single ‘West End Girls’ in the note, which was found in a 12-inch vinyl edition of the track.The letter is dated “12 April, 1984” – three days after the song was released.Tennant, who worked as a journalist at Smash Hits at the time, provided some information on how he and bandmate Chris Lowe had recorded ‘West End Girls’ with producer Bobby Orlando after meeting him in New York.“We’ve now recorded over half an album and are due to go back to New York quite soon to finish it,” he continued in the unearthed letter.“Anyway, hope you like the 12″ I’ve enclosed and thanks for playing ‘West End Girls’ on Thursday. As far as I’m concerned, you’re now an honorary Pet Shop Girl!” See an image in the tweet below.A letter written by Pet Shop Boys star Neil Tennant, thanking Radio 1's Janice Long for playing the band's debut single (“West End Girls”) in 1984.

Pet Shop Boys have announced Greatest Hits show as part of this year’s Eden Sessions series in Cornwall.The synth-pop duo – aka Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe – are due to perform a two-hour career-spanning set at the Eden Project on June 28 as part of their UK and European ‘Dreamworld: The Greatest Hits Live’ tour.Rita Broe, managing director of Eden Sessions Ltd, said: “We are thrilled to announce that Pet Shop Boys will be bringing their acclaimed greatest hits tour to Eden.“Their stunning production set against the iconic backdrop of the Biomes will be a breathtaking and unique experience.”Tickets go on general sale at 5pm GMT next Monday (February 20) – you’ll be able to buy yours here.The 2023 Eden Sessions will also feature gigs from The War On Drugs (June 18), Jack Johnson (June 23) and Lionel Richie (June 7). You can find more information about the series here.You can see the full itinerary for the Pet Shop Boys’ previously-announced UK and Ireland tour below, and find any remaining tickets here.JUNE17 – OVO Arena Wembley, London19 – 3Arena, Dublin21 – P&J Live, Aberdeen23 – M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool24 – First Direct Arena, Leeds26 – Brighton Centre, Brighton28 – Eden Project, Cornwall – new dateLast month, Pet Shop Boys revealed that they would be releasing four previously-unreleased songs this spring to accompany the 2023 edition of their Annually book.

Pet Shop Boys have said they have collaborated with Noel Gallagher on a remix of one of his new songs with his band, High Flying Birds.The duo confirmed the collaboration while speaking to students at Cambridge University. “We have just remixed Noel Gallagher. All collaborations are interesting,” vocalist Neil Tennant said.He went on to explain that he and keyboardist Chris Lowe think that the aim of a collaboration is to “work with someone who makes you sound 10 times better”.“I would like more good singers to sing more of our songs, as I think they have great potential,” continued Tennant. “As you get older you learn how music works.

New Order and Pet Shop Boys kicked off their joint North American tour over the weekend – see footage, pictures and the setlists from their opening night below.The British synthpop titans’ tour got underway at Toronto’s Budweiser Stage on Saturday (September 17) following delays due to the COVID pandemic.The Unity Tour’s revised dates include guest DJ Paul Oakenfold and take in an additional date at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center in New York. Head here for any remaining tickets.New Order opened their set on Saturday with ‘Regret’ and wrapped with a cover of Joy Division‘s ‘Love Will Tear Us Apart’.Pet Shop Boys, meanwhile, opened with ‘Surburbia’ before closing with ‘Being Boring’.

Pet Shop Boys have announced details of their summer 2023 UK arena tour.The duo, who headlined The Other Stage at Glastonbury 2022 last weekend, will continue their ‘Dreamworld: The Greatest Hits Live’ tour next year.The new tour dates will kick off with a show at London’s OVO Arena Wembley on June 17, 2023, with dates following in Aberdeen, Liverpool and Leeds.Tickets for these shows are on sale now from here, and you can see details of Pet Shop Boys’ newly announced 2023 UK tour dates below.June17 – OVO Arena Wembley, London21 – P&J Live, Aberdeen23 – M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool24 – First Direct Arena, LeedsPet Shop Boys were joined on stage at Glastonbury on Sunday night (June 26) by Years & Years’ Olly Alexander, with the two artists performing ‘Dreamland’ together.Earlier in the day, Alexander covered the Pet Shop Boys’ ‘It’s A Sin’ during Years & Years’ set on The Other Stage.Back in March, Pet Shop Boys joined forces with Soft Cell to release the joint single ‘Purple Zone’.The song was originally intended to be remixed by Pet Shop Boys until it morphed into a full collaboration, which Soft Cell’s David Ball has labelled as “probably our finest pop moment since the early 1980s”.“Working with the Pet Shop Boys was a pleasure, and this track is the perfect combination of us and them,” Soft Cell’s Marc Almond added, while Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe said: “We are thrilled to collaborate with such an inspirational duo as Soft Cell on this gorgeous song.”

Years & Years‘ Olly Alexander joined Pet Shop Boys on stage at Glastonbury 2022 tonight (June 27) – take a look below.The singer and actor joined the iconic band to perform their hit ‘It’s A Sin’, after covering it as Years & Years and starring in the Channel 4 smash hit programme by the same name.While Alexander took to the same stage earlier in the afternoon and performed a cover of the song on his own, he teamed up with the song’s writers for their packed-out headline slot on the Other Stage.Take a look here:What a moment

Soft Cell and Pet Shop Boys have teamed up for a joint single, ‘Purple Zone’, which appears on the former’s new album ‘*Happiness Not Included‘.It unites the synthpop stalwarts for a dazzling new song that will now appear on Soft Cell’s first album in 20 years, after fans responded well to its airing at recent live shows.The song was originally intended to be remixed by Pet Shop Boys until it morphed into a full collaboration, which Soft Cell’s David Ball has labelled as “probably our finest pop moment since the early 1980s”.“Working with the Pet Shop Boys was a pleasure, and this track is the perfect combination of us and them,” Soft Cell’s Marc Almond added, while Pet Shop Boys’ Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe said: “We are thrilled to collaborate with such an inspirational duo as Soft Cell on this gorgeous song.”‘Purple Zone’ is released on CD and 12” formats as well as digitally (pre-order here). The CD also features Soft Cell’s take on the X-Ray Spex cult classic ‘The Day The World Turned Day-Glo’, and the Manhattan Clique remix of ‘Purple Zone’, while the 12” boasts a full selection of mixes by Pet Shop Boys.It follows Soft Cell sharing ‘Bruises On All My Illusions’ and the album title track.

LCD Soundsystem, The Killers, J Balvin and the Pet Shop Boys all set to perform headlining sets.The Spanish festival is slated to make its return next July, after being cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It’ll be the annual event’s 15th incarnation, and is set to run between Thursday July 7 and Saturday 9.LCD Soundsystem lead the first day’s festivities, performing alongside the likes of Placebo, Caribou, Phoebe Bridgers and Stella Donnelly.

Korn‘s Jonathan Davis has shared a cover of Pet Shop Boys classic ‘It’s A Sin’ – you can listen to it below.The eerie new take on the 1987 pop classic appears on the soundtrack for the first season of popular TV series Paradise City, which also includes Machine Gun Kelly and Travis Barker‘s reworking of Edwin Collins‘ ‘A Girl Like You’.The soundtrack also includes a medley of tracks including Paradise City bands The Mavens and The Flux with their covers of Queensryche‘s ‘I Don’t Believe In Love’

Primal Scream and Pet Shop Boys have both remixed Paul Weller’s single ‘Cosmic Fringes’, it has been announced.The original version of the track was released back in February and appeared on Weller’s latest album ‘Fat Pop (Volume 1)’.Posting on Twitter earlier today (July 16), the Modfather confirmed that two new versions of the song would arrive next week (July 23).“Available for pre-order now! Music legends unite for the Cosmic Fringes remixes on vinyl, out on 23rd July!” he

New Order and Pet Shop Boys have rescheduled their joint North American tour for the third time due to the coronavirus pandemic – this time with dates set for autumn 2022.The revised tour dates now include guest DJ Paul Oakenfold and take in an additional date at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center in New York.

www.strathmore.org.At Merriweather Post Pavilion, the season will launch with a bang over the July 4th weekend with the annual, three-day M3 Rock Festival headlined by Queensryche, Night Ranger, and Kix (7/2-4).

Tom Watkins, the music manager behind Pet Shop Boys and East 17, has died aged 70.

New Order and Pet Shop Boys have announced a co-headlining tour. The ’80s legends hit the road together on The Unity Tour in September, beginning with a show at Budweiser Stage in Toronto. Check out the full list of co-headlining dates below. Get tickets here. (Pitchfork may earn a commission from purchases made through affiliate links on our site.)

Pet Shop Boys — Photo: Phil Fisk