The Civil Wars

Bad news from indie-folk duo The Civil Wars – it’s over for Joy Williams and John Paul White. By “it” we mean the partnership, although the former bandmates will likely continue performing after the split. The four-time Grammy winners have been on hiatus since 2012, over "internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition." 

The band enjoyed short-lived success together.

The pair met in 2008 during a song-writing session or "writing camp" at a music studio in Nashville, Tennessee. They released their first recording the following year, from a live performance at Eddie’s Attic in Georgia. Their first studio record was the Poison & Wine EP released later that year. The band enjoyed short-lived success, winning two Grammys for their sophomore album Barton Hollow, one for the Taylor Swift collaboration Safe & Sound and one for From This Valley, off their final album.

Continue reading: Indie/Folk Duo The Civil Wars Split Due To Rumoured Creative Differences

Ella Yelich-O’Connor, whom you may know better as Lorde, is 17 years old, an outspoken feminist and took the music industry by storm in 2013. It’s hard to think of anyone better suited to curate the soundtrack for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part I. Lionsgate just made the announcement yesterday, so it’s time to get hella excited.

We can totally see Lorde in heroine mode, fighting for the districts, by the way.

We can expect Lorde to assemble a full-on HBIC soundtrack – Marina and the Diamonds, some of her contemporary inspirations like Lana Del Rey, Animal Collective, Kanye West, Yeasayer and others, who are all on the list of likely contributors as far as we’re concerned. Lorde’s friend and fellow feminist Taylor Swift created the lead single for the first Hunger Games soundtrack with The Civil Wars, so we’d be surprised, if she didn’t at least contribute a chorus here and there.

Continue reading: This Is Not A Drill. Lorde Is Curating The Soundtrack To "Mockingjay - Part I"

The Civil Wars may have disbanded, in a not-terribly civil manner late last year, but the troubled duo have just released the second album that they had been working on. Back in November, they announced that "irreconcilable differences" were the cause of their split, as they abandoned their tour halfway through the UK leg.

Evidence of their internal struggle remains clear, though, as Joy Williams and John Paul White released separate statements about the album's release, on the band's website, suggesting that they're not on good enough terms to have released a joint statement. 

It looks unlikely at this stage that the band will tour to support the album's release. John Paul White is currently one of the musicians providing material for the TV show Nashville.

Continue reading: Terse Statements From Civil Wars - New Album Announced After Not So Civil Split

The Civil Wars have cancelled the rest of the UK tour and have blamed “internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition” for the decision.

That’s right, folks, The Civil Wars appear to be having their own little civil war. Or perhaps it’s not been very civil. It’s hard to tell. The band posted a message on their Facebook, revealing that they were unable to continue with the tour but have said little else, since.

The band, who experienced success at this year’s Grammy Awards and appeared on the song ‘Safe and Sound’ with Taylor Swift, left a message with their fans, saying “We sincerely apologize for the canceling of all of our tour dates. It is something we deeply regret. However, due to internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition we are unable to continue as a touring entity at this time. We thank each and every one of you for your amazing love & support. Our sincere hope is to have new music for you in 2013.” On a more business-like note, they went on to offer a refund service for people left out of pocket by the cancellations.

Continue reading: Civil War For The Civil Wars? Grammy Winners Cancel UK Tour