Friday 22nd January

Radiohead guitarist Ed O’Brien has admitted that the band nearly split in 2007 during the production of seventh album ‘In Rainbows’.

O’Brien said it was the record’s release plan, which saw fans pay whatever they liked to download the album, that inspired the Oxford quintet to continue.

He told music business site Midem.com: “The recording of the album took three years. Which is a long time by anybody’s standards. It pretty much half killed us. Whether the band would continue was very much in the balance.

“It was empowering [the release format]. You can’t put it into a balance sheet, this feeling of empowerment.

“It completely rejuvenated us as a band. It got the creative juices flowing. You can’t put a price on that. That’s the stuff that keeps you going.”

Meanwhile, the group have confirmed a one-off show to benefit Oxfam’s Haiti earthquake fund.

Tickets for the gig at the Music Box Theatre At The Fonda in Los Angeles on Sunday are being auctioned on Ticketmaster.

A statement reads: “We’re in the middle of recording at the moment, so you’ll be catching us on the fly, but if you’re up for it, then we are too.”

Bassist Mani has revealed that Primal Scream are working on a new album.

The former Stone Roses man told the NME that work is underway on the follow-up to their 2008 release ‘Beautiful Future’.

“This year is a writing year and it’s going well,” he said.

“We’re trundling along. We’ve got some half ideas left over from the last album, so we’ll bring them up and give them a kick around, we’re into it.”

Finally, Gorillaz have released details of their next album.

‘Plastic Beach’ will feature collaborations with Mark E Smith, Snoop Dogg and Mos Def amongst others.

The first single, Stylo, is set for release on January 26th.

The album’s tracklisting is as follows:

1 Orchestral Intro (ft. Sinfonia ViVA)

2 Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach (ft. Snoop Dogg and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)

3 White Flag (ft. Kano, Bashy, and the National Orchestra for Arabic Music)

4 Rhinestone Eyes

5 Stylo (ft. Bobby Womack and Mos Def)

6 Superfast Jellyfish (ft. Gruff Rhys and De La Soul)

7 Empire Ants (ft. Little Dragon)

8 Glitter Freeze (ft. Mark E Smith)

9 Some Kind of Nature (ft. Lou Reed)

10 On Melancholy Hill

11 Broken

12 Sweepstakes (ft. Mos Def and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)

13 Plastic Beach (ft. Mick Jones and Paul Simonon)

14 To Binge (ft. Little Dragon)

15 Cloud of Unknowing (ft. Bobby Womack and Sinfonia ViVA)

16 Pirate Jet