NIK KERSHAW has announced a handful of live shows in the UK and Denmark this year, see GIGS for all the dates.

KRAFTWERK, MADNESS, LOVE AND ROCKETS and THE BREEDERS have all been confirmed for the US Coachella Festival which is to take place from April 25th to 27th.

DEPECHE MODE singer DAVE GAHAN is to release a US-only remix album on March 11th. The collection will be entitled 'Hourglass - Remixes' and will available on vinyl only (although buyers will receive a CD of the tracks with the vinyl album!). See NEWS on the website for the full CD and vinyl tracklistings.

ABC's new album 'Traffic' will now be released in March rather than February as originally hoped.

EURYTHMICS will release a UK edition of their reissued 1989 album 'We Two Are One' on February 4th. The release will feature the original album in remastered form with five extra tracks including their take on THE SMITHS' 'Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me', the dance remix of 'The King And Queen Of America' and the Choir Version of 'Angel'...

UB40 have parted company with their frontman, ALI CAMPBELL after thirty years together. Campbell has made the decision as a result of ongoing dissatisfaction with the handling of the band's business affairs, however he will remain with the band long enough to complete their forthcoming dates in Australia, New Zealand and Uganda.

SCRITTI POLITTI are expecting to release their new album in the Summer. The new record, the follow up to their Mercury prize nomintated comeback album 'White Bread Black Beer', is currently untitled. Frontman GREEN has also revealed that his is working on a collaborative album with Alexis Taylor from Hot Chip.

DURAN DURAN are to reissue their 3-CD containing the albums 'Duran Duran', 'Rio' and 'Seven & The Ragged Tiger' on March 17th. The new release will once again feature the three album CDs, each packed in a mini-sleeve, in a glossy flip-top box. The release will be a limited, numbered special edition and will be manufactured as a one-off run.

REM have announced the tracklisting for their forthcoming album 'Accelerate' which will be released on March 31st. The band have already shot a video for the track 'Supernatural Superserious' which is expected to be the first single to be taken from the album. The band have also announced US tour dates in support of the album. See GIGS for all the dates and NEWS for the full album tracklisting.

KIM WILDE, HOWARD JONES and NIK KERSHAW are all on the bill of the forthcoming Esbjerg Rock Festival which will take place in Denmark on June 14th.

THE BLOW MONKEYS recent reformation has been marked by the timely release of a 2-CD compilation, 'Digging Your Scene', on February 4th. The compilation will feature all the band's hits and key tracks as well as sleevenotes written by Blow Monkeys frontman DR ROBERT.

BANANARAMA are set to headline a special two-day HERE AND NOW concert in Malaysia in March alongside HOWARD JONES, PAUL YOUNG, JOHNNY HATES JAZZ and LIMAHL. The shows will take place at Kuala Lumpur's Arena Of The Stars on March 21st and 22nd.

SWING OUT SISTER are finalising the details of their new album 'Beautiful Mess' which is scheduled to be released first in Japan (on February 27th) and later in other parts of the world. The band are also planning dates in Japan in March. See NEWS for the full album tracklisting.

PAUL YOUNG's career will be celebrated in a new 2-CD compilation 'Wherever I Lay My Hat' which is scheduled for release of February 4th. The compilation will feature thirty-three tracks including all his hits as well as the 12" versions of 'Come Back And Stay', 'Love Of The Common People' and 'I’m Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down'.

Thanks to??www.remembertheeighties.com for this weeks news!