Maida Vale

Coordinates: 51°31′39″N 0°11′24″W / 51.5274°N 0.1899°W / 51.5274; -0.1899

Maida Vale is an affluent residential district comprising the northern part of Paddington in west London, west of St John's Wood and south of Kilburn. It is part of the City of Westminster. The name derives from the Hero of Maida inn which used to be on Edgware Road near the Regent's Canal. The pub was named after General Sir John Stuart who was made Count of Maida by King Ferdinand IV of Naples and Sicily after the victory at the Battle of Maida in 1806. The area is mostly residential, and mainly affluent, with many large late Victorian and Edwardian blocks of mansion flats. It is home to the BBC Maida Vale Studios.

Geography

The Maida Vale area is regarded as being bounded by Maida Avenue and the Regent's Canal to the south, Maida Vale Road to the north east, Kilburn Park Road to the north west, and Shirland Road and Blomfield Road to the south west: an area of around 1 square kilometre (0.4 square miles). It makes up most of the W9 postal district. The southern part of Maida Vale at the junction of Paddington Basin with Regent's Canal, with many houseboats, is known as Little Venice. The area to the south-west of Maida Vale, at the western end of Elgin Avenue, was historically known as "Maida Hill", and was a recognised postal district bounded by the Avenues on the west, the Regent's Canal to the south, Maida Vale to the east and Kilburn Lane to the north. Parts of Maida Vale were also included within this. The name of "Maida Hill" had since fallen out of use, although it has been resurrected since the mid-2000s, through the 414 bus route (which terminates on Shirland Road and gives its destination as Maida Hill) and a new street market on the Piazza at the junction of Elgin Avenue and Harrow Road.

New Order

New Order are an English rock band formed in 1980, currently consisting of founding members Bernard Sumner, Stephen Morris and Gillian Gilbert, alongside Phil Cunningham and Tom Chapman. The band was formed in 1980 by Sumner (vocals, guitars, keyboards and synthesisers), ex member Peter Hook (bass and vocals) and Morris (drums, electronic drums, keyboards and synthesizers) – the remaining members of post-punk group Joy Division, following the suicide of vocalist Ian Curtis – with the addition of Gilbert (keyboards, synthesizers and guitars).

By combining post-punk with an increasing influence from electronic dance music, New Order became one of the most critically acclaimed and influential bands of the 1980s. Though the band's early years were shadowed by the legacy and basic sound of Joy Division, their experience of the early 1980s New York City club scene increased their knowledge of dance music and helped them incorporate elements of that style into their work. The band's 1983 hit "Blue Monday", the best-selling 12-inch single of all time, is one example of how the band's sound became increasingly upbeat and electronic.

BBC Radio 6 Music

BBC Radio 6 Music (also still known as BBC 6 Music or BBC 6) is one of the BBC's digital radio stations. It was known officially as BBC 6 Music from its launch on 11 March 2002 until April 2011. 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available only on digital media: DAB radio, the Internet, digital television, and in northern Europe through the Astra 2B satellite.

BBC 6 Music has been described as a "dedicated alternative music station". Many presenters have argued against the perception that the main focus is indie guitar music. The station itself describes its output as "the cutting edge music of today, the iconic and groundbreaking music of the past 40 years and unlimited access to the BBC's wonderful music archive".

Often referred to as the sister station of BBC Radio 2, it shares common features and DJs with both BBC Radio 1 and Radio 2. For instance, it operates a playlist of similar 'A/B/C' structure to both Radios 1 and 2 and regularly shares selective tracks on its 'A' playlist with both stations, although it is generally less reliant upon chart music than the more mainstream stations.

2015

2015 (MMXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (dominical letter D) of the Gregorian calendar, the 2015th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 15th year of the 3rd millennium, the 15th year of the 21st century, and the 6th year of the 2010s decade.

2015 was designated as:

Events

January

La Roux

La Roux (/lɑːˈruː/ lah-ROO) is an English synthpop act formed in 2006 by singer Elly Jackson and record producer Ben Langmaid. Their debut album La Roux (2009) was a critical and commercial success, winning a Grammy Award and producing hit singles such as "In for the Kill" and "Bulletproof". Recording of a follow-up album was marred by unsuccessful collaborations, the cancellation of two planned release dates, and reported conflict between the duo. Langmaid ultimately left the group, and Jackson released a second album, Trouble in Paradise, in 2014, maintaining the former duo's name.

History

2006–10: Beginnings and self-titled album

In 2006, Jackson and Langmaid were introduced by a mutual friend. Their first project was named "Automan" and they wrote largely acoustic music due to Jackson's great admiration of acts like Nick Drake and Joni Mitchell. The band's name refers to Jackson's red hair and tomboyish appearance, mingling the masculine ("le roux") and feminine ("la rousse") French terms; she has said: "To me, it means 'red-haired one'—and it does, vaguely. It's just a male version of 'red-haired one'".