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Mystery Jets  

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Mystery Jets (formed in 2004) is an English alternative and indie-rock band, best known for their second full-length album “Twenty One”, hailing from Eel Pie Island, Twickenham, London, England.

Originally formed of 12 year old drummer Blaine Harrison, guitarist William Rees, and Blaine’s father Henry Harrison on bass, the group underwent a series of lineup alterations prior to their musical debut. Following the arrival of Kai Fish on bass and Tamara Pearce-Higgins on the organ, Henry Harrison became the second guitarist and the band settled on the moniker The Misery Jets. Prior to the band’s debut EP Blaine misspelled Misery Jets “Mystery Jets” on his drum skin and pleased with the result the band kept it.

Having practiced in Henry’s Eel Pie Island boat shed, the band began practicing steadily with Blaine assuming the role of lead singer. Influenced by the melodies of Hall and Oates and experimentalism of Pink Floyd, Mystery Jets released their eponymous debut EP in 2004. Produced by Bishop Dante, the group’s subsequent EP the “Eel Pie Island” was issued later in 2004, following which the band began to develop new material and tightness on a modest UK tour. Mystery Jet’s first official single “Zoo Time” was released on up-and-coming label Transgressive Records, after which the band hosted a series of illegal parties. Due to this exposure the group were subsequently signed by 697 Recordings, who issued the single “The Boy Who Ran Away”.

Mystery Jets’ debut studio album “Making Dens” was released in March 2006, extolled by many, aided by the singlex “You Can’t Fool Me Dennis”, “Diamonds in the Dark”, and “Alas Agnes”. Following the release the band hosted a tribute show to Syd Barrett, featuring artists Kid Harpoon, Kate Nash, and Dan Treacy among others, and embarked on their first worldwide tour. In May 2007, the band released the U.S. only album “Zootime”, which was almost entirely made up of songs from their debut “Making Dens”.

Ahead of their sophomore album “Twenty One”, Mystery Jets released the single “Young Love” featuring indie-darling Laura Marling. The album’s second single was the seductively groovy “Two Doors Down”, which reached No. 24 on the UK Singles Chart. “Twenty One”, produced by Erol Alkan and Nick Launay, earned widespread critically acclaim, peaking at No. 42 on the UK Albums chart. Following the release the band moved away from 679 Recording and signed with the established independent Rough Trade Records. With new label backing Mystery Jets issued their third studio album “Serotonin” in 2011 lead by the singles “Flash a Hungry Smile” and “Dreaming of Another World”. The band’s fourth LP 2012’s “Radlands”, was recorded in a home studio by the Colorado River of Texas, and was supported by extensive international touring.

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New-indie veterans Mystery Jets have been delighting their fans with delicious tracks since 2004. From the eponymous ‘Making Dens’ through to the more contemporary, synthesised ‘Radlands’, the band have accumulated an impressive selection of dance-inducing, sing-a-long-lending songs that excel in their live performance.

Lead singer Blaine Harrison and the boys tore through their bass-heavy classic ‘Half in Love with Elizabeth’, as the distinctively shaggy-haired and sparkly-topped frontman inspired a high-pitched chant from his audience. They plunged into the love lament ‘Serotonin’ with its recognisable guitar riff, as Harrison’s London drawl seeped through, before crashing into the high-paced ‘Hideaway’.

Emotions rose and the pace slowed for the tragically wonderful ‘Flakes’, causing a sea of swaying arms from their tightly packed crowd and some rather spine-tingling harmonies. And of course we can’t forget ‘After Dark’ - the positively Daft Punky collaboration with The Count & Sinden, a perfect piece of dance-pop with plenty of synthesisers and a samba beat.

With an array of tracks, from feet-movers to heart-clenchers, the group put on a superb, eclectic show. It’s alleged that Mystery Jets were originally called ‘The Misery Jets’ before Harrison accidentally misspelt the name on their drum kit – let’s just say we’re definitely glad they kept their new one. Despite some of their heartbreak-inspired tracks, you certainly won’t be left feeling miserable after watching these fellas.

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Mystery Jets, already, have had quite the eccentric career; starting out on Eel Pie Island in the mid-noughties, their debut record, Making Dens, was a strange brew of influences - it was almost as if they’d made a progressive indie rock record. That was during a time, of course, when frontman Blake Harrison could count his dad, Henry, amongst his bandmates; he no longer tours with the band, but as far as I can discern, he’s still involved in the recording process. When they followed up Making Dens with the terrific Making Dens in 2008, it marked one of the great reinventions in recent British history; suddenly, the eccentricity that had marked their previous output fell by the wayside, and in its place, we simply had a fabulous pop album. On stage, the setup’s remained much the same since Harrison Sr.’s departure, save for the loss of bass player Kai Fish a few years later; Harrison Jr., who suffers with spina bifida, plays gigs seated, but still flits between guitar and keyboards - the band also have a policy, as far as possible, to avoid venues that don’t offer suitable access for disabled fans. Guitarist William Rees takes on lead vocal duties on his fair share of songs, too, including Laura Marling collaboration ‘Young Love’, which they performed with her at London’s Royal Festival Hall back in 2012, the same year they dropped their most recent full-length, Radlands; expect them back before long with new material and dates.

The first time I saw the Mystery Jets, banging pots and pans and strumming acoustic guitars playing to a confused crowd of onlookers outside a student union bar in south west London, it was obvious that there was something about them that was a little... different (and not just the fact that one of the guitarist was the singer’s Dad). The last time I was in the same room as them, watching them play a rapturously received set to a sold out crowd at the Royal Festival Hall, things were certainly slicker, but I was delighted to see that the uniqueness that made them so intriguing to me in the first place hadn’t left them (their Dad had, however, made a dignified exit by this point). It was just that Blaine Harrison and co. had added more strings to their bow, delving in to straight up pop (with the likes of the superb "Two Doors Down" and "Greatest Hits") and heart wrenching balladry (have you heard "Flake" live? Oh my...) without losing their wide eyed, everything and the kitchen sink approach to exploring the possibilities that still remain in indie rock. If they’re not counted as national treasures already, I’d wager they’re only one more great record away.

Great gig. Band are very tight and worried through brilliant back catalogue as well as unheard new stuff. Excellent venue at Wylam brewery as well. Intimate size so great atmosphere. Highly recommend the band and venue!

One of the best bands I've ever seen! Great concert!! Just wish they could play something of the album Radlands!Having the opportunity to see them in such small venues is amazing! Totally awesome experience!

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Mystery Jets: “You never know what the future holds”

• Fri 3rd April, 2020

In September 2019, indie heroes Mystery Jets were two weeks out from releasing a career-defining sixth album, hot on the heels of sets at Glastonbury, Truck and Reading & Leeds over the summer and propelled by the power of lead single ‘Screwdriver’. That track took on the far right over a stomping riff and a call to “Fight them with love!”.

Fast forward six months and Blaine Harrison, bassist Jack Flanagan and drummer Kapil Trivedi have had to navigate a lengthy delay to the record’s release while Blaine recovered from an operation, as well as the departure of founding member Will Rees. Since we talked to the Jets they’ve had to postpone their tour (again) and the physical release of the record due to the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak. You’d forgive the band for being downbeat, but when we get Blaine and Jack on the Dorkphone they’re both in high spirits about finally getting their songs out into the world.

“It was two weeks before the release, so it was pretty hairy,” Blaine reflects of the original delay due to his time in hospital. “It had to happen. Unfortunately, we tried everything in our power to find a way of sticking to the original plan and putting the record out in September and going on tour in the autumn. But it was actually our record label that said, it can wait. I suppose I just feel so thankful that we’ve got a team around us that put our wellbeing and health first.”

“I think maybe 20 years ago, the music industry wasn’t built that way,” Blaine continues. “We’ve become a lot better, I think, in terms of mental health, being aware of not putting artists under too much pressure. I think it was really nice for us to recognize that our fans were happy to wait for the record to come out when I was out of the hospital. So that’s something I’m really thankful for.”

Neither are the band worried about having released over half the tracks on the record prior to it finally being unleashed in full. “This way like we’ve done with ‘A Billion Heartbeats’, putting out six tracks [before the album], it’s a completely different way of releasing music. But it feels actually really exciting as an artist as well because you engage with your listeners and then by the time the record comes out it’s almost like the final gift. So as opposed to being the start of that dialogue, it’s almost the culmination of the dialogues; it’s a different way of looking at it.

If ‘Hospital Radio’, the lead-off single released last summer, was made pertinent by Blaine’s time in treatment, the full-blown coronavirus crisis gripping the world has highlighted the necessity of robust, well-provisioned and crucially universal healthcare. The track positively screams out of the speakers in a rally against the degradation of the NHS by consecutive governments. “We will be the air inside your lungs.”

After originally planning to release ‘A Billion Heartbeats’ in September 2019, did sitting on the album give the band any nagging doubts about the album? Jack is unequivocal. “I stand by it, I’m really proud of it,” he affirms. “It’s actually nice because, by the time the process is over, you can barely listen to the songs anymore, because we self-produce stuff and you’re kind of stuck inside it. [Now] we’ve had this long break from it, it’s nice to actually give it a bit of a rest from listening to it before we go into rehearsals because everything feels so fresh and new again. And I hope that translates to the performances.”

Those performances, now pencilled in for December 2020, will have to take place without founder and guitar maestro Will Rees, after he announced his departure last month having started the band with Blaine at the age of eight. “I think it’s quite a natural thing, it was never a case of kind of growing apart,” Blaine explains. “We’ve been on this incredible, lifelong journey together making music under the band’s name, but obviously as well as [that], any musician also has a hunger to express themselves in their own right.”

“Something that I feel very passionately about is that our band is very much like a family. I mean, you know, my dad’s in it, so in the most literal sense it is a family. When we did our Jetrospective shows at the end of 2017 it really just reaffirmed something that I’ve always sort of felt all along which is that if you’re a Mystery Jet you can go out into the world, but you can always come back…” “It’s an open door,” Jack offers. “You never know what the future holds,” Blaine continues. “That’s the thing in music, it’s impossible to see further down the road than about six months because anything can happen.” Never mind six months, even in the six weeks since Dork chatted to Blaine and Jack, the sands have shifted around the music industry more drastically than any time in recent memory.

With the album finally set for a digital release in April (the vinyl will have to wait) and the tour now shifted to December, the Jets will be using the run to continue their work with Attitude is Everything, raising awareness of accessibility issues in live music.

“In two or three cases, there are venues which are in the process of going through the assessment,” Blaine explains, referring to Attitude is Everything’s charter of best practice. “But it’s about going to those venues and speaking to them and helping educate them. Rather than just say we will point-blank, not play your venue, it’s important to perhaps have one or two shows where you go there and show them what the requirements of a disabled artist or audience member are, because a lot of the time I think there’s almost a preconception that this idea of a disabled artist is almost a mythical being.”

Blaine’s enthusiasm for the work they’re doing is obvious even over a crackling phone line, and he stresses that accessibility isn’t just an issue for when someone arrives at 7pm for doors. “For someone with a disability, that journey of going out and seeing a show begins at home before they’ve even booked that ticket. Because they’re already questioning, will l be able to find someone to come with me? Do I need to buy two tickets? Will the taxi be able to drop me off in front of the venue? Will I be able to get into the venue? Will I be able to get served at the bar? All those questions are so important for someone with access needs, and they need to be addressed right from that very point of seeing an ad for a show or festival that you want to go to. That event needs to feel accessible from that moment. That’s where that journey begins.”

With small venues coming under increasing pressure from developers, gentrification and strains on their revenue streams, Harrison says the fight for accessibility is inextricably linked. “The more that we can help make these places cultural institutions, the more people there will be to fight them, the more cultural value they have. Thekla (Bristol’s legendary floating venue) is a great example of somewhere that has been saved. It’s not the most accessible venue, you know? But it has been saved. It’s about working with venues and saying, ‘let’s look at some of the things that you can do’ rather than just saying, ‘we’re not going to play here’, it’s about looking at those steps together that can be taken.”

When they (eventually) arrive at these venues, they’ll come boasting their most powerful, cohesive (if not necessarily quintessential) collection of songs, their messages born on the streets of London over three years of attending protests and absorbing their sentiments. That marked a contrast from the way they approached crafting the album’s predecessor. “I would definitely say the themes of ‘Curve of the Earth’ were very personal,” explains Blaine. “It was quite an inward journey, because although it had this kind of expansive feel to the sonics, the subject matter of the songs are very much about things that were happening to us.

“I think after having, in a way made such a personal expression through those songs, I think it felt that the only way was to then actually look elsewhere. I felt that rather than writing from the outside looking in, as we did on ‘Curve of the Earth’,” Blaine says, quoting that album’s centrepiece, the soaring ‘Bubblegum’, “This was about being on the inside looking out.”

“Obviously also the last four years since ‘Curve’ came out the world both culturally as well as politically has changed hugely,” admits Blaine. “Trump came in, and the referendum was in the summer of 2016, just after ‘Curve’ came out. So because of the geopolitical and cultural landscape changing so much, it felt like actually, that’s where we needed to turn our attention as songwriters.

“I do think, as a songwriter and a storyteller, your art is a reflection of the times you’re living in, and that very much felt like where we needed to go next.”

That change of focus applied not only to the emotion and inspiration behind the songs but also a shift in how the Jets captured those sounds on tape. “Sonically speaking ‘air’ was very important to ‘Curve of the Earth’, this sort of sensation of airiness in the music,” Blaine elucidates. “We wanted that kind of ethereal quality to pad out the songs. It was a very layered record whereas ‘A Billion Heartbeats’ it’s quite a guitar-heavy record and I think it was really important for us that the guitars really feel like they’re smashing against your eardrums.” The band achieved this by hunkering down in the studio, which they describe as a “bunker” and plugging guitars straight to the mixing desk and eschewing amplifiers. The result is their most direct and punchy release to date.

With six songs already released as singles (re-hyping a release after such a delay will have that effect), there’s still plenty to delve into when the album is released. ‘Campfire Song’ crackles on a kindling of an anthemic chorus, gut-punching verses and a soaring key change in the middle section. “You know when you stumble across something that’s wrong, but it feels so right?” chuckles Jack cheekily. “It’s one of those things that’s sort of a dark secret that you learn as a songwriter. Once you’ve got that tool in your belt, you need to be very careful… and use it seldomly,” Blaine continues. “I think on ‘Campfire Song’ it just felt like it was in the spirit of the song to kind of lift it at the end. It goes up a tone and a half or something, so quite a lot. Key changes are I suppose so associated with cheesy pop songs. We wanted to recontextualize the idea of what a key change could be.” It certainly has the desired effect here, sending the final chorus stratospheric and transforming a mournful song of solidarity to something ecstatic.

‘Cenotaph’, with its haunting hook, “Every exit is an entrance somewhere else”, deals with the division riven by the U.K’s 2016 vote on EU membership. “Brexit is something that has palpably divided the country, across a generational divide. It’s ruined Sunday family lunches for the last four years. It’s been so depressing, so polarizing and divisive,” sighs Blaine. “But I think what I wanted to do is to try and find hope amidst all the bad. In the verse, it says: “Sad melodies pass down the boulevards, stars in a sea of blue.” That was inspired by the EU People’s Vote march. I mean I went to about three of them and it felt… I suppose heartbreaking.”

While the torment of Brexit maybe seems small-fry compared with the pandemic we’re currently getting our weary heads around, the ordeal allowed ugly far-right ideas to rear their heads and caused very real pain to a lot of people suddenly feeling unwelcome in the UK. “I don’t identify with this idea of nationality,” Blaine tells us, the conviction in his voice palpable. “I think nationality, like sexuality, is a human construct. It’s not real. There isn’t a giant fence around Britain saying on this side of the fence you’re British on the other side, you’re French or Dutch or Belgian? It is a construct. This notion of nationality, I find is actually so toxic. I wanted to find an expression of hope in that kind of post-referendum landscape that we’ve been living in for the last four years.”

The euphoric melodies of ‘Watching Yourself Slowly Disappear’ are rooted in tragedy, Blaine writing the song over the course of a day having heard about the disappearance of Scott Hutchison of Frightened Rabbit. Despite not being able to collaborate directly with the band in the past, Harrison clearly had an enormous respect for Scott. “I just always really admired the songwriting and the kind of emotional honesty that he always spoke with in interviews and in his lyrics. When the news came that he’d passed, I felt very affected by that. At the time I was on a writing trip and staying in a boat on the river outside of London. I was surrounded by water and I suppose the lyrics really came from that. I wrote it in one sitting in about three hours, which is very rare for me. Normally songs come from drafting and redrafting trying to get inside the lyrics, whereas that song really came out. And I think that was because what had inspired it was so direct,” Blaine reflects.

The band hope the song can encourage further dialogue around mental health, with the refrain ‘You can’t help feeling weird’ reassuring us we aren’t alone. “I suppose really the song is both a tribute to him and also an appeal to artists and people just to be open about vulnerability. We’re living in a time where mental health has been hugely de-stigmatized, which is amazing.

“We need to keep those conversations because we’re all going to have times where someone in our circle, be it a friend, someone we work with, a family member is going to suffer from mental health. The way that you deal with that is by being there as someone to talk to and recognizing if there’s anyone around you that needs someone to chat with. I think Scott’s music always did that. Because he was so open with his vulnerability and talking about whatever he was going through in his music, it’s something that we can all do more and get better at.”

Expanding on the song’s origin is something the band were cautious of doing when putting out an initial press release to promote ‘A Billion Heartbeats’, “I didn’t want to make it too explicit because I felt that… it’s always tricky explaining lyrics because… I’ve got no problem with it, but I think the truth is we all will find what we need in music,” Blaine explains. “We will find our own meanings and find our own associations with songs because we relate them to our own experience. I wouldn’t want to necessarily put it in people’s minds, to define it because it’s so awesome that we find our own place with songs-” “You can’t really shut someone in with it, can you? Everything’s gotta be open,” Jack offers.

“We have a song on ‘Curve of the Earth’ called ‘Taken by the Tide’,” continues Blaine. “And that’s a song which was about Kai [Fish, the group’s old bass player] leaving the band. But actually I never really talked about that too much. And as a result of that, we’ve had messages from people all over the world saying ‘this song spoke to me and in such a way because of my experiences’. I think if I had come forward and said, this is what the song’s about, this is what I want you to be thinking about, those people wouldn’t be able to find themselves in that music. And I felt the same about ‘Watching Yourself Slowly Disappear’.”

‘Wrong Side of the Tracks’ closes the album with a tribute to the youth climate movement, “This hypocrisy in the way politicians and corporations have run the world for the last 30 years, it’s taken young people to point that out. I wanted to write a song about that. How I feel so much hope.” A restrained and plaintive piano track reminding today’s firebrands “Don’t grow up, it’s a trap”, it comes imbibed with a real ‘Last Gang in Town’ energy and a wash of pathos.

With the album having been informed by years of protest in the UK, is there a despondency seeing how far we are from tackling climate change, privatization and the spectre of nationalism? “I feel that protest is all we’ve got. It’s how we communicate togetherness, our compassion, our resilience. We’re now looking at a further five years of Tory leadership, so I think we need to keep that spirit alive. And I think that’s one of the purposes of this record.” ‘History Has Its Eyes on You’ sums that sentiment up perfectly in verse. “Be kind and never quit, take pride and keep those fires lit.”

Taken from the April issue of Dork. Mystery Jets’ album ‘A Billion Heartbeats’ is out now.

Words: Dillon Eastoe

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Mystery Jets: A Billion Heartbeats review – woke without the edge

(Caroline International)

U nlikely survivors from the mid-00s glut of British guitar bands, Mystery Jets have never really deviated from the template they established with their 2006 debut, Making Dens : it’s essentially melodic indie that’s unlikely to scare even the most cowardly of horses – think the Kooks without the edge. Their seventh album was originally scheduled for a September 2019 release, but was delayed because of the ill-health of frontman Blaine Harrison. It’s now belatedly seeing the light of day, but there’s precious little to distinguish it from its six predecessors, save some slightly more politically woke lyrics.

Opener Screwdriver addresses the resurgence of the far right in Britain; Wrong Side of the Tracks pays tribute to Greta Thunberg. History Has Its Eyes on You, meanwhile, was inspired by the women’s marches for gender equality, but is so insipid musically that it has to be chalked up as a point for the patriarchy. Rather more engaging are the martial rhythm of Petty Drone and the urgency of the title track’s punchy chorus. But they are exceptions, and taken as a whole, A Billion Heartbeats offers depressingly little that’s new, surprising or even interesting.

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Mystery Jets interview: ‘There’s a real bond that you can forge with your fans from touring’

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The Mystery Jets’ studio used to be an old button factory, and you can see evidence of the building’s former purpose around the rooms – in the detailed buttons on the sofa, and a framed photo of the then-manager (now studio landlord) in his heyday.

It’s a cosy space – there are fairy lights strung up around the two rooms, a model aeroplane perched on a shelf above stacks of keyboards and the whole place feels wonderfully not-in-London.

Frontman Blaine Harrison used to live across the road from here, and describes it as a “revolving door” for other artists who have been using it as well. “There was this feeling of it being your house where people would drop in,” he says. “Immediately following the tour we’ve got a couple of months where we’ll probably be in here. We use this space for a lot of different projects. Maybe some writing…”

About a day before we’re due to meet, the band drop a new track, “The World Is Overtaking Me”. It’s a surprise considering it feels as though they only just put out their latest album Curve of the Earth (it actually came out in January).

“That’s part of the album sessions – there’s a lot of material that we recorded," Harrison explains. “It’s the Whole Earth EP, so it’s kind of us showing the rest of the curve, really. This completes the circle.”

Yet the song, and from the sounds of it the rest of the EP, has a different tone to the material on Curve . Where frontman Blaine Harrison’s vocals sound not unlike Thom Yorke on opener “Telomere”, “The World Is Overtaking Me” has a bluesier feel, with perhaps a little more of the energy on heard in some of their previous records.

“It’s a bit more tongue in cheek in a way, and a bit less nostalgic and ponderous. Bit less heavy,” guitarist/vocalist Will Rees says.

“Certainly three of the songs on the EP were written in the suite of songs that ended up on Curve of the Earth ,” Harrison says. "But for one reason or another… ‘The World Is Overtaking Me’… that one was on the final tracklisting but didn’t make it onto the album.

“We all came in here after spending two weeks completely apart, listening to the record over and over. And we were all slightly at odds over what the record should be. That song, sadly, was shaved off. Then ‘Candle’ and ‘Centurion’, they were very close as well. But I think, in losing those tracks, it helped us know what Curve of the Earth is about.”

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Like many bands, Mystery Jets are enjoying the EP as a format to keep fans happy in between records: “I think albums disappear quicker and quicker these days. So the EP is a way of keeping people involved in the record,” Rees says.

Currently they seem to be stretching themselves, not just in terms of the music itself, but also how that music is experienced. A Virtual Reality project is expected around or just after the EP, and there’s even talk of the band having headsets brought to shows.

“Apparently it takes four weeks just to load everything up onto a laptop,” Rees warns. (So don’t get too excited just yet.)

“Really we’re gearing up for autumn,” Harrison says. “That’s the tour – when the record came out, we really just did a very short set of shows, and that’s why we’re so excited about putting out the EP, because it’s new material, we’ve gotta work out how to do it. It keeps us on our toes.”

• Read more Stuart Braithwaite on Mogwai's Atomic tour

It’s no secret that the band can be a tad reluctant to play a track like “Two Doors Down” at a live show, particularly when they’re still testing out their new material: “But we’ve been busy doing festivals, so as much as we want to play the new record, we’ve got to honour our past.”

“ Curve of the Earth is a new chapter for the band,” Rees adds, “and I think one thing we’ve certainly found being a band for 10 years is that it can be quite hard to shift people’s perceptions of you.

“They heard Mystery Jets back in 2008 and think you’re this Eighties pop ‘Two Doors Down’ thing. And we’re not, and we haven't been – we’ve explored lots of different things since then.”

“We cut the hair, we burnt the suits…” Harrison says, smiling.

They both get that much of the demand for those songs comes from a nostalgia that the band themselves evoked, of feeling perpetually youthful. It’s not surprising that their longtime fans would want to feel that again.

“It’s funny because I totally relate to that, and I have relationships with bands in the same way,” Harrison says. “But for us, our fanbase seems younger than ever, and it does feel like the new record’s connected with quite a young audience.

• Read more Dan Smith talks Stanley Kubrick and Bastille's new album Wild World

“People are crowdsurfing and moshing again. I’ve heard it speaking to other bands as well – kids are really going for it, and people are being turned on again by guitar music. So I can see kids potentially having this nostalgia for Curve of the Earth as well, remembering playing ‘Bubblegum’ at university, which is really exciting for us.

“There’s a bond that you can forge with your fans from touring – a real bond, unlike what you have when a track goes ‘viral’, that’s kind of hot air. People sharing a link… you can’t have a personal experience with that. A personal experience is being in a room with that artist.”

Mystery Jets have always been, well… a bit mysterious. They began pre-social media but do engage in it quite actively.

“I certainly feel very strange about social media and its purpose,” Rees says. “Having Jack in our band – he’s 23, and he sees it in a completely different way. I don’t feel negative about it, but I don’t always wanna do it. And no one’s really sure about the worth of it.”

“I think it’s about approaching it in your own way,” Harrison says. “There’s a danger with feeling like, as an artist, in order to keep your fans constantly engaged, you need to keep drip-feeding them the story of who you are as an artist.

“Frank Ocean disappeared for three or four years, though, and that’s his way of doing it, and it’s great. It’s common knowledge that mystique is just as sexy. So you always need to be holding back something, and that’s the balance that we’ve tried to maintain.”

The ‘Whole Earth’ EP is out on 16 September. Mystery Jets tour the UK from 3 October

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The band will now play a 14-date UK tour during April 2020 in support of their ‘A Billion Heartbeats’ album.

Published on

Mystery Jets have announced the rescheduled dates for their UK tour, after health issues forced the band to delay the shows and the release of their latest album.

The London band announced in September that they would be postponing the dates after frontman Blaine Harrison underwent surgery to treat an infection. Now, it’s been confirmed that they’ll hit the road once more in April 2020. All original tickets for the Mystery Jets dates remain valid.

The band will also release new album, A Billion Heartbeats in January 2020, after pushing the release back from September 2019.

Glass Animals Announce ‘I Love You So F***ing Much,’ Share ‘Creature In Heaven’

Harrison, who lives with Spinal Bifida, previously explained how the infection forced him to undergo emergency surgery.

“It is with a lump in my throat that I bring you the following news from my bed at Chelsea and Westminster hospital, a place that has become something of a home for me over the years,” he said in September.

“Early on Saturday morning (September 14), I awoke with a swelling in my thigh and a temperature in the high thirties. Upon arrival at A&E I was put straight onto the emergency operation list to halt an infection close to my bone from spreading around my body.”

He later confirmed that he was “healing up” at home after the successful procedure.

Harrison also told NME that A Billion Heartbeats sees them tackling the state of the world for the first time and how it proved to be one of their most “direct” albums so far.

Harrison told NME : “There’s always a fear as an artist, if you engage in what’s going on in the world, there’s a danger of alienating your audience.

“It’s something we’ve always been mindful about and approaching this record, it is a collection of songs about what’s going on in the outside world. We’ve been very mindful about not being too on the nose, it’s definitely not preachy.”

Mystery Jets play the following UK dates in April 2020:

10 – Manchester, Academy 2 11 – Kendall, Brewery Arts Centre 13 – Leeds, Wardrobe 14 – Glasgow, Oran Mor 16 – Edinburgh, Caves 17 – Newcastle, Riverside 19 – Hull, Welly Club 20 – Leicester, O2 Academy 2 22 – London, O2 Shepherds Bush Empire 24 – Bristol, Trinity 25 – Birmingham, Mill 27 – Oxford, O2 Academy 28 – Norwich, Waterfront 29 – Brighton, Concorde 2.

Listen to the Best of Mystery Jets on Apple Music and Spotify .

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A cosmic ‘speed camera’ just revealed the staggering speed of neutron star jets

The Conversation

Energetic cosmic beams known as jets are seen throughout our universe. They are launched when material – mainly dust and gas – falls in towards any dense central object, such as a neutron star (an extremely dense remnant of a once-massive star) or a black hole .

The jets carry away some of the gravitational energy released by the infalling gas, recycling it back into the surroundings on far larger scales.

The most powerful jets in the universe come from the biggest black holes at the centres of galaxies. The energy output of these jets can affect the evolution of an entire galaxy, or even a galaxy cluster. This makes jets a critical, yet intriguing, component of our universe.

Although jets are common, we still don’t fully understand how they are launched. Measuring the jets from a neutron star has now given us valuable information.

Jets from stellar corpses

Jets from black holes tend to be bright, and have been well studied. However, the jets from neutron stars are typically much fainter, and much less is known about them.

This presents a problem, since we can learn a lot by comparing the jets launched by different celestial objects. Neutron stars are extremely dense stellar corpses – cosmic cinders the size of a city, yet containing the mass of a star. We can think of them as enormous atomic nuclei, each about 20 kilometres across.

In contrast to black holes, neutron stars have both a solid surface and a magnetic field, and gas falling onto them releases less gravitational energy. All of these properties will have an effect on how their jets are launched, making studies of neutron star jets particularly valuable.

One key clue to how jets are launched comes from their speeds. If we can determine how jet speeds vary with the mass or spin of the neutron star, that would provide a powerful test of theoretical predictions. But it is extremely challenging to measure jet speeds accurately enough for such a test.

A cosmic speed camera

When we measure speeds on Earth, we time an object between two points. This could be a 100-metre sprinter running down the track, or a point-to-point speed camera tracking a car.

Our team, led by Thomas Russell from the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics in Palermo, conducted a new experiment to do this for neutron star jets.

What has made this measurement so difficult in the past is that jets are steady flows. This means there is no single starting point for our timer. But we were able to identify a short-lived signal at X-ray wavelengths that we could use as our “starting gun”.

Being so dense, neutron stars can “steal” matter from a nearby orbiting companion star. While some of that gas is launched outwards as jets, most of it ends up falling onto the neutron star. As the material piles up, it gets hotter and denser.

When enough material has built up, it triggers a thermonuclear explosion. A runaway nuclear fusion reaction occurs and rapidly spreads to engulf the entire star. The fusion lasts for a few seconds to minutes, causing a short-lived burst of X-rays .

One step closer to solving a mystery

We thought this thermonuclear explosion would disrupt the neutron star’s jets. So, we used CSIRO’s Australia Telescope Compact Array to stare at the jets for three days at radio wavelengths to try and catch the disruption. At the same time, we used the European Space Agency’s Integral telescope to look at the X-rays from the system.

To our surprise, we found the jets got brighter after every pulse of X-rays. Instead of disrupting the jets, the thermonuclear explosions seemed to power them up. And this pattern was repeated ten times in one neutron star system, and then again in a second system.

We can explain this surprising result if the X-ray pulse causes gas swirling around the neutron star to fall inwards more quickly. This, in turn, provides more energy and material to divert into the jets.

Most importantly, however, we can use the X-ray burst to indicate the launch time of the jets. We timed how long they took to move outwards to where they became visible at two different radio wavelengths. These start and finish points provided us with our cosmic speed camera.

Interestingly, the jet speed we measured was close to the “escape speed” from a neutron star. On Earth, this escape speed is 11.2 kilometres per second – what rockets need to achieve to break free of Earth’s gravity. For a neutron star, that value is around half the speed of light.

James Miller-Jones , Professor, Curtin University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .

Stories Chosen For You

Should trump be allowed to run for office, aid worker killed by israel felt need to help, parents say.

The father of US-Canadian citizen Jacob Flickinger, one of seven aid workers killed in an Israeli strike earlier this week, said Thursday his son was hesitant to go to Gaza but had felt a need to help.

Flickinger, 33, was among a group of World Central Kitchen staff who died on Monday when Israel bombed their vehicle convoy in what it called a "grave mistake," sparking outrage from world leaders.

In interviews with US media, parents John Flickinger and Sylvie Labrecque paid tribute to their son, who started working with food relief organization World Central Kitchen in Mexico last year before traveling to Gaza.

"He was hesitant to go, he's a new father. He has a beautiful 18-month-old son," John Flickinger told CBS News. "But he felt the need and he of course needs to support his family."

In a separate interview with BBC News, he said his son -- a Canadian Armed Forces veteran -- felt "reasonably confident that he could accomplish the mission safely" in Gaza, adding that he had a "desire to serve and to help others."

"He felt that the World Central Kitchen knew what they were doing there. They were in a de-conflicted zone, controlled by the IDF," Flickinger said.

In the emotional interview, he said his thoughts went to his son's family. "Now my grandson will grow up without having his father," he said.

Jacob Flickinger's partner, Sandy Leclerc, told ABC News in an interview Thursday that she wanted to know the "truth of what happened, because this situation is so unclear."

"I am devastated by this news... He was a part of me," Leclerc said, adding that she did not know how to explain to their son that his father had died.

Monday's strike was widely condemned by global powers, with US President Joe Biden saying he was "outraged and heartbroken," before warning Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday that continued American support depended on Israel's protection of civilians in Gaza.

Biden emphasized the need for a series of "specific, concrete, and measurable steps to address civilian harm, humanitarian suffering, and the safety of aid workers," a White House statement said.

World Central Kitchen, which was founded in 2010 by Spanish-American chef Jose Andres, has paused its operations in Gaza since the attack, which also killed a Palestinian as well as citizens from Australia, Britain and Poland.

The aid workers had just unloaded supplies at a warehouse in central Gaza when they were killed.

Thieves steal $30 million cash in Los Angeles heist

Los Angeles police and the FBI are investigating a daring heist of nearly $30 million in cash after burglars apparently broke through the roof of a money storage facility and cracked a safe.

David Cuellar of the Los Angeles Police Department said the robbery -- one of the largest cash thefts in the city's history -- took place on Easter Sunday in the northern suburb of Sylmar.

The Los Angeles Times, citing source familiar with the investigation , said burglars busted through a roof to access the building's vault, somehow evading a sophisticated alarm system.

The elaborate and complex theft appeared to be the work of an experienced crew, and was only discovered on Monday when staff opened the vault, the newspaper said.

"It's just mind blowing that you would never suspect it," an anonymous employee of the facility told ABC News.

"$30 million in the Valley, gone. How? Why? I'm still trying to process it. Was it an inside job? Was it just one person? Was it a group? You know, there's a lot of questions."

While the crime is reminiscent of Hollywood heist movies like "Ocean's Eleven," it follows a string of real-life, sophisticated break-ins in the region over the years.

Two years ago, thieves made off with up to $100 million in jewels from a truck parked at a highway rest stop on route to a gem and jewelry show in Los Angeles.

Last July, a man cut a hole in the ceiling of a high-end wine store near Venice Beach, before helping himself to $600,000 worth of fine Burgundy and Bordeaux vintages.

According to the LA Times, the largest previously known cash heist in the city's history came in 1997, when $18.9 million was stolen from an armored depot. The thieves were eventually caught.

Podcast sued for 'AI George Carlin' settles with comic's estate

Podcasters who controversially used AI to emulate the late US comedian George Carlin in a recent comedy episode have reached a settlement with his estate after family members sued.

The legal battle over the "Dudesy" podcast's one-hour special "George Carlin: I'm Glad I'm Dead" highlights the rapidly growing role of AI in entertainment, which is viewed as a threat by many creatives and was a key issue in last year's Hollywood strikes.

The terms of the deal, which was confirmed Thursday by Carlin's estate, were not revealed.

But the episode in question has been removed from the "Dudesy" website and other platforms.

"I am pleased that this matter was resolved quickly and amicably, and I am grateful that the defendants acted responsibly by swiftly removing the video they made," said Kelly Carlin, daughter of the influential counter-culture comic, referring to a video that accompanied the podcast episode.

"While it is a shame that this happened at all, I hope this case serves as a warning about the dangers posed by AI technologies and the need for appropriate safeguards not just for artists and creatives, but every human on earth."

AI -- or artificial intelligence -- is increasingly being explored by the entertainment industry to generate content.

Proponents say it can be used to create content at lower costs than would be paid to human artists, and point to potential innovative uses of the technology.

But opponents say it simply draws upon the existing work of human performers, often without their consent or compensation, and point to moral dangers including its use to seemingly reanimate deceased artists in audio or even visual form.

Josh Schiller, a lawyer for Carlin's estate, said he hoped the settlement "will serve as a blueprint for resolving similar disputes going forward where an artist or public figure has their rights infringed by AI technology."

In a statement, Schiller pointed to recent high-profile cases including a fake robocall received by New Hampshire residents impersonating US President Joe Biden, and AI-generated nude photographs of celebrities.

"This is not a problem that will go away by itself," he said.

"It must be confronted with swift, forceful action in the courts, and the AI software companies whose technology is being weaponized must also bear some measure of accountability.

"Dudesy" is an experimental comedy podcast in which human hosts interact with AI to shape the format and content of each episode.

Its creators faced a similar controversy last year when they were threatened with legal action for an episode that imitated former American football star Tom Brady.

Stand-up comedian Carlin, who became famous for his biting anti-establishment brand of humor, and regularly appeared on "The Ed Sullivan Show" and "The Tonight Show," died in 2008 at the age of 71.

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Democratizing Private Jets: JetClass Takes the Mystery Out of Private Aviation with Groundbreaking, AI-Driven Platform

Propelling the private aviation sector into a new era of efficiency and effectiveness.

Austria - March 31, 2024 —

Private jet pioneer JetClass is revolutionizing private air mobility with the launch of its industry-first AI-driven platform and app, finally answering the age-old question: How much does a private jet cost?

When it comes to pricing, the private aviation industry has been shrouded in mystery. According to JetClass, this has largely been facilitated by the industry’s reluctance to adopt innovative technologies. However, in the new age of rapid digitization, JetClass is breaking the mold. Renowned for making private jets more accessible and affordable, the air travel innovator is lifting the veil of secrecy around private jet travel. The company’s tech-driven, user-friendly, transparent booking platform and app demystifies business travel, making private travel more accessible. 

Air mobility has entered a new era, driven by a growing desire for safety, flexibility, time-saving, and improved asset utilization. However, the lack of transparent pricing has been a huge hindrance, leaving travelers to contend with opaque quotes, hidden fees, and drawn-out booking processes. JetClass strives to meet the surging demand for private jets in the post-pandemic era with tech-driven solutions – a groundbreaking private jet booking platform and an app that sets standards. 

By bringing clarity to private aviation through innovative technology, JetClass offers an air charter marketplace that directly interfaces with the world’s leading operators. With over 60 European private jet operators on board, the private jet booking platform allows flyers to explore jet options, from very light to heavy jets, choose from various aircraft operators, and receive instant estimates on all available jet options for their requested route. Moreover, the newly launched platform and apps are designed to simplify private jet travel by providing real-time pricing, facilitating instant booking, and offering detailed jet comparisons.

Speaking about the launch of the booking platform and app, Ludwig Waldmann, the COO of JetClass, expressed his delight in the company’s progress in revolutionizing air mobility. He shared that the platform and app functionality present a remarkable breakthrough in transforming private aviation, especially at a time of increasing demand. “JetClass fills a crucial gap in the market by inspiring journeys beyond the jet. We recognize that the private aviation sector is ripe for innovation, and our job is to propel it forward with tech-driven excellence. We are the first B2C private jet charter sourcing and booking platform directly linked to private jet operators. Our mission is to make private jets as easy to book as a conventional airline ticket.”

Beyond facilitating access to instant pricing and seamless booking for private jets, JetClass integrates sustainable practices to ensure eco-friendly air travel. Through its platform, JetClass is optimizing the utilization of empty-leg flights, significantly reducing the number of empty flights. This, in turn, contributes to decreased fuel consumption and lower emissions. “We are gradually shifting the perception of private flying. Not just making it more accessible but also encouraging customers to adopt more eco-conscious travel habits.” Rooted in its core values – client centricity, sustainable leadership, and innovative excellence, JetClass is paving the way for the transcendence of private aviation. “We’re not just in pursuit of innovative excellence; our future-focused simplified approach fosters a culture where client delight is the standard.”

Since its founding in 2017, JetClass has always tried its best to blend business and commercial aviation to bring flyers the most dynamic and efficient options. JetClass uses its proprietary big data technology to enable travelers to compare and book private jets within minutes. The company is now utilizing Artificial Intelligence and data analytics to further simplify access to private aviation. Its revolutionary AI developed in-house and trained under the supervision of aviation and tech experts on a decade of historical flight movements and pricing data, provides a simple booking process by sourcing the most competitive flight options. Where many have tried to provide instant estimates for charters, and more often than not miscalculated by up to 30%, JetClass offers unmatched accuracy.

The capabilities of JetClass have gained global recognition and roused interest from operators and customers alike. Travelers appreciate the platform and app for its convenience and efficiency, while operators value the exposure that JetClass provides. JetClass operates globally, but its AI for instant pricing estimates is currently operational for European routes. However, as its revolutionary AI continues to evolve, becoming more and more accurate and expanding the platform’s coverage and capabilities, the air charter marketplace has its sights set on global expansion for automatic estimates with simplified instant bookings. 

But that’s not all. JetClass is driven by the spirit of challenging the status quo. The company is committed to pushing the limits of business aviation to bring the industry to a new age of efficient, affordable, transparent private jet booking with personalized service. On the one hand, JetClass’s innovative AI technology and team of aviation and tech experts ensure that the human experience remains at the forefront. Flyers get to experience a customer-friendly private jet booking experience powered by AI.

On the other hand, the company is exploring sustainable aviation fuel solutions and carbon off-setting as part of its commitment to sustainable leadership. Recognizing the environmental impact of air travel, JetClass is on the leading edge of exploring revolutionary advancements, such as eVTOL.

Luxury skies await. Visit JetClass to experience a new way of private air travel.

Contact Info: Name: Miraal Salahuddin Email: Send Email Organization: JetClass GmbH Phone: +971 58 248 9455 Website: https://www.jetclass.com/

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A cosmic 'speed camera' just revealed the staggering speed of neutron star jets in a world first

H ow fast can a neutron star drive powerful jets into space? The answer, it turns out, is about one-third the speed of light, as our team has just revealed in a new study published in Nature .

Energetic cosmic beams known as jets are seen throughout our universe. They are launched when material—mainly dust and gas—falls in towards any dense central object, such as a neutron star (an extremely dense remnant of a once-massive star) or a black hole .

The jets carry away some of the gravitational energy released by the infalling gas, recycling it back into the surroundings on far larger scales.

The most powerful jets in the universe come from the biggest black holes at the centers of galaxies. The energy output of these jets can affect the evolution of an entire galaxy, or even a galaxy cluster. This makes jets a critical, yet intriguing, component of our universe.

Although jets are common, we still don't fully understand how they are launched. Measuring the jets from a neutron star has now given us valuable information.

Jets from stellar corpses

Jets from black holes tend to be bright, and have been well studied. However, the jets from neutron stars are typically much fainter, and much less is known about them.

This presents a problem, since we can learn a lot by comparing the jets launched by different celestial objects. Neutron stars are extremely dense stellar corpses—cosmic cinders the size of a city, yet containing the mass of a star. We can think of them as enormous atomic nuclei, each about 20 kilometers across.

In contrast to black holes, neutron stars have both a solid surface and a magnetic field, and gas falling onto them releases less gravitational energy. All of these properties will have an effect on how their jets are launched, making studies of neutron star jets particularly valuable.

One key clue to how jets are launched comes from their speeds. If we can determine how jet speeds vary with the mass or spin of the neutron star, that would provide a powerful test of theoretical predictions. But it is extremely challenging to measure jet speeds accurately enough for such a test.

A cosmic speed camera

When we measure speeds on Earth, we time an object between two points. This could be a 100-meter sprinter running down the track, or a point-to-point speed camera tracking a car.

Our team, led by Thomas Russell from the Italian National Institute of Astrophysics in Palermo, conducted a new experiment to do this for neutron star jets.

What has made this measurement so difficult in the past is that jets are steady flows. This means there is no single starting point for our timer. But we were able to identify a short-lived signal at X-ray wavelengths that we could use as our "starting gun."

Being so dense, neutron stars can "steal" matter from a nearby orbiting companion star. While some of that gas is launched outwards as jets, most of it ends up falling onto the neutron star. As the material piles up, it gets hotter and denser.

When enough material has built up, it triggers a thermonuclear explosion. A runaway nuclear fusion reaction occurs and rapidly spreads to engulf the entire star. The fusion lasts for a few seconds to minutes, causing a short-lived burst of X-rays .

One step closer to solving a mystery

We thought this thermonuclear explosion would disrupt the neutron star's jets. So, we used CSIRO's Australia Telescope Compact Array to stare at the jets for three days at radio wavelengths to try and catch the disruption. At the same time, we used the European Space Agency's Integral telescope to look at the X-rays from the system.

To our surprise, we found the jets got brighter after every pulse of X-rays. Instead of disrupting the jets, the thermonuclear explosions seemed to power them up. And this pattern was repeated ten times in one neutron star system, and then again in a second system.

We can explain this surprising result if the X-ray pulse causes gas swirling around the neutron star to fall inwards more quickly. This, in turn, provides more energy and material to divert into the jets.

Most importantly, however, we can use the X-ray burst to indicate the launch time of the jets. We timed how long they took to move outwards to where they became visible at two different radio wavelengths. These start and finish points provided us with our cosmic speed camera.

Interestingly, the jet speed we measured was close to the "escape speed" from a neutron star. On Earth, this escape speed is 11.2 kilometers per second —what rockets need to achieve to break free of Earth's gravity. For a neutron star, that value is around half the speed of light.

Our work has introduced a new technique for measuring neutron star jet speeds. Our next steps will be to see how the jet speed changes for neutron stars with different masses and rotation rates. That will allow us to directly test theoretical models, taking us one step closer to figuring out how such powerful cosmic jets are launched.

More information: Thomas D. Russell et al, Thermonuclear explosions on neutron stars reveal the speed of their jets, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07133-5

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article .

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Stephan Jaeger was able to outlast everyone at the Houston Open to help us claim our first big outright win (+5000) of the year. 

He didn’t exactly go out and win it, but he made very few mistakes and caught some breaks on the back nine. 

I thought he was toast once Scottie Scheffler hit it to five feet on the 18th hole, but the golfer’s cold putter finally worked in my favor for once. 

Betting outrights on golf requires a lot of patience.

We aren’t going to hit winners every week or even every month, but we only need to hit a few to make the entire year profitable. 

Let’s try to carry some of last week’s momentum into the Valero Texas Open, which kicks off Thursday in San Antonio. 

Valero Texas Open course breakdown

TPC San Antonio (Oaks Course) is a par-72 that measures 7,438 yards and features narrow fairways that are lined with trees and thick rough. 

While distance is a big advantage on the par-5s, the course is more about total driving than pure power.

If you stray too far offline, you can get into some real trouble (Kevin Na once made a score of 16 on a single hole at this event). 

We’ve seen several shorter hitters have success here over the years.

This doesn’t mean the bombers can’t play well this week, but they will need to hit it straight. 

The greens are average in size (6,400 square feet) and are tiered. Golfers will need to be dialed in with their irons in order to give themselves good birdie looks. 

The greens feature bermudagrass with poa trivialis overseed (the same type of grass we’ve seen the last few weeks on PGA Tour stops). 

In 2023, the field hit just 61 percent of greens in regulation, which is well below the Tour average. This places an emphasis on around-the-green play.

We’ve seen plenty of good scramblers (Jordan Spieth, Matt Kuchar, Brandt Snedeker, etc.) play well at TPC San Antonio over the years. 

As is always the case in Texas, the wind will play a big factor this week. Light winds on Thursday are expected to turn to moderate by mid-morning Friday and stay throughout the weekend.

When it comes to the betting board this week, I’m looking for golfers who are very solid, tee to green and have a good track record in Texas. 

Let’s try to add to the bankroll before the Masters next week. 

Valero Texas Open outright picks

Billy horschel (35/1, draftkings ).

Horschel is one of the streakiest golfers on the PGA Tour. His wins are usually telegraphed by solid incoming form. I’m hoping that’s the case again this week, as he’s finished T12 or better in three of his last four starts. 

After last week’s top-10 finish where he had the low round of the day on Easter Sunday, he mentioned something about the lie in his irons being off and that his swing feels a lot better now that it is fixed. 

The results certainly seem to back up what he said, as he’s coming off three of his best approach performances in the last 12 months. 

He’s one of the best in the field when it comes to hitting greens in regulation and he’s finished T11 or better in four of his last seven trips to TPC San Antonio. 

Byeong Hun An (40/1, Bet365 )

If I could only make one bet this week, it would be on An. 

He has quietly posted five top-eight finishes in his last 13 starts on the PGA Tour. During that stretch, he’s been in contention four times. 

I would argue he should have won earlier this year at the Sony Open, but he had some bad putting luck in a playoff against Grayson Murray. 

An is elite off the tee and around the greens. He can have spike weeks with his irons and with his putter, which gives him a ton of upside. 

He also seems to like TPC San Antonio, where he’s finished in the top 10 in two of his last three appearances at this event. 

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Aaron Rai (65/1, Caesars )

Rai’s odds are too good to pass up this week. 

For whatever reason, he seems to love playing in Texas. He has an excellent track record at Memorial Park (T7 there last week) and he’s finished in the top 30 at this week’s event in both of his appearances. 

Perhaps he likes the Lone Star State because ball strikers tend to play well in the wind. He’s accurate off the tee, he’s an elite iron player and he’s underrated around the green. 

The putter is always a wild card for Rai, but I’m willing to give him a chance at +6600. 

Lucas Glover (90/1, FanDuel )

Glover is another poor putter who has made my outright betting card for the week because he has long been known as one of the best ball strikers on the PGA Tour. 

Recently, he has gained strokes putting in six of his last seven starts. The putter can be awful at times, but he proved in the fall that he’s capable of gaining strokes on the greens, winning back-to-back events. 

He has a solid track record at TPC San Antonio and in Texas as a whole. My model has him as the best value on the betting board this week. 

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"Elsbeth" star Carrie Preston discusses new show on Tea Around Town tour of New York City

By Kristie Keleshian

April 4, 2024 / 7:33 PM EDT / CBS New York

NEW YORK -- The new CBS original series "Elsbeth," starring Carrie Preston, returns Thursday night.

CBS New York's Kristie Keleshian took a Tea Around Town bus tour of New York City with Preston to talk about the show.

The star plays attorney-turned-sharp detective Elsbeth Tascioni, who first appeared on "The Good Wife" and "The Good Fight."

"Elsbeth is enamored of New York City. She couldn't wait to move here. She's the dream tourist. So we're on this tour bus, we're gonna go around and see all the great sights," Preston said.

In her spinoff series that debuted on Feb. 29 , Elsbeth leaves her successful legal career in Chicago for investigative work alongside the NYPD. Through her quirkiness and outlandish observations, she gets the job done better than anyone else.

"Sometimes it feels like shows have gotten an over-inflated sense of self," said Robert King, "Elsbeth" co-creator and executive producer.

"That is what it's meant to be, a bit of a respite for the ugliness that one sometimes sees in the world and in the news, and this is a character having fun and finding justice," said Michelle King, "Elsbeth" co-creator and executive producer.

Michelle and Robert King and producer and showrunner Jonathan Tolins joined in on the ride around New York City landmarks, just as newcomer Elsbeth does in the series.

"She just goes a little bit further and actually speaks the truth around, in this case, New Yorkers who ... could use to have their balloon popped every once in a while," Tolins said.

Elsbeth is an unconventionally sharp leading lady in a show that's a love letter to New York City itself, leaving viewers with a mystery solved and a good laugh.

"People are experiencing a lot of challenges in the world that we live in right now, and I think when people tune into our show, they'll be able to let go of those things," Preston said.

"Elsbeth" returns Thursday with back-to-back episodes at 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. on CBS.

Keegan-Michael Key, Blair Underwood and Jesse Tyler Ferguson are just some of the guest stars featured in upcoming episodes.

"Elsbeth" is also streaming on Paramount+.

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April 2, 2024

These Cold War–Era Jets Will Chase the Eclipse to Uncover the Sun’s Mysteries

A team of researchers has an ambitious plan to capture the 2024 total solar eclipse like never before.

By Jeffery DelViscio , Jason Drakeford , Lucie McCormick , Kelso Harper & Clara Moskowitz

This article is part of a special report on the total solar eclipse that will be visible from parts of the U.S., Mexico and Canada on April 8, 2024.

Amir Caspi : On April 8th this year, 2024, we are having a total solar eclipse that crosses the United States starting from Eagle Pass, Texas, all the way up to Houlton, Maine and everything in between.

I'm Amir Caspi, I am a principal scientist here at Southwest Research Institute, and I'm also the principal investigator or project lead for two eclipse experiments.

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One is going to fly two of NASA's WB-57 jets to chase the eclipse with telescopes mounted in the nose cone and under the wings to make observations of the solar corona in infrared and other wavelengths. And the other is going to deploy 35 teams of amateurs across the eclipse path, people from Texas to Maine, giving them telescopes that can measure the polarization of light from the ground.

There are a lot of open questions about the sun even though it is our star. The corona is millions of degrees, and the surface of the star is only about 10,000°F. The corona is millions of degrees, but it's the atmosphere of the star. Why is the atmosphere hotter than the surface?

This is something that's counterintuitive. It's like when you walk away from a campfire, somehow it gets warmer. So the standard laws of thermodynamics don't really explain that.

We know that energy has to be getting up into the corona somehow. What we want to find out is exactly how. It's got to be the magnetic field that's in the corona. The sun's magnetic field is really complex, and it permeates the corona. And that magnetic field is the only way that energy can get from the interior of the star out into the corona and deposit that energy and heat it up to millions of degrees. But we don't really understand the physics of how that's happening. So observing this corona during an eclipse gives us a window into that to understand what are the physical mechanisms that could be depositing that heat.

NASA flies the only remaining airframes of the WB-57F aircraft. This is a Cold War era jet. It used to be used for surveillance and weather reconnaissance, and NASA has the only three currently operating and operational in the world. These have been retrofitted with modern avionics, and with scientific instruments that are outfitted in the nose cone of the aircraft and under the wings of the aircraft. The wings are some of the longest things you can imagine just, you know, when you're standing next to this tiny little plane. It has a canopy like a fighter jet does.

It's been retrofitted with a new nose cone that has a ball turret in it, and this ball turret can point in any direction, and it has cameras mounted inside. And those cameras can see anything in the forward hemisphere of the airplane. So the airplane can be flying this way, and the cameras can be looking up and to the right or to the left or down. The airplane can be flying along the eclipse track, and we can be tracking the sun in the sky at the same time with scientific instruments aboard.

The airplanes are going to take off and they're going to head from Ellington Field near Houston, their home base, down southwest to Mexico, to the coast of Mexico, over Mazatlan. When the time is right, they launch down the eclipse path and hit their marks at exactly the right time. And that's when the cameras will acquire the sun and start to observe that solar corona that we really want to see, and that we can only see clearly during totality.

We have another project which is involving community participants. It's called Citizen CATE 2024. Instead of trying to actually physically chase the eclipse, we're having the eclipse chase us. Each of our observing stations passes the shadow to the next observing station. So we have 35 teams of community participants, people who are not professional astronomers or professional scientists. We're giving them telescopes. We're teaching them how to make observations during the total solar eclipse. And we're using special cameras that can measure

the polarization of light. When we put all of these observations together, because they overlap, we're going to get one hour of totality between all of these stations. That lets us make measurements that are different than what we could make on a plane chasing the eclipse. We get a lot more time.

If you do not catch this eclipse, you'll have to wait 20 years before the next solar eclipse in the United States in 2044, and the next big one in the United States in 2045. If you are in the eclipse path, make plans to go out. Look up. Please make sure you follow all safety guidelines and always use appropriate viewing glasses whenever totality is not happening.

People don't think of the sun as a star. They think of it as our sun, but it's a star. It's an astrophysical object and we happen to live right next to it. So I think that is really mind boggling to me, as we have this astrophysical object that tells us about processes that happen throughout the universe, and it's right here for us to measure.