Friday 30 March 2012, 17:30 | By

Editor’s Letter: On the CMU stereo

CMU Weekly Editor's Letter

Andy Malt

Hello. Right now you’re probably expecting me to reel off 300 words about something that’s happened in the music industry this week. Or moan about something that was on TV perhaps. But no! There will be none of that, because I’m on holiday and I have absolutely no idea what’s happened in the last seven days. I definitely haven’t been frantically checking emails, RSS feeds and tweets on the hotel wi-fi at every opportunity. I’m relaxing and shit.

Anyway, this space still needs filling, so inspired by Eddy TM’s recent CMU column running down some of his favourite new music in celebration of the Vernal Equinox and the beginning of spring, I thought I’d just copy him and do exactly the same thing.

So here are ten new(ish) artists who have new(ish) music out that I love. I hope you like them too.

Suzanne Sundfør
There’s nothing quite like the feeling you get when you completely fall for a song on the first listen, and ‘White Foxes’ was one of those moments. There are few songs I’ve listened to as much this year and it runs excited chills through me every time I hear it still. The album it is taken from is available on iTunes now, and while you’re frantically downloading that, her previous album ‘The Brothel’ is also very much worth checking out.

John Talabot
Released through Permanent Vacation last month, John Talabot’s debut album, ‘Fin’, has been getting some heavy play in the CMU office of late. Taking his strong songwriting skills and drawing heavily on house, bringing to mind acts like Pantha Du Prince and fellow Spaniards Delorean, the record is filled with standout moments. Here’s one, ‘Destiny’, the first of two collaborations with Pional on the album.

Sleep Party People
The solo project of Scarlet Chives member Brian Batz, Sleep Party People’s music is slow, twisted pop that sits somewhere between dreamlike and nightmarish – mainly due to the heavily-effected vocals that are melted almost beyond recognition. This feeling often comes through in SPP videos too, particularly the one for the track below, ‘A Dark God Heart’, which slowly morphs from innocent to morbid. New album ‘We Are Drifting On A Sad Song’ is due out via Blood And Biscuits next month.

THEEsatisfaction
There’s no denying that THEEsatisfaction’s music is ambitious, but its success is in sounding effortless. Allowing hip hop, jazz, funk, Afro-Futurism and psychedlia to run together is not something that has never been attempted before, but to balance it so perfectly is no mean feat. ‘QueenS’ is taken from the duo’s debut album proper ‘awE naturalE’ which is out this week via Sub Pop.

Clean George IV
Clean George IV, aka George McFall, first emerged in 2007, releasing the brilliant ‘First Blast Of The Trumpet Against The Monstrous Regiment Of Women’. But the project went on hold for a few years, in which time he began a classical music degree and got sued by Kraftwerk (I’m not sure if these two things are related). He returned last year with debut album ‘God Save The Clean’, sounding like Andrew WK on a bad comedown.

Julia Holter
Last year Julia Holter found herself with an underground hit on her hands with debut album proper ‘Tragedy’. Quickly snapped up by RVNG Intl, she released the follow-up, ‘Ekstasis’, earlier this month. Her sound is unusual and experimental but also warm and welcoming, never attempting to block the listener out with its weirdness. Even her FACT mix, which was largely made up of field recordings with the occasional track dropped in amongst them, manages to pull this off. Here’s the opening track from ‘Ekstasis’, ‘Marienard’:

Bernholz
It’s occurred to me now that I’ve started writing these blurbs, how much of the music here is experimental but with leanings towards pop. Bernholz is no different, although he stands out because while his early releases were completely abstract, latest single ‘Austerity Boy’ sees him attempt to step almost completely over into pop by creating a three minute update of Madonna’s ‘Material Girl’ for modern Britain.

Asbjørn
I first discovered Asbjørn at last year’s SPOT Festival in Denmark. Wandering into his show for no clear reason, he turned out to be very popular amongst his home audience already, performing to a capacity crowd of around 1500 people in the middle of the afternoon. It was clear to see why too. Still in his teens he makes highly polished, infectious pop and knows full well how to perform it.

Team Me
I bang on about Team Me quite a lot, so forgive me if I’m covering old ground here. They are my favourite indie-pop sextet of the moment though. Their debut album, ‘To The Treetops!’ was released earlier this month and features ten unashamedly poppy songs, including the wonderful ‘Dear Sister’, which first appeared on their eponymous 2010 debut EP.

ScHoolboy Q
‘There He Go’ by ScHoolboy Q has spent extended periods of time jammed in my brain since I first heard it on Jon Hillcock’s New Noise podcast back in January. His second album, ‘Habits & Contradictions’, was released the same month and, while maybe not treading much new ground in hip hop terms, it nonetheless does it well. It also features a roll call of other up and coming rappers, including that A$AP Rocky fella.

BONUS TRACK: 99% Invisible
This isn’t a band, it’s a podcast. Still, it’ll only take up a few minutes of your time and I promise you it’ll be worth it. Coming in at about five minutes per episode, I think it’s the only podcast I’ve ever downloaded the entire back catalogue of based purely on one episode. Each week, presenter Roman Mars looks at elements of design that usually go unnoticed, answering questions like ‘Why do space shuttles have dining tables?’ and ‘Why do cul de sacs exist?’ This episode, which was that first one I downloaded, looks at the sounds made by the aging escalators of Washington DC’s Metro.

So there you go – I hope you enjoy that little lot. Next week there won’t be an Editors’ Letter because – while I will be in the office doing what we CMU editors do from Monday through Thursday, I won’t be around on Friday, and neither will you. It’s that most Good of Fridays see. But Chris will do a Week In Five on theCMUwebsite.com, to rap up the week in the music business, so that should keep you going amidst the Easter madness. Then I’ll see you back here with another of these letters the following week. Hurrah.

Andy Malt
Editor, CMU

PODCAST
There’s no podcast this week, partly because I’m on holiday (as you know – you did read the first paragraph, right?), but also because we figure the Easter school holidays begin around about now, and that’s sort of when proper serious programmes go off the air and you end up watching Timmy Mallett and ‘Flipper’ re-runs (that still happens, right?). The podcast will return on 20 Apr – but you can still tune into last week’s on the website right now.

Actually, I hear there have been problems with our iTunes feed this week, so those of you who subscribe might only be receiving it around about now anyway – so just imagine the last week didn’t happen and that I’m not on holiday, and listen in to last week’s edition. I seem to remember that we discussed at least three rapper’s penises, which was pretty good going for one edition. Stream or download that, or any of the fifty editions of the podcast so far, or sign up for future editions, at www.completemusicupdate.com/podcast

IN THE NEWS
Some of the long running stories continued to develop this week. In the EMI sale, Universal’s bid to buy the EMI record labels entered a three month second phase competition investigation at the European Commission (as we all expected it to), while the New Zealand competition regulator also started an investigation, and rumours circulated the mega-major was hoping to sell off three of its publishing catalogues, not to placate those who oppose Universal’s further expansion through the EMI purchase, but to help raise some money to pay for it.

On the Sony side of the EMI saga, the Sony/ATV publishing company offered some concessions to the EC regulator, in a bid to get approval for its bid to buy EMI Music Publishing without having to go into a second phase inquiry. It remains to be seen if that works – the EC will tell us on 19 Apr. Elsewhere in Sony Corp, the entertainment giant confirmed some rejigs at the top of it’s American division – into which both Sony Music and Sony/ATV report – all of which had been rumoured last week.

The MegaUpload story also rumbled on once again this week, with the news that two US rights owners were about to launch civil proceedings against the shut down file-transfer service for the copyright infringement it allegedly enabled – criminal proceedings against the Mega companies and bosses are ongoing of course. And in related legal news, MegaUpload competitor RapidShare, which has faced various infringement lawsuits in recent years, announced it would take its ongoing legal battles to Germany’s Supreme Court, which it hopes will confirm it is doing all it has to do to combat piracy in the eyes of European law.

Another ongoing story is the digital royalties lawsuits in the US. This week Sony requested one case being pursued against it in this domain, by Toto, be dismissed, while 1970s R&B outfit Tower Of Pop launched a new digital royalty lawsuit against Warner Music. Elsewhere in the courts, EMI settled a royalties dispute with Universal Music affiliated Cash Money Records, but began legal proceedings against the two gaming companies behind the rap-along game that was created in partnership with Universal Music’s Def Jam. Universal really ought to get on with taking over EMI, just to stop all these lawsuits.

Fans of stats got a whole load of figures from the International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry to play with this week (record sales were down in 2011, but the decline is slowing), while Time Out published the top ten venues in London. Spotify announced it was offering its freemium users more stuff (except in the UK, for now), Richard Hooper published his first report on the Digital Copyright Exchange the government wants to set up, and HMV announced it was shutting down its mail-order facility on the Channel Islands, now being based there doesn’t mean you can get away without charging VAT on CDs.

On the live side, LIVE UK magazine provided some extra nuggets of information about the recently revived secondary ticketing debate, though the big news story in live circles was the cancellation of the UK edition of Sonisphere, initially announced by headliners Queen. There’s been lots of speculation as to what all that might tell us about the fortunes of co-promoters Kilimanjaro, the state of the wider festival market, and why booking Queen and Adam Lambert as headliners for a metal festival might not be a great idea.

FEATURES AND NEW MUSIC
This week Laura-Mary Carter from the brilliant Blood Red Shoes gave us some great answers in our weekly Q&A interview, Karima Francis provided a particularly fine playlist, and Madonna and Paul Van Dyk fought things out in the Beef Of The Week slot. There was another flood of festival line up announcements, but obviously we want you to pay particular attention to the exciting additions made to the line ups of The Great Escape festival and CMU-programmed convention.

The CMU Approved column this week featured a mix by Ukkonen, new music from Haim and Fanzine, and the rather good split-screen video from Katy Goodman of Vivian Girls’ solo project La Sera. At the release end of things, there was a Weird Dreams album stream and previews of new LPs from Sigur Rós, Peaking Lights and Maximo Park. Ah, and how we’ve missed them all. Birmingham grunge youths Swim Deep debuted their ‘King City’ video, while Brooklyn troupe The Men announced eight minutes’ worth of Record Store Day compilation perfection in sort-of-new track ‘A Minor’. Oh, and that Jack White gave away the universe’s first ever 3rpm record. Well, of course he did.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 12:31 | By

The music business week in five – 30 Mar 2012

Business News Week In Five

Chris Cooke

Hey there everybody, and welcome one and all to this Friday edition of your CMU Daily. Coming up, the five biggest stories of the week in music, but before that, if you haven’t already, do check out the latest Great Escape announcements that came out this week. The Temper Trap’s gallant return to TGE was among the 141 bands announced this week, and on the CMU-programmed convention side of things we confirmed we were teaming up with Arts Council England to throw the spotlight on DIY. Click those links to find out more, then check out the Week In Five.

01: Sony/ATV offered concessions to the EC competition regulator, as the initial investigation into its bid to buy EMI Music Publishing reached its conclusion. We don’t know what the concessions are, but the European Commission said it would need until 19 Apr to decide whether the offer allayed all fears about the acquisition, or whether a second longer inquiry was required. US regulators also continue to investigate the proposed deal, which would give Sony a sizable though not majority stake in by far the biggest music publishing catalogue in the world. CMU report | Washington Post report

02: Universal was shopping three catalogues of songs as its EMI bid went into a phase two investigation at the EC. The mega-major reportedly wants to sell three of its publishing catalogues to raise £200 million to go towards its bid to buy the EMI record companies. The move is not intended as a concession to competition regulators in the US or Europe though, Universal still certain it will get approval on both sides of the Atlantic without having to agree to remedies. The EC investigation entered into a three month second phase late last week, with pan-European indie label trade body welcoming the specific concerns the Commission noted about the proposed merger on beginning phase two. CMU report | FT report

03: IFPI figures showed record sales declined in 2011, but the slide is slowing down. Trade revenues for the worldwide record industry were down 3%, new figures from the International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry showed, though the trade body noted that that was a “significant slowing in the fall of the market” as digital sales continue to grow, and other revenue streams like sync – declared by IFPI for the first time this year – help compensate the continued slump in CD sales. CMU report | Billboard report

04: Sonisphere UK was cancelled, leading to chatter about the state of the British festival market, ironically in the week when people were being optimistic about the record industry again. The metal fest confirmed it was not going ahead in the UK this year yesterday morning, after headliners Queen announced the cancellation the previous day. With some bands rumoured to be due their first fees from the festival this week, quite a few agents and managers were raging yesterday, while fans were disappointed that an event that has become much loved in its short lifetime won’t be occurring in Britain this year. CMU report | Rock Sound report

05: Richard Hooper published his first report on the Digital Copyright Exchange, one of the government’s grand ideas for making the licensing of content to the digital sector simpler. The music business welcomed Hooper’s admission that the British music industry was pretty good at licensing new and innovative digital platforms already, but also agreed with the government’s man that things could still be better, and said they looked forward to working with him on the next stage of his inquiry into exactly what a DCE would do and how it might work. CMU report | BBC report

And that is your lot for now – enjoy the sunshine while it lasts.

Chris Cooke
Business Editor, CMU

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Friday 30 March 2012, 12:30 | By

Approved: Mark de Clive-Lowe at The CLF Art Café

Club Tip CMU Approved

Mark de Clive-Lowe

This interesting South London space is this weekend playing host to one of the true broken beat pioneers – a funkateer if you like – Mr Mark de Clive-Lowe. Still riding high after his frankly underrated latest album, released on Tru Thoughts last year (do check it out at this Spotify link), he’ll be doing a live set tomorrow night. Joining him at the party, which goes through to 5am, will be Jazz Head Chronic and Man Vs Wife. A definite recommend.

Saturday 31 Mar, The CLF Art Café, The Bussey Building, Rye Lane, SE15, 10pm – 5am, £5-10, more at www.clfartcafe.org

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Friday 30 March 2012, 12:29 | By

Spotify extend unlimited free listening in the US, reduce freemium limitations in Europe

Digital Top Stories

Spotify

Spotify announced it was making new changes to its freemium service yesterday, upping the amount of free content available via the streaming platform in most territories.

As previously reported, while Spotify Free originally offered totally unlimited free streaming, the attraction of the premium service being the removal of ads and the ability to listen via mobile, the freemium offer was subsequently scaled back so that free users – after a trial period of unlimited free listening – would be limited to ten hours streaming per month, and would only be able to play any one track five times. In America, when the service finally launched there last year, everyone was offered unlimited free listening at the outset, but with the warning that the restrictions by that point operating in Europe would eventually apply.

It’s thought record companies on both sides of the Atlantic pushed for the free option to be scaled back last year, many rights owners becoming concerned that the freemium service was not viable in its own right, even with slowly growing ad revenues, and that therefore its role was really to encourage new customers in who might then be persuaded to upgrade to the subscription option. In that regard, some reckoned, the unlimited free service was too good. American labels, in particular, stressed about the freemium bit of Spotify, even though their European divisions had already licensed it, and were now shareholders in the streaming music business.

That said, it was thought Spotify too was increasingly focusing its efforts on the subscription part of its business, which was much less risky in terms of the royalties it had to pay out to the record companies, so the decision to scale back free probably wasn’t totally to do with the major labels making big demands before agreeing to licence the service in America.

Either way, the restrictions due to come into play on Spotify Free after six months in the US never arrived, and yesterday the digital firm told its American users that unlimited free listening will stay for the foreseeable. Meanwhile, in Europe the ten hours a month limit will stay, but in most countries the five play limit will go (not in the UK just yet, though team Spot say they are “working on that”).

It’s not entirely clear what has motivated both Spotify and its label partners to once again enhance the freemium package. It’s possible rights owners, especially Stateside, are impressed with the digital company’s conversion rates from free to subscription, and recognise that having the freemium platform is helping Spotify expand its premium user-base at a rate none of its competitors can match.

And for those labels who reckon the subscription service business model is viable long-term, which currently includes all four majors, taking a hit on the free service now might seem worthwhile. It’s also possible Spotify has seen its ad sales grow significantly in the last few months, reducing the risk of the freemium offer a little for all parties. Either way, the move will be popular with freemium users, and will further boost Spotify’s competitive advantage over other all-you-can-eat streaming services.

Elsewhere in Spot news, the streaming company announced a new alliance with The Echo Nest that will see the latter integrate its API with Spotify, which means that the ever growing network of app developers utilising Echo Nest’s music intelligence algorithms, and content and social media partnerships, will be able to develop apps for use within the Spotify platform.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 12:00 | By

New Zealand competition regulators launch investigation into Universal’s EMI purchase

Business News EMI Sale Timeline Labels & Publishers Top Stories

EMI

While it maybe the competition regulator investigations in the US and Europe that really matter, the Commerce Commission in New Zealand earlier today invited interested parties to make submissions to its inquiry into Universal Music’s proposed takeover of the EMI record companies.

The New Zealand branch of Universal Music submitted its EMI takeover application to the Commerce Commission earlier this month, and that body today published an initial document, most of which outlines routine information about the way in which competition investigations into proposed mergers and acquisitions work in the country.

Areas on which the Commission says it will be focusing include Universal’s claims that the independent sector in New Zealand currently enjoys a strong competitive position, the extent to which artists can now circumvent the label system, and the extent to which piracy limits the big rights owners’ power in setting prices, especially in the digital domain.

The Commission says it should make its final decision on 13 May. As previously reported, the European Commission announced late last week that it will need until August to review Universal’s EMI bid. In Europe the acquisition is being strongly opposed by pan-European indie label trade body IMPALA, while Warner Music is thought to be lobbying against the deal in both the US and Europe.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:59 | By

Warner faces new digital royalties lawsuit

Business News Digital Royalties Timeline Labels & Publishers Legal

Warner Music

American R&B outfit Tower Of Power, or TOP, who have been performing for over four decades though had most commercial success in the 1970s, are the latest heritage act to join the long list of artists now suing a major record company for a bigger cut of digital royalties.

As much previously reported, for those artists with pre-internet record contracts that make no mention of downloads, record labels have treated iTunes-style revenue as record sales money, paying artists a relatively modest share of the loot. But many acts say download revenue should be treated as licensing income, from which most artists are contractually due a much bigger cut. Eminem collaborators FBT Productions successfully sued Universal on this issue, and now a long line of veteran artists are joining the litigation queue in a bid to secure a higher cut of digital monies too.

Tower Of Power have been signed to Sony labels since the mid-1970s, though their most successful recordings from the previous few years came out on Warner Bros, and it is Warner Music they are suing.

It’s the band’s founding and most consistent members Emilio Castillo and Stephen Kupka who are going legal, and their attorney told reporters yesterday: “From the information we have received, it appears Warner Music has allegedly failed to pay Tower Of Power and its other artists the amount owed on the licensing of songs for digital downloads and ringtones. Emilio and Stephen are bringing this action to ensure all artists are properly paid for their work”.

They aren’t the first Warner artists to sue on this issue – Sister Sledge began legal proceedings last month – though the lawsuits against Universal and Sony have got more coverage. As previously reported, Sony has offered a deal to its heritage artists in settlement of a class action brought against it by a number of aging artists a few years back, though it remains to be seen if the courts approve that deal (which would give artists 3% more of download revenue) and if artists then accept it. Toto, who sued Sony last month, just before details of that deal were revealed, are seemingly still planning on pushing for more through the courts.

Warner is yet to comment about the digital royalty lawsuits it is now fighting.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:56 | By

EMI sues Def Jam game maker

Business News Labels & Publishers Legal

Def Jam Rapstar

EMI has filed a lawsuit against the makers of the Def Jam Rapstar video game, a rap-based take on the karaoke game, claiming various compositions and recordings owned by its subsidiaries are used on the game without permission.

It’s a complicated lawsuit, because EMI doesn’t seem to be claiming to own any of the disputed tracks that feature in the game outright, but to have stakes in either the publishing, or to own bits of songs sampled in the hip hop records that feature. Hip hop licensing is, of course, a tricky business, partly because of all the samples that need licensing for various different uses, and the fact that its common for many parties to be listed as songwriters.

The game’s makers 4mm Games and Terminal Reality are both named as defendants in the lawsuit, though interestingly Def Jam itself is not. It’s not clear which of the partners in the game was actually responsible for clearing all the music rights. Of course Def Jam is a Universal division, and – if regulators allow – will be part of the same company as the EMI labels by the end of the year.

It’s not the first lawsuit EMI has filed against a Universal affiliated hip hop label since the latter’s bid to acquire the former began, though its previously reported royalties squabble with Cash Money Records has now been resolved.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:54 | By

Tulisa’s PR reps sue over false statement claims

Legal Media

Tulisa Contostavlos

PR reps for one time N-Dubber Tulisa Contostavlos have told Press Gazette they are suing media blog Fleet Street Blues over allegations they lied after the singer and ‘X-Factor’ judge’s infamous sex tape appeared online earlier this month.

As previously reported, shortly after the sex tape emerged on the net – and was swiftly taken offline by a cease and desist from Contostavlos’s lawyers – it was widely reported in the tabs and online that a representative for the singer had denied it was the star in the tape. The quote said the recording was “100% fake”, adding that Team Tulisa were “horrified that someone would go to the extreme lengths of fabricating a video … it is absolutely not her”.

Though, as also previously reported, that statement, generally credited to the singer’s lawyers, actually originated from last summer, when reports first started to circulate that someone was shopping a Tulisa sex video to porn firms in London. Once the actual sex tape went online earlier this month her lawyers went quiet on the matter, while her PR reps issued a clear “no comment”. Contostavlos, of course, subsequently took to YouTube to confirm it was her in the video, and that she was mortified that her ex-boyfriend Ultra had decided to make the recording available online.

It seems Fleet Street Blues may have said that that old denial from the singer’s lawyer was in fact a new denial from her PR reps, Hackford Jones, meaning that when Contostavlos subsequently fessed up, it looked like the publicists had been lying through their teeth. And, according to the Gazette, the firm’s Simon Jones is not impressed with having been accused of lying, and is now taking legal action against the blog, despite the offending post being removed.

Says Jones: “[There were] some pretty outlandish claims on the blog. At the end of the day, we all work in the media and mistakes are always made, but the point is I’m happy to hold up my hands if I’ve made a mistake, but I’m not happy to be accused of something I haven’t done. People [have] mistakenly attributed a quote to me with regard to the sex tape that wasn’t issued. The sex tape came out on the Sunday online, and from the moment it came online all we did was issue no comment”.

He continued: “Once that video came to light, we’re hardly going to be issuing denials that it was her, it’s clearly her on the sex tape. [But that’s what this site said we did, and] everyone in the industry knows that I look after Tulisa, and it’s an industry blog. The thing I take most affront to is we feel our reputation is on not lying to the media at all and we stand very strongly against lying to the media… so to be pulled out as a poster boy for PRs who lie, it really galled me”.

The people behind the Fleet Street Blues blog are yet to comment, though the whole website seems to have gone offline since the PR firm’s legal action began. Meanwhile, Hackford Jones has also confirmed that Sky News is facing legal action over its claims Contostavlos lied to the court when her people applied for an injunction to stop any distribution of the sex tape. It’s thought those allegations were based on the assumption the injunction was being sought on libel grounds (ie by claiming it wasn’t her in the tape) rather than privacy grounds (because it was).

Jones concludes: “There’s been so much misreporting around this case, which is funny in a way because in this age of Leveson when you think that everyone should be fact checking, even today people are still running stories based on hearsay. You do get to the point where you think, ‘I’m sorry I have to set the record straight'”.

No word yet on whether Contostavlos’s other ex-boyfriend, fellow N-Dubber Fazer, plans to sue for libel third N-Dubz member Dappy, who claimed via Twitter that he recognised the penis that starred in the sex tape, and that it definitely belonged to his former bandmate, who, the Dapster reckoned, had uploaded the sex video in revenge for his and Tulisa’s messy break up. I’ve not seen the tape, or Ultra’s genitals, but perhaps Fazer was happy for the world to believe the cock on camera belonged to him for 48 hours. Even if that meant they thought he was also the cock who uploaded the recording.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:53 | By

Diplo drives Snoop Dogg’s reggae ‘reincarnation’

Artist News

Snoop Dogg

Diplo has stated that he’s acting as executive producer on a new reggae album from Snoop Dogg, describing the rapper’s part in the project as “fucking awesome”.

Speaking to MTV, Diplo said: “Snoop Dogg is an icon, man; he’s bigger than the music. What we’re doing is a reggae record. It’s all reggae and he’s singing and he’s doing a fucking awesome job – he had his heart in every song”.

Snoop, who released his ‘Doggumentary’ LP last year, has previously hinted via Twitter that his next record will represent a “reincarnation” of sorts, saying: “It’s special. It’s a real special project to me because it’s like the birth of me becoming who I really am”.

According to Diplo, recording sessions for the untitled record will recommence in April. Make of all this what you will.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:48 | By

Tom Jones releasing LP

Releases

Tom Jones

Last seen successfully out-shouting rival judge Jessie J on ‘The Voice’, Tom Jones has just announced the release of brand new covers album called ‘Spirit In The Room’, conveniently timed to coincide with his stint on the primetime BBC talent show.

The LP follows 2010’s lauded ‘Praise And Blame’, and – like its prequel – was produced by Ethan Johns, who also accompanies Jones on the record alongside other musicians including Warpaint drummer Stella Wazgawa. Set for release via Island Records on 21 May, it features Tom’s re-renderings of classic originals from Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, Paul McCartney and Paul Simon.

Tracklisting:

Tower Of Song (Leonard Cohen)
(I Want To) Come Home (Paul McCartney)
Hit Or Miss (Odetta)
Love And Blessings (Paul Simon)
Soul Of A Man (Blind Willie Johnson)
Bad As Me (Tom Waits)
Dimming Of The Day (Richard & Linda Thompson)
Travelling Shoes (Vera Hall Ward)
All Blues Hail Mary (Joe Henry)
Charlie Darwin (The Low Anthem)

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:46 | By

The Walkmen confirm album

Releases

The Walkmen

Seasoned New York clan The Walkmen are to continue on from the class act that was their last album ‘Lisbon’ with new suite ‘Heaven’, it’s been announced.

Set to surface via Bella Union on 4 Jun, it features Fleet Foxes’ Robin Pecknold on a track named ‘No One Ever Sleeps’, with Pitchfork confirming other titles as ‘We Can’t Be Beat’, ‘Song for Leigh’, ‘Heartbreaker’, and ‘Love Is Luck’.

Says frontman Hamilton Leithauser: “The detachment you can feel throughout our younger records is gone. We felt like it was time to make a bigger, more generous statement”.

It’s certainly a “generous statement” I’m anxious to hear, especially having seen this album trailer:

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:42 | By

Ariel Pink and R Stevie Moore releasing cassette collection

Releases

R Stevie Moore & Ariel Pink

One third of ‘Ku Lux Glam’, the dubiously titled sixty-track collaboration between lo-fi psych soundsmiths R Stevie Moore and Ariel Pink, is being released as a cassette collection.

Due for issue via London label Stroll On Records on 30 Apr, it will feature twenty tracks on numbered tapes, the overall package also including a fold-out poster.

You can glimpse the beast in its entirety here, or alternatively just listen to a fraction of it, ‘No Zipper’, here:

 

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:39 | By

Dum Dum Girls headlining Islington Academy

Gigs & Festivals

Dum Dum Girls

I just love Dum Dum Girls, particularly the scissor-happy new video for ‘Coming Down’, the very fine centerpiece of the band’s sophomore album ‘Only In Dreams’.

Having last graced our fair isle last November, the Dum Dums (the Girls, not the nineties indie band) are now booked to play a headline date at London’s Islington Academy on 11 Apr, a fact that pleases me as much as the aforementioned video.

And here’s that video now:

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:33 | By

Festival line-up update – 30 Mar 2012

Artist News Festival Line-Up Update Gigs & Festivals

RockNess

BURTON AGNESS JAZZ & BLUES, Burton Agness Hall, Yorkshire, 6-8 Jul: Those attending this most serene of jazz and blues festival can anticipate sets from thrice-booked local favourites Alligators, illustrious contemporary troupe Ian Siegal & The Mississippi Mudbloods, acoustic singer-songwriter Sean Taylor, and Ben Beattie’s Jazz Essentials, who’ll be joined onstage by festival boss and saxophonist Simon Cunliffe-Lister for a fitting end to the weekend’s revelry. www.burtonagnes.com

CRYSTAL PALACE GARDEN PARTY, Crystal Palace Park Bowl, London, 23-24 Jun: A venerable selection of artists comprising Rick Wakeman, Hawkwind, The Strawbs and Focus will serve as accompaniment for Saturday guests of this familial multi-arts fest, while Sunday’s running will see an open-air recital by the London Gala Symphony Orchestra and opera soloist Juliette Poch. www.crystalpalacegardenparty.com

DEER SHED, Baldersby Park, Topcliffe, Yorkshire, 20-22 Jul: School Of Seven Bells, Lai Mera, Woodenbox and Arthur Rigby & The Baskervilles number among the most recent residents of this year’s Deer Shed stable, expanding upon a bill that hitherto included Beth Jeans Houghton & The Hooves Of Destiny, Saint Etienne, Villagers, Los Campesinos!, Dutch Uncles and Paul Thomas Saunders. www.deerhshedfestival.com

GREENBELT, Cheltenham Racecourse, 24-27 Aug: Producer and multi-instrumentalist Nitin Sawhney towers atop a rich and verdant Greenbelt bank, as also features The Proclaimers, The Leisure Society, Jose Vanders and Abigail Washburn, with an array of comedy and cinema happenings also amongst the many goings on. www.greenbelt.org.uk/festival

ROCKNESS, Loch Ness, Scotland, 8-10 Jun: Fab electronica label Soma Records are taking control of RockNess’s flying saucer-like Arcadia UFO arena, hosting a live bill that includes DJ and remixer James Holden, Ben Sims and Andrew Weatherall, who’ll present a five-hour set with production maestro Sean Johnston. This is all added to the festival’s line-up at large, as includes Mumford & Sons, Ed Sheeran, Friendly Fires, Biffy Clyro, Justice, Deadmau5 and The Rapture. www.rockness.co.uk

SUMMERTYNE, The Sage, Gateshead, 20-22 Jul: Now in its seventh year, this live ode to all-things Americana is so far to host various icons of the genre including John Hiatt & The Combo, Wanda Jackson, Darrell Scott, Vintage Trouble, Michael Chapman and Greek singer-songwriter Lera Lynn. thesagegateshead.org/

WYCHWOOD FESTIVAL, Cheltenham Racecourse, Gloucestershire, 8-10 Jun: The Saw Doctors captain a fleet of new additions to the familial Wychwood roster, with Dodgy, Hawkwind and Francois & The Atlas Mountains also amongst those joining Bellowhead, James, The Damned, Thrill Collins, Doctor & The Medics and DJ Howard Marks. www.wychwoodfestival.com

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:28 | By

Kwes to soundtrack AIF social event

Business News Education & Events

Kwes

Warp-signed electronic producer Kwes is to appear at the Association Of Independent Festival’s next monthly Festival Social networking night. Storytelling singer-songwriter LA Salami will also perform at the event, which takes place at The Social on 3 Apr from 8pm onwards. Entry is free for the first hour (after which it’s £2), but you can secure a guaranteed guestlist place by emailing details to social@aiforg.com

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:26 | By

“Transparency” the new buzz word in the ticket resale space

Business News Live Business

Viagogo

In a round up piece on the recent revival of secondary ticketing outrage here in Britian, live industry trade magazine LIVE UK has added a couple of extra interesting nuggets of information into the mix.

As previously reported, secondary ticketing – which hasn’t been as controversial over here as in the US in recent years – was thrown very much back into the spotlight by an expose on Channel 4 documentary series ‘Dispatches’ last month, which focused on ticket resale websites Viagogo and Seatwave, and the use of such sites by some tour promoters to resell tickets for their own events at a big mark up.

Although the programme caused some outrage online and in the press, and reignited the debate in Westminster as to whether ticket touting should be regulated, it remains to be seen whether the programme has any major impact. Seatwave has just upgraded its website, and says that the new platform offers more “transparency”, though it’s not entirely clear what that means.

But the “T” word has been used by the live industry trade body the Concert Promoters Association too. None of the promoters accused of reselling their own tickets at big marks ups by Channel 4 has actually engaged with the media since the ‘Dispatches’ show aired, instead relying on an initial CPA statement that blamed the government for failing to crack down on touting, forcing some of its members to join the ticket resale party.

But, with the promoters who do just that claiming they actually view the secondary ticketing sites as ‘premium primary ticketing services’, and therefore don’t really consider themselves to be self-touting their own tickets, some critics have called on such companies to declare that fact, rather than pretending they are fans selling to other fans.

And the CPA, while not wanting to be too heavily drawn into the debate, has basically agreed with that viewpoint. According to LIVE UK, after a discussion on the online touting issue at its AGM earlier this month, the trade body said in a statement: “The CPA encourages all of its members to observe its code of conduct, which is to deal fairly with the public, other businesses and the artistes they promote, and to maintain ethical standards, honesty and integrity. It also advises the public to only buy tickets from the outlets listed in promoters’ advertising, from the venue box office or from ticket agencies which display the STAR [Society of Ticket Agents And Retailers] logo”.

Meanwhile the body’s chair, Stuart Littlewood, added: “In future, I believe there will be a lot more transparency, in that tickets sold at premium prices will be clearly defined as such”.

Of course the new transparency that’s being promised will be of interest to the music publishers and their collecting society PRS For Music. As previously noted, as promoters pay a percentage of ticket revenues to the society to cover the rights that exist in songs performed at their shows, if the promoter sells that ticket at a mark up via a Viagogo type site, arguably the percentage royalty is due on the mark up as well as the published ticket price. It’s not clear whether such extra royalties on marked-up tickets have been paid in the past.

Asked about that particular issue by LIVE UK, a spokesman for PRS said: “In light of the allegations raised by ‘Dispatches’, the licensing team and board of PRS For Music are reviewing all options to ensure that all primary sales are disclosed in returns. We reserve the right to audit a performance and associated accounts, to ensure accuracy of payments”.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:24 | By

Sony Corp confirm US executive rejigs

Business News Industry People Labels & Publishers

Sony Corp

Sony Corp has confirmed the executive rejig in its American division that was rumoured last week, which sees Sony Pictures Entertainment boss Michael Lynton also become CEO for Sony Corporation Of America. Sony General Counsel Nicole Seligman will also become President, heading up business and legal affairs for the division.

The promotions, which come as the top guard at Sony Corp HQ in Tokyo change, with Kazuo Hirai rising to the CEO post, will kick in at the end of June. The move means that the bosses of Sony’s two US-based music companies – Sony Music’s Doug Morris and Sony/ATV’s Marty Bandier – will both report to Lynton.

Commenting on the appointments, new Sony boss Hirai told reporters: “I have known both Michael and Nicole for many years, and they will do an excellent job at Sony Corporation Of America. They will be key members of my management team as we build on the progress made under the leadership of [my predecessor] Howard [Stringer] and fulfill Sony’s destiny as the company best able to make and deliver the kind of entertainment, products and services people want”.

Elsewhere, it was also confirmed that Sony Corporation Of America’s CFO Rob Wiesenthal will move into the Sony/ATV music publishing company as Chief Strategy Officer, reporting to Bandier, and overseeing all territories outside North America and the UK. It’s thought he’ll also be involved in working out quite how new acquisition EMI Music Publishing (assuming that takeover gets the go ahead from regulators) will fit into the Sony/ATV business, given the Sony publisher will not own the EMI company outright.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:22 | By

[PIAS] recruits Fabric Records man

Business News Industry People Labels & Publishers

[PIAS]

Independent distribution firm [PIAS] has confirmed the appointment of Geoff Muncey, previously with Fabric Records for over a decade, to the role of General Manager for its own record labels, where he will oversee A&R, budgets, administration and branding.

Confirming the new appointment, [PIAS] UK MD Peter Thompson told reporters: “I’ve known Geoff for a long time thanks to our relationship with Fabric and it’s fantastic that he has agreed to join [PIAS] as we develop the label side of our activities. It’s an exciting time at [PIAS] as we continue to grow the label roster and this appointment, along with a number of soon-to-be-announced signings, emphasises our commitment and ambition towards the artists we are proud to work with”.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:21 | By

BlackBerry maker to refocus on corporate customers

Digital

BlackBerry

Research In Motion, maker of the flagging BlackBerry, has announced it will refocus its efforts on its core business of providing mobile services to corporate clients, rather than targeting the consumer space, where it has struggled to compete with Apple’s iPhone and those handsets using Google’s Android platform.

The new strategy follows a management shake-up, and will see RIM target exclusively business customers, and those consumers who buy a mobile with business use in mind. It is, of course, the area where BlackBerry has always had the best reputation, though even there it faces tough competition from Apple and Google, with some big corporate clients of old already looking into developing apps that allow some of the security and control the BlackBerry platform offers via the iPhone and Android devices.

It’s not yet clear what the move will mean for future developments at the BlackBerry Messenger network that has proven particularly popular with young mobile users, or the accompanying music service the mobile maker attached onto it last November.

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Friday 30 March 2012, 11:19 | By

CMU Beef Of The Week #104: Paul Van Dyk v Madonna

And Finally Beef Of The Week

Madonna

Her Madge-ness made a surprise appearance at the Winter Music Conference accompanying Ultra Music Festival in Miami last weekend, ahead of the release of her new record ‘MDNA’, but pissed off some of the dance music community’s big names by asking her audience whether they had seen ‘Molly’.

The Molly reference was widely assumed to be a take on the old Mrs Merton BRIT Awards gag (“has anyone seen Charlie, everyone backstage is asking for Charlie”), given ‘Molly’ is slang for ecstasy, or MDMA if you want to be more scientific about these things. And, of course, Madonna is already alluding to the clubbing drug in her new album’s title.

But, see, while some of the young clubbers enjoying Madonna’s impromptu set might have enjoyed the sly drug references, some in the dance genre are rather sensitive about the associations electronic music has with drugs, and weren’t impressed that the pop queen seemed to think an electronic music festival was the best place to push the drug allusions in her new album’s title.

Deadmau5 was the first to criticise Madonna for the Molly talk, tweeting his objections, though – ever keen to be in with the in crowd – Madge quickly moved to placate the popular producer by insisting there’d been a misunderstanding. She reportedly tweeted back: “I don’t support drug use and I never have. I was referring to the song called ‘Have You Seen Molly’ written by my friend Cedric Gervais who I almost worked with on my last album…”

Convinced? Well, Paul Van Dyk isn’t. He’s also not impressed by Madonna’s Ultra Molly references, and has spoken to Billboard on the matter. Says the superstar DJ: “I don’t think she was thinking much. The only thing she was probably thinking was, ‘I need to connect with a young crowd’, and she made the biggest mistake of her career. Madonna was so stupid to actually call out drug abuse in front of a crowd of 18-year-olds. This is not what our music is about. It’s really counterproductive”.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:37 | By

Playlist: Karima Francis

CMU Playlists

Karima Francis

Singer-songwriter Karima Francis released her debut album, ‘The Author’, via Kitchenware Records in 2009. Last year she signed to Universal’s Vertigo for the follow-up, ‘The Remedy’. Produced by Flood, the album is scheduled for release this summer and will be preceded by the single ‘Wherever I Go’ on 13 May.

Having played a one-off show at The Slaughtered Lamb in London last week she will head out on a full UK tour in April, starting at The Plug in Sheffield on 21 Apr and finishing up at nineteenth centre music hall Hoxton Hall on 17 May

Before all that, we asked Karima to put together a playlist for us. Of her choices, she said: “When it comes to doing tasks like making playlists I get really scared. I’m not fashionable when it comes to music at all. Music is somewhat about survival for me in a sense; I listen to music to get me through things, one way or another. When I actually step out of my own music, I seem to delve into the world of damaged emotion. Don’t get me wrong, I hear a lot of new music that I love, but there are only select key artists, who break the skin and get into my heart. It’s surreal looking at some of the artists on my list and remembering when I first took to them”.

KARIMA FRANCIS’ TEN
Click here to listen to Karima’s playlist in Spotify, and then read on to find out more about her choices.

01 Tom Waits – Lonely
Not many songs have gone so deep that they’ve entered almost inside my womb. Just as perfect as a song should be.

02 Van Morrison – I’ll Be Your Lover Too
I like it when instruments tell the tale more than the lyrics themselves. The production on this track is some of my favourite that I’ve heard.

03 John Martyn – Hurt In Your Heart
When there is a key point in your life, you feel the need to use a song… I won’t tell you about ‘the key’ but this is the song.

04 Laura Marling – I Was Just A Card
Amazing track! I love how it goes from such a charming folk song to a 90s sounding classic. She is a clever talent, one that I admire very much.

05 Chrysta Bell – This Train
This is produced by David Lynch. I’m a huge fan of Lynch and I love what he has created here with this artist. It has a beautiful vocal sound and slap back reverb. A very venerable track.

06 Tim Buckley – Morning Glory
Again the production of the track is what makes it special. I feel I like I am with him. The flute that accompanies Buckley… this song breaks my heart.

07 Simon & Garfunkel – Old Friends
I have visited this string section many times when felt in desperate need of safety.

08 Michael Jackson – Human Nature
Jackson sings like a beautiful girl on this track, it makes me feel shiny like Peter Andre in the 90s!

09 Patsy Cline – Crazy
I’m sorry if all my songs are down beat and quite sad, it’s just what I connect with. These song just suit the moment which is now, tomorrow will be a different playlist.

10 Annie Lennox – Love Song For A Vampire
This is one of my most memorable melodies. Haunting. It scares me, but that’s why I like it.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:36 | By

Approved: La Sera

CMU Approved

La Sera

La Sera is the two year-old crossover project of one Katy Goodman, bassist in Brooklyn alt-pop pack Vivian Girls. Billed as her ‘break-up album’, La Sera’s sophomore set ‘Sees The Light’ is released this week via Hardly Art, dividing its tone between the all-out wallowing of ‘I’m Alone’ and ‘Love That’s Gone’, and the barefaced optimism that shines on elsewhere.

Even a ‘suddenly single’ Goodman is no sap, though, as her new split video for LP samples ‘Real Boy’ and ‘Drive On’ goes to show. Whilst the former is steeped in chipper calypso dreamtime by virtue of its honey-dripping lyricisms, ‘Drive On’ is malign and waspish, fatalistic even (“It’s a story I wrote about a guy driving himself and his girlfriend off a cliff”, says Katy); its screenplay is a noirish vision in black, white and grindhouse grey.

Screen that very ‘video within a video’ here:

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:34 | By

Focus on DIY confirmed for Great Escape convention

Business News Education & Events Top Stories

The Great Escape

Following the addition of 141 more bands to the line up of The Great Escape festival yesterday, today more details are being revealed about the CMU-programmed TGE convention, the UK’s biggest music business conference.

And new to the billing today is a series of sessions under the banner ‘DIY In The Spotlight’, specifically aimed at artists, managers and music entrepreneurs early on in their careers, and those musicians looking to self-release their own work for the first time. Bringing together key innovators from across the independent music community – plus artists, managers and marketers working on self-release campaigns – these sessions will be packed with practical advice, tricks of the trade, and inspiring stories.

Sessions will include a focus on what artists and their managers need to do logistically and legally when setting up their own music enterprise; insights on how new artists can build profile, and the importance of gigging, social media and networking in that process; a discussion about the sorts of team members and partners an artist needs to successfully go it alone and how to find and enthuse those people; and the inside track on what it’s like to set up and run an independent record label, from the founders of four of the UK’s best independents.

Already confirmed to take part in these sessions are Holy Roar’s Alex Fitzpatrick, Chris T-T, Good Lizard’s David Riley, Create Spark’s Debbie Ball, ACUMEN’s Josh Little, Sony By Toad’s Matthew Young, Memphis Industries’ Ollie Jacob, Tru Thoughts’ Robert Luis and Sentric Music’s Simon Pursehouse.

There will also be the first ever Great Escape Digital Pitch Party, at which representatives from various providers of online promotional and sell-through platforms for artists will get ninety seconds to introduce their service, three minutes to take questions, and then an opportunity to socialise and network with delegates while consuming a drink of their choice. Full details of the platforms set to present will be published next month.

Commenting on the DIY In The Spotlight strand, CMU Publisher and TGE Convention Programmer Chris Cooke says this: “There has been a lot of talk about artists going the ‘DIY’ route in recent years, especially early on in their career as labels look to sign slightly more developed talent. But what does ‘DIY’ mean in this context? Not ‘do it yourself’ for starters, because being successful at this grass roots level means putting together a team, forming partnerships, and capitalising on tools and technologies out there that can help. This programme of sessions will throw the spotlight on everything new artists and their teams need to know, and offer plenty of valuable tips for more established music business professionals too”.

The DIY In The Spotlight strand is being enabled by Arts Council England, who have confirmed they are supporting a number of activities at The Great Escape this year. Sally Abbott, Regional Director of Arts Council England, South East, told CMU: “Arts Council England are delighted to support The Great Escape festival in Brighton with £38,000 of Grants For The Arts funding”.

She added: “The Great Escape festival attracts music fans, young people and industry specialists from all over the world to Brighton and we are delighted to support it in delivering local collaborations, education and development and to promote international diversity and collaboration between artists”.

The DIY In The Spotlight strand of The Great Escape joins the other previously announced In Conversation events in the convention programme, including Xfm’s John Kennedy talking to Jon Hillcock about twenty years of championing new music on air, and The Great Festival Conversation, featuring Glastonbury’s Michael Eavis, Bestival’s Rob da Bank and three more inspirational British festival promoters.

Full details of many more sessions will be announced in the coming weeks, including those being staged by PRS For Music, who will once again present a whole strand of panels, keynotes and conversations on day one of the convention this May. Meanwhile basic details about over 75% of the convention programme is already online in the convention section at www.escapegreat.com.

All of which means it’s probably time to get your delegates pass – and do so before 11 April and it will only cost you a mere £120. Again, www.escapegreat.com is where you need to go for that.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:31 | By

Sonisphere UK is cancelled

Business News Gigs & Festivals Live Business Top Stories

Sonisphere

Bad news for any of you looking forward to watching a field full of metalheads throwing bottles of urine at a former ‘American Idol’ runner up (which was set to be one of the highlights of the summer, I think we can all agree), the British leg of rock festival Sonisphere is off.

The news was broken yesterday by headliners Queen, who told their fans “it is with very heavy hearts and much regret that we announce the cancellation of Sonisphere Knebworth 2012”.

Then this morning co-promoters Kilimanjaro confirmed the cancellation themselves, saying: “Putting the festival together in what is proving to be a very challenging year was more difficult than we anticipated and we have spent the last few months fighting hard to keep Sonisphere in the calendar. Unfortunately circumstances have dictated that we would be unable to run the festival to a standard that both the artists and Sonisphere’s audience would rightly expect”.

They continued: “We want to express our deepest regrets to the artists and to thank all the staff, suppliers and contractors who worked so hard with us to try and pull off what has proven to be an impossible task and we know how much they share in our disappointment. We also want to send a huge thanks to the Sonisphere fans who stuck by us and we are so sorry that we can’t fulfil what we set out to do. Ticket holders will automatically receive a full refund direct from their ticket agents”.

Rumours of the cancellation began to circulate in the agent community earlier this week, with some artist reps mightily pissed off that – having agreed to exclusivity terms with Sonisphere – their clients are now without UK festival dates for 2012.

Meanwhile discussion is rampant as to what caused the presumably poor ticket sales that would lead to a festival of this size being canned. The line up may have been a factor. Having quickly established itself as a fairly credible pan-European heavy rock festival since launching in 2009, I think most people were surprised when it was announced the Saturday headliners at the UK edition this year would be Brian May and Roger Taylor doing Queen songs with former ‘Idol’ contender Adam Lambert. Kiss and The Darkness were also surprise bookings for a festival that last year boasted the ‘big four of metal’ on its bill.

Some ridiculed the line up, others criticised it, but some did wonder whether – in an increasingly saturated market for heavy rock events, and with the big metal acts having toured pretty prolifically in recent years – perhaps a more eclectic roster was a good strategy. Though, assuming poor ticket sales did play their part in this week’s decision to cancel, perhaps a more generic metal line up – which is what the other Sonisphere dates around Europe are offering this summer – would have been a safer bet.

There’ll also likely be some chatter about what this says about the British festival market in 2012, especially given Kilimanjaro’s reference to this being “a very challenging year”. While the UK live sector held up, in the main, in 2010 when the American live industry had a bad year, some British promoters are admitting that this year is proving particularly tricky, perhaps as the economic turmoil that has prevailed for a few years now really starts to take its toll on the average music fan’s bank account.

Kilimanjaro pulling Sonisphere UK follows Festival Republic’s decision earlier this year to cancel The Big Chill, and in Ireland MCD’s announcement that it was following Glastonbury’s lead with its Oxegen event and sitting 2012 out. These are all events led by pretty big players in the festival market (though Kilimanjaro bosses did recently announce they had bought AEG Live out of their business), leading some to worry that some smaller independent events may also hit the wall this summer as slow ticket sales and tight profit margins collide.

Though optimists might hope that the removal of some bigger names from the festival calendar, plus Glastonbury taking its traditional year off, might mean extra punters for the more innovative independent events. Let’s hope so.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:29 | By

Sony try to get Toto’s digital royalties action dismissed

Business News Digital Royalties Timeline Labels & Publishers Legal

Sony Music

Sony Music has fired a shot back at Toto in the ongoing digital royalties dispute that is rumbling around the American record industry with increased volume of late.

As previously reported, many heritage artists with pre-iTunes record contracts are saying that download revenue should be treated as licensing income not record sales money. This is important, because most artists get a significantly bigger share of licensing money versus record sales cash. All four majors now face lawsuits on this issue, most citing the ruling in the recent legal dispute between Universal and Eminem collaborators FBT Productions, where the producers successfully argued the high ‘licence’ royalty should be paid on iTunes revenue. Universal insist that ruling doesn’t set a precedent relevant to all pre-internet artist contracts, but most artists disagree.

Toto pulled Sony into the latest round of digital royalty squabbling last month, though interestingly at the exact same time that particular music major was close to settling a much earlier lawsuit on this issue, which had been led by The Allman Brothers and Cheap Trick. Unlike Universal, Sony has agreed that heritage artists should get a higher cut of download royalties, though only a few per cent more, rather than the figure paid out on traditional licensing deals (often 20-25% more than their record sales share).

Sony’s proposed settlement, which includes an upfront compensation payment as well as the 3% increase in royalties moving forward, is currently with the courts for approval (because the Allman Bros lawsuit became a class action). If the judge approves the settlement, any affected artists will have to opt out of the deal, or it will be assumed they accept it.

It remains to be seen how most artists respond to the settlement. It’s thought The Allman Brothers and Cheap Trick themselves have a separate more generous agreement with Sony, which might motivate other artists to also push for a higher pay out too, though some might reckon taking the 3% increase now is easier than going to the cost and hassle of pushing for more through the courts.

Either way, word is that Toto aren’t especially impressed with the proposed class action settlement, and plan to proceed with their lawsuit – which is why Sony are on the offensive. In a response to the band’s initial litigation, Sony says that it has a separate 2002 agreement with Toto which clarifies the situation on download revenues. They also take issue with some of the terms used in Toto’s legal papers, a tactic that forced The Allman Brothers’ first legal action on the digital royalties issue in 2006 to be dismissed.

It remains to be seen how the court responds to Sony’s latest filing on the Toto dispute. Meanwhile, we await judgement on the major’s class action settlement proposals, and perhaps most importantly, an up coming court hearing on what kind of settlement the aforementioned FBT Productions should get.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:28 | By

RapidShare case to go to German Supreme Court

Digital Legal MegaUpload Timeline

RapidShare

MegaUpload may now be the most famous of the file-transfer sites that certain content owners believe to be evil, but let’s not forget Swiss firm RapidShare, which has been fighting copyright infringement lawsuits from various corners for some time now, especially in Germany.

As previously reported, different German courts have ruled differently regards the obligations of RapidShare to police the movement of content over its servers. Cases have been brought by the gaming and publishing industries, and in the music space by collecting society GEMA.

A quick scan of the rulings so far suggests RapidShare wins more than it loses in these cases, though some courts have said – and this is the ruling that generally prevails – that the tech firm should do some filtering of copyright material to avoid liability for contributory infringement.

While RapidShare bosses actually reckon they already do enough to combat infringement in order to fulfil that duty, they are nevertheless planning to take their case to Germany’s Supreme Court, to get full clarification of their obligations.

They also seem to reckon that, while they are willing to do some filtering of content to help stop the distribution of unlicensed files, some lower courts have overstated their duty to do so under law. Or something like that.

So, while the Americans try to extradite the MegaUpload possee to face criminal charges in the US, do also look out for a less dramatic and colourful but nevertheless pretty significant hearing in the German courts on what, for many content owners, is now the most important aspect of illegal file-sharing: the misuse of file-transfer platforms.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:25 | By

Earl Scruggs 1924-2012

Obituaries

Earl Scruggs

Earl Scruggs, the pioneering bluegrass banjo player who is often credited for helping shape the sound of modern country music, has died aged 88.

Although perhaps best know for his work with guitarist Lester Flatt, including the ‘Foggy Mountain Breakdown’ that appeared in the classic ‘Bonnie And Clyde’ movie, and ‘The Ballad Of Jed Clampett’, which was the theme song for sixties American sitcom ‘The Beverly Hillbillies’, Scruggs had a prolific career, which included developing a very distinct method for playing his banjo, and a role in shaping the “high, lonesome sound” of Bill Monroe, often called the father of bluegrass.

Scruggs, who had played the banjo since childhood, got his first break in Monroe’s band in the mid 1940s, appearing on recordings and radio programmes as well as at live shows. But after just over two years with Monroe, he and Flatt left to form their own duo, leading to a famous two decade feud with their former band leader. The feud deepened when Scrugg and Flatt’s own subsequent outfit, the Foggy Mountain Boys, started to become more successful that Monroe’s own band.

As well as influencing the development of the bluegrass genre, Scrugg’s playing was later also influential on the then emerging 1960s folk scene, and he and Flatt started to play the American folk-festival circuit, which subsequently led to collaborations with Bob Dylan and other folk-rockers.

Though Flatt was less keen on the new folk scene that was rapidly gaining popularity, and in which his bandmate was increasingly playing, and the duo went their separate ways as a result. Scruggs went on to launch a new outfit with his sons called the Earl Scruggs Revue, which saw him diversify again and experiment with a more rock sound.

He continued to perform throughout his life, releasing an album as recently as 2001 that included collaborations with the likes of Elton John, Dwight Yoakam, Sting and Melissa Etheridge. His death was confirmed by his son yesterday.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:22 | By

Time Out release best London venue chart

Business News Live Business

Time Out

Time Out has announced the top ten from its first ever Best Live Music Venue in London poll, in which it polled Londoners about, well, what they thought were the best live music venues. And God will be pleased with the results, because his Union Chapel has come out top. It is a great venue. Here’s the full top ten, followed by a quote from Time Out’s Editor In Chief.

1. Union Chapel
2. Cecil Sharp House
3. The Windmill
4. The Lexington
5. Brixton Academy
6. Koko
7. Royal Albert Hall
8. The Vortex Jazz Club
9. Roundhouse
10. Alexandra Palace

Time Out’s Tim Arthur says: “The results of our Time Out London poll reveal just how diverse the capital’s music scene is. Union Chapel is one of the most beautiful settings to enjoy live music in London and has a totally unique atmosphere. It’s great to see Cecil Sharp House scoring so highly too, riding on the wave of the folk music revival currently sweeping the country”.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:20 | By

Jack White releases first ever 3rpm record

Releases

Jack White

In honour of his record label Third Man Records’ third birthday, Jack White has done the vinyl unthinkable, and released the very first 3rpm record the world has ever witnessed.

Given free to fortunate guests at a recent party held at Third Man’s Nashville base, it comprises all the singles released as part of the ‘Blue Series’, a set of one-off collaborations between White and the likes of Tom Jones, First Aid Kit, Laura Marling and, yes… Insane Clown Posse. Third Man has explained the workings of the thing, saying: “The world’s first 3rpm record is a study in contradictions – it’s cut at the slowest speed yet it plays faster than anything you’ve ever heard”.

The label adds: “It’s a compilation of seven-inch records but it’s packaged like a twelve-inch. But the twelve-inch sleeve is made like our seven-inch sleeve (as it is one continues piece of paper folded in half and put into an acetate sleeve). A bit like a snake eating its own tail”. No, I don’t really know what that means either.

But vinyl buffs can read more here. And for everyone else, here’s good old Jack’s Insane Clown collaboration, the delightfully-titled ‘Leck Mich Im Arsch’.

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Thursday 29 March 2012, 11:18 | By

Maximo Park announce album

Releases

Maximo Park

When not busy rehearsing for their headline billing at this year’s Great Escape festival, Maximo Park will instead be touting their brand new album ‘The National Health’, as we now know will be released on 11 Jun.

Frontman Paul Smith speaks thus of the band’s fourth long player, and how it relates to the state of society at large: “The nation is out of control and the record is about taking back control, and being a force for change in your own life. It can’t speak for everybody but it has its eyes and ears all around us. Our songs are built on empathy. I would hope it’s as vital a music as people would want to hear”.

You can hear that rousing speech (or its basic jist, at least) set to music in the album’s title track, which is available to listen to here:

And while you’re at it, take this tracklist:

When I Was Wild
The National Health
Hips And Lips
The Undercurrents
Write This Down
Reluctant Love
Until the Earth Would Open
Banlieue
This Is What Becomes of the Broken Hearted
Wolf Among Men
Take Me Home
Unfamiliar Places
Waves of Fear

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