| CMU Daily - on the inside Wednesday 13th September |
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In today's CMU Daily:
- eDonkey calls it a day
- Jobs launches Apple's bid to dominate home entertainment
- Arctic Monkeys top Woodie nominations
- BACS announce Songwriter Academy winners
- Babyshambles to release EP via Regal
- Bluesky Research also
- Album Review: Junior Boys - So This Is Goodbye
- Flavour Flav solo album to be a one off
- Preston on new Ordinary Boys
- Kaiser Chiefs Euro tour
- The Killers tour
- Thirteen Senses play three thirteenths
- The Presets to support The Rapture
- Tokyo Dragons EP, gig
- Ultimate Chill this weekend
- Remix Night this Friday
- Five we rated: Bestival 2006
- Sony delay new Walkman over chip issues
- Barenaked MySpace downloading
- 7Digital chief joins ERA council
- OfCom announce Welsh licences
- IPC appoint new digital strategy role
- Damon Dash due in court over custody battle
- Britney gives birth to baby number two
- More Bush bashing from Moby
- Beatles stamps planned
- mtvU Woodie nominations in full
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TOP BIT>>
The Bare Naked Ladies are making their new album available via their MySpace, utlising the new music selling service announced by the social networking site last week. Their use of the new service (which will properly launch later this year) should prove useful for both the band and MySpace in terms of getting some free promotion - but it is only possibly, of course, because Barenaked Ladies are now signed to an independent label and can therefore make their music available as MP3s (which is the only format that will be initially supported by the MySpace sales system). In fact not only are Barenaked Ladies signed to an indie, they are managed by Nettwork Music whose boss, Terry McBride, is decidedly anti-DRM.
Their announcement came as major record company execs spoke at a CITA conference in LA about the continued use of DRM. The consensus from the majors is that DRM will remain - and that the big four have no intention of making their catalogues officially available as DRM free MP3 files, despite the inter-operability issues that would be overcome instantly if they did so (Apple would lose its stranglehold for a start). Digital Music News quote Warner exec Michael Nash as saying "What other industry is saying, 'we're not trying to protect our property'?" while SonyBMG's Thomas Gewecke remarked that "transparent DRM" was the future, while suggesting interoperability issues lie with the technology firms, not the music companies.
In some ways they are right of course - it is the record labels' duty (to their shareholders and their artists) to protect their property, and the problems surrounding DRM interoperability is caused primarily by tech firms protecting their own interests. But that still doesn't mean that using DRM is in the best interest of the major record companies, their artists or their investors. Firstly, DRM doesn't work, anyone who wants to make multiple copies of or share music that they acquire in a protected format can do so - it's really not very difficult at all. Some people will buy some music legitimately, some people won't - that's always been the way and I'm yet to see any conclusive proof that DRM affects which route people take to access their tunes. That isn't necessarily a reason for being anti-DRM in itself, but it is when the development and use of DRM is actually quite expensive, and it puts the entire mainstream music industry under the control of the DRM makers - and especially, at the moment, Apple.
We've been here before of course, and I'm willing to agree to disagree with the majors. I just can't help feeling that the whole DRM thing is this big weight that is dragging the music industry down. Getting rid of it, far from opening the door to mainstream piracy, will give the industry a new freedom (and a considerable PR boost) that will open up and speed up the cash potential of a whole load of new digital revenue streams. And I suspect, eventually, we will get to see that happen.
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JOBS N STUFF>>
PRESS OFFICER
Successful and growing independent rock label seek Press Officer and media all rounder to deal with established acts and growing newcomers plus events the label is involved with. A knowledge of rock and metal would be a bonus. Duties would range from developing and maintaining strong relations with national, regional and specialist press, radio and TV contacts, generating features and coverage, press trips, writing press releases to helping to run events. The successful candidate will be highly efficient with strong writing skills, flawless spelling and grammar, and a passion for music. Computer literacy, including confidence with Microsoft Office, is essential.
Please email a covering letter and cv to [email protected] or
post to: PR Vacancy, Visible Noise, 231 Portobello Rd, London W11 1LT
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ADVERTISE YOUR JOBS, SERVICES AND PRODUCTS here for just £50 a week, or £150 for two weeks in the Daily and four weeks on the web. Email [email protected] for details.
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BLATANT PLUGGING>>
CMU IN PRINT! - ADVERTISE RELEASES TO STUDENTS EVERYWHERE
As we mentioned back in July, we will be publishing a special edition of a CMU newspaper which will be distributed around campuses all over the UK as the student population returns for the new academic year later this month - offering a guide to all the great new music coming out this Autumn. This is a brilliant way to engage and excite 100,000s of students and young record buyers at the most important time in the college and music year. A full page costs £1000, a half page £600, a sixth page £260, a 12th page £160. Book your ad spots now - email [email protected]
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MYSPACE OF THE DAY: UNION OF KNIVES
We first came across Glasgow's Union Of Knives when they played at the Iceland Airwaves festival last year - and since then I've been stumbling across them in various places, not least on Eddy TM's playlists on the Xfm Remix show - he being a big fan of both their remix and original production work. And rightly so - because their edgy, unique and very articulate sound is as exciting as it is dark. Signed to Relentless Records (who released their debut album 'Violence & Birdsong' back in July), they play Eddy's Remix Night this Friday at Cargo in London, so if you're yet to experience their sound then you could do a lot worse than get down there and find out what all the fuss is about. Meantime you can check out four tracks from and read more about the guys on their MySpace.
http://www.myspace.com/unionofknives
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EDONKEY CALLS IT A DAY
eDonkey is the latest P2P network to cease its operations after drawn out negotiations with the major record companies. MetaMachine, who owned the service, will pay the record companies $30 million in compensation for the copyright violation their software enabled.
As previously reported, eDonkey was one of the popular file sharing companies targeted after the content owners won the landmark MGM v Grokster case last year. Bosses at the P2P company indicated as long a go as last September that they would most likely cease trading in light of that Supreme Court ruling, although it's taken a year of negotiations to actually do so. It's not clear if eDonkey, like some of the other P2Ps who have ceased operating because of legal pressure from the content owners, will now attempt to launch a legitimate P2P service where a subscription fee is charged to compensate copyright owners.
Of course whether or not such legit P2P services will even be commercially viable while new illegal and free to use networks continue to surface is as yet unproven. At the time of the Grokster ruling eDonkey's boss Sam Yagan said: "I fear that the winners in Grokster will not be the labels and the studios, but rather the offshore, underground, rogue P2P developers who will have just lost half a dozen of their biggest competitors".
As part of the agreement with the record labels, eDonkey have posted a message on their website where, until this week, you could previously download their P2P software, which reads: "The eDonkey2000 Network is no longer available. If you steal music or movies, you are breaking the law. You are not anonymous when you illegally download copyrighted material". The company is also making unspecified moves to limit the use of eDonkey software already installed on users' machines.
Commenting on the eDonkey settlement, the boss of the Recording Industry Association Of America, Mitch Bainwol, said yesterday: "With this new settlement, another domino falls, and we have further strengthened the footing of the legal marketplace".
Of course, as is so often the way, by the time a P2P network is forced out of business by the litigious record companies many of the kids who acquire music this way have moved on to a newer rival anyway. All eyes will now surely be on LimeWire, still, I think, the P2P network of the moment (certainly it's the one everyone I know uses, not that I know anyone who uses P2P networks of course, I used to, but I had them all shot). After the Grokster ruling, there were rumours LimeWire would go legit and bar illegal file sharing, but that never happened and the RIAA formally sued them last month. It will be interesting to see how long they will hold out before throwing in the towel, and also which of the newer P2P systems will rise to take its place as the file sharers' preferred P2P of the moment.
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JOBS LAUNCHES APPLE'S BID TO DOMINATE HOME ENTERTAINMENT
As expected, Apple boss Steve Jobs announced the iTunes service would be expanding into movies yesterday, with studios Pixar, Touchstone, Miramax and Disney all ready to make their films available via the ever popular download platform. Sitting alongside iTunes' existing TV show downloads, the movie service will make new releases available for $12.99 and older films for $9.99 (no word yet on when the film service will expand outside the US).
Jobs also announced details about a new Apple device which will enable users to wirelessly stream music and video they buy from iTunes to their hifi or TV systems. The new device, currently referred to as iTV, will retail for $299 and will enable the iTunes service to expand from the PC and iPod onto more traditional home entertainment units. Jobs said: "Now, you can get great content online. It's playing now on a computer near you. You can play it on an iPod near you and it is coming to a TV near you".
The iTV device won't actually go on sale until early 2007. It is actually quite rare for Apple to formally announce new products so far ahead of their official launch, but some experts reckon iTV has been announced so far in advance in a bid to build momentum for the service in order to persuade more film studios to get involved. Ian Fogg, an analyst with Jupiter Media, told the BBC: "By announcing iTV well in advance of its release, something the firm rarely does, Apple is building momentum as it seeks deals with more movie studios".
Rumour has it Hollywood bosses have been resistant to certain aspects of the Apple movie downloads model (and especially the one price fits thing that the major record companies, while accepting, don't particularly like). Yesterday's announcement seemed to support those rumours because, actually, there was no major content coup in Jobs' statement - the four studios already on board are all owned by Disney, of which Jobs himself is a director. The lack of a Fox or a Paramount is significant.
And having the right content will be important to the success of Apple's new services - neither of which are as innovative as the original iTunes/iPod offer. Amazon launched its own film download service earlier this month, while Microsoft's Windows Media Center can offer similar overall functionality to the iTV device. That said, Apple's knack for creating easy-to-use technologies should also help win them competitive advantage in the battle to dominate home entertainment consumption. The consensus is that the iTV system will be much easier to use than the Windows Media Centre - if Apple can launch with sufficient amounts of content on offer in the New Year, they could gain a critical mass in terms of users that would force the currently resistant bigger studios to comply.
On the music front, Jobs also announced refinements to the iPod nano, including a new aluminum case, increased capacity and longer battery life. The screen on the main iPod player has been refined (something to do with brightness), while the economy line iPod shuffle has been shrunk in size again to less than the third of the size of a credit card.
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ARCTIC MONKEYS TOP WOODIE NOMINATIONS
The Arctic Monkeys have confirmed their popularity among the US student community by scoring three nominations in the mtvU Woodie Awards, which celebrates the music that has been most popular in US colleges.
Both the Monkeys and Imogen Heap scored three nominations each, while other bands appearing on the shortlists include Atmosphere, Gym Class Heroes, Nightmare Of You, Taking Back Sunday and the Fray.
American students are now able to vote for their favourites in each category. The winners will be announced at New York's Roseland Ballroom on 25 Oct. The full list of nominations is given at the bottom of today's Daily.
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BACS ANNOUNCE SONGWRITER ACADEMY WINNERS
The British Academy Of Composers & Songwriters has announced the winners of their previously reported Songwriters' Academy competition, designed to champion new songwriting talent. There were two categories - solo and groups - and the winners were Lotte Mullan and Tim Hart & Bess Cavendish respectively. They will now go into the studio with 'mentor writers' from BACS to record their songs. Their work will also be celebrated at a special showcase on 19 Sep. Press info on all this from [email protected]
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BABYSHAMBLES TO RELEASE EP VIA REGAL
More Babyshambles news, though no blood involved here, promise. Word has it Doherty et al will release a new EP via Parlophone imprint Regal in November - it'll be called 'The Blinding'. It's not clear if this means the band have signed a full on record deal with the EMI label, or whether it's a one single only deal, perhaps part of Regal's previously reported singles club. I'll try and find out.
Meantime, Babyshambles have announced the following dates. Bets are already open on how many they cancel...
26 Sep: Carlow Music Factory
27 Sep: Dublin Ambassador
28 Sep: Belfast Mandela Hall
1 Oct: Birmingham Academy
2 Oct: Leeds University
3 Oct: Southampton Guildhall
4 Oct: Norwich UEA
5 Oct: London Brixton Academy
6 Oct: Liverpool Academy
7 Oct: Glasgow Academy
8 Oct: Nottingham Rock City
9 Oct: Manchester Academy
10 Oct: Newcastle Academy
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BLUESKY RESEARCH ALSO
Talking of Regal's Singles Club - the next release on it will be from Bluesky Research. It will be a double a-side featuring 'Fittest Of The Fittest' and 'Good Fight'. Only 500 physical copies will be released, though both tracks will also be available via download. The band will also play live at the following dates:
14 Oct: Research, Portsmouth Club EQ
21 Oct: Portsmouth Guildhall
31 Oct: Manchester Night & Day (Xposure night with John Kennedy/In The City)
11 Nov: Research, Portsmouth Club EQ
17 Nov: London KOKO, Club NME
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ALBUM REVIEW: Junior Boys - So This Is Goodbye (Domino)
Famous for their love of indie guitar music, Domino have reached further afield here with the signing of Canada's Junior Boys. This follow up to their mesmerising debut album suffers from a weight of expectation but thankfully rarely disappoints. Original member Johnny Dark has long since departed for electronic pastures new, taking with him the intricate, stuttery Timbaland-esque rhythms that gave 'Last Exit' so much of its character. But whilst 'STIG' is slightly less distinctive than its predecessor, it remains anything but generic, and indeed the liberation from the beats side of things allows the songwriting to really take centre stage. (That said, the naggingly tight groove of single 'In The Morning' renders it wilfully danceable). And the songs here are still impossibly lustrous - we're talking minimal but soulful synth pop with gloriously understated and vulnerable singing from Jeremy Greenspan that still sounds redolent of Morten Harket from A-ha or Tim Freeman from Frazier Chorus. Considering the effortless neon panoramas seen on their two wonderful albums, Junior Boys do make you wonder why no-one has previously thought of essentially marrying cold icy electronica with warm vocals and humanity. (If anyone else is thinking of having a go, they're going to have to try very hard to improve on the template mapped out here.) Another triumph, basically. MS
Release date: 11 Sep
Press contact: Domino IH [all]
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FLAVOUR FLAV SOLO ALBUM TO BE A ONE OFF
Flavour Flav, he of Public Enemy and many a reality TV show, has said his upcoming debut solo album could well be the only album he ever releases on his own. Allhiphop.com quote him thus: "I got some things off my chest, but not all. I doubt I will ever do another one, though. What I'm gonna do is make this one a collector's item. My first and only solo album, ever". On the fact he sings on the long player, he continued: "Once they get used to it, I think people can accept me singing". The eponymous album is due out (in the US at least) in late October via Flav's own label, Draytown Records.
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PRESTON ON NEW ORDINARY BOYS
Talking of new albums, that Preston bloke has told the NME that the new Ordinary Boys album, due out on 24 Oct, will see the band take "massive risks". He says: "I've personally learnt in life that it's much better to take massive risks and do what you want. Just try not to conform. It's such a cliche but it's the best way to be".
The album is called 'How To Get Everything You Ever Wanted In Ten Easy Steps' and will feature all these lovely, sorry, I mean risky songs...
Introducing The Band
Lonely At The Top
The Great Big Rip-Off
Club Chez Moi
I Luv U
Shut Your Mouth
Commercial Breakdown
Nine2Five
Ballad Of An Unrequited Self Love Affair
The Higher The Highs
We've Got The Best Job Ever
Walking On The Faultlines
Thank You & Goodnight
Who's That Boy
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KAISER CHIEFS EURO TOUR
Talking of talking of new albums, Kaiser Chiefs are reportedly nearing completion on the follow up to their 2004 debut and they have promised to showcase lots of new material on their upcoming tour. Alas, the tour is of mainland Europe, so you're going to have to get your passports out if you want to hear them (unless you're one of our mainland Europe readers of course, bonjour to you all, by the way). European Kaiser Chiefs dates as follows:
8 Nov: Paris Trabendo
10 Nov: Antwerp Hof Ter Lo
12 Nov: Amsterdam Melkweg
14 Nov: Madrid Sala Heineken
16 Nov: Milan Magazzini Generali
19 Nov: Munich Klein Elser
21 Nov: Berlin Kesselhaus
23 Nov: Copenhagen Pumpehuset
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THE KILLERS TOUR
Touring this here country are the The Killers, who will be promoting their much anticipated second album 'Sams Town', which is out, oh, very soon. Given my 'in the Daily' hints re getting tickets for both Infadels and McFly have both proved successful (with many thanks to those who assisted in that regard), let's see if me saying just how flippin excited we are about the follow up to 'Hot Fuss', one of our favouritist albums of the last five years, prompts someone linked to Mr Flowers et al to offer a couple of tickets to one of the Brixton dates. Hope so. Full tour as follows:
18 Nov: Wolverhampton Civic Hall
20 Nov: Manchester Apollo
21 Nov: Hull Arena
22 Nov: Glasgow Academy
23 Nov: Newcastle Academy
25 Nov: Nottingham Rock City
27+28 Nov: London Brixton Academy
30 Nov: Dublin The Point
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THIRTEEN SENSES PLAY THREE THIRTEENTHS
How many dates do you have to play in the same venue before it becomes a 'residency'? And do they have to be consecutive? Ah well, Gigwise are calling this a residency, so I guess we will too. Cornish indie types Thirteen Senses are finishing off their second album, and will showcase stuff off it at three dates at Kilburn's lovely Luminaire, on 13th of October, November and December (see what they did there? It's a good job they're not called Thirty-one Senses, because that wouldn't have worked).
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THE PRESETS TO SUPPORT THE RAPTURE
The rather good The Presets will play a headline show with Shit Disco on 18 Oct at ULU, following on from touring the UK as support to The Rapture. Dates of that tour as follows:
8 Oct, Nottingham Rescue Rooms
9 Oct Brighton Concorde
10 Oct Norwich Waterfront
12 Oct Edinburgh Liquid
13 Oct Ireland, Belfast Uni
14 Oct Sheffield Leadmill
15 Oct Manchester University MDH
17 Oct London, Koko
Press info from Darling.
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TOKYO DRAGONS EP, GIG
When does an EP become a mini-album? I'd say six tracks. But not to worry, the press release is calling this seven track release an EP, so we'll stick with that. Yes, those Tokyo Dragons are back with a new seven track EP out on 16 Oct, and they might just play some of the tracks off it when they play the 100 Club in London this Saturday, 16 Sep. Press info from Triad.
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ULTIMATE CHILL THIS WEEKEND
Talking of this weekend, it's the Ultimate Chill event in Dundee this weekend, definitely one for all you north of the Border types. Taking place at the city's Caird Hall on Friday and Saturday, Capercaillie will headline on Saturday, while George Burt, the Raymond MacDonald Quintet, Keith Tippett and Dundonian fusion jazz drummer Ken Hyder will all play on Friday night. Plus there's the Ultimate Chill Best Band competition searching for and showcasing new unsigned talent. More info is at http:// www.theultimatechill.com, press info from [email protected]
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REMIX NIGHT THIS FRIDAY
Oh, oh, and talking of this weekend, Remix Night returns to Cargo on Friday night with Whitey out of the studio for one night only to headline, while support will come from the increasingly buzzy and very good Union Of Knives. Sub Focus and Slim Jim will join host Eddy TM on the decks. It all takes place this Friday, from 9pm, at Cargo. Entry is a tenner, press info from Leyline.
Also, I promised to give you line up info for the previously reported Remix UK Tour, and we never break a promise (well, not often), so here it is...
22 Sep: Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh - Eddy TM, Root Manuva (DJ Set) & MC Ricky Ranking, Great Escape
23 Sep: Glasgow University - Eddy TM, Root Manuva (DJ Set) & MC Ricky Ranking
27 Sep: Sheffield, Plug - Eddy TM, The Cooper Temple Clause, Adam Freeland
28 Sep: Newcastle, Digital - Eddy TM, The Cooper Temple Clause
29 Sep: Birmingham, Barfly - Eddy TM, Whitey (Live)
4 Oct: Bournemouth, Old Fire Station - Eddy TM
11 Oct: Cambridge Soul Tree - Eddy TM, Infadels, Evil Nine, My Luminaries
14 Oct: Manchester Music Box - Eddy TM, Whitey (Live), plus special guest DJs
17 Oct: Liverpool Barfly - Eddy TM, Whitey (Live), Freestylers
18 Oct: Leeds University - Eddy TM, White Rose Movement, Freestylers, Yes Boss
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FIVE WE RATED: BESTIVAL 2006
One of the most entertaining sights of Bestival was surely me and Brett attempting to put up his tent on a very hard field with only a couple of hastily located pebbles with which to bang in the pegs. If only it had been in the programme (we arrived late, so it would have slotted in nicely) I think it would have been a stand out event. And with a bit of suspension thrown in too - having arrived at a pretty full camp site 24 hours in to the festival the spot we chose meant that the fully pitched tent technically went about two feet over the white line placed to dictate where camping should start and stop - as you can see, we were living life on the edge. But assuming that doesn't count (though the couple in the next tent along seemed mildly amused by the whole thing, so it possibly should), what should I pick out as the five stand out bits of Bestival 2006?
Well, that is a genuinely hard thing to do because, to be honest, the whole event was a bit of a stand out. In fact, I complained slightly about the challenge ahead of me at the outset, and the aforementioned Brett questioned why, exactly, I was confined to just 'rating' a mere five things. I explained that the 'Five We Rated' strand was highly regarded around the world, and had proved incredibly popular throughout its six day history, and that therefore moving away from that constraint was just out of the question. He didn't seem convinced by my logic, though I did start talking at length about the sub-branding we were initiating within the CMU platform, so it's possible it was less being unconvinced, and more being disinterested.
But he does have a point. It is actually impossible to pick out just five highlights from this weekend's Bestival extravaganza. It means I can't mention the storming headline sets from the Pet Shop Boys and Scissor Sisters (who both rocked, the latter a whole lot more than I anticipated), because to do so would take the attention away from the newer talent playing. It means I can't mention the Cuban Brothers because [a] I didn't actually manage to see them (though my also aforementioned neighbour said they were brilliant), and more importantly, [b] you already know we love em. It also means I don't have room to waffle at length about just how good the two groups of samba drummers were, or about how much I enjoyed the Groovy Movie solar powered cinema and their quirky collection of videos and films (kind of like YouTube live), or just how perfect my Sunday morning was - dozing in the Isle Of Wight sunshine while consuming coffee and cakes courtesy of the WI, enjoying sets from a load of bands I didn't catch the name of on the Bestival band stand and watching geese terrorise young children.
The brilliant weather deserves a special mention, though I'm not sure the da Banks et al can really claim complete responsibility for that. But they are responsible for devising and delivering a truly wonderful festival big enough to absorb you, but small enough to fool you into thinking that you and your fellow Bestivalers are an exclusive bunch who have, by some extraordinary stroke of luck, all been given access to an incredible secret kingdom for the weekend. They also booked just about every DJ I love, and secured a stack of great bands, of which, consider these five most highly rated.
Nizlopi
Now, I took in the Nizlopi boys to find out what exactly all the fuss was about. The fact 'JCB' did so well in the pre-Christmas charts, seemingly against all the odds, was wonderful to see, but I never found the track itself all that memorable. I'm possibly in the minority in that regard, given that most of their audience on Saturday seemed to know all the lyrics off by heart, but personally I couldn't even hum it if you asked me to. So, I was asking, is there more to these guys that an amusingly successful but ultimately unmemorable quirky folk song? The answer is "oh yes". In fact 'JCB', despite its popularity among their Bestival audience, isn't actually that representative of this duo's usual sound - where clever hip hop style lyrics are performed over some catchy double bass and well delivered beatboxing. Whether that sound will ever ultimately deliver the kind of chart success 'JCB' achieved I'm not sure, but after seeing them play I'll definitely be seeking out these guys' other recorded material.
Noisettes
Those wondering what it was that Lily Allen's decidedly mediocre Main Stage set was lacking would have found a clue in the truly rocking performance of Noisettes, that followed a couple of hours later in the Rock N Roll tent. What Allen lacked was presence. Perhaps the stage was just too big, perhaps she is yet to form the kind of relationships with her band that enable her to own the stage, perhaps she's just not ready to deliver the kind of show that the media hype has led us to expect. I don't know. What I do know is that everything Allen lacks Noisettes front woman Shingai has in abundance. Comparisons with Skin are perhaps predictable, but not entirely unwarranted - though the Skunk Anansie frontwoman never quite possessed the shear energy brought to the stage by Shingai, who more that rises to the challenge of competing with and complementing the loud rock sound produced by the rest of her band. Definitely one to watch.
Bat For Lashes
Technical difficulties galore meant that Bat For Lashes, aka Natasha Khan, went on stage 20 minutes late, and could only perform half her set, but her cut short performance still managed to impress. Bat For Lashes is possibly an acquired taste, because the looks on the faces of several people in my vicinity, most of whom left a couple of tracks in, seemed to say "what is this pretentious nonsense?" It has to be said, Khan's music is pretty pretentious, but personally I like a bit of pretentious nonsense when it's done well, and Khan does it well. Most comparisons I've seen compare Bat For Lashes to Bjork, but a young Kate Bush sprang to my mind. Nothing she performed in her short set had the crossover potential of Bush's big hits, but I suspect it's not outwith Khan's talents to eventually produce some tracks that appeal to the mainstream without losing the quirky pretensions. Meantime, a very rateable minority interest.
The Boy Least Likely To
Now, I was already a big fan of that track 'Be Gentle With Me', but had failed to give these guys any more attention, so was eager to get back to the Rock N Roll tent after the Scissor Sisters Main Stage extravaganza to make sure I didn't miss their set. In this case, 'Be Gentle With Me' is a very good indication of what you get from The Boy Least Likely To, but given my love for that track that was a very good thing indeed. Understated and self-deferential (a really rather good cover of George Michael's 'Faith' is introduced with the line "it's not our song, but we've ruined it enough to call it our own"), these guys nevertheless manage to captivate their audience. The fact there were giant cuddly toys in the audience (a reference to the video for the aforementioned single) and helium filled balloons were handed out only added to this perfect late night end-of-Bestival set.
Kid Carpet
Oh Kid Carpet, Kid Carpet, Kid Carpet. Fuck this guy's good. I'd never caught him before - having desperately hoped to see him play The Great Escape back in May only for his show to be pulled at the last minute. That in mind, I was there extra early for his Bestival set, with high anticipation, and boy did he deliver. In case you don't know Kid Carpet, aka Ed Patrick, makes fantastic pop music, mainly by relying on the kinds of Fisher Price instruments and old-school casio keyboards that are probably cluttering up your parents' attic. The nostalgia value of the kids toys used, together with Patrick's relaxed banter, makes a Kid Carpet set as much a comedy show as a gig, but that's not to say the music doesn't stand alone. The Van Halen sampling 'Jump' is guaranteed to get the party started, while his in depth political commentary on the demise of Top Of The Pops - 'Can't Stop The Pop' - is neither in depth nor political, but is everything the perfect pop song should be. Long live Kid Carpet. Long live pop music. Long live Bestival. CC
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SONY DELAY NEW WALKMAN OVER CHIP ISSUES
Sony Corp has said the launch of its latest Walkman music player in Japan will be delayed a week because of a malfunction in the microchips used. A spokesman for the electronics firm wouldn't say what the malfunction was or who made the malfunctioning chips, but she did say she didn't see the one week delay having any major financial impact on the company. The S-series flash memory-based Walkman will now launch in Japan on 23 Sep.
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BARENAKED MYSPACE DOWNLOADING
Canadian alt-rockers Barenaked Ladies have announced they will be selling tracks from their new album via their MySpace, employing (and indeed previewing) the new SnoCap powered sales system announced by MySpace last week. In fact, you can already buy them now by going to http://www.myspace.com/barenakedladies.
MySpace will be hoping the Barenaked Ladies sell through will help showcase their new service, which is expected to prove popular with unsigned bands once it goes properly live. The Barenaked Ladies can only do it, of course, because they are signed to an independent - Desperation Records - which has no problem with their music being sold in a non-DRM protected format, the MySpace sell through system only currently compatible with MP3s.
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7DIGITAL CHIEF JOINS ERA COUNCIL
Ben Drury, the MD of London based digital music back-end provider 7 Digital, has been appointed to the Council of the Entertainment Retailers Association (until recently BARD), which is significant because he is the first head of a purely digital retailer to sit on the Council
Commenting on the appointment, Drury told CMU: "As the first digital retailer to sit on the Council, I will act as a voice for the digital media industry. One of the first issues to discuss will be how to work towards more flexible chart rules for digital sales, reflecting the huge impact of downloads on the singles market."
ERA's Kim Bayley added: "ERA members and all entertainment retailers and record companies recognise that downloading can provide an additional revenue stream, and the ERA Council is proud to elect Ben Drury - a pioneer and expert in this field - to participate in debates that will shape the future of the entertainment retail industry."
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OFCOM ANNOUNCE WELSH LICENCES
If you want to own an FM radio licence you better act quick, and you better like the Welsh. OfCom yesterday announced it would be advertising a new FM licence for South Wales, and that it was considering offering similar new licences for North and mid-Wales. But once those licences have been awarded that'll be it - no more new FM licences will be issued. It's all digital from this point onwards.
The regulator said in a statement yesterday: "Beyond this Ofcom has no plans to advertise any further FM local commercial radio licences for the time being in the UK".
All the usual suspects are expected to bid for the new Welsh licence(s). The closing date for applications for the South Wales licence is 12 Dec.
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IPC APPOINT NEW DIGITAL STRATEGY ROLE
IPC has announced it has appointed Neil Robinson, formerly publishing director for NME and one of the people behind the launch of NME.com ten years ago (happy birthday NME.com, by the way), to a new role overseeing the company's digital strategy. He will report directly to IPC top lady Sylvia Auton.
On his new job, Robinson says: "We have proven with our long-established online brands that we serve our consumers as well online as we do in print, but we need to move faster as a company to keep up with their appetite. It is my job to make sure we deliver a first-class digital strategy alongside our magazine business."
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DAMON DASH DUE IN COURT OVER CUSTODY BATTLE
Family news now, and Damon Dash will reportedly appear in court on 28 Sep in an ongoing custody battle with a former girlfriend, Linda Williams, over their son Damon Dash Jr, who has lived with his father since 2002. The hip hop mogul claimed custody of his son back then because he claimed Damon Dash Jr had requested to live with him. However Williams claims that it was Dash Sr's influence on his son that made him make that request.
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BRITNEY GIVES BIRTH TO BABY NUMBER TWO
Elsewhere in family news, US media reports suggest that Britney Spears has given birth to a second baby boy, just days before first child Sean Preston reaches his first birthday. People magazine claim the new baby was born early yesterday.
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MORE BUSH BASHING FROM MOBY
Moby has published a message to President Bush to coincide with the fifth anniversary of 9/11. The message was posted on Moby's website just ahead of Bush's arrival in New York on Monday to lead the events commemorating those who died in the attacks.
The posting goes thus:
dear president bush,
stay out of new york.
you don't like us and we don't like you.
90% of us voted for john kerry in the last election. we don't trust you, and we believe, based on your record, that you've been a terrible president.
you're supposed to come to new york city today.
you're not welcome here.
you only come to new york city when you need to bolster your poll numbers.
you came here after 9-11 even though you ignored warnings of terrorist attacks and cut funding to anti-terrorist programs.
you came here for the rnc convention even though your policies have made america less safe.
you are not welcome in nyc.
go back to texas where you can cut wood for the tv cameras.
or go back to washington d.c where you can watch dick cheney run the country.
you are a liar.
you are inept.
you are probably the worst president that the united states has ever had to endure.
you are not welcome in nyc.
we are not your cheap whore, to use whenever your poll numbers are in the toilet.
we are not your crappy prop, to use when you're worried that you might have to deal with the consequences of your failed policies.
you suck, and we don't want you here.
everything you've done has gone wrong. you are in the pocket of the oil and defense industries, and the poor idiots on the religious right actually sometimes believe that you care about them and their agenda.
you only believe in issues that will keep your corporate backers happy.
you are an awful, inept, corrupt, and tragically incompetent president.
and i'm sorry that you've chosen to come to new york city on 9-11.
we didn't vote for you and we're not in any way happy that you're here.
go home, gw, and let us just get on with living our lives in the city that was attacked
due to your pre 9-11 ineptitude and incompetence.
Moby's new single, aptly titled 'New York, New York', is out on 23 Oct. As previously reported, it features vocals from Debbie Harry.
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BEATLES STAMPS PLANNED
As I understand it, to appear on a British postage stamp you're meant to be royal or dead. So, either the Royal Mail know something we don't, or the rules are being bent slightly, because the Post Office have announced they will launch a set of Beatles' stamps next year. The five stamps will feature Beatles album covers - from 'With The Beatles', 'Revolver', 'Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', 'Abbey Road' and 'Let It Be' - all of which feature photos or images of the band, none of whom are, to the best of my knowledge royal and two of whom are, I'm pretty sure, still alive.
Actually, it's not the first time the Post Office have broken their 'royal or dead' rule - a stamp released celebrating Freddie Mercury back in 1999 featured the very much alive Roger Taylor in the background - and, to be fair, I think the Royal Mail possibly formally altered the rule last year. But anyway, there's a good five months to go until these stamps will be released, I'm sure arrangements could be made to make the stamps adhere to the rule (by making Macca and Ringo royalty, obviously, I'm not suggesting we should kill them off).
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MTVU WOODIE NOMINATIONS IN FULL
Woodie of the Year: Angels & Airwaves, Atmosphere, Gym Class Heroes, Panic! At The Disco, The Academy Is...
The Breaking Woodie: Arctic Monkeys, Chamillionaire, Imogen Heap, Lupe Fiasco, Plain White T's.
Left Field Woodie: Gnarls Barkley, Gogol Bordello, Imogen Heap, Lady Sovereign, Wolfmother.
Best Video Woodie - Live: 30 Seconds to Mars - The Kill, Feist - Mushaboom, Jenny Lewis and the Watson Twins - Rise Up With Fists, Jurassic 5 - Work It Out, The Raconteurs - Steady, as She Goes.
Best Video Woodie - Animated: Against Me! - From Her Lips To God's Ears, Gnarls Barkley - Crazy, Gorillaz - El Mañana, Mark Ronson - Just, Psapp - Hi.
The Good Woodie: Juvenile - Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, Ludacris - Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, Pearl Jam - environmental protection, Rise Against - political awareness and activism, Serj Tankian (System Of A Down) - Armenian genocide.
Road Woodie: Cartel, Hellogoodbye, Nightmare Of You, Taking Back Sunday, The Fray.
International Woodie: Arctic Monkeys, Cham, Corinne Bailey Rae, Sia, The Subways.
Alumni Woodie: AFI, Fiona Apple, Ghostface Killah, Muse, Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Streaming Woodie
Atmosphere - Say Hey There (Gotta Go to Mexico) (Rhymesayers Entertainment)
Gym Class Heroes - Cupid's Chokehold (Warner/Fueled by Ramen)
Plain White T's - Hey There Delilah (Warner/East West Records)
The Academy Is ... - Checkmarks (Warner/Fueled by Ramen)
All-American Rejects - Move Along (Universal/A&M Records)
Matisyahu - Youth (SonyBMG/Epic Records)
Motion City Soundtrack - Hold Me Down (Epitaph Records)
O.A.R. - Lay Down (Warner/Atlantic Records)
Taking Back Sunday - Makedamnsure (Warner Bros Records)
Armor for Sleep - The Truth About Heaven (Equal Vision)
Death Cab for Cutie - Crooked Teeth (Warner/Atlantic Records)
Hellogoodbye - Shimmy Shimmy Quarter Turn (Drive Thru Records)
Imogen Heap - Hide and Seek (SonyBMG/RCA Victor Records)
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Dani California (Warner Bros Records)
Arctic Monkeys - I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor (Domino Records)
Cage - Shoot Frank (Definitive Jux Records)
Nightmare of You - I Want to Be Buried in Your Backyard (Warner/East West)
Panic! at the Disco - I Write Sins, Not Tragedies (Warner/Fueled by Ramen)
The Academy Is ... - Slow Down (Warner/Fueled by Ramen)