| CMU Daily - on the inside Wednesday 18th October |
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In today's CMU Daily:
- IFPI launch more anti-P2P lawsuits
- Universal sue video sharing sites
- New York judge knocks back Entercom's payola motion
- Beatfreakz told to withdraw single
- Rapper Fabolous shot in New York
- Broudie's brother dead in cathedral fall
- Album review: Peanut Butter Wolf - Chrome Children
- Metallica to release DVD collection
- Flowerburger launch Thomas single for National Music Week
- New Beatles album news
- Uber-boyband launch single next week
- Nine Black Alps working on new album
- Monkeys, Coldplay and Kaiser Chiefs get Latinised
- Kasabian cover the Quo
- Shins album stuff
- Nirvana doc snippet on YouTube
- We Are Scientists to release crap
- McFly instores
- Goldie Lookin Chain tour
- Patrick Wolf Christmas show
- Babyshambles tour rescheduled
- Snowbombing festival back this year
- Album review: The Black Angels - Passover
- Live music becomes art at Spaceshift
- Hard Dance Award update
- AEG take stake in Marshall Arts
- The London Paper gets the station deal
- DAB on the rise, apparently
- Thom on touring and environment
- Williams' Gallagher dissing track
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TOP BIT>>
Two interesting stories today. First of all, Amy Thomas, the 12 year old who claims to have been banned from the National Music Week schools chart initiative because her label are proactively against the suing of people who share music online, is releasing her debut single to coincide with the launch of that initiative. This is interesting, because her press campaign is headlined "twelve year old going head-to-head with the chart she was banned from".
Now, while CMU is sympathetic with many of the views held by her label, Flowerburger, regarding the way the major record companies have dealt with the P2P issue, we should point out that the BPI have strongly denied that Thomas was "banned" from the NMW schools chart programme, rather she, like many others, simply weren't chosen to be among the final ten artists featured, purely on artistic grounds. And do you know, I don't really see any reason to not believe them. But given Amy's age and Flowerburger's grass roots status, some people will still doubt the BPI's intentions, even when they are telling the truth.
Which is a common problem for many of the companies that the BPI represents, in particular the major record companies. Because the major labels have, at times, behaved like anonymous, sinister, money grabbing capitalists (and no more so than in the very current and ultimately futile legal fight against individual downloaders, and in the use of overly restrictive DRMs), very few average music fans are willing to give the majors the benefit of the doubt. Even though, most of the time, the majors are actually pretty friendly organisations, gambling large sums of money on unpredictable creative projects, investing in and therefore enabling new and unproven musical and social movements, and providing the world at large with some great entertainment along the way. Yes, they are ultimately driven by the need to make a profit, and yes they sometimes make stupid decisions, but as capitalist organisations go, the major record companies aren't really the bad guys.
So why do they get so much bad press? Well, the aforementioned draconian measures don't help. But moreover, the major record companies do very little grass roots PR for their labels at large. Some have label websites, but these often lack any personality, and often fail to communicate the label's heritage, or their passion for and investment in music. And most consumer relationships are formed via a label's artists. The problem is that means fans form an affinity with the artist, and not the label, which means that if the artist moves allegiances or, even worse, falls out with the label, then those consumers have either no or a bad opinion of the record company.
So, what can be done? Well, that brings me to the other interesting story. YouTube rival Bolt.com is being sued by Universal Music. They have posted a message on their home page from Jay, one of the site's young and slightly geeky owners. Like MySpace, and a number of other recent IT driven developments, they are using their young and unintimidating top personnel (Tom in MySpace's case) to give what are commercial entities an appealing, approachable and credible personality. I can't help thinking that if labels used their A&R and creative teams as personalities in their communication and online activity, showing that behind the logo there are actually many passionate music lovers working at major record companies, the whole sector could benefit a great deal. And not find itself in the ridiculous situation where people will believe any accusations made against them or, even more ridiculously, find themselves positioned as the bad guys in wars against huge profit obsessed IT conglomerates.
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CLASSIFIEDS>>
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CMU RECOMMENDS>>
REMIX NIGHT OCTOBER 2006
Hot on the tails of the storming Remix UK Tour, Eddy TM's Remix Night returns to Cargo in East London this Friday, 20 Oct. Headlining live wise are Headland - a wonderfully off-centre band who promise much frivolity and high-end entertainment. On the decks will be the very mighty, still very much in demand Pendulum, who are still causing much excitement following the phenomenal success of their 2005 album 'Hold Your Colour'. And to that bill you can add Mr Mouth, the phenomenal 20yr old beatboxer, singer, songwriter, pianist, MC and National Youth Music talent winner. All this, plus Eddy TM himself. All takes place from 9pm to 3am, tickets are a tenner, or £8 for concessions and guest list.
Full info>> http://www.leylinepromotions.com
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MYSPACE OF THE DAY: Natalie Williams
I saw this girl play at Too2Much in Soho earlier this month and was mightily impressed. Sadly, I had to leave a little early. Not because I'm a lightweight, incidentally. Mostly because I was having a very busy week of late nights and frankly, I get up between five and six every morning, so stop judging. Anyway, Williams was the reason I left possibly later than intended, so caught up was I with her extraordinarily lush, powerful vocals, which she puts to great use with a sensational jazz-soul repertoire. Now's a good time to acquaint yourself with her style, as she's got an album, 'Secret Garden', out on 30 Oct, and on the MySpace page you can have a listen to forthcoming single release 'This Girl', out 13 Nov. Lots of upcoming gigs to pencil in, too, if you like what you hear.
http://www.myspace.com/natwilliams
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IFPI LAUNCH MORE ANTI-P2P LAWSUITS
It was a very busy day in the pop courts yesterday. First, our good good friends, the International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry, announced it was launching more of those anti-file sharing lawsuits, this time against no less than 8000 suspected file sharers in 17 different countries. The lawsuits will target people who allegedly upload large amounts of copyright music to P2P networks like eDonkey, SoulSeek and WinMX.
The latest set of litigation sees the industry association's long running legal campaign against file sharing reach Brazil, Mexico and Poland for the first time. The industry association also admitted that some of their legal action would hit parents whose children had been sharing music online, but said that those parents should accept responsibility for monitoring the use of the internet by their families (though that is a viewpoint that has been disputed in the US courts, with some success).
Confirming the latest legal assault, IFPI chief John Kennedy told reporters: "In each of the 17 countries involved in today's actions there are legal music services available to consumers. There is no excuse. People should understand that they can be caught whatever network they are using. The next time a series of lawsuits are announced you could be on the receiving end if you are an illegal file-sharer."
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UNIVERSAL SUE VIDEO SHARING SITES
More litigation. The Universal Music Group yesterday launched lawsuits against two video sharing websites accusing them of violating their copyrights. Grouper.com and Bolt.com both offer services similar to that of YouTube, where members can upload their own videos to share with other people. However, just like YouTube, a lot of members actually upload other people's videos, including many pop videos, without the permission of the people who own that content.
As previously reported, Universal chief Doug Morris recently indicated that he was considering suing YouTube, the highest profile video sharing website, over this very issue, but last week, just ahead of Google's takeover of the site, it was confirmed the major had reached a licensing deal with YouTube bosses to cover the use of their content.
Universal says that is has offered both Grouper.com and Bolt.com similar licensing deals, but that no agreement has been reached with either company, hence the lawsuits. The legal papers, filed at the LA District Court on Monday, alleges that both Grouper and Bolt are guilty of copyright violation by "copying, reformatting, distributing and creating" works derived from music videos and songs owned by the label.
The two defendants are yet to formally respond, though Bolt have posted a message on their home page which reads: "We have been notified today that Universal Music has filed a lawsuit against Bolt because our members upload videos which may contain their musicians' copyrighted videos. We understand the love you have for your favorite musical artists, but Bolt respects the rights of copyright owners such as Universal Music and their artists, and we ask that you please do so as well by not uploading their videos to Bolt. You can still watch your favorite music videos by visiting your favorite bands websites. Bear with us - we hope to sort this out soon!"
That message indicates that Bolt are keen to position themselves as the innocent party in this - ie "we don't upload copyright content ourselves, we don't encourage our members to, we remove copyright content if it is brought to our attention, therefore we are not liable". Such a defence is akin to the Betamax plea used for a long time by the makers of P2P software - ie "we can't be held responsible if people use our legitimate software for illegitimate purposes".
Of course, that plea was ultimately unsuccessful in the landmark MGM v Grokster ruling in the US, though the video sharing companies may be on stronger ground because [a] they have not been so blatant in implying their systems should be used for illegal sharing and [b] when content owners alert them, they will remove copyrighted tracks from their network which means users who have been consuming it illegally no longer can (whereas even if a P2P network subsequently blocked a track, everyone who'd downloaded it before that point had a copy for keeps).
Nevertheless, putting the responsibility of policing its network onto the content owners hardly seems fair, so it would be interesting to see if such a defence would stand up in court. However, more than likely it won't reach that point because the video sharing sites won't want to remove the copyright content from their libraries because without it they are unlikely to be able to compete with YouTube - which means, ultimately, they will have to do the kind of licensing deals currently being negotiated by their larger rival, assuming they can afford to.
Meanwhile, although the lawsuits currently target Grouper Networks Inc and Bolt Inc, Universal says it is considering adding Sony Corp's Sony Pictures Entertainment into the action, because they acquired Grouper back in August.
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NEW YORK JUDGE KNOCKS BACK ENTERCOM'S PAYOLA MOTION
And more litigation, and an interesting development in that old payola story. You'll remember that New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer has been busy investigating the use of dodgy radio promotion tactics in the US music business, accusing record labels of offering radio stations bribes to playlist their music, and radio station bosses of accepting those bribes.
Most of the accused have said "fair cop, guvnor", paid a large fine and promised to never never never use such promotional tactics, ever again, ever. However, radio conglom Entercom refused to do that, arguing that the promotional relationships they had with record companies were within current US rules governing these things.
To that end they filed a motion to dismiss Spitzer's lawsuit against them. But this week a New York State Supreme Court judge turned down that motion, issuing a 25 page document which reportedly disputed all of Entercom's reasons why Spitzer's lawsuit should be dismissed. The radio company now has 20 days to respond, otherwise Spitzer's action against Entercom's activities will continue.
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BEATFREAKZ TOLD TO WITHDRAW SINGLE
Dutch dance act Beatfreakz have been told they must withdraw their current single because the artwork on the release copies the 'S' logo from Superman's suit. The track, 'Superfreak', is currently at number seven in the UK charts.
A spokesperson for the band, who sprang to public notice following the single release of 'Somebody's Watching Me' accompanied by that 'Thriller' spoof promo, has confirmed that they have been told to recall the release, and remove the logo from their website. Label Ministry Of Sound have thus far made no comment, and lawyers for DC Comics and Time Warner, who own the copyright and issued the demands, have released no statement on the matter either.
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RAPPER FABOLOUS SHOT IN NEW YORK
New York rapper Fabolous was shot, then arrested, early yesterday morning in Manhattan. The hip hopper, real name John Jackson, was approached by an as yet unidentified male, and shot in the leg as he stood at a parking garage close to Justin's, a restaurant owned by Sean 'Diddy' Combs. He and his entourage jumped into a vehicle and fled, but by running a red light attracted the attention of police, who stopped and searched the car and discovered two loaded, unlicensed guns.
Jackson was subsequently hospitalised and is in a stable condition, but was also arrested, along with his three companions, charges pending, over the firearms possession. Police are still searching for the shooter.
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BROUDIE'S BROTHER DEAD IN CATHEDRAL FALL
The brother of Lightening Seeds' Ian Broudie has been found dead after plunging from the top of Liverpool's Anglican cathedral. The body of Robert Broudie, 50, was discovered in the early hours of Tuesday morning on the roof above the main entrance to the building, having fallen 330 feet.
A solicitor at RM Broudie & Co specialising in criminal and human rights law, Broudie is thought to have hidden himself inside the cathedral yesterday afternoon. Police, who had been searching for him after he was reported missing, confirmed that there were no suspicious circumstances. An inquest will be opened later in the week.
A spokesman for the Diocese of Liverpool said: "We are shocked and very sad at what has happened. At the moment we are not clear about the events that led up to this tragic incident and we are looking into the matter with some urgency. Our thoughts and prayers are with all concerned."
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ALBUM REVIEW: Peanut Butter Wolf - Chrome Children (Stones Throw)
When late-night animation network Adult Swim teamed up with MF Doom and Dangermouse to create 'Dangerdoom', the result worked brilliantly because, as their names might suggest, those two artists are so deeply cartoonish. The beats were catchy, with all the zany bounce of a stoned midnight cartoon re-run, and Doom's rhymes were dense but no less party-centric. Add to this some guest slots for Adult Swim's flagship cartoon, Aqua Tenn Hunger Force, and the resultant album was one of the best to come out of 2005. So a follow up, this time with loads of different rappers and producers, should be a blast. Quasimodo is on the cover and there's no rapper more cartoon than him! Sadly though, the album is not as exciting as it could be. The most compelling lyrics are when, you guessed it, MF Doom crops up. Quasimodo himself is relegated to an almost hype-man role on only one track, but his Dr Frankenstein, Madlib, provides most of the highlight beats. But a surprise standout comes from Koushik whose 'None In Mind' follows the hip-hop production rulebook, but doesn't sound anything like it, rather an ethereal tribal gospel spell. Infinitely more exciting is the DVD of a Stones Throw concert headlined by Doom and Madlib's collaborative project, Madvillan. Viewed through a satisfyingly invasive camera, the show lets you get right up to masked action and the intertitles conjure the Adult Swim humour quite satisfactorily. AM
Release Date: 16 Oct
Press Contact: Motion Group [all]
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METALLICA TO RELEASE DVD COLLECTION
Metallica are to release a DVD collection of all their videos. '2 Of One' was previously only available on VHS but will now be released with the customary extras on 4 Dec. Here's what's on it:
One
Enter Sandman
The Unforgiven
Nothing Else Matters
Wherever I May Roam
Sad But True
Until It Sleeps
Hero Of The Day
Mama Said
King Nothing
The Memory Remains
The Unforgiven II
Fuel
Turn The Page
Whiskey In The Jar
No Leaf Clover
I Disappear
St Anger
Frantic
The Unnamed Feeling
Some Kind Of Monster
Extras:
2 of One (Introduction)
One (Jammin' Version)
The Unforgiven (Theatrical Version)
Metallica : Some Kind Of Monster (film trailer)
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FLOWERBURGER LAUNCH THOMAS SINGLE FOR NATIONAL MUSIC WEEK
Twelve year old Amy Thomas is, and I quote, "going head-to-head with the chart she was banned from". Although, not really.
This relates to the previously reported campaign by Amy Thomas and Flowerburger Records who staged a mini-protest outside the London offices of record company trade body the BPI back in August over allegations she had been banned from participating in the National Music Week schools chart promotion because she and her label are against the suing of individual music fans who share music via P2P networks.
The previously reported NMW schools chart, which formally launched this week, will see ten artists from very different genres compete for the attention of school children taking part in the wider NMW programme. Each student will be able to download a free track from one of the ten featured artists, and a chart will be produced based on number of downloads.
Numerous labels, major and indie, put forward artists to participate in this programme. Flowerburger put forward Thomas, but were unsuccessful. They claimed they had been banned because of their pro-P2P stance, but the BPI strongly denied that was so, arguing Thomas and her track weren't selected by the selection committee purely on artistic grounds.
Following the media coverage that followed Thomas' mini-protest, Flowerburger have released her track 'Just Smile' this week, to coincide with the launch of the NMW promotion (though she can't actually go "head to head" with the schools chart itself, it being a closed promotion and not tied to any retail charts). Maintaining Flowerburger's anti-P2P stand, the track is accompanied by a video showing Thomas downloading tracks off the internet, and then being chased by men in black suits brandishing legal papers. And the track is available under a Creative Commons licence - meaning anyone can download, share or distribute it non-commercially. You'll find it, the video and more info at http://www.amythomas.co.uk.
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NEW BEATLES ALBUM NEWS
More details of that new Beatles album have been released. As previously reported, the long player will feature songs culled from the Las Vegas show 'Love', a collaboration between George and Giles Martin, surviving Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, and Cirque Du Soleil.
The album, also called 'Love', is out on 20 Nov and will be released on CD and DVD. The material was, of course, created by the aforementioned George Martin and son Giles using master tapes of original Beatles recordings. Paul McCartney says: "This album puts The Beatles back together again, because suddenly there's John and George with me and Ringo."
Ringo Starr adds: "George and Giles did such a great job combining these tracks. It's really powerful for me and I even heard things I'd forgotten we'd recorded."
Tracklisting as follows:
Because
Get Back
Glass Onion
Eleanor Rigby / Julia
I Am The Walrus
I Want To Hold Your Hand
Drive My Car/ The Word/What You're Doing
Gnik Nus
Something / Blue Jay Way
Being For The Benefit Of Mr Kite! / I Want You (She's So Heavy) / Helter Skelter
Help!
Blackbird / Yesterday
Strawberry Fields Forever
Within You Without You / Tomorrow Never Knows
Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds
Octopus's Garden
Lady Madonna
Here Comes The Sun / The Inner Light
Come Together / Dear Prudence / Cry Baby Cry (Transition)
Revolution
Back In The USSR
While My Guitar Gently Weep
A Day In The Life
Hey Jude
Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
All You Need Is Love
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UBER-BOYBAND LAUNCH SINGLE NEXT WEEK
You remember the uber-boyband we've reported on previously that has been created by that MTV show Totally Boyband? You know, the one made up of former New Kid Danny Wood, former Another Leveller Dane Bowers, former 911-er Jimmy Constable and former S-Clubber Bradley McIntosh. Did we mention they have been named Upper Street, you know, like in Islington? Yeah, radical. Well, they have, and their debut single is out next week called 'The One', and they will be doing the following promotional type shenanigans...
Monday: Instore at HMV Manchester
Tuesday: Instore at HMV Bolton
Wednesday: Exclusive webcast gig from Bedford Bar in Balham, via Sun Online, oh yes
Thursday: Turning on the Christmas lights in Manchester. Yes, in October. Christmas lights. In October.
Friday: Instore at HMV Croydon.
And hey, you should add to that an interview in the CMU Beats Bar. The big time beckons. By the way, you might also remember that former, erm, Stepper, Lee Latchford Evans, was part of the reality show that created the group, but was kicked out before they were officially launched. Well, he's told MTV that he's now got his eye on a Steps reunion. Sorry, jumped that on you I know. Must remember to build up more slowly to these shock revelations. Anyway, here's what he said to MTV: "You shouldn't rule out a Steps comeback. I know Four, I mean 5ive, are doing it, and we were the biggest pop act in the UK at the time, so why not. I'm not sure about a new career and new albums, but as for a tour or whatever, why not? I don't think any of us would rule it out but it'd have to be the right time. I'd love to do some of it as Steps was then and some of it as Steps moving on. Like an acoustic version of Steps or whatever."
On the uber-boyband he's not a member of, he added that Upper Street's manager Jonathan Shalit was two faced while confirming that he'd crack open the champagne if 'The One' bombed.
Anyway, press info on all things Upper Street (but no things Lee Latchford Evans) from [email protected]
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NINE BLACK ALPS WORKING ON NEW ALBUM
Nine Black Alps start work on their second album in LA next week. The band have in recent months been working on new material in between live dates, and are now ready to record. The group write on their official website: "In roughly 8 weeks we'll have a shiny CDR in our hand, which we can play to our families while we eat chrimbo dinner. Smashing!"
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MONKEYS, COLDPLAY AND KAISER CHIEFS GET LATINISED
Songs by the likes of Arctic Monkeys, Coldplay and Kaiser Chiefs are to appear on a new Buena Vista Social Club album featuring Latin reworkings of some contemporary pop classics. The tracks, arranged by Demitrio Muniz, keep most of the lyrics and the original orchestration from the songs, but with the Latin sounds layered over. The LP features the final recordings of the late great Ibrahim Ferrer, who died last year.
The album, out 13 Nov, is a charity project in aid of Artists Project Earth. Founder and trustee Kenny Young said: "The idea came in to do a project with The Buena Vista Social Club; to fuse their Latin sounds with Western artists and their familiar popular songs."
Here's the tracklisting.
Clocks - Coldplay
Better Together - Jack Johnson
Dancing Shoes - Arctic Monkeys
One Step Too Far - Dido & Faithless
As Time Goes By - Ibrahim Ferrer
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - Coco & U2
She Will Be Loved - Maroon 5
Modern Way - Kaiser Chiefs
Killing Me Softly - Omara Portuondo
Ai No Corria - Vanya & Quincy
Fragilidad - Sting
Don't Know Why - Vanya
Hotel Buena Vista - Aquila Rose & Idana
The Dark Of The Matinee - Coco & Franz Ferdinand
High And Dry - Lele & Radiohead
Casablanca - Ibrahim & Omara
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KASABIAN COVER THE QUO
Kasabian have revealed that a cover of Status Quo's debut 'Pictures Of Matchstick Men' will appear on the B side of their upcoming new single. 'Shoot The Runner' is out 6 Nov, and features the aforementioned Quo track as well as another new song, 'Stay Away From The Brown Acid (Part 1)', and a brilliant Shakes remix of the title track.
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SHINS ALBUM STUFF
The Shins have announced what the tracklisting will be for their upcoming album. It's because they know how much you love them. The long player 'Wincing The Night Away' is out on 22 Jan, preceded by the release of the single 'Phantom Limb', available for download on 13 Nov, out physically on 20 Nov.
Frontman James Mercer, speaking about his band's third album release, told Billboard: "I'm constantly reminded how much better the project gets as the new discoveries are made. That only happens through taking your time and being able to approach it with some new perspective."
Here are the tracks. In a list:
Sleeping Lessons
Australia
Pam Berry
Phantom Limb
Sea Legs
Red Rabbits
Turn On Me
Black Wave
Split Needles
Girl Sailor
A Comet Appears
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NIRVANA DOC SNIPPET ON YOUTUBE
Clips from that previously reported Nirvana documentary 'About A Boy' have made it on to YouTube. The film, which follows late frontman Kurt Cobain, and is narrated by the singer himself, has been compiled from more than 25 hours of interview tapes recorded by journalist Michael Azerrad during the early nineties. A UK release date has not been confirmed for the film, but it was premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in September.
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WE ARE SCIENTISTS TO RELEASE CRAP
CMU favourites We Are Scientists are to release a new CD/DVD entitled 'Crap Attack'. Out 6 Nov, it's a collection of rare material, b sides, videos, cover versions, and remixes. It will also feature a recording of a full set from a gig at Shepherd's Bush Empire, plus a band commentary. So that's exciting.
Elsewhere in WAS news, the band are on tour this month and next, dates as follows:
20 Oct: Norwich UEA
21 Oct: Sheffield Octagon
22vManchester Apollo
23 Oct: Leeds University
24 Oct: Newcastle Academy
25 Oct: Aberdeen Music Hall
26 Oct: Glasgow Academy
28 Oct: Belfast Mandela Hall
29 Oct: Galway Roisin Dub
30 Oct: Dublin Ambassador
31 Oct: Cardiff University
2 Nov: Reading Hexagon
3 Nov: Birmingham Academy
4 Nov: Nottingham Rock City
5 Nov: Bristol Academy
6 Nov: Exeter University
7 Nov: Southampton Guildhall
9 Nov: London Brixton Academy
10 Nov: London Brixton Academy
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MCFLY INSTORES
McFly have announced a series of instores to promote their new single 'Star Girl'. People who want to see the group performing and signing copies of the single will need to get a wristband from the relevant shop on the morning of the event. Here's when they are:
23 Oct, 4.30pm: HMV Edinburgh
24 Oct, 11am: HMV Leeds
24 Oct, 4.30pm: HMV Manchester
25 Oct, 11am: HMV Nottingham
25 Oct, 4.30pm: HMV Birmingham
27 Oct, 4.30pm: HMV Milton Keynes
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GOLDIE LOOKIN CHAIN TOUR
The Goldie Lookin Chain boys have announced a fifteen date Christmas Party tour of the UK. Hurrah.
The collective's Mr Love Eggs says: "December is the month to party and our latest tour sees us bringing the 2006 official GLC works do direct to the kids. With fifteen shows in the build up to Christmas this looks set to be the ultimate end of year event. Spreading peace, goodwill and beer via the medium of loud music, draw and leisure wear. There is also a possibility of Adam wearing a snowman outfit for the entire tour. Behold! The Christmas Party 2006."
As follows:
2 Dec: Liverpool Academy
3 Dec: Leeds University
4 Dec: Nottingham Rock City
5 Dec: Swansea University
7 Dec: Cambridge Junction
8 Dec: Cardiff University
9 Dec: Stafford University Student Union
10 Dec: Norwich Waterfront
11 Dec: Brighton Concorde 2
12 Dec: London ULU
13 Dec: Sheffield Plug
15 Dec: Aberdeen Moshulu
16 Dec: Glasgow Garage
17 Dec: Inverness Ironworks
18 Dec: Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall
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PATRICK WOLF CHRISTMAS SHOW
Patrick Wolf has announced a gig, set to take place in London just before Christmas. The singer, who is set to release new single 'Accident & Emergency' on 23 Oct, will play the Union Chapel on 19 Dec. Wolf's forthcoming third album, 'The Magic Position', is scheduled for a January release.
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BABYSHAMBLES TOUR RESCHEDULED
See, naysayers, who believed those rumours that Pete Doherty cancelled his Babyshambles tour dates because Kate Moss told him he had to quit the band. Of course, there's no guarantee that they'll show up, but the group have rescheduled the dates that were postponed to allow the frontman to continue his drug rehabilitation treatment. They've added a few more too, dates as follows. Original tickets for postponed shows will remain valid, tickets for the new shows go on sale at 9am on Saturday.
4 Dec: Newcastle Academy
5 Dec: Liverpool Academy
6 Dec: Bristol Academy
7 Dec: London Hammersmith Apollo
8 Dec: Lincoln Engine
9 Dec: Inverness Ironworks
10 Dec: Glasgow Academy
11 Dec: Middlesbrough Town Hall
12 Dec: Manchester Academy
13 Dec: Nottingham Rock city
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SNOWBOMBING FESTIVAL BACK NEXT YEAR
Snowbombing has announced that it will be back for 2007 and is promising to be bigger than ever. The event, combining winter sports and a music festival, will return to the Austrian resort of Mayrhofen, and will take place from 9 - 15 April. Last year's event saw the likes of Gilles Peterson, Mr Scruff, Dave Clarke, DJ Yoda, Mylo, The Cuban Brothers, Soulwax and Bugz In The Attic lining up, whilst the festival expanded its programme to include live music with sets from acts such as Kid Carpet and Audio Bullys.
More live music is promised this year, along with a new online booking system which will make it easier to book in groups, and suchlike. More at http://www.snowbombing.co.uk, press info from Get Involved.
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ALBUM REVIEW: The Black Angels - Passover (Light In The Attic)
If The Black Angels were a person, I think they'd be the type who spends a lot of time and effort trying to look like they don't care how they look. As such it's hard not to be a little suspicious of them; they are a band for whom content, tonal variety and even musicianship takes the backseat while a carefully crafted, highly stylised sound - and its concomitant image - is obviously the main concern. It follows, then, that their debut effort, 'Passover', is an album of consistent, almost formulaic construction: Throbbing guitars edgy with distortion and reverb sit atop tribal tom-tom rhythms and grinding electric bass, while behind this stew of strings and skins alternately howls and rumbles a pulsing organ so incessant that it is credited as The Drone Machine in the liner notes. The lyrics tend to wryly mix military metaphor and anti-war sentiment. When their focus is not the death and detachment of battlefields past and present (Vietnam and Iraq), the songs discuss depravity, vice and angst, betraying a voyeuristic fascination with darkness that would make the Velvet Underground proud. Had the Austin five-piece released this album, say, 15 years ago - pre-Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, pre-Spiritualized, Clinic and Kula Shaker - the word 'innovative' might have been bandied about by enthusiastic critics to describe its nouveau-psychedelic sensibilities. But because it's 2006 and because the Black Angels don't seem to be in too much of a hurry to take the genre anywhere especially new or exciting, perhaps 'derivative' is a better-suited adjective. BH
Release date: 16 Oct
Press Contact: In House Press [all]
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LIVE MUSIC BECOMES ART AT SPACESHIFT
I think we should have reported on this earlier, given that it started two days ago. We didn't because we're incompetent. Okay, I'm incompetent. Anyway, this is an art project, at the Spaceshift gallery in association with the Scarlet Maguire Gallery, in Kings Cross, which basically makes an installation out of the recording of an album. Basically London based band How To Cure Dyslexia are recording a long player entitled 'The Tempo Of Bicycles And Boats' as an exhibition open to the public.
The group's David Miller says: "I was looking for a venue to record. I knew I didn't want to record in a studio or at home. Once I worked out a gallery could be the right space with the right acoustics, I approached the Scarlet Maguire Gallery with the idea of making the recording of our album open to the public, in a similar way as one would with an art installation or performance. If art can be an unmade bed or a sheep cut in half, inviting the public to see how songs are actually recorded shouldn't be a problem. For me, the process of making a record should be seen as a work of art, as much as the finished recorded product itself."
Taking place from 16 - 21 Oct, the recording is, I believe, being filmed and streamed on the internet. The gallery's at 106-108 Cromer Street, is open from 12-6pm and it's free to get in if you fancy popping along. Press info from Emms.
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HARD DANCE AWARD UPDATE
All the early bird discount tickets for next year's Hard Dance Awards are sold out, which makes me think we should have told you about it sooner. Actually, the line up below looks very familiar, so I'm now thinking we did report on it. In which case, serves you right that you missed out on the £18.50 tickets. But don't get too depressed, £22.50 tickets are still available for the house world's big night out, which takes place on 24 Feb at the Brixton Academy, and they're available from http://www.ticketweb.co.uk - get them quick if you want to go.
The aforementioned line up includes Lisa Lashes, Tidy Boys, Ed Real, Anne Savage, Amber D, Alex Kidd and loads more, plus, of course, the awards themselves will be presented. As far as the awards are concerned, you should all be voting now at http://www.harddanceaward.com
Press info from [email protected]
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AEG TAKE STAKE IN MARSHALL ARTS
Live music major AEG yesterday announced it had acquired a 49% stake in leading independent promoter and talent agency Marshall Arts. The deal formalises an existing relationship between the two companies, who have previously worked together on a number of tours, including this year's Bon Jovi UK tour and Paul McCartney's recent North American tour. The deal aims to provide Marshall Arts, which will continue to operate as a separate entity, with increased financial backing, enhanced access to North American markets, and access to AEG's other infrastructure and resources.
Announcing the deal, AEG boss Timothy J Leiweke told CMU: "This is a great deal for AEG that will significantly strengthen our offering in the UK and Europe. By combining with Marshall Arts' experience, knowledge and credibility, we now have the capability to promote and host more acts in the great venues that we own and are developing such as The O2 arena and adjacent music club that we're in the process of creating at The O2. These are great times for AEG".
Marshall Arts boss, Barrie Marshall, added: "This partnership is very exciting for us. AEG is a hugely respected international company, and we believe that, as Marshall Arts, we bring a wealth of experience on a worldwide level, having specialised in international touring and event presentation over many years. Our priority and belief is that the artiste and the audience is why we exist. We have been privileged to work with some of the greatest entertainers in the music industry and, indeed, some of the most renowned managers of talent. Over time, we have developed and maintained a great relationship with partners around the world. Working with AEG means that we'll be able to broaden our horizons even further, because AEG brings to the table its own great promotion experience and a fantastic track record. I believe that together we promise to be a potent force".
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THE LONDON PAPER GETS THE STATION DEAL
News International's freesheet, The London Paper, has won the right to distribute in Network Rail's mainline stations in the capital - which includes Kings Cross, Victoria, Waterloo, Liverpool Street, Cannon Street, Charing Cross, Euston, Fenchurch Street, London Bridge and Paddington stations.
They beat a bid from rival Associated Newspapers, who already distribute morning paper Metro at those stations. Associated wanted to make their afternoon freesheet London Lite available in the evening rush hour, but will now have to continue handing it out outside the stations instead, while The London Paper gets racking on the inside.
There have been reports this week of fights between rival newspaper distributors on London's streets as three evening titles compete for attention - though most of the tension is between the Evening Standard sellers and the London Lite/The London Paper distributors (even though the Standard and Lite are both owned by Associated), because the former are losing their livelihood because of the latter.
Presumably News International are paying a rather large sum of money to distribute at the stations. I don't know exactly how much, but I'm guessing more than twenty quid.
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DAB ON THE RISE, APPARENTLY
More than half of UK households will have digital radio sets by 2010. It's true. Look, the Digital Radio Development Bureau say so, and they're not biased.
DRDB top bloke Ian Dickens told reporters yesterday: "Over the past four years, we have seen a dramatic rise in the number of DAB digital radio sets available to consumers, and there are now about 300 different models available from all the leading consumer electronic brands. Having established a firm product base in the traditional radio market, our aim is to ensure DAB digital radio is also available across a broader range of devices as digital convergence continues. To meet these needs, DAB digital radio must be included in new multi-purpose devices, and the good news is that the first such products are already hitting the streets".
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THOM ON TOURING AND ENVIRONMENT
Thom Yorke thinks touring is evil, because of the impact it has on the environment. And to be fair, he's probably not wrong. As a result, he's looking into the possibility of travelling some very long distances by train instead of taking carbon-emission heavy long haul flights.
Yorke told The Guardian: "I think it's a necessary part of what I do, to tour or play live, but I find it unacceptable what the consequences of that are. Some of our best ever shows have been in the US, but there's 80,000 people there and they've all been sitting in traffic jams for five or six hours with their engines running to get there, which is bollocks. The way that tours are structured now and the way it works is a ridiculous consumption of energy... I would consider refusing to tour on environmental grounds, if nothing started happening to change the way the touring operates."
On the possible alternatives, he continued: "When you discuss it you feel like a prat because you're saying, 'I'm not happy with that and I want to do it another way. I want to go to the US by ship'. The Cure did that years ago because Robert Smith refused to fly, and then I get told that if you take the ship, that's as much carbon usage. Long haul flights just feel wrong. I'm trying to figure out a way of getting to Japan by train. I quite fancy that Trans-Siberian whatsitsname but apparently it's a bit scary."
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WILLIAMS' GALLAGHER DISSING TRACK
Victoria Newton of The Sun reckons that Robbie Williams' old chestnut, sorry, feud thing he used to have going with Liam Gallagher is set to reignite, because of a secret track the singer recorded years ago that openly insults the Oasis stars about their lives, looks and careers.
Her source says: "Robbie recorded the song with songwriting partner Guy Chambers. They had two number one albums under their belt at the time and were feeling pretty confident. The song ended up on the cutting room floor when they realised the almighty stink it would cause."