GAME GROUP - GROUP UK PR MANAGER Basingstoke, Attractive salary "Video games are the new rock n roll" - even the Daily Telegraph thinks so! GAME Group plc is Europe's leading video games retailer. The popularity of our GAME and Gamestation brands has helped us grow rapidly to become one of the UK's largest retail groups. We are on the hunt for a Group UK PR Manager to create and deliver our PR strategy in the UK. It's a brand new position, so we need someone who can deliver outstanding campaigns in a creative, fast-paced environment. You'll need to use and grow your relationships with key UK media to manage day-to-day press enquires and implement proactive campaigns. You will also have to deal with senior management and manage a PR Exec, so strong interpersonal skills are required. You must be a PR practitioner with consumer and trade experience in either the retail or entertainment industries and have an eye for a good story. You should be calm under pressure and be self-motivated as well as having excellent attention to detail and a sense of humour. To apply, send your CV and a covering letter stating your current salary and why you are the right person for this role to jobsunicornjobs.com quoting reference SS27
Advertise your jobs in CMU Daily for just £100 a week (five editions) - more info at www.cmumusicnetwork.co.uk/advertising, or email adsunlimitedmedia.co.uk to book.

LANDLORD CLEARED OF TAKING BRIBE FROM WINEHOUSE'S MAN
The victim of that violent attack by Amy Winehouse's thuggish husband Blake Fielder-Civil and his friend Michael Brown has been found not guilty of perverting the course of justice at Snaresbrook Crown Court.

As previously reported, former pub landlord James King was left with serious injuries, including a broken cheek bone, after he was beaten by the pair outside the Macbeth pub in Hoxton in June 2006. He, his attackers and two other men, Anthony Kelly and James Kennedy, were charged with perverting the course of justice after it was uncovered that he had been offered a £200,000 bribe to drop the case.

King told the court that Anthony Kelly had bullied him into withdrawing his statement last November and that he had had "no option" but to comply. He added that Kelly had told him that he represented a firm of gangsters.

The plot was uncovered when Kelly and James Kennedy tried to sell CCTV footage of the attack to the Daily Mirror but couldn't help boasting that they had "a bigger story". It was originally claimed that Kelly and Kennedy expected £20,000 each for their part in the deal and that the £200,000 bride offered to James King was bankrolled by Amy Winehouse. However, the singer has already been cleared of any involvement.

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SUPREME COURT REFUSED TO HEAR SPECTOR'S JUDGE BIASED CLAIM
The Californian Supreme Court has refused to hear a case brought forward by Phil Spector in which the legendary producer was trying to have our old friend Judge Larry Paul Fidler disqualified from presiding over his retrial for the alleged murder of actress Lana Clarkson.

Spector claimed that Fidler, who oversaw his first trial - which, as much previously reported, ended in a mistrial after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict - was biased against him, and that that had affected his case at the first court hearing. He had asked the Californian Supreme Court to remove the judge from the retrial, due to take place this Autumn, but said Court has refused even to hear his case.

A notice on the Supreme Court website said simply "petition for review denied". Fidler has denied the bias allegations since they were first made earlier this year and signed a declaration in which he stated he was not biased towards either party in the case.

The Supreme Court ruling means the last potential hurdle that could delay a retrial is now down, meaning Spector should be back in court as scheduled on 29 Sep. A pre-trial hearing is expected on 29 Jul.

As much much previously reported, Spector is accused of shooting dead actress Lana Clarkson at his Beverly Hills home on 3 Feb 2003. Spector claims she shot herself.

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KANYE REACTS BADLY TO CRITICISM
Kanye West has posted an angry rant on his official website after discovering some negative criticism of his Bonnaroo set on the internet. According to reports, West kept fans waiting until 4.25am before appearing on stage, by which time they were a bit fed up and some threw bottles at him. But worst of all, according to Kanye, are claims that he didn't give his all when he performed.

The rapper said: "I am sick of negative people who just sit around trying to plot my downfall... Why? This Bonnaroo thing is the worst insult I've ever had in my life. This is the most offended I've ever been... this is the maddest I ever will be. I'm typing so fucking hard I might break my fucking Macbook Air! Call me any name you want... arrogant, conceited, narcissistic, racist, metro, fag whatever you can think of... BUT NEVER SAY I DIDN'T GIVE MY ALL!"

The arrogant, conceited, narcissistic, racist, metro, fag of a rapper also blamed the organisers of the festival for his late arrival on stage, as well as a number of other failures, and pointed out that Pearl Jam, who were on before him, ending their set an hour late didn't help matters much, either.

As for the claims that his performance wasn't up to much, West said: "There was so much liquid on the stage [from the bottles thrown at him], I couldn't move without slipping. I had to adjust my whole performance style because of it. I'm sorry to everyone that I didn't have the ability to give the performance I wanted to. Sometimes I go two, three days without sleep working on my performance. I have to ice my knees after every show and they hurt when I walk through the airport. Having an expensive stage cuts my payday in half. Call me what you want but never say I didn't give my all!"

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TIMBALAND NAMED SONGWRITER OF THE YEAR AT R&B AWARDS
More awards from the US for you, and it was the ASCAP Rhythm & Soul awards in LA this week when American publishing royalty types ASCAP recognise the great and good of the urban songwriting communities. And it was Timbaland who was getting especially recognised, being given the Songwriter Of The Year prize, while EMI Publishing got the top corporate prize, Publisher Of The Year. Genre awards went to Robin Thicke, Fabolous and The Clark Sisters, while the much sought after Ringtone Of The Year prize went to US rapper Mims for his song 'This Is Why I'm Hot'.

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FORMER KORN GUITARIST GOES SOLO
Former Korn guitarist Brian 'Head' Welch will release his debut solo album, 'Save Me From Myself' on 9 Sep via his own label, Driven Music Group. Welch self-produced the album over the course of two years and managed to draft in a number of high profile guests to help out, including Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel, David Bowie) and Josh Freese (A Perfect Circle, Nine Inch Nails).

The guitarist, you may remember, quit Korn in 2005 after he found religion, claiming that dedicating himself to Jesus had cured him of his drug and alcohol addictions. His autobiography, also called 'Save Me From Myself', was published last summer and became a New York Times bestseller. A toned down version of the book aimed at 'young adults' was released in the US this week.

The album's tracklisting is:

L.O.V.E.
Flush
Loyalty
Re-Bel
Home
Save Me From Myself
Die Religion Die
Adonai
Money
Shake
Washed By Blood

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OASIS ANNOUNCE NEW ALBUM
Oasis have announced more details of their seventh studio album, which is to be called 'Dig Out Your Soul'. It will be released on 6 Oct, preceded on 29 Sep by a single, 'The Shock Of The Lightning', and will be the band's first worldwide release on their own label, Big Brother (thanks to that recently reported new SonyBMG partnership).

Noel Gallagher said of the album: "I wanted to write music that had a groove; not songs that followed that traditional pattern of verse, chorus and middle eight. I wanted a sound that was more hypnotic; more driving. Songs that would draw you in, in a different way. Songs that you would maybe have to connect to - to feel. If 'The Shock Of The Lightning' sounds instant and compelling to you, it's because it was written dead fast. And recorded dead fast. 'The Shock of The Lightning' basically is the demo. And it has retained its energy. And there's a lot to be said for that, I think. The first time you record something is always the best".

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SNOOP DOGG ON DRE ALBUM
Snoop Dogg has recently been working on Dr Dre's much anticipated album 'Detox', which has been many years in the making and was originally scheduled for release back in 2004. It's all a bit like waiting for 'Chinese Democracy', really. Speaking in an interview on LA radio station KPWR show Big Boy's Neighbourhood yesterday, the hip hopper confirmed that the LP is definitely on its way, saying: "That record is real it's coming. You know me, I was starting to doubt it myself and then I went up in there and he played so much music for me it knocked my head off. I see what he got them waiting for, it's on and poppin. He got records, he got heat".

You heard the man. He got heat and he poppin. Snoop also confirmed that Dre will take up production duties on his own new album. "Yeah, he's doing my next album" he confirmed. "I got the title and everything". He didn't reveal the actual name of the album, however. I expect he will eventually.

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NITIN SAWHNEY ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM
Nitin Sawhney will release his new album, entitled 'London Undersound', on 13 Oct, via Positiv-ID. The album will feature guest appearances from a number of artists, including Natty, Ojos De Brujo, Anoushka Shankar, Imogen Heap, and Paul McCartney, with artwork designed by Antony Gormley.

Speaking about the album, Sawnhey said: "Everyday is full of representations - from politicians, the media and the power of rumour. From bizarre justifications for war to issues of race, nationality, religion and cultural identity, we are saturated constantly with information and second hand opinion. On 7/7/2005 a bomb exploded on a London bus. A singer and friend of mine, Natty, was there. Two weeks later he was present at the shooting of a Brazillian man - Jean Charles De Menezes. Last year we wrote a song together. Natty, like myself, feels something indefinable has shifted. London's heartbeat has changed. Within that heartbeat there lies a feeling, a collective consciousness, the uniting hum of disparate voices waiting to be heard ... A sound. This is a collection of thoughts, ideas, feelings and catharsis in a city of immense diversity, imagination and beliefs. This is an album of collaboration ... to capture the London I know".

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RADIOHEAD RELEASE LIVE TRACKS
Having overcome their problems with the Apple download platform, Radiohead have released a new video album on iTunes called 'In Rainbows - From The Basement'. As the title might suggest, it features the band performing ten tracks from 'In Rainbows' live in a basement. The tracks were all recorded by Nigel Godrich at The Hospital in Covent Garden earlier this year.

Check it out in the iTunes store here.

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GUARDIAN GIVE AWAY GLASTONBURY DOWNLOADS
The Guardian have made a fifteen track compilation featuring some of the best new acts appearing at this year's Glastonbury available to download for free. Which is nice of them. The Glastonbury gates opened yesterday, of course, and the music gets under way on Friday.

Download the album here.

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RZA REMIX COMPETITION
Wu-Tang man RZA has announced one of those online remix competitions, where fans are encouraged to remix the rapper/producer's recent Koch released track - 'Digi Snacks' - and upload their work for judging. The winner will receive $500 cash and will be released as part of a forthcoming RZA digital EP. For details of how to enter and access to the separate audio files you will need to do the remix go to this here URL...

www.imeem.com/remixtherza

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LIVE REVIEW: Evangelicals at ULU on 10 Jun
Evangelicals are strange, and the audience hate them for it. Tonight, for some strange reason, they're playing support to a grunge four-piece called Seether, whose fans really don't like bands that are strange. It's their first ever show in the UK, too. The sound that these four Oklahomans capture on their recent sophomore release 'The Evening Descends' is hard to pin down. There are elements of fellow Oklahomans The Flaming Lips, but there are also nods to Pink Floyd and early Grandaddy. The overall impression that the album gives is one of watching old horror movies at a drive-in cinema under a huge dark sky on Halloween. Tonight, however, watching frontman Josh Jones deliver impeccable falsetto with oodles of camp in front of a crowd of frumpy grunge kids is almost painful. The crowd simply don't get it. The band suffer a few heckles, but deal with it by giving the irate audience member a big thumbs up and carrying on regardless. The setlist comprises mainly new material, but the band do throw in a track off their 2006 debut 'So Gone'. The performance is spot-on, and the sound is great, but the audience simply don't care. Later in the year, they're likely to come back to the UK for a short headline tour in smaller venues. Those will be the shows to see. I can't wait. DG

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MICAH P HINSON ANNOUNCES UK DATES
Texan singer Micah P Hinson has announced some UK tour dates to coincide with the release of his new album 'Micah P Hinson & The Red Orchestra' on 14 Jul.

Dates:

14 Jul: London Borderline
16 Jul: London Bush Hall
2 Sep: Cardiff Club Ifor Bach
3 Sep: Leeds Holy Trinity Church
4 Sep: Liverpool Academy 2
6 Sep: Cheltenham Frig & Fiddle
9 Sep: Cambridge Junction 2
10 Sep: Nottingham Bodega

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MEAT LOAF COULDN'T GIVE UP TOURING
Despite that wobble last year when an ailing Meat Loaf cut short a Newcastle concert proclaiming he would never perform again, the rock man has said he could never quit his live work. While admitting that touring can be hard work and sometimes a bit down-heartening, he says he could never stop doing it.

With an eighteen date tour in the pipeline, the Guardian quote Meat Loaf thus: "It's like the old joke about the guy in the circus, right? He always wanted to be in showbusiness so finally he got in the circus, and his job was walking behind the elephants cleaning up after them. He kept complaining and somebody finally said, 'Just stop, you don't need to keep doing this', and he said, 'What? And give up showbusiness? What am I gonna do, run a hotdog stand? Be a real estate agent? I don't know anything else".

Mr Loaf's live activity was, however, nearly curtailed, in the short term at least, when he was diagnosed with a cyst on his vocal chords. But in the same interview he revealed said cyst burst, meaning no surgery was required, and allowing him a speedier return to performing. He said: "The doctor said it [his throat] looked better than it did 20 years ago. I said, 'How do you know? You've got pictures from 20 years ago?' I'm still really nervous. I'm going to my vocal coach and we're gonna hit it a lot harder. I should've gone before but I was just lazy - well, I was probably scared".

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SONY AND BERTELSMANN REPORTEDLY AGREE PRICE FOR SONYBMG DEAL
Word has it that Sony and Bertelsmann have agreed a price of around $1 billion for the former to buy the latter out of their SonyBMG joint venture, which is quite a bit less than the figure initially reported in the latest round of 'Bertlesmann to sell BMG' rumours. Word has it that Rolf Schmidt-Holtz, despite being a former BMG man, will continue to head up SonyBMG even if and when Sony Corp take complete ownership.

You'll remember that after Sony and BMG first merged their record companies it was a Sony man - Andy Lack - in the top seat, but board room tensions between former Sony and former Bertelsmann execs, which Lack was unable to overcome, led to a mini-coup and former BMG man Schmidt-Holtz being slipped into the CEO role (former BMG execs having slightly more weight in the board room at that time, some say, because of the importance of the 'American Idol' and 'X Factor' ventures to the major, both of which originated in the BMG camp pre-merger).

In related news, HitsDailyDouble have said that rumours last week that former Zomba Records owner Clive Calder, who became a multi-billionaire when he sold his Zomba empire to BMG back in 2002, was planning on bidding for Bertelsmann's share of SonyBMG are unlikely to be true. So, take note.

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LIVE NATION BOARD DISCUSS COHL DEPARTURE
According to the New York Post, the board of Live Nation were due to meet yesterday to discuss the previously reported resignation of Michael Cohl as chairman of the board and CEO of the live music conglom's Live Nation Artists division. On the agenda was whether Cohl, a major shareholder in the firm, had any 'rights' associated with the headline grabbing deals he had negotiated between Live Nation and Madonna and Jay-Z. Elsewhere there are reports of confusion within the Live Nation Artists division as to what Cohl's departure means, with some saying the division hired too many staffers given that the firm won't be working with either Madge or Mr Z on recording projects until at least 2010. Post-Cohl departures are expected.

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AMAZON MP3S COULD BE IN THE UK BEFORE CHRISTMAS
Amazon's download service, the one that launched in the US at the start of the year and was responsible for persuading all those dumb ass major label execs (at all but EMI) who were still clinging on to digital rights management systems that MP3 downloads were the future, could arrive here in the UK before Christmas. Digital Music News cite sources as saying the service could launch in the UK and elsewhere in Europe by quarter four of this year.

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AMIESTREET ENTERS INTO ORCHARD PARTNERSHIP
The US based social networking come download website AmieStreet has entered into a licensing deal with independent digital rights aggregator The Orchard. The site is interesting in that the cost of downloads increases as more people download them - encouraging people to discover new music first. Of course that interesting pricing quirk is both the site's strength and weakness, it gives it a USP but means no record labels have so far signed up, making it a home for primarily unsigned talent. I'm not entirely sure how much of the indie label signed music represented by The Orchard will appear on the site, or whether they will be initially available for free, as new tracks are on AmieStreet at the moment. We'll let you know if we find out.

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IFPI APPOINT NEW GENERAL COUNSEL
The International Federation Of The Phonographic Industry has promoted Jo Oliver, previously the head of their always busy litigation department, to the job of General Counsel. The global record label trade body's boss John Kennedy said this: "Jo is an outstanding lawyer and strategist, as well as a natural team-leader who has already proved her worth to the international recording industry. She commands tremendous respect from both within the IFPI membership and outside it. Her knowledge, drive and experience made her the perfect candidate for this appointment". The General Counsel role at the IFPI has been vacant since early last year when Geoff Taylor left to take over the CEO job at UK label trade body BPI.

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NEXT GEN IPLAYER COMPLETE WITH RADIO STARTS TO BETA
The next generation of the BBC's popular iPlayer is in beta stage, which is of note mainly because it brings the Beeb's radio services into the iPlayer system - on the current version when you click 'radio' on the iPlayer the old BBC web radio streaming service pops up in another window. Once it is within the iPlayer proper, the web radio services should be of improved sound quality and will include new navigation tools like 'more like this'. Some kind of personalised programme planner is also planned.

Some on the tech websites hope the incorporation of the BBC's online radio services into the iPlayer will eventually make their radio streams more mobile / iPod Touch compatible, though with radio being so music dominated, the record labels and publishers may have something to say if the web radio services get too user-friendly (labels don't like it when on-demand radio services get too close to being jukebox services or quasi-download platforms).

Confirming the next gen of the iPlayer is near launch, Erik Huggers, the BBC's Group Controller for Future Media and Technology, told reporters: "Audiences are now able to experience the full range of BBC content - some 250 TV programmes currently available each week as well as all the BBC radio networks - in a new and more accessible way, and all for free".

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ALBUM REVIEWS: The Postmarks - The Postmarks (Unfiltered Records)
The Postmarks are a Miami threesome with a female vocalist called, er, Tim and a strategically-rendered sound pitching them straight into the broken hearts and sobbing eyes of anyone with a fondness for twee indie pop. So, whilst there are nods to French pop and the likes of Burt Bacharach and Brian Wilson on this debut, more recent reference points spring more immediately to mind - Belle And Sebastian, Sarah Records, Saint Etienne at their most insecure and, most glaringly, Swedish twee-pop duo Club 8. Occasionally their morose Gallicism (the vocals are sighed rather than sung) makes you think of a less electronic Stereolab or even Broadcast. The instrumentation is all cute glock and chimes, Smithsian guitars, chiming pianos, chocolatey strings and horns; any deviancy from this proves welcome - see 'The Summers Never Seem To Last', wherein a theremin unexpectedly pops up, adding charm. 'Know Which Way The Wind Blows' meanwhile shows off their lounge-core talents, coming on like a blissfully happy and relaxed Portishead gone 60s chamber pop. Whilst this is an endearing album in many ways and a promising debut, it's let down by a lack of defining moments and any real killer pop-ness (not helped by the shy vocals which only seem to convey one emotion). The Postmarks have a long way to go before they're making songs as melodic as those of their influences. The single, 'Goodbye', is the most memorable thing here, but aside from that, it remains a pretty and inoffensive but ultimately inessential album. MS
Release Date: 23 Jun
Press Contact: Tomorrow Never Knows [all]

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ALLEN ON HER MOTHER AND RANDOM FANS
Lily Allen apparently worries that her mother, film producer Alison Owen, will let random fans into her home. The singer is quoted by OK! as saying: "There was one group of girl fans who flew all the way over from Texas just for one night to see me. I met them briefly. It was really flattering. I told my mother and she was like, 'Oh my God, that's so sweet, well you should let them stay here!' And I was like, 'You what? Are you fucking mental?' I'm scared of home in case my mum meets random fans and brings them home for a cup of tea!"

She also admitted that she knows she can be a bit outspoken, telling the magazine: "I have a hell of a lot of insecurities and that's probably why I say these things, to deflect the attention away from myself. I've always been rebellious and anti this and that. It's probably something I need to work on but I can't be bothered, I'm just a gobby bitch".

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JOSS STONE NEEDS TO CURB HER SPENDING
According to The Mirror, the size of the salary Joss Stone takes from her company Joss Ltd has left it in debt to the tune of £412,29. The singer apparently paid herself £2.2million last year. A source told the tabloid: "Joss bought a house last year, so a large chunk of money went on that. But she needs to rein in her spending before she gets in trouble".

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ENEMY MAN ON SEX PISTOLS SET
Tom Clarke from The Enemy has been speaking somewhat crossly about the Sex Pistols' recent set at the Isle Of Wight festival. He is not criticising the punk veterans themselves, but the crowd's non-anarchic behaviour.

Complaining about one festival goer who told him to stop singing during the band's rendition of 'God Save The Queen' he said: "I wasn't alive in 76, and this geezer was. He probably saw the 60s, when people thought music could genuinely change world politics, and he saw the punk movement tear away from romantic pop slop and say 'fuck the rules, fuck the system and let's go and be individual and have a good time'. This geezer lived through some of the most important decades of music and politics society has ever seen and somehow, inexplicably managed to miss the point completely".

He also had a go at the festival's security measures, which apparently including stopping the crowd from dancing. "In my humble view this country, and our freedom to have a laugh, is being strangled by red tape", he continued. "Health and safety madness. Dancing is not dangerous. Never was. If we can't have fun at a Sex Pistols gig, where are we all meant to go to let off some steam?"

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TIMBERLAKE HAS OCD
Justin Timberlake has told Collider that he suffers from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder as well as Attention Deficit Disorder. The way he said it sounds a bit like he was joking, though, so he might not have been serious. Or he might. Or he might actually suffer from both, but not badly. But who knows? And why do I suddenly feel as though I need to cover all eventualities?

Anyway, the singer was prompted to the confession when he began to neatly line up Dictaphones placed in front of him whilst on promotional duties for upcoming new movie 'The Love Guru' and was questioned about it. He's quoted as saying: "I have OCD mixed with ADD, you try living with that".

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KERRY KATONA FACING BANKRUPTCY
A high court bankruptcy registrar has given Kerry Katona just six weeks to pay off a £157,00 tax bill. The former Atomic Kitten's representative Luke Harris explained in court that she wasn't able to pay straight away because of "changed circumstances", but says she'll have earned £472,000 before the end of August. God, wish I were going to earn that much by the end of August. I expect all I'll be by then is sad and tired.

Harris added: "She's also strenuously seeking to remortgage her properties. But if the money comes in there is no need. I would ask for one final indulgence by the court". I think this will probably be her last chance, as HM Revenue & Customs are pressing hard for a bankruptcy order. Doh.

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