| CMU Daily - on the inside 29 Oct 2002 |
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In today's CMU Daily:
• Ministry close magazine,
• New Order open up tracklisting choices,
• Grohl on the Nirvana best of,
• new Aaliyah single online,
• Review: Various - Mas Confusion Presented Funkstorung,
• Kid Rock associates sue for label name,
• legendary record producer dies,
• Bjork's mum's campaign continues,
• Jay Z enters the bar business,
• ITV: old problems new problems,
• Dedbeat postponed,
• Smoove celebrates birthday two,
• new editor for Q,
• Review: Various - Africanism: Mixed By Bob Sinclair And Dj Gregory,
• Cat & Edith leave Capital,
• Adam F takes to the megastore,
• Cocker joins the Polyphonic Spree
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Who's sampled Grace Jones, Bill Withers and George Micheal - and in which tracks (as a clue - he's back in the charts at the moment)?
Answer tomorrow
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THIS WEEKS STUDENT RADIO CHART
1 [8] Coldplay - The Scientist (EMI / Parlophone)
2 [4] Nirvana - You Know You're Right (Universal/Geffen)
3 [1] Foo Fighters - All My Life (BMG/RCA)
4 [5] The Streets - Don't Mug Yourself (679)
5 [6] Avril Lavigne - Complicated (BMG/Arista)
6 [3] Idlewild - Live In A Hiding Place (EMI/Parlophone)
7 [10] Queens Of The Stone - Age No One Knows (Universal/Interscope)
8 [2] The Coral - Dreaming Of You (Deltasonic)
9 [9] The Vines - Outtathaway (EMI/Heavenly)
10 [7] Turin Brakes - Long Distance (Source)
11 [12] Supergrass - Grace (EMI/Parlophone)
12 [17] Big Brovaz - Nu Flow (Sony/Epic)
13 [N] The Music - Getaway (Virgin/Hut)
14 [N] Manic Street Preachers There By The Grace Of God (Sony/Epic)
15 [14] The Polyphonic Spree - Hanging Around (679)
16 [11] The Strokes - Someday (Rough Trade)
17 [N] Royksopp - Poor Leno (Wall of Sound)
18 [N] Brendan Benson - Good To Me (V2)
19 [16] Oasis - Little By Little (Sony/Big Brother)
20 [N] Athlete - Beautiful (Parlophone)
Compiled by and broadcast on the Student Broadcast Network (www.sbn.co.uk)
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MINISTRY CLOSE MAGAZINE
The era when the dance magazine market could do no wrong is officially over. After the quiet closure of DMC's seminal 7 Magazine earlier this month, now the bastion of the glossy club mags, Ministry, is to close down. That said Ministry deny the magazine is making a loss, and recent ABCs of 65,000, while down on its peak readership, compares well with other music titles. The official line is that the magazine is being closed to make way for a "new branded concept" - quite what remains to seen.
Writing on the Radio 1 website Dave Pearce has given his reaction to the demise of Ministry's magazine: "It's a magazine that I have enjoyed reading - it reflected the fun side of clubbing. What does it mean? Well - whilst there's been a bit of a slowdown in UK clubbing things are not as bad as people have been saying. The whole international thing is really blowing up, and there is an opportunity to really get a foothold in America and Tokyo and all those emerging markets, creating a worldwide global youth brand. I think that's where Ministry want to be and they're moving forward and looking towards the future."
The gap being left by these dance titles may well be filled by b4beats, a new free music magazine being launched by UnLimited Media. More details in the Daily soon - but if you have releases that you want to promote through a mass distribution free music medium next month check www.unlimitedmedia.co.uk/allaboutb4beats for more information.
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NEW ORDER OPEN UP TRACKLISTING CHOICES
New Order have turned to some of their famous fans for help compiling the tracklistings for their forthcoming box set 'Retro'. Journalists Miranda Sawyer and John McReady have each put together a CD of favourite tracks, former Hacienda DJ Mike Pickering has compiled a remix CD and Primal Scream's Bobby Gillespie a live CD. All four will be available in a box set on 2 Dec. Full track listings are online at www.nme.com.
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GROHL ON THE NIRVANA BEST OF
Dave Grohl has been talking about the release of the Nirvana Greatest hits album and the forthcoming rarities collection. He told US music website CDNow: "To me, it's important that people hear the music. A song like 'You Know You're Right,' or some of the songs that will be on the box set, I think people should hear them, because it gives some kind of perspective. One of the exciting things about the box set when it finally comes out will be giving people insight on the growth of the band. So, as much trouble and as many hurdles and obstacles as we had to go through to get this stuff out, I think it's worth it. Just because there's people out there who really regard Nirvana as something important. And I'd hate to deny anyone of that."
Meanwhile, as the Greatest Hits album hit the shops yesterday it turned out the tracklisting published by Amazon a few weeks back was right. After the listing went live Courtney Love's manager Jim Barber told reporters they'd got it wrong, and the final track listing would not be made public until the album was released. It seems he was winding reporters up in a bid to keep tension going up until the album's release yesterday.
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NEW AALIYAH SINGLE ONLINE
The first single from a new Aaliyah album has been officially premiered online as part of AOL's First Listen series. The track 'Miss You' will appear on the posthumous album 'I Care 4U' which will feature songs the performer was working on before her untimely death - many completed by her friends and peers. Portions of proceeds from the album will go to the Aaliyah Memorial Fund, benefiting the Revlon UCLA Women's Cancer Research Program and Harlem's Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
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REVIEW: Various - MAS Confusion presented Funkstorung (!K7)
A rather odd yet appealing electro compo. MAS is Muzik Aus Strom from Germany, an independent techno label, and for this album head honcho Michael Fakesch (dubbed the German Aphex Twin) has picked some tracks out of a huge demo tape box and in doing so found some intriguing electronic soundscapes. Some highlights: Metamatics textural 'Sunflowers in the Wind' is like Richard James in a good mood; Luisine Icl's 'Risa' is a minimal tech break affair, proving again that less is more; Adam Johnson's 'Baquelch' sounds well like Aphex's 'Alberto Balsam'; Mr Projectile's 'Less Math More Music' is nice with its crystalline tones, South East Asian cowbells and keyed bassline. There are some duff ones in here too - the slow creeping percussive oddity of 'Mind the Dot' by Autophonic and 'Salle de Bain' by Tomato Wierdo in particular. That said, this is a good conceptual album - K7 won't be shifting these by the bucket load by any means, but it provides a big up for the world of minimal experimental techno. PV
Release date: 4 Nov
Press contact: Smash Press [all]
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KID ROCK ASSOCIATES SUE FOR LABEL NAME
Two former business associates of Kid Rock (real name Robert Ritchie) filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against the rocker at a Michigan court last week. The suit isn't over Rock's music though - Alvin Williams and Earl Blunt of EB-Bran Productions claim sole ownership of the name Top Dog - the label name under which Rock releases his music. The name was first used by Williams and Brunt for the independent label they ran in the late eighties - in which Kid Rock invested in 1989.
When Rock signed to Zomba label Jive Records in 1990 he continued to use the Top Dog label name, essentially as a Jive imprint. But he acknowledged EB-Bran's partial ownership of the Top Dog name and signed a contract with the duo to say so. But in 2001, when Rock attempted to obtain a trademark for Top Dog, he filed a lawsuit to eradicate this agreement, claiming he had not heard from Williams and Blunt for years and that they no longer had any association with the 'brand'.
But on hearing about the trademark claim Williams and Blunt have responded with a counter suit, claiming complete ownership of the name. While admitting they gave Zomba permission to release Kid Rock's records under Top Dog name, they claim the deal was more of a licensing arrangement - they say they never handed over the name to Kid Rock or Zomba and that they have been trading under the name for other projects on a regular basis.
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LEGENDARY RECORD PRODUCER DIES
Tom Dowd, a legendary record producer and engineer who worked with the likes of Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Otis Redding, James Brown and Eric Clapton, and whose career spanned numerous genres, has died in south Florida at age 77.
Dowd worked at Atlantic Records for more than 20 years before becoming a sought-after independent producer in the mid-1960s. He was considered a pioneer in the studio and is credited with introducing the first eight-track recording machine into a major studio in 1957. "His contribution to music was immense," his daughter Dana told reporters. "He covered so many genres over so many years and touched so many lives. He loved what he did."
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BJORK'S MUM'S CAMPAIGN CONTINUES
Bjork's mother is continuing with her hunger strike three weeks after she began her campaign against the development of an aluminum works in the Icelandic highlands. As previously reported Hildur Runa Hauksdottir stopped eating on 7 Oct in a bid to persuade Pittsburgh-based Alcoa Inc to pull out of the scheme to build an aluminum smelter and hydroelectric plant in the wilderness area. Telling reporters she had lost more than 14 lbs, she had admitted she felt very tired and had difficulty remembering certain words. She said: "I'm not sure I could go on for another 40 days. But it is incredible how much support I am getting and this helps a great deal. When I first started this hunger strike, I thought I'd spend most of the time in bed. But there isn't time for that. There's too much to do. I am determined. Someone has to do something and if that has to be me, so be it. I have told Bjork that I will know when the time has come to stop. But that time has not come yet."
Environmentalists say the project will cause massive erosion and pollute rivers and deltas with glacial mud. Bjork herself criticized the scheme when it was first suggested in 1999, and in June the World Wildlife Fund urged Alcoa and the Icelandic government to think again. But Alcoa says the project offers Iceland an opportunity to diversify from traditional - and declining - industries such as fishing. More than 2,000 construction jobs and hundreds of permanent posts will be created in a region that Icelanders are forsaking for work in the capital and elsewhere. Company spokesman Wade Hughes said Alcoa, which employs 129,000 people in 38 countries, was committed to sustainable industrial development and had a good track record on conservation.
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JAY Z ENTERS THE BAR BUSINESS
Word is Jay-Z is thinking about getting into the bar business. The New York Post has reported that the rapper has been looking at real estate in Manhattan with a view to opening an upmarket sportsbar with lounges, pool tables and plasma screen TVs - they reckon it could be open in a year's time.
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ITV: OLD PROBLEMS, NEW PROBLEMS
ITV companies Carlton and Granada are hoping a complicated deal with the Football League will draw a line under the long running dispute that followed the demise of ITV Digital - the football clubs were the biggest losers when the digital TV company went out of business depriving the clubs of the millions promised for match screening rights. The new £6million deal, which gives ITV the rights to match highlights, includes some compensation for the loss, though Carlton and Granada still claim they never guaranteed any ITV Digital deal and as such are not technically liable. Aside from bringing an end to legal wranglings between ITV and the football clubs the deal also requires soccer chiefs to stop publicly criticising the TV companies.
Meanwhile ITV chiefs are having to deal with their latest problem - that of TV presenter John Leslie who faces numerous allegations of sexual assault (most, it has to be said, via the tabloids rather than the police). According to the Media Guardian ITV bosses met yesterday to discuss the future of the TV host. "A formal letter has been sent to John Leslie asking him to give his side of the story," an industry insider told the paper. "ITV chiefs want to hear what he has to say for himself before they commit themselves to any further action." In the meantime Leslie has been replaced on This Morning by another former kids TV presenter. Philip Schofield is joining Fern Britton on the show while Leslie takes time off for "personal reasons".
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DEDBEAT POSTPONED
Alternative dance festival the Dedbeat Weekender has postponed their November event to the Spring. Deadbeat 3 was scheduled to take place on 8-10 Nov at Pontin's Holiday Village in Norfolk, but it will now take place between 28 Feb - 2 Mar. Organisers claim that, although tickets sales were going well, it was proving impractical to stage the event this close to Christmas. "We sincerely apologise for the disruption that this may cause, especially to those who booked up early," the event's organisers told reporters. "However if we pursue the original date it could result in problems that would mean the end of Dedbeat."
The venue and line-ups for the event (which included Super Collider and Blackalicious) are expected to be unchanged, and tickets already purchased will be valid for the new dates. Organisers have also promised to cover any charges ticket holders incur if they have to cancel travel arrangements. More info at www.dedbeat.net
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SMOOVE CELEBRATES BIRTHDAY TWO
One of the longest running and most successful R&B and UK Garage nights, Smoove, celebrates its second birthday this weekend with a special date at the Ministry of Sound. With an impressive line up the club will take over Ministry this Friday with Master Stepz, Karl Brown, EZ and United Groove Collective on a garage tip, Smoove resident and MOBO nominee Matt White, Shortie Blitz(Kiss Fm), DJ Flame and Firin Squad playing RnB, and Untitled, Remarc, Ash Attack and Microbe spinning some drum n bass. Press info from Kelly Hughes on 020 7740 8614.
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NEW EDITOR FOR Q
Q has a new editor - Danny Eccleston is stepping down and Kerrang! editor Paul Rees is to replace him. Word is Eccleston is to work on a new project for EMAP's music division EMAP Performance. "Danny has done a fantastic job on Q," Dave Henderson, managing director of rock at Emap Performance told the Media Guardian. "He turned the title around and busted our forecasted sales. We're very excited about his new idea and have decided to give him the creative muscle to make it happen."
EMAP bosses are denying the changes are a reaction to a recent 'crisis' over readership figures for the music magazine. It transpired that what the publisher had recorded as paid-for bulk sales (when a publisher sells a corporate customer a bulk set of magazines at a discount rate) were actually promotional giveaways (when the publisher gives away copies of the magazine as a promotional exercise). Giveaway issues aren't counted in official readership figures which meant the magazines audited readership fell by 18,500 "These appointments are not a reaction to the recent ABC inquiry and are in no way related as they were agreed before the ABC issues came to light," an EMAP spokeswoman said.
How Rees will further the development of Q remains to be seen. His time at Kerrang, helped by the resurgence of nu metal, has been hugely successful both in terms of sales figures, and in industry recognition - the magazine has won PPA magazine of the year and Media Week's media brand of the year in the last year. No word on a new editor for Kerrang just yet.
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REVIEW: Various - Africanism: mixed by Bob Sinclair and DJ Gregory (Defected/Yellow)
Initially I was surprised that Bob Sinclair and Fellow Frenchman, DJ Gregory had exchanged their French/funky house hats in for a bit of Afro beat. Then I realized - somewhat disappointedly - they hadn't. The two CDs are African tinged house: a few tribal drums, some mystic wails and some chanting. As far as house goes it's a great mix; funky, futuristic and covering a fairly wide range of African influences. The CD came with no artist listing, but many of the tracks come from Gregory and Sinclair themselves and the mix hangs together as a whole very nicely. The 'Africa...' part is quite misleading out of context, but highly pleasing upbeat and interesting house music. JG.
Release date: 4 Nov
Press contact: Phuture Trax [all]
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CAT & EDITH LEAVE CAPITAL
After disappointing RAJARS more bad news for Capital - MTV favourites Cat Deeley and Edith Bowman are quitting their Sunday afternoon show on the station. That said - the duo claim their depature is due to their TV commitments and say they may return to the station at some point in the future. "As soon as Cat's and Edith's schedules ease up, I'll be talking to them about other opportunities at Capital," Ric Blaxill, Capital FM programme controller told reporters.
The slot will be filled by Big Brother winner, Kate Lawler, who impressed bosses when she filled in on the Steve Penk late show. The new show will be produced by Andi Peters, former kids TV presenter and head of youth TV at Channel 4. "It's an honour to be working with Andi, who I've been a fan of since his days with Edd the Duck," Lawler told reporters. "He's very respected in the industry. I know I'll learn loads from him. He's also a really nice bloke and up for a laugh - it'll be like working with a big brother."
Whether the new show, which will also be broadcast by Capital stations Southern FM, Invicta, BRMB, Red Dragon, Power FM and Fox FM, maintains Cat and Ediths listening figures remains to be seen.
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ADAM F TAKES TO THE MEGASTORE
DJ and leading drum & bass producer Adam F will be Djing live at Virgin Megastores' Oxford Street store on Thursday as part of Virgin Megastore Radio's 'Directions in Dance' show. The set, which will air between 6 and 8pm in Virgin stores across the UK, is part of Adam's promotion of his new album 'Drum & Bass Warfare' out this week. More info at www.virgin.com/megastore
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COCKER JOINS THE POLYPHONIC SPREE
Jarvis Cocker surprised fans last night when he appeared on stage, donned in white, with The Polyphonic Spree at their Shepherds Bush Empire date. Cocker, who directed the video for current Spree track 'Hanging Around', was Djing at the event, but got most attention when he joined the 24 other Spree members to sing on stage.
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Answer to Monday's pop quiz:
Which band have sampled The Clash and The Pretenders - and in which songs?
Garbage - they used The Clash's 'Train In Vain' for 'Stupid Girl' and The Pretenders 'The Talk Of The Town' for 'Special'