MUSIC BUSINESS MODELS - MAKING MONEY, FINDING INVESTMENT
How to make money out of music - both now and in the future, with a look at alternative investment and revenue streams, and a new approach to monetising artists and their music. Wed 29 Jun

For more information or to book visit www.theCMUwebsite.com/training

UNIVERSAL REPORTEDLY SIGNED UP FOR SPOTIFY USA
The ink is on the paper, according to reports, meaning Spotify now has three of the major record companies signed up for a US launch of its subscription-based streaming service and free to use five-plays-preview jukebox.

Spotify has been on the verge of signing up Universal to its US service - Sony and EMI already being in the bag - for some time now, and according to various reports that deal is now finally done. It means only Warner Music is holding out in terms of the music majors for a US launch of the popular European streaming service, which has been a long time coming for many American music fans.

Of course, the nature of the freemium version of Spotify has changed somewhat since talks to licence the service Stateside first began. That change has presumably helped Spotify in its talks with the US labels, execs at which were always nervous about the platform's original all-you-can-eat free option. Word has it even talks with Warner are now moving forward.

Spotify could launch in the US without Warner on board, though if the rumours that talks there are now moving forward are true, the company may want to hold off until all the major label catalogues are cleared for streaming. Given how delayed the US launch has been already, it probably wouldn't do Spotify any harm to wait a couple more months.

How soon it could actually go live in the US once all the majors are on board remains to be seen, though some are now predicting a summer launch.

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LIAM GALLAGHER'S BUSINESS PARTNER ARRESTED
Liam Gallagher's business partner and bodyguard (always a good combination) has reportedly been arrested on suspicion of sending death threats to a former associate and his girlfriend.

According to the Sunday Mirror, Steve Allen sent threatening letters along with bullets to Sam Berry and Claire Humphries, warning Berry to drop a number of civil court cases he has filed against Allen, in which Humphries is acting as a witness.

The cases, three of which are ongoing, relate to concert safety firm Risks Contained, which Allen and Berry co-owned together. Allen has already been forced to pay over £54,000 in a previously heard case over the same company.

Allen, who has worked with Gallagher for over ten years, is now Managing Director of the former Oasis frontman's clothing brand Pretty Green, and film companies Savile Row Films and In 1 Productions.

In a statement, police said: "A man was arrested on suspicion of threats to kill. He has been bailed to return to a West Mercia police station".

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APPLE SUED OVER ICLOUD TRADEMARK
Apple may have ensured it had the icloud.com domain name before launching its new digital locker service, but there could still be trademark issues regarding the use of the iCloud name. A US-based Voice-Over-IP company, called iCloud Communications, launched a trademark lawsuit last week, shortly after Apple chief Steve Jobs launched his iCloud product in San Francisco, claiming the IT giant's use of the brand will cause confusion.

In its lawsuit, the iCloud company notes: "The goods and services with which Apple intends to use the 'iCloud' mark are identical to or closely related to the goods and services that have been offered by iCloud Communications under the iCloud marks since its formation in 2005. However, due to the worldwide media coverage given to and generated by Apple's announcement of its 'iCloud' services and the ensuing saturation advertising campaign pursued by Apple, the media and the general public have quickly come to associate the mark 'iCloud' with Apple, rather than iCloud Communications".

The iCloud company want an injunction to stop Apple from using their name, and damages for its use so far. Most suspect Apple will settle this one out of court, though, by paying iCloud Communications a not insignificant sum to get ownership of the name, which may well be the real aim of the VOIP company's litigation.

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DURAN DURAN CANCEL SHOW FOR LE BON MRI SCAN
Duran Duran were forced to cancel five shows on their European tour last week while frontman Simon Le Bon underwent an MRI scan in an attempt to diagnose an ongoing vocal problem.

Announcing the news last week, Le Bon said via Twitter: "Very sad to announce that our Paris, Den Haag, Brussels, Copenhagen and Stockholm shows are cancelled, to be re-scheduled at a later date. This is due to a continuing voice problem that I have been experiencing. There has been a little improvement to my voice in the last three weeks. There is obviously some underlying problem which is not shown by laryngoscopy".

After undergoing the scan, he told fans: "I managed to forget my house keys which were in my pocket as I went into the MRI scanner. They flew past my nose as if fired from a gun".

The band hope to continue the tour in Helsinki on 18 Jun.

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E STREET BAND SAX MAN SUFFERS STROKE
Clarence Clemons, the saxophonist in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, has suffered a stroke at his home in Florida, with Showbiz411 reporting that the musician is "seriously ill".

The 69 year old, who has been with the E Street Band for nearly four decades, has had two knee replacements and back surgery in the last year, and recently told Rolling Stone that touring of late has been painful as a result. He has scaled back his live performing in recent months, though he did appear on the 'American Idol' final in May, playing with Lady Gaga, he appearing on her album 'Born This Way'.

However, he had to step back from a booking to play the US national anthem at an NBA event last week due to a hand injury.

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DANNY BAKER BEATS CANCER
And now some good news from the pop (well, radio really) hospital. Radio presenter Danny Baker has announced via Twitter that he has been given the all clear after his recent battle against cancer.

Having been diagnosed with cancer of the mouth and throat last year, he tweeted last night: "The call I have been waiting for just happened. Turns out I won. I'm all clear. I'm well again".

He also posted a photo of himself wearing a hat bearing the word "lucky", adding "I will be wearing this hat for the foreseeable future".

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ANAL CUNT FRONTMAN DIES
Frontman of American grindcore band Anal Cunt, Seth Putnam has died, aged just 43, from a suspected heart attack.

Putnam formed Anal Cunt in 1988. The name was an apparent joke, the band initially planning to record just one demo, though they remained active up to the present day, albeit with a two year break after 2001. The band understandably caused controversy with their name, but their lyrics were often called into question too, with accusations of racism, misogyny and homophobia. This criticism is something the band seemed to revel in, leading them to release their 1999 album 'It Just Gets Worse', which sought to cover the most offense topics possible across its 39 tracks - this ranged from songs such as 'Rancid Sucks (And The Clash Sucked Too)' up to 'I Made Your Kid Get AIDS So You Could Watch It Die' and 'Women: Nature's Punching Bag'.

In October 2004, Putnam fell into a coma after an overdose of sleeping pills. He recovered and returned to performing a few months later, although initially sitting down and using a Zimmer frame. A year after his overdose, referencing Anal Cunt song 'You're In A Coma', he told The Boston Phoenix: "Actually, it turned out it was just as gay as the song I wrote nine years ago - being in a coma was just as fuckin stupid as I wrote it was. We did a show on 27 Aug in Albany and we played 'You're In A Coma' for the first time ever live. I don't want people to think I'm a hypocrite. I don't want people to think that I can't make fun of myself".

The band released their eighth studio album, 'Fuckin A', last year. The publicist who worked on that album, Kim Kelly of Catharsis PR, wrote on her personal blog: "Yes, it's true. Seth Putnam, one of the most infamous musicians that extreme metal has ever seen, the grindcore GG Allin, has passed away due to a heart attack. I handled all the promotion for Anal Cunt's last album, 'Fuckin A', and Seth was always happy to oblige any request I sent his way. The band had been working on a new album before his passing, so chances are his musical career's epitaph has yet to be inscribed".

She added: "I want to remind everyone that no matter how outrageous and controversial his musical career has been, Seth was still a human being with friends and family that loved him. I'm hoping that the internet will remember that. This is a very sad and trying time for those that knew him, and the last thing they need to see is an outpouring of messageboard hate. The man lived and died by his own rules; if anything, respect him for that".

As well as performing with numerous bands of his own, Putnam collaborated with many other metal and hardcore bands in his lifetime, including Pantera, EyeHateGod, Corrosion Of Conformity, and Napalm Death.

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THE COASTERS FRONTMAN DIES
Carl Gardner, co-founder and original frontman of The Coasters, has died aged 83.

Gardner left his original group The Robins with bandmate Bobby Nunn to form The Coasters in 1955, at the request of songwriting duo Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who had been recruited by Atlantic Records based on the success they'd achieved writing songs for Gardner's former outfit. The new group, performing songs by Leiber and Stoller, quickly gained popularity, with notable hits 'Yakety Yak' and 'Charlie Brown' following in 1958.

Although the late 50s was the peak of the group's commercial success, further releases followed in subsequent decades, and there was always an audience for the group's live shows. Various line-up changes over the years resulted, as was often the case with these sorts of vocal groups, with multiple versions of The Coasters operating at certain times, especially in the 1970s, though Gardner held the legal rights in the name and, even when he struggled to defend those rights, whichever version of the group he was fronting was usually considered the real deal.

The classic 1958 line-up was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in 1987, and Gardner continued to perform with the group into the 21st Century, before retiring in 2005 with his son, Carl Gardner Jr, who had performed with his father's band since 1998, taking over as frontman.

The cause of Gardner's death has not been revealed, though he had been suffering with congestive heart failure and vascular dementia.

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BURKE LEAVES SYCO FOR RCA
Former 'X-Factor' winner Alexandra Burke has reportedly switched allegiances within the Sony Music empire to RCA Records, away from Simon Cowell's Syco.

Apparently it was already planned to make Burke's second album a combined Syco/RCA release (in much the same way last year's X man Matt Cardle is working with both the Syco and Columbia Records teams), but now Team Syco have seemingly stepped back from the Burke project completely, presumably to concentrate their efforts on rigging 'Britain's Got Talent' and screwing over Cheryl Cole.

We know all this for certain (well, not the concentrating on rigging 'BGT' and screwing over Cole bit, which we made up for hilarious comedy effect, have you stopped laughing yet? I mean the bit about Burke not working with Syco anymore. I'm glad this very long bracketed bit has cleared that up for you), because of that all important spokesperson on these matters: Alexandra's brother David.

He apparently tweeted: "Really happy Alexandra has officially moved RCA records for new album era. Fingers crossed for progression and improved efficiency. I'd like to thank Syco for the part they played until this point, but pastures new was required for potential progression going forward".

In March, Westlife also announced that they were leaving Syco for RCA.

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BEST COAST BEGIN WORK ON NEW ALBUM
Best Coast's Bethany Cosentino has revealed that the band have begun work on the follow-up to their 2010 debut album, 'Crazy For You'.

Speaking to Stereogum, she said: "I've started writing for the next record, and we are definitely excited and stoked to record it. I think we will probably record it in the fall, since that's when we will have the most time off this year. I don't wanna rush it, I want to be able to focus on recording, and I just can't do that right now because of how much touring and stuff we are still doing. I want the second album to be different; I want it to feel fuller, and bigger. I've been listening to so much old country music, like Loretta Lynn, and Skeeter Davis, and Patsy Cline and stuff-so I think you'll hear some of that influence on the newer songs".

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RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS REVEAL ALBUM TRACKLIST
Following the announcement that Red Hot Chili Peppers will release their Rick Rubin-produced tenth album, 'I'm With You', on 29 Aug, the band have now revealed the tracklist. Many of the names don't fill me with a great deal of hope for the quality of the album.

Look, here they all are:

Monarchy Of Roses
Factory Of Faith
Brendan's Death Song
Ethiopia
Annie Wants A Baby
Look Around
The Adventures Of Rain Dance Maggie
Did I Let You Know
Goodbye Hooray
Happiness Loves Company
Police Station
Even You Brutus?
Meet Me At The Corner
Dance, Dance, Dance

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TODDLA T ANNOUNCES NEW ALBUM
Toddla T will release his second album, entitled 'Watch Me Dance', on 22 Aug via Ninja Tune, it has been announced.

Describing how the musical landscape has changed since the release of his debut album, 'Skanky Skanky', through 1965 Records in early 2009, Toddla said: "When I was first signed [to 1965 Records] every kid wanted to be in a band. The Arctic Monkeys, The Libertines and all that were really popular, me and my mates who were into Notorious BIG and dancehall were really in the minority. Nowadays kids want to be Skream and Benga, or Tinchy or N-Dubz and because of that all their points of musical reference have changed".

As for how he's progressed as a producer in that time, he added: "I've been busiest in the last two years as a DJ, so of course this album has a big dose of the sounds and production techniques that I'm out there representing in the clubs every weekend, but if you're looking for tops-off jungle or 4x4 bassline tearouts you won't find them here. This is definitely still a record for clubbers, but it's the one they'll listen to at home with their mates or every day on the way to work".

The album's tracklist is as follows:

Watch Me Dance (feat Roots Manuva)
Take It Back
Cruise Control
Cherry Picking
Streets So Warm
Badman Flu
Body Good
How Beautiful It Would Be
Lovely Girl
Do It Your Way
Fly

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SCISSOR SISTERS WORKING ON FRAGGLE ROCK SOUNDTRACK
Hmm, the 'Fraggle Rock' movie, I can't quite decide whether that's really exciting news, or something to approach with trepidation - The Fraggles surely being the peak of all things Muppet (or at least it is if you're 36 years and fifteen days old), let's hope they don't screw it up.

Anyway, a Fraggle film is in development, and this counts as music news because it's been revealed the Scissor Sisters are working on the music for it. Which is fun.

Though more fun is the fact that The Sun has illustrated this story with a picture of a specific Fraggle puppet rather than of Jake Shears and co, necessitating the line "the classic 80s ITV show 'Fraggle Rock', which starred Red Fraggle".

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GRAHAM COXON TO PLAY FREE 100 CLUB SHOW
Graham Coxon will headline the first of a new series of shows curated by the 100 Club and the London venue's new funder, Converse, on 22 Jun. Support will come from The Duke Spirit and The Social Club.

According to the press release, the Converse supported programme will "deliver an exciting line-up of shows for fans this summer and beyond, allowing them to catch today's freshest emerging artists". I'm not exactly sure where Graham Coxon and The Duke Spirit fit into that, but it sounds nice.

Tickets will be free and are available from www.converse.co.uk and www.schuh.co.uk/competitions.

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FESTIVAL LINE-UP UPDATE

BEN & JERRY'S SUNDAE, Clapham Common, London/Heaton Park, Manchester, 23-24 Jul: The first of two sweet Sundae-related events appearing in today's FLUU, this Ben & Jerry's-sponsored fest will host newly-announced headliners Ocean Colour Scene, with performances from Ash and Fun Lovin' Criminals also on the cards at both its London and Heaton Park legs. Alternative bill-toppers are Maximo Park, with Gary Numan, Duke & The King, Little Comets, and Sound Of Rum also appearing on the existing bill. www.benjerry.co.uk/sundae/

GUERNSEY FESTIVAL OF PERFORMING ARTS, The Rabbit Warren, Guernsey, 2-3 Jul: Organisers of Guernsey's most artistic music bash have named Goldie, grime MC Skepta, dnb bloke Marcus Intalex and legendary Ibiza DJ Tom Novy as late additions to the festival's weekend programme, which also boasts acts including Ocean Colour Scene, The Gaslight Anthem, Frank Turner, Example, Lissie, The Go! Team and Bonobo. www.guernseyfestival.gg

HOP FARM MUSIC FESTIVAL, Hop Farm Country Park, Paddock Wood, Kent, 1-2 Jul: In the wake of securing Prince as a show-stopping late booking, festival chief Vince Power has scored a further array of closing coups for this year's Hop Farm roster. Eliza Doolittle, The Go! Team, Aloe Blacc, Young Knives and Fenech-Soler are all new to proceedings, as is a DJ set from Hot Chip. www.hopfarmfestival.com

SUMMER SUNDAE WEEKENDER, De Montfort Hall, Leicester, 12-14 Aug: See, I promised you a second Sundae. Everything Everything, King Creosote, Kissmet, The Pierces, and gloomy folksters Tom Williams & the Boat feature amongst the latest wave of acts set to hit this year's Summer Sundae weekend happening, joining the likes of Newton Faulkner, Warpaint, Blood Red Shoes, The Antlers, McFly and Example on the festival's eclectic billing. www.summersundae.com

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ALBUM REVIEW: Photek - Aviator (Photek Productions)
Photek, aka Rupert Parkes, is best known for his slightly maverick take on drum n bass in the early 90s, when he released classics like the astounding 'Rings Around Saturn' and 'Seventh Samurai'. He later moved into producing house and came out with the excellent 'Solaris' LP which featured the legendary Robert Owens.

Now based in LA, he's switching styles again for his latest album, venturing into dubstep. An excellent producer Photek may be, but can he deliver the goods in a new genre after all these years? The answer, happily, is yes.

The title track is the highlight of 'Aviator', featuring minimal beats, it's slow and brooding. It will be interesting to see which dancefloors this works on, as its tempo definitely gives it crossover appeal for various different clubs. 'Sleepwalking', too, has the potential to hit a more mainstream audience, thanks to its vocal and stadium sound, but even here Parkes maintains an edge with grimey beats.

There's also a FaltyDL remix of 'Sleepwalking', which comes up trumps. This New York-based remixer first caught my eye with a remix of Maddslinky, and here again he shows why he's a rising star, stripping it down, tweaking the vocal well, and then lancing in some heavy heavy beats. A truly quality production.

But Photek is still the main man here, and with 'Aviator' he proves he is still a top rate producer, and has a Midas touch about him. Definitely worth exploring. PV

Physical release: 13 Jun

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GLASTO CIDER BRAND SUPPORT STRUMMERVILLE ALBUM
Music charity Strummerville has teamed up with Glasto cider brand Brothers to release a compilation of tracks by new bands the organisation has been supporting.

'Songs For The Summer' is available as a free download plus copies will be given out at the Strummerville camp fire at the Glastonbury Festival, where the charity continues a tradition started by the man it was founded to pay tribute to, Mr Joe Strummer, inviting friends, artists and festival-goers to chill around a fire that burns throughout the event.

Commenting on Brothers' support of the compilation, Strummerville Trustee Lucinda Garland told CMU: "Having support like this for the charity really helps us to continue our work and grow as we support more new music and more really worthwhile music projects. Kind donations like this help to keep the Strummer campfire burning in many respects so many thanks to The Brothers".

Matthew Showering from Brothers added: "It's great to have the opportunity to be involved with such a worthwhile cause and offer support to emerging talent within the UK music scene. Having originated at Glastonbury, music is the beating heart of Brothers, and we're proud to be able to offer our support to such a fantastic charity that shares our way of thinking".

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FULLER AND BLACKWELL FORM JV
Two music industry veterans from very different sides of the musical coin have teamed up to launch a new company - 19 Management and 'Idol' creator Simon Fuller and Island Records founder Chris Blackwell. Operating out of Fuller's XIX Entertainment offices, the new venture will aim to "help artists and content owners expand their audience".

Announcing the launch of Blackwell Fuller, the Fuller bit of the equation told reporters: "In the rush to create new media platforms in this incredibly explosive digital age, the business community generally relegates artists to the role of a mere spectator, often at their own expense. We believe we have a unique opportunity to create new-media partnerships directly with the creators themselves and build a new model that will define the path for artists and creators for the new digital age".

Blackwell added: "There has been a need for a new business approach for artists and content owners for many years. As the entertainment industry and media companies struggle to find new financial models, the arrangements struck with artists have become more and more restrictive and onerous. Our new approach will give artists the freedom to explore new paths to market with the kind of support and resources it takes to create real scale, control, and reach".

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FACEBOOK FLOTATION RUMOURS ESCALATE
"Facebook to float" stories have been doing the rounds for years, but according to CNBC, with LinkedIn, Groupon and Pandora all going the IPO route as we speak and kicking off a brand new era of "stupid money being invested in very questionable business models", Facebook could float within the next twelve months.

The US news channel reckons Goldman Sachs is currently bidding to manage the Facebook flotation, which the social networking firm's COO recently admitted was now "inevitable". Of all the digital flim flams going for the big money, Facebook is, of course, probably the most viable business, though it's clearly not worth anything near the $100 billion some people reckon the share sale might value it at.

Indeed, there was a report last week suggesting that Facebook has peaked in terms of user numbers in Western countries, with subscribers reportedly falling by six million last month in the US alone. According to Inside Facebook, over a million users dropped out in Canada too, and 100,000 each in the UK, Norway and Russia. Though some territories are still going through periods of big sign ups - especially Mexico and Brazil - so overall the Facebook audience is up.

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THE KOOKS WANT FANS TO TWEET IF THEY WANT TO PREVIEW NEW TRACK
The Kooks are offering fans a preview of a new track, but only if enough fans tweet a prescribed Kooks-plugging hashtag first. They split the room, of course, The Kooks, but I don't think there's a negative hashtag the band's haters can use to stop the song from ever being aired. So this link is only really of interest if you do like the band, and you are interested in listening to their new song, and you're willing to admit your liking of The Kooks to all your Twitter followers in order force the preview to be unlocked. Anyone? If you are out there, here's the link: www.junkoftheheart.com

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