EMI CHIEF BRIEFS STAFF ON TAKEOVER PROCESS
EMI top man Roger Faxon has sent a longer memo to staff at the music major following confirmation this weekend that one half of his company is due to be sold to Universal, while the other half will go to a consortium led by Sony/ATV. The second memo followed a note on Friday confirming the first sale, of the EMI record companies by Citigroup to Universal, and goes into more detail about what the split and sale of the company will mean for those working for the major.

It's a long letter, including a FAQs section, but here's the summary:

- As we already knew, the Sony/ATV acquisition of EMI Music Publishing, like Universal's purchase of EMI Music, is subject to regulatory approval, so the EMI Group will carry on as normal for a few months yet while that process is completed. Sony and Universal will make the initial submissions to competition regulators, though Faxon admits EMI's legal and business affairs teams will have quite a workload providing said regulators with the information they require.

- Work is already underway to achieve the legal separation of the EMI company. EMI's VP Finance, Jade Moore, formerly with Terra Firma, is leading that work. It's a complicated process involving the boards of the various companies around the world that make up the EMI Group.

- EMI has also pledged to help Sony/ATV with its rather complicated plan to "issue bonds as a part of the acquisition financing". No, I don't know what that means either, but presumably finance dudes at both Sony/ATV and EMI do.

- It's not clear how long it will take for the two takeover deals to complete (assuming they are not blocked by competition regulators, of course), nor which deal will be completed first, though Faxon says they don't have to complete at the same time.

- In the months it takes for legal split and regulatory approval to be completed, it will be business as usual at EMI, with both the labels and publishing business able to enter into new deals and licensing arrangements, albeit with a slightly tweaked approvals process.

- Faxon says he's unable to comment on what plans Universal and Sony/ATV have for their acquisitions beyond what was said in the two buyers' press releases on Friday. In fact, because of competition rules, the new owners are specifically not allowed to provide any instructions to EMI execs regarding future direction until the regulatory process is completed. The same applies to integration plans. So strict are the rules regarding communication between seller and buyer where regulatory investigations are underway that guidelines will be given to EMI staffers on what they can and cannot do, with which Faxon urges his staff to comply, because "truly there are some very serious consequences for EMI if we screw this up".

- But what about redundancies, Faxon? That's what everyone wants to know. Well, business as usual seemingly means jobs are safe until after the sale transactions are completed. Which means a few more months job security before the inevitable downsizing, especially on the labels side.

So, there you go, pretty much everything Faxon could say in such a regulated scenario has been said. Though the various questions we posed yesterday about the EMI sale remain unanswered, very possibly because no one in authority at EMI, Universal or Sony/ATV has considered them, or is even in a position to do so just yet.

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ITUNES MATCH LAUNCHES IN US
A couple weeks later that originally planned, Apple has added the scan and match element of its digital locker service to iTunes in the US, making this a busy week for big content-service-linked tech launches, with Amazon's Kindle Fire tablet computer just launched and Google expected to make a big music announcement in LA tomorrow.

As previously reported, iTunes Match offers an important extra bit of functionality to Apple's digital locker which distinguishes it from the rival services offered by Amazon and Google. iTunes will scan the music stored on a user's computer and, for any track also in the main iTunes library, will drop a copy of the song into the user's iCloud account without them having to upload anything. Once in the iCloud, tracks can be redownloaded to any net-connected Apple or iTunes-carrying device.

Apple's digital locker service is licensed by the music companies, unlike Amazon and Google's lockers, which enables them to offer the scan and match functionality. While, outside the UK, the basic locker service - where users manually upload copies of their MP3 collections - doesn't need a licence from labels and publishers because it exercises the user's private copy right (of course whether a licence is needed if the locker streams the content back to the users is of debate), as soon as the locker provider is making copies on a customer's behalf a licence is definitely needed.

A UK launch of iTunes Match is planned for 2012, though we don't know any more than that just yet.

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NEW RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS GUITARIST NOT A MAGICIAN
Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea has said that it took some time to 'click' with the band's new guitarist Josh Kilnghoffer when he replaced John Frusciante in 2009. He told Bass Player magazine that the unspoken "magic" connection he had with Frusciante when jamming new songs didn't immediately appear with his new axe-wielding colleague.

Says Flea: "John and I had established such a language together - if I started playing bass with John, he'd make awesome grooves that we didn't need to talk about or think about. With Josh, we'd start playing something and I'd be like: 'Okay, when is he going to do that magic thing where we create the cosmic perfect groove?' and he just wouldn't do it. But then I realised that I was sitting there waiting for something because it's what I was used to, and that I need to let Josh be Josh".

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MOUSE ON MARS SIGN TO MONKEYTOWN
German techno duo Mouse On Mars have signed a new deal with Modeselektor's Monkeytown Records. The label will release the band's new album, 'Parastrophics', on 24 Feb. This will be their first release since 2007's 'Tromatic Reflexxions', a collaborative album with The Fall's Mark E Smith under the name Von Südenfed. Their last album as Mouse On Mars, 'Varcharz', was released the previous year.

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NEW LITTLE BOOTS SINGLE, WAREHOUSE TOUR
Remember Little Boots, aka Victoria Hesketh, whose debut album, 'Hands', caused such an electro-pop flap in 2009? Well, after an in-studio stint with producer James Ford, she's back with new single 'Shake'. It's out this week, and you can stream it below.

She says: "The song came in the latter stages of writing the new album. James and I had been emailing [each other], and unusually both had a free day. It was one of those [tracks] that just came out [of nowhere]. Immediately it felt right. It also shed a new light on a lot of the other songs I'd been working on for the album".

With said long player due out next year, Boots is set to end an international DJ tour with a secret 'Shake' launch somewhere in east London next month. The ever-present James Ford, plus Crazy P, Horse Meat Disco and Kris Di Angelis, will be in attendance at the TBA warehouse party, which will take place on 3 Dec.

soundcloud.com/littleboots/little-boots-shake-single

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ABBEY ROAD ANNOUNCES RESULTS OF ANTHEM COMPETITION
Abbey Road Studios has announced the winners of an international competition, launched back in March, to find an "anthem of our time". As previously reported, unsigned composers were asked to write an orchestral/choral piece in celebration of the legendary studio's 80th anniversary.

"Winning this competition led me to work with some of the country's finest musicians in a great atmosphere and historic location", enthuses Steven Jackson of Manchester, one of the eight finalists to have their compositions performed by the London Symphony Orchestra. He continues: "It has been an amazing experience. I'm so pleased with how my track has come together".

With over 900 entries submitted, the eight winning recordings will be available to listen to at www.abbeyroad.com from 28 Nov.

Abbey Road's actual 80th anniversary was last weekend, neatly coinciding with the day its owner EMI was ripped apart by a bunch of odious bankers. Perfect timing. Let's have a party.

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THE MILK TO RELEASE B-SIDES EP
Soul revivalists The Milk are set to release 'B-Roads and B-sides', a new four-track EP, via Sony/Sign Of The Times on 19 Dec. Lead track 'B-Roads', which you can stream below, will feature alongside an acoustic version of 'Broke Up The Family', a studio demo of live favourite 'Kimmi Kimmi', and a cover of Toots & The Maytals' '54-46'.

soundcloud.com/thisisthemilk/the-milk-b-roads

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UNRELEASED MICHAEL JACKSON FOOTAGE TO BE AUCTIONED
Previously unreleased footage on Michael Jackson on his 1993 'Dangerous' tour is to be auctioned in London later this month, it has been announced.

According to The Independent, the video, recorded in Buenos Aires, was given to a Brazilian chauffeur as "a bonus" for his time spent ferrying the singer around during the tour. The driver kept the VHS tape a secret until after Jackson's death in 2009, when he posted a short section to YouTube. That clip was then taken down due to a copyright notice, and Sony Music and the Michael Jackson estate both subsequently claimed ownership of the footage. However, the driver was seemingly later named the legal owner of the recording, allowing the big sale.

According to reports, the two hour tape features performance and backstage footage, and features appearances from Jordy Chandler, the teenager who later launched the first child abuse lawsuit against the singer. As a result, the tape has a reserve price of £4 million, which it is expected to be exceeded when it goes up for sale on 26 Nov.

Ted Owen, CEO of Fame Bureau auctioneers, told The Independent: "I'm very excited that this tape is finally going to be seen because of its quality, the amount of cameras used and the sheer closeness you are to the performance when watching it".

Elsewhere in Jackson news, the singer's former PA (and brother of Jackson producer Eddie Cascio) Frank Cascio is due to publish a book, entitled 'My Friend Michael: An Ordinary Friendship With An Extraordinary Man', detailing his time spent working with the singer and the friendship he had with him as a child. In it he apparently admits to paying off doctors and getting prescriptions in his own name to feed the singer's desire for prescription drugs, claiming that he first saw Jackson taking propofol (the drug that ultimately killed him) after he was legitimately prescribed it for injuries sustained in a fall in 1999.

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JUSTICE ANNOUNCE 2012 TOUR DATES
Justice have announced that they will be over in the UK to promote their second album 'Audio, Video, Disco' with a run of live shows in February next year. Tickets go on sale this Friday.

Tour dates:

9 Feb: Bristol, Academy
10 Feb: Brixton, Academy
11 Feb: Birmingham, Academy
12 Feb: Glasgow, Academy
13 Feb: Manchester, Academy

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JULIE'S BICYCLE MAKES RECOMMENDATIONS FOR MORE ENERGY EFFICIENT FESTIVALS
The UK Festival Report, to be published later today at the UK Festival Conference in London town, will, among other things, reveal that UK music festivals collectively consume twelve million litres of diesel every year, generating an estimated 48,000MWh of electricity and 31,600t of CO2 emissions.

Which probably means nothing to you, but basically that's a lot. In fact, the energy use of the festival sector could power 10,000 homes for year. That's in no small part because of the inefficiency of the diesel generators used by festival managers, which often run at an average of 40% fuel efficiency.

These stats come from research work done by the University Of Sussex, the Power Providers Forum and music industry environmental group Julie's Bicycle, who together set out to review the eco-creds of British festivals with a view to offering advice to promoters as to how they might make their events more green.

Among the recommendations to be made as a result of the research, are that festivals look to reduce their energy use by rationalising generator use, using more efficient PA and lighting kit, looking into the use of renewable energy sources and/or waste vegetable oil biodiesel (which currently meets 3-6% of festival power demand), and reviewing tour bus operations with regards energy usage.

Julie's Bicycle Director Alison Tickell told CMU: "Mapping power supply across UK festivals was identified by the Power Provider's Forum as the first joint step towards building a sustainable festival sector. This research reveals the scale of opportunity, the strength of commitment and the missed tricks. Our second step will be to focus on a small number of joint actions to make the difference".

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HMV LAUNCHES STAND ALONE GADGET SHOP FOR CHRISTMAS
HMV is planning a number of pop-up shops in the run up to Christmas again this year, in places where there is no entertainment retailer on the high street. The most interesting of these temporary stores is in the City of London, because it will sell primarily gadgets, operating under the name HMV Techshop.

As much previously reported, more floor space is being given to entertainment-based tech toys - so iPods, tablet computers, gaming consoles, speakers, headphones - at HMV stores across the UK as the struggling retailer tries to reposition itself within the flagging entertainment retail market. But this will be the first HMV store almost exclusively dedicated to tech items, with only a small number of CDs, DVDs and video games available.

Although a temporary shop for Christmas, it's thought that if the pilot Techshop, near St Pauls in London, is a success, the brand and format may be rolled out elsewhere on a more permanent basis.

The location of the try-out new look HMV shop is possibly significant - partly because City types have more cash to waste on techie nonsense, but possibly also because HMV is trying hard to convince the investment community it is moving beyond being a simple CD/DVD retail firm, but the money men are finding it hard to imagine HMV as anything more than a disk seller. Having an HMV Techshop right under their noses may help.

Though, of course, some cynics might ask, if US electronics giant Best Buy has had to leave the UK market, and a long-standing consumer electronics chain like Comet is being sold for £2, what makes HMV think it can turn round its fortunes by selling tech goods? Though HMV management insist their expanded gadget departments are delivering across the retail chain.

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GAGA PARTS COMPANY WITH CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Lady Gaga has parted company with her long time creative director Laurieann Gibson, amid rumours the two womens' relationship had become increasingly fraught of late, especially since the choreographer started appearing in her own reality show on US TV earlier this year.

MediaTakeOut say Gaga and Gibson had a "bitter fight" before deciding not to work together anymore, while other websites have speculated about various falling outs on recent video shoots. One report said Gaga was pissed off that Gibson told a journalist Madonna inspired the pop star's "ever-evolving style", even though the Lady is keen to avoid Madonna comparisons.

Whatever, Team Gaga have confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter that the Gaga/Gibson creative partnership is no more, and it seems Gibson's number two on Gaga projects, Richard Jackson, is now coordinating the singer's routines.

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ANORAK APPOINTMENTS
Music PR company Anorak has announced a number of new appointments. First, Sebastian Burford joins the agency from Universal's Island Records as Head Of Digital PR. Next Kitty Lester, previously with The Proud Group, will oversee Anorak's increasing number of festival clients. And finally Libby Maguire joins the company from Warner Music and will join the digital PR team.

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SUN GOSSIP MAN JOINS XFM
Hmm, bizarre booking. Ha, there's a double meaning for you in that there sentence. Don't mention it. The Sun's gossip monkey Gordon Smart is the latest new recruit at Xfm. The Smarsta is set to host a new weekly show every Sunday lunchtime on both Xfm stations, in London and Manchester. It will include gossip, interviews, topical chat and "intimate live sessions".

Look, here's Xfm Programme Director Andy Ashton saying shit: "Gordon is one of the most connected and in-demand showbiz interviewers in the UK and comes with one of the most enviable and jam-packed music and entertainment little black books. Full to the brim with A-list guests and backstage gossip from the biggest events around the world, 'Smart On Sunday' is set to be a must-listen show for our audience across the UK".

Smart himself added: "Joining Xfm is up there with the day I got my first BMX. Sunday hangovers should never be suffered in silence and Xfm has helped me get through plenty of them over the years. Now it's my turn to crack open the brilliant x-list, play some of the celebrity chats from my travels with The Sun and soothe some of those sore heads. I can't wait to get started".

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MARK FRITH TO RETURN TO BAUER
Mark Frith is set to return (sort of) to Bauer Media in an Editorial Director role overseeing a bunch of lifestyle and entertainment titles, including FHM, Grazia, Zoo and Empire.

The former Smash Hits editor, perhaps best known for reinventing a then flagging Heat magazine into the c'leb rag we all know and love today, Frith spent many years with magazine makers EMAP before leaving in 2008 just before Bauer Media took over the company. His most high profile role since then was as Editor of Time Out, though he consulted on a number of other magazines too, including new pop title We Love Pop!

Frith will join Bauer in the New Year. His appointment was announced at the same time as the promotion of Abby Carvosso, currently Bauer's Head Of Magazine Sales, to the role of MD Lifestyle & Advertising. Confirming both appointments, Bauer Media CEO Paul Keenan said: "These appointments are indicative of Bauer Media's continued commitment and investment in the delivery of world class editorial products and commercial operations. Mark and Abby are both very strong, very talented leaders and will play an important part in the further development of our vision for the future".

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TINIE TEMPAH TO APPEAR ON BIEBER TV SPECIAL
Justin Bieber has recorded one of those terrible ITV pop specials, which would figure, the TV division of his label Universal Music is usually behind most of those shows. The Bieber special was recorded last weekend and will air later this month, with the teen star singing various songs, including a number from his previously reported Christmas album, in front of an audience of celebrities and competition winners. There'll also be some "comedy sketches", and a contest where fans compete for a shag in the toilets backstage.

It also looks like Tinie Tempah will guest to do some rapping (well, it is nearly Christmas), most likely providing the Busta Rhymes bit for the Biebster's version of 'Drummer Boy'. We assume this because Bieber tweeted this weekend: "Shooting this ITV Special for 'Under The Mistletoe' here in London and u know I had to bring my guy Tinie Tempah through foe a UK REMIX!"

Meanwhile Tempah himself tweeted the same night: "Just done something incredible!"

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COURTNEY BERATES KURT PHOTO HOLDING FAN
Part of me really likes Courtney Love, she knows what she likes, she says what she thinks, she takes no prisoners. Then again, another part of me thinks she's bitter, abusive and self-obsessed. Here's a game - read this story, and decide how to categorise the Hole singer for yourself!

Love stormed off stage during a set at a Brazilian festival last weekend because a member of the crowd had the audacity to hold up a photo of Kurt Cobain while she sang. Seemingly not wanting to look at a her photo of her late husband (which is possibly understandable - though presumably the fan intended the photo as a tribute), she reportedly turned on said crowd member between songs and said: "I don't need to see a picture of Kurt, you asshole, and I'm going to have you fucking removed if you keep holding that up. I'm not Kurt, I have to live with his shit and his ghost and his kid every day and throwing that up is stupid and rude and I'm going to beat the fuck out of you if you do it again".

Rambling on in a way that only those who used to follow Love on Twitter would be able to cope with, she continued: "You weren't fucking married to him, I fucking was. You didn't get kicked out of a band by him, like Dave, he did. Go see the fucking Foo Fighters and do that shit. Great, we'll leave now, fuck you".

Love then stormed offstage, but was persuaded to return a minute or so later, partly after a member of her entourage managed to persuade the crowd to shout "the Foo Fighters are gay". She subsequently returned to the stage declaring: "I don't care what you listen to at home, but if a guy takes off money off my kid's table, fuck him".

So, that's all fun. Still undecided as to whether Courtney Love's a strong-minded rock chick or a tedious drama queen? Well, watch the whole thing on tape: www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZFPOPrdyig4

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