Monday 29 April 2013, 10:48 | By Chris Cooke

Palmer urges Morrissey to crowdsource

Business News Management & Funding

In response to a recent Guardian article, in which Morrissey was quoted saying he couldn’t get a label to release his new material, Amanda Palmer has written an open letter urging the singer to follow her lead and to finance a record release via a Kickstarter-style crowdsourcing campaign.

In The Guardian piece, Morrissey – forced to break from touring recently due to ill health – says: “I have a lot of songs. We could record three studio albums immediately, very easily. But none of the majors are interested. [They] are only interested in very young people who will fly by and ask for nothing in return”.

But surely, Morrissey – reckons Ms Palmer – you don’t need a label in this here online age because, while you may not have embraced social media and online fan engagement like the former Dresden Doll, you have an incredibly loyal global fanbase. And a quick Twitter survey of Palmer’s own fans saw 1400 people immediately confirming they’d pledge five dollars to access some new Morrissey material.

And, writes Palmer in an open letter on Salon.com: “OK, that would only yield you about $7,000, but you… you’re actually Morrissey. You have some of the most fanatical fans in the world; caring and devoted people from countries far and wide who would be really, really happy to support you at levels far beyond $5 just to have the songs in their ears. You’re possibly one of the best candidates on the planet to use crowdfunding, because of who you are and what you mean”.

Palmer then goes on to explain why Morrissey, of all people, no longer requires the services of a traditional record company, and why he should seriously consider fan-funding. Though, she adds: “Since I know you almost definitely won’t do this and that you may well think I’m a bothersome asshole for writing you this open letter, I’d just like to say this: You may be the end of a family line, but you have spawned a lot of singing, songwriting children, whether you like it or not, and I proudly count myself as one of them”.

She continued: “The Buddha once said that ‘if you were to carry your parents around with you for their whole lives – your father on one shoulder and your mother on the other – even to the point where they were losing their faculties and their excrement was running down your back, this would not repay your debt of gratitude to them’. As your devoted songwriting-spawn, I must say: I cannot get on board to quite this gruesome extent. But I’d be totally keen to help you crowdfund”.

Nettwerk secures new funding for growth

Business News Labels & Publishers Management & Funding

Canadian music company Nettwerk has raised over $10 million in new financing to fund a new period of growth, which will likely include the acquisition of individual artist catalogues.

The Nettwerk Music Group, which includes a management division, and label and music publishing businesses, previously raised funding from Beedie Capital, used in the main to expand the group’s publishing interests. According to Billboard, the latest round of funding comes from Beedie again, plus HMC Investments and the group’s four founding partners, Terry McBride, Ric Arboit, Dan Fraser and Mark Jowett.

Confirming his firm’s new involvement, HBC Investments’ Peter Brodsky told reporters: “Nettwerk has emerged as a successful and thriving music company that is uniquely positioned to create long-term value in its clients’ musical works and content. The investment comes at the perfect time where the music industry is experiencing a resurgence with explosive growth in monetisation opportunities across diverse worldwide retail and distribution models”.

Amazon sees revenues rise but profits fall

Business News Retail

Amazon saw its revenues rise 22% in the first quarter of the year, though profits fell 37% year-on-year, from $130 million in 2012 to $82 million. Though, interestingly, the investment community was pleased with the profits figure, which was better than expected, but a little disappointed at the revenues, which were slightly less than anticipated.

The slip in profits is mainly down to Amazon’s recent investments in the form of acquisitions, new distribution centres, further global expansion, and the development of new digital content services, an area which is becoming an increasingly important part of the web giant’s business. On-demand film and TV services are at the heart of that growth, though digital music is also likely to be part of the mix.

The Pirate Bay moves to Icelandic domain

Business News Digital Legal

So, how about Iceland as the host of the main Pirate Bay domain? Well, why not? According to TorrentFreak, the always controversial file-sharing website has moved its top level domain to the Nordic country, because it reckons the chances of the web address being seized by the authorities there are currently relatively low.

As previously reported, shortly after the US authorities shut-down MegaUpload in January 2012, The Pirate Bay announced it was shifting its operations from its .org domain to a .se address, registered it the site’s home country Sweden, to keep the URL out of the reach of the Americans. But then earlier this month concerns were raised that the Swedish authorities might swoop to take the Bay’s domain name off them.

Pre-empting that move, TPB moved its primary domain to Greenland. For about two days. Because the domain registry there quickly blocked the new Pirate Bay address, citing a court ruling against the file-sharing operation in the Danish courts (Greenland being a self-governing province of Denmark).

But it seems that nothing about The Pirate Bay’s operations specifically violates terms and conditions set out by the Icelandic domain authority ISNIC, and it has said that it won’t take any action to stop thepiratebay.is working unless specifically ordered to do so by the Icelandic courts. Which would presumably require the content industries to launch a new bit of litigation, which would be costly and time consuming. Hence why the Bay thinks it will be safe with its new .is domain for the foreseeable.

Of course in some countries, like the UK, direct access to The Pirate Bay is blocked by most internet service providers at the order of the courts. Which means that Bay users rely on proxies that circumvent the blockades, and providing those stay up to date with any movements in TPB’s TLDs and IP addresses, then none of this will have much of an impact on said users.

AOL Music is wound up

Digital

AOL Music is no more, though we know this – as is so often the case with shuttered businesses these days – from the tweets of fired executives rather than any official statement.

Word that some serious downsizing was underway at the US music division of the internet firm first came via the Twitter feed of Spinner, part of the AOL Music offering since 1999. The tweet, deleted soon after, read: “Hey guys. Just found out from AOL that we’re shutting down. Today is our last day. Seriously”. Spinner Editor Dan Reilly then tweeted from his personal account: “Well, we all just got laid off. AOL Music is finished”.

Quite what the line “AOL Music is finished” actually means in terms of which of the web company’s services will be shutdown isn’t clear, as we wait official confirmation, though insiders say other music news sites operated by the firm, including The BoomBox, The Boot and Noisecreep, will also go. Though AOL Radio will remain, with that service’s Programme Director Thomas Chau tweeting: “AOL Radio will continue but everyone I work with will be unemployed as of today”.

Very much like Yahoo, AOL was an early innovator in online music, offering a combination of news, streaming content and exclusives, but soon lost ground after the rise of iTunes, the launch of free-to-access websites by traditional music media, and the growth of the music blogosphere. The British side of those music operations were always smaller, and were axed sooner, with AOL Music UK being wound up in 2011.

Williams wants more anger in music

And Finally

Robbie Williams would like some more anger in British music, if that could be arranged please? The Take That star reckons that there are plenty of angry young people living in the UK just now, but he’s struggling to see it come through in the grass roots music scene, as you would normally expect. Perhaps he has a point. Or perhaps he’s just not looking in the right places.

The early days of Britpop is the last British musical movement Williams can think of that provided something for angry people to latch onto, which I’m pretty sure ignores an urban music movement or two that have occurred since, but then Dizzee Rascal went and made all that too cheerful didn’t he?

According to The Sun, Williams said: “Once, you’d go from mod to new romantic to punk, and then rave and then [Britpop], and then… nothing. There has not been that same spirit ever since, I don’t think”.

He continued: “There used to be something to rebel against. I think there is plenty to rebel against right now, especially with what is happening with the world, with how people are being treated by governments and the recession. Normally this is the time of great upheaval and great voices that rise and say, ‘No we are not fucking having this'”.

He conceded that he himself isn’t doing anything about it, noting “I’m in a mansion in Los Angeles, what do I know?”, but concluded: “There seems to be a great apathy. Where are the BILLY BRAGGS and THE CLASHES? It’s good to have a place to go and complain”.

CMU Digest – 26 Apr 2013

Business News Week In Five

The five biggest stories in the music business this week…

01: An appeals court overturned Grooveshark’s win in Universal’s pre-1972 litigation. The mega-major specifically sued the controversial streaming service in relation to recordings it owns that were released before 1972 and which appear on the Grooveshark site, because of a technicality in US copyright law. Grooveshark says that it can’t be held liable for copyright infringement when it makes available Universal content without licence, because its users upload the music files, and the digital firm will remove any one track if requested to do so by the mega-major (just in time for another user to reupload it). And, to be fair to the Groovesharkers, that is sort of what the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act says.

But, says Universal, the DMCA is federal law, and therefore can only apply to copyrights that themselves stem from federal legislation. And copyrights in works released before 1972 in America come from state law. Ha, gotcha! Except when Universal’s lawsuit reached court last year the judge hearing the case didn’t accept that argument. But then this week an appeals court overturned that ruling, saying the DMCA didn’t apply to the older catalogue, and Grooveshark could be held liable for distributing tracks from it without licence. Needless to say, Grooveshark will now appeal. CMU report | Ars Technica report

02: Capitol UK launched. Universal Music announced last month that it would launch a UK version of what was EMI’s main American label, it having acquired Capitol in the US via its EMI takeover last year. And this week that launch occurred. The UK version of Capitol will be morphed out of existing British Universal label London Records, and will be led by London chief Nick Raphael, though the new division will be quite a bit bigger. Capitol UK is likely to work closely with its US counterpart. The mega-major also confirmed Capitol UK would not be based at its Kensington HQ, adding fuel to rumours that the new division will set up camp at Abbey Road Studios, mirroring Capitol US, which is based in the Capitol Tower, the famous studio complex in LA. CMU report | Billboard report

03: Warner boss Stephen Cooper revealed info about his Parlophone acquisition. According to a memo to Warner staff, the mini-major’s purchase of the Parlophone Label Group, aka most of the bits of EMI that Universal was forced to sell by competition regulators last year, should be completed by the middle of summer. It will result in Parlophone becoming a frontline label alongside Atlantic and Warner Bros. Cooper also hopes the takeover will throw up new opportunities for Warner in Europe, where the company will now have a stronger base, help relaunch the major’s classical operations and a provide a “catalyst” for a new global approach to catalogue. CMU report | The Music report

04: HMV Canada put a new digital service properly live. Called The Vault, the company’s top man said “we know that the more than 35 million consumers who come through our stores each year count on us to enhance their music experience and The Vault is a clear indicator of our ability to do that. This combined retail and online offering will enable us to better connect with our customers and drive our business forward in 2013_. HMV Canada is, of course, owned by Hilco, which recently acquired HMV UK, leading to speculation The Vault might launch over here too, though the streaming market is much more competitive here than in Canada. CMU report | Toronto Star report

05: The jury was appointed for the Jacksons v AEG Live case. Over 100 people were considered for the jury of twelve, most being removed either because they said committing to a three-month trial would cause problems, or because they had pre-existing opinions on Jackson or mega-bucks legal claims, or because of links to either the Jackson family or AEG. Proceedings in what is likely to be a lively trial are now due to kick off next week. The Jackson family say that AEG should accept liability for the death of Michael Jackson in 2009, because it – as promoter of the late king of pop’s ill-fated This Is It show – hired Conrad Murray, the doctor convicted of causing the singer’s demise through negligent treatment. But AEG counters that, while it paid Murray’s bills, Jackson himself appointed and managed the doctor on a day-to-day basis. CMU report | Reuters report

On CMU this week, guest poster Caroline Bottomley of Radar Music Videos shared some insights on promoting an independent single release, while CMU Editor Andy Malt delved once again into the murky world of brand partnerships. Nominations also opened for this year’s Yearly Music Convention Awards at The Great Escape. And Approved were LLLL, Parquet Courts, The Good Natured and Hebronix.

CMU Beef Of The Week #154: The Netherlands v John Ewbank

And Finally Artist News Beef Of The Week

Earlier this month, over here in the UK the death of a former Prime Minister resulted in some musical controversy. At around the same time, a fuss was brewing just across the North Sea over a song for The Netherlands’ new king.

Prince Willem-Alexander is set to take the throne in The Netherlands on 30 Apr, when his mother, Queen Beatrix, abdicates. To celebrate the royal promotion, the country’s National Inauguration Committee decided it would be nice if there was a new song to mark the occasion.

English born songwriter John Ewbank (pictured) was chosen as its writer, coming up with a song called ‘Koningslied’ (or ‘King’s Song’). Featuring lyrics suggested through social media and on the official inauguration website, and then sung and rapped by over 50 musicians, the single went on sale on last Friday. Accompanied by a video featuring happy subjects grinning into the camera and doing a three-fingered ‘W’ (for Willem) hand gesture (as they are told to in the song’s lyrics), it shot straight up the Dutch iTunes chart.

But despite the chart success, not all Dutch people were instilled with a tearjerking sense of national pride upon hearing the song. The same day the video and download went live, a petition against the song received 20,000 signatures, and eventually reached almost 41,000. Aside from its unrelenting sentimentality, there were complaints that some of the lyrics in the song were simply grammatically incorrect.

Launched by journalist Sylvia Witteman, the introduction to the petition announces, “In protest against the demented ‘King Song’, I renounce my position as a Dutch citizen”.

By the next day, the campaign against the song reached full steam – with so many people marking the official video as spam on YouTube that it was temporarily taken down, while others uploaded their own alternative songs.

Despite this, and reports that Ewbank had withdrawn the song in frustration, the National Inauguration Committee announced this week that ‘Koningslied’ remained the official song of the new king, and would be performed as he took the throne as planned.

The committee said in a statement: “Since the launch of the song there is a wave of reactions, mostly positive. It is clear that there are many critical voices in society about parts of the lyrics of the song. [However,] the artists [involved] have indicated they want to continue. And after consultation with [the Dutch version of the BBC] the NPO and John Ewbank, the Committee has decided to stick with ‘Koningslied'”.

After all that, I bet you want to see this video. Well, here it is:

Approved: Circus LDN at Egg

Club Tip CMU Approved

The Circus LDN team have rounded up some hot names for their April party, with Josh Wink (pictured) makes his Egg debut, joining chief resident Yousef, DJ T and Smash TV.

A tycoon of techno and house, and a die-hard exponent of the familiar acid sound he created with the classic ‘Higher State Of Consciousness’ back in 1995, Wink will deliver an exclusive underground set complete with new tracks and remixes from his own Ovum label. Amongst those will be tracks from his newly released EP, ‘Balls’, his first new record since 2009’s ‘When A Banana Was Just A Banana’.

DJ T will herald the release of a new ten year anniversary compilation from the Get Physical label, which features like likes of Booka Shade, Catz n Dogz, Samim and Fuckpony. And before that set, eclectic German duo Smash TV will launch their new ‘Noises & Girls’ album, as they also debut at Circus.

Meanwhile, Yousef has also just released a new album ‘X’ via Circus Recordings, but here will be mainly showing how he leads the musical zeitgeist with his solidly crafted sets.

Yet another great line-up for Egg London, ahead of its tenth Birthday in May.

Friday 26 Apr, Egg, 200 York Way, Kings Cross, London, N7 9AX, 11pm-6am, £13-£20, more info here.

Warner boss discusses Parlophone plans in memo

Business News EMI Sale Timeline Labels & Publishers Top Stories

The boss of Warner Music has issued a memo to staff with some information about the integration of the Parlophone Label Group with the mini-major. The memo was seemingly circulated to coincide with a filing with the US Securities And Exchange Commission covering some specifics regards the financing of the deal.

As previously reported, when it acquired EMI last year, Universal Music was forced by competition regulators to sell the Parlophone Label Group – which includes the UK-based Parlophone frontline label and catalogue, some more British EMI archive, and EMI operations in various other European markets – and it was announced that Warner would buy it in February in a £478 million deal.

In his memo, Warner boss Stephen Cooper tells his staff that the deal, which itself is subject to regulator approval, has been given the green light by the authorities in Brazil and US, and is on track to be completed this summer. The main hurdle in that regard was always going to be the European Commission, though with Europe’s indie label community smiling on this deal, no major issues are expected there either.

Cooper went on to describe his plans for Parlophone once the deal is done. He confirmed that Parlophone will operate as another frontline label within the Warner business, alongside Atlantic and Warner Bros, suggesting the brand will become active in more territories than under EMI. He added that the classical catalogues and brands that would also come with the acquisition would be used to “reinvigorate” Warner’s approach to the genre.

And that’s not the only area in which Cooper hopes the Parlophone acquisition will provide a catalyst for change within the Warner business. The CEO notes that the arrangement will also strengthen Warner Music’s presence in a number of European territories, before adding that he saw the expansion as a “catalyst for a new global catalogue strategy”. As previously reported, in the US Warner has more closely aligned its record label catalogue operations with its music publishing business, and it will be interesting to see if the new “global strategy” mirrors those efforts.

Cooper’s memo didn’t go into any detail about his agreement with the European independent community to work in partnership with some indie music companies to capitalise on the potential of the Parlophone Label Group catalogue. That, of course, could well be the most interesting element of this merger, though the specifics may well not be worked out until the PLG acquisition is properly completed.

Drugs and stun gun found on Bieber’s tour bus in Sweden

Artist News Legal

Drugs and a stun gun were found on Justin Bieber’s tour bus ahead of a show in Stockholm earlier this week, Swedish police said yesterday. The bus was parked outside a hotel in the city as Bieber waited to perform at the Globen Arena on Wednesday night. Police, alerted to the smell of marijuana coming from inside, searched the vehicle after the ten passengers on board (including Bieber) went into the arena for the show.

Police spokesman Varg Jyllander told Sky News: “They found a small amount of drugs and a stun gun. Now the drugs are [being] sent over to the forensics lab, and before we have the analysis results we won’t [comment further]. It was a short search for around half an hour”.

Jyllander added that while police currently had no specific suspects in relation to the drugs and the weapon, and although Bieber and his crew had already left town, the investigation was ongoing. He also explained that while stun guns were not illegal in Sweden, “you need a permit to carry one or have one – and they hadn’t”. Much like that monkey.

This is not the first time Bieber has been linked to cannabis, of course, with TMZ claiming earlier this year that a photograph it had obtained showed the singer smoking a joint. While not directly confirming or denying this, Bieber did tweet that he was “trying to be better” at the time.

Elsewhere in Bieber news, his manager Scooter Braun has told MTV News that the singer has been writing “one or two songs a day for the entire tour”. And given that his current tour started last September, that’s quite a lot of songs.

This possibly explains a lot of things. By the time he reached London in March, Bieber was probably suffering writer’s block, making his daily songwriting slower than normal, hence his late appearance on stage for one show at the O2 Arena. Also, who writes one or two songs a day except stoners? And as for the stun gun, it’s probably the only way his team can get him to stop writing and go up on stage. Maybe they bought it after the London incident, or maybe they’d just misplaced it that night. Maybe the monkey took it and that’s why they’ve abandoned the animal in Germany!

It’s all so clear now.

Oh, just before I go, our lawyers would like us point out that CMU does not believe that any marijuana or other drugs of any kind that may or may not have been found on Justin Bieber’s tour bus belonged to the singer himself. Nor do we believe that Justin Bieber owns a stun gun.

Nor, for that matter, do we believe that anyone in Justin Bieber’s entourage has or ever would use a stun gun on him. Or anyone else. Oh, and we don’t think the monkey known as Mally was abandoned in Munich for stealing said stun gun.

In fact, forget I ever mentioned anything you’ve read in this story. Justin Bieber hasn’t even written any songs. And his manager isn’t called Scooter Braun. And Sweden has no police force. Sweden doesn’t even exist. Who is Justin Bieber? Who are you? Yo no hablo Inglés.

Hill responds to court revelation of Sony deal

Artist News Business News Labels & Publishers Legal

Lauryn Hill has responded to this week’s court hearing regards her tax affairs, or rather the revelation during it that she has entered into a new deal with Sony Music, and will get a million dollars from it that should cover most of her tax debts.

In a new typically rambling Tumblr post Hill confirms she has a new deal with Sony, but says that the figures cited by media coverage of her court appearance are wrong. The million is just part of the deal, she says. US tax authorities will no doubt be doing the sums already, just in case she forgets to file her next tax return.

The full post reads as follows…

It has been reported that I signed a new record deal, and that I did this to pay taxes. Yes, I have recently entered into an agreement with Sony Worldwide Entertainment, to launch a new label, on which my new music will be released. And yes, I am working on new music.

I’ve remained silent, after an extensive healing process. This has been a 10+ year battle, for a long time played out behind closed doors, but now in front of the public eye. This is an old conflict between art and commerce… free minds, and minds that are perhaps overly tethered to structure. This is about inequity, and the resulting disenfranchisement caused by it. I’ve been fighting for existential and economic freedom, which means the freedom to create and live without someone threatening, controlling, and/or manipulating the art and the artist, by tying the purse strings.

It took years for me to get out of the ‘parasitic’ dynamic of my youth, and into a deal that better reflects my true contribution as an artist, and (purportedly) gives me the control necessary to create a paradigm suitable for my needs. I have been working towards this for a long time, not just because of my current legal situation, but because I am an artist, I love to create, and I need the proper platform to do so.

The nature of my new business venture, as well as the dollar amount reported, was inaccurate, only a portion of the overall deal. Keep in mind, my past recordings have sold over 50,000,000 units worldwide, earning the label a tremendous amount of money (a fraction of which actually came to me).

Only a completely complicated set of traps, manipulations, and inequitable business arrangements could put someone who has accomplished the things that I have, financially in need of anything. I am one artist who finds value in openly discussing the dynamics within this industry that force artists to compromise or distort themselves and what they do, rather than allowing them to make the music that people need. There are volumes that could (and will) be said.

MLH

TV On The Radio ‘part ways’ with Interscope

Business News Labels & Publishers

TV On The Radio’s relationship with Universal’s Interscope, their label since 2006’s ‘Return To Cookie Mountain’, is over, vocalist Tunde Adebimpe has confirmed. Talking to Spin, Adebimpe said this: “Ehhhh… we parted ways with them. To the best of my knowledge, they can ask about another record, but I don’t think we’re gonna do that. Um, yeah they did what they did. That’s as diplomatic as I can put that”.

With new TVOTR set to be released via Federal Prism – the band’s Dave Sitek’s label – later in the year, Adebimpe said that the quartet were “sort of collecting material for a record”, adding: “right now we’re only thinking in terms of songs, smaller things we can put out regularly until an album seems possible. Which I love. It’s not that you’re less precious about the process, but I like coming in and saying, ‘Let’s make a couple songs’ not feeling any sort of pressure to lock ourselves in a room”.

Kelis releasing Summer-y/Love-y LP

Artist News Releases

Wepa and again, wepa! Kelis is releasing an LP that “sounds like love and summer balled up into one”, apparently, which is quite a feat. I’ve no idea what date she plans to do that on, but I’m guessing that, given the summer thing and the R&B pop realm’s dislike of irony, it won’t be in the winter.

Kelis, who’s been inactive LP-wise since 2010’s ‘Flesh Tone’, said via Twitter: “You asked when new stuff was coming, I procrastinated but no more. It’s here now, I’m happy. You should be too, embrace it! Wepa!”

And this is the ball of summertime love that is Kelis’s brand new track ‘Jerk Ribs’:

Olugbenga to release EP

Releases

Moonlighting Metronomy bassist, the CMU Approved Olugbenga, is to release a new three-track EP via Pictures Music.

Its A-side (and title track) ‘Hafiza [INNOCENCE]’ is available to preview whenever you’d like to do so, but you’ll have to wait till 20 May to lay ears on tracks two and three, ‘I Can Be Whatever You’re After’ and ‘Time Dollars’.

Senna director shopping Amy Winehouse film

Artist News

Filmmaker Asif Kapadia is in talks to direct a new non-fiction film looking at the life and times of Amy Winehouse, and featuring rare archive visuals of the late singer.

Kapadia, who directed 2010’s excellent ‘Senna’, apparently has the approval of Winehouse’s family, and will pitch the doc to potential buyers at May’s Cannes Film Market.

Says Kapadia: “This is an incredibly modern, emotional and relevant film that has the power to capture the zeitgeist and shine a light on the world we live in in a way that very few films can”.

Mogwai to live-score Zidane film

Artist News Gigs & Festivals

Mogwai will play their original score to directors Douglas Gordon and Philippe Parreno’s 2006 film ‘Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait’ live, and for the first time in its entirety, in July, once at the Manchester International Festival and once at London’s Barbican on 26 Jul.

The film charts French footballer Zinédine Zidane on and off the pitch at a 2005 Spanish League game in Madrid. Tickets to the Mogwai-scored 26 Jul London showing are available via this link, and, meanwhile, here’s the trailer:

JT, Taylor Swift and Robbie Williams RSVP to Capital FM Summertime Ball

Gigs & Festivals

So, Capital FM has invited Justin Timberlake to MC its Summertime Ball (‘Suit & Tie’ optional), the same one the pop-playing station is throwing at London’s Wembley Stadium on 9 Jun.

Timberlake will ‘host’ (and potentially sing a bit in the gaps) the likes of Taylor Swift, Robbie Williams, Jessie J, The Saturdays, Olly Murs, Will.i.am, The Wanted, Ellie Goulding, Cheryl Cole and… Lawson, so that’s nice. Details and tickets via this link.

Sean Paul to play June dates

Gigs & Festivals

Sean-a Paul will play a pair of dutty live dates in London and Manchester in June.

The ‘Deport Them’ hitmaker will play all his hits at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire on 5 Jun, moving to The Ritz in Manchester the following night.

Vibe off all this info via the vid for Sean and Beenie Man’s new collab, ‘Greatest Gallis’, which, I think, is a way of saying ‘Greatest Girls’. But I can’t be sure. Anyway, this is it:

ATP to scale back holiday camp festivals, lists ‘last hurrah’ feat Television and LOOP

Business News Live Business

All Tomorrow’s Parties is to slimline its large-scale live activities, it’s been revealed. The promotions co has billed a pair of ‘End Of An Era’ events as its last ever ‘holiday camp festivals’, meaning its city-based I’ll Be Your Mirror fests will become the firm’s core business.

It’s been a rocky ride for the promoter over the past couple of years. ATP boss Barry Hogan announced he was phasing out the company’s springtime seaside festivals back in 2011, and then the ATP company went into liquidation last July. A less-than-positive 2012 also saw ATP ‘end its relationship’ with erstwhile holiday camp base Butlins, moving its remaining seaside fests back to Butlins rival Pontins. The ATP business re-emerged though, and while a partnership with MAMA proved to be short-lived, the company continued to promote its always interesting events.

And so, after that brief history of ATP, to news of its last holiday camp hurrah, a two-part ‘End Of An Era’ extravaganza taking place at Pontins, Camber Sands, from 22-24 Nov and 29 Nov-1 Dec. Staged in partnership with Primavera Sound, weekend one is headlined by Television, who’ll play their 1977 LP ‘Marquee Moon’, and will co-star Chelsea Light Moving, Dinosaur Jr’s Dinos Chapman, Les Savy Fav, múm, Oneohtrix Point Never, Hebronix, Mike Watt, Forest Swords, The Haxan Cloak, Demdike Stare, Wolf Eyes, BEAK> and Eraas. The final weekend, meanwhile, is curated by art-rock icons LOOP, and will feature The Pop Group, 23 Skidoo, Fennesz, Edan, The KVB, Dirty Beaches, Eaux, Hookworms and Thought Forms.

A word on it all from Barry Hogan: “When we started all this fourteen years ago, we had no idea how a festival curated by a single artist and based in a family holiday camp would play out. It was a mad idea that somehow came to fruition helped by the fact that people were looking for something different from the overpriced conveyor belt corporate rock sponsor-fests that populate the British summer. Looking back we have so many great memories – where else would you find Iggy Pop, Matt Groening, Patti Smith or Nick Cave holed up in a basic chalet at a Pontins’ Holiday Camp? The support from the artists and festival-goers alike has been incredible but it’s time to move on and look towards the future, it may also be time to let Camber Sands rest in peace!”

Festival line-up update: Reading & Leeds, Glastonbury, Electric Daisy Carnival London, Secret Garden Party and more

Artist News Festival Line-Up Update Gigs & Festivals

And so we head on into the land-of-the-FLUU, kicking off with a matching set of artists (Enter Shikari’s never-ever-seen-live Shikari Sound System, Frightened Rabbit, AluneGeorge, Parquet Courts, Spector, Charli XCX, Lower Than Atlantis, Sick Of It All) being added to this year’s identically-billed Reading and Leeds fests, as will each be headlined by the great Biffy Clyro, Green Day and Eminem.

Also on the agenda today, passing updates to line-ups at festivals like this year’s London-based Electric Daisy Carnival (Flux Pavilion, Jack Beats, Sub Focus and Nero); Finland’s The Knife/MBV/Kraftwerk/Nick Cave-finessed Flow (Jacco Gardner, Ravi Coltrane); Essex fest Brownstock (Mark Ronson, The Fratellis); Scottish love-in Belladrum Tartan Heart (Seasick Steve, The Pigeon Detectives); the Secret Garden Party (Serafina Steer, Little Comets); and this year’s Glastonbury, as has added an extra… oh I don’t know, ‘je ne sais quoi’, to its gargantuan artist cache via new names Jake Bugg, Seth Lakeman, Bootleg Beatles and Gypsy Queens.

Once itemized, said updates look like this:

BELLADRUM TARTAN HEART, Belladrum Estate, Beauly, Inverness-shire, Scotland, 2-3 Aug: Seasick Steve, The Pigeon Detectives, Julie Fowlis, Andy Burrows, Gentleman’s Dub Club, Meursault, Washington Irving, PAWS, The LaFontaines, Tich, Nick Mulvey, MacFloyd, The Springsteen Sessions. www.tartanheartfestival.co.uk

BROWNSTOCK, Morris Farm, Chelmsford, Essex, 30 Aug – 1 Sep: The Fratellis, Mark Ronson, The Pigeon Detectives, Benga & Youngman, Doorly. www.brownstock.co.uk

ELECTRIC DAISY CARNIVAL – LONDON, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, 20 Jul: Flux Pavilion, Jack Beats, Mat Zo, Nero, Burns, Chris Lake, Chuckie, Deniz Koyu & Danny Avila, Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, Dirty South, Feed Me, NERVO, Sub Focus, Tom Staar. www.electricdaisycarnival.co.uk

FARMFESTIVAL, Bruton, Somerset, 26-27 Jul: Crazy P. www.farmfestival.co.uk

FLOW FESTIVAL, Suvilahti, Helsinki, Finland, 7-11 Aug: Ravi Coltrane, Jacco Gardner, Timo Lassy Band, Serenity Ensemble. www.flowfestival.com

GLASTONBURY, Worthy Farm, Somerset, 26 Jun – 1 Jul: Jake Bugg, Seth Lakeman, Bootleg Beatles, Zac Brown Band, Gypsy Queens, Steve Forbert, The Riptide Movement, Rainy Boy Sleep, Lucy Ward, Joel Rafael, London Community Gospel Choir, Ricky Ross, Blues Boy Dan, Jack Savoretti, Matt Corby, Trevor Moss & Hannah-Lou, Port Isla. www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk

HARD ROCK HELL, Hafan y Mor Holiday Park, Pwllheli, Wales, 28 Nov – 1 De: Michael Monroe, Snakecharmer, Vain, The Crazy World Of Arthur Brown, Tygers Of Pan Tang, Electric Mary, Voodoo Six, Pat McManus, Canadians Striker, Sweden’s Screamer, Stubb, Spit Like This, Druganaut, States of Panic, Alunah, Fatal Smile, Cage the Gods, Skarlett Riot. www.hardrockhell.com

LEEDS FESTIVAL, Bramham Park, Leeds, 23-25 Aug: Shikari Sound System, Funeral For A Friend, Alkaline Trio, Gallows, And So I Watch You From Afar, Crystal Fighters, British Sea Power, Frightened Rabbit, FIDLAR, Spector, Skindred, Lower Than Atlantis, AlunaGeorge, Chvrches, Lucy Rose, Pure Love, The Jim Jones Revue, Tim Burgess, Merchandise, Splashh, Parquet Courts, California X, Chapel Club, Kate Nash, Drenge, Skaters, Fenech-Soler, A-Trak, Dillon Francis, Flux Pavilion, Charli XCX, Friction, Redlight, Fred V, Grafix, Clean Bandit, Jagwar Ma, Is Tropical, Willy Moon, Bondax, Big Black Delta, Jacob Plant, Robert DeLong feat Majestic, Night Works, Crossfaith, Arcane Roots, Heavens Basement, The Living End, RX Bandits, Quicksand, Sick Of It All, The Bronx, King Prawn, The Computers, Cerebral Ballzy, Balthazar, Nico Vega, To Kill A King, Twenty | One | Pilots, The Family Rain, Mo, MS MR, Half Moon Run, Findlay, MMX, We Are The In Crowd, Bury Tomorrow, Kodaline, Tribes. www.leedsfestival.com

READING FESTIVAL, Richfield Avenue, Reading, 23-25 Aug: Shikari Sound System, Funeral For A Friend, Alkaline Trio, Gallows, And So I Watch You From Afar, Crystal Fighters, British Sea Power, Frightened Rabbit, FIDLAR, Spector, Skindred, Lower Than Atlantis, AlunaGeorge, Chvrches, Lucy Rose, Pure Love, The Jim Jones Revue, Tim Burgess, Merchandise, Splashh, Parquet Courts, California X, Chapel Club, Kate Nash, Drenge, Skaters, Fenech-Soler, A-Trak, Dillon Francis, Flux Pavilion, Charli XCX, Friction, Redlight, Fred V, Grafix, Clean Bandit, Jagwar Ma, Is Tropical, Willy Moon, Bondax, Big Black Delta, Jacob Plant, Robert DeLong feat Majestic, Night Works Crossfaith, Arcane Roots, Heavens Basement, The Living End, RX Bandits, Quicksand, Sick Of It All, The Bronx, King Prawn, The Computers, Cerebral Ballzy, Balthazar, Nico Vega, To Kill A King, Twenty | One | Pilots, The Family Rain, Mo, MS MR, Half Moon Run, Findlay, MMX, We Are The In Crowd, Bury Tomorrow, Kodaline, Tribes. www.readingfestival.com

SALUTING THE BLACK PRESIDENT FELA KUTI, 229, London, 17 May: Ginger Baker, Tony Allen, Shingai Shoniwa, Keziah Jones, Dele Sosimi’s Afrobeat Orchestra, TY, Blak Twang, Afrikan Boy, BREIS, Terri Walker, KOF, Bumi Thomas, Max Reinhardt & Rita Ray, DJ Koichi Sakai. www.229thevenue.com

SECRET GARDEN PARTY, Mill Hill Field, Abbots Ripton, Huntingdon, 25-28 Jul: Serafina Steer, Clean Bandit, Sykur, Cherub, Little Comets, The Staves, John Newman, Nina Nesbitt, Sam Smith, Ruen Brothers, Janet Devlin, Saint Raymond, House of Hats, Ben Smith Band, Shannon Wardrop, Krankbrother, Real Nice, Heavenly Jukebox, Kitch N Sync, Love Sick, Blonde Ambition, Samuel Potts, Amp+Deck, Jay Karim & Michael Palmer, Issac Ferry. www.secretgardenparty.com

MySpace partners with Gucci

Brands & Merch Digital

Apparently MySpace is still going, something I know because Justin Timberlake’s favourite social network has just announced a new deal with Gucci to promote the fashion brand’s new Sync range of watches.

A press release for the partnership explains: “The Gucci Sync MySpace profile taps into the site’s sleek new platform, focused on music and discovery by featuring a special MySpace-produced Gucci Sync video, which depicts real world connections based on music and the creativity. The profile will also feature a multimedia mix of dynamic artists”.

So that’s good to know. You can watch the video mentioned there, here.

SpinMedia acquires Vibe

Media

The ever acquisitive and recently renamed SpinMedia – formerly Buzzmedia – has acquired another classic American music magazine, the R&B and hip hop focused Vibe, originally founded two decades ago by Quincy Jones.

Buzzmedia previously acquired Spin magazine, of course, shutting down the publication’s print edition before adopting its brand in its corporate entity. It’s now expected that the print version of Vibe will be phased out, so that the title becomes an online only operation, likely with fewer staff.

Confirming the acquisition, SpinMedia boss Steve Hansen said Vibe had been “an industry leader in the urban and hip hop category for decades”, adding: “It’s really exciting to add this to SpinMedia’s collection of music properties and bring more digital DNA to the team and see what they can do”.

Snoop discusses criticism by Bunny Wailer

And Finally

Snoop Dogg, sorry Lion, or Dogg… one of the two, has commented on claims made by Bunny Wailer earlier this year that the rapper turned reggae star has engaged in “outright fraudulent use of the Rastafari Community’s personalities and symbolism” to promote his new album, ‘Reincarnation’, adding that Snoop was promoting the idea that “smoking weed and loving Bob Marley and reggae music is … what defines the Rastafari indigenous culture”.

In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Snoop said that their falling out was “a miscommunication”, noting that the last time he saw Wailer, as shown in his documentary about recording the album in Jamaica, “it was all love”.

Wailer also claimed that Snoop had made and broken “contractual, moral and verbal commitments” to the Ethio-Africa Diaspora Union Millennium Council, an organisation that represents various churches within the Rastfarian religion. Responding to this, Snoop said: “To me, a lot of these guys from back in the days have been done wrong, and they think younger artists owe them, because we’ve been paid and treated right. It’s not my fault if you haven’t been paid. I just met you”.

Despite starting out by saying that “loving energy is the only way I can match his negative energy”, he did admit that he’d removed Wailer’s contributions from the album after hearing that the musician was speaking out against him – only leaving him in the film in order “to show his positivity against his negativity”.

Snoop continued: “He’s speaking and the album isn’t out. That gave me fair warning to get this motherfucker off my shit. I have no insight what turned him. The people I visited at the Nyabinghi Temple aren’t speaking negative on me. They’re real Rastas. I went in there and filmed them, showed their whole get-down. Nobody did that before. If anyone, they should have complained – ‘He exploited us!’ Why aren’t they saying that? To me, they have the most gripe to make. How did I exploit Bunny? I gave you a chance to be in my movie. My movie gonna be the shit with or without you. I’m gonna be the shit with or without you. I’m Snoop Dogg. Relevant right now”.

Aha! So he is still called Snoop Dogg. That’s that cleared up then.

Tricky ‘explains’ Glasto fail

And Finally

Tricky

Trip-hop star Tricky has no real idea who Beyonce is, so, naturally, when he was asked to join in when she played ‘Naughty Girl’ at 2011’s Glastonbury festival, he was a bit baffled. Like, really baffled. Especially given the smoke, the dancers, a faulty microphone, and the fact the Jay-Z was staring at him. That’d baffle anyone, right?

(Finally) clarifying what the ‘Halo’ was going on when he guested during Bey’s 2011 Glasto performance in a new Q&A with FACT, the Trickster said: “[Beyonce’s] got a guy who does her choreogra-lalalala. What’s it called? The dancing stuff. She was in England and she wanted somebody to do a feature. He mentioned me – I don’t know if she knew who I was. I don’t think so. She might have heard about me, but I don’t know. He mentioned me so she said okay, and I had to do that because it’s so perverse, to go on stage with Beyonce. I don’t know much about her and I don’t know her music and I really can’t say I’m a fan. She’s a nice girl. But I can honestly say I’m not a fan”.

He went on: “I went on. The smoke, the dancers… and then my mic didn’t work. When my mic didn’t work, I just started watching everything. And she’s so professional – when she saw my mic didn’t work, she came over and started winding down on me. It was professional, but it was sexy. And I’m not that kind of guy, I’m a bit shy. So she’s winding down on me, and I look at the front – and Jay-Z is right in front of me. It’s just weird. I got a cousin, he’s a Jamaican guy in London, and him and his friends were watching it. And he and his friends, they were talking to me, they said ‘Go on Tricky! Wind it! Wind it!’ But I couldn’t do it. There’s no way I can grab Beyonce around the waist and start doing that stuff”.

Baffling.

Approved: Hebronix

CMU Approved

First, a basic Hebronix CV. Daniel Blumberg quit his first band, Cajun Dance Party, just as its brand of sugary jingle-jangle pop was starting to look like it’d had its day. After that he moved with the times, reappearing in the midst of grunge-toned (sonic) youths Yuck in 2011, only to leave after one LP.

Blumberg is now ‘back’ (again), this time via solo alias Hebronix, and will release an LP titled ‘Unreal’ on 8 Jul. Its title track, a bed-headed hymn to slack dissatisfaction, is quite happy to spiral back and forth on a pair of fairly prosaic chords, but gains extra-special shine via the lyrical twists and jewel-like synths in its seams.

Listen to all that, if you like, by playing it on this player:

Record Store Day deemed a success

Business News Labels & Publishers Retail Top Stories

Hey, Record Store Day 2013 was a success. Though if you were one of the people who looked at the queues outside some of the most popular shops, thought ‘bollocks to that’ and went home, you might already have guessed it was.

In total, eight of the top ten best selling vinyl albums last week were Record Store Day exclusives, while the average customer spent £45, according to new stats released by the Official Charts Company and the Record Store Day UK team. This year the number of exclusive releases put out specifically for the day grew to 500, which seems a bit out of control, but if people are buying them, what are you gonna do?

Record Store Day UK Coordinator Spencer Hickman told CMU: “Indie record shops pulled out all the stops once again to make Record Store Day UK a huge success. They proved yet again indie stores are more than just shops – at their best they are a focus for the passion, the excitement, the stubborn belief in the power of great music which is the hallmark of the true music fan”.

Paul Quirk, chairman of the Entertainment Retailers Association, added: “Record Store Day reached a new level this year. What is clear is that it is the stores that have done the most in terms of organising gigs and special events which have seen the highest sales. Being a music fan is about more than just shopping, and those stores which recognise that are the ones which will prosper. I am continually amazed by the effort record store owners and their staff put into this event”.

Of course, some of the people in those queues are only there because they know if they can get in early and scoop up the rarest of the exclusive records, then they can sell them at a profit on eBay. However, claims Quirk, instances of this happening are down on previous years. “There is a lot of revulsion among music fans when people try to cash in on Record Store Day,” he said. “But the stores have made strenuous efforts to restrict this trade and our researches suggest less than 2% of product ended up on eBay this year – which means that 98% did not”.

While 2% of 500 releases still seems like quite a lot, but Quirk reckons reselling is now on a downward trend, saying: “I am confident we can continue to reduce the impact of this problem”.

Capitol UK launches

Business News EMI Sale Timeline Labels & Publishers Top Stories

Universal Music has announced the launch of Capitol Records UK, because like my granny always used to say, you can never have too many imprints. Capitol will operate alongside the mega-major’s other British frontline labels: Island, Polydor, Virgin EMI and Decca.

Universal confirmed rumours that it would launch a UK version of Capitol Records last month. Capitol, of course, was the main US division of EMI, which Universal Music acquired last year. Having been forced to sell EMI’s other iconic label, Parlophone, in order to get regulator approval for its EMI deal in Europe, Universal seemed keen to capitalise on the Capitol name in the UK instead.

Existing Universal UK mini-division London Records will basically be morphed into Capitol UK, with its chief since 2011, Nick Raphael, heading up the new unit. London is a ‘capital’ I suppose, which is only one letter off ‘capitol’. Raphael’s London Records team will become the Capitol team, though additional execs will be recruited in the coming weeks.

Universal’s official announcement of the Capitol venture adds that the new venture “will be based in premises outside Universal Music UK’s Kensington High Street HQ”, which seemingly backs up the rumour that the label will set up home in offices at Abbey Road Studios, also acquired by the mega-major in its EMI deal, to replicate Capitol US being famously based in the Capitol Tower, one of LA’s best known studio complexes.

Confirming the launch of Capitol UK, Universal Music UK boss David Joseph told CMU: “For us to work with Capitol is an honour and a tremendous opportunity – it’s a label with an incredible past but what the new team are doing promises a huge amount for the future. Here in the UK, the same can be said for what Nick’s leadership can do for the label, with Capitol joining Virgin EMI, Island, Polydor and Decca to complete our line-up of frontline labels”.

While Raphael added: “When David approached me to run Capitol Records in the UK I jumped at the opportunity to run a legendary label with an incredible roster and the chance to work with [Capitol US boss] Steve Barnett again”.

Scottish Album Of The Year longlist announced

Awards

The longlist has been announced for the 2012 Scottish Album Of The Year Award, you know, like the Mercury but with English, Welsh and Irish bands kicked out of the room. Organised by the Scottish Music Industry Association, 100 music and media types nominated records for the longlist, from which a shortlist of ten will be selected, one by the public on 27 May, and the rest by the SAY judging panel. A final winner will then be selected on 20 Jun.

But enough of that, here then is the longlist…

Admiral Fallow – Tree Bursts In Snow
Auntie Flo – Future Rhythm Machine
Calvin Harris – 18 Months
Dam Mantle – Brothers Fowl
Django Django – Django Django
Duncan Chisholm – Affric
Emeli Sandé – Our Version Of Events
Errors – Have Some Faith In Magic
Human Don’t Be Angry – Human Don’t Be Angry
Karine Polwart – Traces
Konrad Wiszniewski & Euan Stevenson – New Focus
Lau – Race The Loser
Meursault – Something For The Weakened
Miaoux Miaoux – Light Of The North
Paul Buchanan – Mid Air
PAWS – Cokefloat!
RM Hubbert – Thirteen Lost & Found
Stanley Odd – Reject
The Twilight Sad – No One Can Ever Know
The Unwinding Hours – Afterlives

Iggy Azalea signs US deal with Island Def Jam

Business News Deals Labels & Publishers

Australian rapper Iggy Azalea has signed a deal with Universal’s Island Def Jam in the US, it was announced yesterday. As previously reported, Azalea previously signed with the mega-major’s Mercury label (which has since relaunched as Virgin EMI) in the UK back in February.

Island president David Massey said in a statement: “We are beyond proud and excited to welcome Iggy to the Island Def Jam family. Iggy has created a massive buzz and rightfully so: she’s incredibly talented, she’s focused, driven, and has great creative tastes and instincts. She is nothing short of an international star, and the team here – including Steve Bartels, Chris Anokute, Karen Kwak, our chairman Barry Weiss and myself – are thrilled she’s chosen Island Records as her US home”.

Iggy added: “I am elated to be a part of the Island Def Jam family! After speaking in depth with David, Steve and Chris, it became clear that Island Records was attuned to the type of artist I am. They are a great addition to my UK team. Along with TI and the Grand Hustle family, I couldn’t have asked for a more understanding and aspirational group of people to work with”.

Azalea recently released new single ‘Work’, and her major label debut album, ‘The New Classic’, is due for release in the UK in June.

Monday 29 April 2013, 10:48 | By Chris Cooke

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Monday 29 April 2013, 10:43 | By Chris Cooke

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:34 | By Chris Cooke

READ MORE ABOUT: AEG | Capitol | Grooveshark | HMV | Michael Jackson | Parlophone | Universal Music | Warner Music

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:33 | By Andy Malt

READ MORE ABOUT: John Ewbank | Prince Willem-Alexander

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:32 | By Paul Vig

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:31 | By Chris Cooke

READ MORE ABOUT: EMI | Parlophone | Stephen Cooper | Warner Music

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:30 | By Andy Malt

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:29 | By Chris Cooke

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:28 | By Aly Barchi

READ MORE ABOUT: Interscope | Tunde Adebimpe | TV On The Radio | Universal Music

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:27 | By Aly Barchi

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:26 | By Aly Barchi

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:25 | By Aly Barchi

READ MORE ABOUT: Amy Winehouse | Asif Kapadia

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:24 | By Aly Barchi

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:23 | By Aly Barchi

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:22 | By Aly Barchi

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:21 | By Aly Barchi

READ MORE ABOUT: ATP | Barry Hogan

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:20 | By Aly Barchi

READ MORE ABOUT: Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival | Brownstock | Electric Daisy Carnival | FarmFestival | Flow Festival | Glastonbury Festival | Hard Rock Hell | Leeds Festival | Reading Festival | Saluting The Black President Fela Kuti | Secret Garden Party

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:19 | By Andy Malt

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Friday 26 April 2013, 11:18 | By Chris Cooke

READ MORE ABOUT: SpinMedia | Vibe

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:17 | By Andy Malt

READ MORE ABOUT: Bunny Wailer | Snoop Dogg | Snoop Lion

Friday 26 April 2013, 11:16 | By Aly Barchi

READ MORE ABOUT: Beyonce | Tricky

Thursday 25 April 2013, 11:03 | By Aly Barchi

READ MORE ABOUT: Cajun Dance Party | Daniel Blumberg | Hebronix | Yuck

Thursday 25 April 2013, 10:59 | By Andy Malt

READ MORE ABOUT: Entertainment Retailers Association (ERA) | Official Charts Company | Paul Quirk | Record Store Day

Thursday 25 April 2013, 10:58 | By Chris Cooke

READ MORE ABOUT: Capitol | EMI | Universal Music

Thursday 25 April 2013, 10:56 | By Chris Cooke

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Thursday 25 April 2013, 10:55 | By Andy Malt

READ MORE ABOUT: Def Jam | Iggy Azalea | Universal Music