THURSDAY 9 NOVEMBER 2017 | COMPLETEMUSICUPDATE.COM | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
TODAY'S TOP STORY: The future of Bristol's Thekla music venue remains in doubt, after the local council last night approved plans to build a residential development nearby. As previously reported, Thekla is based on a ship moored on Bristol's East Mud Dock. It is feared that noise complaints from the new flats could lead to it being shut down, if developers don't put in place proper soundproofing to avoid this... [READ MORE] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Thekla's future still in doubt, as new development approved As previously reported, Thekla is based on a ship moored on Bristol's East Mud Dock. It is feared that noise complaints from the new flats could lead to it being shut down, if developers don't put in place proper soundproofing to avoid this. A noise assessment was carried out on Saturday, but the venue's owner, DHP Family, says this was inadequate. This is a common problem faced by music venues in cities around the UK, of course. The music venue makes some part of a city a more buzzy and desirable place to be. Property developers build flats so that more people can be there among the buzz. Then the new residents moan the thing that made the area desirable in the first place out of existence. However, argues the Music Venue Trust, when developers recognise the value of nearby venues and other nightlife, and design properties in sympathy with them, all can co-exist happily. This, of course, does cost more money, and a commitment from any property developer to ensure happy co-existence is required from the start. Not least because said developers are usually long gone by the time any actual fallout happens. At last night's planning meeting, councillors waved through the new development in Bristol, after the developer, Aspect360, gave assurances that it would carry out more thorough noise assessments. DHP Family asked that the planning decision be deferred until these had been carried out, but this request was denied. With Thekla's future still somewhat in doubt, the next stage of the campaign is to pressure Aspect360 to carry out the promised adequate noise assessments and to then adjust the design of its new building accordingly. Campaigners also plan to put pressure on the council to ensure that this happens. When built, the new development on Bristol's Redcliffe Wharf, on the opposite side of the canal to Thekla, will include 6300sqm of commercial space, 36 residential apartments and twelve boat moorings. |
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Russian government proposing super speedy web-blocks Russia has ramped up its intellectual property laws considerably in recent years and while, from the perspective of Western copyright owners, there are still far too many loopholes, at the same time some of the country's anti-piracy measures go far beyond those found in North America and Europe. And that includes web-blocking, with Rozcomnadzor already able to respond to requests that copyright infringing websites be blocked much quicker than most of the courts and agencies that have that power in other countries. According to Torrentfreak, under the current system Rozcomnadzor gives the owners of accused websites three days to remove copyright infringing content before any further action is taken. But, according to Russian business newspaper Vedomosti, Russia's Ministry Of Culture is now proposing a new system where the regulator could block websites within 24 hours of an infringement claim being made. This new system would only seemingly benefit the movie industry though, and only films released by Russian companies at that. Ministers in favour of the 24 hour blocking process say that new movie releases popping up online is hitting cinema attendances which, in turn, is depriving the country's film industry of key income. As much previously reported, web-blocking has become a preferred anti-piracy tactic for the music and movie industries in countries where such blockades are available. Usually a court must ultimately issue an injunction ordering the web-blocks, though there have been discussions elsewhere of having a government agency with the power to order internet service providers to block their users from accessing piracy sites. Digital rights campaigners argue that without judicial oversight web-blocking could be open to abuse, with legitimate websites the occasionally inadvertently publish infringing material caught in the cross-fire. It remains to be seen if Rozcomnadzor gets the new super powers it seeks to speed up its web-blocking activities. For more on web-blocking and other piracy matters, check out this new CMU Insights blog post or get yourself along to the upcoming CMU Insights masterclass on copyright enforcement on 20 Nov. -------------------------------------------------- Beyonce involved in Poisonous trademark battle This ongoing trademark spat has been spotted by The Blast, a new celebrity website set up by some former TMZ staff members. It says that 47/72 Inc - which, apparently, also has a US trademark application pending for '99 Problems' and previously unsuccessfully tried to trademark 'Swiftie' - filed its application for the Poison Ivy Park mark last year, just as Beyonce was launching her fashion tie-up with Topshop. The Blast also reports that the pop star's legal team have, somewhat unsurprisingly, filed an objection to the 47/72 Inc application. The objection states that - if granted - the rival trademark will confuse consumers, especially if - as is proposed - it is used for a line of clothing. But 47/72 Inc has argued back that no one is ever going to be confused. Not in the slightest. They're using the word 'Poison', remember. In the latest round of legal wrangling, Beyonce's team have now complained that 47/72 Inc has been slow to provide documents they require as part of the discovery phase of the legal battle. 47/72 Inc's CEO has seemingly responded by saying he is suffering from depression and that that has caused delays in getting together the requested files. The squabble continues. |
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New festivals to launch in UK and Germany Neighbourhood Weekender will take place in Warrington's Victoria Park, the original site of V Festival's northern edition. Taking place over the last weekend in May, it will clash with AEG's new All Points East in another Victoria Park, that one in Hackney. The new festival is an extension of SJM's Neighbourhood Festival, a one day city-based event, the second edition of which took place in Manchester last month. The weekend park-centric bash is expected to have a daily capacity of 25,000, with around 50 acts performing. "Victoria Park is the perfect space to host our new festival", say promoters Luke Temple and Jack Dowling. "We can't wait to come back for what is going to be an amazing weekend of live music across three stages along with a hub of local food and drinks on offer". Meanwhile, in Germany, FKP Scorpio has partnered with the German edition of Rolling Stone, published by Axel Springer SE, to launch Rolling Stone Park. The new festival will be a sister event to the existing Rolling Stone Weekender, which is due to take place this weekend on Germany's Baltic coast. The new edition will take place at Europa-Park in Rust on 16 and 17 Nov 2018. Both events are using venues which are also holiday destinations and therefore include accommodation. FKP Scorpio MD Folkert Koopmans says of expanding his company's partnership with Rolling Stone: "In 2009, we organised the Rolling Stone Weekender on the Baltic Sea for the first time together. At that time, we had to explain to the audience the benefits of combining rock n roll and short vacation. Now, the festival is sold out well in advance. Similar events are missing in the south of Germany and with the Europa-Park we have found the perfect location to close this gap". Rolling Stone Germany's Head Of Marketing Volker Schadt adds: "As Germany's leading music media, Rolling Stone is pleased to be able to expand on its successful co-operation on award-winning indoor festival the Rolling Stone Weekender". Tickets for Rolling Stone Park are on sale now. |
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BBC boss wants a "renaissance in local radio" Indeed, so committed is Hall in his bid to show that the BBC isn't some horrendous London-centric Brexit-bashing metropolitan monster that couldn't give a flying fuck about making content just for "local people" out there in the "other places", he even travelled to Coventry to say so. Brave man. "I'm a Director General who believes in local radio", Hall said yesterday at an event celebrating 50 years of BBC's local radio services. "I recognise the unique value the BBC locally can bring. We're an organisation that's global, national and rooted in our local teams. Local radio is in the DNA of our communities. I think that is more important than ever". But hey, isn't the BBC forcing massive cuts on its local radio network having already networked some of the local stations' programmes to cut costs? Ha, you're wrong! Hall told his audience that previous plans to cut £10 million from local radio budgets had been canned, and that the evening show that is currently networked across the Beeb's local radio network in England will be replaced with new locally made programming. "For many years the BBC has been reducing its investment in local radio", Hall conceded. "The development of new technology ... has seen many people getting their local news, weather and traffic information digitally. But the rise of digital technology has also seen the rise of fake news, not just on a global level but on a local one as well. That's why the role of BBC local radio is actually becoming more important - not less". BBC local radio is just for old people though, right? And I have it on good authority they'll all be dead soon. "No!" reckons the DG. "Local radio should be for everybody. It's there to serve the Facebook generation every bit as much as the rest of us". See? Not just for old people. Though he's deliberately excluding the Snapchat generation, I see. Wise move. Fuck them. "My ambition for BBC local radio is for it to have more creative freedom", Hall concluded, "to celebrate local life, to be the place where we report local news but also the place we reflect local identity, nurture local talent and engage local audiences through digital platforms. I want to see a renaissance in local radio". |
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Bee Gees stage musical in the pipeline The musical extravaganza will see the two Universal companies collaborating again, they being Universal Pictures and Universal Music, which share a brand despite having different owners. They also share a love of all things Bee Gees, of course, the mega-major now representing the group's recordings and publishing catalogue. The stage show division of Universal Pictures will lead on the project, which was confirmed by the movie firm's President Jimmy Horowitz. He said: "On behalf of the entire company, we take great pride in collaborating with Barry on developing a stage musical that captures the scope and significance of his family's incredible story". Don't worry though, Universal Music chief Lucian Grainge was also on hand with some words. "The Bee Gees are among the world's most influential and commercially successful artists", mused he. "We're honoured to represent their publishing and recorded music catalogues and we're THRILED to be involved in this important new project with Jimmy and his team". -------------------------------------------------- Drake taking time off from music, announces resurrection of Top Boy for Netflix As for his musical career, it's not over at all, just on hold for a short time. He says in a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter: "I'm sure I'll stop [making music] one day. When it starts to feel like I'm making it up. Hopefully I'll catch it before I ever get there, right? But right now it feels like we just started, so I don't plan on stopping anytime soon. But I do plan on expanding - to take six months or a year to myself and do some great films. Music's always there". Back on East London-based gang drama 'Top Boy', Drake explains that he first saw the show on YouTube several years ago. "That human element drew me in", he says. "I started just looking them up. Like, who are these people? Are these actors I should know? Are they just famous over there? I remember I hit Future, and I was just like, 'This show is incredible'". That passion for the show has resulted in him convincing Netflix to resurrect it, with the streaming video platform announcing yesterday that series three will be available in 2019. The original creative team will also return. |
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Poliça and Stargaze announce collaborative album The first single from the record, 'How Is This Happening', was premiered this morning, and was written on the first day of American recording sessions for the album, which took place the day after Donald Trump was elected US president. "We were all just horribly sombre", recalls Poliça vocalist Channy Leaneagh. "That was an example of the truly healing effects of making music with your friends. And while it doesn't necessarily make things better, it builds community". Work on the record actually began before that, in February last year, when Leaneagh and the other half of Poliça - Ryan Olson - travelled to Berlin to work with Stargaze. There they improvised over musical sketches that Olson brought with him. "They were not even song structures, just electronic textures", explains Stargaze's André de Ridder, "and we started playing over them". The subsequent collaboration benefited from them all starting off in the same room, de Ridder adds, "because we could see how their faces lit up when we played. I guess that's where our minds met. And I guess that was where the ping pong started". Poliça and Stargaze then worked on music remotely, firing files back and forth over email, and occasionally meeting up for more recording sessions together. "[We wanted the record to] not just be Poliça songs with Stargaze pasted on top", says Leaneagh. "We really wanted to maintain this conversation back and forth, and be a new version of both Poliça and Stargaze". The two bands will perform together at Oval Space in London on 28 Feb. Tickets go on general sale tomorrow. Listen to first single from the new album, 'This Is Happening', here. |
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Live Nation, Kanye West, Paris Hilton, more Other notable announcements and developments today... • There are not one but two new MDs at Live Nation Sweden: Anna Sjölund and Therése Liljedahl. Both have been promoted from existing roles within the live giant's Swedish division. • Kanye West might be launching his own streaming service, but he almost certainly isn't. • Paris Hilton has been threatening to release a second album for years now, even going so far as to release a single through Cash Money in 2014. But more than a decade since the release of the seminal 'Paris', there's still no sign. However, now she tells Time she's not only working on a new record, in between DJ gigs around the world, but also developing a "whole new sound". • Harry Styles has released the video for his track 'Kiwi'. In what may be an attempt to improve on stage safety at his live shows, it features him being pelted with cakes, rather than the titular fruit. I think Steve Aoki already has that market sewn up, Harry. • Pussy Riot's Nadya Tolokonnikova has released a new track, 'Police State'. It comes with a video starring Chloe Sevigny. Tolokonnikova has also announced her first live shows, which will take place in Germany this month, then the US in December. • We were so busy being amazed by Kelela's new video yesterday that we forgot to tell you that there was one. Here's 'Blue Light'. • Drahla have released new track 'Form Of Luxury'. You can catch them live at the Shacklewell Arms in London tonight. • Xenoula has shared the video for 'Luna Man', taken from her debut album, which is out on 24 Nov. • It is the Off The Record event in Manchester tomorrow, and the line-up for the festival side - deliberately held back to the last minute - is now live here. • Goldie's Metalheadz label has announced a club night at Electric Brixton on 15 Dec. More details here. • Check out our weekly Spotify playlist of new music featured in the CMU Daily - updated every Friday. |
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A Perfect Circle fans who take pictures at shows will be booted out for at least 25 more years A notice at the show in Reading (Pennsylvania, not Berkshire) on Monday told fans that taking photos and recording video would "result in ejection". This sort of notice is nothing new, and is commonplace at performances by all of Keenan's projects, although actually going so far as to kick fans out is a step most artists don't take. According to Metal Sucks, when one fan posted a picture of the show at the Santander Arena to Instagram, the venue's manager commented: "You're good. We tossed over 60 people last night for taking pics". Referencing all three of Keenan's bands, he also added: "This was 110% the band's policy and has been for Tool, APC and Puscifier. It's not a new policy". When Keenan himself posted a picture to Instagram later this week, featuring him and his dog, at least one fan took this as an invitation to register complaints about the policy. The fan in question noted that "you shouldn't enforce others to enjoy your art the way you want", especially if a person is just "recording a song or two for your friend or wife etc who is stuck at work, the hospital or got deported". He added that moshing, crowdsurfing and having tall people stand in front of you are all much bigger gig issues for him, noting: "My cellphone is tiny and the light is nothing compared to the ones used on stage". Indeed, those pesky stage lights really ruin my enjoyment of any show I go to. Keenan responded with a curt: "No. Recording. Of. Any. Kind. For. 25. Years. Guided experience. Unplug and enjoy the ride". If that means we'll all be allowed to photograph Keenan's shows as much as we wish in 25 years from now, that should be just in time for the new Tool album. |
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