Music Week articles from October 2006

Music Week archives from October 2006

Copyright row rumbles on.
October 7, 2006... MCPS-PRS faces tribunal battle despite deals with labels, iTunes and mobile operators by Paul Williams The publishing sector is preparing to return to the Copyright Tribunal for battle with some of the UK's leading digital music...

IN BRIEF: EMI Publishing boss in talks.
October 7, 2006... Marty Bandier is understood to be holding firm at EMI Music Publishing at present, but has been in dialogue with Edgar Bronfman about possible future ventures, according to sources. The co-CEO and chairman was reported last week to beset to...

IN BRIEF: Online store to be launched.
October 7, 2006... Warner Bros and Atlantic's UK Undercurrent website is launching an online store for its street team community, offering downloadable music from its combined roster of artists, including Green Day and Hard-Fi. Copyright: CMP Information...

IN BRIEF: HMV deliver trading update.
October 7, 2006... HMV delivered a trading update revealing that sales have continued to fall at its UK and Ireland stores, albeit at a slower rate. Like-for- like sales over a 12-week period fell 5.4%, compared to a fall of 16.7% for the first nine weeks which...

IN BRIEF: GCap Media results.
October 7, 2006... GCap Media expects half-year revenues to be down by 9%, largely as a result of the struggling Capital Radio, but it is to resume marketing the flagship London station in a bid to improve its fortunes. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

IN BRIEF: Emap results.
October 7, 2006... Emap expects to report a 2% drop in underlying revenue for the six months to September 30, owing to tough trading conditions, the group announced in a half-year update. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

IN BRIEF: Limewire countersuing major record companies.
October 7, 2006... Filesharing software developer Limewire is countersuing the major record companies, accusing them of anti-competitive behaviour. The suit claims that the majors colluded to create a monopoly over the digital distribution of copyrighted music by...

IN BRIEF: Disc that can store HD, Blu-Ray and DVD.
October 7, 2006... Inventors in the US are reported to have patented a disc that can store HD, Blu-Ray and standard DVD. The BBC reports that inventors at Warner Brothers film studio have filed a patent for the triple-format disc. Copyright: CMP Information...

IN BRIEF: Extension to copyright may put archive at risk.
October 7, 2006... Experts at the British Library have warned that a blanket 20-year extension to copyright law may put the UK's national music archive at risk, because they believe the extra time may cause the masters to decay. Copyright: CMP Information...

IN BRIEF: Representatives to visit Belfast.
October 7, 2006... Representatives from the British music industry are to visit Belfast in October, as part of the relaunched educational tour of the UK. The tour is being co-ordinated by collecting society MCPS and will feature representatives from key industry...

IN BRIEF: Classical event honours winners.
October 7, 2006... The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Claudio Abbado, received the record of the year accolade for its rendition of Mahler's Symphony No.6 at this year's Classic FM Gramophone awards. The artist of the year award went to Canadian...

IN BRIEF: Voting on UK Festival Awards.
October 7, 2006... Public voting has started for this year's UK Festival Awards, founded by music website VirtualFestivals.com. A ceremony will take place this month at London Islington's Carling Academy and will recognise promoters and artists in 21 categories....

IN BRIEF: Universal finds brands partner.
October 7, 2006... Universal Music Group has formed a joint venture with media investment company GroupM to develop music and brand partnerships on behalf of third parties. The venture, titled BrandAmp, was put together by GroupM holding company WWP CEO Sir...

IN BRIEF: Coca-Cola and iTunes partnership.
October 7, 2006... Coca-Cola and iTunes have announced a partnership designed to give unsigned artists the opportunity to have their music included on comedy duo Adam & Joe's podcasts. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

IN BRIEF: EMI Music North America deal.
October 7, 2006... EMI Music North America is to sell and lease back its iconic Capitol Records Tower from property developer Argent Ventures. EMI says this will enable Capitol Records and Capitol Studios to continue their operations at the location "for many...

IN BRIEF: Latest publicity stunt.
October 7, 2006... Virgin Radio unveiled its latest publicity stunt last week - a 20ft star stuffed with fake banknotes which will hang over Regent Street until a listener correctly guesses the amount inside. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

IN BRIEF: Island signs Scott Matthews.
October 7, 2006... Island has signed the Wolverhampton-born signer-songwriter Scott Matthews and is preparing for the full release of debut album Passing Strangers on October 22, previously available through small independent San Remo. The title track will be...

Publishers and labels make peace.
October 7, 2006... MCPS-PRS and BPI agree digital royalty deal, but six digital services still face Tribunal by Paul Williams EMI Group chairman Eric Nicoli has been described as the "can of WD40" in facilitating negotiations between the publishing and...

Crib sheet: 07.10.06.
October 7, 2006... So, what's this deal all about then? Well, basically, the publishers (represented by MCPS-PRS) have agreed with the labels (represented by the BPI) to a new online royalty rate of 8% of gross revenue less VAT. But isn't 8% what the...

THE PLAYLIST: 07.10.06.
October 7, 2006... GRACE Stand Still (Angel) First single from Grace is an uptempo pop song with a soaring chorus. A beautiful debut from a band set to soar in 2007. (single, Nov 6) PANIC! AT THE DISCO I Write Sins Not Tragedies...

Retailers seek concessions.
October 7, 2006... A firm decision on the introduction of all digital sales into the singles chart was deferred last week, as retailers lobbied for a relaxation on the format rules governing physical releases. The Entertainment Retailers Association (Era),...

SNAP SHOT: THE LONG BLONDES.
October 7, 2006... A bespoke website through which fans are invited to upload images of themselves in return for exclusive digital content sits at the heart of Rough Trade's campaign for The Long Blondes' debut album, which will be released next month. ...

HMV and Virgin take digital to next phase.
October 7, 2006... High-street retailers improve their download sites by Ben Cardew Retail giants HMV and Virgin are relaunching their digital music stores, in a renewed bid to challenge iTunes Music Store's dominance of the UK download market. The...

Ministry advocates DRM-free route.
October 7, 2006... Dance label Ministry of Sound has waded into the digital rights management issue, criticising major labels for "severely restricting consumer choice". The label today (Monday) launches a DRM-free online music store (www.mosdownload.com)...

Maria winner bids to beat A&R snobbery.
October 7, 2006... As it faces a race against time to get the Connie Fisher album into the shops for next Monday, Andrew Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Group believes the success of BBC1's How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria? can bring about a genuine return of...

Mobile music deals take suppliers list down to three.
October 7, 2006... The mobile music download market has further consolidated with a series of deals, leaving just three companies providing back-end platforms to the UK operators. Just a year ago, around a dozen different companies handled such...

High School Musical makes all-singing debut.
October 7, 2006... It has garnered virtually no radio support and its terrestrial debut is still a couple of months away, but Disney's High School Musical is already turning into one of the phenomena of the autumn season. Despite its only real exposure to...

Universal dominates albums top five.
October 7, 2006... Chart coup underlines major's market-leading position by Paul Williams Universal was yesterday (Sunday) aiming to fill four of the top five slots on the UK artist albums chart as it dominates the market like never before. A...

US booking agent makes UK move.
October 7, 2006... After months of speculation, the giant US booking agent Creative Artist Agency opened an office in London last week, as the large US operators make a move on the European touring market. CAA has poached Emma Banks and Mike Greek from the...

WESTFIELD LONDON FACTS.
October 7, 2006... The cost of the Westfield London development is around #1.6bn. The White City site covers an area of 46 acres. It will create 150,000 sq m of retail, restaurants, cafes, bars and leisure. There will be 4,500 car parking spaces. Almost 200,000...

West End feels ripples from giant mall.
October 7, 2006... Massive development in west London poses threat to West End's hard- pressed stores by Ben Cardew The London newspapers cannot have made easy reading for West End retailers of late. While shopper numbers have made a slow recovery since...

COWELL: THE FACTS.
October 7, 2006... * Born in Brighton, on October 7 1959 (happy 47th birthday this Saturday, Simon), Cowell was raised in Elstree, Herts. * His father Eric Cowell was a music industry executive in his own right, and his brother Nicholas Cowell is now a...

Interview: Simon Cowell.
October 7, 2006... `I went into TV as a necessity' This autumn, five years after making his TV debut on Pop Idol 2001, Simon Cowell - the A&R man whose track record spans Sinitta, Robson & Jerome, 5ive, Il Divo, Westlife and Kelly Clarkson - is the most...

Diesel-U-Music CD: Diesel Awards acclaim UK's hot new acts.
October 7, 2006... The CD accompanying this issue of Music Week showcases the Diesel-U- Music Awards finalists - nine undiscovered acts bristling with crossover potential 1. David E Sugar - Strip Your Home From North To South David E Sugar has been...

Diesel-U-Music CD: A launchpad for bands.
October 7, 2006... Diesel-U-Music, which has been sourcing and supporting unsigned bands for seven years, has just opened its doors to artists from around the globe in a bid to diversify its roster. And, with a string of new partners on board, the awards are...

Web 2.0: to love or to loathe?
October 7, 2006... Websites which build communities around music content, such as MySpace, YouTube and others, have provoked diverging reactions from major labels, reports Adam Woods, who surveys the new sector and examines the potential of this consumer-led...

Web 2.0: Companies explore virgin online territory.
October 7, 2006... In the advertising world, the buzz-word of the moment is "engagement", as brands rush to find ways of interacting with a consumer base which is increasingly embracing the relatively ad-free world of Web 2.0. A similar trend has emerged in...

We must hope for another deal.
October 7, 2006... The music industry should not leave it to the judges to decide on online royalties Sense has prevailed in the online royalty dispute between the labels and the publishers. And we will all say "hurrah!" to that. It has taken too long,...

Obituary: Industry mourns top composer.(Obituary)
October 7, 2006... One of Britain's greatest composers, Malcolm Arnold, died, aged 84, last week. Here, friend and fellow musician Brian Willey pays a personal tribute I can't resist referring to a description of Malcolm Arnold as a trumpeter, made by music...

Spirit of unity will benefit us all.
October 7, 2006... VIEWPOINT Peter Jamieson The voluntary agreement between BPI and MCPS-PRS that was reached last Thursday was not "sensational" (not least because the tribunal continues without the BPI), but it was a significant victory and important...

This deal lays down a template.
October 7, 2006... VIEWPOINT Adam Singer Getting a settlement with the BPI is really terrific, because they are our natural other halves in the music sector, so it means at least we have a degree of music internal agreement. What has been a split industry on...

The 11th hour settlement.
October 7, 2006... Songwriters, composers and publishers to be paid: * 8% of retail price, less vat, for full-track digital downloads, in mobile and online environment. * a reduced rate of 6.5% for non-on-demand services. * These rates subject to...

FAST CHART: 07.10.06.
October 7, 2006... SINGLES NUMBER ONE: SCISSOR SISTERS I DON'T FEEL LIKE DANCIN' (Polydor) Number one on the combined singles chart for four weeks in a row, I Don't Feel Like Dancin' is in its seventh week at the download chart top spot, where its...

Sisters score a hat-trick.
October 7, 2006... It is treble tops for the Scissor Sisters, who are number one on the singles chart for the fourth straight week with I Don't Feel Like Dancin', while that track remains on top of the radio airplay chart, and Ta-Dah enjoys a second week of...

THE SCHEDULE - 07.10.06: Albums.
October 7, 2006... This week Jet Shine On (Atlantic); Ludacris Release Therapy (Mercury); The Killers Sam's Town (Mercury); Beck The Information (Interscope); Evanescence The Open Door (Columbia); KT Tunstall...Acoustic Extravaganza (Relentless) ...

THE SCHEDULE - 07.10.06: Singles.
October 7, 2006... This week Cassius Toop Toop (Virgin); Ne-Yo Stay (Mercury); Razorlight America (Mercury); Clinic Harvest (Domino); P.Diddy Come To You (Atlantic); The Longcut A Tried And Tested... (Deltasonic) October 9 Badly Drawn Boy Nothings...

THE SCHEDULE - 07.10.06: NEW ADDITION.
October 7, 2006... The perennial indie darlings Arab Strap are sadly calling it a day. To mark this sad event Chemikal Underground will be releasing a compilation of singles, live tracks and rarities called 10 Years Of Tears on the 27 November. In a typically...

A very Special priority for V2.
October 7, 2006... After recently signing Duke Special, V2 thickens the plot to propel his profile into the primetime limelight DUKE SPECIAL Songs from the deep forest (V2) Having self-released his debut album Adventures In Gramophone last year,...

Upfront - 07.10.06: Tastemakers Tips.
October 7, 2006... Beirut Gulag Orkestar (4AD) Craig McLean, Daily Telegraph/Observer Music Monthly "Check out Beirut, the nom de myspace of 20-year-old Zach Condon. His debut album, conjured in his bedroom in New Mexico, is a beautiful swirl of ukulele,...

The Insider: Oxford's FM 107.9.
October 7, 2006... There really are still bargains to be had in the radio industry. In June, former Juice FM owner Absolute Radio moved back into the business of radio ownership by buying Oxford's Passion FM from the Milestone Group for just #300,000. The...

Jackass movie tie-up set to take Wolfmother to the next level.
October 7, 2006... Having already achieved gold sales accreditation for Wolfmother's self- titled debut album, Island is targeting 250,000 album sales by Christmas as it looks to increase the band's footing with younger UK audiences. While cautious that it...

Upfront - 07.10.06: Radio playlists.
October 7, 2006... Radio 1 A list Bedouin Soundclash When The Night Feels My Song; Bob Sinclar Rock This Party; Chris Lake feat. Laura V Changes; Fedde Le Grande Put Your Hands Up For Detroit; Jamelia Something About You; James Morrison Wonderful World;...

UPFRONT - 07.10.06: BPI AWARDS.
October 7, 2006... ALBUMS Kelis - Kelis Was Here (silver) Richard Hawley - Coles Corner (gold) Nick Cave & Bad Seeds - Abattoir Blues/The Lyre Of Orpheus (gold) Christina Aguilera - Back To Basics (gold) Sandi Thom - Smile...It Confuses People...

Upfront - 07.10.06: In-store next week.
October 7, 2006... ASDA Instore - Luther Vandross, Chris De Burgh, Bobby Darin, Sting, Connie Fisher, Trivium, Steve Brookstein, Fantazia Club Classics, John Peel, The Collection, Twice As Nice, Max Power Booty Bass, Kiss Does Funky House BORDERS ...

Upfront - 07.10.06: My Top 10 - Sean Forbes.
October 7, 2006... Sean Forbes Rough Trade Shop 1. Tap Tap Lanzafame (Catbird) 2. 120 Days Come Out (Come Down, Fade Out, Be Gone) (SmallTown Supersound/Vice) 3. Fanfarlo Talking Backwards (Fortuna Pop) 4. Klaxons Atlantis To Interzone Remixes...

Upfront Reviews - 16.10.06: ALBUM of the week.
October 7, 2006... Badly Drawn Boy Born In The UK EMI 3740472 Damon Gough says his fifth album - his first for EMI - has been the most difficult record he has made to date. This may be because it represents his attempt to embrace the mainstream:he...

Upfront Reviews - 16.10.06: SINGLE of the week.
October 7, 2006... James Morrison Wonderful World Polydor 1709432 The second single from Morrison's platinum-selling debut album, Undiscovered, sees the singer-songwriter soaring into anthemic territory. Behind the upbeat melody and spirited...

Upfront Reviews - 16.10.06: Singles.
October 7, 2006... Lloyd Banks feat. 50 Cent Hands Up (Interscope 1709748) With production from Eminem and a guest spot from fellow G-Unit member 50 Cent, Hands Up should be an easy hit. The problem is that it has no features to set it apart from every...

Upfront Reviews - 16.10.06: Albums.
October 7, 2006... The Blood Arm Lie Lover Lie (City Rockers CITYROCK11CD) This incendiary debut album from the tipped LA four-piece lurches between a Libertines-style knees-up and Franz Ferdinand's Scottish op- pop sound, packed with disco-dusted guitar...

TV AIRPLAY CHART - 07.10.06: ON THE BOX THIS WEEK.
October 7, 2006... BBC1 Friday Night With Jonathan Ross Snow Patrol/Martha Wainwright guest BBC2 Richard Hawley/Jamelia ITV Loose Women Marti Pellow guests (Wed) Parkinson Corinne Bailey Rae guests GMTV Sean Lennon (Wed);...

TV Airplay Chart - 07.10.06: The Kooks.
October 7, 2006... Ooh La will be the sixth single from Brighton band The Kooks' debut album Inside In/Inside Out, and it is the most successful yet at garnering TV airplay, soaring 110-9 on the list this week, thanks to 262 plays from a dozen stations. Topping...

TV Airplay Chart - 07.10.06: Bob Sinclar.
October 7, 2006... Sinclar scores his third straight Top 40 sales hit from current album Western Dream, as Rock This Party (Everybody Dance Now) debuts at number 21 on downloads alone. Although a big club hit, much of the track's impetus has been gained from TV...

Radio Airplay - 07.10.06: Lionel Richie.
October 7, 2006... Lionel Richie says that the title of his new album, Coming Home, refers to his return to his R&B roots. It is a move which has gone down well at radio, where introductory single I Call It Love is already his best- supported release since 1992's...

Radio Airplay - 07.10.06: James Morrison.
October 7, 2006... James Morrison's debut single You Give Me Something ended a 10-week residency in the Top 10 of the airplay chart a fortnight ago and slips 11-14 this week, while follow-up Wonderful World rockets 27-5. Although its tally of 467 plays last week...

Radio Airplay - 07.10.06: The Magic Numbers.
October 7, 2006... The Magic Numbers plucked four Top 40 sales and airplay hits from their self-titled 2005 debut album and have scheduled their oddly-titled follow-up album Those The Brokes for release on November 6. First single Take A Chance is out later this...

Radio Airplay - 07.10.06: LeToya.
October 7, 2006... The most successful song in airplay chart history is Torn by Natalie Imbruglia. The new single from former Destiny's Child singer shares its title, but is in no way related to it. In fact, it samples a completely different song - The...

RADIO AIRPLAY - 07.10.06: ON THE RADIO THIS WEEK.
October 7, 2006... RADIO 1 Jo Whiley record of the week - Panic! At The Disco: I Write Sins Not Tragedies Edith Bowman record of the week - Bodyrox feat. Luciana: Yeah Yeah Scott Mills record of the week - Dirty Old Ann: Turn Me On Zane Lowe...

New releases - 07.10.06: REVIEWS DVD.
October 7, 2006... Slade The Slade Box (Salvo SALVOBX 401) Appearing hot on the heels of individually upgraded and remastered editions of Slade's most important albums, this four-CD boxed set is a superb alternative, collecting together 84 hits, album...

Singles - 07.10.06: Lil' Chris.
October 7, 2006... The surprise star of Gene Simmons' Rock School reality show, Chris Hardman, aka Lil' Chris, jumps 19-3 with his debut single Checkin' It Out. The diminutive 16-year-old singer, drummer, guitarist and songwriter, who also admits to being "a...

Singles - 07.10.06: Lily Allen.
October 7, 2006... Lily Allen is back in the Top 10 of the singles and albums charts this week, improving 27-6 on sales of 14,173 for second single LDN, while her Alright, Still album rebounds 12-4 after selling 34,352 copies last week. The lippy singer topped...

Singles - 07.10.06: Evanescence.
October 7, 2006... Call Me When You're Sober is the first single from the group's second album, The Open Door, and makes an impressive 32-4 leap this week on sales of 17,559. It is the band's first new material since their 2003 debut album Fallen, which topped...

Singles - 07.10.06: Pussycat Dolls.
October 7, 2006... It is a great week for The Pussycat Dolls, who land their fifth Top 10 hit from debut album PCD, while the album itself tops the 1m-sales mark. Having previously surrendered the number one hits Don't Cha and StickWitU, the number two Beep and...

Albums - 07.10.06: Razorlight.
October 7, 2006... With hot new single America at number two on the airplay chart and number 15 on the singles chart on sales of 8,468 downloads, Razorlight's self-titled second album continues its rapid recovery. The album, which debuted at number one in July,...

Albums - 07.10.06: Jamelia.
October 7, 2006... It is number two in Woolworth's behind The Scissor Sisters and Jamelia's new album Walk With Me is the highest new entry on the official chart this week - but at the much lower position of 20 on sales of just 12,559. To be fair, Jamelia's last...

Albums - 07.10.06: Katie Melua.
October 7, 2006... Last three singles I Cried For You, Spider's Web and It's Only Pain peaked at 35, 52 and 41 respectively, but Melua's second album Piece By Piece rockets 179-25 after being repackaged in an expanded edition adding three new songs and a DVD. The...

Albums - 07.10.06: High School Musical.
October 7, 2006... Repeated screenings of romantic song and dance feature High School Musical on The Disney Channel turned the soundtrack album into the surprise hit of the summer in America, where it reached number one and has thus far sold 3,089,099 copies....

Double whammy for music.
October 14, 2006... National Music Week pushing music to kids is joined by charts' Fantasy Music Manager move by Martin Talbot & Paul Williams The UK music industry is set to enter an unprecedented period of cross- industry promotion over the coming...

Snow Patrol earn their US stripes.
October 14, 2006... Snow Patrol are to perform at next month's high-profile American Music Awards, after becoming the first British guitar band in 13 years to crack the top five of Billboard's Hot 100 chart. The Fiction/Polydor band, who are handled by...

IN BRIEF: Bertelsmann and Sony file appeal.
October 14, 2006... Sony and Bertelsmann have filed an appeal against the court ruling which annulled the EC's decision to allow the merger of Sony Music and BMG. The appeal was filed last Tuesday with the European Court Of Justice. Copyright: CMP Information...

IN BRIEF: Album banned from UK charts.
October 14, 2006... Beck's new album has been banned from the UK albums chart after breaching strict rules on product giveaways. Polydor has been told by the Official Charts Company it will not figure because of "packaging innovations". Copyright: CMP...

IN BRIEF: Eagle Rock up for sale again.
October 14, 2006... Eagle Rock has been put up for sale again by parent company HG Capital. Equity sources say HG Capital has appointed investment bank Close Brothers to oversee potential deals. Copyright: CMP Information Ltd.

IN BRIEF: Universsal market share.
October 14, 2006... Universal rallied to its best quarterly albums performance in quarter three since the closing three months of 2004, after claiming the period's three biggest-selling artist albums. The major grabbed a 31.4% market share for albums, leading...

IN BRIEF: BT Awards raise glass to digital.
October 14, 2006... Online offerings for Muse and Thom Yorke were the big winners at last Tuesday's BT Digital Music Awards at London's recently re-opened Roundhouse in Camden. Muse picked up two awards for best rock act and the People's Choice award for best...

IN BRIEF: VH1 to bolster evening schedule.
October 14, 2006... VH1 is to bolster its evening schedule with three major launches this week. They include a new show, The Nation's Favourite Album, revealing the best-selling albums of all time in the UK, and a daily chart show. Copyright: CMP Information...