INDIE NEWS BEAT October 5, 2004 Edition
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* Nationwide Search For Musical Performers Who Are Owed Royalties
* Psychedelic Pop Phenomenon Releases New CD
* House Approves Copyright Legislation
* George Thorogood And The Destroyers - 30th Anniversary Tour
* Warner/Chappell Music Names John Reston VP, Global Administration
* Susan Barth Performance At The Gig - Takes Us On A Tour Of "Wonderland"
* Larry Mattera Promoted To Snr. VP, New Media, Island Def Jam Music Group
* U.S. Announces Major New Initiative To Fight Global Trade In Fakes
* IFPI Releases World Recorded Music Sales Figures
* Michigan Attorney General Begins CD Distribution
* Ward Leaves VEG Post, Remains As NARM Chair
* TMBG LLaunch First Artist Operated Download Site
* Ohio Musician Offers Florida Relief With Funds From New Live CD
SoundExchange, the first performance rights organization designated by the U.S. government to collect royalties on behalf of recording artists and record labels, is conducting a nationwide search for featured recording artists in order to disburse royalties owed. For the first time, performers stand to gain from non-interactive digital airplay‹satellite radio, Internet radio and cable/direct TV radio‹in the United States. If artists or their heirs do not come forward and register with SoundExchange by December 31, 2004, they will lose their share of the first royalties collected during the newly established organizations first distribution cycle- between 1996 and 2000.
Unlike ASCAP, BMI or SESAC, SoundExchange is the first institution to pay the actual featured performers for the public performance of sound recordings on which they appear, rather than songwriters, including many recording artists who have previously not been compensated. SoundExchange has already paid out almost $16 million covering over 200 million digital plays for approximately 6,000 members since its establishment in 2000. Based in Washington, D.C., SoundExchange is a nonprofit organization governed by a board of artist and label representatives.
Among the 38,000 artists who have not yet claimed their funds are such diverse acts as The Shangri-Las (1960's girl group who sang the hit "Leader of the Pack"), Black Sheep (1990's rap duo best know for "The Choice is Yours") and The Count Five (garage rock band who influenced many with "Psychotic Reaction").
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Psychedelic Pop Phenomenon Releases New CD
Ella Blame, a Psychedelic Pop, Psychedelic Dance and Ethereal/Ambient duo has released its debut CD "Ella Blame - Ineffable Desire" on September 22. Described as 'the best of Bjork and Kate Bush mixed with Cleo Laine', singer Ella Blame has a continuous vocal range of four (!) octaves as well as an advanced and complex singing style. "Ella Blame is a strangely hypnotic listen. Vocals are soothing, and the composition is enticing. A kind of Fiona Apple type sound, but better, check it out!", MediaKinesis.com writes.
Ella Blame comes from a family of musicians - classic and jazz. Each and every day during her childhood and youth, Ella heard music almost around the clock: symphonic, operatic, chamber and twelve-tone music, jazz of all styles, R&B, soul, funk, rock and pop. With a sonic childhood as eclectic as that, Ella has found several talented composers and musicians with whom she has produced around 60 songs of genres Progressive Dance, Psychedelic Dance, Ethereal/Ambient and Extraterrestrial. In late 2002, Ella has formed the "Ella Blame" duo with highly gifted composer and multi-instrumentalist, Michael D. Temple from the Milwaukee, Wisconsin, area.
With her vocal cords, Ella can produce sounds that most music experts consider having been generated by a synthesizer or by post-processing equipment. However, Ella can produce these "strange" sounds without using a microphone. "Ella Blame is ahead of her time. She's also ahead in the production dept. ... Blame's vocals are what you notice most. She's a mezzo-soprano who leaps the bounds of baritone, tenor, alto and soprano," MusicDish. com writes.
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House Approves Copyright Legislation
The House today by voice vote approved legislation bolstering intellectual property protection. H.R. 3632, renamed the "Intellectual Property Protection and Courts Improvements Act of 2004," incorporates the originally introduced H.R. 3632, H.R. 3754, H.R. 112, and H.R. 4646.
House Judiciary Committee Chairman F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-Wis.), stated, "Efforts to ensure that consumers are able to know whether they are buying legitimate software, music, movies, and other forms of intellectual property are being subverted by those who counterfeit authentication labels and steal legitimate ones. These counterfeited and illicit labels are then attached to counterfeit products defrauding consumers into thinking that they have purchased a legitimate copy of the product, when they have not. The middleman who traffics in illicit and counterfeit labels can walk away from his crime with no penalties. H.R. 3632 would close this loophole and ensure that everyone who undertakes a scheme to defraud consumers faces criminal penalties."
"In addition, this legislation provides for additional penalties for those who use false domain name contact information to commit crimes. As Internet-based crimes continue to increase in number, updated laws are needed to stop this growth," continued Chairman Sensenbrenner.
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George Thorogood And The Destroyers - 30th Anniversary Tour - Live In Europe
Eagle Rock Entertainment is pleased to celebrate 30 years of high octane, hard rocking blues with the release of George Thorogood And The Destroyers- 30th Anniversary Tour; Live In Europe on DVD October 19, 2004. The performance will also be available separately in the CD format on the same date.
Recorded during the British leg of their European Tour in 2003, 30th Anniversary Tour; Live In Europe shows blues-rock guitarist Thorogood showcasing tracks from his recent 'Ride 'Till I Die' (Eagle Records 2003) album together with favorites such as 'One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer,' 'I Drink Alone,' 'Bad To The Bone,' 'Who Do You Love' and many more. Concert footage is interspersed with behind the scenes footage and interviews and bonus features include the promo film American Made as well as acoustic versions of 'Ride 'Till I Die' and 'Merry Christmas Baby.'
Drawing inspiration from the likes of Elmore James, Hound Dog Taylor and Chuck Berry, George Thorogood never earned much respect from blues purists, but his popularity couldn't be denied in the early 80's. Thorogood's simple and direct approach to the blues allowed him to open for his idols like Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters early in his career. Taking riffs straight from 50's Chicago blues and adding volume and intensity, George's approach eventually led to larger audiences and repeated Gold records.
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Warner/Chappell Music Names John Reston VP, Global Administration
Warner/Chappell Music, Warner Music Group's award winning music publishing company, today announced the appointment of John Reston as Vice President, Global Administration. Reston, who will be based in London and will report to Nick Thomas, Senior Vice President & CFO, had previously worked for Universal Music Publishing and its predecessor company, MCA Music Publishing in a variety of senior administrative roles in Latin America, Asia Pacific and Europe.
Commenting on the appointment, Thomas said, "We have recently finished upgrades in technology as well as the deployment of our industry-leading rights management software and are now structured better than ever to protect and exploit our copyrights on a worldwide basis. John has invaluable global experience and will, I believe, maximize the benefits of these state-of-the-art tools as well as aggressively manage our continuing mission to be the best global administrators of music publishing rights."
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Susan Barth Performance At The Gig - Takes Us On A Tour Of "Wonderland"
Singer/Songwriter Susan Barth kicks off the evening of Saturday, November 6th, with a set at The Gig, 8 PM. Featuring songs from her recently released CD "Wonderland", Susan will be backed by her regular players including Jinsoo Lim (lead guitar); Bill Cody (bass); Dan Carlson (guitar); Matt Starr (drums); Emma Barton (harmonies).... and she happily welcomes Guest Artists, Barrie Berg (percussion), Adrienne Woods (cello), Beth Thornley (accordian) and Terry Spears (keyboards).
Susan will take the chill off the night with her colorful voice and cleverly crafted songs; songs comprised of an intelligent blend of modern sounds and sixties sensibilities. Her material has appeared on the WB's SMALLVILLE and TARZAN; she's had spins on KLOS, NPR's ALL THINGS CONSIDERED as well as on College Radio;and she has won 4 ASCAP Songwriting Merit Awards. She was recently named "Artist of the Week" and "Best of the Batch on MusicDish.com" and was the "Track of the Day" on Garageband.com.
The Gig is located at 7302 Melrose Avenue; 323 936-4440.
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Larry Mattera Promoted To Snr. VP, New Media, Island Def Jam Music Group
Larry Mattera has been promoted to Senior Vice President, New Media, Island Def Jam Music Group, it was announced today by Steve Bartels, president, Island Records.
In his new post, Mr. Mattera will be responsible for all aspects of IDJ's new media strategy including: content development, online marketing, digital commerce, wireless initiatives, and the use of new technologies to maximize sales and break new artists. Mr. Mattera, who is based in New York, will report directly to Mr. Bartels.
Mr. Mattera has served as Vice President, New Media, Island Def Jam Music Group, since January 1999, when he created and established the department. Since then, he has been involved in every facet of its business, including development of online marketing strategies, consumer database and reporting systems, direct to consumer marketing campaigns, and management of artist and label web sites. Under his direction, the department also pioneered pre-release strategies for digital commercial singles, developed an online demo submission site for unsigned artists, and negotiated various cost-saving and incremental income agreements.
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U.S. Announces Major New Initiative To Fight Global Trade In Fakes
U.S. Trade Representative Robert B. Zoellick joined colleagues from the Departments of Commerce, Justice, and Homeland Security today to announce a major new government-wide initiative, the Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy (STOP!), to fight billions dollars in global trade in pirated and counterfeit goods that cheat American innovators and manufacturers, hurt the U.S. economy and endanger consumers worldwide.
"Trade in fake goods is growing, cheating American innovators and producers out of billions of dollars and threatening consumers all over the world with low quality and often unsafe products. This problem crosses many different jurisdictions, laws and countries, and the STOP initiative provides a coordinated and effective answer," said Zoellick. "The message to the IPR pirates and counterfeiters is simple  we will do everything we can to make their life miserable. We will stop their products at our border; we will name and shame your company; we will ratchet up the penalties; and we will coordinate with our trading partners to prevent third-country trafficking."
From familiar products such as CDs and DVDs to clothing, brake pads and even automobiles, trade in fakes has been growing not only with the United States but also between other countries, thereby escaping the reach of U.S. law enforcement efforts. STOP! is broad in scope and brings a new approach, new tools and new pressure to bear through a coordinated effort from the federal government, the private sector and America's international trading partners. The STOP! initiative is the culmination of efforts over the last year to build on the Administration's successful efforts to combat piracy and counterfeiting around the world.
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IFPI Releases World Recorded Music Sales Figures For First Half Of 2004
Global sales of recorded music - audio and music video - grew by 1.7% in units and fell 1.3% in value in the first half of 2004, compared to the same period in 2003.
Audio sales fell by 2.7% in value, while the music video sector grew by 20.2% driven by DVD music video, which increased by 26.6%.
Interim sales of all audio and music video formats totalled $US13.9 billion, compared to $US14.1 billion in 2003.
The figures reflect a slowing of the rate of decline in music sales of the past four years. This is the best first-half year result achieved since 2000.
Sales in regional and individual territories varied widely, with the effects of unauthorised file-sharing on the internet and commercial piracy, among other factors, still affecting many of the world's markets.
The US music market is leading the recovery, while markets such as Canada, Germany and Japan are showing a substantial reduction in their rate of decline. But other markets including Spain, Italy and the Netherlands are still weak, and more recent reversals have hit sales in France and Australia.
Two bright spots are DVD music video, which continues to show strong growth and has helped offset the decline in audio formats. Meanwhile, the growth of legitimate digital music downloads which suggests a strong future for the online music market. These are not currently included in official industry figures.
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Michigan Attorney General Begins CD Distribution
Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox announced today the distribution of more than 180,000 music CDs to statewide public schools, libraries, domestic violence shelters, and a local early childhood development charity, Partnership for Learning. The CDs were awarded to Michigan as part of a national antitrust settlement involving several music distributors and retailers. The CDs are valued at more than $2 million. Michigan was one of 45 states that were awarded CDs to distribute to state residents via governmental and charitable organizations.
"I am glad that my office can bring the gift of music directly to so many consumers across this state," Cox said. "All segments of Michigan's population, from infants to the elderly, will benefit from this distribution."
In 2003, Cox and 45 other state Attorneys General settled a national antitrust lawsuit brought against several music distributors and retailers for conspiring to fix CD prices. The $143 million settlement included refunds for consumers as well as actual CDs for states to give to those affected by the alleged price fixing. Cox requested that Michigan's portion of the settlement be distributed to non-profit groups, public schools, libraries, and the US military. The US military received their 11,000 music CDs earlier this summer. This distribution will be of 181,009 CDs to a total of 87 recipient groups. The value of the distribution is $2,455,778.16.
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Ward Leaves VEG Post, Remains As NARM Chair
2004-2005 NARM Board Chairman Glen Ward left his position as President and CEO of Virgin Entertainment Group, effective Friday, September 17.
"During a conference call today, the NARM Board affirmed its strong support for Ward to remain as the Association's Chairman," said Acting President Jim Donio. "Glen has already contributed so much to the organization, and we are looking forward to continuing our work with him and focusing on the goals we've established."
"Obviously I am disappointed to be leaving such a great company as Virgin and the incredible team that I have been so privileged to work with," Ward stated. "That said, I leave with the comforting thought that during my six years in North America‹the last four as President and CEO of the company‹we implemented some revolutionary initiatives. These have benefited not only the company but also the retail and entertainment community as a whole. It is my intention to seek out a new challenge in this industry that I am so passionate about, and in the meantime to focus my attention on continuing to fulfill my duties as this year's Chairman of NARM."
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TMBG LLaunch First Artist Operated Download Site
In a move currently uncharted in the electronic downloading game, Brooklyn alt. rock legends They Might Be Giants have created their own artist owned and operated downloading site. TheyMightBeGiants.com offers 99 cent downloads, and exclusive bundles of TMBG albums prorated for $10, along with exclusive songs only available online. TMBG enjoy a unique spot as one of the most downloaded bands online, often popping into top ten download lists on Soundscan thanks to heavy traffic through iTunes and other corporate download sites.
In another move breaking away from industry practice, TMBG's MP3s are free of encoding gimmicks and electronic watermarks. They can be transferred from computer to computer effortlessly. The MP3s on the TMBG download site are mastered in extraordinary fidelity (far superior to even last year's technology).
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A veteran solo acoustic entertainer from northern Ohio is returning to Florida for his second winter season this October, bringing relief from the recent hurricane disasters there by contributing music to generate funds for hurricane disaster relief. Paul Rader, who performs at Bear Bottom Beach Club in Key West every year, is donating five hundred ($500) dollars cash and fifty percent (50%) of the profits of his latest CD, Land of the Cover Band Live - Vol. I, to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund. For the remainder of 2004 Rader will make weekly contributions to the fund that a RedCross source says is already "strapped for cash."
The Red Cross estimates damages in excess of $63 million dollars but that does not include potential costs of Hurricane Ivan making landfall. So far, they have only been able to raise $35 million dollars to help families effected by the storms. When you look at the staggering numbers, it would take to return everybody's life back to normal, it seems completely overwhelming. "What I'm offering seems insignificant by comparison but I'm hoping that it will inspire other independent performers to do the same," says Rader.
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Provided by the MusicDish Network. Copyright © Tag It 2004 - Republished with Permission
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