Jay Z's Best Buy link up unpopular

So, the new Jay-Z album has its launch all lined up - iTunes get an exclusive first go; then Best Buy get a super-duper special exclusive version.

And what about the smaller stores, the ones that helped Mr Z as his career was getting going?

Ah, they just get the bum's rush. And they're not happy about it. The New York Times reports:

An open letter addressed to Jay-Z and Kanye West and signed by 200 independent record stores, including Mr. Hill’s, was published by Billboard last Thursday, calling the deal “short-sighted”.

Michael Bunnell, a founder of Record Store Day, an umbrella organization that represents the independent stores that signed the letter, said the recent trend of big-name artists aligning with large retail stores to push album sales saddled already suffering independent stores with more pressure.

“These stores are family owned and still have a passion for what they do,” said Mr. Bunnell, 61, who has owned the Record Exchange in Boise, Idaho for 34 years. “They don’t sell appliances on the side.”

Mr. Hill, whose store doubles as a barbershop to stay open, says that he would have ordered 300 copies of the album, but that, given the deal with Best Buy, he is scaling back orders by half.

Mr Z's response isn't entirely encouraging:

“We made this album and it took us eight months,” he said. “We should be able to release it the way we like, without everybody being up in arms.”

Yes, how dare the people who were there for him when he was starting out expect a bit of support in return? How dare they "get up in arms" and try to tell the IMPORTANT MR ZEE what to do?

Z's rather lame explanation for the deal is "mutter mutter probably something to do with piracy":

[H]e said a same-day release to all outlets would inevitably lead to leaked songs during the process of shipping the album all over the country, which would take several days. Ensuring releases go to one retailer first, he said, would prevent that and allow for higher sales.

Because, you know, nothing helps sales like going on the radio and suggesting that somehow small record shop owners are less trustworthy than the people who shove boxes of stuff round Best Buy. Or seeming to imply that somehow a CD in Best Buy is impregnable.

Given you only need one copy for an album to be leaked online, the Z defence is palpably nonsense. Obviously, a very rich man going on the radio and saying "look, I love money, and this way, I get lots and lots more money" would have been unpleasant. But at least it would have been honest.

Chelsea shutters

The Chelsea Hotel has closed its doors for what is either a renovation project, an attempt to break the hotel's unions, or some sort of confidence trick.

The New York Times popped down for the last night, and found an enthusiast:

“Where are all the punk kids? Maybe they don’t know,” said Ms. Ramona, an adrenaline-fueled, self-described “forever teenager” (in her early 30s) who had booked a room, hopped in her car and gunned it to New York City as soon as she heard the news. For a decade, Ms. Ramona has journeyed to the hotel several times a year, drawn by two of its famous guests from decades past. “Sid Vicious in caps, and Dee Dee Ramone,” she said. “If I could be anywhere tonight, this is the place to be.”

That might also explain where "the punk kids" are - somewhere other than a place that meant something to their grandparents, at a guess.

This week just gone

With all the excitement over browsers, here's this week's top ten browsers used by No Rock visitors:

1. Firefox 34%
2. Internet Explorer 25%
3. Chrome 20%
4. Safari 17%
5. Opera 1%
6. Mozilla Compatible 1%
7. Opera Mini 1%
8. IE/Chrome frame
9. Playstation
10. Blackberry

These were the interesting releases:


Hedy West - Ballads & Songs Of The Appalacians

Download Pretty Saro



Pop Will Eat Itself - Box Frenzy (in some way 'expanded')

Download Box Frenzy



Cecile Corbel & Simon Caby - Arrietty Soundtrack

Download Arrietty's Song



UK Subs - Complete Punk Singles Collection

Download Punk Singles Collection

Welcome back, Koppelman?

Throwing his hat into the EMI-purchasing ring (or rather, hurling a hat underwritten by Apollo Global Management) is Charles Koppelman, who was - at one time - CEO of EMI.

Bringing together someone from the olden days and private equity? What could possibly go wrong.

There are a surprising number of people interested in the label. You suspect it's not so much the opportunity to release whatever Robbie Williams might turn in a couple of years hence that's the attraction.

Experimentalobit: Conrad Schnitzler

Conrad Schnitzler, a leading light of krautrock and electronic music has died.

Schnitzler, who was an early member of Tangerine Dream, passing on to Kluster and Eruption before moving on to a long and varied catalogue of solo work also worked under the name Conard Von Berlin.

His work spans the best part of 45 years and nearly 100 albums; he was working up until the last week of his life.

Recently, he'd been working on the Global Living project, which saw him send packets of his hair to nine locations around the planet, in order to have his DNA stake out a place in sites that he loved.

Conrad Schnitzler died from stomach cancer on Thursday. He was 74.

Is that really much of a tribute?

How great will the sort-of official Michael Jackson tribute concert in Cardiff be, exactly?

They've pulled in Craig David for it:

The R&B singer said he was "honoured" to be booked for the gig, which is scheduled to take place at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium on October 8.

Writing on his official Facebook page, David said:

I am honoured to announce I will be performing alongside some of the world's greatest artists at the Michael Jackson tribute concert.

That suggests either they've worked a long way down the list of dream bookings, or else one of the ice cream concessions has got its staffing sorted.

The tribute gig in Cardiff will celebrate Michael Jackson's strong links with South Wales, remembering his three-year stint doing the HTV weather forecast and that one time he heard an off-colour joke about Shirley Bassey.

Alexisonfire goes out

Alexisonfire have wound up after a decade. There's a statement from George Pettit:

Almost a year ago Dallas informed us that he would be leaving after we finished our Old Crows/Young Cardinals tour cycle. Trying to balance his life between touring with us and at the same time quelling the success of City And Colour was a task too difficult to continue managing. He informed us he wanted to focus his efforts on City And Colour.
[...]
The rest of us discussed the future of the band. After much deliberation we decided to continue and attempt the difficult task of replacing Dallas, but time got the best of us.Over the last six months we all dealt with a litany of personal issues, which pulled us further and further from Alexisonfire.

In addition to that, Wade was recently asked to join another band and he felt it was an opportunity he would like to pursue.

Replacing one guitar/singer/writer was something we thought was possible, but replacing two would run the serious risk of perverting the legacy of what we had achieved. So we all took a good hard swallow and decided to end it so it would never get old and ugly.

Was the break-up amicable? Not really. Was it necessary? Probably. Regardless, the members of the this band are my family, and I wish them nothing but good fortune.

There's a suggestion that there might be one last tour of Canada to say goodbye.



I wonder if they'll sell on their rather fine theonlybandever.com domain.

Gordon in the morning: Any old carp will do

Gordon Smart ripping content off other magazines in return for printing a shot of the cover is nothing new. But this has got to be the first time he's used Total Carp in that way.

Dappy. Dappy likes dragging fish out of the water on little hooks, in case you're wondering.

John Lydon doesn't trust the National Trust

The National Trust must be delighted with John Lydon's loud complaining about not having had his 'permission' sought for inclusion of a Sex Pistols track on their odd punk collection:

"I would like to be able to trust the National Trust but from this point forward I can't. I was very proud to collaborate with The National Trust back in 2003 and voice a radio advert for them.

"No-one however has even spoken to myself or my management or had a conversation with myself or my management about this album. Never Mind The.... Permission."

He added: "Thievery as I have always thought seems to come from very high places. Whatever happened to the art of conversation?

"As of yet, I am still not sure what the game is in all this. I love my England, my honest England. My heart is true, but this particular situation seems deeply sneaky and we are waiting to be supplied with information on this chain of events, and the answer better be good."

Now, I don't know for sure, but I'm prepared to assume that the National Trust has all the permissions it needs in place - and that doesn't extend to having to ask a performer for an OK before putting a track owned by someone else onto a compilation.

Had Lydon actually been a proper punk, rather than the plaything of a major label, he might have cause to be upset. But he's got about as much grounds here as a guy from Bernard Matthews complaining that the turkey he raised has ended up for sale in Sainsbury's.

But oh: Lydon has played his part to perfection - moaning and wailing and making a fuss, for all the world like a punk version of those guys who dress up as soldiers and pretend to fight on other National Trust lawns. The Trust really need to build a kids' theme day round this historical re-enactment.

Gordon in the morning: The child in focus

Does nobody police the Press Complaints Commission code of practice any more? Has the rotten performance of Buscombe And Her Editor Chums been so dispiriting they've even stopped pretending they're keeping an eye on thing?

For why else would Gordon be running a picture of Elton John and David Furnish's kid, which is there for no reason other than his parents being famous?

Oh, there's a horrible joke, too. The child is wearing a lifejacket, and the Bizarre team have come up with this headline:

Don’t let the son go drown on me, Elton

It's a great pun. It's just, being based around the idea of a small child dying, it might be a bit off-colour for a "family" newspaper.

Society in meltdown, part two: Avril Lavigne fixed

Who knew that Avril Lavigne was still doing that ploddy cover of Coldplay's Fix You as part of her live set?



Last night, someone appears to have had enough and rushed the stage as she was about to plod into it.

The New York Daily News has this as
What's amusing about the video is the way that Lavigne sticks the microphone high in the air, as if that, at all costs, must be preserved.

Society in meltdown, part one: Beyonce and the egg thrower

These are the signs of the end of the days: An uninvited eggthrower at a Beyonce video shoot. TMZ reports:

Some loudmouthed dumbass was arrested near the set of Beyonce's new music video in NJ this week -- after screaming at the crew and allegedly THROWING AN EGG at a police officer.

According to law enforcement, police had already booted the rowdy 23-year-old male TWICE for sneaking onto the set -- after he shouted, "I can be a better dancer!" But all bets were off when the kid came back a third time ... and allegedly hurled an egg at an officer.

You've got to love the capping up of THROWING AN EGG, as if this is a new level of devilry heretoforward unknown.

The more important question - related to how it sounds like New Jersey cops were providing security at a music video shoot - has floated by TMZ.

Punk preservation society

A tweet from @TheMichaelMoran with a link to something in the iTunes store:

Nevermind the Dovecotes - The Punk Collection (National Trust Music)

Yes, that's a National Trust collection of punk singles. Not just the cartoon punks like The Sex Pistols, either. There's GBH, and Discharge, and even Bingo Master's Break Out.

Perhaps we shouldn't be too surprised - 1970s UK punk long since moved from being a snarl in the face of the establishment to being a part of the tourist industry. Matt Belgrano postcards and those kids on Westminster Bridge who dress up like they're part of a Clash re-enactment society for the delight of holidaymakers with cameras were merely the first signs, and perhaps the surprise is that it's taken so long for the National Trust to catch up.

It surely can only be a matter of months before you're invited to Washington Old Hall for a summer evening of gobbing and warm lager.

After all, the Trust has already embraced Dennis The Menace wholeheartedly, and he's always been a bigger threat to the men in suits than ever John Lydon managed to be.

Gordon in the morning: Toe point

Gordon thinks that the remarkable thing about this photo of Bono is that he has "girlie" red nail polish on his toes.

Seriously, Gordon? You think nail polish is somehow girlie? That attitude is more outdated than the belief that people like Bono.

The really interesting thing, surely, is at the other end:

Bono is capable of wearing sunglasses that aren't irritating. A breakthrough!

Embed and breakfast man: Bob Mould

KarlT0 tweets that Bob Mould has done a great cover version for the Onion's AV Club.



Albeit one which suggests Mould struggles with the idea of a cover version.

[Buy Copper Blue]

Copyright reform: What's in it for you?

Given that most of the proposed changes to copyright law focus on making it easier for multinational companies to farm copyrights, there has to be some sort of sweetener in there for the ornery folks like you and me.

So it is with the amplification of a couple of points from the Hargreaves report. These are the hearty breakfasts before we get hauled off to the gibbet.

First up, Vince Cable is promising to legalise ripping content.

No, no, hold up a minute before planning your Liberation Day parades.

That this is being treated like an act of generosity, when really it's just clearing up an anomaly. It's like dropping the law about not being allowed to use a sledge and pretending that you're setting free a thousand tobogganists, rather than just bringing the law in line with accepted practice.

Even the most enthusiastic supporters of the change can't really seem to point to any major change in what will happen after it's enacted than "that bloke who advertises those multi-CD-player things in Private Eye won't have to word his ads quite so delicately any more."

The second, more substantial change is allowing a right of parody, which is long overdue.

It does mean, though, that the skills of people like Phil Pope and Mitch Benn in producing close-but-not-identical musical parodies will be swept away as we can all just sing "poopy poopy poo" over the top of Strangers In The Night instead.

So, less of this sort thing:

And this sort of thing:

(You wonder how much use Spitting Image got out of the Cyndi Lauper doll.)

Gordon in the morning: I was Uday's double

Somewhat awkwardly - and presumably pulled in as it's connected to a film - Gordon's showbiz column finds space this morning, between Hannah Waterman's baby and a picture of Cameron Diaz, for a story about the horror of being Uday Hussein's double.

Even more surprisingly, while happy to host a bit about a man suffering the physical and mental scars of having been forced to stand-in for the son of a dictator, Smart doesn't have much love for the story about Paul Daniels being hospitalised by a pizza-tossing Sooty, which is relegated to a sidebar.

Kings Of Leon try to make bad show vanish from web

Talking of the Kings Of Leon, the band's Vector Management are issuing DMCA takedowns to force YouTube to remove footage of Caleb's meltdown.

It's not entirely clear where the copyright justification for this is - it's not music; you could, I suppose, argue that his behaviour was a performance and the performance would be covered by some sort of copyright.

It does, however, make it look like the management are trying to bully away any evidence of how terrible the band were. Surely not?

Drunktank: Kings Of Leon v Amy Winehouse

An interesting, but not entirely fully-formed, post by Everett True on Collapse Board compares the way the media covered Amy Winehouse's Belgrade Show and the Kings Of Leon in Texas.

I'm not sure there's a direct comparison to be made here:

Winehouse's gig was one she tried to do, but failed; Caleb didn't even try to play.
Winehouse appears to have been put up to play the gig when she wasn't ready; there doesn't seem to have been the same pressure put on Followill to turn up. Winehouse was, pretty clearly, known to have a serious illness; Followill we simply don't know about.

True's gripe is that Winehouse appears to be chastised by The Guardian for the quality of her performance, while the Kings Of Leon are given a "tee-hee, rock and roll" write-up.

To be fair, though, the Winehouse piece was a straight news report, written in part by agency reporters, while the Kings Of Leon piece is more of a blog entry from the website, so it's not really a straight comparison.

Everett seems to be assuming that The Guardian was somehow punishing Winehouse for her (unladylike) behaviour while celebrating that (blokey) drunkeness of the Kings Of Leon. I'm not so sure, though.

We know that Winehouse was booed, and even without the benefit of hindsight, her inability to make it through the set was pretty worrying. Surely True isn't suggesting that it lent itself to a jokey write-up?

It might be that Caleb is also seriously ill, and perhaps we should all be resisting the temptation to giggle at the idea of a member of the Kings Of Leon being so sick of the band he makes himself sick to get out of their gigs. But True has a laugh at how bad the group is in his complaint about double standards, so it's clear he's not calling for their drunken melt-down to be treated more sympathetically, either.

Which leaves the question... what does he actually think should have been done differently?

Lady GaGa shocked into silence by Winehouse death; unfortunately not for long enough

The death of Amy Winehouse was, literally, unspeakably awful for Lady GaGa. Or so she claims:

Lady Gaga has revealed she was so devastated by Amy Winehouse’s death she couldn’t speak for 48 hours.

The Judas singer appeared on The View chat show, which aired in the U.S. earlier today.

Blimey. To be that upset, GaGa must really have known Winehouse really well.

Even though she never met the Back To Black singer.

Oh.

Lady Gaga then went on to explain how a lesson should be learnt from the death of the singer, who she described as ‘the most lovely and nice and kind woman’.

She was so lovely and nice and kind that GaGa knows she was lovely and nice and kind despite, erm, never having met her. Not even once.

She told the ladies of the ABC panel: ‘I think the most unfortunate thing about it all is the way that the media spins things, like we can learn from Amy's death.'

Perhaps one of those lessons might be for people not to talk about stars like they knew them if they don't really know them. For a start.

George Clinton: Shooting "near", not "at"

Although some reports are making it sound like there was a shooting during a George Clinton gig in Ohio, it actually looks like there was a shooting in the park after the gig finished.

One eyewitness, David, tells 19 Action News the shootings happened "right after the fireworks... that's when the action started...heard four shots. The police were here within two minutes, because they were already here."

Yes, if you're already somewhere, a two minute response time is probably slower than you'd expect.

Embed and breakfast man: Tune-Yards

You know who was on Jimmy Fallon's programme last night? Oh, yes...



[Buy: WhoKill]
[You might also like The Tune-yards weekend from a while back]

Ed Miliband copies EMI's big idea

You'll recall Charles Allen, who was brought in to EMI by Guy Hands. Hands was trying to prop up a hideously-confused, failing institution which - although much beloved, was struggling to find support or a role in the modern world.

Ed Miliband's just brought Allen in to do for The Labour Party what he did for EMI.

I'm not sure that this story is doomed to end with Citibank taking over The Labour Party and selling it to the highest bidder, but I wouldn't rule it out.

Gordon in the morning: Noel Gallagher has a daughter, you know

More coverage of the release of the unwanted Noel Gallagher solo material this morning, with Gordon listening to the radio as Noel talks about his band's name:

Noel told XFM's brilliant new breakfast host Danny Wallace: "I'm a fan of birds in the sense of the ones with two legs, two arms. Girls. The other birds are vermin.

"What are they for? The only ones that are any good are the ones that don't fly because you can eat them."

Apart from the retrofitted 1950s sexism, there's something surprising in the way that Noel seems to classify birds as table fowl by whether they fly or not. So presumably he'd eat penguins and eagles with broken wings, while rejecting pheasant and... but... I suspect I'm overthinking this... Noel's Kentucky Fried Penguins... near the penguin enclosure... what's that over there?...

Amy Winehouse: The Betty Ford of our generation?

If Mitch Winehouse does pull off his still-fag-packet-back plans to open a rehab place in Amy's memory, there will be something odd about the royalties from Rehab flowing into partly funding rehab.

Arguably, the finest rehab that money could buy didn't do much good for Amy in the end, which would make her a strange figurehead for drying-out clinics.

But it's not unprecedented for someone famous for not being on the wagon to become a beacon for sobriety: Betty Ford managed to turn her name from being a byword for liking a drink into being a brand of addiciton-free living. It might be nice if, in ten years time, people heard "Amy Winehouse" and thought of mended lives, rather than one big wasted one.

Mitch is looking for the government to put up some of the cash, so it's possible it won't ever happen. Notably, the coalition couldn't be arsed to put up a spokesperson to talk about Winehouse's plans on Channel 4 News this evening. But the cost of sorting people's problems with drugs and booze out is a fraction of the price of letting them drag on. Let's hope Mitch's determination and Cameron's love of a photo-op come together for a result.

Never mind the quality, feel the Strokes

It would make sense that Albert Hammond Jr is designing suits for Ryan Gosling, wouldn't it? I mean, there's no way that Albert Hammond Jr should be concentrating a bit more on the day job instead of drawing some suit designs, as, clearly, The Strokes can take care of themselves.

Gordon in the morning: Up on the roof

Bless him, Gordon tries to make band playing gig on roof sound like it's exciting and different.

It's the Red Hot Chili Peppers doing it this time. Gordon struggles to come up with some jokes:

Locals below were chuffed to get a Flea-bie. Well, ticket prices can be sky high...

You see? Because they were on the roof. Although when you're on the roof, the ticket prices aren't. Gordon's joke needs fixing.

Locals below were chuffed to get a Flea-bie. Because while the band are sky-high, at least the ticket prices weren't.