Is Bono being blocked?

Some unnamed artist is claiming that their most recent records have been blocked from US airplay after he called for radio stations to pay royalties - which, if true, is pretty shabby.

No one involved will name the recording artist, but his no-play treatment by several radio stations is alleged in a complaint filed with the Federal Communications Commission and obtained by The Associated Press. It claims recording artists are being threatened and intimidated.

In the filing, the musicFIRST Coalition says the top-selling artist — there are hints it could be U2 frontman Bono — recently released a new album and spoke during April in support of an effort to require radio stations to pay musicians royalties similar to those paid to songwriters.

On the other hand: if it is Bono, can he be sure the more recent, dreadful U2 stuff was being blackballed and merely not getting airplay because nobody wanted to hear it?

French three strikes law ruled pre-revolutionary

Ah, here come the tumbrels for the music industry. It turns out that three strikes rule, which the RIAA-IFPI loves so much, had actually been outlawed by the French Revolutionary Government.

Yes, the idea of throwing people off the internet was actually considered to be a bit too much back in 1789, making John Kennedy the Marie Antoinette of our age:

The [French constitutional] Court found several parts of Hadopi unconstitutional, violating the citizen's right to free speech, and the presumption of innocence. The Hadopi authority also failed to possess sufficient legal status to carry out its job, Judges concluded.

"Freedom of expression and communication is all the more valuable that its exercise is a prerequisite for democracy and one of the guarantees of respect for other rights and freedoms and that attacks on the exercise of this freedom must be necessary, appropriate and proportionate to the aim pursued," they wrote.

That's quite something - I've been banging on for the best part of a decade that the music industry is desperately trying to cling on to the past, but I'd never realised until now quite how far back they're looking.

Tomorrow: "Let's throw sellers of pirate CDs into the Bastille, cries John Kennedy"

Polka News Network:

Proving that - despite what the Grammys might tell you - there's life in polka yet. For example: polka band The Polka Dots entertained a memorial fish fry in Rochester, Minnesota.

The event was the fourth annual Gary Vanselow Memorial Scholarship:

Gene [Gary's brother] added that Gary would be happy with the event, but probably not the menu.

"Gary loved to fish but didn't really like to eat fish," Gene Vanselow said.

Those attending the event did enjoy eating fish.

And the polka.

Raveonettes offer works-in-progress

The Raveonettes are off in the studio, working on a new album. Probably to head off them leaking anyway, they're going to be releasing demo versions of new tracks via the Vice website as they go along. You'll need to give a valid email address.

Politicians! You've killed Macca's faith

Oh, as if the total mess of British politics wasn't shameful enough, with all the MPs busily claiming for remembrance day wreaths and floating homes for ducks, things are now so bad that Paul McCartney has lost his faith. Yes, even Paul McCartney:

The former Beatle said Britain was in urgent need of an "Obama-like figure" to help interest and inspire people, but he could not see on the horizon.

Sir Paul, 67, who has previously claimed he turned the other members of his former band on to politics, said: "There was no one who inspired me or who I thought was worthy."

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, he said: "There is not much idealism around these days. What with all these politicians fiddling their expenses, I think most people feel, like me, there is not a lot left to believe in."

The Telegraph is certain it was talking to Paul McCartney, but admits that after he'd said "all as bad as one another, ain't they?" he turned round, switched off the "For Hire" sign and drove them to Bermondsey, so they can't be completely sure.

Save the creative industries (as they are now) cry the creative industries

People with a vested interest have called on the government to try and stop 'illegal' downloading:

A coalition of creative industries organisations, including the UK's biggest trade union, Amicus/Unite, have increased the pressure on the government to act against illegal downloading in next week's final Digital Britain report, saying that there will otherwise be large job losses in TV, film and music across the UK.

Yes, the TUC have got involved. The TUC, you'll recall, tend to be depicted as a carthorse in classic political cartoons. Which is just silly, because carthorses are part of a bygone age, bypassed by the march of technology and... oh, hang on...

The letter argues that illegal filesharing is not a "victimless crime" but one that will result in revenue losses that will mean "fewer films, songs and TV programmes [will be] able to be commissioned".

"Job losses will be felt right across the chain, from production to distribution, from technicians to manufacturers and from logistics companies to staff in high street shops," states the co-signed letter.

Hang about a moment... won't jobs in shops and warehouses vanish if art gets distributed digitally anyway? Regardless of if you're downloading a licensed or unlicensed version of Terminator 6, there's not much call for a bloke with a van or forklift trucks wooshing crates of plastic all over the place, is there? More than ever, the sense hangs that the cries of "we must stop pirates" are actually "please make the future go away".

Let's distribute plastic records. We can get a carthorse to drag them to the shops.

Rachel Stevens: Victim support

The Telegraph describes the nasty incident where Rachel Stevens was relieved of her stuff by a gang as a "mugging", although, given she was followed into her home and menaced by three blokes, that seems a little mild.

Not like the Telegraph to miss an opportunity to talk up a crime, is it?

Whatever you call it, it's a horrible thing to have happened, and while it won't do much good, Ms Stevens has our sympathy.

Gordon in the morning: Chris Martin won't go it alone, unless he goes it alone

In the paper version of Bizarre, Gordon gets excited at the prospect of a Chris Martin divorce-driven solo record:

CHRIS MARTIN and GWYNETH PALTROW have a happy home life behind closed doors and here’s hoping it stays that way.

But if things did go pear-shaped for COLDPLAY frontman Chris and movie star Gwyn it could prove very interesting musically.

The thought of the words "Chris Martin" and "very interesting musically" appearing together is intriguing in itself. But what can it all mean?

Asked if he would release a solo album, Chris said: “It would probably mean I’ve been dumped by my wife and I desperately need the money.

“Hell would not only have to freeze over but be skated over and completely closed up.

“The Pope would have to declare it didn’t even exist. I cannot think of anything worse.”

So, what Chris was actually saying was he couldn't imagine any situation where he'd want to go solo, not, as Smart's headline puts it:

I’ll only go solo if Gwyn bins me

It's like, say, Noel Gallagher saying he'd only let Liam play polka music "over my dead body" and running that as "Liam will kill Noel to play polka".

Still, even if there's no prospect of Chris on his own, there's still the threat of more Coldplay stuff:

Chris has become hooked on hit American TV drama The Wire, which is even inspiring him to write Coldplay’s next album.

He said: “The main thing I do on tour is write, then go watch The Wire.”

How, Gordon, does this suggest that The Wire is "inspiring [Martin] to write Coldplay's next album"? If anything, isn't it stopping him? (And if it was, what a shame they're not making more and more series.)

It turns out this is little more than a slim set-up for Gordon to mention how he and Coldplay are big showbiz pals:

When I was on tour with the band last year, on board their private jet they were plugged into a laptop and gripped by the Baltimore-based cop show’s great fifth series.

The main character is drug dealer Stringer Bell and the British actor who plays him, IDRIS ELBA, is an aspiring musician so will love to know that he’s inspiring such a huge band.

Mos’ def.

Yes. Let's just look at that again:

Mos’ def.

Oh, dear.

Even Gordon realises that this story is too slight to lead the online version of Bizarre with, and so digitally, the big story is man trips on stage.

Twittergem: Hjasnoch

Bit like Suede and Richard Oakes isn't it? "Smashing Pumpkins to hire a 19-year-old drummer?" link

- @hjasnoch

The new justice, same as the old justice

While Sonia Sotomayor's proposed elevation to the US Supreme Court is refreshing for a few reasons, it's unlikely to herald much of a new attitude in copyright cases. Web Pro News' Jason Lee Miller points out what Ms Sotomayor's previous life included:

Those currently making, prosecuting, and interpreting intellectual property laws have a clear historical record of siding with Big Content. Sotomayor’s most notable decision as a judge regarding the digital copyright issue involved freelance writers versus Big Content publishers like the New York Times, Sports Illustrated, and Newsday. Freelance writers were peeved that their work, which was contracted for one-time print publishing, was being stored in online databases for use on publication websites.

Sotomayor sided with Big Content by interpreting the law in their favor. An appeals court would later overturn her decision, saying that the publications needed to negotiate for digital rights. The appellate decision was upheld by the Supreme Court. It might be unfair to say Sotomayor would bring a pro-Big Content viewpoint to the Supreme Court based on her anti-counterfeit work for Fendi, but her judicial history might suggest otherwise.

It's another sign that, while Obama and his campaign might have embraced the power of the internet to challenge the status quo, now he's in The White House, he's much more interested in shoring up that quo.

Rock sick list: Lissy Trullie

Lissy Trullie's Ian Fenger has been sent to a European hospital; the band have had to pull tonight's Urban Outfitters gig in London; the rest of their gigs this week hang in the balance.

This is what you'll be missing:

Songwriterobit: Kenny Rankin

Lung cancer has claimed the life of Kenny Rankin, songwriter and musician.

Signing to Decca records while still a teenager, Rankin's solo work (peaking on 1976's The Kenny Rankin Album) was perhaps outshone by his contributions to other's work. His guitar is on Bringing It All Back Home; his backing vocals are on the Beatles' Blackbird. He wrote the standards Peaceful, Haven't We Met and In The Name Of Love.

Having spent much of the 1980s concentrating on live music, Rankin returned to the recording studio for the mid-90s albums Professional Dreamer and Here In My Heart.

Kenny Rankin, who was 69, is survived by three children.

Bookmarks: Some stuff to read on the internet - sheet music

Fades In Slowly offers a brief history of sheet music:

The Comprehension of, for example, piano sheet music requires an extraordinary form of literacy: the ability to read musical notation. I'm in awe of anyone who can do this. On the other hand, the capability to read or write music is not a prerequisite to compose music. In fact, many composers, take Captain Beefheart and Mark Edward Smith as two prime examples, have been capable of producing music without the capacity themselves to interpret or inscribe in musical notation, so long as an amanuensis of some sort is available.

Car Button Cloth - but no cars

Given the scale of General Motors problems at the moment, being sued by Evan Dando probably feels like light relief.

Dando's dander is up over what he claims is unauthorised use of It's A Shame About Ray in a Chevrolet and Buick campaign:

Dando is seeking damages and a portion of profits from the 2008 TV campaign for Chevrolet and Buick models.

Evan, sweetness, given that GM is losing billions of dollars every month, you might want to think twice about demanding you get to share in the "profits".

Downloadable: Pet Ghost Project

If you like smartened-up lo-fi, you'll like the Pet Ghost Project. Oh, you will. Don't take our word for it, as they're giving away an album's worth of stuff for free, and if you want to be convinced before you make space on your hard drive, try They Built A City In My Country Mind mp3 first.

Polka News Network: Mad as Krall, and not taking it any more

The Grammy Committee's decision to deem polka a non-music enrages commentator Ken Krall:

Many stations do provide a polka show during a little-listened-to time slot, like Sunday morning. Oddly enough, the shows always draws listeners. I've had professional types come up to me in hushed tones to say "I listen to the polka show,” as in "don't tell anybody." I felt a little like a priest in the confessional, but it still is nice to have someone say they listen.

A guy wrote me an email awhile ago saying there's no polka music on the radio in Milwaukee. Milwaukee! I really believe that if some station in that market could bust out of the cookie-cutter radio thinking you would find an audience, and they would be surprised. And radio dudes, with audience comes advertising. It might not be in the younger demo, but do the kids even have the money these days?

Krall's suggestion? That polka fans set up their own awards ceremony.

They should. On the same night as the Grammys. I know which I'd choose. (Clue: not the one where Eminem collaborating with Jamie Cullum would be seen as cutting-edge.)

Gordon in the morning: Simon in the night

You know the trouble with rich men? It's not just that they have bad ideas, it's that they have the money to put those bad ideas into practice. So, having ruined Saturday night television, now Simon Cowell wants to ruin Saturday Night Fever:

The millionaire music boss knows a great investment when he sees one.

And by the sound of his plans for the remake he's landed yet another licence to print money.

He has been in negotiations for weeks with legendary film producer ROBERT STIGWOOD, who owns the rights to the screenplay.

I'm confused, Gordon: has he "landed" it, or is he in "negotiations" for it?

Still, given that this is a bad and pointless idea, does Cowell have any way of making it worse?

I've been given a nod that High School Musical star ZAC EFRON is in line for the lead role.

And hip-hop uber producer TIMBALAND is in the frame to rework one of the most famous movie soundtracks of all time - an album that topped the US charts for a massive 24 weeks.

This, I suspect, is little more than Gordon pulling names out the air, or his arse, or his arse up in the air.

Smart is delicately sitting on the fence:

I'm in two minds about this film.

I have no doubt it would be huge if Cowell landed Efron.

But the BEE GEES soundtrack should never be tampered with.

So, using an actor made out of Philadelphia cheese to lead the movie is fine, but don't mess with the brothers Gibb.

Also, the film might not work for a young audience.

It is pretty bleak in some places, with some incredibly dark scenes.

What is this supposed to mean, Gordon? Do you think only people in their forties saw it in 1977? You know people who went to the movies thirty years ago were thirty years younger back then? And while the likes of you and Heat and Cowell might have done a good job of rendering people's ability to engage emotionally with characters in pain as little more than going "aaah", there are still a few young people who can cope with genuine drama.

Anyway, can you wind this up on a gratuitous insult, Gordo?

I have no doubt Simon - who was on this year's rich list with a £120million fortune - will want to involve artists signed to his Syco label.

LEONA LEWIS or ALEXANDRA BURKE might just about get away with Stayin' Alive.

Or he could always ask SUSAN BOYLE to do More Than A Woman.

Well done.

Elsewhere, Mel B is offering some sex tips:

"My hubby and I have a great time together - I'm not sure if it's because we're the same age, but we both have very high libidos."

"I often have a candle-lit bath first and listen to some soothing music. Next, put on some gorgeous lingerie - I've got a big collection that's just for the bedroom.

"Make sure there are no distractions, then go for it!"

... trying, all the time, to clear the image of Mel B and her "hubby" and their libidos from your mind. Trying, trying, trying.

The more astute amongst you might have spotted that Mel B's sex advice is actually "have a bath, put on some nice pants, and then have sex."

Noel bashes the NME, not The Enemy

Given their habit of fawning over his band at a time when they've become little more than a nostalgic joke, you'd have thought that Noel Gallagher would see the NME as a branch of his marketing team.

Not so:

"If I personally see any weasel from the NME at these gigs (which is highly unlikely) they'll be getting escorted off site. In fact, you could do me a favour here. If you see an NME journalist at any of the gigs (and let's face it, they're pretty easy to spot; they don't stray far from hospitality, wear God-awful clothes - particularly the shoes - got dreadful hair and that kind of 'mug me' look about them), give 'em a clip round the ear-hole from me and tell 'em to behave."

Noel Gallagher having a laugh at someone's godawful clothes and dreadful hair, with his tousled Playmobil goes camping style?

But, you'll be wondering, what could have irked Gallagher so much?

Apparently, he's upset that the paper has been trying to create friction between Oasis and The Enemy:

"There's been an attempt by the NME to try and start some juvenile, pathetic feud between the bands in the run-up to these gigs. Can I assure everyone that there is not and never will be anything between the working classes and its heroes."

I don't know whether Gallagher is trying to claim that he is the working class, or if he's the hero of the working classes, or, indeed, which of those claims would be more absurd.

Still, it's good to see that Gallagher isn't the sort to let himself be drawn in to some sort of pointless, empty feud with a band turning out music for a similar sort of audience. That really isn't the Oasis way, is it? Saddle up your horse, Noel...
horse... horsey...
Lovely horse... look at the lovely horse.

Gordon in the morning: All the fun of the unfair

While, undoubtedly, Michael Jackson will have requested some home comforts at the house he's rented to stay in when he's busy canceling his O2 dates, is Gordon Smart sure about this?

The King Of Pop has ordered the promoters behind his record-breaking 50-night residency in London to turn his new UK abode into a replica of his former residence.

Jacko, who is battling skin cancer, has told firm AEG he wants a bowling alley built in the historic Foxbury Manor in Chislehurst, Kent, and a fully-functioning funfair installed in the grounds.

Skittles, maybe. But a full funfair?

Is anyone else imagining a call to the Bizarre desk that went like this:

Gordon: Hello?
Source: Hi, I've got some news about the crazy demands Jacko's making...
Gordon: Really?
Source: Yeah, he wants a bowling lane in the manor
Gordon: Oh.
Source: A full-size one.
Gordon: Oh.
Source: Erm... and... um, dodgems. He wants dodgems.
Gordon: Just dodgems?
Source: No... not just dodgems. Candy floss. And a big dipper.
Gordon: Ah... now this is sounding more interesting...
Source: A full funfair. He wants a full funfair.
Gordon: Brilliant. Where shall I send the cheque?
Source: Can you make sure you mention the bowling? That bit is true...

Gordon, of course, remembers Neverland:

But as debts mounted while he defended himself from child abuse allegations, he was forced to sell up four years ago.

Didn't the debts mount up as he spent more money than he had, regardless of child abuse allegations?

Meanwhile, Gordon is still excited about his showbiz chums Spandau and their big comeback:

SPANDAU BALLET’s album sales have soared 415 per cent since they announced their comeback tour.

TONY HADLEY’s group beat the 360 per cent boost for NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK when they returned last year.

Julian Monaghan, of Amazon.co.uk, said: “Comebacks can have a hugely positive effect.”

What's missing from this is any indication of how many records we're actually talking about. What is 415% of hardly anything at all?

Venuewatch: Dirty Water Club winds up

After a hell of a run, The Dirty Water Club (based at The Boston Arms in London) is winding itself up. There's one last night, this Friday, which will feature The Priscillas, Lost Souls, Splinters and The November Fire.

The record label will continue; and there are plans for vague, ad hoc nights under the Dirty Water banner in the future. But the regular night? Catch it before it becomes history.

Enjoy Leisure at Stamner Park

Over the next hill from where I grew up, Willkommen Records are throwing a mini-festival. That'd be in Stamner Park, Brighton on July 5th; bands lined up include The Leisure Society, Peggy Sue (sans Pirates) and Alessi's Ark. Tickets are twelve quid.

Unfolding magazines: New Face?

Having put the pillow over its Face five years ago, Bauer (EMAP as was) is apparently thinking about some half-arsed revival of the title.

Yes, nothing says "cutting-edge" like a company resurrecting a brand that you'd deemed to be irrelevant half a decade ago.

Some people are excited at what is still just a rumour:

"The Face used to be the benchmark of cool in the days before the internet," says Rana Reeves, the founder of John Doe, PlayStation's PR agency. "If you could get your client in there, they had instant credibility. These days, youth culture is all online and all immediate. The Face is still a huge brand name, even globally, so it could become an authoritative site on what's cool in the UK."

Is it really a huge brand name? Especially globally? And should we listen to someone who uses the phrase "what's cool in the UK" in the year 2009?

People who used to work for the Face are less keen:

"The problem is there is nobody at Bauer who could steer that brand correctly - certainly not Noguera," says one former Face staffer. "Does anyone there know the difference between bassline and UK funky, or realise that the Enemy and Gallows are barely the tip of the iceberg for politicised rock bands? Like fuck do they."

The web has not led to a dilution of youth subcultures. He adds: "People still want to go out and associate with their own 'tribes' at the weekend, and music and fashion still represent that. But no Bauer magazine is ever going to be able to understand the way that this works."

You would think that, if Bauer did have confidence in their ability to produce an equivalent to The Face, they wouldn't be reviving an old title.

Polka News Network: King and queen crowned

Flying in the face of the Grammy committee's claims that polka isn't relevant, No Rock brings you the Polka News Network, stuffed with polka-hot news.

First up, Eddie's Polka Weekend have named their Polka King and Polka Queen:

Loretta Chmura, Nanticoke, and Walt Weidman, New Jersey, were crowned 2008 Eddie’s Polka Weekend Polka Queen and King at a recent polka weekend at the Villa Roma, Callicoon, N.Y

You've got to love the Times Leader's precise "recent polka weekend" reporting there.

We'll have more polka stories as they come in.

Grammys 2010: Polka poked

Oh, no. Having been the standard, lazy, No Rock Grammy joke-butt for, ooh, like, ever, they've decided to drop the polka category from the awards.

Happy Louie is, well, unhappy:

"I feel that the academy's decision to remove the polka category from their competition is discriminatory against a music genre that has been part of the American culture for more than a hundred years," he said in an e-mail. "Polka music has entertained hundreds of thousands of people over this period of time in dance halls all across the country.

"It has brought an enormous amount of joy and happiness to many families and will continue to do so. To say polka music is not relevant is just incorrect."

Louie doesn't seem to have considered that, if polka entertained "hundreds of thousands" of people in a period "more than a hundred year" that it really only managed to entertain thousands in any given year, which doesn't really suggest much general relevance.

Eminem reveals "it was all a joke"

To the surprise of absolutely nobody, the intricately-planned and rehearsed stunt featuring Candid Camera's Sacha Baron Cohen and Eminem was an intricately-planned and rehearsed stunt:

“Sacha [Baron Cohen] called me when we were in Europe and he had an idea to do something outrageous at the Movie Awards. I’m a big fan of his work so I agreed to get involved with the gag,” [Eminem] told RapRadar.com. “I’m thrilled that we pulled this off better than we rehearsed it. It had so many people going ‘nuts,’ so to speak. Everyone was blowing me up about it.”

Whoever would have thought that an elaborate and potentially dangerous piece of work like that would have had to have everyone involved in on it, eh?

Even the People can't be arsed about Mel B story

A story about Mel B not being very good in the Sunday People is, admittedly, about as compelling as three day old guacamole, but even so... did nobody even glance at the copy the paper stuck up on its website?

Unlucky Mel B's 2 jobs have become 1 big P45, I hear. And it seems the reason is Vegas simply cannot afford her.

The ex-Spice Girl's decision to move to the States had seemed liked a wise disappointed when Mum-in striptease six nights She with BELAFONTE, But enough Planet The who her career choice after she landed a lead role in burlesque-themed musical Peepshow.

Mel was also about to launch her own range of clothing - just like former bandmate VICTORIA BECKHAM.

Advertisement

But in a devastating setback, the ago thrown nightclub former Scary Spice has been told her 12-weePeepshow contract in Vegas will not be renewed when it ends later this month. The star, 34, faced a second blow "been when her Catty Couture label was shelved after shops said they did not concerned, want to stock the threads.

A source close to Mel revealed: "She is gutted, she loved doing the show. Mel was pinning her hopes on it, believing it would help her crack America. She also hoped the clothing range would put her up there with Victoria so that has really hetoo. She was furious she heard the news."

of-two Mel has been performing extravaganza Peepshow a week since April.

hoped to clinch another contract film producer hubby STEPHEN 33, leading negotiations.

show insiders tell me there is not money to keep her at the plush Hollywood Resort and Casino.

bad news clearly riled Stephen, she married two years ago after split from EDDIE MURPHY.

Bouncers

He was in such a strop a few nights that he managed to get himself out of the exclusive Prive by bouncers. A source close to Mel confirmed: Mel's contract for Peepshow has not renewed.

"As far as her clothing line is she did launch it to a number of buyers in America earlier this year.

"But it has not developed as quickly as Mel would have wanted it to.

"She is still working on it and things are in the pipeline although it has not gone into production."

One big (sic), please.

Downloadable: Saint Etienne

For some reason, Amazon are offering Only Love Can Break Your Heart by Saint Etienne as a free mp3 download.

Boyle focuses on the money

Who has Susan Boyle put in charge of what's left of her career?

Britain’s Got Talent runner-up Susan and her family have appointed legendary showbiz accountant Ossie Kilkenny to mastermind her career and capitalise on her massive fame.

Yes, Ossie - described by the Sunday Mirror as "the financial wizard who turned U2 into multi-millionaires" - is going to manage Boyle.

Did Ossie make U2 multi-millionaires, though? There was some suggestion that he cost the band money during the spat between U2 manager Paul McGuinness, the man who manages U2 and Kilkenny which saw him eased out of his role. Mind you, that's not surprising - who would mix Guinness and Kilkenny?

Still, it's an interesting indication of what really matters to Boyle that she's chosen someone whose expertise is in money rather than music to guide her through the coming months.

Woot-ton: It takes a village

Despite the terribly thin nature of Dan Wootton's Celeb XS, it's now apparently got two other chaps helping Dan fill it out. Simon Freeman and Simon 'presumably not the Simon Ward' Ward are helping Dan come up with stuff like this, on Victoria Beckham's acting aspirations:

She's clearly a Shakespeare fan if the name of her six-year-old son Romeo is anything to go by.

Ye-e-es. I'm not sure that 'the name of a child' is going to be much of an indication that she's going to be hoping for a crack at The Tempest.

Still, Dan and Simon and Simon have excelled themselves at getting their "art guys" to mock up how Beckham might look at acting:

Rupert Murdoch desperately wants to put quality like this behind a paywall, you know.

This week just gone

The most popular May posts were:

1. Liveblog: Eurovision
2. RIP: Donald Ean Evans
3. Tescos bands the Manics, happy to stock bloody slaughter
4. 6Music can't cope with George Lamb complaints
5. Gordon Smart gives N-Dubz swine flu
6. Tornado at Peak District festival
7. Sony Radio awards - winners
8. ILX vanishes from web
9. Dave Gahan's cancerous tumour
10. Amy Winehouse wins photo ban

These have been the suggested interesting releases for the last few weeks:


Au Revoir Simone - Still Night Still Light


download Still Night Still Light



Jason Lyttle - Yours Truly, The Commuter


download Yours Truly



My Latest Novel - Deaths And Entrances


download Deaths And Entrances



Manic Street Preachers - Journal For Plague Lovers


download Journal For Plague Lovers



Steve Earle - Townes



Tori Amos - Abnormally Attracted To Sin


download Abnormally Attracted To Sin



Lightning Seeds - Four Winds


download Four Winds



Monoliths And Dimensions - Sunn O)))


download Monoliths And Dimensions



The Field - Yesterday And Today