Apple is threatening to yank iTunes if the US Copyright Royalty Board forces them to pay a higher royalty rate. The publishers association wants rates raised from 9 cents to 15 cents a track according to CNN.

Apple is known to play hardball when negotiating and managed to build a reputation that they could be the next Microsoft. The Vice President of iTunes said Apple might close its download store rather than raise its 99 cents a song price or absorb the higher royalty costs. “Apple has repeatedly made it clear that it is in this business to make money, and most likely would not continue to operate [the iTunes music store] if it were no longer possible to do so profitably.”

David Israelite, president of the National Music Publishers Association said he opposed any attempt by companies like Apple and its record label allies to do away with the fixed royalty rate. “Apple may want to sell songs cheaply to sell iPods,” he said. “We don’t make a penny on the sale of an iPod.”

We understand Apple is in business to make money but artists need to make money to. Apple is known for treating its competitors as enemies and is also known to squeeze out every penny from its allies. Apple is known to take up to 75 percent of the sales price from accessory makers and leaving them with zero profit. As Newsweek says, “Bullish behavior can invite backlash.”

One Second 2 Late could be Canada’s latest answer to Rise Against. Sony BMG/Red Ink surely hopes so and has a potential breakout song with the first single, “Fear of a Nation” which is quickly making its way up the Canadian rock chart.

Hedley may have had their shot stateside a few years back with the single, “On My Own”, but this Canadian chart topping band, who features singer Jacob Hoggard (who made it to the top 3 of Canadian Idol before asking his fans to let him be voted off, so he could maintain his band Hedley) didn’t resonate with American fans and faded away as just another pop/punk band. Are they worth another look after a second album with a few more Canadian multi format hits? Check out the 4th single, “Old School” (currently #3 at Candian HOT AC, & #9 at Canadian Top 40)

The Next MGMT? Funky Hollywood pop duo Iglu and Hartly remind me of one of this year’s biggest indie rock breakout acts, MGMT, with some rap verses added in for flavor. First single “In This City”, debuted this week at #5 on the UK singles chart.

Springfield, Illinois Piano rockers The Graduate seem prime for “the next level” after over a year of buzz about their debut album, “Anhedonia” and relentless touring. Check out the title track, and “Sit and Sink”.

Quick Picks:

Glasvegas – “Geraldine” - Glasgow, Scotland band with their fair share of sold out shows in the next few mont hs, and a supporting gig with Oasis in London.

Nineteen Ninety Four – “Stay Where You Are” - For fans of The Starting Line and Valencia.

Marry a Thief – “Awful Things” – ambient/emo/pop

House of Heroes – “Lose Control” – Heading out on tour with Relient K & Ludo.

Soundcheck is written by Dallas Osborn who currently attends San Francisco State University and works on the Live 105 (KITS) Action Team.

Signings: Hollywood Records signs Austin, Texas act Alpha Rev. The band cites Radiohead, HIM, NIN, and The Beatles as influences. I don’t hear HIM and NIN – not even close. This falls under adult contemporary and sounds more like Train meets Jonas Brothers with less intensity. Listen to the track Phoenix Burn.

New Music: Our critic and at times nemesis, Jon Cole recommends a band worth listening to. Check out the track Anna No by Right Away, Great Captain! The new album titled “The Eventually Home” will be released on November 11th. This indie act is fronted by Andy Hull who spent 300 nights on the road in 2007 with Manchester Orchestra and came home and immediately began writing. “This is a really slow burning project. I want this to be something that I can continue to write records for the next 20 years,” says Hull. Hull wanted to write a series of concept albums detailing the saga of a sailor in the 1600s.

MTV struck a deal with Columbia Records, to create an AC/DC version of the channel’s popular Rock Band video game that will be sold at Wal-Mart. “If you want to be a physical band, you better make an alliance with a strong physical retailer,” said Steve Barnett, chairman of Columbia Records.

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Guns N’ Roses long awaited Chinese Democracy is expected to be sold exclusively through Best Buy.

Management firm Union Entertainment Group has added three managers to the company. UEG roster includes Nickelback, Candlebox, Red, and Hinder.

Nickelback has released their new single Gotta Be Somebody as a free download – it can also be heard on Youtube, although it will probably be pulled within minutes. The new album is titled Dark House and will be released November 18th. The album was produced by songwriter and producer Mutt Lange who is the most well known rock producer and has worked with the GREATS including Def Leppard, Foreigner, The Cars, Bryan Adams, AC/DC, and The Corrs. You can download the song here. Yes, it’s a Mutt Lange flawless production and a perfectly written song, will certainly do well at radio.

The new video from Fallout Boy features an appearance from former Guns N Roses touring guitarist Gilby Clarke. Gilby opens up the video with “What the hell happened to rock n roll? Eyeliner, energy drinks, and no guitar solos! I’ve taken shits with bigger rockstars than them!

The Telegraph posted an article titled iTunes ‘under threat as bands take their business elsewhere‘.

AC/DC’s 1980 Back in Black album will soon surpass Michael Jackson’s Thriller to become the biggest-selling album ever (50 million+) and it won’t be available on iTunes.

“We don’t make singles, we make albums,” says AC/DC guitarist Angus Young. “Way back in the Seventies, we drew these figures on the back of an envelope for our record company. “We showed them how much they earned from us if we sold one million singles and how much they earned if we sold one million albums. The difference was staggering. “That was to get them off our back because we only very grudgingly release singles. Our real reason is that we honestly believe the songs on any of our albums belong together.

“If we were on iTunes, we know a certain percentage of people would only download two or three songs from the album – and we don’t think that represents us musically.”

We all know iTunes changed the way how we consume music. For instance, “Katy Perry has sold 2.2 million downloads of I Kissed a Girl on iTunes, but only 282,000 copies of her album.”

Here is a tip. If you can sell abums without iTunes that means you have a loyal fanbase. It means that you’re more than a singles act unlike Katy Perry. New artists on the scene should approach music like Angus Young. Don’t think singles, think songs – or make albums instead of singles. In other words, you want your entire album to be a single. This is how real artists approach their creation, maybe then you will sell 100,000 records a week for an entire year.