The 2008 Lineup: Austin City Limits Music Festival, scheduled for Sept. 26-28 has announced its lineup and can be viewed here.
New Music: I’m not a particular fan of metal, especially the passionless digitized-sounding metal that came in the year 2000 that left Metallica sounding like the Beatles. I do like the track Isabella’s from the metal band
Destroy The Runner, it has a solid melody.
Motley Crue and Live Nation? Motley Crue is expected to make an announcement in Los Angeles tomorrow, and sources have told Pollstar.com what that big announcement is. Motley Crue is expected to be the next 360-deal signing to Live Nation Artists, adding to the pool that includes Madonna and Jay Z.
Ticketmaster Boasts Virtual Friends: Ticketmaster has created fake Facebook profiles to boost fake popularity and somehow has garnered nearly 157,000 fans on Facebook and created thousands upon thousands of fake accounts according to Valley Mag. How funny!
TuneCore Payout: Brooklyn-based TuneCore paid participating artists more then $1 million in January, according to Digital Music News. According to the company, the bulk of revenues are coming from smaller, unsigned acts, and the most successful is Josh Kelly, who earned $135,000 though TuneCore.
Hip-hop ‘wrong’ for Glastonbury: The Oasis guitarist said having rapper Jay-Z at the festival was the reason ticket sales have been sluggish and had not sold out this year. He said it was “wrong” to have a hip-hop headliner and added that organisers had changed things too much.
Chrysalis Ends Talks With EMI: Chrysalis rejected a £104 million takeover offer from EMI and said that it was no longer talking with potential buyers.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DmIZWi2Zbj0&eurl=http://video.aol.com/video-detail/jason-flom-on-why-360-deals-are-good-for-major-labels/1656794265[/youtube]
Still Working: The 2,000 employees who were suppose to be let go at EMI months ago still have a job. Why? Because sources say EMI needs more money to cover the restructuring costs, which are running higher than anticipated. ‘Once source said Terra Firma is looking to possibly raise another $60 million for EMI to help pay for the cuts’.
Beating The Odds: Buckcherry who released their record “15” through Eleven Seven Music has been certified platinum and will likely double all previous sales – during the worst decline the music business has ever seen. The record was released in April of 2006, it was eventually upstreamed to Atlantic Records and so far has spent 91 weeks on the Billboard top 200 thanks to multi-format hit singles including ‘Crazy Bitch’,’Next 2 You’ and ‘Everything’.
Despite the continued decline of record sales nationally, Buckcherry have succeeded in increasing their own sales on “15â€. Their 1999 debut, which spawned the #1 hit “Lit Up,†has sold 775,000 units – most of which when the music industry was at its peak.
“Few bands are savvy enough to write hit songs that aren’t just the flavor of the week says fellow Eleven Seven Music label mate, Sixx: A.M. and Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx.
AC/DC in the Studio: AC/DC is currently recording with Brendon O’Brien and will release the new studio album via Columbia Records. Brendon O’Brien has worked with some of the biggest artists including Stone Temple Pilots, Pearl Jam, and Rage Against The Machine.
New Music: Have you heard of Elisa Jordana? We believe she was the former member of Cobra Starship. Her myspace profile tags her as pop/hip hop/ and club. These types of tracks lose their luster quickly because it’s programs and samples, but we recommend listening to Dark Side of The City and Hangman.
 
Major music labels are cutting their staff, yet publishers are doubling the size of their film/TV licensing departments. In fact, total revenues earned by sync income is increasing at a rapid rate as publishing companies are pushing their copyrights through new media.
Television programs including The Hills, Weeds, and Grey’s Anatomy are music driven and of course a publishers dream. Also, the increase of reality TV shows are a benefit to newer acts while shows like American Idol and Dancing With the Stars benefit older artists and create enormous exposure for their catalogs.
‘In addition to the sync fee, publishers can see a boost in sales for the original title after the usage. After David Archuleta performed “Imagine” on “American Idol” earlier this season, downloads on the John Lennon classic increased more than 600% the next week. Similarly, after since-deposed “Idol” finalist Amanda Overmyer sang “Carry On My Wayward Son,” iTunes sales for the Kansas song increased 60%, according to Tami Lester, EMI Music Publishing’s director of film and TV music’.
Television licensing fees for copyrights range from as little as $150 for a basic cable usage to as much as $25,000 for a network or premium cable usage. Of course a well-known song that a show desperately wants, the fee can soar into the six figures.
Of course, many shows have a limited budget and it’s always the job of the publisher to get the highest price. In this respect, there is a growing a divide between publishers and labels – labels want the fee to be lower since they are counting on the TV usage to boost CD sales.
So after posting that we were searching for a vocalist that has a wider range than almost any other rock vocalist-Â we received hundreds of emails and tips. Of course most fell short but we did get one tip from a San Diego band called Dirty Sweet. Listen to the track Long Line Down and let us know what you think.
We did a brief search on the band and found that the group went on to win San Diego Music Awards ‘Best Rock’ act TWICE and “Best Rock Album”. But what prevented the band from breaking out? Probably the lack of commercial songs, although the band has received good press in the UK. Their debut record ‘”…Of Monarchs and Beggars” was produced and engineered by the band themselves, which was probably not a good idea. When an artist produces and directs his own art, objectivity is usually lost, which is why we always suggest finding a really great producer.
We still want better because we are hard to please. This is the entertainment business, we need the best. Remember, there is room at the top!
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