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Industry
Warner's Waiting Game
Warner Music is playing a waiting game to get its mitts on EMI Music. Last Monday, EMI announced that its board of directors accepted an offer from private equity group Terra Firma to buy it for US$4.7 billion. 24 hours later another bidder emerged, private equity firm Corvus Capital and former EMI chief executive Jim Fifield. EMI's board will have to consider the Corvus offer or risk being sued by shareholders who may claim the deal with Terra Firma undervalues their shares. Is Corvus' deal higher than what Warner will pay? Corvus apparently has a buyer for EMI's publishing division, and will run the recording side on a smaller scale, with less employees and less new music. EMI prefers the Terra Firma deal because it will keep the company intact to maximise digital opportunities. EMI last week announced it made losses for the year of £236.6 million, with revenues down 15.8% to £1.75 billion.
Ritsuko Farewelled
About 250 people met at the Botanical Garden Restaurant last Monday to celebrate the life of jazz pianist Ritsuko, who co-founded etypejazz. She lost her battle with cancer on Thurs 17 May. Members of the band spoke, while her brother through an interpreter thanked the Adelaide music community on behalf of her family. Born in Japan, she arrived in Australia 18 years ago. She graduated with Honours from the University of Adelaide Elder Conservatorium of Music, majoring in jazz performance. In 1994 she co-founded E-type Jazz and, says manager Becc Bates, actively participated in the band's operations until she fell ill in 2006. She played piano and had a major role in writing the arrangements for the band's eight albums. She often went to Victor Harbour, overlooking the water to write, some of which appeared on her solo album 'Fumon'. She won two Live Music Awards. Her last performance was at the Festival Theatre with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra.
Friends remembered her as quiet and angelic, but with a steely resolve if someone crossed her - very much like her music.
In mid-August etypejazz will play a huge show in Adelaide to raise money for Support Act Ltd, as a thank you to the financial benefit SAL provided for Ritsuko in her last months. She had told her friends that if she got better, she wanted to help other musicians who were ill.
Spurr Joins Festival Centre
Bill Spurr, former CEO of the Australian Tourism Commission, has been made a trustee of the Adelaide Festival Centre. The trust was set up in 1971 to foster art, culture and performing arts in SA as well as looking after the Centre. Spurr is a board member of the Adelaide Entertainment Centre and is also chair of Education Adelaide.
Rhodes For MIDEM Seminar
Peter Rhodes, MD of Reed MIDEM, is visiting Australia for a series of seminars for Austrade. He'll be discussing (and taking questions) on how the MIDEM trade fair (January, in France) can help your business with 10,000 delegates from around the world and how to prepare for it. It's on Wed 6 June at Austrade Adelaide between 2.30 to 3.30 pm. Register atwww.austrade.gov.au/midembriefing
Come Out Finishes On High
Adelaide's Come Out festival drew 120,000 between May 7 and 19, reports artistic director Sally Chance. About 25,000 attended ticketed performances and workshops at the Festival Centre, and 17,000 saw performances in schools. Come Out's box office target was reached before its opening night.
Adelaide Radio Changes
Fiveaa newsreader and reporter Caroline Hillman has resigned from the news station and from mid June will take up a role as media officer for Federal MP Kate Ellis. Meantime, ABC radio program director Pam MacIntosh is relocating to Port Macquarie in NSW at the end of June to be a producer for the local ABC radio afternoon show.
Obese Inks Adelaide MC Vents
Melbourne based hiphop label Obese Records, home to the Hilltop Hoods, has signed Adelaide MC Vents. A longtime member of Certified Wise Crew, he made his debut on Funkoars' 'Who's Your Stepdaddy' album in 2003 and guested on tracka by the 'Hoods and Hospice Crew. He's making his debut album 'Hard To Kill' with Trials of Funkoars.
'Cargo' Hits The Road!
The Carclew Youth Arts' initiative 'Cargo' hits the road from this Monday until Fri 29 June. It sees a host of artists visiting schools in regional SA (Port Augusta, Port Pirie, Whyalla) for a week each to work with a total of 500 students on specific art projects. These range from self-exploration to the study of environment, culture and community spirit. They will also be mentoring up and coming artists in that region. On the road will be Lachlan Haig (puppeteer), Luku (digital animator), Daisy Brown (theatre director), Mario Spate (actor/musician), Gus Clutterbuck (ceramicist), Sarah-Jane Cook (photographer, visual artist), Stephen Noonan (actor, dancer) and Kelly Alexander (dancer, choreographer). 'Cargo' is funded by the new BHP Billiton Youth Arts Fund, in partnership with the South Australian Youth Arts Board (SAYAB). Jessica Michin, director of Carclew Youth Arts and executive officer of SAYAB says, "One of the best parts about Cargo is that it's been structured to involve the entire local community." At the end of each week, the students will showcase their projects to their community.
St Kilda Nightclubs
Melbourne's Port Phillip council spent no time in moving forward once the Palace nightclub decided it wouldn't pursue its fight to keep the club going (they spent $2.5 million in legal fees). It announced new plans for its St. Kilda entertainment triangle: London's Ministry of Sound is setting up a club there, as will Sydney's jazz club The Basement. The Palace' bandroom will continue as a 1,500-capacity Triangle Band Room. Honkytonks is relocating from the city with a new take on the Palais de Danse. Pash is a new nightclub set up by Darren Thornburgh, owner of Boutique. The next door Palais Theatre gets a 3,000-seat live entertainment room and a recording studio at the back.
Things We Hear
* Elton John returns in December to play "unique locations", according to a posting on his website.
* Pink is planning to buy property in Byron Bay.
* Universal Music has finished buying BMG Publishing, the new company is called Universal Music Publishing.
APRA is about to announce a major music expo for songwriters and the music business with a stellar line-up of international and Australian songwriters and business leaders in Sydney.
*Bassist Steve King has left Rose Tattoo.
* Linkin Park has had the biggest first week of sales for 2007 in America, their 'Minutes To Midnight' moving 623,000 copies.
* The Rolling Stones have parted ways with long time business manager Prince Rupert Loewenstein. Incidentally, they were asked to headline the Glastonbury festival but wanted $1 million.
* California is considering a law which makes it a crime for cops to get money for tipping off media when celebs get in legal hot water.
* It'll be the battle of the pop princesses: Kylie Minogue and Delta Goodrem will both have albums out at Christmas.
* The Strokes are taking the rest of 2007 off.
* Jet, who were spotted doing a bit of group busking at Melbourne's Southbank the other day, cancelled the Indonesian leg of their SEAsian tour when their promoter, umm, went missing.
* Austereo's Jackie O will present entertainment news and goss on Mick Molloy's new Nine network show 'The Nation' which debuts on Tues 5 June at 9.30pm.
* Melbourne's Spanish Club closes mid-June after fights with neighbouring residents and council.
Quote Of The Week
"He's always been C-List. His wife's snatch has been rubbed on every pole in LA" - Sharon Osbourne fires back at Gene Simmons' comments about her kids' drug taking.
New Signings #1
The Cat Empire have been picked up by Universal Music for outside Australia, NZ and the US.
New Signings #2
Melbourne eight-piece Duckdive signed to Laughing Outlaw Records for the release of their debut album 'Stories Of Another Day' in July.
New Signings #3
Sydney based Jam Agency added electro-funksters Dirty Laundry to its roster of DJs, producers and live acts. Recently, it parted amicably from Sneaky Sound System, Ajax and the Bang Gang DJs so they could focus on global touring with their own management.
New Signings #4
Mushroom Music inked Nashville-based Keith Urban, who's just finished a sell out Australian tour.
Lifelines
Born: son Bryce Thadeus to Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich (his third child) and Danish actress Connie Nielsen (her second).
Born: son Finley Michael to Julien Chick (The Vandas) and wife Clare.
Engaged: Lee Harding ('Wasabi') and Nicole Hansen after six years. He was going to ask her while skydiving but opted for a 10m banner when bad weather scuppered that.
Marrying: jazz legend Tony Bennett, 80, and Susan Crow, 47, after 18 years together.
Injured: while trying not to step on one of her dogs, Paula Abdul fell over and broke her nose.
Arrested: Scott Stapp, ex-singer with Creed, charged with domestic assault on wife, former Miss New York Jaclyn Nesheiwat, after coming home trashed after a lengthy party.
Arrested: Wu-Tang Clan rapper Method Man in New York for driving under the influence of marijuana.
In Court: rapper Eve denied she was drunk when she crashed into a car in LA in April.
Died: US songwriter Ben Weisman, 85, complications from stroke. He wrote 60 songs mostly for Elvis Presley (Follow That Dream, Wooden Heart, Rock-A-Hula Baby) as well as for Streisand and the Beatles.
Died: Irish accordionist and singer Dermet O'Brien, 74, cancer.
Ad Agency Sacked Over Dead Stars
Airwair, makers of Doc Marten boots, sacked their London ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi - because of a UK ad campaign that shows retouched images of dead icons sporting the steel-toed boots in heaven. The ad agency claimed using Sid Vicious, Kurt Cobain, Joey Ramone and Joe Strummer was a tribute. Airwair didn't buy it.
Shock Goes Country, Digital
Shock Records has launched Shock Country, to focus on its international country signings (Dwight Yoakam, Steve Earle, Gillian Welch) and push further into the Australian scene. Aside from Felicity Urquhart, Tania Kernaghan, Travis Sinclair and Paul Costa, Shock has signed Bec Willis, Corrina Steel, Mike Brady, Jayne Denham and Markus Meier. Shock also has done a deal with
San Francisco based digital distributor and marketer IODA to access its 350 digital retailers, mobile outlets and subscription services.
Bambamuzik Launched
Sydney DJ/production team Tom Piper and Elroy have launched an electronica music label bambamMuzik. See www.bambammuzik.com
Channel [V] Metal Show
Channel [V] this week launched a new music show dedicated to heavy metal. 'Metal On V' features new releases, live performance and flashbacks. It screens Tuesday and Thursdays at 1.30am.
DIG Survey
An online survey conducted by dig digital radio of its users discovered that 4% increase in listeners returning to the site on an almost daily basis from the first survey in June 2003; 22% increase in people listening more than 6 hours per week; 94% rated the music good to great; 66% are male, 60% are in the 40-54 age group.
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