Industrial Strength May 2

Image: Amy Shark, who cleaned up at the Gold Coast Music Awards

RETAILERS GRIZZLE AS LABELS GRAB CREDIT FOR GROWTH

Last when IFPI released figures that the global recorded music market had grown by 5.9% and the best figures for 20 years, it made the point that the growth was due to record labels’ investment in new artists and new digital systems.

Retailers were not that impressed. Kim Bayley, CEO of the UK’s Entertainment Retailers Association, made the point on its website, “The IFPI numbers amount to a ringing endorsement of the ability of digital services and retailers to broaden the market for music and generate more revenue for artists and songwriters.

“It is significant that the two fastest growing sectors of the music industry – streaming and vinyl records – are both the result of the innovation, market insight and investment of retailers and digital services.”

TWO WINS FOR AMY SHARK AT GOLD COAST AWARDS

The Gold Coast’s biggest music export at the moment, Amy Shark, took out two wins at the third Gold Coast Music Awards at Surfers Beach – artist of the year, andAdore (which this week was certified double Platinum) took song of the year.

Other winners were Youth’s Lane-Harry x Ike Campbell (album), Common Crows’ The Black Swamp (video, directed by Jayden Stevens), Tesla Coils (breakout artist), Being Jane Lane (people’s choice), Blues On Broadbeach (event) and Elsewhere (venue).

CENTRAL STATION RECORDS BOOK COMING

Coming on June 1 is a book Music Wars (The Sound of The Underground) by Rell Hannah. It’s the story of Central Station Records and the rise of the electronic dance music scene in Australia and NZ.

Founded in the 1970s by Giuseppe (Jo) Palumbo and Morgan Williams, Central Station grew from a tiny Melbourne store to a national dance music brand, with stores in major cities, busy mail-order and export operations, record labels and streetwear lines.

The two faced legal threats, supply embargoes and intimidation tactics but survived as EDM exploded. Over 50 leading DJs, producers and entrepreneurial creatives were interviewed. Expect news of a CD and club tour to accompany the tome.

VOTING OPENS FOR AIR AWARDS

Voting has opened until May 10 for the 11^th AIR Awards, which will be held on Thursday July 27 at the Queen’s Theatre, Adelaide.

NT SONG OF THE YEAR

Entries for the 2017 NT Song of the Year Awards close on Friday May 27, with the winners announced Saturday July 8. Judges will be announced in the next few weeks.

Set up in 2011 by Music NT to recognise the Territory’s talents, categories include Rock, Heavy, Electronic/Dance, Folk, Country, Urban and Hip Hop, Blues and Roots, Pop, and Youth. Special awards categories include the People’s Choice Award and the Overall NT Song of the Year Award.

Last year’s major winner Dave Crowe aka Resin Moon says that his win not only opened doors nationally but also “was amazing for my confidence as a songwriter”.

STEVENS, EXES, JOIN ART OF MUSIC LIVE! AS IT HEADS TO SELL-OUT

Jon Stevens and All My Exes Live in Texas have joined the bill of Art Of Music Live! at the Studio in the Sydney Opera House this Thursday (May 4).

The event is almost sold out, with the rest of the bill consisting of Neil Finn (flying in specially from NZ), Megan Washington and Jack Carty interpreting iconic Australian songs, with ABC Radio’s James Valentine as MC.

The fundraiser for Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy includes an auction which includes a limited edition Gibson Les Paul Studio in Wine Red finish hand painted by artists Nicholas Harding and Laura Jones and an original artwork by Archibald Prize-winning painter, Guy Maestri. More details at www.artofmusic.com.au.

RATINGS

Nine Network’s The Voice returned last Monday with 1.2 million overnight metro viewers – impressive enough but its lowest ever launch figures. The night after it dropped to 1.1 million and last Wednesday to 1.077 million.

Its demographic was split with the more popular My Kitchen Rules which had its grand finale on Sunday, with 1.19 million to MKR’s 1.48 million. So maybe the music show might see its figures climb without its competition.

60 Minutes which had an interview with The Voice coach Kelly Rowland drew 827,000.

The return of Nine’s Britain Got Talent, right after The Voice on Wednesday, saw 671,000 staying on.

It’ll be interesting to see the impact of the Grammy salute to the Bee Gees, which Nine is screening tomorrow. It celebrates the 40^th anniversary of Saturday Night Fever with performances by Ed Sheeran, Keith Urban, Celine Dion, Stevie Wonder, Demi Lovato, Tori Kelly, Little Big Town and Andra Day.

In America, after its screening last month, the Gibbs’ albums and digital songs sold a total of 83,000 the week after, up 669%, Billboard said. Most downloaded with 7000 was Stayin’ Alive. Four Bee Gees compilations high-tailed it back into the Hot 200.

RECLINK CUP THEME ADAPTS GO-BETWEENS CLASSIC

The theme for this year’s Reclink Community Cup is inspired by The Go-Betweens’ Streets Of Your Town which each of the five cities where the charity football game is played, will celebrate in its own style.

It kicks off in Melbourne on Sunday June 25 in its new home of Victoria Park. Acts confirmed to play are Spiderbait, The Peep Tempel, Jen Cloher Band, Deborah Conway, Willy Zygier & She Said Zed. Pre-match kids’ entertainment is courtesy Murray Wiggle and Wally Meanie’s Bubblegum Machine.

The other games, all on Sundays, are at Adelaide Norwood Oval (July 16), Brisbane’s Leyshon Park (July 30), Sydney’s Henson Park (August 6), Hobart’s Queenborough Oval (August 20) and Fremantle Oval in Perth (September 3).

Funds raised through the Community Cup support Reclink Australia’s work with disadvantaged communities across Australia.

Its CEO John Ballis said, “This year’s theme is all about community, the importance of social inclusion, celebrating diversity and community belonging. After all, the streets of your town are the streets of our town.”

SILVER SCROLLS MOVE

As tipped by TMN earlier this year, APRA New Zealand’s prestigious songwriting competition, the Silver Scrolls, is this year heading to Dunedin for the first time.

“There are more songwriters in Dunedin per capita than any other city in the country, so it’s time we shared this celebration with them,” said APRA NZ’S Anthony Healey. 500 guests will gather at the Dunedin Town Hall on September 28.

WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK

There’s a distinct link in Australia between daily listening to radio and being employed, according to a new study by Roy Morgan Research. 41% of full time employed listen to radio daily, ahead of retirees (40%, and part-time workers (35%).

The figure drops for those without a job: 29% of those on “home duties” and “don’t work”, 27% of those unemployed and looking for work, and 23% of non-working students.

Those in the job force spend 147 minutes listening on an average weekday while it’s 114 minutes for the unemployed.

EMINEM’S RAP BATTLE WITH NZ GOVERNMENT

The trial between Eminem and New Zealand ruling National Party began yesterday in the Wellington High Court, over its use of a soundalike of his classic hitLose Yourself during its 2014 election campaign.

The US rapper’s Detroit-based publishers Eight Mile Style LLC and Martin Affiliated LLC initiated action in September 2014, and want damages for copyright infringement.

The National Party has always maintained that it licensed the track from an Australian production company. The publishers’ lawyer told the court yesterday he had email evidence that the Nats were nervous their ad song sounded too close to Em’s.

Eminem himself will not attend the NZ hearing, but he was apparently facing court in Mackay, Queensland, for punching a stranger in the face without warning, jumping in front of cars, screaming abuse at drivers and belting the bejesus out of a game machine in a fish shop. At least, Eminem is who 34-year-old Jay William Blackford claimed to be when cops arrested him.

STU HUNTER GETS FIVE NOMINATIONS IN JAZZ AWARDS

Melbourne jazz pianist and composer Stu Hunter has been nominated in five categories of the 2017 Jazz Bell Awards. His highly acclaimed The Migration from last year is up for best jazz vocal album, best produced album and best jazz song while his outfit is in the Best Australian Jazz Ensemble category.

The Migration, made while he built his recording studio, is the third of his jazz suites, and the first to feature lyrics (sung by Katie Noonan and Tina Harrod). The title came from partly a comment on how immigration enriched Australia’s culture, and partly a comment on his turning away from the Christian faith he was brought up in.

VALE CHARLES LUMSDEN

Charles ‘Chas’ Lumsden was one of Adelaide’s popular radio presenters of the ‘60s, commanding a large audience alongside names as Jim Slade and Bob Francis while he popularised the British Beat movement. He also worked in Melbourne, Launceston and Queensland, spending his final years on the Sunshine Coast. He was 77.

NICK CAVE JOINS ANTI-SUICIDE CAMPAIGN

Nick Cavehas thrown his weight behind a GoFundMe campaign for an app to help suicidal Indigenous Australians.

He said, “With Aboriginal people committing suicide on an unprecedented scale, a group of elders are creating an app based on ceremony story and law. Join them in fighting for lives of young Aboriginal people and let’s show Aboriginal Australia we believe in them.”

The campaign at https://www.gofundme.com/kurdiji has a target of $280,000 and, as of last week, raised $45,000.

HOSPITAL USES MUSIC FOR MENTAL HEALTH

Recognising the success of music therapy in assisting with recovery, the Royal Melbourne Hospital is celebrating its Live Music is Good for You festival for the eighth year.

Hundreds of school students will roam the hospital corridors playing music. They will also attend workshops on the role of music in their own health and wellbeing.

The RMH’s music therapy program helps patients who have been debilitated by illness, injury or trauma. With research showing that music triggers circuits in the brain that deal with empathy, trust and cooperation, music therapy is used to help patients deal with stress, discomfort, pain and other symptoms.

AND A FEW OTHER THINGS

• Ariana Grande’s first Sydney show – held at the 9000-seat ICC Theatre – sold out in ten seconds. A second was announced, but distressed fans angrily questioned the choice of such a small venue while Melbourne gets an arena show at Rod Laver.
• Regional tour Groovin’ The Moo’s new SA site Wayville Showground faced teething problems, with queues for ATMs and bars doing the long stretch. But a good day was had by all, including a couple getting engaged during Thundamentals’ set, and only 21 punters out of the 17,000 strong crowd getting thrown out for bad behaviour,
• ABC podcast series The Real Thing uncovered the identity of the person delivering that r-r-rage scream at the beginning of the show of the same name. It was US-born, Australian-based singer and actress Deni Gordon, who recalled she was in the ABC studios one day when someone trooped in looking for someone to do a scream. It took less than ten minutes, she got paid $40, and she never thought about it again.
• Jimmy Barnes’ Working Class Boy and Sydney singer-songwriter Holly Throsby’s Goodwood are nominated in various categories for the Australian Book Industry Awards on May 25.
• “I mean COME ON GUYS – at least put some effort in” – that was Kevin Parker’s response when he discovered that asong used in a Chinese ad for a blueberry milk drink was not a million miles away from Tame Impala’s track The Less I Know The Better. Parker, who some years ago uncovered payment discrepancies by Modular Recordings and has had a little trouble with soundalike accusations in the past himself, has now tagged Impala’s publisher Sony ATV with the hashtag #Lawsuit and added ‘now it’s my turn’.
• During Eddie Vedder’s headlining set at Saturday night’s Hot Stove Cool Music show in Boston to help urban youth, Belly’s Tanya Donnelly came out for a rendition of Split Enz’s History Never Repeats.
• Brisbane trio The Goon Sax played their farewell show in their hometown last weekend before relocating to Europe. Louis Foster is to reside in Berlin (he knows the language as his violinist mum Karin Bäumler is German; she met his dad Robert Forster there in the ‘70s) while Riley Jones and James Harrison head to England where they have relatives.
• In a team-up with car brand Hyundai, every caller put through to The Kyle and Jackie O Show on KIIS 1065 Sydney on Friday May 19 gets a i30 model car.
• Steve Kilbey of The Church returned to his hometown Canberra to perform Under The Milky Way with the 400-strong Sydney Flash Mob Choir at the City Recital Hall. Not too many Church fans would have caught it though: it was at 8 am. Kilbey is good buddies with conductor George Ellis.
• Darryl-Mathew Suasua of NZ’s Radio Flava, while on air, called his girlfriend of six years Lacey to apologise he hadn’t got her anything for their anniversary the day before. He asked her to open the bottom drawer of a desk she was at and open up a purple box tied with purple ribbon. When she opened up the ring inside, he proposed.