Industrial Strength: October 17
WAS SPILT MILK PILL TESTING SABOTAGED?
Was the sudden axing of pill-testing at Canberra’s Spilt Music “sabotaged” by Federal ministers? This is what advocates, academics and the ACT Greens are claiming, The Canberra Times reported.
The issue is that the festival is to be held on Commonwealth Park, which is Federal land under the authority of the National Capital Authority (NCA).
On September 28, Jeremy Hanson of the Canberra Liberals wrote to federal ministers Fiona Nash and Greg Hunt raising concerns about the test and that “the Minister may give the [NCA] directions in writing”.
According to Gino Vumbaca of the Festivals and Events consortium, whose Safety Testing Advisory Service is funding the trial, extra documents had been requested by the NCA at the last minute.
A team of lawyers worked “around the clock” to get these ready “jumping through every hoop” – not helped, Vumbaca said, by the NCA not returning phone calls about queries of specific documents.
“Less than 24 hours later, we got a call saying we’d missed the deadline we didn’t even know we had.”
Speaking on ABC Radio last Friday morning, NCA Chairman Terry Webber said it was his understanding festival organisers made the decision and no deadline was set for documents being lodged.
SPILT MILK RESPONDS
Organisers of Spilt Music posted on Facebook: “It is a tough day when something you have advocated for so strongly can’t quite make it over the line.
“Since the ACT Government’s progressive announcement that pill testing would be conducted by STA-SAFE at this year’s Spilt Milk event, we have been awaiting STA-SAFE’s operational plan, associated risk assessment, insurance and legal framework for their trialling of pill testing on federal land.
“With these items not yet received, and Spilt Milk just six weeks away, we had to submit 2017 event operation planning without STA-SAFE’s pill testing to the NCA, the owner of the land on which Spilt Milk takes place.
“We had to do this to ensure everything necessary was in place for the event to take place on the 25th of November.
“Unfortunately, what this means is that pill testing is not able to be trialled at this year’s event.
“We are hugely disappointed as Spilt Milk strongly supports pill testing as a harm minimisation measure, but we would be more disappointed for this hugely complicated and important issue to be handled incorrectly and result in a trial that doesn’t institute change in Australia.
“We know that STA-SAFE has, and will continue to work tirelessly on this important initiative.
“Without their commitment and resilience, this initiative would not have progressed as far as it has in Australia. We hope it can take place in 2018 with just a little bit more time.”
USHER REPLACES SEAL ON THE VOICE?
Reports are that Usher will replace Seal as the fourth mentor on the seventh season of The Voice in Australia. He wouldjoin Delta Goodrem, Kelly Rowland and Boy George.
The story, which first emerged in Woman’s Day, was refuted by Nine Network.
KOBALT FORECASTS $500M REVENUE FOR FY
Kobalt is forecasting full financial year revenue of US$500 million (ending June 2018) after raising a further $14 million from US venture capital fund Section 32.
Its founder Bill Maris joins Kobalt’s board.
The money will be used to expand its technology and staff numbers, with a further 120 staff worldwide to a total to 600.
GASLAMP KILLER GIGS CANCELLED AFTER RAPE ALLEGATIONS
Promoters in the United States and Australia moved swiftly and cut adrift US DJ Gaslamp Killer after allegations of sexual assault four years ago.
A Low End Theory club night he was to appear in as part of the Brooklyn Electronic Music Festival last Friday was axed.
Australia’s The Operatives and Let Them Eat Cake have also cancelled his appearances.
The allegations come from a womanwho tweeted that she and a friend were raped and drugged by the musician in 2013.
Gaslamp Killer aka William Bensussen has denied the allegations, saying that the threesome was consensual.
He said in a statement, which in part reads, “I want it to be known that I would never hurt or endanger a woman.
“I would never drug a woman, and I would never put anyone in a situation where they were not in control, or take anything that they weren’t offering.”
SHARON O’NEILL TO BE INDUCTED INTO NZ HALL OF FAME
New Zealand born singer songwriter Sharon O’Neill, who’s been living in Sydney for 40 years, is to be inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame.
She will be presented with the Legacy Award as part of the 52nd Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards in Auckland next month.
Recorded Music NZ CEO Damian Vaughan said,. “Sharon blazed a trail for women in rock, and it’s only right we take the time to celebrate her career and the impact she had on Kiwi music.”
STUDY: AUSSIES LISTENING LESS TO OWN MUSIC COLLECTIONS
The second Australian Share of Audio study by GfK showed that Australians are becoming less inclined to listening to their own collections of CDs and downloads.
It’s still the second most popular way that Australians consume audio. But it has dropped from 13% a year ago to 12.6%, equating to 25 minutes a day.
Top of the list is live radio. Of the 3 hours and 20 minutes that Australians listen on average to audio content each day, radio makes up 65.3%, or 2 hours: 10 minutes. This is attributed to greater use of radio apps, now 2.4% of listening from 1% a year ago.
At this point, Australians spend six times longer listening to radio than the combined total of music streaming services Spotify, Apple Music and Pandora. These make up 11% of daily listening time (22 minutes), up from 9.2% a year back.
Online music videos via the likes of YouTube made up 3.3%, podcasts were 3.2% and TV music channels were 2.1%.
CMC AWARDS BACK ON COAST
Foxtel’s Country Music Channel Awards return to The Star Gold Coast in March, the second time there for the eight year old event. It will be televised live on March 15, the night before CMC Rocks Queensland stages March 16—18.
SECOND FESTIVAL RECORDS REUNION DRAWS 90
The second Festival Records and Music staff reunion was held earlier this month at West Leagues Club in Ashfield, Sydney. Over 90 attended with some journeying from Melbourne and Adelaide, with 50 apologies due to previous commitments.
Attendees included longest serving manAlan Thompson (41 years) and womanVera Lente (29 years). Everyone took a romp down Memory Lane as Peter Hebbes took on MC duties, Col Joye and Ray Burgess entertained and Garth Porter (Sherbet member turned produce) reminisced.
TOMMY EMMANUEL ANNOUNCES GUITAR RETREAT
Tommy Emmanuel is holding a four-day Australian Guitar Retreat August 15-19 in the Dandenong Ranges of Victoria.
Open to students and aficionados, Emmanuel will be joined at masterclasses, jams and live sets by fellow guitarists Michael Fix, Simon Hosford and Richard Smith.
“We’re going to spend our time immersed in the magic of music,” he says. Full details at theofficial website.
OILS DO A BENEFIT FOR THE OCEANS
Just after the success of their Cairns benefit for the Great Barrier Reef, Midnight Oil are doing another benefit concert as part of their current Australian tour
One For The Oceans is at Fremantle Arts Centre on Sunday October 29 will see them play 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 in its entirety for the first time ever in this country, along with an hour of other Oils classics.
All profits go to various charities that work in the areas of reef protection and climate change including AMCS.org.au.
Opening act is Perth band POW! Negro – who should definitely change their name before they think seriously about entering the U.S. market.
On October 24, Peter Garrett will address the National Press Club in Canberra on “Trashing our crown jewel: The fate of the Great Barrier Reef in the coal age.”
SHEPPARD HEAD BACK TO U.S.
Sheppard are returning to the U.S. for their first dates there in two years, showcasing their new “harder” sound.
It begins on November 14 in San Francisco and winds up on November 27 in Chicago.
The 10 dates also take in Los Angeles, Mexico City, Washington, DC, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Columbus Ohio.
The band opened for Justin Bieber through Australia and New Zealand and toured through Europe with Little Mix in July.
“LOVE IS LOVE”
Universal Music Australia signing Alfie Arcuri has released a song ‘Love Is Love’ in support of the ’Marriage Equality’ campaign.
Arcuri, who won The Voice in 2016, says, “The time has come for our voices to be heard. This is much greater than just marriage, this is about acceptance and human rights.”
He realised how far Australia has come after his grandmother voted yes.
“It was a very emotional moment for me when my nonna voted yes – particularly knowing how much she struggled in the beginning with my sexuality.
“I knew her love for me conquered all and it reminded me that love has no boundaries and the importance of fighting for what you believe in and in your right to love whoever you want.”
HEATH LEDGER INSPIRED PEKING DUK SINGLE
Peking Duk’s new break-up single ‘Let You Down’, featuring Swedish electropop duo Icona Pop, was inspired by a Heath Ledger movie.
The duo says, “It is loosely based off the story in the movie Candy from Heath Ledger’s perspective.
“We honestly just felt like the happy melodies would be far more interesting with a sad story through the lyrics. Weirdly, the story in Candy is far more relatable than it seems on first glance.
“Many people are actually in scenarios or relationships where they know they are bringing the other person down.
“This is the hard part; trying to tell them to leave so you don’t let them down.”
Previous single ‘Fake Magic’, a collaboration with vocalist Aluna Francis of UK duo AlunaGeorge, was yet another platinum certified hit for the duo with over 15 million streams.
PNAU’S CHAMELON’ GOES TRIPLE PLATINUM…
After wrapping up a national tour, electronic trio Pnau saw their anthem ‘Chameleon’ going triple platinum.
It’s a taster of their Changa album, which will be released by etcetc on November 10.
‘Chameleon’ reached #11 in triple j’s Hottest 100, hit the #1 spot on Shazam, reached the top 5 on Spotify, plus No. 1 on the Australian Spotify Viral chart and the top 20 of the Global Spotify Viral chart, surpassing 27 million plays on Spotify to date.
‘Chameleon’ also spent eight weeks at the top of the ARIA Club Chart.
It is up for Best Dance Release and Single of the Year at the ARIA awards.
…AND VANCE JOY’S ‘LAY IT ON ME’ CERTIFIED PLATINUM
Vance Joy’s current single ‘Lay It On Me’ now certified platinum in excess of 70,000 sales by ARIA.
It is his fifth single to go platinum, following ‘Riptide’ (8x platinum), ‘Fire and the Flood’ (3x platinum), ’Georgia’ (2x platinum) and ’Mess Is Mine’ (2x platinum).
‘Lay It On Me’ is up for Best Independent Release at the ARIA awards.
In America, the track topped Billboard’s Adult Alternative Songs Chart for three consecutive weeks, ahead of the likes of U2, The Killers and Beck, and has reached a peak of #5 on the Alternative Songs Chart so far.
Last week he performed the song on Jimmy Kimmel Live! with full band, along with fan favourite ‘Georgia’.
BRISBANE FORBES ST STUDIO OFFERING GRANTS
Brisbane’s Forbes Street Studio Grant, worth $10,000, has opened for applications until October 30. Worth $10,000 it offers recording, a chance to get on a Spotify playlist, and A&R, legal and accounting advice.
IRISH DJ AMONG FOUR TO FACE DARWIN COURT
Irish DJ Stephen Donnelly, 36, was one of four men who faced Darwin Local Court over an alleged “sophisticated syndicate that transported MDMA and cocaine from the United Kingdom to Darwin” over the past 12 months.
None of the four applied for bail and were remanded in custody until December 6.
In another case, a New South Wales District Court sentenced Canadian EDM artist Jordan Mykel Gardner, 27, music promoter Robert Wang, 25, and events management employee Kutiba Senusi, 24, were jailed for between three to four years for acting as drug mules for former Editor of Noisey Canada, Slava Pastuk.
ELEVEN MUSIC ACTS UP FOR AUSTRALIAN LGBTI AWARDS
Among the names in the Music Acts Shortlist for the Australian LGBTI awards are Beccy Cole, Ben Hazelwood, Brandan Maclean, Courtney Act, Greg Gould, Jonathon Welch, Kathleen McGuire, Luke Antony, Monique Brumby, The Veronicas and Troye Sivan.
Over 6,000 people were nominated across 16 categories.
Voting closes on December 31, with winners announced at a red carpet gala dinner on Friday March 2 at The Star, Sydney.
THREE HIGHLIGHTS OF DAREBIN FEAST
Three highlights of Melbourne’s current Darebin Feast take place this week.
The Songwriters’ Award Grand Final is on Thursday October 19 at Northcote Town Hall.
Finalists perform for judges Peter Farnan, Sophie Koh and Kutcha Edwards for a prize package including $2000 cash and studio time.
Mana (Saturday October 21) also at the Northcote Town Hall), is the result of Darebin Council’s AMPLIFY mentoring program which invited early-career female, trans or gender non-conforming music event producers who live, work or study in the city of Darebin to enjoy a leg up in the competitive music industry.
Successful applicant, Daisy Catterall, produced an event celebrating queerness and people of colour, under the mentorship of Bexx D..
The Reservoir Stomp @ Reservoir Bowls Club (Sunday October 22), incarnated as the event’s Closing Party in 2017, is a suburban shindig for the ages featuring acts from The Fauves to Murray Wiggle + Wally Meanie’s Bubblegum Machine featuring members from The Spazzys.
The opening night last week saw Aboriginal band Coloured Stone revisit their 40-year catalogue, with guests as Shane Howard, Kutcha Edwards, Bart Willoughby and Yung Warriors.
It was followed by an after party curated by Hannah Donnelly (Sovereign Trax), featuring an all-female line-up of young Indigenous musicians, including DJ KYAANZ (Willow Beats) and DJ Soju Gang.
STATE OF GRIME
Ticketmaster’s State of Play: Grime report (http://blog.ticketmaster.co.uk/stateofplay/grime.pdf) found that 2017 marked the year that the style found a wider audience than ever before in the UK through radio, YouTube and streaming.
Three out of four people who were interviewed are aware of it, and 43% listen to it either actively or passively when it’s playing in the background.
It is also finding an audience outside the UK.
Study author Mykaell Riley, Head of Music Production and Director for Black Music Research UK, University of Westminster, stated that grime could “provoke the most disruptive cultural transformation of the British music since punk.”
It also called for Metropolitan police to review its 696 form which was introduced in 2005 as a risk assessment for potential violence in clubs.
But critics say it disproportionally targets grime, garage and basement which has a large black and Asian following.
TWICKETS LAUNCHES IN US
Europe-based resale ticket platform Twickets, which has been steadily expanding its presence in Australia since its local appearance this year, has now launched in the U.S.
It’s partnered with Niall Horan of One Direction, Pixies and PVRIS for their shows.
Twickets founder Richard Davies says using the platform has saved fans $20 million in inflated prices and fees for tickets.
AAA RELAUNCH FUND RAISER FOR BERLIN EXCHANGE
Arts Access Australia have relaunched its fund raising to get eight artists with disability travel to Berlin to perform in the 2017 Australia-Berlin Arts Exchange disability arts festival (October 9-20).
They raised almost $5,000 in four weeks but failed to hit their original target of $20,000.
AAA revealed, “Thanks to volunteer efforts in Berlin we have been able to reduce the access bill for Braille, AUSLAN sign language and wheel chair ramps to a more achievable $10,000.
“And even better news, the good folk at Pozible are allowing us to crowdfund for a further 5 weeks to reach that new target of $10,000.”
The campaign is at the Pozible website.
They note that as it’s an all-or-nothing campaign, they’ll get nothing if the $10,000 target is not met.
CLIP IT! RETURNS
Music SA has announced the return of Clip It!, whereby Media Resource Centre (MRC) members to develop and produce a music clip for local Music SA musicians (band or solo artist) and interpret that song in a creative and resourceful way.
ROBERT STIGWOOD BOOK TRACES SUCCESS STORY
Mr Showbiz is the title of a book about SA-born global music entrepreneur Robert Stigwood by historian Stephen Dando-Collins. (Penguin Random House).
It starts as Stigwood struggled at school following his parents’ divorce. His piano lessons were lacklustre but he excelled in football, athletics, and later at the age of 14, on stage.
Unable to pay for an arts degree at university, he later relocated to London where timing, his canny ability to spot opportunities and an acute belief in his judgement saw him become a success.
From booking The Who, he went on to manage the Bee Gees, Cream and Eric Clapton, produced hit movies as Gallipoli, Saturday Night Fever. Tommy and Grease and musicals in the West End and Broadway.
Dando-Collins found that during his research, many of Stigwood’s colleagues insisted on remaining anonymous scared of legal ramifications. He also lost contact with others: in the last decade of his life, he became a recluse and died in January 2016.
MUSICNSW GRANTS ALLOW FOUR ALL-AGES SHOWS
MusicNSW’s second round of its All-Ages Access grant program, with support from the City of Sydney, will see five all-ages shows staged in inner Sydney.
Bad Vibrations Records will stage one at 107, Hardline Media at The Lair, FBi Radio at Oxford Arts Factory, and Century Venues is presenting two at The Lair
Managing Director of MusicNSW Emily Collins says, “These all-ages shows are exactly what Sydney needs right now and with applications covering 18 shows and requesting over $140,000, it’s clear the industry is keen to ensure young people have access to music.”
VALE
The mid-70s explosion in the UK saw cadet journo Iain Shedden playing drums in Scottish bands as The Jolt (who landed a Polydor deal) and Snakes of Shakes, and London-based The Small Hours, before joining The Saints for nine years.
Becoming the national music writer for The Australian (he moved to Sydney in 1992), he expanded his appreciation of musical styles, with his stories coming from the triple perspectives of a working musician, a journalist and a fan.
But speaking at an Adelaide Fuse conference panel, he revealed he still listened to The Stooges at top volume on Sunday mornings.
His writing was at its top form when he was writing about rock’s mavericks (his books included Michael Chugg’s biography) and he employed his gentle dry humour in his weekly not-to-be missed column The Spin Doctor.
Iain Shedden was 60. Cause of death has not been disclosed as yet but he had treatment for throat cancer some years ago. Look out for further tributes in TMN in the coming days.
* British jazz musician Harold Pendleton fought from the 1950s to give the style greater mainstream exposure.
He founded the Marquee club (which in the mid-60s became a rock hangout), the Reading Festival and Entec Sound & Light, promoted 200 shows a year, brought US bluesmen Muddy Waters and Howlin Wolf to the UK for the first time, was President of the National Jazz Foundation and launched Jazz News.
He died late last month at the age of 93.
AND A FEW OTHER THINGS
Discussions are currently and quietly taking place athighest levels for a national strategy to tackle ticket scalping.
Following a spate of accusations against Harvey Weinstein, the word is that a British artist manager who’s been harassing girls for years is about to be exposed.
Robert Comiskey, owner of Queensland’s Sandstone Point Hotel told the ABC he is spending $250,000 in revamping and extending the place so all is ready for the 10,000 expected to attend the Mariah Carey show there next February.
With her sixth studio album Reputation out on November 10, Taylor Swift has been hitting social media to reconnect with fans. 100 UK fans were personally selected to hear a preview, visiting one to deliver a “special package”.
18 year old Melbourne producer Tyron Hapi’s ‘Anyway’ track notched up 1.1 million streams on Spotify in its first 13 days, currently averaging 100,000 streams a day, and added to 122 playlists totalling 5.7 million followers across Spotify, his label Teamwrk Records said,
It was a very relieved Townsville singer songwriter Michelle Plozza who played at her launch show for her Stones EP. The 28-year old almost had to cancel it as he suffered a mini-stroke a few weeks ago during a Queensland/NSW run, the Townsville Bulletin reported. She stopped at Mt Isa to do her laundry and made it to Winton where she was completely paralysed on the right side of her body, The Royal Flying Doctors Service got her back to Townsville where she made a full recovery after a week in hospital. She told the paper that her fear she’d have to cancel the show and other dates made her determined to get better.
Aussie singer songwriters Melanie Horsnell and King Curly’s Steve Appel tomorrow kick off a tour through Europe in Paris. The initial 22 dates cover France, Netherlands, Germany, Ireland, the UK and Scotland until November 18, with three more French shows to be confirmed for November 24-26.
Wollongong band Leadfinger began first European tour last week, covering France, Switzerland and Spain.
Melbourne tribal psychedelic outfit AlithiA’s singer John Rousvanis has to sit out their 29-date Oct/Nov European tour due to an injury. They’ve enlisted Marjana Semkina of Russian chamber-proggers iamthemorning for the run, with Norway’s Leprous and Iceland’s Agent Fresco. They release their second album in early 2018, which was recorded in Greece, with London based producer Daniel Sandor (Thurtson Moore/Sonic Youth, Valerie Jean/Kosheen).
The trial of New Zealand DJs and producers Mark Arona, 40, and Peter John Chambers, 42, has begun in the Tauranga District Court. They face charges that they sexually assaulted and raped an intoxicated woman in a motel room. The pair have denied the allegations, saying the encounter had been consensual.
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