New Signings & Team-Ups: June 7

Ennio Morricone signs world deal with Decca

At 87, legendary composer Ennio Morricone is still ticking off his boxes. Earlier this year he won his first Oscar, for his score for Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful Eight. Now he’s signed to Decca Records. First release, out in October, is Morricone 60. He teams with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra for new renditions of highlights from his 60-year career. These include tracks from movies including The Good The Bad And The Ugly, The Mission, Once Upon A Time In The West, Quemada, Once Upon a Time in America and The Hateful Eight.

Says Morricone, “It’s been a wonderful experience to be able to conduct my scores and to record these with the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. The quality of their performance of my work is truly outstanding.” Decca in fact released The Hateful Eight soundtrack. But the new deal is a direct one for the master. It coincides with his 60 Years Of Music World Tour, which will take him across the globe, conducting his music with more than 200 musicians and singers on stage.

Multiple booking deals for Tash Sultana

With world dates coming in September, Melbourne instrumentalist and singer songwriter Tash Sultana has signed a number of overseas booking deals. For North America she will be repped by Tom Windish (Alt J, Lorde, The XX) Jackie Nalpant and Aaron Pinkus at Paradigm/Windish Agency. For Europe and UK, she is with Free Trade Agency under Paul Boswell (The National, Fat Freddy’s Drop).

Sultana heads off to play shows in London, Berlin and Netherlands between September 12 and 18, with US dates following in 2017. She’s also added some extra shows for an 11 date Australian /New Zealand between September 22 to November 11. These are a sequel to a just-completed sold out national run through 123 Agency. New single Notion premieres at radio this week and is released independently worldwide on June 17.

Alex Lahey wins Josh Pyke Partnership grant

Melbourne-based Alex Lahey won the Josh Pyke Partnership grant of $7500 (in conjunction with APRA AMCOS) to further her career. Pyke explained her win: she “had an excellent business plan, a history of achieving results under their own steam, and most importantly of all, a song that I couldn’t get out of my head for days.” She gets mentorship from Pyke, and advice from Wonderlick Entertainment’s Gregg Donovan and Select Music’s Stephen Wade.

Last year’s winner Gordi went on to play South By Southwest in Texas and a deal with Jagjaguwa.

Wild Thing goes in Circles

Melbourne-based touring, bookings and management company Wild Thing Presents has added Melbourne prog-metal outfit Circles to its bookings roster. They join Caligula’s Horse, Jack The Stripper, Chaos Divine, AlithiA, Orsome Welles, Dyssidia and Glass Ocean.

Drummer Dave Hunter commented, “We feel very positive about the team we are building around the band. Having just signed with Bear Parts Music for management and now getting Wild Thing Presents on board for bookings, we can now put all focus into the creative process. We’re all very excited to see what we can achieve together and what the future holds for Circles.” The band tomorrow finish off a tour with Fear Factory in Fremantle. After issuing their debut album Infinitas in late 2013 through UK label Basick Records, the band also toured through Europe.

Sony signs Melbourne’s Valerie

Sony Music Australia’s new signing is Melbourne singer Valerie. She moved from Mauritius (where her dad is a musician and mum runs an entertainment agency) in 2007 to follow music. First single I’ll Be Loving You has received 100,000 Spotify streams, while she has a Saturday residency at Central Lion.

Warner Music gets reunited Busted

The next album from UK multi-platinum band Busted is released here through Warner Music. This is through a new deal signed with East West Records UK. Formed in 2000, the band sold 5 million records worldwide, with four UK #1 singles. They issued two albums Busted (2002) and A Present for Everyone (2003) before breaking up in January 2005.They reunited last year, and just finished a sold-out UK tour which shifted 100,000 tickets in the first hour of sale.

Busted

SoundCloud strikes licensing deals with UMPG, SACEM

On the eve of SoundCloud’s launch of a new French consumer subscription service, the company has entered a licensing deal with Universal Music Publishing International — through SACEM, France’s Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music – covering 33 territories.

SACEM CEO Jean Noël Tronc said the deal “demonstrates SACEM’s commitment to be highly reactive and to provide the proper remuneration of the creators in the digital environment. We are proud to further develop DEAL, our strategic partnership with UMPI. This agreement now allows authors, composers and publishers a better exposure of their works in all type of music.”

SoundCloud founder & CEO Alex Liung said the deal allows SoundCloud to “grow our unique community of more than 12 million creators – established and emerging — heard each month on SoundCloud.”

Australian jazz-rock classic Arena gets re-release

One of the most collectible Australian jazz-rock electro fusion albums, Arena by Arena from 1976, has been re-released on vinyl by Melbourne’s Roundtable and Northside Records, and makes its digital debut on iTunes. The record was made ostensibly to test out the new Crystal Sound Studios in Melbourne by UK-born Gold Coast-based multi-instrumental jazz musician Ted White. Arena was formed with session players Peter Jones, Graham Morgan, Bob Arrowsmith and Charlie Gould.

Initially issued as a limited edition, it has been discovered by vinyl and DJ collectors, particularly the stand-out track The Long One which has also made it on to compilations. Copes of Arena change hands for $250. Now 80 and suffering arthritis, White plays saxophone with The Swing Force Big Band.

CLIPPED Music Video Festival joined by crowdDJ

Australian background music provider Nightlife Music’s interactive entertainment platform crowdDJ has joined the list of presenters at this weekend’s CLIPPED Music Video Festival in Sydney’s The Works in Glebe. It will present The Artistry of Music Video, a Vivid Ideas event. Festivalgoers can explore curated lists via an interactive touch panel to play their favourite clip, or discover work they may not have experienced before.

‘Discovery Lists’ of iconic music videos includes works by now-renowned film directors who got their start in music videos, such as David Fincher, Spike Jonze, Michel Gondry, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro. CLIPPED Festival panellists are also featured front-and-centre, including director Nigel Dick (Guns’ Roses, Cher, Britney Spears).

Festival Director Sam Bright hails crowdDJ is an exciting addition to the CLIPPED Music Video Exhibition. “The level of interest we’ve had in the CLIPPED Music Video Awards program has been amazing – and having crowdDJ bring to the Festival the unique opportunity for audiences to design their own exhibition experience is a world first.” he said.

BEMAC calls on world music acts

BEMAC is calling for submissions from Queensland multicultural and world music artists to be a part of their third CD compilation Echoes. This year the CD will be launched at BIGSOUND, which will also feature a showcase of Queensland multicultural artists. The CD will be used to promote artists across radio and media and at music industry conferences such as BIGSOUND and the Australasian World Music Expo (AWME) in November. Application deadline is July 3.

Garth Brooks moves to WME

America’s top selling country solo artist Garth Brooks signed with William Morris Endeavor Entertainment, repped by Rob Beckham of its Nashville operations. The deal covers music, film, television, books and endorsements. Brooks continues to be managed by Bob Doyle & Associates. Brooks is the top touring artist in country music history, Billboard reported. His current tour, The Garth Brooks World Tour, his first in 13 years, has broken ticket sale records in 35 cities.

Garth Brooks

Calum Scott joins Capitol roster

UK singer-songwriter Calum Scott, a finalist in the 2015 series of Britain’s Got Talent, signed a worldwide deal out of Capitol Records’ US office. His debut single Dancing On My Own was streamed more than 10 million times and spent six weeks in the UK Top 40.

Universal Music Group acquires Fame House

Universal Music Group (UMG) acquired Philadelphia-based digital marketing agency Fame House. Its clients include Eminem, Pearl Jam, Mitchell & Ness and Electric Zoo. Fame House will retain its executives, and expand on its services as an agency for Universal Music as well as third-party clients.

Google uses The Voice contestants

Google signed with The Voice to run a series of 26 ads promoting its app featuring the show’s contestants, Mumbrella revealed. It features people using the app every hour of the day that relate back to the content of the show.