New Irish Pub Fenn O’Berg Opens in East Village… Wait a Second, That’s Not a Pub…That’s a Fennesz, Jim O’Rourke, and Peter Rehberg Collaboration!
By Kid Midnight on Jan 25 2010
The other day in the East Village, Christian Fennesz, Jim O’Rourke, and Peter Rehberg were sitting in a new Irish pub when they realized that it had been eight whole years since their last collaboration (using the moniker Fenn O’Berg) had been released. They also realized that their previous two albums were just live edits and that they’ve never released a proper studio album together.
The guys were practically speechless and decided that this was a major deficit for the musical world-at-large and, after finishing their corned-beef sandwiches, agreed that they would remedy the situation and record a new album together that they would release on vinyl and CD through Editions Mego on March 2. They also decided that the new record would be called In Stereo, and that they would add to the “expected digital madness and sampling” by including guitar, piano, bass, and percussion.
Here is the tracklist that the boys decided on and, yes, the “parts” are purposely jumbled around:
In Stereo:
01. Part III
02. Part IV
03. Part V
04. Part I
05. Part VII
06. Part VI
07. Part II *
* vinyl only
Franz Ferdinand Angry At Label for McDonald’s Ad: “I’d rather eat a cow-pat on a bun than a bloody McDonalds.”
By A Chugg on Jan 25 2010
Because of unapproved usage of a Franz Ferdinand song for the website latenitemcdonalds.com, a ‘twat’ at Sony gets reemed out by Franz Ferdinand singer and author of Sound Bites (a popular food and travel book), Alex Kapranos. His twitter account reads:
Dirty bastards. Stupid arrogant motherfucking pig-brained arseholes. I’d rather eat a cow-pat on a bun than a bloody McDonalds.
Later, Kapranos said that he doesnt hate MickeyDeez, but he does consider them a “psychopathic corporation” and has similar feelings towards Sony because of their flavorless usage of the Franz Ferdinand song.
Another tweet mentions that he does have a soft-spot for fast food:
I’m just pissed off because I had a sponsorship deal with White Castle on the cards which is now totally scuppered…I was going to get a lifetime supply of those cute (much tastier than McD) burgers and they were going to open a Dennistoun franchise.
Epic is Franz Ferdinand’s American label, and it is under the greater umbrella of Sony (as are Columbia, Arista, J Records, Jive, and many others). Domino, the band’s UK label, knew nothing of the usage and are equally pissed off.
RIAA Victim’s $1.92 Million Fine Reduced to $54,000
By Aaron Norman on Jan 25 2010
The weirdness continues as Jammie Thomas-Rasset’s music copyright infringement fines are lowered by Judge Michael Davis. Thomas was the first individual to be tried (Capitol v. Thomas) before a jury in a file-sharing copyright lawsuit by major record labels, with the original case taking place in 2007 for illegally downloading 24 songs.
The damages of that original case came to $222,000 but Thomas was retried in 2009 due to an error in jury instructions. The second trial brought the damages up to a bloated $1,920,000—obviously the RIAA was giving the jury instructions this time around.
Ms. Thomas appealed against the $2 million damages claim, resulting in Judge Davis’s reassessment saying, “It was the jury’s province to determine the award… and this Court has merely reduced that award to the maximum amount that is no longer monstrous and shocking.” That new award was set at a still-shocking $54,000, and the RIAA was given a week by the court to challenge that reduced verdict.
The ultimate artifice in all of this comes from the announcement that any damages awarded to the RIAA will not go to the artists whose music was downloaded, but instead to more anti-piracy campaigns; a final “fuck you” to consumers and musicians across the US.
For those interested in the full chronology and details of the case, check out the heavily referenced Wikipedia page.
Tiny Vipers Tour Promises to Be the Saddest Tour Ever
By Nick Fenn on Jan 25 2010
No joke, have you heard Life on Earth (TMT Review)? It sounds like meeting everyone you’ve ever loved and lost over the course of an hour and being fired from your favorite job ever, all rolled into one, or as Tiny Vipers’ MySpace page says, “tssss ts tssssssss boom.”
Tourdates:
03.03.10 - Belfort, France - TBA
03.04.10 - Grenoble, France - Le Ciel
03.07.10 - Den Bosch, Holland - fabrIQ
03.08.10 - Haldern, Germany - Haldern Pop Bar
03.09.10 - Heidelberg, Germany - Deutsch-Amerikanisches Institut
03.10.10 - Berlin, Germany - Sohpiensaele
03.11.10 - Chemnitz, Germany - Weltecho
03.12.10 - Numberg, Germany - K4
03.13.10 - Cologne, Germany - Kultur Bunker Mulheim
