RIP: Liam Maher of Flowered Up

From NME:

Liam Maher the frontman of Flowered Up has died.

Little is known at this point about the singers death, but reports from the band's record label have emerged to confirm the news.

Maher fronted the baggy band Flowered Up in the early 90's who for most, were London's equivalent to bands like Happy Mondays and Inspiral Carpets.

Most notably known for their number 20 single ‘Weekender’, the 12 minute 55 second track was Flowered Up's highest charting single.

- Flowered Up Wikipedia entry

Google to Launch Music Service as Early as Next Week, The Details of Which are Left to Our Imaginations

Once upon a time, creativity could be packaged, marketed, and distributed to loving music fans across the world. CDs were a new technology, and a successful source of revenue. Record Executives and musicians alike became prosperous and all was peaceful in the land. Until the fallow years came. Plucky college students began a quest to not only be music's consumers, but to become its distributors, too. Using the immortal powers of the internet, music could now be shared between internet users and CDs quickly became all but irrelevant.

In a terminally ill industry, music execs felt the burn of their losses. "Help us, oh Lord!!" they cried. And the Lord heard their prayers. The clouds parted and God said… "let there be streaming music services sponsored by select media outlets." Google heard the command and said "how far we have come from being but a lonely search engine! We have satellites and iPhone apps, calendars and Gchat, but let us expand once more! We will create a streaming music service!"

That's right, kids. Google wants a piece of the streaming music pie. They're keeping mum regarding the details of their service, which is rumored to be called either "Google Music," "Google Audio," or "OneBox," but we do know that the service has the cooperation of major labels. A simple Google Music search will supposedly give you a streaming link taken directly from LaLa or iLike. Plenty more details will leak out over the next few days, but it's also reported that the service is launching as soon as next Wednesday.

…And God saw that it was good, etc.

Mika Miko Decide to Break Up

After playing together for six years, Los Angeles’ Mika Miko have decided to call it quits, due to new projects, jobs, relationships, and school. In an interview with The Los Angeles Times, guitarist Michelle Suarez spoke at length about the breakup: “There's no bad blood at all, we're all still really good friends,” said Suarez. “We've just been a band since high school and all of us are ready to move onto different things. We started the band for fun and wanted to end on a positive note.” Mika Miko’s 2009 album, We Be Xuxa (TMT Review), will be their final release.

If you’re still hoping to catch Mika Miko live before they say goodbye forever, they are playing Austin’s Fun Fun Fun Fest November 8, and a final farewell show at The Smell is being planned as well. Suarez also revealed that the group plans on releasing one more 7-inch before they call it a day.

RIP: Vic Mizzy, TV and film composer

From the NY Daily News:

Brooklyn-born songwriter Vic Mizzy, who had a string of No. 1 pop hits and penned the memorable theme songs for the 1960s sitcoms "Green Acres" and "The Addams Family," died Saturday. He was 93.

Mizzy's popular hits included "Pretty Kitty Blue Eyes" and "The Whole World Is Singing My Song," as well as novelty hits like "With a Hey and a Hi and a Ho-Ho-Ho."

Mizzy said he didn't mind if people remember him only for the finger snaps at the start of the "The Addams Family" theme song, according to a statement from his publicist. After all, he said, "Two snaps got me a mansion in Bel Air."

- Vic Mizzy official website
- Vic Mizzy Wikipedia entry

MPAA Fires Three Anti-Piracy Bosses Because they Failed to Protect the Family

Gangland warfare between copyright holders and file-sharers took a twisted bloody turn for the worse on October 16 when the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) turned in on itself and fired three of its anti-piracy bosses. The MPAA’s general counsel, director of worldwide anti-piracy operations, and the deputy director of internet anti-piracy were all lined up in the company’s garage and disposed of with immediate effect (the general counsel, Greg Goeckner, is being thrown out of his 25-story office at the end of the year).

Film industry sources say that the “three were thrown out because the anti-piracy operations of the MPAA were unsatisfactory, and ‘lacked aggressiveness’” or, in other words, for failing to protect the family. In a delightful euphemism, the MPAA’s anti-piracy division will be renamed as ‘content protection’ – just like the way it wants to “silence” isoHunt’s founder Gary Fung.

These latest developments are likely to result in more belligerent moves against file-sharers, with the copyright holders' favored method of “persuading” lawmakers to take more rapacious action.

Brilliant Colors Debut LP To Come Out On Slumberland; Twee Pop One Step Closer To Killing Lady Gaga and Taking Over the Charts

Legendary post-C86 twee pop label Slumberland has been dishin' out some cool jams lately -- most notably The Pains of Being Pure At Heart and Crystal Stilts -- and it shows no slowing down: next up on its list of must-hear up-and-comers is San Francisco's Brilliant Colors, led by Jess Scott and the now-finalized lineup of Diane Anastasio and Michelle Hill (The Slits). After quickly selling out an EP on Make A Mess Records and a 7-inch on Captured Tracks, Scott and crew are ready to introduce themselves to the LP-buying, EP-hatin' crowd with their first full length, Introducing. Recorded in Portland, OR by Mississippi Records' Alex Yusimov, Introducing will fill your ears with a whole mess of fuzzed-out, crunchy pop songs chock full of Rough Trade, early Flying Nun, DIY twee pop love.

Introducing will hit stores on November 3, just in time to finish off your top records of 2009 list.

Introducing tracklist:

1. I Searched
2. Absolutely Anything
3. English Cities
4. Yell In The Air
5. You Say You Want
6. Over There
7. Mythic
8. Short Sleeves At Night
9. Motherland
10. Should I Tell You

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