Denis Kvasov,
the former owner of the highly illegal and devious music downloading
site AllOfMP3.com, may be facing three years in jail and a 15 million
ruble fine. Russian authorities are currently pursuing a
copyright-infringement lawsuit against Kvasov. Read more at Crunchgear.com for the defense (no joke) of why Kvasov shouldn't be prosecuted, and why the site wasn't doing anything illegal until the
U.S. government stepped in. Laugh, chuckle, guffaw, bleeeeeh.
True
story: As a musician I contacted this company personally about two
years ago asking where in the hell they found a copy of my album that
is copyright-protected, licensed and owned by the members of the band
and record label. They responded in a quick email stating, "our rules
don't require us to get your permission or the label's, therefore, we
can sell your music at any rate we choose." I simply replied by telling
him to go f*** himself...in a polite way of course as to keep the arms
race below defcon 2. Unlike the bogus statement made in the quotes
below, I asked specifically to be paid and requested that my band
members and label recieve quarterly statements as well...while being
ripped off.
Basically, one can collect “societies” in Russia and license music to companies without first securing permission from the music's copyright holder or even the artist. It is the artists and/or label's job to ask for the royalties. Ethics anyone?
From Chrunchgear.com:
"A
body known as the Russian Organization for Multimedia and Digital
Systems (ROMS) is one such collecting society. ROMS licensed music to
Allofmp3.com, who in turn gave ROMS a 15% cut of its revenue. Most of
that revenue is paid by ROMS to the copyright holders if, and only if,
they ask to be paid. By asking to be paid, copyright holders must sign
an agreement with ROMS basically acknowledging it as a legitimate
collecting society."
"Another thing to consider is that in
Russia, a CD costs about $3. So Allofmp3.com's prices, to Russians,
were similar to what we Americans pay on iTunes. It just so happened
that Allofmp3.com was able to enjoy a little collateral cash (millions,
actually) from Americans who didn't feel like paying full price for
music. It's not that Allofmp3.com started for the sole purpose of
selling deeply discounted music to Americans -- its main user base was
its own citizens -- it just happened to turn a blind eye to everyone
else from around the world using its service."
Wow.
It's a been a big year for Matt Allen, aka Ice Cream Man. He just hit the 100,000 mark for free ice cream giveaways, has visited nearly every festival in the USA and now he gets pegged by NPR's Day to Day. We couldn't be happier for such a great guy.
A few years back when I started my first music blog I got an email from Matt, not knowing he was "that guy who pulled up in an ice cream truck after local gigs." He politely told me that I needed to get permission for a photo I used that belonged to him. Turns out I had accidently taken an ICM live shot, probably one of Norris' pics, and used it for a feature on my blog. Oops.
Since then we became friends and quickly discovered that we only lived a kick and a push away from each other in Long Beach. What else can I say? The guy has always been supportive and helpful in every way. Learn more about the man, the legend and the frozen treats via the link below.
Listen: Ice Cream Man on National Public Radio
(You need Windows Media Player or Real Player to tap into the audio, who the hell uses Real Player anymore?)
St. Vincent
Marry Me
2007 | Beggars Banquet
Annie Clark, under the moniker St. Vincent, has been getting built up to what I thought might be insurmountable heights over the internet the last couple of months, but Marry Me,
her first full length album, not only climbs the mountain, but gets to
the top and does a little dance. Beautiful is the first word that comes
to mind when trying to describe her music, followed up with whimsical
as she extracts elements of jazz, rock, folk and a little R&B.
There are timeless elements here that show her breadth of talent. Jazzy
pieces such as “What? Me Worry?” are reminiscent of classical Standards
female singers. And tracks like “Human Racing” have a folky- Joni
Mitchell quality to them.
At times though, I feel like I might
be listening to one of the new breeds of female singers by way of the
top 40’s chart when the songs take on a prominent poppier tone. “Paris
is Burning”, for example, shares some similar structures with Jem’s
“24”. “Now, Now”’s use of the child-like backing vocals was a bit too
on the cutesy side for me as well.
Overall, Clark succeeds in
creating a wonderfully accomplished album that is both soothing and
energizing. Her songwriting is charming, quirky, and well worth the
hype.
-Elana Rintala
Sympathy for the Record Industry is looking for a buyer to own and run the label. According to Long Beach-based owner Long Gone John, he's basically grown tired of running the label and is looking to transplant himself in Olympia, Washington. The label has released some pretty outstanding material over the years: the White Stripes, Hole, Sonic Boom, the Von Bondies, the Muffs, Rocket From the Crypt, Roky Erickson, Suicide, the New York Dolls...do I need to go on? He's asking around $650,000 for the whole shebang, and that includes EVERYTHING. Here are some details listed in a recent press release:
-questionable/nebulous rights to nearly 750 releases by over 550 bands
-current distribution deal with foremost U.S. independent distributor with strong international distribution as well
-existing stock modestly estimated at a wholesale value of 1.8 millon dollars
-all master tapes, acetates, stampers and mothers to continue production of titles
-massive personal archive of sympathy rarities (lots of amazing surprises)
-preliminary cover layouts/some original artwork/interesting and valuable artifacts galore
-established web site and vastly lucrative mail order business
Contact John at , serious inquiries only please.
Iron & Wine
Boy with a Coin EP
2007 | Sub Pop
If you're already a fan of Sam Beam's folky and intricate guitar pop then this EP should suit you just fine. "Boy with a Coin" is pulled from the new album, The Shepherd's Dog, and clearly marks its territory as the most optimistic song on this EP, usually a signal of what we can expect from a forthcoming full-length. The beat shuffles and the guitar is playful as tears of pedal steel guitar soar over the rhythm. It's a damn good song, too bad we had to pull it from our "download of the day" section a few weeks back.
The b-sides "Carried Home" and "Kingdom of the Animals" are nice little songs to have in your collection, especially the latter. "Kingdom" is more of a sing-along ballad with pretty layers of piano and pedal steel guitar uplifting Beam's hopeful and clean delivery. The song picks up and dives head-first into vaudville pop, like you just walked into a saloon. "Carried Home" is very depressing and "historic" sounding. A lonely, plucked guitar leads Sam Beam's saddening vocals depicting the reality and death of a soldier, the song even sounds like a death march from the Civil War.
Sam Beam once again taps into your soul with delicate folk music that feels just right, never over-the-top or obvious. This is a great introduction for what will probably be another amazing Iron & Wine album come September.
-Scott McDonald
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