Industrial Strength: November 11

11 November 2010

by Christie Eliezer

MUSICAL CHAIRS

Universal CFO departing

Speculation is that Universal Music Group's vice chairman and CFO, Nick Henny, is exiting after ten years, to be replaced by Boyd Muir’s London-based International CFO. It said to be the first move of a complete restructure by new co-CEO Lucian Grainge.

Johnstone at MCM media

MCM media appointed Michael Johnstone to the newly created position of Head of Television and Events, to grow and diversify these divisions. Johnstone, the most recent CEO of digital outdoor media company, VenueMedia, also worked at the Nine Network and MTV.

Lyons promoted at CAAMA

Senior Broadcaster Gerry Lyons is the new Station Manager at Alice Springs-based CAAMA (Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association). He replaces Jim Remedio who held the role for six years.

McIlroy exits Opera House

After three and a half years as Senior Publicist at the Sydney Opera House, Nathan McIlroy has departed to join Roadshow Films (nathan_mcilroy@roadshow.com.au). His projects are picked up by Siobhan Waterhouse who can be contacted on (02) 9250 7596 or at swaterhouse@sydneyoperahouse.com.

Rampling heads to Nine

Ryan Rampling, after seven years as 6PR Perth’s producer of its breakfast and morning shifts, is now Chief of Staff in Nine Network’s newsroom.

Maloney quits Musicoz

In a statement, Pat Maloney revealed that he officially resigned from Brisbane company Musicoz on August 30. Maloney founded Musicoz, which runs the annual competition of that name, among other projects, ten years ago.

King on Fringe board

Cathie King, general manager at CPR Communications and Public Relations, has joined the board of the Adelaide Fringe.

Live Nation shuffles executives

Live Nation (US) parted with Jason Garner, the head of its concert business. Also in the concert business, Mark Campana and Bob Roux were promoted to Presidents for the North and South regions in North America, respectively. Live Nation's North American touring division has promoted Rick Franks to President of North America, talent/touring. Ron Bension, President of Tickets Now, is named CEO of Live Nation's House of Blues and club division.

Arts Victoria’s Hutchinson stays on

The Melbourne Age revealed that Arts Victoria’s Director Penny Hutchinson was reappointed for a further five years some months ago— despite the fact a new government could come in this month after the Victorian elections and, said the Age, “despite her role in last year's disastrous opening of the Melbourne Recital Centre.”

NEW SIGNINGS

Handsome, Civil Society, merge

Tour promoters Handsome Tours and Civil Society have merged under the Handsome Tours name. Ten-year-old Handsome Tours’ Directors Mat Everett and Dave Chatfield and five-year-old Civil Society’s Directors Ashley Sellers and Colin Daniels will be the directors of the new business. All staff from both companies will continue to work for the new Handsome Tours out of their Sydney and Melbourne premises.

Video Hits joins the DEN

In a new distribution agreement, Ten’s music video program Video Hits will use MCM media’s propriety online streaming service, Digital Entertainment Network (DEN) to deliver video content to Video Hits audiences online. The Video Hits website was recently re-launched to provide free on-demand content in addition to DEN. In the last year, ending September 30, the DEN saw an increase in monthly video streams of 39 per cent, or 651,000, and 64 million total audio and video streams.

Queen shift to Universal

Queen are the latest of EMI’s supergroups to leave the troubled label, exiting after 40 years and to sign with Universal Music. Expect remastered versions of Queen albums through 2011.

MTV and Austereo launch simulcast Hot30 show

MTV Hits and Austereo’s Today Network will from December 5 simulcast a weekly music show fronted by MTV presenter Erin McNaught and Today Network DJ Matty Acton. It will run on Sundays from 6-8.30pm, and also be made available online and on mobile.

DMG sets up Radio Free for Virgin Mobile

DMG Radio and one of its biggest advertisers, Virgin Mobile, have taken brand integration one step further, The Australian reported. They’ve set up a streaming radio station Radio Free, which DMG will produce. It will be hosted on the Virgin Members' Lounge website and FixPlay on Ninemsn. The deal is for an initial 12 months. DMG also created an iPhone app with 1200 tracks for the service which can be pre-loaded on phones sold at Virgin stores.

Blasko launches signature Biddy Bag

Sarah Blasko has teamed with Brisbane social enterprise firm Biddy Bags to create a signature bag to be sold on its website. The company uses seven middle aged women to design and handcraft accessories and home wares, each getting the lion’s share of profits from sales. Biddy Bag’s creator Samantha Jockel approached Blasko about being the company’s patron in 2008. The singer’s signature bag, designed by Blasko, is an evening red or white clutch, with a handy wrist strap and detachable flower brooch.

WAM, one40william, team up

Perth-based West Australian Music Industry Association (WAM) and building complex one40william teamed up to present a series of free shows around Perth until December 26. The shows, featuring acts like Mister & Sunbird, Bartlett Brothers and Snowbros will be filmed by film makers Cut and Paste and posted on YouTube via www.one40william.com.au. Located above the Perth Underground station, one40william comprises three office towers above two levels of retail, dining and entertainment.

Speak N Spell marks time

Speak N Spell signed New Zealand folk pop band Dear Time’s Waste, to release their debut Spells on November 26. The band was formed by Claire Duncan in Auckland.

Get that Hive

Space Enterprises inked a further two DVD distribution deals for pre-school show The Hive. Beyond will handle Australia and NZ, while Novy Disc will distribute a Russian language version in Russia, Georgia and CIS. ITV will produce the DVDs.

LIFELINES

Married: Megan Reeder, Secret Service Public Relations Director, and Ross Hope, APRA staffer and Disco Nap frontman, after a five year relationship.

Married: R&B singer Jade MacRae and hip hop artist Phrase at the botanical gardens in St. Kilda, Melbourne. The couple then had a bash a Elwood Sailing Club where the two performed for guests, as did best man Daniel Merriweather.

Dating: Arriving at the ARIAs red carpet in hippy chic clothes, Angus Stone and actress Isabel Lucas confirmed they were stepping out. Stone wore a feather in his hair from a dead kookaburra that he and Lucas found on the side of the road and gave a proper burial.

Born: By the time you read this, INXS drummer Jon Farriss and wife Kerry should have had their second child.

Jailed: Former bouncer at the Byron Bay’s Great Northern Hotel, Nicholas Sharp, 27, was in custody after a jury found him guilty of causing grievous bodily harm. The Lismore District Court heard that a brawl between Sharp and his friends Dallas Arnold and Nathan Spratt after the latter apparently made a “sexy dress” comment about Sharp’s girlfriend. Witnesses said Sharp stomped on Arnold as he lay unconscious on the ground. Arnold was in a coma in the Gold Coast hospital for five days.

In Court: Corey Lappin was banned from entering a licensed premise in the heart of Mackay for three months. The 20-year old sheet metal worker was taking a swing at passers-by outside the Showbar 140.

Farewell: US-based Australian jazz vibraphonist Jack Brokensha died in a Florida hospital, aged 84, of complications from congestive heart failure. Born in Adelaide, at six he joined his percussionist father’s vaudeville act and at 14 was the youngest member of the Adelaide Symphony. Known for a fast, animated style, in the ‘50s he moved to Canada where he founded the Australian Jazz Quartet before migrating to Detroit. He was one of the few white members of the Motown sessions band The Funk Brothers who played on some of the label’s greatest singles in the ‘60s. He later set up his own music production company, recording studio, and jazz club.

Farewell: Pete Jackson, 50, who presented the breakfast shift for the past three years on Paradise FM in Ballina, Northern NSW, died at Lismore Hospital after a brief battle with melanoma cancer. Jackson also did voice-overs at Bay FM.

Farewell: Australian country music pioneer Ian Mackay died after a lengthy battle with cancer. He was instrumental in getting exposure for independent acts through his companies as the ACDC Cassette duplicating company, record labels Outback Music and Southland Music, and his early involvement in the Star Maker Quest.

TRIPPIN'

Did Robin Williams’ very funny appearance at Gold Coast Jupiters' 25th Birthday Gala Dinner cost them $500,000?

Is Ronan Keating planning to spend another year in Australia with his family?

Is successful WA gymnast Daria Joura eying a music career after retiring from the sport?

Were people annoyed with Carmen Electra’s PR antics at the Melbourne Cup: a guest of the Lavazza marquee, she was at the track but was a no-show for the after-party at Trust bar, and also cancelled a Hamish & Andy interview citing exhaustion.

A bit of INXS history goes under the hammer on November 18. Andrew Farriss’ former house in Sydney’s Cottage Point, designed by Luigi Rosselli as a ship, is where Farriss and Michael Hutchence wrote and recorded demos for many INXS hits.

Shane Warne’s five-series Thursday night chat show on Nine is set to begin November 25, has lined up guests as Sting, P!nk, Chris Martin, Mick Jagger and Michael Parkinson reports the Sunday Herald Sun.

Nova’s Merrick Watts won a challenge by his trainer Cameron Davis to swim from South to North Bondi, despite wintry conditions.

An Adelaide production of Jesus Christ Superstar brought in its own physio after “Herod” tore a calf muscle and a “priest” dislocated his knee.

INSIDE TRACK

Nashville-based Aussie guitarist Tommy Emmanuel will be featured on Michael Jackson’s upcoming album Michael, due out December 14. Emmanuel is on the track Much Too Soon. Recommended to Jackson’s people by Keb ‘Mo, Emmanuel recorded his part after Jackson's death in a studio in London, which was delivered to producers by phone and the net. He cut several versions during an eight-hour session.

Singer Shirley Manson has confirmed that the band Garbage have reunited to work on recordings for their fifth album. It’s their first since 2005's Bleed Like Me. Manson worked on a solo album that never saw light of day.

Natalie Bassingthwaighte starts recording her next album this month with Black Eyed Peas’ DJ Poet who jets in from shows in Brazil. Next month, Poet and Aussie model Lucy McIntosh will marry in LA before a celebration in the Maldives.

On the eve of the Gorillaz’s first visit to Australia, Damon Albarn has almost finished recording an album with Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers. It’s an Afrobeat project, with drumming legend Tony Allen and African players.

Jimmy Barnes’ new single Largs Pier Hotel recalls his early days in Adelaide. Which is why for the video, shot in the city’s Sellicks Hill, Barnes rounded up old drinking buddies and a roadie or two for cameo roles.

Not only did Phil Jamieson produce the EP 321 for Port Macquarie band The Foreign Objects, but he’s taking them out on Grinspoon’s next tour.

Stan Walker, already pinching himself when he bought a house in Sydney recently, is now dazed by the reaction to his song Stand Up. It has been picked up by supporters of the All White rugby team, and also for use in two movies — The Chronicles Of Narnia and The Voyage of the Dawn Treader which hit Australian cinemas next month.

Jessica Mauboy is part of the global music lineup for Electronic Arts Inc.’s The Sims 3 for the PlayStation 3 computer entertainment system, Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system, Wii and The Sims 3 Late Night Expansion Pack for PC/MAC. The Sims fans will be treated with a fun version of the single Saturday Night which Mauboy recorded in ‘Simlish’ — an entirely new language which is the official language of The Sims franchise.

NUMBER CRUNCHING

624,000 viewers of the ARIAs, compared to the 1.248 million tuned in for X-Factor on Seven.

62 amount of chart toppers in Australia for RCA, the latest being Ke$ha’s We R Who We R.

7 years, how long it took Bluesfest promoter Peter Noble to get Bob Dylan and BB King to play his festival next year.

$1 million what Christina Aguilera earned for an hour-set at a Halloween party thrown by Californian investment banker Charles Brandes at his home.

$100 what Brisbane radio presenters Jamie Dunn and Ian Calder asked for as a weekly extra that caused 4BC to drop their show.

117 amount of copies Girls Aloud’s Nadine Coyle’s solo single sold on its first day in the UK.

$1.5 million what American mother Jammie Thomas-Rasset of Minnesota must pay a recording industry trade group after her four children illegally downloaded 24 songs. (That’s $62,500 per song).

NEWS

Screen Music Awards: a Chinese dancer, a dead model, gangsters…

The tightening of movie budgets, the consequence of giving away music for promotional purposes and the problem of piracy — these were some of the issues touched on at the Screen Music Awards. Organised by the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and the Australian Guild of Screen Composers, they were held at the BMW Edge in Melbourne on November 9.

Christopher Gordon’s moving music for Mao’s Last Dancer — based on the true story of Chinese ballet dancer Li Cunxin which was the biggest grossing local film last year raking in US$5 million — took two of the major wins. Up against it for Best Feature Film Score were Beneath Hill 60, Animal Kingdom and The Waiting City. Gordon said working on the project was “a composer’s dream… with a generous budget — and it showed.” With a knowing look at his peers in the audience he added that it helped that director Bruce Beresford was also a knowledgeable music fan.

Writing for the screen is no picnic, according to onstage and video recorded comments from winners and finalists. “It’s exhausting…but I’m proud to say it’s my occupation,” Jay Stewart admitted. Caitlin Yeo “cried every day” while working on the nominated The Long Goodbye. Michael Yezerski had to start recording in India the score for The Waiting City while it was still being filmed. Guy Gross had to push for the winning song Hold Me to be included in the funeral sequence in A Model Daughter: The Killing of Caroline Byrne.

Hosts Chris Taylor and Andrew Hansen kept things lighthearted, mercilessly sent up the ARIA awards (“we made our de-butt, sorry, Jessica Mauboy wrote our script”), insisted that the Yakadi performance by senior elder Uncle Stan Yarramunua of the Wathauroung tribe “is on John Howard’s ringtone”, sulked when Elliott Wheeler scored a gong (one of them was in a band with him which lasted two weeks “and I’m outraged he’s now winning awards”) and more so when their nominated The War Is Over failed to win.

Guest presenters included Justine Clarke, Noni Hazlehurst and Bob Franklin. Two of the winners remembered the late sound engineer Simon Leadley. Paul Grabowsky and Ensemble performed excerpts for the film score nominations. They also backed Ash Grunwald when he performed the blues Mojo with his own turntablist. See below for the list of awards and winners.

Best Feature Film Score: Mao’s Last Dancer (Christopher Gordon).

Best Soundtrack Album: Mao’s Last Dancer (Christopher Gordon).

Best Music For A Mini-Series or Telemovie: A Model Daughter: The Killing of Caroline Byrne (Guy Gross).

Best Original Song Composed For The Screen: Hold Me from A Model Daughter: The Killing of Caroline Byrne (Guy Gross).

Best Music For A Television Series or Serial: Underbelly: The Golden Mile (Burkhard Dallwirz).

Best Television Theme: My Place (Roger Mason).

Best Music For An Advertisement: Expedia Housekeeping (Elliott Wheeler).

Best Music For A Documentary: Trishna & Krishna: The Quest For Separate Lives (Nerida Tyson-Chew).

Best Music For A Short Film: The Lost Thing (Michael Yezerski).

Best Music For Children’s Television: Itty Bitty Ditties (Thomas Bettany/ Benjamin Speed).

Most Performed Screen Composer — Australia: Jay Stewart

Most Performed Screen Composer — Overseas: Neil Sutherland.

Two more new festivals announced…

And still those festivals keep a-comin’. New Beginnings is a 2-day camping music festival happening in Lake Macquarie, NSW, on January 15 and 16. Organisers Big Apachee say, “The market is completely saturated with large, corporate events with high ticket & drink prices. We wanted to create an event which is affordable for all.” Of the 80 acts announced so far: Bluejuice, Hook N Sling, The Holidays, DJ Timmy Trumpet and Canyons among others.

Making a bow in Hobart on January 9 is Sounds on the Grounds. The plan is to showcase a different icon each year. The first year is country singer John Williamson. The bill includes Wendy Matthews, Melbourne funk and reggae band Bomba and Tassie country-pop group The Wolfe Brothers.

…while Golden Days makes successful debut

A third new festival, Golden Days, made a “brilliant” debut on November 6 on the Sunshine Coast, according to music director Mark Pico. The weather held out, and the crowd responded to acts like Ash Grunwald, John Steel Singers, Paul Greene, Ashleigh Mannix and hip-hop act Mr Boinkin. Next year he plans to expand the Coolum Beach event to two-days, and incorporate film and art.

Radio revenues up 9% in October

Radio revenues increased by 9% in October to $62.53 million, according to figures from Commercial Radio Australia and sourced by Deloitte. Brisbane led the revenue growth of five capital markets, with a 12.62% rise to $10.19 million. Sydney grew 12.4% to a total of $19.7 million; Melbourne was up 6.89% to $19.09 million; Perth grew by 6.42% to a total of $7.95 million and Adelaide was up 1.86% to a total of $5.5 million.

Certified

Kings Of Leon, whose Come Around Sundown stayed at #1 on the ARIA chart for the second week, went platinum after two weeks. Hilltop Hoods’ Parade of the Dead which debuted at #1 on the ARIA DVD chart went gold in the first week. Short Stack’s single Planets has also gone gold.

Melbourne nightclub owners back Australian Sex Party

There is a blaze of activity as Victoria heads for elections on November 27. The Nightclub Owners Forum (NOF) has begun a campaign on behalf of the Australian Sex Party against the Brumby government which NOF convener Peter Iwaniuk says “has been at war with the hospitality industry. It has raised licence liquor fees by over 1,000% for some venues since 2009, and has attempted to restrict fair trade at every opportunity through botched attempts at lockouts and constant over-regulation.” The Sex Party is simpatico with NOF’s demands — stop demonizing the nightclubs and take action against the violent drunks, restore Liquor Licence fees to 2009 levels, put more cops on the beat in entertainment precincts, run train services for 24 hours on Fridays and Saturdays, regulate the taxi industry better, and provide taxi ranks “with manned security, CCTV, public toilets, water and first aid facilities.”

In the meantime, music photographer Serge Thomann is running as an independent for Albert Park, saying he can do more for the state’s live sector and venues from inside Parliament. Thomann became a Councillor for the City of Port Phillip after becoming a voice for St Kilda’s venues. A concert Vote Serge is held on Wednesday Nov 17 at the Palace, with a huge array of acts including Kate Ceberano, Renee Geyer, Ross Wilson, Paul Grey and Dili Allstars. It has also been turned into a James Freud tribute night, with Freud’s sons’ band Attack of the Mannequins remaining on the bill.

KOFM leads in Newcastle

KOFM lead the ratings in the Nielsen Newcastle Survey with a 19.8% share, followed by NXFM (17.7%) 2HD (12.2%) and NEW FM (6.4%).

15 year old banned from Cairns clubs

A 15-year-old “serial pest” is banned from 14 nightspots in Cairns until she is 19. She is the first to be dealt with by the Cairns City Licensee Safety Association committee since the Cairns Liquor Accord came into effect on October 1. Cairns Liquor Accord officer-in-charge Sgt Peter Fischer told the Cairns Post she was suspected of sneaking into nightclubs with a fake ID.

Wantok label set up for Melanesian, indigenous acts

A new label Wantok Musik, is set up to take the music of Melanesia and indigenous Australia to a wider audience. It is an offshoot of the Melbourne based not-for-profit Wantok Foundation which was set up four years ago to support traditional, contemporary and fusion acts from the Melanesian region. The region includes West Papua, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia and Fiji, among others. Performer and producer David Bridie, from the Wantok board, says that the traditional forms, as well as the modernized take on hip hop, reggae and dub are “very interesting and highly idiosyncratic.” The label came to existence through a grant from America’s philanthropic Christensen Foundation. First releases are from Central Australia’s Frank Yamma, PNG’s George Telek and the soundtrack to Charlie Hill-Smith’s doco on PNG music, Strange Birds In Paradise.

Goodna launches Walk of Fame

The Brisbane suburb of Goodna launched its own Walk Of Fame, an initiative of the Ipswich City Councillor and the Goodna Jacaranda Festival. Rock and roll pioneers Normie Rowe, Lucky Starr, Ian Turpie, Tony Worsley and Denise Drysdale were honoured with a $500 plaque each after they played at the festival last month.

Aussie online advertising expenditure up by 23%

Total online advertising expenditure in Australia posted a record quarter of $571.75 million, according to IAB Australia’s “Online Advertising Expenditure Report, compiled by PWC. This recorded a 23% growth from the same third quarter from 2009. IAB predicts the sector will exceed $2.2 billion for the 2010 calendar year.

AC/DC wins touring award

AC/DC won the Top Boxscore award for its three sellout shows at Sydney's ANZ Stadium at the Billboard Touring Awards in New York. U2 won the Top Tour and Top Draw awards for their 360 World Tour, based on top-grossing and top ticket-selling tours. Metallica picked up the Eventful Fans’ Choice award, as voted by music fans across the U.S.