Remember when Sara Barielles wrote Love Song as a protest to record execs who wanted her to do more ballad-y songs? Well, she’s been trumped by Amanda Palmer, who’s pulled out all the stops in an attempt to get RoadRunner Records to drop her.

OK, so before now, we had no idea who Amanda Palmer was. But she’s got our attention now!

From what I can glean of the situation, RoadRunner records decided that Palmer looked a little chubby in a recent video and wanted to either airbrush the offending belly shots or cut them completely. Amanda explains on her blog. Needless to say, her fanbase mobilized and responded angrily to RoadRunner’s offensive comments with a Rebellyon website featuring messages of support written on people’s bellies.

I was shocked at the attitude of the label bosses, which can best be described as condescending and rude:

a few weeks later i had a meeting with the owner of the label. he said he thought it was a shame that someone as smart and talented as me could not make a commercial record that they could sell. and he thinks that someday i’ll see the light and write some better songs.

And while I’m sure that there are two sides to the story, Palmer paints a compelling picture of an out-of-touch record label “trying to sell pieces of plastic in a digital world”.

In a follow-up blog post, she sings a song to the label trying to convince them to drop her, but apparently they have refused to cancel the contract, despite her having fulfilled her contractual obligations. Apparently they make a decision whether to renew the contract some time in June.

Via The Lefsetz Letter

If, like me, you’ve never really paid much attention to Black Sabbath, now’s your chance to catch up We7.com, the music service I mentioned a few weeks back, are streaming their entire back catalogue on their website.

This is quite awesome, actually, because if you’ve ever really wanted to immerse yourself in a new band’s music, this makes it so easy. You can literally work your way through every Black Sabbath album – from Ozzy through Dio and get a real feel for them.

Just a heads up for any metal fan who’s maybe missed Sabbath. You can start chastising me now for not owning any of their albums…

It’s clearly a slow news day in Celeb-land, as The Sun and The Mirror both regurgitate Robbie Williams quotes from his visit to We Will Rock You the other night.

The Mirror reckon Robbie said he was definitely going to rejoin Take That (a dull rumour that’s been doing the rounds every month since 2005). However, while The Sun’s report agrees with this, it also says that he was dashing back to the studio to record with Mark Ronson.

Now, let’s imagine that you’ve been asked the same question for four years: “Any chance of you rejoining Take That, Rob?” Why not just nod your head and go along with it? “Yeah, yeah. Even though I’m clearly recording a solo album, I’d love nothing more than to hook up with Take That again.”

Don’t you think that he might want to wait and see how well his new album does before committing himself to Take That?

Anyway, with Mark Ronson’s brand of music hitting the overexposure point, will his ‘magic touch’ be effective in rejuvenating Robbie’s career? I don’t think so. His collaboration with the Kaiser Chiefs has sent that particular band packing with a poor-selling third album.

To be honest, I’ve kind of got used to Take That without him and I’m not exactly missing his presence in the charts. But I still have a soft spot for Robbie, and he does have to make a living. Maybe we should have a whip-round, spare him from helping tarmac roads in China again?

NME are reporting that Jason Newsted will rejoin Metallica when the band is inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 4th April.

Newsted left the band in 2001 but had spent 14 years with the band since the death of their original bassist, Cliff Burton. According to the report, the band don’t want politics to mar the ceremony as they did with the Blondie induction in 2006.

"Jason Newsted will be there, and he will be playing with us at one point," guitarist Kirk Hammett said. "We went as a band when Black Sabbath was being inducted, and at that time Blondie was also being inducted that night. And there was so many politics and so much drama that, you know, we collectively said to each other, ‘We don’t want any of that,’ because it kind of, it puts a really bad, sour note on the whole celebration itself."

Having spent so long with the band, it’s great that Newsted can come back and be part of the celebration. After all, he was part of the biggest band in the world as their fame crested and peaked. I think he deserves it, and I’ll be looking out for footage of that performance when it hits the web!

The Hall of Fame induction takes place on 4th April in Cleveland, and the band are to receive their induction from Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Hip-hop kingpin, Timbaland, is suing his record company Blackground Records for allegedly trying to sabotage his career when he moved into producing records.

He moved from being solely a performer to being hugely successful producing records for other artists. However, he claims this isn’t thanks to Blackground. According to TMZ:

In his lawsuit, filed today in Federal District court, Timbaland claims he just got too damn successful as a producer — and the record label couldn’t contain its jealously and hostility for him.

Timbaland alleges Blackground went on a McCarthy-esque search-and-destroy campaign, contacting various record labels and giving them a million reasons why they shouldn’t hire Timbaland to produce songs.

I’m assuming that because Timbaland is selling records by the truckload all over the world that this isn’t about money. It possibly has more to do with reputation and a little payback for the alleged campaign that could have killed off his lucrative career.

There’s an interesting comment by Justin Timberlake on the EW blog where he says he’s not interesting in making new music right now. It’s quite an interesting piece, because JT is clearly not going to pump out albums just because there’s a record company expectation. Or even fan expectation for that matter.

By the sounds of this quote, it’s all about motivation: he doesn’t have any.

Right now, I like the idea that things can just kind of pop up and if they feel right I can do them. Committing to my own sort of project, that’s like, ‘Okay, let me block out two years of my life and do it.’ I was heavily fulfilled with the last one and I always have this thing with myself that if I can’t sleep because I need to do it, then I’m gonna do it. But if I’m not losing sleep over it then…

So, expect to see Timberlake piggybacking on singles by every major hip-hop and R&B star for the foreseeable future. And of course anything by Timbaland.

And just because JT hangs out with all these hip-hoppers, doesn’t mean that’s the only kind of music he listens to: he namechecks Kings Of Leon, Radiohead and The Black Keys’ Attack & Release album (which is an absolute classic).

I wonder if that means he’ll broaden his horizons to do a bit of rock screaming in the future? Who knows, but he’s gone up in my estimation for having some good taste!

I’ve fallen in love with We7.com, the music streaming service. What’s not to like? It’s a free streaming music service that lets you listen to entire albums online.

The only catch is that you get a brief audio advert at the start of each song. Seriously though, it’s no worse than listening to commercial radio, and you get to listen to complete albums.

Lately, I’ve used We7 to listen to albums by Katy Perry, U2 and other chart type stuff. Better still, I discovered a beautiful album by Beth Rowley called Little Dreamer.

Benefits for members

If you’re a member of We7, you gain the ability to create playlists of your favourite music, which you can send to friends or share with friends.

You can also purchase tracks from the We7 store if you’re a member, and sometimes there are free tunes to download too.

In addition, you get a handy reminder email when new albums go online so that you can keep up to date with the latest releases.

Check out the embedded player below for an example of how We7 can work on your web page:

Little Dreamer

Hide advert

Now, I know this review probably sounds a bit gushy and too good to be true, but We7 is a seriously convenient way to listen to music via the web.

I won’t get into the We7 vs BitTorrent debate, other than to say that what you listen to via We7 is legal. You won’t get a nasty letter from the record industry, and your ISP won’t pull the plug on your Internet connection.

It’s probably the best service of its kind that I’ve seen. Almost the record industry version of Amie Street.

Just go and check it out. Let me know if you like it or not.

I read an alarming piece in The Sun today that suggests Radio 1 bosses may be starting to shop around for the next wave of DJs for the station. All this is based on the claim that DJ’s like Chris Moyles and Jo Whiley are too old for the station’s target demographic.

This won’t be welcome news for Moylesy, who’s somewhere on the slopes of Kilimanjaro right now.

Radio 1 aims to pull in fans aged between 15 to 24. But Chris has just turned 35. Many of his production team, who take part in the show, are also in their early thirties.

Mum-of-four Jo Whiley, who hosts a daytime show, is 43, while weekend host Sara Cox is 34.

I suppose because I’m in the over 30 bracket myself, I’m quite satisfied with the DJs at Radio 1. Because on the plus side:

1. DJs like Chris Moyles and Jo Whiley are great for introducing new music. Jo Whiley’s contribution to the music industry over the years has been phenomenal. She’s introduced some exceptional music to the public.
2. With age comes professionalism: Moyles, Scott Mills and Co have branched out to TV appearances and other things. And all of those appearances bring people back to Radio 1.
3. The 15-24 year old demographic seem to be sticking around, despite the age gap between the DJs and listeners.
4. Possible replacements: Reggie Yates and Fearne Cotton? Reggie comes across as a lovely guy, but is exceedingly dull as a DJ. There’s no controversy or fire with Reggie. Fearne has obviously sold her soul to Satan for 24/7 TV coverage. She never seems to be off the telly. Which explains why Reggie presents so much on his own – she’s always got some better gig to be at. Radio 1, please don’t encourage her. Plus, I heard she’s got ITV’s cooties. You don’t want that, do you Radio 1?
5. Would they really be so mean as to put Westwoooood out to pasture? Do they have retirement homes for white gangstas or will he die in a bloody drive-by as he pimps someone’s ride?

However, on the other side, here are some negatives:

1. I’ve heard plenty of people bitch about how Moyles’ show has gone downhill. Certainly, I found myself switching off more as his rants became more egocentric and the banter on the show became irritating. Poor Aled. Likewise Scott Mills, who – nice guy, I’m sure – makes the sound of nails scraping down a blackboard seem like a pleasant auditory experience in comparison with his early evening show.
2. Some of the DJs have been around Radio 1 forever. And they’re obviously comfortable, because there’s no indication that they’re planning to leave. Maybe it’s time to let some fresh blood loose on the prime driving to/from work slots?
3. Radio 1 could really shake things up if they put some of their more radical DJs into the mainstream slots. The station has a number of late night shows that promote different types of music: maybe instead of blasting Alesha Dixon at us every half-hour, they could bring on some DJs to break exciting new music?

I know this is a jumble of ideas. Part of me is a little change resistant (why break a winning formula?), but another part would love Radio 1 to do something completely bold and reinvigorate the format.

Yes, this is where I start harping on about them using their platform to bring real new music (ie, not signed to major labels) to the public. Hell, the really brave heads of the station might even accept a radical drop in listener numbers, just until they established a new format.

What do you think? Are the DJs out of touch, and is it time they moved on to let new talent through?

Look at these six geezers and their oversized branded plane! Who do they think they are, Iron Maiden? Oh, that’s right…they are.

Anyway, Flight 666 is a documentary movie chronicling the band’s world tour and the craziness that surrounds a band on the road.

The tour itself sounds like it was great fun, as the band travelled the globe on their own private plane, piloted by their multitalented lead singer, Bruce Dickinson:

Circumnavigating the globe in just 45 days, the band flew in a specially customised Boeing 757 airliner, piloted by lead singer Bruce Dickinson, with the entire tour crew and 12 tons of music and stage equipment on board, to 23 sold-out stadium and arena shows in Asia, Australia and North, Central and South America. The band played in 13 countries, also landing in Azerbaijan and Papua New Guinea en route for fuel stops, travelling 50,000 miles (70,000 km) and performing to almost half a million fans – a schedule that was only made possible by having their own "magic carpet" which enabled them to go where they wanted with all the key elements of band, crew and equipment on board one plane, christened ED FORCE ONE.

The band’s long-suffering manager, Rod Smallwood describes the movie thusly:

This film is a testament to an extraordinary tour and to our incredible fans all over the world. Seeing it on the big screen will make you feel like you were there on that spectacular journey.

Having never taken the time to catch an Iron Maiden live show, it sounds like an excellent opportunity to catch the movie version instead: you never get to see a rock concert down your local Odeon, do you? Check, check, check out the trailer:

Following the rule that scarcity creates demand, Flight 666 will only be available in cinemas for ONE DAY ONLY!!! (Tuesday 21st April 2009, if you’re interested) It’ll be an awesome global event, with Maiden fans from across the globe sitting down to watch the movie all on one day. How awesome is that?

Is Flight 666 showing in a cinema near you? Visit this page to find out.

Remember, Flight 666 is only being shown in cinemas on 21 April 2009.

As the U2 publicity juggernaut invades every possible pop culture show on the planet, Bono soundbites are becoming unfortunately more frequent. And about as welcome as a dose of gonorrhea.

The latest is what seems to be a back-handed compliment to Coldplay’s Chris Martin. After initially calling him a wanker, Bono went on to praise Martin’s ‘genius’, saying:

Obviously he is a completely dysfunctional character and a cretin but he happens to be a genius melodist and I think up there with Ray Davies and Noel Gallagher and Paul McCartney.

Naturally, a lot of the insults are healthy camaraderie and not sensational at all. After all, U2 and Coldplay are still labelmates, aren’t they?

To my mind, Coldplay always seemed a bit derivative of U2. Not an exact soundalike, but you can hear a clear influence on their sound.

So, following that line of thought, is it fair to say that Bono just gave himself a back-handed compliment?