Manu Chao Speaks Out Against Mexican Government

Last week, french musician Manu Chao was in risk of being deported from Mexico, and went as far as cancelling a performance, after authorities investigated a political comment he made about the 2006 uprising in San Salvador Atenco. While attending the Guadalajara International Film Festival, he told journalists:

“What happened in Atenco was, in some way, state terrorism. [Officials] are saying ‘don’t say a word when we seize your land, because you better watch out, the same thing will happen to you, as happened in Atenco.’”

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Yahoo! Launches Artist Pages Linked To iTunes and YouTube

Tuesday, Yahoo launched “artist pages“, which provide band tour dates, music videos, reviews and connect to Internet radio services like Last.fm and Pandora, as well as YouTube. Now you can have easy access to updated information about your favorite bands through Yahoo’s extensive network. Continue reading...

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The Free Music Debate

The ongoing battle over music licensing and revenue sharing has been producing new ideas, business models and even some contradictory statistics. Free music seems to be on the rise, as major labels supported Google’s free music download service in China last week. But PRS for Music, which criticized Google for trying to pay artists unfairly, reported that UK musicians are doing better than ever, and earned $30 million more from licensing and tours in 2008 than the year before. Continue reading...

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U.S. Senator Proposes Ticket Law Against Resellers

On Sunday, U.S. Senator Charles Schumer proposed a law that would give ticket buyers a two-day waiting period before ticket resellers, like TicketsNow, can buy everything up and raise the prices. After an outburst from fans and artists against fraudulent practices in the resale market, it appears as though the government is responding to consumer worries. Read more...

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Justice Remixes U2’s Get On Your Boots

U2 has requested the services of Gaspard Augé and Xavier de Rosnay, a.k.a. Justice, to remix the lead single, “Get On Your Boots”, off their recent album No Line on the Horizon. Justice has already remixed the likes of Franz Ferdinand, Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears and MGMT, and now U2 is getting the † treatment.

Justice makes good use of supplementary piano tracks and string section, while cutting the beat in half and adding their traditional bass line. The song is practically unrecognizable, with a completely different chord progression and, suddenly, Bono’s singing is tolerable. Listen to the track after the cut, and compare with the original: Continue...

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Noripcord News: EU File Sharing, Music Streaming, Ed O'Brien, Cover Art

The EU make a decision about the "3 Strikes" law, how music streaming is evolving, Ed O'Brien talks about money, and an online Cover Art Exposition. Read the news at Noripcord...

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Diplo’s Mad Decent Partners with Downtown Records

Indie label Mad Decent, created by Philadelphia-based DJ and producer Diplo, has made a partnership deal with another indie, Downtown Records.

Home to artists such as Bonde do Role, Brick Bandits, and DJ Blaqstarr, Mad Decent will join acts like Gnarls Barkley, Justice, Eagles of Death Metal and Santigold at Downtown, which already partners with A-Trak and Kid Sister’s Fool’s Gold Records. Dance music seems to be congregating under the same banner. Continue reading...

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Verizon Sells Mp3s Online

Telecommunications giant Verizon Wireless has announced today that it is adding more than 5 million mp3s to its online media store. The mp3s will be playable on any device, and therefore without digital rights management (DRM) restrictions. Read more...

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Wireless Mics for Guitar Hero and Rock Band 2

The wireless-capable microphones that shipped with Microsoft’s singing video game, Lips, will be compatible with Guitar Hero: Metallica, and Rock Band 2. Being hooked up to a video game console by a short cord impedes many of the more enthusiastic vocalist moves, so singers can revel in this forthcoming freedom. Read more...

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Swedish Anti-Piracy Law Causes Internet Traffic Drop

On Wednesday, a new anti-piracy law was implemented in Sweden that will allow courts to order Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to reveal the identities of suspected file sharers. On its first day, the law provoked a 30 percent drop in the country’s Internet traffic, from 120 gigabits of data passing over the network every second, down to 80Gbps. Continue reading...

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