Thursday, September 22, 2005
By Rodel DelfinCMJ GRIDLOCK: As the Big Apple played host to the CMJ Music Marathon last week, the city also had a number of events going on involving N.Y. Fashion Week and a presidential visit to the U.N., which made getting around Manhattan similar to driving down the 405 freeway on a Friday afternoon. Confab revelers complained about not being able to get taxis, as traveling to and from meetings and venues took triple the time it would normally take. And while a number of label folks complained that the festival was not up to par compared to last year, an equal amount of attendees reported that they saw what they wanted to see, had meetings with folks they needed to meet with and the conference overall served its purpose. And, like every year, there were acts that folks were buzzing about. Lots of weasels were out at the Lion’s Den for the Justin Goldberg-managed/Andy Tavel-repped Grace Potter & the Nocturnals. The female-fronted band completed dates with the Dave Matthews Band earlier this month, and they’re selling out thousand-capacity venues on their own. Word is that the group has already met with a number of courting labels. Stay tuned for this one. Meanwhile, here’s our short list of other notable CMJ perfs: Boy Kills Boy, Make Good Your Escape, Silversun Pickups, Spinto Band, The Outline, Nicole Atkins & the Sea, The Royal Highness, The Rakes, Shiny Toy Guns, Billionaire Boys Club, Dragonette, The Cribs and Sahara Hotnights, among others. We’ll keep you posted on any new developments… Lots of chatter going on concerning the consolidation of the Lava Records staff into Atlantic. Insiders share that Lava A&R topper Andy Karp and marketing exec Lee Trink will probably stay and take on expanded roles at Atlantic… On the pub tip, we hear that Island Records’ new signing Under the Influence of Giants have several pubcos courting the band. Will the group sign with a publisher that looks to be an emerging player in the pub world?… NEW MODEL DEALS: Lots of coverage in the mainstream press on new-artist deals of late. Publications such as The Wall Street Journal and the L.A. Times, among others, have done extensive articles on EMI’s recent deal with Korn, as well as Interscope’s arrangement with the Pussycat Dolls. In the case of the Dolls and their reported seven-figure monthly revenue at the troupe’s Las Vegas lounge, it seems to be a big win for Interscope, which participates in the troupe’s income. Will this pave the way for more artist/label partnerships that involve multiple revenue participation by record companies? And will labels actually pony the proper advances and create internal changes to make such deals attractive to new artists? Inquiring minds want to know… BUZZIN’: Alex Johnson, Shocknina and Jordis Unga… Hit me up: [email protected]
UPCOMING SHOWS:
STARS OF TRACK & FIELD Mon., Sept. 26, 9:00 p.m., Viper Room
GRACE POTTER & THE NOCTURNALS Fri., Sept. 30, TBD, House of Blues, Chicago
THE OUTLINE Sun., Oct. 2, 7:30 p.m., Knitting Factory
