By Rodel DelfinBRUIN B-BALL BUMOUT: Being a UCLA alum, maybe yours truly was expecting a little too much Monday night. But you have to give the team some props. Most folks didn’t expect them to beat Alabama in the second round, let alone upset Gonzaga, Memphis and LSU to get into the finals. But even though the Bruins lost out to Florida in the NCAA Championship earlier this week, it was gratifying to see UCLA step up in the tournament rounds and once again be considered a serious basketball organization. After all, they do have a glorious history with Coach John Wooden, so there’s a reputation to be maintained. And the last time they made it to the finals (and won the title) was 11 years ago, back when good ol` Fleischer was writing this column. (No, he’s no longer at MP3.com.) The team is young, and Ben Howland has shown that he has the goods to be a great coach, so we’ll have even higher expectations for next season… BIG-MONEY WEASEL DEALS: Buzzers buzzing about several high-profile money signings that are being finalized as we speak. The Scott Bradford-repped/Tim Smith-managed act From First to Last has signed with Andy Slater and Ron Laffitte at Capitol Records. The band’s current Epitaph LP release, Heroine, sold over 33k in its first week. Although early deal talks among suitors involved a non-traditional label arrangement in which the label shared in the band’s other income, this deal was a straight-ahead label signing with a very handsome advance… Meanwhile, lots of chatter going on about singer/songwriter Josh Raden, who is rumored to have inked a high-figure deal with Columbia, as they take him off the market… MySpace.com buzz act Ronnie Day is said to have signed with Epic… The Crush-managed Armor for Sleep has signed with Michael Goldstone at Sire… The Jon Goldwater-managed Braidy have signed to Maverick. Meanwhile, Goldwater’s act Taxi Doll is Top 10 on the Dance chart and is still a label free agent… Expect label folks to be checking out William Tell’s set at the Troubadour in L.A. this week. The former Something Corporate bandmember is BMI’s “Pick of the Month.” … We hear former Columbia A&R VP David Andreone is being courted by a handful of labels and publishers. Will the executive free agent soon be off the market?… Leftwing chief Steven Melrose has several label peeps from across the pond buzzing over his latest acts The Procession and The Blend. Have ya checked them out yet?… Our spies in Sin City are telling us that they’ve been seeing more label scouts popping up to check out a number of local Las Vegas acts that have been building some buzz. In the wake of successful acts such as The Killers and Panic! at the Disco, is the LV becoming the next music-scene hot spot? We’ll keep you posted on a couple of Vegas acts that we keep hearing about. There may be some signing derbies erupting out in the desert in the near future. Stay tuned… BUZZIN’: Embassy, the Photo Atlas and Priscilla Ahn… Hit me up: [email protected]
BUZZ&GIGS:
AUTOVEIN Mon., April 10, TBD, S.I.R., N.Y.
THE NORTH Tue., April 11, 8:00 p.m., Viper Room
INEPT Sat., April 15, 8:00 p.m., Metro, Chicago
