Search Results for: european

While being well-prepared is almost always advised for a young band in the studio, spontaneous strokes of creativity are usually the moments the musicians remember best. Of the 13 songs that comprise Yellowcard’s latest album, Ocean Avenue, the band had a dozen of them hashed out beforehand. But while knee-deep in recording, the group stumbled across the riff that became the foundation for “Only One,” which is slated to be the album’s third single. “We discovered a riff for it by accident,” singer Ryan Key said. “We were testing something else out and just tracked it right away. We then… Read more »

The European Union launched a probe Monday into 16 national organizations that collect royalties for composers and songwriters, charging that their system for licensing music is hampering the rollout of Internet downloading services across Europe. Record companies in Europe say they are willing to license downloads on a pan-European basis, but the royalty-collecting societies insist on licensing music authors’ work country by country, the way they do for concerts, radio and compact discs. In its statement of objections, the EU’s trustbuster said a preliminary assessment found the royalties societies’ cross-licensing arrangements are extending the organizations’ monopolies onto the Internet. Such… Read more »

The pioneering rock supergroup Yes- currently celebrating their 35th anniversary – is en route with acoast-to-coast North American spring 2004 itinerary that launched April 15 andruns through mid-May. The historic arena tour – in the grand scale of pastYes excursions – presents the band’s formidable “classic” line-up of 1969co-founders Jon Anderson and Chris Squire, along with Rick Wakeman, SteveHowe, and Alan White, all three of whom started with Yes in the very early’70s. The three-hour 35th anniversary shows bring to life essential Yes songsfrom throughout the visionary prog-rock icons’ extraordinary career, as wellas the brand new composition, “Show Me.” The… Read more »

As Britney Spears begins her European tour Monday in London, the pop singer can count on selling more than $10 million worth of concert souvenirs like baby-doll shirts and posters during the five-week trek. About half of that sum will end up in her pocket, says Dell Furano, CEO of Signatures Network Inc., a merchandising and licensing firm that handles Spears products. In the 25 North American dates of her Onyx Hotel tour, Spears’ merchandise sales averaged $150,000-$170,000 a night, reaching a high of $180,000 during the Los Angeles show March 8, according Furano. Her career merchandise sales passed the… Read more »

Police have arrested a man in Seattle for allegedly stalking Avril Lavigne. According to the Associated Press, 30-year-old James Speedy was taken into custody in the Seattle suburb of Lynnwood and was taken to Lynnwood County jail after police searched his home last Wednesday (April 7). Police in Lynnwood have been investigating the case since Canadian police informed them that harassing letters and emails were being sent to Lavigne last year. The exact content of those letters and emails hasn’t been revealed, but police have told the press that they were creepy enough to freak Lavigne out. Coincidentally, the same… Read more »

A legal battle between The Beatles’ record label Apple Corps and Apple Computer, which is to be heard in the High Court in London, is the latest move in a trademark dispute spanning 24 years. Their claims to the “Apple” name and logo will be heard in an English court, rather than in the US as requested by the computer firm. The latest clash came after Apple Corps claimed Apple Computer’s iTunes music store – which enables users to download songs to a computer or portable player such as the iPod – breaches an agreement between the two firms. But… Read more »

As Britney Spears readies for her tour, she’s making sure there’s plenty of her to go around while fans wait for her to come around. The singer’s about to release a DVD that’ll include pre-tour concert footage as well as bonus tracks. Two new songs are found on the CD portion of Spears’ “In the Zone” DVD, due March 23. The first is called “Don’t Hang Up,” and it finds the singer pleading on the phone for her lover to keep her satisfied long-distance. The second song is the P. Diddy-produced “The Answer,” which both artists had talked up before… Read more »

Veteran Los Angeles punk outfit Bad Religion will release a new studio album, “The Empire Strikes First” June 8 via Epitaph. Like its predecessor, 2002’s “The Process of Belief,” the forthcoming disc was co-written and co-produced by guitarist Brett Gurewitz and frontman Greg Graffin. “It’s not ready for public consumption yet, but it’s basically recorded and finished,” Graffin told Billboard.com. “We really put a lot of pressure on ourselves to make the best album we could. ‘The Process of Belief’ is considered by many to be our comeback, since Brett and I started writing together again. After so many years… Read more »

Apple, the US computer company behind the iTunes music service, has become the latest group to oppose the proposed deal between Sony Music and BMG, the recorded music arm of Germany’s Bertelsmann media group. The development comes as the European Commission begins an intensive second-stage investigation of the merger, a probe it is due to close by June 22. In an announcement on Thursday, the Commission said it had “decided to investigate whether the deal might create or strengthen a collective dominant position between the remaining four major record companies”. It said it would examine “the extent to which the… Read more »

Fresh off a stint on the Big Day Out tour of Australia and New Zealand, the Strokes have unveiled plans for a six-week spring outing in the United States, with an excursion to Mexico City. Dates get underway March 9 in Washington, D.C., and are confirmed through April 25 in Minneapolis, although Strokes manager Ryan Gentles told Billboard.com the tour is expected to run through May 19. Support acts have not yet been announced. The New York rock quintet is touring in support of its sophomore RCA album, “Room on Fire,” which debuted in October at No. 5 on The… Read more »