SquirrelFood.net Music Blog » In The News

The Judies Singer Sentenced to 20 Years

Jamie Kohns — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 18:22:38 +0000

The Judies (myspace photo)

Warren Ullom, lead singer of Atlanta’s The Judies, was handed a 20-year sentence today for voluntary manslaughter. The sentence comes just over two years after 32 year-old Rachel San Inocencio died from a drug overdose while with Ullom at his apartment. Read the whole story on the AJC.

Manchester Orchestra on Cover of Alternative Press

Jamie Kohns — Fri, 19 Mar 2010 15:58:10 +0000

On tour now- coming to ATL April 14&15 at Variety Playhouse.
www.themanchesterorchestra.com

Death On Two Wheels at Sundance

Jamie Kohns — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:00:09 +0000

Atlanta rockers Death On Two Wheels just announced that they have a couple of tracks in the soundtrack for a film called “The Violent Kind”, currently showing at Sundance. Calling Us All Back Home and Two Dollar Bills are from their current release SEPARATION OF CHURCH & FATE on The Ghost Umbrella Records. That’s some great news from one of Atlanta’s best bands- and equally great news for everyone else:

To celebrate the release of The Violent Kind, DO2W is offering both songs for FREE at http://deathontwowheels.bandcamp.com. As well, for a limited time, Separation Of Church & Fate is available for only $5.

That’s two for free, and the whole kit for just $5!

As for the film, it’s a slasher from a duo that call themselves “The Butcher Brothers”, and are responsible for the likes of April Fool’s Day, and The Hamiltons. So, chances are I won’t be seeing the film- but I hope critics at Sundance love it, and it brings DOTW to a larger audience!

Spotify Creates a Sustainable Revenue Model for Music Industry

Jamie Kohns — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 03:20:44 +0000

Spotify (not available in the US) has shown media outlets how they have built a sustainable revenue model, paying record labels royalties in two of its international markets, and a share of ad-based revenues in another four. The socially enabled, P2P-based music service lets users stream music through a custom application on user’s computers for a monthly fee, or free with advertising support. In the service’s home country of Sweden, Spotify revenues already top iTunes.

So the gist of it is: a new music industry revenue model is rising, and it’s good for consumers and labels alike.

Taylor Swift is a Giver

Jamie Kohns — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:04:33 +0000

Not only is she mega-talented, insanely popular, and probably one of the best-selling artists of the twenty-oughts, Taylor Swift is also very generous:

“Something I wanted to do at the end of this amazing year and especially on my birthday was give back to something I really believe in, which is education,” Taylor told the mag. “The schools that I went to and the amazing people I got to learn from really turned me into who I am, and I wanted to give back.”

And so, the 20 year-old (!) donated $250,000 to those schools. In addition, she baked (herself) treats for guests at her birthday party in Henderson, Tennessee. Too cool Taylor.

Guitar Hero Les Paul Dies

Jamie Kohns — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:47:14 +0000

Guitar hero and studio innovator Les Paul has diead at age 94.

More at Mtv.com CNN

John Hughes Passes

Jamie Kohns — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 19:50:38 +0000

Writer, director, producer, and music aficionado John Hughes passed away yesterday. As a true child of the 80′s (my very first actual memories are in 1980), his movies are part of my own cultural makeup. Music was always a big part of any Hughes film, so here’s my John Hughes mini-mix to celebrate:

Billy Idol – Rebel Yell
Oingo Boingo – Weird Science
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark – If You Leave
Simple Minds – Dont Forget About me
Yello – Oh Yeah

Little Rockers

Jamie Kohns — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 12:56:53 +0000

Earlier this week, a YouTube video of 5 year-old Wesley playing his cover of Johnny Chash’s Folsom Prison Blues. Moments later, the meme had expanded to this list of 10 youths playing various rock covers (well, 9 covers, and one helluva jam). My favorite has to be the drummer:

See all 10 videos at Urlesque

MCA Announces Cancer Diagnosis on You Tube

Jamie Kohns — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 15:06:54 +0000

MCA announced via YouTube yesterday that he’s been diagnosed with cancer of his salivary gland. Joined in what appears to be an impromptu video by Ad-Rock announcing the cancellation of all tour dates, and the postponement of their album release. The good news is that the cancer is localized, and MCA should be fine after medical treatment.

Best wishes to Adam Yauch and the Beasties during what will hopefully become just a tiny footnote in their Wikipedia pages.

Hot Sauce Committee Part 1 was due in stores September 15th.

Beastie Boys feat. Nas – Too Many Rappers

Pandora Lives

Jamie Kohns — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 15:02:54 +0000

Pandora seems to have saved from an incertain future by a recent resolution to the two year-old debate over Internet radio fees. The new agreement sees Pandora paying either 25% of it’s US revenue to SoundExchange (the nnnn of the US recording industry) or a greatly reduced plays-per-user rate – whichever is higher. Overall, it’s a win-win for both sides.

High-volume users (those who listen to over 40 hours a month) would end up paying just $0.99 to continue listening unlimited for the rest of the month- a paltry sum if you’re already using the service that much anyway.

Get more details of the Pandora deal at Tech Crunch.

Personally, I only rarely use Pandora, but am happy for its existance. It exposes so many to new music, much of it from indie artists. My new Palm Pre has a Pandora app on it, maybe I’ll start using it now.