Music Biz Headlines, Nov. 30, 2023: Tim Baker returns to Halifax, Neil Young Shreds 'Star Spangled Banner' & More
A weekly compendium of interesting headlines from Canada and around the globe.
Canadian
Tim Baker Misses Halifax. And He Misses You, Most Of All
The former Hey Rosetta! lead vocalist returns to the city in December with a new EP. It’s one he recorded on a remote island in the midst of Covid-19 isolation. - Martin Bauman, The CoastMontreal Venues Are Frustrated At Noise Complaints
Montreal bar and live music venue Turbo Haüs is doing everything it can to mitigate noise and be a good neighbour, says co-owner Sergio Da Silva. So a warning from the city last week to reduce noise came as a shock. - Thomas MacDonald, CP
Reverend Gary Davis’s 1949 Gibson SJ-200 Finds a New HomeThe story behind Davis’s SJ-200 is as murky as a Louisiana swamp, but is now a prized possession for Tom Wilson. - David McPherson, Acoustic Guitar
Junkhouse Reunites For Hamilton and Toronto Shows
The legacy of Junkhouse is now back in the spotlight, thanks to the recent re-release of the band’s breakthrough debut album, Strays. To mark its 30th anniversary, it has been issued on vinyl for the very first time, and the band reunites for shows this week in Hamilton and Toronto. - Kerry Doole, Hamilton City Music
Dartmouth Producer DK’s Atlantic Rap Vol. 1 Offers A Steady Dose Of Boom-Bap
The frequent Ghettosocks collaborator mixes hip hop royalty with homegrown talent, enlisting the likes of Ras Kass, Saukrates and Ambeez on the nine-track project. - Martin Bauman, The Coast
Cadence Weapon Announces New Book 'Ways Of Listening'
The Polaris Prize-winning Hamilton-based rapper also known as Rollie Pemberton is writing a collection of personal and critical essays about how we listen to music. - Rhea Singh, Billboard Canada
Skinny Puppy’s Farewell to Vancouver Was a Dystopian Fever Dream
The godfathers of industrial punk, who cut their teeth in dark Vancouver venues, never reached the heights of Nine Inch Nails—but they should have. - Dean Broughton, Georgia Straight
Neil Young Shreds "The Star-Spangled Banner" In "New Stand For Peace" Video
A new video is directed by Young's wife, Daryl Hannah. - CoS
The Stubborn Ghost: Remembering Norm Hacking 16 Years On
We lost Norm Hacking too soon; another good folk songwriter gone. And now it’s been 16 years. He was a Canadian musical gem who never got to really shine. - Phil Weir, Roots Music Canada
Chinese Court Rejects Appeal of Canadian Pop Star Kris Wu
A court in China’s capital Beijing on Friday denied the appeal of Chinese-born Canadian pop star Kris Wu, who was sentenced to 13 years in prison for crimes including rape. - Reuters
Toronto's Indie Cinema Scene is Booming
Theatres like the Revue on Roncesvalles, the Paradise on Bloor and the Fox in the Beaches are attracting Gen Z by making going to the movies feel like an event. - Corey Atad, Toronto Star
The Canada Black Music Archives Launches Searchable Database of Musicians
Executive Director Phil Vassell says he wants to show how artists like Drake and The Weeknd "are standing on the shoulders of those that came before." - Rosie Long Decter, Billboard Canada
International
US Radio Giant iHeartMedia Is Lined Up For a USD $100M Windfall From The Sale Of BMIOn Monday (November 27), iHeart said that it expects, following the sale, to receive "approximately $100M of proceeds" related to its equity interest in BMI, subject to approval of the transaction by BMI shareholders and customary regulatory approvals." MBW
Startup Behind Grimes's AI Voice Clone Raises $4.6M Funding
CreateSafe is the startup that Grimes has been working with on her licensed deepfake project, through which other musicians can use her voice-clone to create music, sharing the recordings royalties with her. - Stuart Dredge, Music:) Ally
Inside the Discord Where Thousands of Rogue Producers Are Making AI Music
AI creators defend the technology as a way to make music more accessible, while many music industry professionals and other critics accuse creators of copyright infringement and cultural appropriation. - Chloe Xiang, Vice
Sony Music Artists Aren’t Involved In YouTube’s New Cloned Voice AI Experiment
Sources close to Sony Music’s HQ in New York have suggested to MBW that the company is taking an “artist-led” approach to its experiments with any AI platform that can manipulate the work (or voice) of its roster. - MBW
Taylor Swift’s ‘Blank Space’ Has No ‘Starbucks Lovers’ — Why Do We Keep Mishearing Lyrics?
If scientists can figure out itching, surely they can tell us why we hear “Kicking the Dancing Queen” and “I’m farting carrots.” - Vinay Menon, Toronto Star
Kiss Frontman Paul Stanley Is Painting More Than His Face Now
Stanley’s art is abstract (though he has done portraits). The pieces pop with all the extroversion one might expect from the frontman. - Brad Wheeler, Globe and Mail
War Is Good As 50th anniversary of 'The World Is a Ghetto' Shines In Premium Box Set
A remastered and well-presented five LP box set of War’s best-selling album “The World Is a Ghetto” recaptures that slice of time when multicultural rock reached its first peak. - Ron Harris, AP
Daryl Hall Is Suing John Oates. Is The Hit Pop Duo ‘Out Of Touch'?’
On Nov. 16, Hall filed a lawsuit against Oates in court in Nashville. - Dan DeLuca, The Philadelphia Inquirer