The Yankovic Files:
Parody prince Weird Al Yankovic is suing his label, Sony, for a discrepancy in payouts from royalties for digital downloads and ringtones, reports Variety. Yankovic is seeking compensation in the realm of $5 million, roughly 50% of net receipts Sony wrote into the artist’s contract for download and ringtone licenses. This is not some twisted April fools joke still floating around. In America, you can fight for your right to get rich off other people’s art.
1,000 Jack White Balloons:
This week in Jack White Blunderbuss promotional theatre, Mr. White launches 1,000 flex-disc records of world premier single “Freedom at 21” exclusively into the air via helium balloons. Known for unconventional format releases, White and his label, Third Man Records, are expecting only 10% to be recovered. While a pop-up page has been launched in order for fans to track and share possible discovery tales.
New MGMT:
While on tour in South America, psych-pop protégées MGMT debuted their first new material over the weekend since 2010’s Congratulations. If you can get past the bass distortion on this shitty YouTube capture, dig on the new synth-driven waltz “Alien Days” before the studio version births on forthcoming third effort MGMT (via NME).
Heaven:
Speaking of their follow-up to 2010’s Lisbon, the Walkmen are rolling out their promos for forthcoming LP Heaven, saying such open-armed things as, “The detachment you can feel throughout our younger records is gone. We felt like it was time to make a bigger, more generous statement.” Meanwhile that epic guitar bit from last week’s announcement can be heard in full via Pitchfork. It appears to be an early live rendition of the title track.
