Random Music News for Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Some bits’n’pieces to mull over today.

1. The Guardian offers this list of the 10 most important British music labels today.
2. Beats Music, the America-only (for the moment, anyway) streaming music service run by Jimmy Iovine, Dr. Dre and Trent Reznor, is off to a rough start.
3. If you’re into Internet radio, you need to read this story about “blanket licenses,” an issue that’s I think is holding back innovation in this space.
4. This is interesting:  selling tickets for a show that doesn’t exist in hopes that the artist will pay attention and book the gig.
5. A company called Living Indie wants to be the Netflix of live gigs.
6. Paul Weller says that he’s sick of Record Store Day and won’t have anything to do with it from now on.
7. More unheard Led Zeppelin tracks released.
8. Some are saying that Avril Lavigne’s new video is the worst thing she’s done since marrying Chad Kroeger.
9. So much for that life-sized statue of Teenage Head’s late singer, Frankie Venom, in Hamilton. It’s not gonna happen. Or is it?
10. The National cancels summer concerts for Ukraine and Russia. Wouldn’t you?