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CoverV3_cover template 20/11/2012 18:21 Page 1 47 9776669776136 THE BUSINESS OF MUSIC www.musicweek.com 23.11.12 £5.15 NEWS BIGINTERVIEW ANALYSIS 02 11 14 The return of Myspace: can Cooking Vinyl founder and Music Week investigates what it really compete with MD Martin Goldschmidt on was played on radio in Q3 - and Spotify and Vevo? a bumper year for the indie what it means for the industry GENRE BRITAIN SUFFERS DROUGHT OF SUCCESSFUL NEW GUITAR Lonely Are The Brave (Mercury) I BY PAUL WILLIAMS & TIM INGHAM BANDS IN 2012 • WILL RADIO 1 COME TO THEIR RESCUE? is the second-biggest debut album adio 1 is anticipating the from a British or Irish act this year, arrival of a flurry of comfortably over 200,000 sales. Rpopular new British guitar Meanwhile, Alt-J’s An bands – as the statistics suggest Awesome Wave is only the 10th they can’t come soon enough. introductory album this year by a Universal Music UK CEO UK or UK-signed act to reach six and chairman David Joseph said figures domestically, making at the Radio Festival in Salford 2012 one of the worst years in last week that the major only Strung up recent times for homegrown considers it has ‘broken’ an album debuts – something Joseph artist when their debut record made special note of during his hits 100,000 sales. Radio Festival Q&A. Alas, only one debut record With just six weeks of 2012 released this year from a British to ago, it is unlikely this year will guitar band has achieved that be able to come anywhere near to goal: Mercury Prize winner An matching the total of 19 debut Awesome Wave by Alt-J albums by UK or UK-signed acts (pictured), on indie label which reached the sales landmark Infectious, which reached the in 2011. Led by Island/Lava’s magic 100k mark last week. Jessie J and Ed Sheeran, that The Island-issued Every represented a huge recovery from Kingdom by Ben Howard has the year before when only a sold more than double that paltry nine homegrown acts figure, according to Official broke through the 100,000 mark. Charts Company data, but was In 2009 19 hit the benchmark, released in October 2011, whilst Cardle’s Letters (Columbia), as a bit sick or bored of British music is going to be in a seriously while in 2006 it was 25. In 2007, solo act Michael Kiwanuka’s well as Noel Gallagher’s solo LP guitar music and became more healthy position. But the public 28 made it and it was 25 in 2008. Polydor debut - released in (Sour Mash) and Beady Eye’s interested in pop, dance and appetite for guitar bands is Mercury’s Jake Bugg could March - has just topped 100,000. Different Gear, Still Speeding. certainly British urban artists. definitely building back up – now join the 2012 breakthrough list Last year, new debut albums “Guitars have reached a nadir “Now we’re starting to see it’s it’s about finding the acts.” shortly with his self-titled debut from British guitar acts selling in in the last year or so, and now the becoming more difficult for UK The biggest-selling debut UK reaching 88,735 UK sales last excess of 100,000 units included favour’s going to swing back their urban artists to emerge – I think album of 2012 is Emeli Sandé’s week, while Syco act Jonathan & The Vaccines’ What Did You way,” Radio 1 and 1Xtra head of that will become a trend - and Our Version of Events (Virgin) - Charlotte’s Together is just Expect From The Vaccines? music George Ergatoudis told pop music is starting to go back which is also the biggest-selling behind on 85,728. I (Columbia), Ed Sheeran’s + Music Week. “In around 2006 to into decline. We’re talking about LP overall, nudging close to Music Week’s Radio Festival (Asylum/Atlantic) and Matt 2008 the audience started getting two or three years before guitar 900,000 sales. Maverick Sabre’s report - pages 17 and 18 One Direction make more US history with Take Me Home One Direction have become Nielsen SoundScan, with its surpassed 1 million US sales and Zeppelin managed it in 1970. only the third UK group in week-one tally expected to be is the year to date’s third top Among solo UK acts, Elton history to score two US No 1 bettered only this year by those seller behind Adele’s 21 and John followed in 1973, 1974 and albums in a calendar year. of Taylor Swift’s Red (1.2 Taylor Swift’s album. 1975 (three albums) and One The band’s second Syco/ million) and Mumford & Sons’ With two US No1 albums Direction’s Syco colleague Susan Columbia set Take Me Home Babel (600,000). now in 2012, One Direction Boyle did the same in 2010. was set to enter the Billboard Take Me Home’s chart- become only the third British Take Me Home has also 200 at 1 this week as Music topping feat follows their group to achieve double debuted at No.1 in a number of Week went to press with first- introductory album Up All Billboard 200 chart-toppers in other countries, including week sales estimated at between Night starting at No.1 in March, the same year. The feat was Australia, the Netherlands, 525,000 and 575,000 units. On the first debut by a UK band to previously done by The Beatles Norway and Sweden, and is its opening day alone it shifted enter the Billboard countdown in 1965, 1966 (three albums), expected to top the charts in 330,000 copies, according to in first place. It has since 1968, 1969 and 1996, while Led around two-dozen territories. 02-03 NEWS V5_News and Playlists 20/11/2012 18:32 Page 2 2 Music Week 23.11.12 www.musicweek.com NEWS EDITORIAL COULD A FAMILIAR NAME BE NEXT KING OF STREAMS? Taking a Chance on New Myspace: guitar bands - why ‘The biggest music there’s still life, Jim IT’S INARGUABLE: George Ergatoudis is absolutely right when he library in the world’ says the popularity of British guitar bands has “reached a nadir”. Some will blame quality, some will blame piracy, and as sure as eggs is eggs, some will blame George himself. DIGITAL Regardless, when the music boss of such an influential radio I BY TOM PAKINKIS station acknowledges this devastating pattern in a nervy climate, it’s going to become an infectious point of view. (Not an t has a licensed music Infectious one though; that label’s busy bucking the trend.) catalogue that rivals Spotify Using David Joseph’s 100,000 unit threshold as a barometer, I and twice as many licensed this year’s album sales do not make pleasant reading for fans of music videos as Vevo. No, this six-string-wielding mobs. There’s a Mumford here and a Florence isn’t the latest streaming start-up; there - whether or not we’re still counting the Machine. The it’s the new Myspace. Vaccines’ second album hasn’t done bad at all. But in amongst The previously crest-fallen 70-odd acts, that’s pretty much it for British guitar bands. social entertainment platform My personal take? This drought is less to do with talent or caught many music fans off trends, and all to do with patience. It’s very rare for truly seminal guard in September with a British guitar albums to emerge in a band’s nascent years and relaunch video demonstrating a the major labels generally - understandably - don’t have the Spacemen three: Tim Vanderhook,Chris Vanderhook and stylish interface with music Justin Timberlake unveil the new Myspace at an employee launch event natural perseverance or, frankly, the money to let indie acts streaming, playlist creation and suffer a commercial dip or stagger gradually towards brilliance. internet radio among its features. CEO Tim Vanderhook. analytics. That’s the number of But, behind the scenes, There are 14.2m artists listens but also the very valuable Myspace also has deals in place on Myspace in total, 48,000 analytics about who the most “Jim Chancellor gawped in awe at The Maccabees with 20,000 independent record of which are signed to major influential fans of particular artists six years ago. Their third album just surpassed the labels and all three major labels. labels and 86,500 of which have and they do see all the possibilities 100,000 sales mark. The lesson? Patience pays.” It amounts to an in-browser indie deals. of where that can go.” service offering around 15 “The depth of content “For now the platform is ad- That’s why excellent, mature rock acts like Frightened Rabbit million licensed tracks and available is like an endless sea supported and we want to provide release two albums on indie Fat Cat before graduating to Warner. 100,000 music videos. and I think that’s what’s unique – a home for an artist, who might And why Frank Turner builds and builds on Xtra Mile/PIAS before “Our library is very how much is actually there and belong to a label but they want to giving a Polydor JV a go. The independents as patient career substantial, definitely from the then the way we’re surfacing it to simplify everything they do. incubators. T’was ever so. point of signed label music,” said consumers,” he added. By supporting artists in this Except, that is, for one beaming example.