Amplifier

12.02.10

In the news pioneering New Zealand pop band The Fourmyula remembered for their iconic song 'Nature' return to the stage with all original members for two rare performances this March. There will also be a definitive four-CD set comprised of all the group's recordings released on Feb 22nd.

Did you catch the story about Men At Work and the copy write infringement they were successfully sued for? No, the NZ Herald article can be found here.

Graham Downes of the Verlaines (who are touring soon by the way) has blogged about the case and wider issues and his post makes for thought provoking reading;

Lets be perfectly clear that artistic practice is not on trial here in the M@W case. Only the good fortune to have made large sums of money from a song is. Whether deliberate or accidental, collage is, in a moral sense, totally legitimate. Some of humanity's greatest artists have practiced it to telling effect as I hope this blog has shown. And they gain their artistic legitimacy by dint of the fact that their borrowed materials creates something new, works that do not attempt to pass themselves off as someone else's work. On this basis the decision in the M@W case flies in the face of common sense and history and points to a world full of lawyers and devoid of musicians.

Read the full article on his site here.

It is nearly the weekend so here's some free music for you to enjoy and some gig picks below for your evenings consideration. 

Free Downloads:

Devils Elbow - KO

Devils Elbow are a 2-piece rock 'n roll band from the big smoke. The bands sound has been described as punk-influenced, alt. country-flavoured, electric-folk, garage rock n' roll.

KO their debut single was mixed and mastered by Ian G. Morris (Th' Dudes, Dave Dobbyn, Greg Johnson) and is taken from their forthcoming album Sand On Chrome.

Thanks to the band you can grab KO for free for a week from Feb 11th.

Scalper - Sickening Swells

Scalper is Londoner Nadeem Shafi. First seen in Aotearoa New Zealand at WOMAD 1997 as the vocalist for the British band Fun-da-mental. Now based on the wild West Coast of Auckland, having moved here in 2007.

Scalper is Hip Hop like you never heard it before. Moody gritty beats with lyrics that conjure visions of epic proportions. Instrumentation, chopped. Samples, chopped. Beats, chopped. Lyrics brewed and into the pot with you. Electrifying live performances that demand attention.

Thanks to Nadeem Sickening Swells taken from his soon to be released debut album is free to you to download from today. 

Gigs

Here are our pick for live music for this weekend as found on the Makuna gig guide. 

For a full breakdown on whats on offer around the countries pubs and clubs take a look at Makuna

Have a great day
Ed