TALENTfilter

AUDIAFAUNA

2011-06-14T11:00:00.000-07:00

AUDIAFAUNA (unsigned, unpublished) -- We can't. Stop. Watching. This. Video. Dunno - there's something about the song and the visuals that we LOVE. They're like Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, but more fiddle-tastic, fronted by a cuter, more-talented Florence Welch. Or something even more awesome than that. We don't know much about them, but we do know Audiafauna is a Santa Cruz-based band in the process of recording a debut album funded by a Kickstarter campaign. Coincidentally, they're playing a show with Capital Cities (below) at Cafe Du Nord on June 25. If you're in the Bay Area, you should check 'em out.

Oh, here's the video. Bet ya can't watch it just once!

CAPITAL CITIES

2011-06-10T12:40:00.001-07:00

CAPITAL CITIES (unsigned, unpublished) - Have a listen to this electro-pop duo from L.A. and tell us their song "Safe and Sound" couldn't be THE Alternative radio summertime jammy-jam. The group (who perform live with a full band) regularly sell out shows in the L.A. area and they're barely on the music industry radar. On Easter Sunday they performed in front of a sold-out crowd at The El Rey. Crazy! (*Hey labels, how many of your new artist signings could sell out the El Rey on Easter Sunday?*) If you don't believe us about this band, you can read about them here, here, here, here, or on just about any other new music blog you care about. Capital Cities will play an EP release party in Los Angeles at J Lounge on June 17 (KCRW Los Angeles DJ Jason Bentley will also be spinning, and you can expect some major early support from that station, among a handful of others, in the weeks to come).

Download their song "Safe and Sound" HERE

ALLEN STONE

2011-06-07T11:40:00.001-07:00

ALLEN STONE (unsigned, unpublished) -- You may have seen features about Allen Stone on other tip-sheet blogs over the past few months, and while we've kept an eye on his progress, it isn't until now that we've decided to give him our official 'stamp of approval'. It was seeing this video that finally won us over:

Allen is now being co-managed by Jeff Robinson (credited for discovering/developing Alicia Keys), and a string of west coast support dates for Nikka Costa will begin in a couple of weeks. Expect maximum weaseltude at the June 23 show at The Roxy in Los Angeles.

Upcoming L.A. Area Shows Of Note

2011-06-04T13:45:00.001-07:00

June 8 - The Dilettantes (feat. Kay Hanley) - Hotel Cafe
June 10 - John Gold - Satellite
June 11 - Blowing Up The Moon - Whisky
June 13 - Gold Motel - Hotel Cafe
June 13 - Olin & The Moon - Bootleg
June 16 - Heartstop (video premiere) - Dim Mak Studios
June 17 - Capital Cities - J Lounge (DTLA)
June 18 - Odd Future - House Of Blues Sunset
June 24 - Steve McMorran (of Satellite) - Molly Malone's
June 25 - The Mowgli's - Roxy
June 27 - Scattered Hamlet - Viper Room

MySpace Records To Close Shop, TALENTfilter Find Meiko A Free Agent?

2011-05-31T16:11:00.000-07:00

Ripped directly from the HITS Daily Double Rumor Mill:

MYSPACE RECORDS OUT OF SPACE? With the imminent News Corp. sale of MySpace, the website’s MySpace Records looks like it’s shuttering for good this time. The label, which was formed in 2005 and aligned with Interscope Records, announced a partnership with Downtown Music last September. Since then, the label has been steadily dismantled by GM David Andreone, who took the helm just over a year ago and will leave at the end of the month to reportedly take a job at a digital music company. He has been helping the acts find new label homes, and even getting their master recording rights back. One act drawing some attention is Meiko, who already has a strong track record in sales, touring, film and TV placements. (5/31p)

A more thorough report here from RM64.com:

As the News Corp. sale of MySpace is close at hand (with an announcement expected in the coming weeks), so too is MySpace Records shuttering, for good this time. Early 2010 began the initial dissolving of the label, which was formed in 2005 and aligned with Universal Music Group label Interscope Records via a P&D deal that has now lapsed, and since last year the operation has continued under a skeletal staff and somewhat ambiguous circumstances – a partnership with Downtown Music was announced back in September.

However, with the writing on the wall as to MySpace’s future, and a scaling back of many divisions, MSR began to be dismantled, a process which was guided by label GM David Andreone who took the helm just over a year ago. Among many duties, Andreone has also helped the artists signed to MSR find new label homes, and even get master recording rights back – some albums previously released by the label have already been pulled down from digital marketplaces such as iTunes…

One former MySpace Records/Interscope artist, and now free agent who is getting a lot of industry attention, Meiko, has just completed a new album produced by Styrofoam and Jimmy Messer, and mixed by Brian Malouf. We hear that labels on both coasts are talking to the songstress, who already has a strong track record with sales, touring and film & TV… And word is that Andreone, a veteran of both the music publishing and record label arenas, is likely to transition to one of a handful of digital music companies in play, after he departs his post at the end June… Stay tuned.

YOUNG DIGERATI

2011-05-21T17:10:00.000-07:00

YOUNG DIGERATI (unsigned, unpublished) -- Young Digerati is one of the San Francisco-based acts Live 105 APD/MD Aaron Axelsen picked last month as a 'Bay Area band you need to know'. We agree. So does Rocket Music who just picked them up for management. Young Digerati will play Live 105's "BFD 2011" concert on June 5 at the Shoreline Amphitheater, but L.A. weasels should check 'em out sooner at On the Rox May 26 and Three Clubs on May 28. Peep the video for their song "The Dauphin" here:

WE'RE ON TEH FACEBOOKS!

2011-05-21T16:59:00.000-07:00

That's right - we've got ourselves a fancy-shmancy Facebook Page now. Please go 'Like' it, or 'Share' it, or whatever-the-hell-else. Here's a link: http://on.fb.me/talentfilter

THE MOWGLI'S

2011-05-15T15:29:00.000-07:00

THE MOWGLI'S (unsigned, unpublished) -- There are eight of 'em, their home base is Venice, CA, and they're one of the hardest-working and oft-performing bands in Southern California. If you're a film/TV/commercial music supervisor or you work for an ad agency, and you've EVER been told, "We need to find something a little hippy-dippy and positive like that Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes band, but it has to be cheaper to license", this is your group.
The Mowgli's are wrapping up recording their debut album now and the buzz is beginning to build - they impressed more than a few nerds at the SF MusicTech Summit and you can expect your music biz brethren to follow suit. Don't sleep.

REBECCA JORDAN SIGNS PUBLISHING DEAL

2011-05-12T11:29:00.000-07:00

Rebecca Jordan, who we first tipped to you in January 2009, has signed a worldwide, multi-year co-publishing agreement with Imagem Music. Aside from her own fantastic releases, Rebecca also wrote the Kelly Clarkson hit "Beautiful Disaster". She is still available for label signing.

GRAND TARANTULA

2011-05-11T12:11:00.000-07:00

GRAND TARANTULA (unsigned, unpublished) -- San Diego-based band with local radio love from stations including tastemaker Alt-outlets 91X and 94-9. They played SXSW and a month of successful dates in March with Middle Class Rut, and they're playing in Los Angeles this Saturday, May 14 at Lot 1 in Silver Lake (11PM set time). Think Hot Hot Heat-meets-Foo Fighters. Check out their indie video for "I'm Not Gonna Let You Go" here:

ART VS. SCIENCE

2011-05-10T16:11:00.000-07:00

ART VS. SCIENCE (unsigned outside of AU) -- Definitely one of the more explosive acts we've seen live, Art Vs. Science is a trio from Sydney, Australia whose new album has reached the #1 spot on the Australian Albums Chart and #2 on the ARIA Albums chart. The groups sees lots of love from Aussie radio, especially Triple J. Watch 10,000 people lose their shit to Art Vs. Science at a music festival in Perth here:

Check out the video for their new single, "A.I.M. Fire!" here:

Upcoming L.A. Area Shows Of Note

2011-05-09T16:36:00.000-07:00

May 9 - Meiko - The El Rey
May 11 - Loudness (!!!) - Key Club
May 13 - Roll The Tanks - Troubadour
May 13 - Neve (reunion show) - Troubadour
May 14 - Grand Tarantula - Lot 1
May 15 - Stone Darling - 3 Clubs
May 27 - Stone Darling - Redwood Bar (DTLA)

Sylvia Rhone To Leave Uni/Motown?

2011-05-01T17:22:00.000-07:00

Reports over the last few days have said Universal Motown President Sylvia Rhone will be leaving the company. Here's a link to one of the reports: http://www.thewrap.com/media/column-post/sylvia-rhone-seen-headed-exit-universal-motown-26929

Music Biz Rumors...

2011-04-26T12:58:00.000-07:00

Hearing that Warner Bros. in the process of dropping more than a few artists from its roster - is this to make room for new signings since there are many new A&R players in the house?

Ankur Malhotra is leaving Capitol Records and heading to Epic Records, based on the west coast...

Meanwhile, we're hearing/seeing that EMI is on a bit of a baby-band signing spree...

Universal Music Group is bringing Sony Music A&R exec Jay Landers over to their side, based on the west coast...

Meanwhile, we're hearing there's a shakeup underway at Interscope with a few acts being dropped and some A&R staffers being let go...

Also hearing the Universal Music Group roster is about to shrink down BIG-time...

Is a major label about to bring someone from the TV world over to its A&R department on the west coast?

Meanwhile, we hear there's an east coast A&R rep making a move west to take a gig with a different label within weeks...

We leaving anything out? Let us know at TALENTfilter@gmail.com

LIVE 105 MD PICKS FIVE LOCAL ACTS TO KNOW

2011-04-05T18:20:00.000-07:00

Alternative Live 105 San Francisco Music Director Aaron Axelsen wrote a piece on the station's website highlighting "Five New Bay Area Bands You Need To Know". Guess what, label heads - Aaron knows more about music than you or any of your A&R scouts. So get to listening.

http://live105.radio.com/2011/04/05/five-new-bay-area-bands-you-need-to-know/

SHOWSHOWSHOWS

2011-04-02T00:00:00.000-07:00

UPCOMING L.A. AREA SHOWS OF NOTE

April 3 - Cydney Robinson - Hotel Cafe
April 4 - Jim Bianco - Bardot
April 7 - Stone Darling - Echoplex
April 8 - Meiko - USC Campus (Tommy's Place)
April 14 - Big Audio Dynamite (!) - Roxy
April 19 - Emily Wells - Largo
April 24 - Capital Cities - El Rey
April 26 - White Buffalo - Detroit Bar
April 30 - Joe Purdy - Troubadour

HEARTSTOP

2011-04-01T17:05:00.001-07:00

HEARTSTOP (unsigned, unpublished) -- Had a chance to catch this band at The Roxy in Los Angeles last night. More than anything else, what impressed us was the raw enthusiasm of the bandmembers - they genuinely wanted to be there and their energy translated.

Three young guys, no older than 21, SoCal-based, been playing/writing together since they were kids, writing really strong pop/rock tracks. They're certainly not re-inventing the wheel, sound-wise, but what they've got now as a young indie unsigned group is strong. The songs are very sync-friendly, and definitely radio-ready - KROQ Los Angeles has been playing one of their new tracks, "Just Like Goodbye", on their 'Locals Only' program for a few weeks in a row.

With some A&R coaching and some serious road time, this band could be a force.

ELECTROLIGHTZ

2011-03-23T14:42:00.000-07:00

ELECTROLIGHTZ (unsigned, unpublished) -- L.A-based, four-piece, electro-hip-hop act - already some serious industry buzz - Hot Topic's 'unsigned band of the month' - songs getting licensed left and right - performing at The Roxy on March 29 (10:30PM set time) - should be packed with weasels. If ya don't know, now ya know. Peep the Facebook, punk.

COOL CONTEST FOR L.A.-AREA BANDS

2011-03-23T14:09:00.001-07:00

COOL CONTEST FOR L.A.-AREA BANDS - If you're an artist from the L.A. area, you've got a music video, and you're not anti- pop music, Top 40 KIIS Los Angeles is holding a pretty cool contest. You can win $10,000 in cash, and an opportunity to perform live on the Village Stage at their Wango Tango concert happening this May. Click here for all the details: http://www.kiisfm.com/common/social/kiis_breakoutstar/

KRAMUS

2011-03-13T15:02:00.000-07:00

KRAMUS (unsigned, unpublished) -- It's been a while since we've come across some real 'meat & taters' Midwestern Red State Rawk that we actually like. The Indianapolis-area five-piece has been around for quite some time, and they're writing some great, accessible radio-friendly Alt-Rock. Alt-outlet WRZX Indianapolis agrees with us - they've played the unsigned band's song "Down Below" over 150 times already this year (how many times have they played your recent rock signing this year?). On-air support is also starting at WXEG Dayton. For A&R reps with a travel budget, head out to their new EP release party/show at The Vogue in Indianapolis April 8.

STONE DARLING

2011-03-09T12:31:00.000-08:00

STONE DARLING (unsigned, unpublished) - Stone Darling is an all-girl L.A.-based four-piece that will soon be popping up on the music industry radar if they haven't already. A recent feature in NYLON Magazine has certainly helped create awareness, as has their seemingly non-stop performance schedule in the L.A. area (these ladies play everywhere from The Echo to The Bootleg to tiny boutique fashion stores). Local college radio stations including KCSN and KXLU are showing early support - we can only imagine KCRW will be next.

What do they sound like? Think Mazzy Star-meets-Mamas & Papas. They'll be self-releasing an EP later this month, and they'll have promo samplers with them in Austin during SXSW (see our SXSW list below for details on their showcases). Their MySpace page is HERE and their Facebook page is HERE.

Have a look/listen to their cover of the Funkadelic track "Can You Get To That":

SXSW 2011 SHOWCASES OF NOTE

2011-03-07T20:11:00.000-08:00

SXSW 2011 SHOWCASES OF NOTE

First, we'd like to say these are just some acts we feel will be interesting to see. Some are already signed and/or published, but we're sure you've got a cheat-sheet list of acts you need to see already - just consider this another tool in case you missed some cool showcases when putting together your own list.

Second, we'd like to turn you on to a really comprehensive list of everything sanctioned and unsanctioned, show-and-party-wise, happening in Austin during SXSW. Go HERE - their list is WICKED thorough and it's got clickable links to let you RSVP to all the different stuff.

OK - that said - here's our list of cool shows & shit happening during SXSW - note we also included some spots to get free food and booze - 'cuz let's be honest - a free meal and free beers are always good to know about.

Update: Band names marked with a * are unsigned, bands marked with a # are unpublished

Wednesday, March 16

12:00 PM - 3:00 PM - FREE FOOD & DRINK - Latitude 30
3:00 PM - 7:00 PM - FREE BBQ - Brush Sq. Pk., East Tent
3:00 PM - Grand Tarantula * - PureVolume House
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM - FREE WINE - Brush Sq. Pk., West Tent
8:00 PM - Stone Darling *# - Hotel Vegas
8:00 PM - Gold Motel - Buffalo Billiards
8:00 PM - The Tender Box * - Rusty Spurs
8:30 PM - Olin & The Moon * - Black & Tan
9:00 PM - Leeroy Stagger - The Tap Room at Six
9:00 PM - Lex Land - The Ghost Room
9:15 PM - James Blake - Stubb's
10:00 PM - Mona - Antone's
11:00 PM - Twin Atlantic - Maggie Mae's
12:00 AM - Admiral Fallow - Maggie Mae's
12:00 AM - Beans - Mohawk
12:00 AM - Ellie Goulding - The Bat Bar
12:00 AM - Kitten - The Marq
12:00 AM - The Naked and Famous - The Phoenix
12:15 AM - Queens of the Stone Age - La Zona Rosa
1:00 AM - Baths - Mohawk

Thursday March 17

11:00 AM - 5:30 PM - FREE BOOZE - Antone's
11:30 AM - 3:30 PM - FREE SPANISH FOOD - Brush Sq. Pk., East Tent
12:00 PM - 4:00 PM - FREE GERMAN FOOD - Parkside
12:00 PM - 4:00 PM - FREE FRENCH FOOD & WINE - Brush Sq. Pk., East Tent
12:45 PM - Emmylou Harris - Austin Convention Center
2:00 PM - Meiko # - The Driskill (SESAC Brunch)
2:00 PM - 6:00 PM - FREE FOOD & DRINK - Latitude 30
4:00 PM - Neon Hitch - Austin Convention Center
8:00 PM - Dinosaur Pile-Up - Latitude 30
8:15 PM - Fences - St David's Historic Sanctuary
9:00 PM - Kyla La Grange - Klub Krucial
9:00 PM - The Limousines # - Buffalo Billiards
9:30 PM - Noah and the Whale - Stubb's
9:45 PM - Neon Hitch - Habana Bar Backyard
10:00 PM - Fitz and the Tantrums # - Rusty Spurs
10:20 PM - The Lonely Forest - Maggie Mae's Rooftop
11:00 PM - Ellie Goulding - Klub Krucial
11:00 PM - Friendly Fires - The Windish Agency House @ ND
11:00 PM - Phantogram - Lustre Pearl
11:45 PM - Wu Tang Clan - Austin Music Hall
12:00 AM - Bear Hands - Victorian Room at The Driskill
12:00AM - Cee Lo Green - La Zona Rosa
12:30 AM - Gayngs - Mohawk Patio
12:40 AM - Hieroglyphics - Scoot Inn
12:45 AM - Classixx - Malverde
1:00 AM - James Blake - Central Presbyterian Church
1:00 AM - James Vincent McMorrow - Friends
1:00 AM - Oh Land - Buffalo Billiards

Friday March 18

12:00 PM - 5:00 PM - FREE FOOD & BOOZE - Latitude 30
3:30 PM - Odd Future # - Scoot In
5:00 PM - 8:00 PM - FREE FOOD & BOOZE - Brush Sq. Pk., West Tent
8:00 PM - Bearsuit - Latitude 30
8:00 PM - The Good Natured - The Windish Agency House @ ND
8:30 PM - Buddy *# - The Ale House
9:00 PM - Dan Wilson - Victorian Room at The Driskill
9:00 PM - Skrillex - Emo's Main Room
9:00 PM - Stone Darling *# - Baby Blue
9:00 PM - Air Dubai *# - Peckerhead's
11:00 PM - Chad Valley - Latitude 30
11:00 PM - Mother Mother - Swan Dive
11:30 PM - Helmet - Dirty Dog Bar
12:00 AM - Lucinda Williams - ACL Live at The Moody Theater
12:00 AM - Wolf & Cub - Swan Dive
12:30 AM - The Cool Kids - Emo's Main Room
12:45 AM - Satellite * - The Ale House
1:00 AM - Bombay Bicycle Club - Latitude 30
1:00 AM - Elizabeth & the Catapult - Creekside at Hilton Garden Inn
1:00 AM - EPMD - Venue 222
1:00 AM - Pint Shot Riot - 512

Saturday March 19

12:00 PM - 5:30 PM - FREE BBQ - Maggie Mae's
3:00 PM - 6:00 PM - FREE FOOD & BOOZE - Latitude 30
12:00 PM - Foster the People - Austin Convention Center
8:30 PM - Brian Wright # - St David's Historic Sanctuary
10:00 PM - Air Dubai *# - Dizzy Rooster
10:30 PM - Meiko # - St David's Historic Sanctuary
11:00 PM - Blu - Venue 222
11:15 PM - Le Butcherettes - Emo's Annex
12:00 AM - Art vs Science - Maggie Mae's Rooftop
12:00 AM - Ume *# - Skinny's Ballroom
12:05 AM - Odd Future # - Buffalo Billiards
1:00 AM - Gobble Gobble - Club de Ville
1:00 AM - Jamie xx - Barcelona
1:00 AM - Young Legionnaire - Latitude 30

...and this last photo is for our British/Australian readers planning on going to Austin for the SXSW festivities (kidding, kidding...)

2011-03-07T15:56:00.000-08:00

We're working on our list of "SXSW 2011 Showcases To See" ...hang tight!!

AIR DUBAI

2011-03-04T19:04:00.000-08:00

AIR DUBAI (unsigned, unpublished) -- Go ahead - Listen to Air Dubai and tell us it wouldn't work on the radio. We dare you. This seven-piece Denver-based group recently won Alternative KTCL Denver's "Hometown For the Holidays" contest and their song "Restless Youth" has received over 30 spins on the station so far this year. At its core, Air Dubai is hip-hop, but these guys can SING, too, boy! They've got organic instrumentation layered over the top of everything which makes their music more accessible to Alternative and Pop fans. Air Dubai owns their masters and publishing, and they've got two shows coming up in Austin during SXSW - put them on your lists, dummies:

March 18 - Peckerheads - 9:00PM
March 19 - Dizzy Rooster - 10:00PM

Strangers

2011-03-01T16:35:00.000-08:00

STRANGERS (unsigned, unpublished) - This one's for fans of dark electro-pop ala Depeche Mode. Strangers is a new North London-based band featuring producer/remixer extraordinaire Glen Nicholls. You might know Glenn from his Future Funk Squad project, or from his remixes for artists including Sia, Snow Patrol, White Lies, and The Prodigy (among many others). Get on this one quickly - they've only had the music made available for two weeks, yet they've got two major label offers on the table. Listen to three tracks HERE.

TALENTfilter Developing Artist Update

2011-02-27T15:08:00.000-08:00

It's one thing to tip you to a new artist and then move on to the next, but we also like to keep you updated on what these developing artists are busy with - in case you initially heard their music and wanted to "wait until the story develops a bit."

Today we looked back at a few of the acts we'd written about many moons ago and put together this little update for you!

L.A. band Pan America (featured on 2/23/07) is still out there hustling, and while they're not doing a very good job of keeping their online presence updated, they've recently recorded a new EP. You can hear the tracks on their MySpace Page (Highlight track is "Will We Ever Learn").

The House Harkonnen (featured on 3/28/07), also continuing to plug away, have released two more EPs since being featured. They had a development deal with Atlantic, but it seems as if that's not the sitch anymore. If you like everything Dave Grohl does, this band will give you a boner.

Eighteen year-old singer Tori Kelly (featured on 6/24/07) is still unsigned and unpublished. She auditioned for American Idol in 2010 and made it to 'Hollywood Week', but didn't get to the 'Top 24' cut. This girl's voice is SICK. Check out her YouTube page to hear her sing some covers.

New York singer-songwriter Lionel Neykov (featured on 1/13/08), about whom we'd written, "...has the potential to be a song-licensing ANIMAL", had his track "Freeze My Senses" licensed by a Spanish ad agency for $20,000 after they discovered him on YouTube. Lionel now has management, but is still unsigned and unpublished.

Diana Pops (featured on 11/28/08) has picked up management and self-released an EP titled For Bright Minds in Dark Corners on Feb. 22. This Winnipeg-based singer's music is fantastic - for fans of Norah Jones and Sarah McLachlan. Labels should take note - Diana's music appeals to adults - you know - the people who still buy music. Publishers - she's a sync licensing dream. Check out her Facebook page to hear the EP. Still unsigned/unpublished but apparently there is some label interest brewing...

Are you an artist we've written about in the past? Hit us up at talentfilter@gmail.com and let us know what you're up to!

The New Assembly

2011-02-26T22:24:00.000-08:00

THE NEW ASSEMBLY (unsigned, unpublished) - The New Assembly is a San Diego-based duo whose Clouds and Waves EP was produced/mixed by Bryan Cook (Train, Five For Fighting, Meiko, Inara George). Filled with subtle synths and beats, this EP is syncable as all get-out: music supervisors (and labels/pubcos who like money) should take note. Songs from Clouds and Waves are garnering local radio support from THREE San Diego stations (Alternative KBZT, Triple A KPRI and Hot A/C KYXY). The New Assembly will perform at IndieFest in San Diego on March 12 (5:15PM set time).

Courtney Holt Out As MySpace Music Prez

2011-02-24T13:31:00.001-08:00

MySpace Music President Courtney Holt will 'change his role' at the company, according to an inter-office memo sent out by interim-President Mike Jones. The memo states, "Over the next several weeks, (Courtney) will be moving from being the President of MySpace Music to becoming a key advisor to both MySpace and Newscorp."

Holt has led MySpace Music for the past two years, and previously oversaw digital music initiatives at MTV.

Brian Wright

2011-02-19T11:38:00.001-08:00

We're sure every major label A&R meeting currently goes something like this: "Where the fuck is our fucking Mumford & Sons, huh?!"

Please have a look/listen to Brian Wright. We told you about him in February 2007, and this just might be his breakthrough year. He just signed with Sugar Hill Records, who will release his new album, House On Fire, on March 29. Go license it from them, dummies.

McLachlan Leaves Nettwerk Mgmt.

2011-02-16T17:08:00.000-08:00

According to Digital Music News, Sarah McLachlan has parted ways with longtime manager Terry McBride and Nettwerk Management. Read DMN Publisher Paul Resnikoff's piece HERE.

Upcoming L.A.-Area Shows Of Note

2011-02-16T16:58:00.000-08:00

Feb. 20 - Bobby Brown - Key Club (YEAH!!!)
Feb. 21 - Dawn Mitschele (and others) - Room 5
Feb. 23 - Anna Nalick - Hotel Cafe
Feb. 23 - The Hood Internet - The Echo
Feb. 25 - Keaton Simons - Hotel Cafe
Feb. 25 - Samantha Ronson (full band) - Satellite
Mar. 1 - Leeroy Stagger - Hotel Cafe
Mar. 3 - Tift Merritt - Bootleg
Mar. 3 - Boyz II Men - The Canyon (YEAH!)
Mar. 4 - Gold Motel - Origami Vinyl (in-store)
Mar. 5 - Gobble Gobble - Troubadour
Mar. 8 - Katie Costello - Hotel Cafe
Mar. 8 - Gold Motel - The Echo
Mar. 9 - Obi Best - Hotel Cafe
Mar. 9 - Stryper - Club Nokia (YEAH!)
Mar. 10 - The Tender Box - Troubadour
Mar. 11 - Les Butcherettes - The Echo

TALENTfilter Artist Signings (A Catch-Up)

2011-02-15T23:51:00.000-08:00

It’s been well over a year since we’ve posted any news or updates, so we’d like to catch you up on a couple of TALENTfilter artist signings that have happened since we last wrote (for a list of every act that’s been signed since we started the blog, look to the right at the list in red).

Sonia Leigh, first featured in February 2007, signed a label deal in 2009 with Southern Ground Artists, Inc., an Atlantic Records joint-venture imprint formed by Zac Brown of the Zac Brown Band. According to a December 2010 post on her blog, her debut Southern Ground Artists album is done and a release date is imminent.

Neon Hitch, first featured in August 2008, was signed to EMI Publishing in summer 2009 and eventually signed to Warner Bros. in 2010. No word on an album release date, but a video for a track called “Get Over U” (co-written by Sia) was posted to YouTube on February 8.
(Neon Hitch wasn't featured on any other A&R tipsheet blog until July 2009)

Chloe Leighton, first featured in December 2008, signed with Beluga Heights/WB in June 2010 and is currently working on her debut album.
(Chloe wasn't featured on any other A&R tipsheet blog until March 2009. HITS Magazine featured her in April 2009)

Danish singer Oh Land, first featured in March 2009 and who was one of our “SXSW 2009 performing artists to see”, signed with Epic Records two months after label reps attended said showcase. Now, two years later, Perez Hilton picks Oh Land to be “one to watch in 2011”

2011-02-14T20:23:00.000-08:00

CHECK ONE TWO ...IS THIS THING ON??? What's up, party people. We're back. We think. After a sixteen-month break, we've noticed many of the artists we'd written about have gone on to do some pretty amazing things. Looks like we were onto something - so here we are again!

Over the next week or so, we'll do a little housecleaning. Switch out the Blogroll with more relevant website links, etc., and we'll report on some of the old TALENTfilter artists and their accomplishments over the past year or so.

We'll try and pop up some new, recent discoveries too, so if you've got anything for us to check out, send links to talentfilter@gmail.com (No MP3s, please, dummies. Just streaming links or something that won't clog our Inbox. Be smart.).

As always, we'll happily make this a private A&R tipsheet for any label or publisher looking to put us on the payroll.

We're wicked broke, so we'll work wicked cheap, you dig?

Anyway, stay tuned. And send an E-mail over to say 'hello' so we know someone actually gives a shit.

Oh, and hey, Happy Valentine's Day!

xoxo
Team TALENTfilter

2009-10-07T16:00:00.000-07:00

KiD A (unsigned, unpublished) -- Airplay on KCRW Los Angeles and WOXY.com (championed by KCRW's Nic Harcourt and Future Sounds' Larry Little), press write-ups in Mixmag, the Sunday Times, DJ Magazine, Music Week, Record Of The Day, and most recently in The Los Angeles Times Magazine - not bad for a 21 year-old college student in Virginia! KiD A's debut EP was produced by Dan le Sac - the track "wasnotwas" is a HITTT. Labels in both the U.S. and UK are surriously sniffin'. Check it out on KiD A's MySpace page. You're welcome ;)

2009-09-30T21:07:00.000-07:00

PUB DEAL ALERT -- Spies tell us that Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros have locked in an extremely sweet publishing deal with Chrysalis. Shh.

2009-09-30T20:00:00.000-07:00

SARAH SOLOVAY (unsigned, unpublished, no management) -- Go have a listen to "Gone" on Sarah Solovay's MySpace page. Big. Fat. Smash. Now, check out "Hearts Collide". Another. Big. Fat. Hit. It's also featured on the hotly-tipped 90210 soundtrack. Sarah wrote both of these songs herself (and the others she's posted on MySpace).

...and she's 15.

Most of Sarah's demos were produced by Kyle Kelso (Parachute, Tina Parol, Fefe Dobson) and there are more than a few labels already sniffing around (we've been sworn to secrecy so don't ask who). Check her out at the Bitter End in NYC on October 1.

This derby could get big. Stay tuned.

2009-09-29T08:00:00.000-07:00

AARON ANDERSON (unsigned, unpublished) -- Southern California-based singer-songwriter Aaron Anderson has been garnering airplay on San Diego Hot AC outlet Sophie @ 103.7's "New Now Next" program. For fans of Gavin DeGraw and Jason Mraz. "Green Sun Rising" and "Where Do I Begin" are solid radio-friendly tracks.

2009-09-28T16:42:00.000-07:00

PAUL CASEY (unsigned, unpublished) -- Irish singer-songwriter Paul Casey recently self-released a new album called Scrapbook, and it will certainly appeal to fans of Dave Matthews and David Gray. In the past, Paul has had songs played on KROQ Los Angeles' "Rodney On the ROQ" program, and has shared the stage with artists including Van Morrison, Damien Rice, and the John Butler Trio (among others). Paul will tour Europe, the UK, Ireland and Scotland in support of multi-million album-selling blues guitarist Chris Rea through April 2010.

2009-09-26T16:49:00.000-07:00

TALENTFILTER ARTIST UPDATE -- A few of our early artist tips have recently released new material, and we're really excited to report some impressive numbers...

Five Finger Death Punch, first tipped as an unsigned, unpublished act in February 2007, has just released their second full-length titled War Is the Answer. Early reports say that the album will debut in the Top 10 and will more than likely sell 40-45,000 copies in its first week.

Ingrid Michaelson, the 450,000th TALENTfilter artist to be signed since February 2007 (wink, wink), had her latest album, Everybody, debut at No. 1 on the iTunes Album Chart. In its first week, it sold over 22,000 copies. Ingrid's album Girls And Boys, which was independently released, has sold 278,000 copies in the U.S., and the follow-up Be OK LP sold 98,000 units. We first tipped you to Ms. Michaelson in May 2007.

Other TALENTfilter artists with nice sales stories lately include A Fine Frenzy's new Bomb In A Birdcage LP (#1 iTunes Album) and Elizabeth & The Catapult's Taller Children (#1 iTunes Singer-Songwriter Album).

2009-09-26T16:42:00.001-07:00

UPCOMING L.A. SHOWS OF NOTE:

Sep 28 -- Dynamite Walls - Viper Room
Sep 29 -- Oh Darling - Spaxeland
Sep 30 -- Randy Coleman - Roxy
Oct 1 -- Katie Costello - Hotel Cafe
Oct 3 -- Pharcyde - Key Club
Oct 3 -- Holly Conlan - Hotel Cafe
Oct 4 -- Tina Dico - Roxy
Oct 6 -- The Parson Red Heads - Spaceland
Oct 6 -- Dommin - Key Club
Oct 7 -- Jack Penate/Miike Snow - Spaceland
Oct 8 -- Ke$ha - The Echo
Oct 11 -- Medusa - The Whisky
Oct 12 -- Obi Best - Spaceland
Oct 13 -- Stacy Clark - Viper Room
Oct 15 -- The Rust - Roxy
Oct 20 -- Noah & The Whale - Roxy
Oct 24 -- Kid Sister - The Echo
Oct 27 -- VV Brown - Spaceland
Oct 29 -- Eulogies - SPaceland
Oct 30 -- Amy Millan - Spaceland
Oct 31 -- The Rakes - Roxy
Nov 3 -- Katie Miller-Heidke - Hotel Cafe

2009-09-26T16:20:00.000-07:00

RUTH-ANNE CUNNINGHAM (unsigned) - As an unsigned artist, Dublin, Ireland's Ruth-Anne Cunningham has received heavy airplay on her hometown radio outlet 2fm. As a writer, she's co-written some big songs for artists including Jojo, Leona Lewis and Katherine McPhee (among others) and she's currently writing for Toni Braxton and Pixie Lott. She's published by Shapiro Bernstein.

2009-09-26T15:23:00.001-07:00

YIKES! Two months off. Who do we think we are, school teachers? Enough of that. New "Shows Of Note" posted soon, along with a few new artists to tip you to, and some impressive numbers to gloat...err ...share with you regarding TALENTfilter artists you should've signed.

HOORAY!

2009-07-28T20:36:00.000-07:00

ELIZABETH & THE CATAPULT GET SOME LOVE ON PEREZ HILTON'S BLOG! Very exciting to see Elizabeth & the Catapult get some lovin' from our friend Mr. Hilton. We first tipped you to the band TWENTY-EIGHT MONTHS AGO and Verve Forecast signed them eighteen months later.

2009-07-28T11:49:00.000-07:00

ST. LOUIS RADIO SUPPORTS UNSIGNED MUSIC! Alternative KPNT St. Louis has announced this year's "PointFest" lineup - 35 bands for 35 bucks on August 23rd at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater in St. Louis.

Always a supporter of local rock acts, KPNT will feature a number of unsigned groups mixed in with the higher profile bands like Staind, Chevelle, Shinedown, Atreyu, etc.

Have a listen to some of the local acts - it's all pretty standard "red state rawk", but that stuff sells ...and you know it!

Copperview -- Three Doors Down-meets-Seven Mary Three

Brookroyal -- One album away from having it together - they could use some A&R/producer direction, but there's promise here. Singer has an interesting tone to his voice.

Janus -- We've heard about this band a bunch over the past year or so - Chicago's Q101 has added one of their tracks ("Eyesore") into - worth looking into...

Shaman's Harvest -- See description of Copperview and sprinkle in a bit more Southern rock. Really radio-friendly stuff, and it's obvious they've got someone working them at Rock/Active Rock radio already (not many unsigned/unpublished acts have 'impacting at radio' written across their MySpace page).

Red Line Chemistry -- Chevelle-ish. Remember Revis? Kinda like them. If Revis listened to Tool. Managed by Red Light Management.

2009-07-25T08:35:00.000-07:00

BANDS, BE CAREFUL AND READ THE FINE PRINT! Clear Channel-owned L.A. Alternative station KYSR (Star 98.7) is presenting a contest called "Rockstar 987", where bands upload their music videos in the hopes of winning $10,000 cash, $5K worth of instruments from Best Buy, a professional photo shoot, an opportunity to showcase at a station event, the "chance" to meet with five different record labels (Suburban Noize, Sideonedummy, Sire, Mercury, and Elektra), and of course, some promotion on the radio station and their website. Sounds pretty cool, right?

Well, before you upload that video you had to have your parents mortgage the house to pay for, read the "Rules" section. There you'll find this tasty little nugget (super-important stuff in bold):

BY SUBMITTING THE VIDEO, YOU HEREBY GRANT TO THE COMPANY A PERPETUAL, WORLDWIDE, NON-EXCLUSIVE, ROYALTY-FREE, SUB-LICENSABLE (THROUGH MULTIPLE TIERS) RIGHT AND LICENSE TO USE, PUBLISH, REPRODUCE, DISPLAY, PERFORM, ADAPT, MODIFY, DISTRIBUTE, HAVE DISTRIBUTED AND PROMOTE SUCH CONTENT AND THE CONTEST IN ANY FORM (INCLUDING ANY TITLE OF THE VIDEO AND YOUR NAME AND LIKENESS), IN ALL MEDIA NOW KNOWN OR HEREINAFTER CREATED, ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD, FOR ANY PURPOSE. IN ADDITION TO GRANTING THE ABOVE LICENSE, THE GRAND PRIZE WINNER WILL NOT BE PERMITTED TO USE THE SUBMITTED VIDEO RECORDING FOR ANY COMMERCIAL USE AFTER IT HAS BEEN SUBMITTED.

Now, we're no legal eagles, but this basically states that JUST BY SUBMITTING your video, Clear Channel has the right to do whatever the hell they want with your video - forever. And if you win the contest, you won't be able to use (sell) your video.

Smell right to you?

Hey, if it does, go for it. Get all the info HERE. But keep all the above stuff in mind.

2009-07-24T22:32:00.000-07:00

TREY LOCKERBIE (unsigned, unpublished) -- Twenty-one year-old Nashville-based singer-songwriter Trey Lockerbie has quickly built up one of the largest fanbases of any unsigned artist in Nashville. He recently self-released his debut three-song EP and has been garnering regular airplay at local radio stations including WRLT (Lightning 100) Nashville. Check out the track "Hummingbird" - total hit.

Trey is in Los Angeles taking meetings with labels and publishers, and will perform at Room 5 on Saturday night, July 25, at 11PM. Expect a bevvy of A&R/pubco scouts in attendance. For more info, contact us here at TALENTfilter.

2009-07-24T11:39:00.001-07:00

MORE SIGNING UPDATES -- Juliana Joya signs to Matt Serletic’s Emblem Music Group, which is now a j/v with Waner Bros… Sixteen year-old Sky Ferreira signs a worldwide deal with EMI… Funeral Party signs with RCA… Los Angeles-based band Capra signs with Hollywood Records…

Got any signing news to report? Let us know at TALENTfilter@gmail.com

2009-07-24T11:28:00.000-07:00

ANOTHER TALENTFILTER ARTIST SIGNS ON THE DOTTED LINE! Greenlandic singer-songwriter Simon Lynge, first tipped to you on TALENTfilter over two years ago, has signed with Lo-Max Records, for the world ex-U.S. According to a blog posting on his MySpace page, it's a three-album deal. Simon's album titled A Beautiful Way To Drown will be released in the UK in September and in all of Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan soon thereafter. Congrats to Simon - he's really one of the most talented artists we've had the pleasure of seeing live more than once.

2009-07-22T17:17:00.000-07:00

TALENTfilter ARTIST NEON HITCH SIGNS WITH EMI! Congrats to Neon Hitch, first tipped to you in August 2008 - she has just done a pub deal with EMI Music Publishing. Nice one!

2009-07-22T17:13:00.000-07:00

UPCOMING L.A. SHOWS OF NOTE

Jul 22 -- Enter Shikari - Key Club
Jul 23 -- Edward Sharpe/Mag. Zeroes - Hammer Museum
Jul 23 -- Rachel Goodrich - Hotel Cafe
Jul 24 -- The Jakes - House Of Blues (Anaheim)
Jul 24 -- De La Soul - Key Club
Jul 25 -- Trey Lockerbie - Room 5
Jul 28 -- Obi Best -- Bootleg theater
Aug 1 -- Michelle Featherstone - Hotel Cafe
Aug 5 -- Roll The Tanks - Silverlake Lounge
Aug 6 -- Meiko - Pershing Square
Aug 22 -- Harvey Danger (?!) - Largo
Aug 28 -- Decca Tree - Viper Room

2009-06-11T13:31:00.000-07:00

BROOKLYN'S AMAZING BABY SIGNS WITH SHANGRI-LA -- According to HITS, Brooklyn-based band Amazing Baby (first mentioned on TALENTfilter in January) has officially signed with Shangri-La Records - way to go, fellas - congrats!

2009-06-06T11:34:00.000-07:00

MUSIC FOR ANIMALS (unsigned, unpublished) -- San Francisco's Music For Animals is one of the local acts performing on the Soundcheck Local Band Stage at this weekend's "Live 105 BFD 2009" concert. If you're not in the Bay Area, but will be in L.A. over the next couple of weeks, you can catch them Jun 18 at 3 Of Clubs and June 22 at Spaceland. Expect all your label/publisher friends to be there too.

2009-05-28T14:38:00.000-07:00

BEAR HANDS (unsigned, unpublished) -- Brooklyn's Bear Hands is a group that's been around since 2006-ish (we were first schooled on them by our friends at Oh My Rockness in '07)... Their sound? Hmm... Cold War Kids playing Pavement covers. With a couple of guys from Hockey jamming alongside them. For the masses? Not so much. Do we think they could sell 50,000 albums? Maybz. Are we personal fans? Fer sure. The band is gonna tour the UK for a couple weeks in June and then open for Passion Pit in NYC June 19. Our money is on the band being scooped up by a label before then.

2009-05-22T18:26:00.000-07:00

THREE RADIO STATIONS DROP 'NEW MUSIC' THIS WEEK -- Lousy news for new music fans (and the music industry in general) - Eighteen-year Alternative-formatted KWOD Sacramento has flipped to an 'all '90s' format. After 13 years as an Alt-outlet, WMFS Memphis pulled the plug and has begun simulcasting ESPN Radio. Alternative WSWD Cincinnati cleared out the Alt-Rock so that station owner Bonneville can switch Country WYGY over to the stronger WSWD signal. What did they put in the Country station's place? An '80s-based AC station - "Rewind 94.9, Feel-Good Favorites From the '80s and More."

2009-05-22T18:25:00.000-07:00

UPCOMING L.A. AREA SHOWS OF NOTE:

May 27 -- Michael Miller - Crane's
May 30 -- Samantha Crain - Spaceland
Jun 1 -- Oliver Future - The Echo
Jun 1 -- Castledoor - Spaceland
Jun 3 -- Carina Round (9p), Butterfly Boucher (10p), Meiko (11p) - Hotel Cafe
Jun 4 -- The Parson Red Heads - Spaceland
Jun 10 -- Susie Suh - Hotel Cafe
Jun 16 -- Miike Snow - Spaceland
Jun 17 -- Loquat - Viper Room
Jun 19 -- The Blood Arm - The Echo
Jun 19 -- Emily Wells - Hotel Cafe
Jul 1 -- The Tender Box - Viper Room

2009-05-22T18:12:00.000-07:00

MICHAEL MILLER (unsigned, unpublished) -- Los Angeles singer-songwriter Michael Miller is gearing up to independently release his new album titled, I Made You Up, and we got an advance copy - it's fuckin' fantastic. It's deep. It's rich. It's the best 'Sunday morning coffee-and-newspaper' album we've heard in a few years. He's got some songs posted on his MySpace page - check 'em out. Michael is playing with a full band at Crane's in Hollywood on May 27. Go see him. We'll be there too. Michael doesn't have management either, so if you're a label or publisher, and you'd like some MP3's sent to you, we'd be happy to hook it up - E-mail us and we'll get some your way.

2009-05-06T01:10:00.000-07:00

UPCOMING L.A. SHOWS OF NOTE:

May 8 -- Bob Schneider - Key Club
May 8 -- Aushua - Spaceland
May 13 -- Castaneda - Dakota Lounge (fmrly. Temple Bar)
May 14 -- Hensley - Hotel Cafe
May 20 -- Fitz & The Tantrums - Viper Room
May 21 -- Dynamite Walls - Viper Room
May 22 -- Ragsy - Hotel Cafe
May 27 -- Carina Round - Hotel Cafe

2009-05-05T16:51:00.001-07:00

PAN AMERICA (unsigned, unpublished) -- We first featured Los Angeles band Pan America in February of 2007. After some time apart and some lineup changes, the band is back with some FANTASTIC new songs. The five-piece certainly sits at Jimmy Eat World's table in the high school cafeteria, but there's something a bit more mature about their songwriting/song structure. This stuff is REALLY radio-ready, folks. Time to address this band. Seriously. E-mail talentfilter@gmail.com if you'd like more info.

2009-05-05T12:53:00.000-07:00

THE TEMPER TRAP TO GLASSNOTE -- A little birdie tells us that the label derby for Melbourne, Australia buzz band The Temper Trap has gone to Daniel Glass' Glassnote Records. Quite the coup for Daniel and his crew, as virtually every major label (and a handful of other indies) had a deal on the table. Rumor has it the band is licensing their record to Glassnote and chose not to enter into a 360 partnership.

2009-04-21T18:55:00.001-07:00

SAN FRAN ALT-OUTLET ANNOUNCES LOCAL BAND STAGE AT SUMMER FESTIVAL -- Alternative KITS (Live 105) San Francisco will host their annual "BFD" concert at the Shoreline Amphitheatre on June 6 - the concert features 35 acts on four seperate stages.

Their 'Soundcheck Local Band Stage' will showcase nine acts - MC Lars, alt-popsters Music For Animals (unsigned - our favorite of the bunch!), Wallpaper (signed to Eenie Meenie), Odawas (signed to jajaguwar), Dizzy Balloon (unsigned - "The Beatles on Wellbutrin" - Kevin Bronson, buzzbands.la), The Catholic Comb (signed to Bright Antenna), Ambience (unsigned, for fans of the mellower side of Dredg), Solid State Logic (unsigned 'Red State Rock' ala Breaking Benjamin) and Fighting The Villain (female-fronted rock ala Paramore, signed to indie PopSmear and in desperate need of a stylist).

Live 105 MD Aaron Axelsen and the rest of the programming staff there always do a great job of curating this stage - definitely worth looking into this year's acts!!

2009-04-18T13:22:00.000-07:00

NEW SIGNING UPDATE -- Orlando R&B artist Kevin Cossom signs to Jive ...also recently signed to Jive is UK popster Daisy Dares You ...Another British singer, Erik Hassle, has decided to sign to Island ...in METAL signing news, Wilmington rawkers He Is Legend has signed with Tragic Hero Records ...Detroit's We Came As Romans signs to Equal Vision ...City Of Ships has signed with Translation Loss Records

2009-04-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

VERONICA LEIGH (unsigned, unpublished) -- Originally from California, 24 year-old Veronica Leigh has been cutting her teeth on the Nashville circuit for a little while now ...She might be the first Country artist we've written about here, but our reasoning is - we have a strong feeling this girl will cross over into other formats as time goes by and as she continues to develop.

She's got one of the best voices we've heard in quite some time, she writes basic yet timeless, hooky country songs, and she's (obvz) got FANTASTIC style - as one tipster described her - "a Countryfied Katy Perry"...

Veronica has been approached by a few labels, but she's continuing to take meetings ...Hit us up directly for more information - or contact her directly and make like you discovered her on your own like you always do ;)

2009-04-08T23:59:00.000-07:00

TALENTFILTER ACT SIGNS PUBLISHING DEAL! Los Angeles-based Alt-Rock band Castaneda, first tipped here in November 2008, has signed a publishing deal with Songs Music Publishing. The band recently self-released a new EP titled So This Is What We're Gonna Do, and songs have been featured on hometown tastemaker KROQ Los Angeles. Castaneda is in the process of writing and recording new material. The band is still available for worldwide signing. Congrats guys!

2009-04-08T23:46:00.000-07:00

LAYOFFS TODAY AT WARNER BROS. RECORDS -- Hate to report this kind of news, but several staffers in A&R and regional Radio Promo were laid off today.

2009-03-23T15:50:00.000-07:00

MIKKY EKKO (unsigned, unpublished) -- For fans of Thom Yorke and Rufus Wainwright. This Nashville-based artist will showcase for industry insiders on April 2 at The Basement in Nashville.

2009-03-23T15:03:00.000-07:00

SXSW DAY FOUR RECAP/HIGHLIGHTS - We hurt. But we marched forth into another day and night of music, booze and BBQ. Caught a bunch of signed artist this night, as we were partying with radio programmers and the (still) expense-card-holding radio promo peeps. White Lies and Razorlight at Stubb's, Cage The Elephant at Antones, and Pendulum at La Zona Rosa. Pendulum was the big winner this night. Everything after that was a blur.

2009-03-23T14:47:00.000-07:00

SXSW DAY THREE RECAP/HIGHLIGHTS - We kicked things off on Day Three at the daytime performance by Dallas-based artist Johnny Lloyd Rollins. We'd seen him in the past, and this time around he was fully-plugged-in - VERY good stuff. Lots of publishers in the house from both the US and UK. After Johnny, we stumbled upon a really great SF-based group - Forrest Day. Think Matisyahu/System Of A Down/Sublime thrown into a bong and smoked. These guys are Alt-radio friendly - and still unsigned and unpublished. An early-evening set by Lex Land was awesome (although the sound in the venue/art gallery was horrific) - labels, managers, publishers, bookers - and Perez Hilton! - were in attendnace. We had a bunch of meetings with film/TV music supervisors after this, but managed to catch the tail end of The Bird And The Bee's set. Good times.

2009-03-23T14:29:00.000-07:00

SXSW DAY TWO RECAP/HIGHLIGHTS - Wednesday night was a bit rough on Team TALENTfilter, so we kept the schedule a bit light - the BMI brunch at the Four Seasons certainly helped cure the hangovers! Ed Harcourt sounded great during his daytime set, as did TALENTfilter fave Meiko (we noticed a bevvy of Alternative radio programmers in attendance KROQ, 91X, KEDJ) - not sure why considering she's more of a Triple A / Hot AC artist ...later in the evening, the place to be was The Parish, where many of the Hotel Cafe regulars performed (funny - three of the lady performers, Lenka, Holly Conlan, and Laura Jansen, wore black & white polka-dotted dresses not knowing the others would wear the same!) Sara Bareilles and The Proclaimers were the 'suprise guests'.

2009-03-19T10:43:00.000-07:00

SXSW DAY ONE RECAP/HIGHLIGHTS - Several publishing companies were out to see the daytime Gavin Castleton set...Lots of labels/publishers out to see The Temper Trap (Sony/ATV, MySpace Records, Glassnote, Chrysalis, Epic, Interscope, Bicycle Music among others) as well as radio programmers from KROQ Los Angeles, KUSF San Francisco and 91X San Diego ...Oh Land played an interesting set as well...

More notes as we get deeper into the madness!

2009-03-11T18:21:00.000-07:00

OH LAND (unsigned outside Denmark, unpublished, no management) -- Nanna Øland Fabricius, who goes by the name Oh Land, is a 23 year-old Copenhagen-based artist creating some pretty original material. Her debut album, Fauna, has been released in Denmark only through indie Fake Diamond Records. Oh Land will showcase in Austin during SXSW at Pangaea on Wednesday, March 18 at 9:00PM. Shows in L.A. and N.Y. to follow. "Heavy Eyes" is a hot track. Check it when you can!

2009-03-10T22:14:00.001-07:00

OH SNAP!
HERE'S THE 3RD ANNUAL TALENTFILTER "SXSW SHOWS TO SEE" LIST!

OK. ..So if you're a regular reader, you remember that we blew it last year and didn't get a list up in time. So it's really the '2nd annual'. Whatevz. But fret not, friends - this year we're being thorough!

Now ...Not including the 14 million 'non-sanctioned' daytime parties offering free beer, handjobs and indie rock, there are over 1800 bands performing at sanctioned showcases in Austin this year. Seriously too much to try and conquer (although those with strong hearts can grab the big ol' list of free shows from our friend Scott Perry at http://www.newmusictipsheet.com).

This year, we took every other 'industry insider list', had conversations with those in the know about shows on their personal 'must-see' lists, and compiled a filtered (heh) concentrated list of all the showcases you NEED to be at. Even if the bands are already signed/published, there will be some people there that you'll want to bump into for networking purposes, etc.

Have a look, and feel free to cut and paste and share with friends!

ONE MORE THING: If you're an artist (or represent an artist) that we've ALREADY FEATURED IN THE PAST (no newbies for this please) are we missed you on our list, E-mail us at TALENTfilter@gmail.com and we'll stick you on here.

Wednesday, March 18

1:45 p.m.	Pete & the Pirates	Red House Pizzeria	1917 Manor Rd.
4:30 p.m.	Asteroids Galaxy Tour	Maggie Mae's	(323 E 6th St) (21+)
5:30 p.m.	Meiko	Austin Convention Center	(500 E Cesar Chavez St) (All Ages)
6:00 p.m.	Mother Mother	Canadian Blast BBQ	Brush Square East tent
8:00 p.m.	The Boat People	Buffalo Billiards	(201 E 6th St) (21+)
8:00 p.m.	Ulrich Schnauss	Elysium	(705 Red River St) (21+)
8:00 p.m.	Edie Sedgwick	Wave	(408 E 6th St) (21+)
9:00 p.m.	Oh Land	Pangaea	(409 Colorado St) (21+)
10:00 p.m.	The Temper Trap	Dirty Dog Bar	(505 E 6th St.)
11:00 p.m.	Roll The Tanks	The Music Gym Patio	(815 E 6th St) (21+)
11:30 p.m.	Haley Bonar	Victorian Room @ Driskill	(604 Brazos St) (21+)
11:45 p.m.	Glasvegas	Vice	(302 E 6th St) (21+)
12:00 a.m.	Eli Paperboy Reed / True Loves	Continental Club	(1315 S Congress Ave) (21+)
12:00 a.m.	Aqualung	Latitude 30	(512 San Jacinto St) (21+)
12:00 a.m.	Gavin Castleton	Prague	(422 B Congress Ave) (21+)
12:00 a.m.	Annuals	Radio Room Patio	(508 E 6th St) (All Ages)
12:00 a.m.	Blind Pilot	Submerged	(333 E 2nd St) (21+)
12:30 a.m.	Echo and The Bunnymen	Emo's Main Room	(603 Red River St) (All Ages)
1:00 a.m.	Ida Maria	Buffalo Billiards	(201 E 6th St) (21+)
1:15 a.m.	Casiotone for the Painfully Alone	Beauty Bar Backyard	(617 E 7th St) (21+)

Thursday, March 19

2:40 p.m.	Loquat	Habana Calle 6	(706 E. 6th St.)
4:00 p.m.	The Jakes	PureVolume House	(323 E. 2nd St.)
5:15 p.m.	Meiko	Cedar Door	(201 Brazos St.)
8:00 p.m.	Castledoor	The Independent	(501 N IH 35) (21+)
8:00 p.m.	Holly Conlan	The Parish	(214B E 6th St) (21+)
8:00 p.m.	Cory Chisel	St David's Church	(304 E 7th St) (All Ages)
8:20 p.m.	Gabriella Cilmi	La Zona Rosa	(612 W 4th St) (All Ages)
8:30 p.m.	Anya Marina	The Parish	(214B E 6th St) (21+)
9:00 p.m.	The Kin	18th Flr, Hilton Garden Inn	(500 N IH 35) (18+)
9:00 p.m.	Wild Beasts	Latitude 30	(512 San Jacinto St) (21+)
9:00 p.m.	Tina Dico	live.create. lounge	(503 Neches St) (21+)
9:30 p.m.	Thao Nguyen	The Parish	(214B E 6th St) (21+)
10:00 p.m.	N.A.S.A.	Emo's Annex	(600 Red River St) (All Ages)
10:00 p.m.	Birds Of Tokyo	Friends	(208 E 6th St) (21+)
10:00 p.m.	The Henry Clay People	The Independent	(501 N IH 35) (21+)
10:00 p.m.	Jim Bianco	The Parish	(214B E 6th St) (21+)
11:00 p.m.	Dan Le Sac Vs Scroobius Pip	Aces Lounge	(222 E 6th St) (21+)
11:00 p.m.	Emily Wells	Buffalo Billiards	(201 E 6th St) (21+)
11:00 p.m.	Ed Harcourt	Elysium	(705 Red River St) (21+)
11:00 p.m.	The Asteroids Galaxy Tour	Emo's Annex	(600 Red River St) (All Ages)
11:00 p.m.	Edward Sharpe / Magnetic Zeros	The Parish Downstairs	(214 E 6th St) (21+)
11:00 p.m.	Meiko	The Parish	(214B E 6th St) (21+)
11:10 p.m.	Whole Wheat Bread	Austin Music Hall	(208 Nueces St) (All Ages)
11:10 p.m.	Iglu & Hartly	La Zona Rosa	(612 W 4th St) (All Ages)
11:30 p.m.	Greg Laswell	The Parish	(214B E 6th St) (21+)
12:00 a.m.	Blind Pilot	Club de Ville	(900 Red River St) (21+)
12:00 a.m.	Little Boots	Emo's Annex	(600 Red River St) (All Ages)
12:45 a.m.	Ida Maria	Maggie Mae's	(323 E 6th St) (21+)
1:00 a.m.	Camp Lo	Karma Lounge	(119 W 8th St) (21+)
1:00 a.m.	Hockey	Maggie Mae's Rooftop	(323 E 6th St) (21+)

Friday, March 20

1:00 p.m.	Johnny Lloyd Rollins	Bayou Lounge	(500 E. 6th St. A)
1:00 p.m.	Little Boots	Emo's Jr.	(603 Red River)
3:15 p.m.	Late Of The Pier	Cedar St. Courtyard	(208 W. 4th St.)
3:30 p.m.	The Tender Box	Rusty Spurs	(403 E. 7th St.)
2:00 p.m.	Meiko	Troubadour Saloon	(503 E. 6th St.)
2:00 p.m.	Madi Diaz	Six Lounge	(117 W. 4th St.)
7:45 p.m.	Pete & The Pirates	Cedar Street Courtyard	(208 W 4th St) (21+)
8:00 p.m.	Classixx	Beauty Bar	(617 E 7th St) (21+)
9:00 p.m.	Lex Land	live.create. lounge	(503 Neches St) (21+)
9:00 p.m.	Loquat	Wave Rooftop	(408 E 6th St) (21+)
10:00 p.m.	Madi Diaz	Victorian Room @ Driskill	(604 Brazos St.)
10:00 p.m.	Amazing Baby	Emo's Main Room	(603 Red River St) (All Ages)
10:00 p.m.	You Me At Six	Latitude 30	(512 San Jacinto St) (21+)
10:00 p.m.	Metallica (shh)	Stubb's	(801 Red River St) (All Ages)
10:00 p.m.	Solange / Hadley Street Dreams	Austin Convention Center	(500 E Cesar Chavez St) (All Ages)
11:00 p.m.	Tricky	Austin Music Hall	(208 Nueces St) (All Ages)
11:00 p.m.	Wheat	Maggie Mae's	(323 E 6th St) (21+)
11:30 p.m.	Glasvegas	La Zona Rosa	(612 W 4th St) (All Ages)
12:00 a.m.	DEVO	Austin Music Hall	(208 Nueces St) (All Ages)
12:00 a.m.	Lady Sovereign	Club de Ville	(900 Red River St) (21+)
12:30 a.m.	Asher Roth	Club de Ville	(900 Red River St) (21+)
12:45 a.m.	Primal Scream	La Zona Rosa	(612 W 4th St) (All Ages)
1:00 a.m.	Late Of The Pier	Aces Lounge	(222 E 6th St) (21+)
1:00 a.m.	Dredg	Buffalo Billiards	(201 E 6th St) (21+)

Saturday, March 21

2:00 p.m.	Edward Sharpe / Magnetic Zeroes	PureVolume House	(323 E. 2nd St.)
3:30 p.m.	Meiko	Gibson Showroom	(3601 S. Congress)
3:30 p.m.	The Courteneers	Latitude 30	(512 San Jacinto)
4:00 p.m.	Sonia Leigh	Touche	(417 E. 6th St.)
4:00 p.m.	The Swear	Dizzy Rooster	(306 E. 6th St.)
5:00 p.m.	Echo and The Bunnymen	Bat Bar, Convention Center	(500 E Cesar Chavez St) (All Ages)
5:30 p.m.	Lady Sovereign	Peckerhead's	(402 E. 6th St.)
7:30 p.m.	Lex Land	The Ale House	(310 E 6th St (Alley Entrance)) (21+)
7:40 p.m.	White Lies	Stubb's	(801 Red River St) (All Ages)
8:00 p.m.	The Asteroids Galaxy Tour	Maggie Mae's	(323 E 6th St) (21+)
9:00 p.m.	Samantha Crain	The Ale House	(310 E 6th St (Alley Entrance)) (21+)
9:00 p.m.	The Break And Repair Method	Maggie Mae's Gibson Room	(512 Trinity St) (21+)
9:00 p.m.	Iglu & Hartly	Vice	(302 E 6th St) (21+)
10:00 p.m.	Asher Roth	Vice	(302 E 6th St) (21+)
10:30 p.m.	Elizabeth & The Catapult	The Ale House	(310 E 6th St (Alley Entrance)) (21+)
10:55 p.m.	B.o.B	Austin Music Hall	(208 Nueces St) (All Ages)
11:00 p.m.	Longview	Cedar Street Courtyard	(208 W 4th St) (21+)
11:00 p.m.	The Knux	Vice	(302 E 6th St) (21+)
11:20 p.m.	The Crystal Method	La Zona Rosa	(612 W 4th St) (All Ages)
11:30 p.m.	Buddy	The Ale House	(310 E 6th St (Alley Entrance)) (21+)
12:00 a.m.	Solange / Hadley Street Dreams	Buffalo Billiards	(201 E 6th St) (21+)
12:00 a.m.	Dredg	Emo's Jr	(603 Red River St) (All Ages)
12:00 a.m.	Echo and The Bunnymen	Rusty Spurs	(405 E 7th St) (21+)
12:05 a.m.	Brian Wright / Waco Tragedies	The Ale House	(310 E 6th St (Alley Entrance)) (21+)
12:30 a.m.	Pedestrian	The Ale House	(310 E 6th St (Alley Entrance)) (21+)
12:45 a.m.	Pendulum	La Zona Rosa	(612 W 4th St) (All Ages)
1:00 a.m.	The Used	Cedar Door	(201 Brazos St) (18+)
1:00 a.m.	Fair to Midland	Maggie Mae's Rooftop	(323 E 6th St) (21+)
1:00 a.m.	Whole Wheat Bread	The Parish Downstairs	(214 E 6th St) (21+)
1:00 a.m.	The Crimea	The Rio	(301 San Jacinto Blvd) (21+)

2009-03-07T15:04:00.000-08:00

LABEL BUZZ SURROUNDS TALENTFILTER ARTIST -- Our secret spies tell us that 22 year-old singer/songwriter/pianist Chloe Leighton, first tipped here three months ago, was flown to NY this past week by one major label to to showcase for the big shots... This soulful, jazzified artist will perform again in April at the Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles, but don't be surprised if you hear about one of the other three majors setting up private showcases of their own. This one could get insteresting!

2009-03-07T15:02:00.001-08:00

UPCOMING L.A. AREA SHOWS OF NOTE:

Mar 8 -- Tina Dico, Quincy Coleman - The Roxy
Mar 12 -- Castledoor - The Echo
Mar 13 -- Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeroes - Echoplex
Mar 14 -- Katie Costello - Hotel Cafe
Mar 15 -- Meiko, Emily Wells - Saint Rocke
Mar 16 -- Skid Row - House Of Blues
Mar 17 -- Skid Row - Key Club
Mar 31 -- Fitz & The Tantrums - Hotel Cafe

Apr 11 -- Blind Pilot - Spaceland
Apr 13 -- The Henry Clay People - Spaceland
Apr 14 -- Michelle Featherstone - Hotel Cafe
Apr 16 -- Chloe Leighton - Hotel Cafe

2009-03-07T14:19:00.000-08:00

RY JARRED (unsigned, unpublished) -- Ry is a Venice, CA-based singer-songwriter - he definitely sits at the same table in the cafeteria with Bon Iver, M. Ward and Citizen Cope. Good vibe - synch-friendly as all get-out, and we think KCRW will be ALL OVER THIS GUY in the coming months. Ry performs at Air Conditioned in Venice on Sunday night (March 8). Expect some weasels in the house. Check out the video for his song "New Glow":

2009-03-06T07:26:00.000-08:00

TALENTFILTER ARTIST MOVES FROM INDIE TO MAJOR LABEL! -- Los Angeles band The Airborne Toxic Event, first written about here back in January 2008, have been scooped up from Shout! Factory/Majordomo to Island/IDJMG. Singer Mikel Jollett tells L.A. blog Buzz Bands, "It's a great deal, we're pumped up." And what of the folks at Majordomo? "Majordomo has a really good stake in this thing — they were very much a partner," Jollett said. "It's a good situation for everyone involved."

Congrats to the band (and the folks at Shout! Factory, Majordomo, and HITS Magazine / The MGMT Company!)

2009-02-24T23:07:00.000-08:00

A QUESTION FROM THE MAIL BIN -- From time to time we get E-mails from industry folks regarding the artists we write about - sometimes we get tips, sometimes we get comments about the acts we've featured - and sometimes we get general questions about the state of the biz. A note we received tonight we feel deserves a prompt response, so here it is along with our answer!

Hey TALENTfilter,

I've really enjoyed your blog, and appreciated the support that you've been giving independent artists.

I currently work with a small artists' collective based out of Portland, Oregon.

We believe that creative marketing in a digital age is enabling more and more artists to become what we like to think of as "middle class musicians" (something much harder to imagine ten years ago). But reading your blog, I've come to wonder if perhaps the day of record companies will never end (and if such myopic independence, as in avoiding all record companies, might be counterproductive).

Considering the fact that many of your featured artists go on and accept contracts from record companies (be them small or large ones) I would like to know what your opinion is on the issue. Or even what those artists have reported since about their experience.

Do you think it's really still worthwhile to sign with a label?

Honestly, reflecting over the success of our bands this past year, I've come to appreciate the flexibility and freedom that comes with being unsigned... but I've also come to wonder how much more meaningful their musical experience might be if supported by more financial capital and greater industry networking (the two things that labels seem to offer).

Sorry for my ramblings... but such esoteric debate no longer seems confined to the field of academia, but rather towards artists who struggle on for the sake of music and for the sake of community. So your thoughts would be appreciated.

Thanks for all you do!

Carl Hoiland

Canoe Music:

An Artists Collective

http://www.canoemusic.net

Hi Carl - thanks for reaching out - and thanks for checking out the blog.

The "day of record companies" isn't going to end any time soon, but those record companies won't be structured in their current form for much longer.

Record companies are in the business of selling, as we heard one label President say, "shiny round things that nobody wants to buy anymore." That's their business. Selling something that people either don't want, or can get for free.

Obviously they won't be able to keep the lights on with that model much longer.

The labels are realizing (ridiculously slowly) that they have to participate in other sources of an artist's revenue in order to make money. Problem is, they're still staffed up the way they've always been staffed, so when they try to justify participating in, say, an artist's publishing revenue, they can't, since they're unable to contribute anything of value in that area. They're simply not set up as a publishing company! Same with merch. Same with touring.

Once record companies staff up to provide service in all the areas they're looking to participate in revenue-wise, those pesky 360 deals will look a bit more fair (Side note: Don't believe everything you read - you can still get a fair-ish deal from a label - they're not all 'required' to do 360 deals - if they want you badly enough, they'll play ball).

Anyway, if an artist is currently trying to figure out whether to partner with a record label, they first need to think about what they're looking for the label to do for them. What is the end-game?

If it's simply to get their music into as many earholes as possible, then working with a major label is still certainly a great way (possibly still the best way) to go. They've still got the best
relationships at radio, video, traditional retail and traditional press. They've still got their higher-profile acts to use as leverage. They've still got checkbooks.

A smart artist (or manager) knows that while the artist might never see a dime from record sales, all of the exposure and awareness-building that's happening as a result of the label's efforts IS, actually, increasing the artist's profile. So their tour guarantees go up. More people come see them live. More people buy their T-shirts. More music supervisors and ad agencies want to license their music. More earholes are filled with the music.

Yes, the artist may have to give up their precious masters, but as recorded music becomes less and less valuable, honestly? Let 'em have the stinkin' masters - they're not gonna be worth anything anyway!

Cheers,

Team TALENTfilter

Feel free to hit us with comments - TALENTfilter@gmail.com

2009-02-18T10:24:00.000-08:00

LOS ANGELES / NEW YORK RADIO NEWS -- Watch for CBS-owned Talker KLSX to flip to a Top 40 format beginning next month in what appears to be an attempt to battle Clear Channel-owned KIIS. Is CBS planning to make a similar move in New York? Active Rocker WXRK (92.3 K-Rock) and AC outlet WWFS (Fresh 102.7) are the weakest links in the company's NY chain. Our money is on their flipping Fresh 102.7. Makes sense, no? WRXP, the Triple A station in New York is gonna go away sooner than later, so CBS can just tweak WXRK's music to compensate for disenfranchised Triple A listeners, while using the Fresh 102.7 stick to battle Clear Channel's Top 40 WHTZ (Z100). More news as it happens!

(***Editors note: Looks like that format flip at KLSX Los Angeles happened sooner than we'd tipped! To that, be on the lookout for some changes/announcements in the Programming departments at other CBS outlets [ie: KROQ Los Angeles]***)

2009-02-16T00:43:00.000-08:00

TALENTfilter ARTIST UPDATE -- Miranda Lee Richards' new album, Light Of X, was released in the U.S. through Nettwerk Records last week - it's currently a Top 5 Singer/Songwriter album on iTunes (See? We TOLD you iTunes would finally wisen up and change the Folk category to Singer/Songwriter!) ...Miranda is doing a monthly residency at Spaceland in Los Angeles.

L.A. goth-rock outfit Dommin, first tipped to you in February 2007 and signed to Roadrunner Records in June 2008, finally have a date set for their debut album's release - on May 12, Love Is Gone will hit stores Stateside. Watch a teaser video HERE.

Unsigned/unpublished singer/songwriter/pianist Michelle Featherstone (tipped to you in June 2008) will celebrate the self-release of her new album titled Blue Bike on February 28 at the Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles. It will be available digitally soon thereafter. Michelle has more of her songs placed in films and TV shows than any artist on your label. Why are you sleeping on this girl? Wakey wakey, genuises!!

Gavin Castleton, first tipped in July 2007, has had his new single "Coffeelocks" played on influential Los Angeles radio station KCRW almost every morning for the past two weeks. "Coffeelocks" is available now digitally through indie label Five One. Gavin is still unsigned and unpublished. He's a prolific songwriter who has self-released 7 solo albums in the last four years. He's also put out 7 albums with his other band Gruvis Malt, and 2 with another side project, Ebu Gogo. Scroll down a bit to watch the video of Gavin recording a remake of the Prince classic "Nothing Compares 2 U".

Unsigned/unpublished Irish singer/songwriter/guitarist Paul Casey, tipped in April 2007, has had several of his songs recently licensed for U.S. TV shows - the latest of which, a new track, titled "Blow Away The Clouds", will appear on MTV's "The Real World" on Wednesday, Feb. 18.

Check out unsigned/unpublished NY artist Goot, tipped here in February 2007, finally getting some MySpace love - a feature on the front of the MySpace Music page - good morning!

2009-02-02T16:29:00.000-08:00

AMANDA GHOST NAMED PRESIDENT OF EPIC RECORDS - She'll join the label on Feb. 16 and fill the opening made when Charlie Walk left in December 2008. Ghost comes from the music side of things, having been a Grammy-nominated songwriter and a performer; she's worked with Beyonce, James Blunt, Jordin Sparks, Kanye West, Shakira and Jay-Z and released her debut solo album Ghost Stories on Warner Bros. in 2000, as well as other records in the U.K. on her own label, Plan A Records.

According to our sources, it's possible that almost half of the current roster could be dropped, and there could be further house-cleaning, staff-wise, in the A&R department.

2009-01-27T10:29:00.001-08:00

MUSIC DIRECTOR AT WRXP NEW YORK RESIGNS -- Bryan Schock, MD and on-air personality at Triple A WRXP New York, leaves the building to relocate back to southern California for personal reasons. Schock programmed Alternative 91X San Diego for many years prior to the move to NY. Does he know something we don't about Emmis' plans for the New York signal? The ratings have been horrible since they've signed on ...Stay tuned! We wish the best of luck to Mr. Schock - he's one of the good ones.

2009-01-24T20:32:00.000-08:00

WHAT'S UP AT BUZZNET? After laying off more than 10% of its workforce before the holidays, some more have left the building this past week. Jeezus.

2009-01-23T19:49:00.000-08:00

INTERSCOPE LAYS OFF 75 STAFFERS TODAY -- That's the unconfirmed report we're getting - very quietly, 75 folks in various departments were handed pink slips. Not good.

2009-01-22T14:45:00.001-08:00

KORDA MARSHALL RELAUNCHES INFECTIOUS RECORDS -- (ripped straight from Music Week) -- Marshall, who founded Infectious in 1994, has teamed up with his one-time business partner, Mushroom Records founder Michael Gudinski and music, theatre and sports entrepreneur Michael Watt, who have both taken a significant shareholding in the new company.

The first signing to Infectious Records are Australian band The Temper Trap, who are signed in Australia to Gudinski’s Liberation Music.

Marshall, who left Warner Music in October 2008, says “I’m incredibly excited about going back to running an independent label. These are really interesting times for the music industry, which continues to evolve and although there are still big challenges to overcome I believe there are fantastic opportunities for labels who are willing to embrace new ideas and new ways of working with artists.”

In addition to the label Marshall plans to launch music publishing and artist management arms.

Marshall has also hired former Infectious Records executives Pat Carr of Remote Control and Mirelle Davis of Wind Up Bird as consultants to oversee General Management and International Marketing respectively for the new company. He has also engaged Robert Horsfall and Mike Skeet’s teams at Sound Advice to handle the company’s legal and financial affairs.

2009-01-21T17:44:00.000-08:00

UPCOMING L.A. SHOWS OF NOTE

Jan 26 -- Bangkok 5 - Roxy
Jan 28 -- Astra Heights - Viper Room
Jan 29 -- Holly Conlan - Hotel Cafe
Feb 2 -- Aushua - Silverlake Lounge
Feb 4 -- Johnny Lloyd Rollins (early 7PM) - Hotel Cafe
Feb 4 -- Little Boots (late) - Spaceland
Feb 10 -- Mark Lanegan - Troubadour
Feb 11 -- Castaneda - Club Moscow (Boardners)
Feb 12 -- Jonneine Zapata - Silverlake Lounge
Feb 18 -- Castaneda - Club Moscow (Boardners)
Feb 21 -- Meiko (w/ Joshua Radin) - Henry Fonda

\m/ \m/

Mar 16 -- Skid Row - House Of Blues
Mar 17 -- Skid Row - Key Club

2009-01-21T12:38:00.000-08:00

REBECCA JORDAN (unsigned, unpublished) -- If Corinne Bailey Rae had a smarter, cuter, hippy-dippy L.A.-based cousin, it'd be Rebecca Jordan. She's self-funded and self-released her debut EP, The Trouble With Fiction, and the video of her take on Fleetwood Mac's "Dreams" is currently being featured on mtvU's "The Freshmen" program. Check her MySpace page to hear other songs from the EP - we like "This Town" and "Hey Kid."

Side note: Rebecca (who also sometimes spells her name Rebekah), wrote Kelly Clarkson's song "Beautiful Disaster."

Peep the "Dreams" video here:

2009-01-09T12:58:00.000-08:00

LOS ANGELES ALTERNATIVE RADIO SUPPORTING BABY BANDS - L.A.-based TALENTfilter band Iglu & Hartly, who we first reported on in early 2008 (and have since signed with Mercury in the UK and Universal Republic in the U.S.), have their first single, "In This City" officially added into regular rotation on L.A. Alt-outlet KROQ. As there is no 'official' add date set, this is a huge score - and will more than likely make the Uni Republic folks rush the single to the rest of the Alternative radio panel. Woo hoo!

Indie 103-1 Los Angeles has been heavily supporting Brooklyn-based Amazing Baby as of late. Their song "Head Dress" is in a solid all-daypart rotation. While the band's MySpace page states that they're signed to "psilocybe", we know that the announcement of a major label signing is coming shortly.

2009-01-07T15:29:00.000-08:00

TALENTFILTER UNSIGNED ARTIST UPDATE - Some of the artists we've written about on the blog are steadily building some traction on their own without the help of a record label - here's a bit of an update:

HOLLY CONLAN (unsigned, unpublished) had her song "OK" featured on this week's episode of "90210" - another one of her tracks, "You Are Goodbye" on this week's episode. A regular performer at L.A.'s Hotel Cafe, her holiday track was included on the venue's Hotel Cafe Presents: Winter Songs compilation (Epic) - she'll perform at the Hotel Cafe on January 28. KCRW Los Angeles loves her, iTunes loves her ('single of the week' this summer) - you should too.

GAVIN CASTLETON (unpublished), signed to uber-indie Five One Records, recently recorded (and videotaped) a remake of the Prince classic "Nothing Compares 2 U" which is f**king mind-blowing - this YouTube link was forwarded to us by a manager:

N@th1ng C@mpare$2U (cover) live

It won't be released, but it'll certainly help create awareness of Gavin as an artist. His album titled Home will be released by Five One in mid-February, and the first single, "Coffeelocks", will be serviced to Alternative Specialty radio this week. Hear "Coffeelocks" here.

Eighteen year-old Hermosa Beach singer/songwriter KATIE COSTELLO (unsigned, unpublished) has moved to the east coast - several labels including Jive and Atlantic have shown serious interest. Katie has dates on both coasts posted on her MySpace page.

JOHNNY LLOYD ROLLINS (unsigned, unpublished) has picked up a significant amount of label interest since we wrote about him after last year's incredible performance at Sundance - he'll be in Los Angeles meeting with labels and publishers in February, and has a show confirmed at the Hotel Cafe on February 4. Expect multiple majors in attendance.

2009-01-03T16:30:00.000-08:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!! While you're recovering over the weekend, take a sec to mark these dates on your calendar - we'll have some unsigned artist updates, industry nooz and new acts to tip you to during the week:

Jan 5 -- Low Stars (and Sarah Bareilles but shhh) - Hotel Cafe
Jan 9 -- Chloe Leighton - Hotel Cafe
Jan 15 -- Meiko - Hotel Cafe
Jan 28 -- Astra Heights - Viper Room
Feb 4 -- Johnny Lloyd Rollins - Hotel Cafe

Seems the bookers at every other venue in Los Angeles aside from the Hotel Cafe forgot about bands for January! Yikes.

2008-12-12T19:38:00.000-08:00

A&R COMINGS AND GOINGS... Sadly, this is less about comings and more about goings. Several A&R staffers were let go this week as part of a major restructuring at Epic Records US -- Andy Gershon, Jeff Wooding, along with young guns Daniel Werner and Seth Cassel have exited... Keith Naftaly is also rumored to be leaving before year's end. At MySpace Records, A&R exec Jon Pikus has exited... Rumorers are rumoring that there will be a shakeup in the Atlantic Records A&R department soon as well, as new A&R chief Pete Ganbarg could soon trim the fat from a rather large A&R team. Also, what's up at Downtown? On a happier note, Brad Aarons just joined Warner Chappell as VP A&R.

(*More news - Jeff Aldrich has been let go from Warner Bros. Rumor has it he'll head to NY to take a position with Jive. Are there more layoffs ahead at WB? We hear there will be more before the end of the year*)

2008-12-06T16:46:00.000-08:00

CHLOE LEIGHTON (unsigned) -- 22 year-old singer/songwriter/pianist Chloe Leighton has become the #1 Unsigned Jazz Artist on MySpace. Originally from Sydney, Australia, Chloe has spent time living in Paris and now calls Los Angeles her home. It's still very early days for Ms. Leighton, but she's got a number of really well-put-together songs ...Norah Jones-meets-Sara Bareilles. Standout tracks featured on her MySpace page include "Chocolate Cake" and "If You Only Knew".

Chloe will spend the rest of the year updating her MySpace page, getting new photos done, and will continue to write and record. She's got a publishing deal with HoriPro, but she's available for worldwide signing and licensing.

2008-11-28T12:51:00.000-08:00

DIANA POPS (unsigned, unpublished) -- This 23 year-old singer/songwriter/pianist hails from Winnipeg, Manitoba. Her MySpace page lists her as sounding like "Tori Amos and Norah Jones' art-pop love-child", but we also hear a stiking similarity to one of her big influences, fellow Canadian Sarah McLachlan.

Diana recently completed an album with Juno Award-winning, Grammy-nominated producer Adrian Bradford and mixer Bryan Cook. Her MySpace page features a few of the tracks from the offering (faves include "Light My Cigarette" and "Las Vegas To New York") - we have to say this is one of the most promising new artists we've come across in quite some time.

2008-11-26T19:55:00.000-08:00

ANOTHER TALENTFILTER ARTIST SIGNS A LABEL/PUBLISHING DEAL! Our super-snoops inside the Nettwerk Records offices tell us that Terry McBride has signed Australian TALENTfilter act The Hampdens to a recording and publishing deal! We first wrote about The Hampdens EIGHTEEN MONTHS AGO! Kudos to Terry and to the band for getting a deal done - it's about time someone helps create awareness of their material outside of Oz!

Terry, where can we send an invoice for our finder's fee? ;)

2008-11-23T14:44:00.000-08:00

TALENTfilter 'SIGNED ARTIST' UPDATE

There are many other 'tipsheet’-type blogs out there claiming to have helped a million bands get signed – well – you can get a million bands record deals, but if none of them break, who cares, right? Here’s an update on some of the artists who have been signed or published since being tipped to you by Team TALENTfilter:

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, featured in February 2007 and now signed to The Firm’s record label, have ‘Scanned 239,111 copies of their debut album The Way Of The Fist, and have had several chart-topping singles at Active Rock radio in the U.S...

JESSIE BAYLIN, featured in March 2007, has since signed with Verve Forecast (and Sony/ATV Publishing) and has ‘Scanned 11,470 copies of her debut Fireflight LP. Baylin will tour in support of Mark Broussard in January 2009.

ANDREW PAUL WOODWORTH, also featured in March 2007, has signed a European licensing deal with Rodeostar Records in Germany and has toured mainland Europe several times in 2008 in support of his debut Eddy Ate Dynamite LP (available in EU). Woodworth remains unpublished and is available for licensing outside of Europe.

KATE WALSH, featured in March 2007, has since topped the iTunes UK Albums chart without the help of a label, signed with Mercury in the UK and Verve in the U.S., and has scanned about 10,000 copies of her album Tim’s House in the States. Walsh is currently working on a new album.

INGRID MICHAELSON, first featured in May 2007, is our most-successful TALENTfilter artist, sales-wise, to date. You’re probably very familiar with her accomplishments – but you should also know that she’s ‘Scanned 246,362 copies of her Girls & Boys LP and 32,295 copies of her latest Be Ok album. Ingrid still owns her masters, and is still unpublished.

A FINE FRENZY, who was signed but unpublished when we’d first written about her, has since signed a publishing deal with Warner/Chappell. She’s ‘Scanned 228,637 copies of her debut One Cell In The Sea LP, and has had NUMEROUS song placements in film/TV and commercials. Her first single, “Almost Lover”, peaked at number 25 on Billboard’s Hot A/C chart in the U.S. Overseas, "Almost Lover," reached number eight in Germany, number ten on the Swiss Charts and number five in Austria. A Fine Frenzy (Alison Sudol) is currently working on a new album (and writing a children’s book!)

BRENDAN JAMES, first featured in June 2007, has signed with Decca Records and has ‘Scanned 11,305 copies of his debut The Day Is Brave LP.

THE AIRBORNE TOXIC EVENT, featured in January 2008 after KROQ Los Angeles added their song into regular rotation, has since signed with Shout! Factory in the U.S. and has 'Scanned 23,169 copies of their self-titled album. The radio story in the U.S. continues to grow, and the label derby has begun overseas for non-U.S licensing rights.

MEIKO, the very first artist we’d blogged about in February 2007, has signed to MySpace/DGC, and has ‘Scanned 25,283 of her self-titled debut. The album, self-released almost a year prior to signing, had sold over 25,000 copies without the help of a label. The Meiko LP is the top-selling album on Amazon.com this week, and she’s debuted at #26 on the R&R Triple A radio chart this week as well. She’s had 11 songs placed in U.S. TV shows, and she is still unpublished.

2008-11-21T19:22:00.000-08:00

KATIE COSTELLO (unsigned, unpublished) -- Before reading any further, please go to Katie's website to listen to her songs - specifically "Kaleidoscope Machine". We'll wait.

................you back?

................You impressed?

Guess what - she's 17, maybe 18. Yeah. We felt the same way too. Katie has found some recent love from KCRW Los Angeles tastemaker Nic Harcourt - not only has he and the station's Chris Douridas played her music on the air, but Harcourt has also placed "Kaleidoscope Machine" in the "90210" TV show he music supervises. Katie lives in Hermosa Beach, CA, and her sound is in the vein of Zooey Deschanel. We think she's awesome. And we'll be at her show December 7 at Saint Rocke.

2008-11-21T18:54:00.000-08:00

**BREAKING NEWS** Following Thursday night's prominent placement in "Grey's Anatomy", wicked sale pricing and ridiculous coverage on MySpace, TALENTfilter artist Meiko has the #1 best-selling album on Amazon.com. Boo ya.

2008-11-19T20:14:00.000-08:00

CASTANEDA (unsigned) -- Castaneda is a five-piece L.A.-based band who recently completed their second EP titled This Is What We're Gonna Do. The good folks at Songs Publishing have been helping them to garner various film/TV and videogame synch licenses, and music from the EP is receiving airplay on KROQ Los Angeles' "Local's Only" show and Indie 103-1's "Check, One, Two" program. What separates Castaneda from the deluge of 'indie' Silverlake acts is that they write melodic songs with hooks, and the singer can actually sing! Now, both of their EP's could use some tweaking in the mixes, but the songs are certainly there - if you're a fan of The Killers, you'll like these guys. Castaneda performs at The Mountain Bar in downtown L.A. this Saturday at 11:30. We'll be there, as will a handful of smart label execs.

2008-11-19T19:50:00.000-08:00

TALENTFILTER ARTIST STACY CLARK SIGNS WITH INDIE SHANGRI-LA! We're excited to tell you that Orange County-based singer-songwriter Stacy Clark, who we first tipped you to in January 2008, has signed with Shangri-La Music (The Duke Spirit, The Pretenders). She's also picked up a booking agent (APA) and has had several songs placed in TV shows including MTV's "The Hills" and The CW's "Girlfriends". Hooray Stacy! Congrats to you!!

2008-11-19T15:42:00.000-08:00

UPCOMING L.A. SHOWS TO BE AWARE OF:

Nov 20 -- Molly Marlette - Hotel Cafe
Nov 22 -- Castaneda - Mountain Bar (Downtown)
Nov 22 -- The Shore - Molly Malone's
Nov 24 -- Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - The Echo
Dec 1 -- Everything Is Energy - The Roxy
Dec 2 -- Holly Conlan - Hotel Cafe
Dec 5 -- Brian Wright & The Waco Tragedies - Hotel Cafe
Dec 15 -- Brendan James - The Roxy

2008-11-01T05:45:00.000-07:00

GOOD NEWS!

OK - Good news - after taking about a month off (and slacking a bit in the few months prior), we'll be back this week with a fresh crop of unsigned unpublished talent. We'll also give you a report card on some of the acts we'd discovered prior to their signing - we can help a million bands get signed, but if none of them break - who cares, right? We'll tell you how they're all doing this week.

2008-10-03T22:37:00.000-07:00

UPCOMING L.A. SHOWS OF NOTE

Oct 9 -- Lex Land, Gavin Castleton -- Hotel Cafe
Oct 9 -- Dynamite Walls -- Viper Room
Oct 10 -- Meiko -- Hotel Cafe
Oct 10 -- Graveyard -- Spaceland
Oct 10 -- Restiform Bodies -- The Echo
Oct 13 -- Kenan Bell -- Spaceland
Oct 15 -- The Atma -- Silverlake Lounge
Oct 15 -- Obi Best -- El Cid
Oct 16 -- Bumblebeez -- The Echo
Oct 23 -- Tina Dico -- Hotel Cafe
Oct 23 -- Slaughter (!!!) -- Key Club
Oct 29 -- Spinnerette -- Spaceland
Oct 31 -- Helmet (!!!) -- Viper Room
Nov 3 -- Mother Mother -- Silverlake Lounge
Nov 5 -- Jim Bianco -- Hotel Cafe
Nov 8 -- Letters To Cleo (!!!) -- The Roxy