Archive for January, 2009

So we missed an edition in December…. we’re really very sorry, especially Chris Late. To make up for it he’s given us his longest podcast to date; packed with a diverse selection of tunes and his first foray into the world of Drum ‘n’ Bass. Then there’s the big one… we at Rising Music don’t like brag too much, but ‘If You Knew’ feat. Nastala has taken the numero uno spot in the Buzz, Cool Cuts and Music Week charts; it entered MTV Dance’s Essential New Tracks at #4 with a playlist add to follow. Last but not least, support has come in strong from the BBC with Tong, the lovely Sarah Cox and Scott Mills all supporting the record. Happy days and happy listening!

I just had this link sent to me by a good mate up in Newcastle, and thought what the hell… Rising likes Obama, Adam Freeland and certainly Daft Punk, so why not promote this bizarre trio of personalities a little further?

Taken from the YouTube info bar:

“The following is a mixed-media stop motion music video and celebration commemorating the election and inauguration of Barack Obama as the forty-fourth president of these United States. Audibly showcasing Adam Freeland’s remix of Daft Punk’s “Aerodynamic” and the imaginative stylings of forward thinking toy artists Dalek, Bill McMullen and Kubrick to name just a few. Independently animated and directed by the progressive minds of the directing team GOLD, the piece is a labor of love that invites everyone to join in or create their own celebration this coming Tuesday January the 20th.”

…….and by all means, we’d love to hear your thoughts on this political scenario! Just leave your comments at the end.

Here it is :

Just before Christmas Chris welcomed the lads from Future Music Magazine into his London studio. I’m told this edition will be on the shelves by Thursday this week, so if you want to see Mr Lake in action go and buy buy buy! Here’s the promo:

And here’s his ‘Quick tip’:

Just a bit of light hearted fun for an change; this has been on YouTube for a while now, but I only picked it up yesterday… a bit from the Mau5 school of acting, but more importantly, my favourite track since ‘Slip’. A tune that I think defies musical logic, but what do I know?

On the flip side, BBC Radio 1′s Zane Lowe played it (‘Slip’) a few weeks ago, and put rather a nice touch on it: “Deadmau5 – Making trance good again!” As for this one, I think Sarah Cox and Mr Tong has been giving it some love – ladies and gents – I give you Ghosts N Stuff!

A good friend to Rising Music, Alex Fain, shares his hidden talents…

I think it was back in November we posted about Chris’ remix of Sia’s ‘Buttons’. Well, since then I’ve joined her fan club… and in a big way.

I’ve done a little digging on YouTube and come up with a variety of performances that show her talent, diversity, but more importantly a little insight into how genuinely crazy this chick is… attributes we at Rising Music completely condone!

First up is an acoustic cover of ‘Gimme More’. A track written for/by Britney Spears; who incidentally had her Twitter account hacked recently… poor thing.

Next up I’ve gone for her live performance on Jools Holland’s BBC 2 show. It’s just so pretty… but not… if you know what I mean…

And finally… again it’s ‘Buttons’, but this time I think you get a real feel for the banter behind the voice! You need to go to 40secs in before the track starts. Enjoy!

BBC report: Apple Inc has agreed to start selling digital songs from its iTunes store without copy protection software.

Read more….

Right, this post will definitely not be in the interest of everyone, but still, I feel it needs to be written and I know we've got quite a few readers who work in the media…. so….

Here's are some of the facts: The world is suffering from a severe economic crisis. Consumers are no longer trusting advertising the way they once did. Companies are cutting ad-budgets by huge amounts and are reinvesting in new methods that open up 'the conversation' – so as to understand what the people actually want.

So, what part of Norwich Union spanking £9million on an advert to let people know it's having a name-change makes sense? There's a whole lot of bad press already written, but for me it goes a little deeper than, "well it's just a huge waste of money isn't it". You've got Bruce Willis, the lovely Elle Macpherson, Ringo Starr, Alice Cooper etc etc all saying they might not have made it without changing their names…. so Norwich Union are saying what? It won't make it unless it merges and takes on a new name…..? According to some basic research its been going since 1797. One might say… they've bloody made it!

"Sometimes it's a chance to show the world what you've always wanted to be"… (Final quote from the ad)

What a load of shite… and after hearing Bruce Willis interviewed some time ago on the Chris Moyles show, you know he won't get out of bed for less than £4m, so I wonder how the rest got cut? Please don't get me wrong, I have huge amounts of respect for all the people used in the ad… Mr Willis in particular. At the end of the day, they're just doing their job. But how could a company get it so wrong? It's like an ad out of the nineties – just oozing with bullshit, but done in such a high profile way that it demands respect. Well now in 2009 and with the world as it is, I think it could have communicated this news in a far better manner.

You can read the press release here, but a news site I found called BNET tells it as it is:

"Advertisers frequently talk about the value of their brands, but changing the name of your company is either a tacit admittance that your brand has no value or a massive strategic error. Norwich Union is one of the oldest, largest and most-trusted insurance and finance brands in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1797. “Aviva,” as this Google search shows, is already the name of a swimming pool toy company, a diabetes blood sugar checker, a family services agency, and many other second-rate brands. By ditching 300 years of equity, Norwich Union’s name change thus falls under the “strategic error” category. And an expensive one at that."

And finally here it is: