Nick Cave/Bad Seeds Catalog Gets Deluxe Reissues

Nick Cave has joined the push to up sell devote fans with "premium packages". Artists and labels have been late to grasp the fact that their core fan base is not impressed nor do the highly value MP3 by themselves. Expect a serious 'pile on' in the coming 6-12 months as everyone embraces new digital packaging ideas.

Dapper don Nick Cave and his old friends the Bad Seeds must be used to the deluxe treatment by now; after all, they're rock royalty if anybody is. But the band's monstrous back catalog? It may have never been treated so good before.

Mute Records is set to reissue remastered, 5.1 surround sound-enhanced versions of the entirety of the Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds discography, with the initial batch of four titles due later in 2008. Cave and the Seeds' first four discs-- 1984's From Her to Eternity, 1985's The Firstborn Is Dead, 1986's Kicking Against the Pricks, and 1986's Your Funeral... My Trial-- make up that initial batch, and boy, are they in for a treat. The collector's editions will be double disc sets containing both the remastered stereo album and the new surround mix, B-sides, and new liner notes. Each album will also contain one of a series of short films (collectively titled Do You Love Me Like I Love You?) made by the UK-based team of Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard.

Indeed, Forsyth and Pollard are putting together Do You Love right now, and they need your help! "Have you been affected by the songs of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds?" they ask on their website. If the answer is yes, and you'd like to explain just how in front of a camera, you should probably click here pronto.

In other Cave rumblings, the theatrical production of Georg Büchner's Woyzeck-- for which Nick Cave and Bad Seed/Dirty Three dude Warren Ellis composed music a couple years back-- is coming to NYC. Woyzeck will play at the Brooklyn Academy of Music's Howard Gilman Opera House on October 15, 17, and 18 as part of BAM's Next Wave Festival.

Sony buys out Bertelsmann. Recorded music is not worth what it use to be.

Sony has announced that they are buying the 50% stake in Sony BMG held by German media giant Bertelsmann in a deal valued at $1.2 billion. The deal is a touch convoluted but it basically results in Bertelsmann receiving approximately $900 million in value for its 50% stake in Sony BMG.

"Last year the BMG unit saw revenue fall 27% to $2.25 billion while operating profit dropped 46% to $144 million." Bertelsmann obviously wanted out. The business is crumbling, and they are in no position to try and leverage the master recordings like Sony can with its electronic products. Sony understands that Apple leverages music to sell iPods. They should be able to do the same.

Canada's Hockey Theme ready for a change?

For those of us who grew up in Canada, the Hockey Theme (a.k.a. The Hockey Night in Canada Theme Song) is as familiar as our national anthem. However, the end of the '07/'08 season also means the end of one of the longest running license deals in broadcast history. As of this writing, the CBC and the owner of the song (Copyright Music and Visuals) haven't reached a suitable agreement to continue.

David Byrne talks music distribution options for musicians

David Byrne's Wired article is a couple of weeks old, but I am realizing quite a few musicians do not read Wired Magazine, and have missed it. It's interesting to note that some of the most insightful articles around the music business in the last 2 years has come from Wired magazine, and not the more obvious publications like Billboard.

Nettwerk Music Group and the Vancouver Sun offer free Christmas album for 48 hours

Nettwerk Music Group and the Vancouver Sun are pleased to announce another free digital download album. It's Seriously Westcoast Vol.2 - Happy Holidays. Seasonally themed and features 15 songs from such artists as Barenaked Ladies, Sarah McLachlan, Medieval Baebes, Jars of Clay and many more.

This special digital album will only be available for a limited time staring on Saturday, December 15 at 12:01am for 48 hours only. To download your album go here

Charity Forced to Pay Copyright Fee So Kids Can Sing Carols

As reported on Torrent Freak, The UK's Performing Rights Society believes 'tis the season to be scrooge.

The Performing Rights Society is suing anyone and everyone for playing music in a public space that has not PAID for the privilege. These criminals include: