MUSEXPO Europe 2009

Live: Night 3

2009-07-03T03:58:00.000-07:00

Mads Langer kicked off the final evening of Musexpo Europe 2009's showcases at Borderline. The Danish singer-songwriter's second self-titled album is out on Copenhagen Records at home (original home to Alphabeat). What a voice, and a what a charming performer. A truly affecting and impressive show piqued the interest of live agents in the UK, which is handy seeings how Mads is getting ready to move to London soon. The looks, the talent, the personality -we're jealous but impressed.

We're not sure we've ever seen a band from Lebanon perform on any stage before, so for that reason alone, it was a pleasure to catch The Kordz at The 100 Club.The group, who are balls-out power rock personified, has spent the past two years working on a new album, Beauty & the East, with Grammy-nominated producer Ulrich Wild (Deftones, White Zombie), recording in Canada, Los Angeles and Lebanon. We think there could defintely be other territories outside of their home country that would appreciate their tight, powerful brand of rock.

Meiko made her Musexpo debut in LA last year, where she appeared on a panel and performed a showcase. Since then she's signed to MySpace/DGC Records, and released a self-titled debut album to critical acclaim. Her debut European show was tonight. We can safely say the crowd were smitten by this kooky and cute performer with tracks like 'Boys With Girlfriends' and 'Under My Bed' standouts for many. This girl is a star and can defintely find a fanbase outside the US.

The Jessie Rose Trip from Manchester displayed some quirky northern soul and bags of charm at The 100 Club. Tracks like 'Forever and a Day', a reggae-tinged retro-soul number back by Jessie's powerful voice impressed us. They've been getting plenty of tastemaker buzz on UK radio (from XFM to BBC R1 and R2) and we hear things are starting to happen for them in the US too. It's much deserved.

Kate Miller-Heidke's voice ranged from mid-range pop to operatic superstar during he triumphant gig at Borderline. The Australian’s range and eclectic blend of styles, along with some bona-fide radio hits-in waiting was as engrossing as it was exciting. Her most recent album Curiouser, which was produced by Mickey Petralia, (Beck, eels, Peaches, Dandy Warhols) is well worth a listen.

We're not sure we've ever seen any like Norwegian metal act The Cumshots ever before. If you sidestep the name, which is sure to raise this blog's visitor numbers considerably, and the logo (a defaced version of Rolling Stones' lips one), what you're left with is an extreme hardcore act who make Rammstein look like The Jonas Brothers. It was theatrical, manic, hilarious, power and frightening. Mostly frightening. The singer started the show by showing us his 'Wooly Mammoth' (don't ask) and ended it by chewing broken glass and bleeding all over the sacred 100 Club stage. One of the more unforgettable shows of Musexpo Europe and a messy but thrilling end to proceedings for 2009's live acts.

In Converstation with Adam Tudhope, Keane/ Laura Marling manger

2009-07-01T08:52:00.000-07:00

Adam used his brief interview with creative director of Musexpo Europe 2009 Ajax Scott to reveal that the Music Managers Forum is to reshaped into The Managers Collective. In the interim period, a website , musicbizorgwithnoname.com - has been set up to open debate and a consultative process with artist managers and representatives. The affordable price for joining the newly revamped organistation is to be £100 incl. VAT instead of the previous £200 fee. Another advantage of joining The Managers' Collective is a deal with smaller venues in the UK owned by the MAMA group, which will see the lifting of restrictive merchandise percentages given to the venue on those with a capacity of up to the Kentish Town Forum. Bargain.
Outside of the collective his own clients, the wonderful folk ensemble Mumford and Sons have signed to Island in the UK. Island gave them money to record the album, which they then licensed back to Island. Adam said he had already spent £30k developing the band himself before signing, which is a pretty powerful case of putting your money where your mouth is.

Get Your Crystal Balls Out: Here Comes The Future

2009-07-01T08:39:00.001-07:00

Andrew Phillips and Safta Jeffrey moderated this lively and informative discussion with the challenging and rather broad remit of 'The Future Of Music' Stephen Knill of The Radiate Group, Vijay Nair of One Much Louder (India), Zane Lowe of BBC Radio 1, Adam Zammit of Peer Group Australia and Martin Morales of Disney Music Group (EMEA) were the brave ones tasked with thrashing it out.
In the discussion about the filters and recommenders of music Steven lamented that " the sources of recommendations have changed so much. You don't know where to look. The future is another set of recommenders".
As the subject moved on to future markets Vijay told us that a Non-Bollywood market didn't exist in India previously because there was no distribution network. Now there's an organised structure in place and so common sense would dictate that the smart music companies would start offering product there soon. Zane Lowe, a hugely influential tastemaker DJ in the UK stressed the need for a trusted place of recommendation, saying that "People have taken back control" as opposed to having tastes and trends shoved down their throats. "(the future recommenders) could be local record stores. Even though the collapse of high street music retail is worrying, the Amoebas and Rough Trades have nothing to worry about". Adam Zammit said the best ideas will come from individuals not big companies. "They will come from entrepreneurs who have grown up with technology". Lowe thought that the industry is probably still at a tipping point where we're still just holding on to the old industry, but looked to things like Spotify as exciting glimpses of what the future could be like. Zane, incidentally, tweeted about the Future Of Music panel before it started, asking his thousands of followers for ideas. The responses, a mixture of hilarious and interesting, are worth a look. On the artist side of things, Vijay argued that we don't need future superstars -We want them, but we don't need them. "The future lies in a 'merit class of musicians' rather than superstars"
Vijay also shared some further insight into his home market, claiming that India always comes top of the ranking lists on countries for piracy precisely because there are no legal music download services in India - 'you have to at least give them an option'. After pointing out the number of people who work for digital stores in the audience, Zane pondered why they weren't on the next plane to India - smart guy.
Adam Zammit thought the use of the word 'free' in marketing language is damaging and said labels had no right to whinge about illegal downloading if they've used 'free' as a marketing tool for the same purposes.
Vijay thought people will pay for value. He also used the example of UK band Fanfarlo, who made an album available for 15 days for $1. "I know lots of kids in India snapped it up because someone was allowing you to pay for music". He also told us that mobile marketing in India is driven by the value-adds like music rather than tariffs.
As to music's position in the cultural landscape, Adam warned that music is finding itself in a secondary position to other lifestyle industries. "It takes the backseat in films and games.". Adam claimed that music is not leading the technology, it just being bundled with it. " It's not a comfortable position to be in." Although he seemed pleased that music is driving fashion again, with new artists like Bat For Lashes and MGMT bringing an aesthetic back to music that was missing in the grunge era.
Nobody knew what the future would be, but there were some interesting pointers from people with a keen eye for what tomorrow holds.

Making D.I.Y Pay

2009-07-01T08:08:00.000-07:00

In the Making D.I.Y. Pay panel, moderated by Nicola Slade from music industry bible Record of the Day, some of the scarier realities of going your own way were brought to light. In the last decade there has been a 15 per cent drop in the sales of recorded music. With over 30,000 albums released each year, the chances of success are less certain than ever. Human hand-grenade and respected music writer John Robb, who is never one to keep his opinion to himself on a panel offered this advice for anyone thinking of doing it themselves: "Kids think its about celebrity culture when it should be about creativity". David Courtier-Dutton from band investment site Slicethepie.com revealed that of the 24,000 bands they have on Bebo, 24 have been funded. He reiterated his claim that slicethepie are a utility for investment, not a tastemaker. UK soul singer Beverly Knight's manager David Woolf said that Beverly is happy since leaving EMI and getting VC investment for her own label. "She is happy to be in charge of her destiny now". He also suggested that EMI hadnt invested in the right way. Nick Denton, the head honcho at Dirtee Stank (Dizzee Rascal's label), when asked how to 'get seen' as a DIY artist replied succinctly "Get off your fucking arse and play some gigs". Sage advice. Denton confided that although XL were great, there would always be a massive gap between artist and the label in terms of goals and attitudes.
David Courtier-Dutton delivered the maxim that for marketing "every email address is sacred". David Woolf said that there were several surprises associated with taking the DIY route, namely that every decision is taken with a long-term goal in the DIY sphere. He thought that contracts can be intimidating. Nick Denton said that when you sign with a big company, they can give you a 7-figure sum and not ring you once per year. Peter: Thompson thought tastemakers were a' necessary evil. To round off the panel, each participant was asked their definition of success:. The responses included 'playing to a packed house', 'survival', 'creative freedom', 'a living wage' and 'doing what you love' - why not have a game of matching the definition with the panellist?

Talking publishing and legacy

2009-07-01T06:09:00.000-07:00

An experienced panel line-up with some fine advice to impart was made up of Ian Ramage of Sony ATV, Jens-Markus Wegener of AMV Talpa, Germany, Francis K. Pettican Fairwood Music (UK), Alison Donald, MD of Chrysalis Music Publishing, Andy McQueen -Chairman of The Notting Hill Music and Barbara Orbison, President, Orbison Music Co. & Still Working Music Co.
Barbara Orbison, who was married to Roy Orbison for 20 years, now holds over the big industry that surrounds his catalogue and legacy. "With heritage artists it's important to keep him or her on an iconic level, but also to bring them into today". She also dismissed moderator Emmanuel Legrand's query about licensing a sample from Orbison to a rap star, claiming that if it worked well and was true to his legacy, she'd green-light it. After all, she reminded us, Roy worked with Rick Rubin in his latter years.
Alison Donald put the job of a publisher into a personal context when she told us that publishers are "in the relationship business". Ian Ramage thought that the closeness of the relationship business is determined by which point in the story the publisher gets involved. Andy McQueen claimed that one of the more important roles of the publisher was to be a sounding board for opinions, saying "Sometimes an inexperienced manager coupled with an experienced publisher can be a good thing".
There were mixed opinions traded on A&R bidding wars. McQueen thought that "the bidding wars can be counter-productive because you're trying to recoup more quickly". Ramage profered that the upside of the bidding wars was that it endorses the value of songs and songwriters. The downside being that it sets the expectation high for the artist and can lead to negative energy and thought it was a question of balance.
Alison relevaled that Bon Iver was reluctant and nervous to do a publishing deal until it was explained to him. For him, the decision of who he signed to was really about the right relationship and the right team which shared his vision. Alison also stressed the importance of development deals. Bat For Lashes, who Chrysalis licensed to Parlophone, won Alison over by giving her a book of 'Natasha's World' when she had only heard a few demos.
Jens confessed frustration at the A&R Panel yesterday "the label A&Rs came up with a lot of of excuses as to why they can't sign things... I don't want those guys working at my company". He then admitted that he'd need to speak to those same A&Rs the next time he had a fantastic songwriter to plug to them.
Barbara lamnted that although heritage acts' back catalgue is keeping the majors afloat, it's not as respected as it should be.
In a panel with some confusion as to the best models for engaging with new revenue streams, Alison offered succour for any publishers, big or small : "music is more ubiquitous now than it has ever been". Amen to that.

Emmanuel asked each panelist for a tip of a songwriter who is worth keeping an eye on, here are their answers:
Ian: Rachel Furner
Jens: Patrick Noor (Switzerland)
Francis: Noel Hogan - Architect/ The Cranberries
Alison: Laura Marling
Andy: Dizzee Rascall
Barbara: Taylor Swift

Night 2 at Musexpo Europe 2009

2009-07-01T04:51:00.000-07:00

The Borderline didn't quite know what to expect when a band billed as 'Germany's punk rock standard-bearers' were due to kick off proceedings for the second night of showcases. We'd hope their expectations were confounded by a raucous, energetic and well-received show from Donots. At one point, their singer looked like he was in danger of strangling himself on his microphone wire as he excitedly emoted their rough rock sound. They've been going for over 15 years in Germany and recently self-released an album, the wittily-titled 'Coma Chameleon' to great acclaim

Dirty Epics came fresh from an Irish TV show challenge where they had to write, record and perform a song in 18 hours. They coped admirably if the results on stage were anything to go by. Dirty Epics released their debut album, 'Straight In No Kissing', last October through their own SCAR Records (distributed by Universal) and received a rapturous response from the Irish Times and more local media. They brought their brand of sexy, spiky pop-punk to The 100 Club, a venue with quite a bit of punk history. it was their London debut - we're sure we'll be hearing more from them in the future.

FrankMusik was a last minute addition at The Borderline. The pint-sized Island Records-signed artist has just been added to the Radio 1 playlist in the UK, so he had cause to celebrate. Scorching beat, piercing falsettos and some very wise choices of samples and covers, FrankMusik is pure pop joy personified - and it really works live. His cover of Pet Shop Boys' 'It's A Sin' was a highlight for us. He definitely made the most of his Musexpo moment - he even expressed relief that the crowd wasn't "all corporate and boring" - it was certainly a warm Los Angeles welcome in London for Frank.

Pint Shot Riot signed a publishing deal with EA/Nettwerk joint venture Artwerk Music late last year. They displayed the jagged rhythms and sharp melodies that led to their initial interest at The 100 Club. Their first single "Punches Kicks Trenches and Swords," earned significant airplay throughout the UK and was chosen by EA Games for their "SIMS 3" soundtrack in November 2008. They strutted the famed stage in central London like they owned the place - we're sure that pretty soon they will.

Australian act All Mankind make the kind of epic radio-friendly MOR songs which the likes of The Script and The Fray found success with in recent times. They're not doing too badly in their home territory at the moment, with award nominations for song-writing and performance in both Australia and America. It's not hard to see why they are so well-received - it's smartly written pop songs which will sound great on the radio - like their peers, they also have a sound which could fill stadiums. A winning combination and an impressive performance.

The Broken Beats closed night two of showcases at The 100 Club. Their psychedelic rock/pop sounds like Alphabeat met Talking Heads down a dark alley. Essentially, it's very unpredictable but no less fun for it. Their new album, You're Powerful, Beautiful and Extraordinary, has already spawned a Danish hit with leadoff single "The Rules". With a zany but excellent set-up, we wouldn't bet against them doing the business in other territories too.

Day One Closes: Global A&R Forum

2009-06-30T11:11:00.000-07:00

The assembled panelists for Global A&R Forum have signed everything from Gnarls Barkley to Muse, to Blur, Sugababes and Madcon.
Sarah Stennet of SSB/ Crown Management, Korda Marshall (MD, Infectious Records), Fredrik Ekander (Bonnier Amigo, Sweden), Mike Smith (MD of Columbia Records, UK) and Bjorn Teske (Sony Music A&R Director, Germany) were on call to discuss the finer points of their most-prized discoveries. They were led into conversation by moderator Joe Taylor (Field Recordings/ Nuxx Publishing & Music Consultant to Record of the Day).
Sarah said she approached Sugababes "as a brand that represented the type of pop music we were doing" and that despite three line-up changes and being picked up after being dropped by their first label, the girls are still in the game and currently working on a new album which will be a co-production with Jay-Z's RocNation label in the US. She thought the main responsibilities involved in management was managing the individuals, working with a label which works through the difficulties and keeping the focus on the brand itself and the music.
Korda signed Muse when they were a bunch of 17 year-olds, he says because it was very obvious from the start that they had the right attitude, focus and drive. Initially signing them for Australia/ UK-only singles deal with matching rights clause for other territories, his market specific approach at first allowed them to ramp up to a global campaign after 3 albums. Interestingly, he had passed on them a few times before signing them as they were too young.
Mike Smith's experience of working with Mark Ronson included taking up reigns from another label (Ronson's first album didn't do so well for Elektra while they were on their last legs). Ronson's version of Radiohead's 'Just' which appeared on a soundtrack in 2006, and his involvement in Lily and Amy's album led Smith to believing Ronson's signature sound was connecting with people at just the right time - that's why they waited two years before launching the album.
Bjorn's experience with the fledgling German rockers Aloha From Hell came when their lead singer was just 14 years old singer. What followed for them was an 18 month period of artist development before partners Bravo Television got behind them. Bjorn reiterated the importance of reaching a mass market after that point. "After grassroots development, you do need Radio/ TV and press. We had already invested Eur500,000, so we needed to get a Gold album with them."
Most of the artists Sarah Stennet has worked with were dropped from their label or sidelined from the industry at one point. She listed Noisettes, VV Brown and Sugababes as examples. She said she looked for the drive from the artists to still be involved - with The Noisettes, the idea of a waste of a unique talent and the work they had put into their career drove her to continue to be involved. They were eventually signed back to the label they were dropped by in the UK, by working with another dropped band under her management company.
After taking the demos from the audience the panel discussed hit discovery. Korda said he heard Gnarls Barkley's "Crazy" on a Tuesday afternoon and signed it by Friday and that he's had 4 records like that in a 30 year career.
Michael Jackson was a topic that couldn't be avoided on this panel. Korda spoke of " the big machine whirring" in majors when an artist dies. He compared Sony's job at present to RCA's when Elvis died. Mike Smith, although stressing his role at Columbia wasn't directly involved in Jackson's catalogue at all summed up the feeling in his company: :I think it's really important for the industry...Tony Wilson said it best when he said 'nothing sells like death'. We have to do as much as possible to respect the legacy and his family. We need to do it in a way in which the families feel comfortable with." Fredrick Ekander was of the opinion that music no longer has the ability to touch the same number of people at the same time, and that was why there would never be a superstar like Jackson again. Smith retorted that "The opportunity is still there for an artist to touch people on a global scale, but they just don't come along very often."
After discussing the methods of discovery and the filters used ,Smith's comment on what buzz does to an act was telling in the current music media environment: "Just because something is the most-tipped act of the year, that doesn't mean it's going to crossover."
To conclude the entire panel admitted that they have never signed a band after discovering it on a CD they had been given at a conference , but have signed bands they've seen at conferences - Korda name-checked The Temper Trap who he saw at last year's Musexpo Europe event in London.
And so to the Carbon Lounge for some cocktails and another evening of musical discovery. Follow us on Twitter for updates as we go. We're back tomorrow for more coverage from The Cumberland Hotel, kicking off with The Publishing Forum at 9:30am. Sleep is for wimps.

Snap, Crackle and Pop Music: Elbow for Breakfast?

2009-06-30T10:15:00.000-07:00

Officiated by The Official Charts Company's Martin Talbot and ex-Universal A&R/ artist manager Joel Harrison, The Managers Forum panellists between them have sold a helluva lot of record. Luckily they imparted some wisdom about the challenges facing artists at either end of the sales scale.
Jim Chancellor (MD of Fiction Records & manager of Athlete), Phil Chadwick (Elbow's manager), James Sandom ( Supervision Management - The Kaiser Chiefs), Cassandra Gracey (manager of Gabriella Cilmi) and Deville Schober (manager of showcasing artists of this event Aloha From Hell) all pitched in with what they thought was most important to keep in mind when managing in today's climate. Schober thought it was "more important than ever to fight against 360 deals" which may fly in the face of common perception of today's grab-all deal structures. Gracey, who manages Cilmi and Island artist FrankMusik (also showcasing at MusexpoEurope), stressed the importance of individual artists expectations and having a clear roadmap for each different artist. James Sandom thought it was about staying true to the artist's original aesthetic and ideals.
On the subject of getting revenue for your artist outside the record deal, there was some interesting asides on dealing with Ad synchs. Chadwick revealed that Elbow turned down £1m from a breakfast cereal brand for the use of their hit 'One Day Like This', as well as turning down offers from Orange mobile phones and Birds Eye's Fish Fingers. The reasoning behind it was simple to understand, as Phil said: "The band had decided 'do we want to have a gig where someone shouts 'play that one off the cereal advert!'?". He also offered insight into the costs associated with up-scaling your act. A Wembley Arena show for Elbow only just broke even, but was done as a point to prove that the band could pull it off. The blanket license which TV stations in the UK enjoy for the use of music in their programme was descried as 'heartbreaking' by Chadwick, who admitted to watching 'The Katie and Peter Show' on ITV2 when Elbow's 'Mirrorball' was used.
Cassandra thought there was still the right deals to be done when your artist is in demand for co-branded opportunities: Frankmusik got 'tens of thousands of pounds' for the Blackberry-sponsored TV show he did.
Jim Chancellor said he didn't factor in synch revenue when signing a band as it may not happen in the near future. He expressed the opinion that although MGMT broke in US by clever use of synch, it wouldn't happen over here because the act are perceived as too 'cool' to get away with such a thing in the UK. Chadwick responded that the generation from which the artist belongs to is a factor -Elbow being a bit older means they're less responsive to ad synchs than younger acts. Outside the synch activity, Chadwick also focused on the importance of having a great champion of your act within the label structure - Elbow specified that they would only work with Liz Goodwin in Polydor UK as their product manager because of her passion for working the band through the entire Universal system (which he described as a 'grown-up record label). James Sandom concluded the advice by saying he found it good to have a small network of other managers which he trusts to check things like festival/ commercial fees and run past problems and opportunities as they arise. A fascinating panel with some real lessons learned.

Mini-Keynotes: Detica and MATIVision

2009-06-30T10:11:00.000-07:00

Two short keynotes sandwiched in between the big discussions today brought some interesting new products to our attention.
The first was brought to us by the good folk at Detica. Before being given a brief product demo, we were told about the lack of proper metrics available in the music business. Detica's alleged that the impact of the demise of Zavvi and Woolworths on music retail market wasn't really known - and if/when such collapses happened in any other business, the analysis would have happened by now. Attempting to redress the lack of available information on such things, Detica unveiled a tool which forecasts the long-term impact of digital piracy on the music industry’s revenues. The new ‘Price for Music’ model is available for anyone to access via a nifty free website. It allows users to explore scenarios by inputting their own business variables and generating easy-to-understand graphs and charts projecting revenue over time. Neat.

The afternoon mini-keynote was a special presentation from MATIVision, a Greek technology company which offered a revolutionary live music video technology which captures events in spherical video format, from different positions in the event venue. Have a play around with it on their site.

The New Power Players : Show Me The Money

2009-06-30T07:08:00.000-07:00

With representatives from 7 Digital, We7, Getty Images and Ministry of Sound, this panel aimed to demystify the revenue streams behind the music industry's new power players. Ted Cohen from TAG Strategic looked after proceedings, which viewed a trend-shift from the a-la-carte industry to a service economy. 7 Digital's Ben Drury accepted that while no one single model would work for everyone, there is definitely a shift from consumer demands from wanting to own music to just wanting to stream.
But the purchase model still holds ground, as Ben admitted that the major labels pushed them towards their recent deal with Spotify which provides one-click purchase integration. Whether this simply was an extension of their current affiliate deal, or an expression of a lack of confidence on the part of the majors in Spotify's business model, is yet to be made clear. Drury also confirmed that the firm's Indie Store offering for DIY artists has 60,000 musicians and bands signed up to it. Getty's Vince Bannon also noted that the band Metric, have made $300K since Christmas through their own DIY activities.
Ministry of Sound's Rudy Tambala piped up halfway though this panel, comparing the line-up for the first panel to a "bunch of old blokes, sitting out on the porch, spitting tobacco.", which might have been a bit unfair - they weren't that old.
Ted Cohen gave a response to BPI's Geoff Taylor's recent comments about Napster in a column written for the BBC. When Cohen worked with Napster he no desire to make a deal with the recorded music business, they just wanted to build a base, get the law changed. In the light of today's news about the sale of The Pirate Bay, we could see history repeating itself.

Daytime Tuesday (am): Jazz is out of the traps

2009-06-30T06:04:00.000-07:00

Musexpo Europe's daytime panel kicked off with an at times heated but always entertaining global keynote. There were also some news announcements. Radio 1's head of music policy George Ergatoudis hinted that the radio station is poised to launch a new set of interactive and community features, based on a recent "visualisation" experiment whereby listeners could watch what was happening in the studio in real-time, as well as witnessing all of the text messages being sent in on a live feed.

EMI Music Publishing UK president Guy Moot, Island co-president Ted Cockle, Big Life Management founder Jazz Summers and International Talent Booking MD Barry Dickins made up the stellar line-up.

Paul Brown from Spotify sadly wasn't able to make today's proceedings but might have been interested at the amount of time spent discussing the potential foibles of their business model. There was much worry about the ad revenue versus subscription take-up (premium subscribers for Spotify are alleged to be in the region of 15,000 in the UK at present).

The broad range of topics ranged from using the right communication channels, managing them (Summers talked about the number of people at Big Life tasked with managing social networking comments) and thinking about alternative methods of utilising a fanbase. Tinchy Stryder, a UK No 1 artist sells 500 T-shirts per month which don't have his name or image on it - the lesson to be learned is using not just the music, but the lifestyle and message behind an artist to maintain fans interest.

First Evening: The Heat Is On

2009-06-30T03:27:00.000-07:00

While London sweltered under the hottest weather in quite some time, Musexpo Europe 2009 provided shelter from the oppressive heat in the form of our first night of showcases before the more serious matter of talking shop began.

The Borderline, home to many a discovery at last year's Musexpo Europe, saw temperatures rise for the smoking London debut from Germany's Aloha From Hell. 16 year-old front woman Vivi Bauernschmidt busted some top notch rocker moves out front, while a band which could have been products of an assembly-line for rock musicians (standard T-shirt issue: Motley Crue, Guns N' Roses) certainly had the chops to convince. They've cast their net wide already with hits in Austria and Japan where they are a priority for SonyBMG. Perhaps that net might spread even wider after this incendiary appearance.

Hilltop Hoods followed, bringing a glimpse of Australian hip hop to the London audience. Platinum at home, selling 100,000 records thus far, with album The Hard Road hitting No.1, they've also received the prestigious J Award for Best Australian Album. We also learned of a more impressive achievement: at recent sold-out Islington Academy shows, the crowd (no doubt very thirsty antipodean ex-pats) set the record for bar takings, splashing over £5,000 on booze. No wonder, this is perfect music to get rowdy to. Watch out for their anarchic brand of provocative beats.

Norway are the current Eurovision Song Contest title holders, so we were interested to see what kind of sugary pop extravaganza they could throw our way on Musexpo's European jaunt. Datarock's pulsating dance/rock/comedy show confounded our expectations and definitely turned the heat up with an addictive set of memorable bangers. Dressed in immaculate (if ill-advised, given the weather - have we mentioned how hot it is in London right now?) red hooded track suits, they bounced, raved and generally did awesome things like sing songs about Commodore 64's, which we enjoyed. They even closed with a song which paid homage to Prefab Sprout. A brilliant party band.

With our appetites whetted for two further nights of showcase action, we also have to get our serious heads on for two days of networking and panels. Can you stand the heat?