Hands & Imperfections is the latest album from the Madrid-based GARRETT WALL BAND, the dynamic acoustic four-piece hailed by Hot Press as a “supremely tight ensemble”. Since his critically-acclaimed acoustic solo debut All Of The Above, Garrett’s music has come full circle: from the divergent rock-based albums Change and Gravity to his instrumentally diverse last solo studio outing, Daylight, Nightime. The unusual format of his band – guitar, trumpet, bass and cajón (flamenco box drum) – is powerfully well-rounded; intimate, through the use of the cajón yet sharply defined by the trumpet. All of which provides a crafted platform for Wall’s soaringly lyrical voice.
His compositions are, in his own words, “bright, lively and optimistic”, each with its own captivating melody. They speak of life, love, loss and hope with a sincerity and vulnerability that comes when an artist truly bares his soul. The Garrett Wall Band sing and compose for both television and cinema in Spain and their debut album, Sky Pointing, will shortly be released Stateside. Their latest album Hands & Imperfections, released here in October and earlier this month in Spain, has already received airplay on a plethora of radio stations in both countries.
The Choice Music Prize shortlist for Irish Album of the Year 2009 was announced in Dublin this afternoon.
The shortlist is as follows (artists listed in alphabetical order):
And So I Watch You From Afar “And So I Watch You From Afar” (Small Town America) Bell X1 “Blue Lights On The Runway” (BellyUp) Codes “Trees Dream in Algebra” (EMI) Adrian Crowley “Season of the Sparks” (Chemikal Underground) Dark Room Notes “We Love You Dark Matter” (Gonzo) The Duckworth Lewis Method “The Duckworth Lewis Method” (1969/Divine Comedy
Records) Julie Feeney “Pages” (Mittens) Valerie Francis “Slow Dynamo” (VF) Laura Izibor “Let The Truth Be Told” (Atlantic) The Swell Season “Strict Joy” (Plateau)
The Paul McLoone show on Today FM will broadcast a special Choice Music Prize Shorlist show this evening from 7pm.
The shortlist has been selected by a panel of 12 Irish music media professionals representing print, radio, online and TV. The full list of judges can be found on the Choice Music Prize website (http://www.choicemusicprize.com)
The overall Album of the Year will be selected by this judging panel at the Choice Music Prize Live Event at Vicar Street, Dublin on Wednesday March 3. The Event will be broadcast live in a special Paul McLoone Show on Today FM (www.todayfm.com) featuring music through the night and interviews with the shorlisted artists.
The winning act will receive a prize fund which has been kindly provided by the Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO) and the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA).
The act will also receive a specially-commissioned award, courtesy of the Recorded Artists And Performers Ltd (RAAP).
Tickets for the Choice Music Prize live event will go on sale from all Ticketmaster outlets on Monday January 18, priced 27 euros including booking fee.
The event will feature performances from a number of the nominated acts and full information on the line-up will be announced later this month. The event will also feature video packages on all the acts by Irish production
company Old Hat (http://www.oldhat.ie)
ACTS & ALBUMS:
You can find out more about the act and hear music from their albums at thefollowing websites
The Choice Music Prize – Irish Album of the Year – was established to celebrate and acknowledge the work of Irish musicians.
Every single year, hundreds of albums are released by Irish artists in every genre under the sun.
The Choice Music Prize aims to simply highlight those albums which deserve some extra time in the spotlight and, ultimately, to select the album which best represents Irish musical releases from the previous year.
Instead of using sales or airplay as criteria, the Choice Music Prize will focus, simply and solely, on the music.
This is the Choice Music Prize’s fifth year in operation. Previous winners were Julie Feeney ("13 Songs" – Irish Album of the Year 2005), Divine Comedy ("Victory for the Comic Muse" – Irish Album of the Year 2006), Super
Extra Bonus Party ("Super Extra Bonus Party" – Irish Album of the Year 2007) and Jape ("Ritual" – Irish Album of the Year 2008).
The Choice Music Prize is co-ordinated by Dave Reid and Jim Carroll. Jim Carroll will be the judging panel’s non-voting chairman.
The Board of The Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO) is pleased announce that Victor Finn has been appointed to the position of CEO at IMRO. Mr Finn, who served as Managing Director of The Mechanical Copyright Protection Society (Ireland) from 2001-2008, will take up his position in June.
Finn’s extensive experience within the Irish music market and strong reputation in the International arena are important factors in his appointment to the position. He has overseen significant developments in the Irish music publishing industry, as income for publishers and songwriters has shifted from traditional physical product to digital. A Chartered Management Accountant with a degree in Marketing from University of Limerick, during his time at MCPS, Finn established successful licensing schemes for CD, DVD and other physical media. Major deals were struck with broadcasters, mobile and music download players, and this is reflected in the positive growth path of MCPS revenues during his tenure there. Finn also brokered ground-breaking joint licensing schemes with IMRO, allowing online music users easier access to both repertoires while maintaining royalty rates for such uses.
“This is an important time for the creative community, when music and other intellectual property rights are more widely disseminated than ever before. Our objective is to ensure our songwriters and their music publishers receive fair compensation and that our new partners promoting innovative business models can appreciate the value of the rights entrusted to IMRO,” states Finn.
“IMRO is very much at the forefront on the international stage in representing a collective voice for music creators as we face into serious challenges ahead. The appointment of Mr Finn at this time ensures that we are in a strong position to tackle the many issues facing the creative community particularly in the online world. Finn’s strong stewardship of the organisation at this time will be essential to ensure that the rights of all those represented by IMRO are best protected into the future,” added Keith Donald, IMRO Chairman.
As part of its ongoing strategic planning, the IMRO Board would like to update you on some important developments. The Board is delighted to announce the appointment of Mr James Morris, as an External Director. James is Chairman of Windmill Lane Pictures Ltd, and Bord Scannán na hÉireann/The Irish Film Board, James is a graduate of Trinity College and trained as a Film Editor in London. He founded Windmill Lane Pictures and Windmill Lane Recording Studios on his return to Dublin. He led the Windmill Consortium to win the television franchise for TV3 in 1989. In 1990 he founded The Mill – Film and TV Post Production Company in London. He was appointed non-executive Chairman of TV3 in 1998. He joined the board of the International Dublin Film Festival in 2004.
Since our last AGM and as a response to your feedback, we held a special forum to address certain key issues regarding Corporate Governance. As a result of this forum, the very useful proposals made there, and the consideration of the Board, we are pleased to be able to announce the following.
1. Interim Chairperson The Board of Directors has appointed an interim chair, with immediate effect, for a term to run until the end of June 2008. The role of chairperson will be held by Donagh Long until 31st March 2008 and by Keith Donald until 30th June 2008. Following an overall review of Corporate Governance, currently underway, and some amendments to the organisation’s constitution discussed at the recent Governance Forum – which it is intended to present to members via an EGM within this timeframe – the board plans to make a new chair appointment to run from July 1st. 2. Forum follow-up We have produced a questionnaire for members to give us feedback on certain key proposals regarding corporate governance, the use of electronic communications and IMRO’s overall purpose. 3. We plan to launch a special section within our IMRO website to provide you with regular updates and a vehicle for you to provide feedback. This new section will be available from 1st February 2008 and the Corporate Governance review currently underway will be advanced via this method. 4. Strategic Review As part of our overall Strategic review, we plan to assess all aspects of our business, including a review of customers (music users), suppliers (writers and publishers), competition and regulatory issues. An important component of this review will include a process of meeting users and members. To this end we are planning to visit major centres in Ireland and meet groups in their own neighbourhoods. Donagh Long Chairman
