FAC and MMF PRESENTS "ARTIST and MANAGER AWARDS"

R.I.P the MMF Roll of Honour (1995-2009), long live the Artist and Manager Awards!

The FAC and the MMF are launching a new awards ceremony, the A&Ms, exclusively created to celebrate UK artist and artist management successes in music.

Speaking on behalf of the two organisations:

“Artists are at the centre of our industry now more than ever and the A&M Awards will be a night remember and to celebrate all of that. There are obvious synergies between the MMF and the FAC and our coming together acknowledges both the achievements and hard work of our members” said Nick Mason (Pink Floyd), Co-Chair of the FAC.

MMF CEO Jon Webster said, “We look forward to welcoming people to our event that embraces and celebrates artists and managers at all stages of development in their careers. And after all, you may remember I have done this once before so you’d better get your ticket fast”

This glittering evening will consist of drinks, a 3-course dinner with drinks, awards with drinks and networking (possibly with more drinks).

As we are in one of London’s great live venues of course there will be some surprise star turns. There are eight Awards and the criteria will be announced shortly. Members will be able to self-nominate and vote for some awards.


We aim to award both artists and managers who have had an unprecedented but underrated effect on the music industry.

Tickets are £240 + VAT each and are available as follows:

MMF/FAC members tickets @ £240 + VAT ea. http://www.etickets.to/buy/?e=6799

MMF/FAC associates tickets @ £240 + VAT ea. http://www.etickets.to/buy/?e=6809

We are aware that £288 is beyond the budget of some, so we are asking those who would like to attend but cannot afford the full cost to apply for heavily discounted tickets to: additionaldiscount@amawards.org to arrive by end of play on Friday 5th August. Please state if you are a member of the MMF or the FAC in the application for these tickets.

There will also be a limited number of awards ceremony-only tickets available for £20 + VAT. A link to this will be posted to members shortly.

Keep your eyes peeled for a FAC competition to win two all singing-all dancing tickets to the event, details to follow shortly.

Please spread the word via the Twitter hashtag: #ams2011

OCTOBER SKY LIVE at CLUB SODA MONTREAL

UK TOUR DATES

OCTOBER SKY..LONDON UK...INDUSTRY SHOWCASE

“A great new band that we should all take notice of” – Sound Shocks (UK)

“I have no doubt they can and will go far” – One Metal (UK)

"Yet another hot undiscovered Canadian machine arising from the steam......All ten of these numbers are melodic and dripping in atmosphere you can actually feel yourself standing in." Metalville Mag (UK)

"Listen up folks, because I have just found a band who are truly going to make waves in 2011. Who are October Sky? The same question I asked myself before listening to their album and one that they silenced with their phenomenal music." Sonicshocks mag (UK)

Currently receiving rave reviews throughout Europe and having already dominated their home country, rising mob October Sky are heading to the UK for a one off show at the AAA on May 26th.

Marked as main support to Radio 1’s Hew Stephens affirmed outfit Zebedy Rays, the band are eager to bring their trade mark progressively infused indie to their UK fans.

Something of a household name in their native Canada, OS have performed on National television twice (Initially for the national talent competition L'échelle de talent, which they won and later as part of the station’s “Best of 2010” show) and having toured alongside bands like Bad Religion, Alexisonfire and Simple Plan.

The address for the venue is AAA, 11-13 High Street Kensington, London. For all ticket queries please contact the venue directly.

For all press queries, please contact Tom Brumpton at tbrumptonpr@gmail.com ot at(+44) 7956 043498. For all management queries, please contact Liza Buddy at lizabuddy@hotmail.co.uk or at (+44) 7540 376642.

OCTOBER SKY...WINNERS AGAIN!!!!

Winners Photo on Vtele

After winning The Global Battle of the Bands canadian nationals (knocking out 65 bands to reach the Final)

October Sky recently won a Talent show aired on Canadian TV. Watch their highly credited performance by the Judges of the show below.....

October Sky - Zéro à 1000$, L'échelle de talent (+subtitles) - on Dailymotion
http://dai.ly/dBexXb
October Sky a l'émission ''Zéro à 1000$, L'échelle de talent'' tel que vu à Vtélé.October Sky at the tv show ''Zéro à 1000$, L'échelle de talent'' as seen on Vtélé.

The show was so impressed by them along with a select few other winners, were invited back to play again as "Best of 2010" which October Sky WON!!!!!!!!!

Find October Sky here:

Website: http://www.octobersky.ca/
Twitter : @October_skyFacebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/October-Sky/9768790068?v=info#!/pages/October-Sky/9768790068?v=wall

Canadian rockers OCTOBER SKY

Originating from Montreal, Canada, October Sky has been playing music together for a decade. What started as four teenagers with a passion for music developed into a foursome with a common desire to excel in the studio and on stage. The Canadian quartet consists of Karl Raymond (vocals & guitars), Alex Racine (drums), Yanik Rouleau (keyboards), and Andrew Walker (bass). Their musical output includes three albums (2 EPs and 1 LP), two music videos, a cross-Canadian tour, and a host of sold-out live performances.
In September 2008, October Sky released their first full-length album “Hell Isn’t My Home,” which garnered them instant success. The album features 10 tracks which alternate between frenzied rock and ambient alternative. The LP earned them three awards for best provincial rock song, rock CD, and rock music video. Two music videos soon followed, one of which was in rotation on MUCH Loud and in the Top 5 on Musique Plus. During this time, the band also performed live on national TV for CTV’s Telethon of Stars and was interviewed on Musique Plus.
Since this time, October Sky has not looked back. They followed their debut LP release with a national tour which touched down in 15 Canadian cities from Montreal to Vancouver. Their music often brings them on the road and they have recently performed alongside such well-established artists and Alexisonfire, Mobile, Bad Religion, and Michel Pagliaro. As national winners of the Global Battle of the Bands, October Sky represented Canada in London, England in April 2010 at The Scala.
October Sky has over 100 live performances to their name and their singles have been in rotation on over a dozen Canadian radio stations. In addition to regular airplay, their music has been featured on more than 20 commercial stations and they have been interviewed on programs in Texas, California, Missouri and the UK, as well as throughout their home nation. The media coverage they regularly receive on air and on paper is a testament to their mounting status as serious musicians. Their studio work produces strong, alternative riffs punctuated by soft, captivating interludes. Their live performances feature a mesmerizing, harmonic fusion of music, voices, lights, and video effects.
In the past few years, October Sky has strengthened their commercial impact. Role Model Clothing, owned by two of Simple Plan’s members, and worldwide guitar company Indie Guitars, are both official partners. October Sky will stretch their musical muscles in Europe with December performances in France and Belgium. They recently released their 2nd EP in September, a launch highlighted by a concert at Le Cafe Campus.
Since the band’s inception, October Sky have been reaching forward, both musically and professionally. Their singles bring together the best in alternative music, with songs so engaging you would think you had heard them already. One listen, live or on CD, will ensure you that they offer a great deal and promise even more.
http://www.octobersky.ca

INKYSMUDGE - EP Release "SO MUCH FOR COUNTRY"

July 2010

INKYSMUDGE Releases Album Appetizer ‘So Much For Country’

A surreal conversation in the early hours of an April morning in Germany inspires the release of an ‘album appetizer’.

“I was on a short European tour with a friend of mine and we ended up having one of those post-gig conversations where the night has gone so well that you end up talking about what you’re gonna do next. You know, when the beer means any idea seems perfectly sensible,” laughs Inky. “So, we got into this thing about putting out a country music EP called Happy Hour and, even on the train back to Paris, the idea still seemed perfectly plausible,” he says shaking his head.

“Anyway, I got home and started writing but the material went in a completely different direction. So, I shelved the plan and let the songs dictate the end result. That’s how So Much For Country came about. The title alludes to the idea that you set out to do one thing and end up doing something completely different. A lot like life itself I guess, it seemed like a good metaphor.”

The four songs on the EP, namely Under The Power Lines, Happy Hour, Your Witness and Fiction find Inky expanding on the sound of 2009’s A New Transmission EP with e-bow, brass and atmospheric synths. Addressing the idea of escape, an account of potential adultery, regret and the joy in, as Inky puts it, ‘letting someone in’ he says, “I tend to obsess over the details of what makes people do the things they do. That’s really where it all comes from.”

Under The Power Lines is an e-bow and piano led storm of a song, evocatively describing the moment when, sat in a car near an electricity pylon under a vengeful sky, the protagonist decides to leave their situation in search of sunnier times.

Happy Hour starts with an atmospheric and intimate observation of two people, meeting after work to discuss their respective relationships. The chorus unleashes ferocious guitars and a harrowing brass section melody that perfectly complements the direction the conversation takes.

Your Witness is a full-on rocker with a sixties beat that places the protagonist in court. Pleading his innocence that decisions made whilst ‘not of sound mind’ have led to feelings of longing and regret, the protagonist insists this is punishment enough. Miles apart sonically, there is still a surprisingly humorous undertone to the song, not entirely dissimilar to REM’s ‘It’s The End Of The World As We Know It’.

Fiction is an up-tempo but gentle reflection on those early morning intimacies with your significant other, the simple familiarities that bind people together with unspoken understanding. The brass section returns for the interestingly instrumental choruses, leaving the protagonist to declare ‘I won’t argue with that, if it sounds like this!’ as the song heads to its euphoric conclusion.

“The two full-length albums’ release date had already been decided (Probability and Proximity are scheduled for simultaneous release in August 2010) but I was so excited about these new songs that I just wanted to get them out. It gives people a further idea of what to expect so hopefully the A New Transmission and So Much For Country EPs will have sufficiently whetted their appetite.”

WEBSITE: http//www.Inkysmudge.com
Chaos & Bedlam Management
Management & Booking: lizabuddy@hotmail.co.uk
Phone: +44 (0) 7540 376642

LINKIN PARK FEATURED YOU CONTEST

INKYSMUDGE has taken the oppotunity to mix stems that Linkin Park uploaded onto their myspace offering fans the chance to have their MIX featured on the Forthcoming Linkin Park Album "A thousand suns"

Inkysmudge needs you to vote to help his Mix have a chance of making the Album...so PLEASE do :)

Inky "Here's my take on The Catalyst. I decided it had to be a guitar free zone otherwise I'd just turn it into an LP rip-off........so I got the orchestra in instead heh, heh, heh. Hope you enjoy it!