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New Danger Mouse CD Released As A Blank CD-R Due To Legal Fight With EMI
from the now-that's-creative dept
If you follow copyright issues, you're no doubt aware of Danger Mouse. He's the DJ who got quite a lot of attention a few years back for creating one of the very first mainstream mashups -- mixing the Beatle's The White Album with Jay-Z's The Black Album to create the rather unique The Grey Album. Of course, one of the main reasons why the album became so well known was because EMI sent cease-and-desist letters to everyone who posted copies of the album, and then to anyone who posted that they were going to participate in the "Grey Tuesday" protest. The whole thing seemed pretty silly. It's not as if anyone listening to The Grey Album would find it a substitute for either of the other albums.
Since then, of course, DJ Danger Mouse has gone on to even more mainstream success with his Gnarls Barkley project, a collaboration between Danger Mouse and Cee-Lo Green. However, it looks like DJ Danger Mouse has another album that he's been working on, in association with Mark Linkous (of Sparklehorse). Yet, due to ongoing legal troubles with EMI, he can't actually release the music. So he's come up with a rather creative solution. Found via Andrew Dubber, the news is that the next album will be released as album artwork with a blank recordable CD.
Yes, a blank CD-R.
There is no music on it. Because if there were music on it, it would get him in more trouble with EMI. Yet, if you have that blank CD and all the artwork, you certainly could (not that they're suggesting you do...) find that music elsewhere and burn it to the CD. The statement from Danger Mouse reads:
Danger Mouse's new project Dark Night Of The Soul consists of an album length piece of music by Danger Mouse, Sparklehorse and a host of guest vocalists, along with a collection of original David Lynch photography inspired by and based on the music.In some ways, this is reminiscent of what the band Green Day did many years ago, offering up blank CDs with artwork for fans who had downloaded the music from unauthorized sources. Yet, in this case, it's even more interesting since there are no authorized sources at all for the music. It'll be fun to see how EMI reacts. Update: Meanwhile, the folks at NPR alert us to the fact that they're hosting a streaming version of the album for anyone who wants to hear it.
The photographs, which provide a visual narrative for the music, are compiled in a limited edition, hand numbered 100+ page book which will now come with a blank, recordable CD-R. All copies will be clearly labeled: 'For Legal Reasons, enclosed CD-R contains no music. Use it as you will.'
Due to an ongoing dispute with EMI, Danger Mouse is unable to release the recorded music for Dark Night Of The Soul without fear of being sued by EMI.
Danger Mouse remains hugely proud of Dark Night Of The Soul and hopes that people lucky enough to hear the music, by whatever means, are as excited by it as he is.
Reader Comments (rss)
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I can see EMI's response now.
"By providing the blank CD-R, 'DJ Danger Mouse' has perpetuated copyright infringement by telling people 'Do with it as you wish'.
This action appears to mock our previous attempt of protecting the original artists' rights. We have no choice but to use legal recourse for an injunction to cease immediate distribution of the blank media."
Personally, I think a blank flash drive would have been better. Who the hell uses CDs anymore?
Good luck, Danger Mouse. You can bet EMI's going to get their panties in a bunch over this one.
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This looks like good ol' fashioned civil disobedience to me. It'll be interesting to see the blustering response.
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Cash In Hand
Where can I buy this CD?
And did anyone else notice that CD is also the initials for Civil Disobedience?
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Re: Cash In Hand
I was looking for the same thing. The album comes out Summer 2009.
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I am so going to rip that CD and put it up on filesharing sites. Imagine the DL time on the entire album...
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I'll wait and buy it when I can find a cheap used copy.
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Cease & Desist
Those cease & desist letters worked a treat, it only took me 10 seconds to find songs from the Grey Album on youtube.
I'm going to buy this blank CD-R as a protest against EMI.
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Re:
Ok, maybe I missed the sarcasm, but why would you by a used CD-R??? Oh wait a minute, you mean after someone else has burned the music on to it for you. Ok, now I get it. Good plan, assuming anyone is willing to give up their copy.
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Awesome, now I've got something to blow $50 bucks on. *^_^*
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pretty awesome.
the booklet of david lynch photos makes it well worth the price. great idea.
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Inducement
My guess is, EMI will go after a charge of "inducing" copyright, a la Grokster.
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Re: Re:
"Ok, maybe I missed the sarcasm, but why would you by a used CD-R??? Oh wait a minute, you mean after someone else has burned the music on to it for you. Ok, now I get it. Good plan, assuming anyone is willing to give up their copy."
You idiot... It's a joke that you are obviously too stupid to get... Read it again a few times, and you will realize that he's treating it just as a normal album which he has little interest in other than the political statement...
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emi will irradiate or damage the disk on the way out the door.
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Re: Cash In Hand
ssshhh, dont tell anybody
http://www.filedropper.com/darknightofthesoul2009
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Oh, *DJ* Danger Mouse...
I jumped at this story because I thought it was about "Danger Mouse", the much-beloved UK cartoon character from the 1980s voiced by national treasure David "Del Boy" Jason.
Please be more accurate with your titles in future.
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Re: Oh, *DJ* Danger Mouse...
Same with me. Should definitely have said DJ danger mouse, I wouldn't have cared as much and been let down by that.
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Re: Re: Oh, *DJ* Danger Mouse...
He's the greatest, he's fantastic, whenever there is danger he'll be there!
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LOL! Gotta love it!
What a wonderfully creative way to stick it to EMI. And to the litigious folks at EMI, let me just say, "Good luck with trying to litigate over this- you're gonna need it."
Mike
http://thedeathpsychic.com
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LOL! Gotta love it!
What a wonderfully creative way to stick it to EMI. And to the litigious folks at EMI, let me just say, "Good luck with trying to litigate over this- you're gonna need it."
Mike
The Death Psychic
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Re: DL time
anywhere between 2 minutes and 29 hours?
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Re: Oh, *DJ* Danger Mouse...
Crikey
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Re:
Umm, the download time on an entire album wouldn't be long at all. Perhaps 5 minutes. This isn't 1995.
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the sexpistols wrote a song about emi i think..
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blank CD-R
I want blank CD-R
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Re: I can see EMI's response now.
Who the hell can plug a flash drive into their car.
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Re: Cash In Hand
"And did anyone else notice that CD is also the initials for Civil Disobedience?"
I might instead suggest that 'CD-R' could stand for 'Cease & Desist - Refused!'
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Don't think 160kps mp3s are CD/album quality
Nice strategy but he'd best be giving it away losslessly somewhere for it to mean as much...
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Re: Re: I can see EMI's response now.
Uh I can... my cd player in my car has a usb port. USB Key, portable harddrive (wd mypassport), they all work.
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Re: Cash In Hand
also cease and desist
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Re: in their car
A lot of people actually, many car stereos now have USB input to do exactly that.
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Re: Oh, *DJ* Danger Mouse...
Me too! Unfortunately, its just another irrelevant moron who can't write an original piece of music to save his life.
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Re: Re: I can see EMI's response now.
I can. I have a USB port on my head unit and I have a 16 gig thumb drive full of .mp3s I listen to. In my car.
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Interesting AND subversive ....
Love it!
Keep up the revolution, boys!
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He'll never get away with it
I hope he gets sued by the estate of John Cage
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Re: Oh, *DJ* Danger Mouse...
why bother posting a response you twat?
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Uhhhh...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gray_Album
http://books.google.com/books?id=1ONyncVruj8C&pg= PA131&dq=ipod+copyright&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=0_0#PPA132,M1 - the last paragraph
I think you're off, by five years.
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Do with it as you wish
http://rs355.rapidshare.com/files/235190882/Danger_Mouse___Sparklehorse_-_Dark_Night_Of_The_Soul__20 09_.rar http://rs355.rapidshare.com/files/235190882/Danger_Mouse___Sparklehorse_-_Dark_Night_Of_T he_Soul__2009_.rar http://rs355.rapidshare.com/files/235190882/Danger_Mouse___Sparklehorse_-_Dark _Night_Of_The_Soul__2009_.rar
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Re: Re: I can see EMI's response now.
Um. I can :-)
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Re: Re: Re: I can see EMI's response now.
I can actually plug a flash drive into my car
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Re: Re: Oh, *DJ* Danger Mouse...
How about jazz, or pop, or nearly ANY music created in the past 20 years? Music has ALWAYS been about taking what has come before and turning it on its head. I dare ANY "musician" out there to attempt to create something akin to what Danger Mouse does. To dismiss it shows more about the listeners prejudiced views of what music is thanthe skill that created it. Taking different musical elements, combining them into a new form takes just as much skill as playing scales on the piano. I've played guitar for almost 20 years, I also have recoreded bands and runa project studio and I can tell you that I have heard more talent in the electronic/mash-up/remix scene than in the hundreds of pop/rock acts that come across my desk. Sorry Pete, but YOU are the irrelevant moron here.
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Jeez...this writer sucks. Really badly written. "posted copies of the album" Where??? Online????? say it then!!!!
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Re:
Sorry to have not lived up to your standards. But it's rather amusing that someone would complain about the writing choices of another when choosing multiple punctuation marks.
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Re: Re:ha
ha haa, he didnt think you actually read these.
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bought it allready
i bought the "album" and then proceeded to torrent the album.. its quite good!
danger mouse should be proud!
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Good Idea... But Takes Away From The Music
I like the message that Danger Mouse is trying to send to all of the major record labels, and I think it is about time artists start truly standing up to the labels. But, I think that this 'protest' may be a little too powerful. The music that Danger Mouse has created for this album is now going to just represent a 'protest', which I can imagine was not the original intent for the music. Its just too bad that it came to this, because the music of Danger Mouse will be lost in this process of this all.
That being said, I praise Danger Mouse for standing up to the labels and making the voice of the artist heard. Well Done!
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شكرااااااااااااااااااااااااااااا
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