Coming Attractions

Just a heads up for all you music lovers interested in the state-of-the-industry. The 2009 MIDEM conference is coming up on January 17-21 in Cannes. You will recall that last year’s inspirational speech by Paul McGuinness set the tone for not only the conference, but for much debate and conversation among U2 fans. A lot has changed over the year, so it will be interesting to follow what comes out of the conference. This year’s artist manager keynote will be Radiohead’s co-manager, Brian Message. Seeing as there was a difference in opinion between managers about album delivery and pricing, I’m looking forward to seeing what Brian has to say about it all.

Also coming up on a far more local level, a U2 tribute band from Canton, Ohio, has been invited to play an unofficial inaugural event in Maryland on January 19. As CantonRep.com reports:

Canton’s U2 tribute band, the U2 Incident, has been hired to perform a 90-minute set at the United Inaugural Gala on Jan. 19 at the Showplace Arena in Upper Marlboro, Md. While not one of Washington’s official inaugural parties, this one carries a $300 ticket price. For details, visit www.unitedinauguralgala.com. “It’s an amazing honor for four regular guys from Canton,” vocalist Chris Stafford says. Local fans can catch the U2 Incident on Jan. 31 at 7 Martini Lounge in Jackson Township.

Speaking of tribute bands, kudos to Boston-area The Joshua Tree for their television performance on WBZ-TV (channel 4) on today’s “Sunday with Liz Walker” program.

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