Dub dot dash

Wandering Eyeballs
A few weeks back I wrote a huge piece on Fat Freddy's Drop, and never got around to posting it. I let it sit for a week, went back and re-read it, and it was a bunch of overblown fluff - MSM-bashing is so passe, I've been told. (For newcomers, I've blogged previously on FFD, most notably over here. I also followed FFD's chart progress semi-regularly last year, comparing their progress with Shihad, who released their last album the same week as FFD -Shihad dropped off the charts 14 weeks after release.) There were a few relevant facts that were worth noting about FFD, so I've culled em out and present them to you below.

1. FFD have managed to claim number one on the album charts for a total of 10 weeks. "They're now the local group with the longest running number 1 album in our chart history" says Chartbitz, written by the highly knowledgable Andrew Miller at radioscope.co.nz. The only other local group that comes close is Crowded House with 8 weeks at number one, and let's face it, the rest of the world thinks they're Australian. They have been in the album charts for 48 weeks, and are aiming for a year.

2. More from Chartbitz... "Peter Baker from the group's distributor Rhythmethod is very pleased with the set's success and sees it building further yet. He says it appears that every third copy being bought is going offshore thanks to tourists buying copies to take home with them." (An aside: the next local album coming out thru Rhythmethod is Kaleidoscope by the Open Souls, which drops here April 10. I'm guessing their album will have more staying power than The Bleeders, who released their debut April 3. Like FFD, the Open Souls have got vinyl out in Europe.)

3. FFD's album is now 6X platinum - that means they've sold 90,000 albums (platinum = 15,000 copies sold). By the end of last year they had sold 60,000 with no single or video. Since releasing Wandering Eye as a radio-edit/CD single/video, they've sold another 30,000 albums. Bic Runga's latest is 3x platinum, and the latest discs from Eminem, Coldplay and Black eyed peas are 4x platinum.

4. They have released three essential vinyl releases in the last 12 months. Flashback (Jazzanova remix), Wandering eye (Submariner remix and DJ Fitchie dub instrumental) and Roady (Nextmen remix).

5. 2005 was labelled the year of Fat Freddy's Drop (sales, awards, international recognition). It seems likely that 2006 will be their year too - can you name a NZ band with a forthcoming album that will do as well as them? Be interested to hear your thoughts.


from elsewhere...
Noted academic/BaseFM DJ Nabeel Zuberi has a new blog called Topical Ointment, have a lookee.

Elmore Leonard's got a blog, here's his ten rules of writing.

New Radiohead covers album due out on Rapster/BBE, features RJD2, Cinematic Orchestra, Mark Ronson, Bilal. Check Mr Ronson's tune here.
There's another reggae-flavoured Radiohead covers album coming too, from the clowns who gave us Pink Floyd done reggae-style; Dub Side of the Moon. Now, that's crap you do not need.