TIPS FROM A NARDCORE LEGEND We asked Head Cut drummer John Crerar to share his tips for fellow musicians. Crerar is such a pillar of the Ventura/Oxnard punk scene (dubbed “Nardcore”) that reuniting just some of his previous bands to mark his recent 50th birthday required two nights of stacked bills. On June 26-27, he performed with Head Cut and nine of his prior outfits in separate Ventura venues. Around 40 musicians travelled in to participate, and both shows sold out in advance.

“To get that many people to say, ‘yes, I’ll come back and play with you,’ meant a lot,” said Crerar. “Because that just means that the friendships I’ve made over the past 30 years are pretty strong.” Indeed, Crerar ranks the “JC50” reunion shows as the greatest achievement of a 32-year music career that’s included global touring and multiple record deals. (I attended one of the JC50 shows which, as well as an incredible lineup, epitomized musical community and mutual support.)

Crerar is both a singer and a drummer. He’s a deeply passionate musician, yet devoid of ego or pretense. A devoted husband and dad, he sees music, friendship, and community as almost indivisible. “I found out a long time ago that music kind of keeps me sane,” Crerar mulled. “I’ve never really thought about [longevity]—I just kept going!” 

His bands include The Missing 23rd (on vocals), the first Nardcore band to tour Europe and Japan; hard-giggin’ punk/stoner/metal outfit The Fucking Wrath (drums); Oxnard hardcore stalwarts Stalag 13 (vocals); and, more recently, standout post-punk/deathrock bands MAäSK, Detoxi and, currently, Head Cut (all on drums).

Get Involved

Especially in a smaller scene like Ventura/Oxnard (adjacent coastal communities some 60 miles northwest of Los Angeles), Crerar recommends that new musicians get out there, get involved, and support fellow bands. “That’s the way to get more shows,” said Crear. “People say ‘networking,’ but I just think it’s more like meeting friends.” 

When the teenage Crerar became aware of punk through skateboarding videos and then of Nardcore on his doorstep, he started not only attending shows but also working for a local promoter. “Here I am, a little kid going to the surf shop in Port Hueneme, and the singer from Ill Repute is selling me a skateboard and telling me all these cool stories about punk… and bands to check out,” he recalled. He quickly became so well known in Nardcore that he’s never had to formally audition for a band.

Practice With Others

Crerar is entirely self-taught, with much of his early learning done in rehearsals with his bands. “My friends started this band, Dick Circus. They didn’t really have a drummer, but the singer, her dad was the drummer of the Fabulous Thunderbirds, and she had this little drum set,” he said. “I just figured it out from there.”

At first, Crerar learned drums by simply watching other drummers and playing along to records. His influences are mostly artists who he admires for both their music and their ethics, including The Cure’s Robert Smith, Ian MacKaye and his various bands, and Oxnard’s aforementioned hardcore veterans Ill Repute. 

Warm Up

In aggressive bands, singing and drumming are both physically demanding (which only makes Crerar’s 10 JC50 sets even more remarkable). Historically, his roles have required either relentlessly fast drumming or screamy vocals coupled with frenetic performance. “You’re yelling for a half-hour straight and running around being crazy,” Crerar explained. “It’s very tiring, just like playing drums is very tiring.”

Crerar recommends pre-performance warm-ups for both singers and drummers, as well as post-performance cool down exercises for vocalists. “Tour is the hard part, because when you try to do it every night, if you don’t do warm-ups and cool-downs, you’re gonna lose that voice quick.” Before the JC50 shows, Crerar used a saline nebulizer to coat his vocal cords before and after each singing set. 

Don’t Sweat Gear

Crerar takes a strictly pragmatic approach to equipment. He’s long accustomed to using other people’s drums and aware that shouty punk vocals don’t require pricey mics or state-of-the-art processing. “For the punk stuff that I’m doing, it doesn’t really matter… as long as it makes the sounds you need it to make,” he said. “You never know what you’re gonna get… just do the best with what you’ve got.”

Crerar usually brings his own throne, snare, and kick drum pedal to shows, as well as at least one cymbal stand (he plays a ride and two crashes and sometimes only two cymbal stands are provided). He’s had friends who’ve worked at Oxnard-based DW Drums, so has ended up playing their products, and interchangeably uses Sabian and Zildjian cymbals (“They’re all the same… as long as they’re not cracked”). When singing, he brings his own $100 Shure mic (he’s not even sure which model, probably an SM58), “because who knows who’s been spitting in [the house mic]… and I don’t want to break their mic.” 

Do It Yourself

While Crerar’s bands have collectively been on a plethora of indie labels, a throughline of his career has been a DIY approach. “I don’t want to wait for something to happen. You’ve got to make it happen yourself,” he explained. “I try to do as much on our own as we can, and if someone wants to come help, that’s awesome, as long as it feels good and the situation’s right.”

So, while you can find Fucking Wrath releases on Tee Pee Records and The Missing 23rd on at least seven different labels, Head Cut’s 2024 sophomore album Corazón Negro is on their own Head Cut Records, and The Missing 23rd’s new 10-inch EP of rediscovered 1996 recordings is also self-released.

Through all this, John Crerar has also worked at Salzer’s Records in Ventura, where he lately finds himself turning kids onto new music just as Ill Repute singer John Phaneuf did for him. “I hope I’m encouraging in that other people see what I’m doing and might want to do it,” he concluded. “Hopefully it has had some sort of impact on getting more people to play music, more people to book shows, and more people to put out records.”

instagram.com/head__cut

Photo credit: Albert MunozThe post TIPS FROM A NARDCORE LEGEND  first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Adema Signs with Cleopatra RecordsDate Signed: Winter 2026Label: Cleopatra RecordsBand Members: Tim Fluckey, lead vocals, guitar; Mike Ransom, lead guitar, backing vocals; Dave DeRoo, bass, backing vocalsType of Music: RockManagement: Worldwide Entertainment GroupPublicity: Caroline Galloway, M2M PR & Partnerships - caroline@m2mpr.comA&R: Worldwide Entertainment GroupWeb: ademaband.com

Adema has been entertaining audiences for more than a quarter century. In the band’s early days, it was the late Terry Lippman managing them, whose enviable résumé also boasts Matchbox Twenty, George Michael, and Melissa Manchester. Wanting someone to help shoulder the burden of elevating the young act, he hired Sandy Rizzo.

Everyone eventually went their separate ways, and the band experienced major changes. Conflicts and other projects led to numerous members coming and going, but not Tim Fluckey, who weathered all the drama. Throughout the years, he stayed in touch with Rizzo, even lending a hand during her 2016 induction into the RockGodz Hall of Fame. 

Signing with Cleopatra Records in 2024 heralded a new chapter for the band. Adema had gone without management for 16 years, but now they needed help. They subsequently reached out to Rizzo, now the Executive Vice President of WEG Talent Management Group. 

The decision for Rizzo to once more work with the nu metal act was an easy one, as she harbored little doubt the boys would put their noses to the grindstone. “She knows it’s going to be a good working relationship,” attests Fluckey. Likewise, the band never worried that going with WEG wouldn’t be the best decision. 

Adema’s members are jubilant knowing WEG will take over much of the grunt work. “They have a department for every little thing,” marvels Fluckey. “And they have the connections and time to do all that, which makes it easier for us to concentrate on why we’re in a band, which is to play and record music.” The guitarist’s advice for others seeking management is that they pick the team that feels like the best fit, even if doing so doesn’t make the most sense on paper. Expect Adema’s next album to arrive by the end of the year. 

“We’re excited to be with this company and working with Sandy again,” finishes Fluckey. “We’re feeling really lucky and blessed that people still care.” The post Adema Signs with Cleopatra Records first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

As GEMA awaits its Suno copyright verdict, the German collecting society launches ‘PLAI’ – a fully licensed dataset for training AI music toolsAI music transcription company Klangio is the dataset's first customer.
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IF THESE WALLS COULD ROCK: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE SUNSET MARQUIS HOTELI’ve been conducting interviews with musicians, authors, and filmmakers at the famed Sunset Marquis Hotel since the early seventies. Author Deepak Chopra and Oscar-winning documentarian D.A. Pennebaker were two of my favorite encounters.

A media announcement describes the documentary.

“For more than 60 years, there has been one place in LA that has served as the home-away-from-home for the biggest names in rock and roll. Tucked just off the Sunset Strip, the Sunset Marquis Hotel became more than a place to stay while on tour. It became a creative sanctuary where songs were written, debauchery was shared, and music history unfolded behind closed doors.

“Now, for the first time, that story is being told on screen.

Directed by Tyler Measom (Murder Among Mormons, An Honest Liar ) and Craig A. Williams, If These Walls Could Rockfeatures rare archival footage, vivid animation and candid interviews, the film tells the story of rock n’ roll through the lens of this legendary hotel as shared by the artists who call it home - including Bruce Springsteen, Ringo Starr, Billy Bob Thornton, Slash, Dave Grohl, Cyndi Lauper, Morrissey, Sheryl Crow, Roger Daltrey, Joe Elliot, Nancy Wilson, Steve Van Zandt and many more.

“But beneath the iconic guest list and tales of rock misadventure lies a deeply personal story: the remarkable partnership between founder George Rosenthal and his son Mark, who transformed a modest West Hollywood “motel” into one of the most iconic destinations in music history.

“Within five minutes of walking in the Marquis, you may hear a rock and roll story that sounds completely made up, but come to learn is true,” say directors Measom and Williams. “Still beyond the many amazing musical stories, the father-and-son tale at the heart of the hotel is what truly inspired us to create this film.”

The film opens August 14 at the Landmark Sunset theatre in Los Angeles, accompanied by special post-screening Q&A events with the filmmakers and guests from the film, while launching simultaneously on Apple TV and Amazon.

If These Walls Could Rock was produced by longtime MTV executives Rick Krim, Robert Friedman, and Mike Powers (Bungalow Media+Entertainment) along with Mark Rosenthal, David Thurston, and Alexis Thurston.

(Harvey Kubernik’s Screen Gems: (Pop Music Documentaries and Rock ‘n’ Roll TV Scenes) was published in 2026 by BearManor Media).The post IF THESE WALLS COULD ROCK: THE UNTOLD STORY OF THE SUNSET MARQUIS HOTEL first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Music publishers file amended lyrics lawsuit against Anthropic – just as AI firm’s separate $1.5B settlement with authors wins court approvalThe latest filing draws heavily on Anthropic's internal records, obtained through discovery, to support claims the publishers first brought in October 2023.
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FILM - TV - THEATER - GAMES: Game Music Festival, Moonlight PaleGame Music Festival, a leading organizer of videogame music concerts and events that celebrate game soundtracks, hosted a symphonic concert in June, The Colors of Harmony, to celebrate the 40-year career of video game composer Hitoshi Sakimoto.

Held at Fairfield Halls in London, the event featured the London Mozart Players under conductor Timothy Henty, with Sakimoto himself in attendance. The program drew from four decades of his work, including 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, Odin Sphere Leifthrasir, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Final Fantasy XII. VIP ticket holders also gained access to a full-day celebration featuring a pub quiz and a masterclass with Sakimoto.

Contact Jayson Napolitano at jayson@scarletmoonproductions.com for more information.

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Independent game developer Blue Lily launched a Kickstarter campaign for Moonlight Pale, a 2D hand-drawn survival horror game set in a late 1800s female seminary. Players followed Juliette, a student who pursues the ghost of her dead cat into an abandoned building deep within the school gardens, navigating hidden monsters and spirits while attempting to rescue fellow students.

Inspired by Silent Hill, Signalis, and Rule of Rose, the game features two modes including one that focuses on puzzle-solving, and another that allows for combat. The campaign aims for a late 2026 or early 2027 Steam release, with voice work from cast members including Kira Buckland, Lizzie Freeman, Diana Garnet, Chiisa, and Michelle Marie.

For more information, contact Jayson Napolitano at jayson@scarletmoonproductions.com.The post FILM - TV - THEATER - GAMES: Game Music Festival, Moonlight Pale first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Key Principles for Ethical AI Use in Music CreationThe following MBW op/ed comes from John Meller, a Partner in the Entertainment practice at law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips.
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Jessica Audiffred Performs Next-Level Set in HollywoodIt's been two years since Music Connection interviewed Jessica Audiffred for our weekly Hit the Decks! column, but we knew then that this bass music artist was onto something special.

She told us back then that she plays bass music across the spectrum. "Dubstep, House, Riddim and Drum & Bass," she said. "I’ve also been playing hard techno as a side project and at after parties. That seems to be very well received."

That same year, Audiffred became the first female dubstep artist to headline the Hollywood Palladium, and in July she returned to the scene of her triumph, this time for a mammoth three hour extended set. In the years between, Audiffred released the much-loved Rave New World album, cementing her standing as one of the top bass artists on the circuit right now.

The first thing that was quickly apparent was how rabid the large Palladium crowd was for all things Audiffred. Every mention of her name from opening artist Drinkurwater (who did a great job of warning up the Palladium) was greeted with enthusiastic, deafening cheers.

By the time she stepped up to the decks, situated in the middle of the Palladium floor rather than on the traditional stage, the energy was fever-pitch.

This is an artist who know exactly how to keep a dance floor moving. Spinning a mixture of her own tunes, classic electronica, and some expertly-woven oddities (Queen's "We Will Rock You," Killers' "Mr. Brightside"), Audiffred truly had Hollywood in the palm of her hand.

As more and more new tracks are dropped and word of her brilliance continues to spread, one can imagine Audiffred blowing up and transcending the bass scene. Let's see!

The post Jessica Audiffred Performs Next-Level Set in Hollywood first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

TikTok is testing an opt-in ‘Likeness Detection’ tool that lets US creators find and report AI deepfakes of themselvesIt was first spotted by social media consultant Matt Navarra, who wrote in a post on X that TikTok was testing the feature with "some US creators."
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Sony Music sues Udio again, asserting over 30,000 recordings a judge barred the major from adding to its original caseThe complaint was filed on July 20 in New York
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Slum Village Strikes a Blue NoteAlongside D12, Slum Village is inarguably the most influential hip-hop collective to have emerged from the Motor City. Now a duo composed of original member T3 plus Young RJ, the legendary J Dilla (RIP) was once in the ranks, as were Baatin (RIP), Elzhi, and Illa J (Dilla's younger brother). Rappers have come and gone, but Slum Village is very much alive in 2026. They released the F.U.N. album two years ago, and they still regularly play out.

In the middle of a July week, Slum performed at the Blue Note jazz club in Hollywood. In fact, they performed two sets on the same evening, as is the norm for that venue. Honestly, it was all a bit weird. The new L.A. Blue Note location is stunning, but the dining-and-entertainment vibe is far more suited to jazz and lounge music than the sort of vibrant rap that Slum Village has become known for. Both T3 and RJ attempted, on numerous occasions, to bring the crowd to its feet during the first of those two sets, with mixed results. But then, to be fair, it's difficult to stand and dance when you're trying to get through an arugula and butternut squash salad.

Still, the show was a ton of fun, and Young RJ (appropriately sporting a Detroit Red Wings hockey shirt) once again proved that he's worthy of his spot.

"The original Slum Village seemed like they had split personalities,” he told this writer in 2003 for a Detroit Metro Times interview. "Dilla was cool, a nice guy, He helped you with whatever you needed, but he also had a temper. A lot of people didn’t get the chance to see that temper. But it was like, if he didn’t show you that temper, it was because he didn’t really care. Baatin was a funny guy, hilarious, and that was a person you definitely didn’t want to crack jokes on. He’d hurt your feelings. T3 is a good guy but a lot of people don’t know that T3 produces. He wrote all of them hooks. All the Slum Village records you heard were written or produced by T3."

As for the set, it was as good as we could have hoped. Plenty of tunes from the classic Fan-Tas-Tic, volumes 1 and 2 ("Conant Gardens," "Raise it Up," etc). A blast through J Dilla's "Fuck the Police" is a highlight, and we get guest appearances from old friends Ras Kass and Kurupt.

Good food and great music, surrounded by fun people. Even without space to really dance, a good time was had by all.

The post Slum Village Strikes a Blue Note first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

SCMS’ Balourdet Quartet, MLC Statutory DesignationHaving mentored musicians and sharing chamber music in homes, schools and health spaces, The Balourdet Quartet (Angela Bae, Justin DeFilippis, Benjamin Zannoni, Russell Houston) returns for a second residency with Seattle’s Chamber Music Society, through May 2027.

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Launching in 2021, The MLC now has almost 90,000 members and a database of over 54 million songs. With almost $4 billion in royalties distributed to songwriters and publishers to date, the US Copyrights Register continues in its designation of The MLC as the statutory Mechanical Licensing Collective for the United States.

The move follows a periodic review of designation required by the Music Modernization Act (MMA), with The MLC being determined to have met each of the redesignation criteria More HERE. Some improvements were recommended, including database tools, match-rate data disclosure, and investment transparency.

In addition to licensing and distribution, The MLC has also been actively enforcing royalty obligations of digital music services (including a lawsuit with Spotify against subscription bundling, and a dispute with Pandora over ad-supported radio).

The next review of The MLC is slated for January 2029.

The post SCMS’ Balourdet Quartet, MLC Statutory Designation first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Apple Music hikes subscription prices citing ‘rising licensing costs’"As a result of rising licensing costs, Apple Music is increasing its subscription price beginning today," the company said.
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Lenny Kaye Brings His Past and Present to ZebulonLenny Kaye is loved by a lot of people. Proper fans of N.Y. punk poet Patti Smith know that Kaye has been working with her from the very beginning, Horses and all. Some would argue that he's equally respected for the Nuggets compilation of "original artyfacts from the first psychedelic era 1965-1968." That album was released in 1972, though it was later blown up into a series of CDs and, in 1998, an awesome four-CD box set. Many of us rock 'n' roll fans not around in the '60s discovered the Strawberry Alarm Clock, the Chocolate Watch Band, the Barbarians and so many others through Nuggets. For that, we're forever grateful.

When we learned that his new album, Goin' Local, is in fact his debut solo record, we had to double check. That felt weird, but it is true. Sorta. He had a band called the Lenny Kaye Connection for a while, so make of that what you will. Still, Goin' Local is the first under Kaye's name alone. We're happy he's done it -- there are some gems on the album, and Kaye played a few of them when he dropped into Zebulon, Los Angeles, in July.

Kaye opened with "Luke the Drifter" from the 1984 LKC album I've Got a Right, before the new record's title track. Other new highlights include "The Things You Leave Behind" (a hoarder's lament) and "World Book Day" (a nuggets-esque bit of twee, sweet, psychedelic garage.

"I see ‘The Things You Leave Behind’ as something that resonates with anyone who collects cultural objects and memorabilia. It reflects that instinct to gather things and the question of what to do with them over time," said Kaye, in a statement. 

Kaye takes time out to read from his book Lightning Striking, as well as Waylon, the autobiography of Waylon Jennings which Kaye co-wrote. The latter is a touching tale about Jennings' memories during his spell in Buddy Holly's band of the tragic plane crash

The set is dotted with covers, including the Velvet Underground's "Run Run Run" and The Box Tops' "The Letter," plus "Naked As the Day You Were Born," originally by the Weather Prophets and produced by Kaye. Opening artist Cindy Lee Berryhill returned to the stage to play The Barbiarians' "Are You a Boy Or Are You a Girl," which was on that Nuggets box set. Our favorite moment was "Ghost Dance," which Kaye recorded with The Patti Smith Group for the Easter album.

All in all, a wonderfully intimate, career-spanning night.The post Lenny Kaye Brings His Past and Present to Zebulon first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.

Suno scraped YouTube, Deezer to train AI, hacked code reveals – potentially strengthening UMG and Sony’s legal caseThe code was obtained by a hacker who breached Suno and shared it with 404 Media.
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