PUSSY RIOT TO APPEAL, LAWYER FEARS PRISON ATTACK
Nikolai Polozov, a member of the defence team working for Pussy Riot members Maria Alyokhina, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova and Yekaterina Samutsevich, has said that his clients will appeal against their sentence within two weeks, the Guardian reports.

As previously reported, the women were last week found guilty of "hooliganism motivated by religious hatred" after protesting against Vladimir Putin in a church earlier this year. They were sentenced to two years in prison, taking into account the five months they had already served while awaiting trial.

Polozov also said that he fears for the women's safety while they are in jail, saying: "For half a year, state-run television has built up a very negative image of them - that they're blasphemers, heretics. The only source of information in prisons is state-run TV. We have a serious basis to think they can be faced with physical harm, moral pressure and even violence".

According to Reuters, Russian police have also said that they are still searching for the other members of the band, another two of whom were involved in the church protest.

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LAURYN HILL ACCUSED OF FAILING TO PAY ANOTHER TAX BILL
When Lauryn Hill pleaded guilty to failing to pay federal taxes of $1.8 million earlier this year, her lawyer Nathan Hockman claimed that she had been unfairly targeted with criminal proceedings and should have only had to face civil action. Well, Nathan, be careful what you wish for, because now Hill has been hit with a civil action too.

As previously reported, Hill admitted to failing to pay federal taxes of $1.8 million back in June. Now the State of New Jersey is chasing her for $440,000 in unpaid local taxes, reports TMZ. It's not clear what stage this civil action is at yet, but Hill is due to hear in November if she will be sent to jail in the federal case. If so, she faces up to three years, as well as a $75,000 fine.

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JOHN WILLIAMS TO BE HONOURED AT CLASSIC BRITS
This year's Classic BRIT Awards, due to take place on 2 Oct at the Royal Albert Hall, will present a Lifetime Achievement gong to soundtrack legend John Williams, whose film scores, of course, include the likes of 'Star Wars', 'Indiana Jones', 'Jaws', 'ET' and 'Harry Potter'.

Confirming that Williams would get this year's lifetime achievement prize, Decca Records President Dickon Stainer, who is also co-Chairman of The Classic BRIT Awards committee, told CMU: "For many, the first introduction to large-scale orchestral music was a cinematic experience. From the film scores of William Walton, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Erich Korngold and others to the modern day composer, their sheer emotive power has thrilled audiences for decades. John Williams has crafted some of the most memorable film scores for over half a century and we are delighted that he has kindly accepted the Lifetime Achievement award in honour of his fine work".

Other nominations for this year's Classic BRITs will be announced at the Savoy Hotel on 6 Sep.

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ENTER SHIKARI MAN RELEASING CHARITY EP
Enter Shikari's Rou Reynolds has just confirmed he'll release a new charity EP, 'Nourishment', under his solo moniker ROUT. It features audio recordings taken from various Ghanaian 'witch camps', makeshift communities of women exiled from their families after being accused of witchcraft.

Digital copies will be available on a pay-what-you-like basis via www.entershikari.com/downloads from 28 Aug, with all proceeds from donations (minimum £1) going towards ActionAid.

Says Renolds, who'll premiere the EP during a DJ set at this year's Reading Festival: "Hearing about ActionAid's work from someone who'd seen it first-hand captured my imagination, and I wanted to produce this record to make sure all our fans go and check out the amazing stuff ActionAid do".

ActionAid's Stuart Fowkes adds: "What's really amazing about this EP is that it takes songs of hope from people we work with around the world and weaves them into something even greater. We really hope that when fans download the EP, they'll take a couple of minutes to find out a bit more about what we do, as well as enjoying Rou's amazing tunes".

Here's a preview of one such track.

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SNOOP MAKES TECHNO MIXTAPE UNDER DJ SNOOPADELIC MONIKER
Snoop Lion, nee Dogg, has many, many different names and multi-genre disguises nowadays, not least DJ Snoopadelic, the dance alias under which he's released a new mixtape of techno tracks and "loose joints".

Far from being the rapper/reggae artist's first foray into "tekno euro", it follows a SoundCloud mix he made back in March.

The new compilation features Toddla T, French Fries, Them Jeans and Jokers Of The Scene, and you can stream it now via Dat Piff.

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NEW LP WILL "RAWK", SAY HEART
Power-rock duo Heart, aka sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson, will on 1 Oct release an LP of 100% stadium "rawk" sonnetry in the listenable and purchasable shape of their new record 'Fanatic'.

The band, whose last issue was a career-charting box set entitled 'Strange Euphoria', have shared the new long player's title track plus the also brand new 'Walkin Good' via YouTube. So if you heart Heart, listen to those now.

Well not quite now, because first here's a quote from Ann: "Our new album tells our story as it is now and brings it all up-to-the-minute. What a thrill to touch the musical magic Nancy and I have always shared together. Anybody want to RAWK?"

Taking that as permission to "rawk", I'm off to have a blast of 'Fanatic'.

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PLEDGEMUSIC PARTNERS WITH PULSE FILMS TO RELEASE LCD SOUNDSYSTEM DOC
PledgeMusic has consolidated its alliance with Pulse Films to release one of the London-based production co's recent projects, LCD Soundsystem DVD 'Shut Up And Play The Hits'.

Having collaborated on the campaign for Roger Sargent's Libertines reunion chronicle, 'There Are No Innocent Bystanders', in April, the two companies have now made the LCD doc available as part of various differently-priced PledgeMusic packages.

The film, which centres on James Murphy et al's final concert in Madison Square Gardens, will also be screened in selected UK cinemas from 4 Sep.

Further details via its PledgeMusic page.

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BLOC PARTY ANNOUNCE FREE LONDON SHOW
To mark their fourth album, 'Four', reaching number one in the midweek charts, Bloc Party have announced that they will play a free show at the 250 capacity Birthdays venue in Dalston, East London tonight. The gig is free, but entry will be granted on a first come, first served basis. Doors will open at 7.30pm and the band will hit the stage at 8.30pm.

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JACK WHITE TO TOUR
Having honed his solo set at a couple of London shows just last month, Jack White has now gone and listed a much larger six-part outing in honour of his new LP, 'Blunderbuss'. Willy Moon, whose new single 'Railroad' is out now via White's Third Man Records, will open all dates.

And those dates are:

31 Oct: Dublin, O2 Arena
2 Nov: London, Alexandra Palace
4 Nov: Bridlington Spa
6 Nov: Blackpool, Empress Ballroom
7 Nov: Birmingham, Academy
8 Nov: Edinburgh, Usher Hall

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DJ FRESH ADDS FRESH/LIVE DATES
Dance-pop beatsmith DJ Fresh will in November embark on a tour that's both 'fresh' and/or 'live' according to its banner title, the 'Fresh/Live' tour.

Fresh's collaboration-rich next LP, 'Nextlevelism' - as features Dizzee Rascal, Rita Ora, Professor Green, Liam Bailey, The Fray, Rizzle Kicks, Ms Dynamite, Juliette Lewis, RaVaughn, Adam F & Michael Warren, Ayah Marar, Sian Evans, Fleur, my 70 year old dad, "and more" - is set for release in October.

Tour dates:

2 Nov: Nottingham, Rock City
3 Nov: Manchester, Warehouse Project
8 Nov: Sheffield, The Plug
9 Nov: Norwich, UEA
14 Nov: Birmingham, HMV Institute
15 Nov: Portsmouth, Pyramid Centre
16 Nov: Hatfield, Forum
17 Nov: Skegness, Butlins Holiday Camp
19 Nov: Exeter, Lemongrove
20 Nov: Bristol, Academy
22 Nov: Liverpool, Academy
23 Nov: Preston, 53 Degrees
24 Nov: Skegness, Butlins Holiday Camp

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FESTIVAL LINE-UP ADDITIONS

BEVERLEY FESTIVAL, Beverly Minster, East Yorkshire, 21-23 Jun: Show Of Hands, Farino, Edwina Hayes, Coco & The Butterfields. www.beverleyfestival.com

ITUNES FESTIVAL, The Roundhouse, London, 1-30 Sep: The Killers, Beth Orton, Willy Mason, Foreign Beggars, Gabrielle Aplin, Delilah, Jose James, Carisma, Laura Wright. www.itunesfestival.com

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NISSAN TO SELL LIMITED EDITION MINISTRY OF SOUND MODEL
Having partnered with Nissan to tour a car packed full with a massive sound system around various sporty and musical events this summer, Ministry Of Sound has now also lent its logo to a limited range of Nissan cars. 3000 of the Ministry Nissan Jukes will go on sale in September, as the dance label and clubbing brand celebrates its 21st anniversary.

The special edition comes with white alloy wheels, black leather seats, a subtle Ministry badge, an 8GB iPod but, interestingly given the original Nissan/Ministry tie up, a standard sound system.

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DAVID GRAY APPLIES TO TURN FORMER EURYTHMICS STUDIO INTO FLATS
David Gray has applied to have The Church Studios in North London, which he has owned since 2003, when he purchased it from The Eurythmics' Dave Stewart, turned into five flats and office space. The move has drawn protests from local residents in Crouch End.

Previously a church (hence the name), the building was converted into studios by animators Bob Bura and John Hardwick, where they worked on shows such as 'Captain Pugwash' and 'Camberwick Green'. In the 80s they rented out one room to The Eurythmics, who later took over the whole building and converted it into recording studios. As well as The Eurythmics and David Gray, artists including Bob Dylan, Radiohead, Mumford & Sons, Depeche Mode, Matt Cardle and My Bloody Valentine have recorded there.

In a letter to Haringey Council, forming part of the lengthy planning application, architect Mark Ruthven writes: "Church Studios were converted into a music recording facility some 25 years ago. However, due to the technical developments in the music and recording industry, these facilities have been rendered obsolete and do not present a viable future for the building".

Amongst various objections to the plans, several have objected on the grounds that the building is of cultural importance to the area, many submitted a standardised letter which in part reads: "The Church studios are and have been a part of Crouch End's artistic and creative heritage for decades. Many local musicians use and are based in the building. If the main part of the building is converted into residential flats the studios that adjoin the building will likely have to cease operation or spend thousands on further soundproofing to avoid noise disturbance. I feel that this will have a significant effect on the vitality of the local arts scene and the character of the area. It will also affect the livelihoods of those working in the building at this time".

Dave Stewart also wrote on his Facebook page: "[The Church] has so many memories for me not just recording sessions. I would host evening soirees with poets, philosophers, musicians etc, burn frankincense on huge columns at 2am. [Bob] Dylan would turn up with his band and hold court, or Joni Mitchell would play drums! Things have changed now, [the] music scene is not the same. I understand [Gray] having to sell, [even though] I wasn't bothered about the cost of running it (always at a loss)".

A date has not yet been set by Haringey Council to consider the application. David Gray has also not personally commented on the plans.

Here's a video of Annie Lennox giving a tour of The Church in 1988.

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AMAZON LOCKER UPGRADE RESULTS IN DOWNGRADE
A journalist on BetaNews has noted an unhappy side effect of Amazon sexing up its music-based cloud locker service via new deals with the big music companies: a serious downgrading of the free-to-use option.

As previously reported, Amazon originally launched its music locker service, which lets users upload tracks to the web firm's servers so they can be accessed from any net-connected device, in the US last year without the support of the music industry (somewhat controversially in the eyes of the labels and music publishers).

But last month the etail company announced a new deal with the music firms meaning it can now offer the so called scan-and-match functionality to premium users, bringing it in line with Apple's locker platform, which always involved the record companies (for copyright reasons, licences are required from the rights owners to offer scan and match).

That upgrade though, writes BetaNews's Joe Wilcox, has seen his free Amazon locker account downgraded. Not only that, but he's seemingly lost access to the music he uploaded to the locker when first signing up for the free 5GB option last year (which could have been a lot, because Amazon actually provided him with 20GB of space, though Wilcox has been using Google as his main locker).

Moving forward free users of the Amazon locker will only be able to store 250 tracks, and those who previously had more than that will no longer be able to access the music they diligently uploaded (only MP3s purchased from Amazon itself will still appear).

Writes Wilcox: "[Amazon's recent] email shocked - 'if your Cloud Player library contained more than 250 imported songs when your subscription expired, you will be unable to access your previously-imported music'. Oh yeah? What happened to that generous 20GB of storage Amazon gave a year ago?"

Of course the downgrade is within Amazon's original terms and conditions, a 250 song facility is probably a pretty good deal for free, and existing users can seemingly reclaim their previously uploaded MP3 collections if they upgrade to Amazon Premium, which is only $25 a year.

Though, as previously noted, the whole selling point of cloud servers is that once you have gone to the effort of uploading your content, you are safe in the knowledge that content will always be available, wherever you are, providing you have a net connection. And sudden surprises like this (or the more serious surprise legit MegaUpload customers had in January when the entire service was switched off) make the whole concept of so-called cloud storage less attractive.

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IAIN LEE TO TAKE OVER BREAKFAST AT BBC THREE COUNTIES
Following Iain Lee's somewhat sudden departure from Absolute Radio last October, the one time '11 O'Clock Show' and Xfm presenter has got a new radio show, though somewhat surprisingly it's the breakfast show on BBC local station Three Counties Radio in Herts, Beds and Bucks.

Confirming his new radio gig, Lee told Radio Today: "I'm very pleased to have been invited to be the host of the breakfast show on BBC 3CR. While the prospect of getting up at 4am for an extended period is slightly daunting, I am excited to be given this opportunity to do something a little different from my previous radio output. It's also an honour to work for the mighty BBC".

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AVRIL LAVIGNE AND CHAD KROEGER ENGAGED
Avril Lavigne announced via Twitter yesterday that she was "super stoked" to have finished work on her fifth album. However, she didn't mention how she felt about being engaged to one of the guest musicians on the album, Nickleback frontman Chad Kroeger. Poor Chad.

Anyway, yes, Avril Lavigne and Chad Kroeger are getting married, he having popped the question earlier this month, her PR rep confirmed to People yesterday. According to the magazine's website, they hit it off while writing for her album and have been seeing each other romantically for about six months.

Like the Cliff Richard of Canadian rock that he is, Kroeger has remained a bachelor boy for his entire life up to this point, but Lavigne was, of course, previously married to Sum 41 frontman Derrek Whibley. They split in 2009, before officially divorcing in 2010.

Now all that remains to be decided is whether to call the new couple Chavril or Krovigne.

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