Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design
Music Industry In the News
May 2009
Hoots and Hellmouth: New CD & iPhone App
Mad Dragon Recording (MDR) artist Hoots and Hellmouth second MDR release, ‘The Holy Open Secret,’ arrived June 2nd and CD release parties were May 28th and 29th at Johnny Brenda’s.
Drexel Engineering Professor Youngmoo Kim, along with the Music & Entertainment Technology Laboratory (MET-lab) and Mad Dragon Records, developed a new iPhone app specifically for Hoots and Hellmouth. It was developed as a Senior Design project by College of Engineering students in Electrical & Computer Engineering who are working on advanced music applications for the iPhone.
The Philadelphia Inquirer, CityPaper and Philadelphia Weekly all wrote rave reviews about Hoots & Hellmouth’s new album, ‘The Holy Open Secret.’
Jim Klein received his seventh Daytime Emmy nomination in the category of ‘Outstanding Music Direction and Composition in a Drama Series.’ Jim has been nominated six times, winning in 2003 and 2005.
Marcy Rauer Wagman was elected by her peers in the music industry to her fifth term on the Board of Governors of The Recording Academy (The Grammy Awards organization), Philadelphia Chapter.
April 2009
Program Director Jim Klein was selected as a judge for this year’s Daytime Emmy Awards in the categories ‘Outstanding Original Song, Children’s and Animation’ and ‘Outstanding Original Song, Main Title and Promo.'
Dylan Steinberg ('09) directed, wrote the treatment, shot and edited a music video for the band Cute is What We Aim For, which got over 150,000 views on Myspace. Click here to watch the video.
March 2009
Marcy Wagman advocated directly to congressional leaders regarding the Performing Artists Rights Act as one of three representatives selected from the Board of Governors of the Philadelphia Chapter of The Recording Academy.
MAD Dragon Records hosted the SXSW showcase ‘The Texas Cheesecake Massacre’ on in Austin, TX. with their artists Hoots & Hellmouth and Andrew Lipke.
February 2009
Dylan Steinberg (’09) was featured on the CW Philly news, about his top ten finish in MTV U’s Oscar correspondent contest.
For the first time ever, MAD Dragon Records has invited outside local bands to take part in the annual MAD Dragon Concert. This year's all-star line-up promises to be a night of talented Philly-based, independent music. The Spinto Band, Illinois and Slo-Mo along with MAD Dragon recording artists Hoots & Hellmouth and The Swimmers will take the stage on February 6, 2009 at 7 PM at Drexel University's Mandell Theater (33rd & Chestnut Sts.). The concert is free to Drexel University students with ID and $10 to the public.
Wilmington, Delaware-based indie-pop group The Spinto Band (Park the Van Records). The band has played major European Festivals and worked with award-winning producers, Dave Trumfio (Wilco, Granddaddy) and Tchad Blake (Pearl Jam, Paul Simon, Soul Coughing). Bucks County based Illinois, whose influences range from The Monkees to old-school hip-hop, were recently featured in Spin and The College Media Journal (CMJ) said the band is "catchy as hell, the arrangements are diverse and live-they're just fun to watch." Slo-Mo, a hip-hop/bluegrass act from Philadelphia, boasting a steel guitarist Mike Brenner and emcee Mic Wrecka, will round out our line-up of local-based rising stars.
Hoots & Hellmouth and the Swimmers will represent the MAD Dragon label. MAD Dragon Records is Drexel University's award winning student-run record label. Hoots & Hellmouth have spent the past few months recording the follow-up to their 2007 self-titled debut album. The new album, produced by Bill Moriarty (Dr. Dog, Man Man), is set for a May 2009 release. Dubbed one of "Eight Bands to Watch" in 2008 by the Philadelphia Inquirer, The Swimmers bring their distinctive brand of indie pop to the mix.
To purchase tickets visit www.ticketweb.com or call 866-468-7619.
January 2009
MAD Dragon Records has been awarded the 2008 College Record Label of the Year by the Independent Music Awards, the top national awards for college music recording programs and independently produced music. The Redwalls' self-titled release earned the label this award for the second year in a row. Last year, Mad Dragon Records won for Hoots & Hellmouth's self-titled debut. The IMAs place winners and finalists in front of more than 15 million new fans via promotion, marketing and distribution
November 2008
MAD Dragon Records has been nominated for three 2008 Independent Music Awards (IMAs). The label has two entries in the “College Label of the Year” category: The Swimmers’ album Home and The Redwalls, a self-titled release. The final nomination, “Best Rock/Pop Song,” for The Redwalls’ “Modern Diet” is a ground-breaking achievement. All independent labels, not just college labels, will compete for this award. Peter Gabriel, Roger Daltry, Anthony Decurtis from Rolling Stone and MTV’s Joe Cuello are among this year’s judges.
MAD Dragon artist Andrew Lipke released Motherpearl & Dynamite. The new album, with guest appearances by some of Philadelphia’s hottest musicians, showcases Andrew’s melodic voice and virtuoso guitar playing. Reads reviews in The Philadelphia Inquirer, City Paper and Philadelphia Weekly.
Recording Studio Manager Ryan Schwabe also known as ONEdependent released his album with artist Taki76 titled ONEdependent and Taki76 Present: Radio Recession. Click here for more information or to purchase the album.
October 2008
Program Director Jim Klein moderated the panel ‘Music Libraries and Digital Distribution of Music’ at The Composer Expo in New York. The panel discussed state of the art music library deals and developing successful digital distribution for online music.
MAD Dragon recording artist Hoots & Hellmouth have obtained and secured their first international licensing agreement with a Japanese record label. They also recorded a session with DAYTROTTER.COM. Click here to listen!
MAD Dragon recording artist The Swimmers were featured in an article on The Weekender.
Marcy Rauer Wagman and Terry Tompkins presented on ‘Student-Run University Record Labels’ at the regional National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) Conference in Lancaster, PA. Ms. Wagman is also presenting a talk entitled ‘The Legal Limitations on Exploiting your Client’s Intellectual Property’ at the first annual US Sports Film Festival Conference on October 23rd.
MAD Dragon recording artists Hoots & Hellmouth were featured in an article in Tennessee newspaper The Daily Post-Athenian about their performance in the Black Box Concert Series.
MAD Dragon recording artists Hoots & Hellmouth were interviewed by the Daily News.
Marcy Rauer Wagman was appointed to the Advisory Board of the Future of Music Coalition. The Future of Music Coalition is the nation’s premier nonprofit education, research and advocacy organization in the music industry. http://www.futureofmusic.org
Darren Walters’ Jade Tree record label was included in a chapter ‘The Promise Ring’ in the book Post: A Look at the Influence of Post-Hardcore-1985-2007 by Eric Grubbs. For more information or to purchase the book, click here.
September 2008
Darren Walters, Biff Kennedy and Marcy Rauer Wagman participated at the annual Music and Entertainment Industry Student Association (MEISA) conference at Albright College on September 20th. Their topics included new entertainment legal agreements, artist management and publishing.
Marcy Rauer Wagman was a panelist for ‘The New Publishing Industry’ at the Dewey Beach Music Fest on September 25th. She also chaired a seminar at the Future Music Coalition’s ‘What’s the Future for Musicians’ conference in New York City where she presented a talk and discussion, The New Revenue Review.
Andrew Aversa ('09) had two songs from his album Antigravity licensed to two music libraries. The song ‘Warhead’ will be featured in an upcoming Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 game starring Vin Diesel.
Darren Walters was interviewed about his record label, Jade Tree, the record business and his personal life for the recently released book Punk Rock Labels and the Struggle for Autonomy by Alan O’Connor, published by Lexington Books.
MAD Dragon recording artist Andrew Lipke was featured in The Philly-Minneapolis Music Exchange’s ‘Some Velvet Blog.’
July 2008
Marcy Wagman appeared on a panel at The Philadelphia Chapter’s 2nd Annual Independent’s Day Music Conference on July 12th at the Bossone Research Center. Panel topics included radio, branding, digital distribution, finances, royalties, marketing, international business and internet promotion.
Jonah Delso, (‘10) won a WMMR 93.3 FM contest when his music video was voted number one. He was an opening act when superstars Coldplay perform at the Wachovia Center on July 25th. You can see Jonah’s video by clicking here. Watch 6ABC’s coverage of the concert
May 2008
Jim Klein was nominated for not one, but three Daytime Emmy Awards for his work on the ABC Series All My Children. Jim received a nomination in the category for ‘Outstanding Music Direction and Composition in a Drama Series’ and two nominations for ‘Best Original Song’ for his songs The Me Inside and Treasure of Love.
Andrew Aversa (’09), signed a record/distribution deal with Progressive Grooves. ‘Zircon,’ Andrew’s artist name, recently released his two-track EP called System. His music can be downloaded on i-Tunes and every major digital retailer.
April 2008
Cyrille Taillandier, mixed the song “Mysterious Ways” for Grammy Award Winning singer Angelique Kidjo. The song was released on U2 Tribute album In the Name of Love: Africa Celebrates U2. For more information visit this website.
Mad Dragons’ The Redwalls performed on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
March 2008
The Music Industry Program was featured in an AP story that was syndicated in nearly 50 newspapers and web sites including: Forbes.com, Yahoo News, The San Francisco Chronicle, The News Journal (Wilmington DE), The Kansas City Star, The Pioneer Press (Minneapolis MN), The Chicago Sun Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Sun Herald (Biloxi MS), The Oklahoman (Oklahoma City, OK) and many others.
January 2008
It was a big 2007 for Mad Dragon, with seven artists signed to the label, our groups have been out on national tours, won major awards, and have been featured on The David Letterman Show and on WCAU-TV CBS-3
MAD Dragon Records Wins Major Award for "Best College Record"
Congratulations to MAD Dragon Records for winning the Best College Record award for its artist Hoots & Hellmouth from the 7th Annual Independent Music Awards.
Mad Dragon Records' artist Hoots & Hellmouth were featured in PASTE Magazine, a national music publication.
December 2007
Andrew Lipke and Hoots & Hellmouth have been selected as for Independent Music Awards in the College Label category. Lipke’s “Untitled Song #1” and Hoots’ “Want on Nothing” are two of only five songs chosen in the category.
Click here to listen and rate the songs online. For more information on all MAD Dragon Records artists, please visit: www.maddragonrecords.com.
November 2007
Cyrille Tallandier began new research on the Grammar of Recorded Music which explores the connection between the technology used by musicians and recording engineers and the emotions and impressions transmitted by their music.
Jim Klein, produced, engineered and played most of the instruments on the hit single “Yo No Se”, which was released by the group Pajama Party in the late 1980s. The song (along with other Pajama Party singles) was just released on a compilation entitled Atlantic 60th: On The Dance Floor, which is available on iTunes.
Dylan Steinberg ('09), Music Industry student, directed the music video for The Redwalls’ newest single “Modern Diet.” Starting Monday, November 12th, the video will be available for viewing online through www.drexel.edu/westphal.
MAD Dragon Records’ artist The Redwalls were featured alongside Bruce Springsteen and Carrie Underwood on an E! News segment. The band is also featured in the November 1st edition of the Chicago Tribune (read online here). You can read all about the touring adventures of The Redwalls on Music Industry student Mike Giuliano’s blog. The band is touring with The Polyphonic Spree and Rooney and Mike is joining them on the road as their Assistant Tour Manager. Join us to see The Redwalls at The Trocadero in Philly on November 14th!
October 2007
The Redwalls released their self-titled MAD Dragon Records’ debut album on October 23rd, and it’s been making noise on the charts ever since. The album charted on the top 200 of the CMJ. The Redwalls are still on national tour with The Polyphonic Spree, and will return to Philly on November 14th at The Trocadero.
Philadelphia Weekly says “…you will get hooked” on The Swimmers newest release, while CityPaper calls the album “…too great to not be heard far and wide.”
Andrew Aversa ('09) inked a deal with music library UniqueTracks to release a CD of original world/electronic music. The CD, his second for the label, is entitled The World Circuitand will also be available for purchase on iTunes and through Andrew’s website: www.zirconstudios.com or www.uniquetracks.com.
Professor Tompkins and Professor Wagman also appeared on panels at the CMJ Music Marathon Conference in New York City on Oct. 18th and 19th. Professor Tompkins moderated a panel entitled “Music Business Primer: Booking & Tour Management”. Professor Rauer Wagman participated in a panel entitled “Disposable Content.”
September 2007
Marcy Rauer Wagman participated in a panel discussion at the Future of Music Policy Summit in Washington D.C. on Sept. 17th. The panel is entitled “New Provisions in Recording Artist Agreements.”
Terry Tompkins and Marcy Rauer Wagman participated in panels at the Dewey Beach Music Conference on September 28th. Professor Tompkins sat on the panel “Independent Record Labels” and Marcy Rauer Wagman sat on the panels “Publishing in the Music Industry” and “Entertainment Lawyers.” At the same conference, Christianna LaBuz ('08) appeared on the panel “DIY Booking Agents and Talent Buyers.” LaBuz was the student head of the DraKo Booking Agency, booking over 400 shows for MAD Dragon artists across the U.S.A.
July 2007
Hoots & Hellmouth is creating a ruckus on the music scene. The band was recognized as one of the fastest rising stars of the independent music scene. WXPN-FM (88.5) named Hoots & Hellmouth an “Artist to Watch” (read more here). WPVI-TV (Channel 6) also named the band an Artist to Watch and the three-piece group was featured in an on-air segment.
June 2007
Marcy Rauer Wagman, Esq. was elected to the Board of Governors of the Philadelphia Chapter of The Recording Academy, also known as the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS), the Grammy Awards organization, based in Los Angeles.
May 2007
Dylan Steinberg ('09) created a promotional video for the rock band Army of Me, which has been selected for inclusion in AOL’s “Best New Band” Contest.