Last night Thom and Jonny performed an acoustic set at Electric Ladlyand studios in New York for about 75 people. At the end of the show, Colin, Ed, and Phil came out for a question and answer session. For the setlist, check out the gigography.
The latest:
The Riverhead Town Supervisor Robert Kozakiewicz announced this morning that a two-day rock concert scheduled for this weekend in Calverton would not happen. Soon after, Ticketmaster was advertising on its web site that the event had been scaled down to a one-day show and would be held at Giants Stadium Saturday.
A Giants Stadium spokesperson said that although negotions have taken place, no deal has been reached. The change of venue was not confirmed by the concert’s promoters.
Ticketmaster’s web site said the new show would include Radiohead and the Beastie Boys, but did not make clear how many of the 35 other bands originally booked for the show would be part of the 12-hour concert. Tickets for the show were to go on sale at 5 p.m. through Ticketmaster.com., according to the ticket web site.
Tickets for the Calverton show will not be honored at Giants Stadium and people who initially purchased their tickets with a credit card online or by phone will receive an automatic refund on their credit card, according to Ticketmaster. Those who purchased them in other ways must return their tickets at the point of purchase for a refund.
Promoters today were hustling to find a new venue after the Suffolk officials declared that the concert would not be allowed on the East End as had been proposed. “In the interest of the health, safety and welfare of the residents of the Town of Riverhead and the public, I believe that the event should be cancelled,” Kozakiewicz said in a prepared statement.
Christopher Kent, a lawyer for the for the Field Day Festival promoters, said earlier in the day that a new location in the New York City metropolitan area for the concert was being sought and that a decision would be announced today. He said refunds will be given to ticket-holders who request them.
Stating that at a new venue the concert, which was to feature headline acts such as the Beastie Boys, Radiohead, and Beck, would be a “different type of event,” Kent had said that the Meadowlands Sports Complex in New Jersey was one site under consideration. He added that there would be no camping at the concert’s new location.
“The Field Day Festival lives,” he said.
Yesterday, the concert promoters filed suit in Federal District Court in Islip seeking a restraining order and injunction to prevent Suffolk County from canceling the event. Kent said the suit will likely be changed to seek monetary damages now that the concert has been called off at the Calverton site.
Kent said the promoters were still trying to determine how much money they will lose because of the cancellation. “They’re still punching the calculator,” he said…they’ve spent over $3 million.”
The concert was thrown into doubt last week when Suffolk County denied the promoter a mass gathering permit, citing a lack of adequate police protection. Two weeks ago, the Suffolk County police declined to participate in the event, citing a concern over the concert traffic plan and a lack of time for the county attorney to sign a contract with the town.
Since then, town officials and the event promoter scrambled to convince other law enforcement agencies to provide the approximately 200 additional officers need to control traffic and the expected crowd of 50,000.
Last night, facing a possible court injunction filed by Suffolk County, the town board voted to table a resolution on their own special events permit, effectively denying the application since another meeting is not scheduled for this week.
This morning, Kozakiewicz and other town board members blamed Suffolk County for the event’s failure, saying the county police department’s failure to participate effectively killed the concert. “I really don’t know what the politics were, but yes, I do think politics did play a role,” Kozakiewicz said.
County officials have said Riverhead Town and the promoter approached the county too late to adequately plan the event.
In a letter sent Tuesday to Robert Maimoni, a county health official, Lt. Col. James Schepperly of the state police explained that “our experience has been that several months lead-time is minimally necessary to develop comprehensive concert plans.” The state police were first approached in March, a town official said.
A lack of adequate law enforcement was the reason the Suffolk County health department denied a mass gathering permit for the concert last week. Two weeks ago, Suffolk County police declined to participate, citing concerns about the promoter’s traffic plan and a lack of time for the county attorney to sign a deal with Riverhead town.
The Field Day concert was to occur at the former Grumman property, on part of the 2,900 acres of town-owned land that has been targeted for economic development. The town had hoped that this rock festival and another scheduled for August would put Riverhead on the map and lure future clients to the site.
The festival, Bonnaroo NE, is slated to last three days and feature acts including Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and The Dead.
“Its a separate issue altogether. What happened today has no (relationship) to the August event,” Suffolk Police Commissioner John Gallagher said.
Gallagher added that while road access to the Calverton site will also be a problem in August, planning has already started. “We’ll do our darndest,” Gallagher said, in order that the planning will be done before Bonaroo.
Here’s the Ticketmaster link.
Another chapter in the Field Day Festival saga from NY Newsday:
Hours after the New York State Police informed the Suffolk County health department that it will not be able to send troopers to help control crowds and traffic at a concert scheduled this weekend in Calverton, the Riverhead Town Board tabled a vote on granting the event a special permit.
It was a double blow for promoters of the event, which already has been denied a separate approval by Suffolk County that will not be reconsidered, a county official told the town board Tuesday night.
But a lawyer for the promoter said he was seeking other venues in the New York metropolitan area for the concert. “We don’t have a formal commitment to stage a concert anywhere,” said Chris Kent, an attorney for the promoters.
After the town board meeting, Riverhead Town Supervisor Robert Kozakiewicz said the town board tabled the resolution because they could face a lawsuit from the promoter or other parties. The board voted 5-0 to table the decision.
The board’s decision was closely watched by the Suffolk County Attorney’s office, which said Tuesday it would seek to stop the concert in court if the promoters didn’t notify ticketholders that the festival was canceled. The bands scheduled to appear include The Beastie Boys and Radiohead.
“We need to get some concrete indications from the promoters that they are advising all of their ticketholders — in as many advertising venues as they used to promote the festival — that it will not be held,” deputy county attorney Robert Cabble said Tuesday, adding the county would appear in court as early as this morning if the board voted to approve the permit.
But Gary Lewi, spokesman for promoter Andrew Dreskin, said Tuesday afternoon that the news the state police were not participating does not necessarily stop the concert. “There are any number of different options that are available to us,” he said, but declined to be more specific. Several other local law enforcement agencies have declined to help, citing either a lack of time or personnel.
Riverhead Town’s chief of police has said he would need about 200 extra officers to help his tiny force control the crowd of 50,000 expected over Saturday and Sunday.
In a letter sent Tuesday to Robert Maimoni, a county health official, Lt. Col. James Schepperly of the state police explained that “our experience has been that several months lead-time is minimally necessary to develop comprehensive concert plans.” The state police were first approached in March, a town official said.
A lack of adequate law enforcement was the reason the Suffolk County health department denied a mass gathering permit for the concert last week. Two weeks ago, Suffolk County police declined to participate, citing concerns about the promoter’s traffic plan and a lack of time for the county attorney to sign a deal with Riverhead town.
In urging the town to approve his client’s permit, Field Day lawyer Chris Kent held aloft two binders several inches thick that he said constituted months of planning by Dreskin and his consultants.
“Before you are pages and pages of good science, based upon good planning,” he told the town board at the meeting Tuesday night. “What you have before you is a tremendous opportunity for the town of Riverhead.”
Kozakiewicz did not return calls for comment Tuesday, but town board member James Lull said he would be willing to approve the permit on the condition that Dreskin receives his approval from the county, a feat Lull acknowledged would be “awfully, awfully difficult.” He added that such a vote could avoid a lawsuit by Dreskin. “If we vote in favor of it with conditions, then the liability is somewhere else,” Lull said.
Bruce Williamson, chief of the health department’s bureau of public health protection, told the town board Tuesday night “the permits will not be issued. I urge the town board to take into consideration that the application was denied.”
The Field Day concert was to occur at the former Grumman property, on 2,900 acres of town-owned land that has been targeted for economic development. The town had hoped the rock festival — and another scheduled for August — would put Riverhead on the map and lure future clients to the site.
Ashley Capps, one of the promoters of Bonnaroo NE, the August festival — slated to last three days and feature acts including Bob Dylan, Tom Petty and The Dead — said he was keeping an eye on the Field Day developments but wasn’t concerned about the impact it would have on his own event. “We’ve been going through our own process in our own way, and we feel like we’ve been working very hard to dot the i’s and cross the t’s,” he said. “These are two very separate events.”
Rumor has it that they may move the festival to Giants Stadium and shorten it to one day.
(thanks to everyone that wrote in)
I thought I would update you all on the current situation that I reported about yesterday. As you know, Green Plastic was asked by Warner Chappell to remove all lyrics and tabs from the site. I have complied with the request and have taken them off.
I have received a lot of support over the last day which I appreciate very much. I’ve also been in contact with lawyers and experts in copyright law. Radiohead does know what is going on and I have been in contact with w.a.s.t.e. They assure me that the band isn’t happy about this situation and are trying to see what can be done.
Most importantly, I heard back from Warner Chappell. Here is an excerpt from them:
“I am going to have a phone conference call with our Managing Directors in London (in about one hour) to see what can be done … it is my understanding that the members of Radiohead are not too pleased about this situation and our ultimate goal in all of this is to insure that they are happy in their relationship with Warner/Chappell. If the band wants their fans to have access to their song lyrics, then that’s what we will allow … after all, it’s their music.”
So, there appears to be hope that the lyrics and tabs will be back online soon. Even though we may not agree with why Warner Chappell decided to do this, it is their legal right to do so. They represent Radiohead’s interests. Also, please do not confuse Warner Chappell with Radiohead’s label EMI. Warner Chappell owns Radiohead’s publishing rights and is not Radiohead’s record label. I have not heard from anyone at EMI or Capitol Records about this matter, though I am sure that they are aware. My relationships with EMI and Capitol over the years has been very positive and they’ve continued to support me and the site.
Let’s remember to be nice to Warner Chappell. I’ve read some comments from fans blasting them and though I agree that this is a unfortunate situation, I do not think that threatening Warner Chappell or EMI will get anything solved. They are willing to work with us (the Webmasters) and that is a good thing.
Thank you for your support. Thanks also goes to Radiohead for their support. Stay tuned for updates…
Jonathan
You can read more at Internet Magazine and Metafilter. Oh, and the petition.
Thom Yorke is on the cover of the latest RES magazine (a magazine dedicated to digital filmaking and digital life). The article is about Radiohead and their breathtaking videos. “Radiohead has always pushed the boundaries of the music video form, a fact chronicled by RES contributor Philip Sherburne in this tour through the band’s stellar output.” More….
(thanks to Juan)
The National Post, the Canadian national newspaper, is running a week long expose examining each of Radiohead’s five previous albums in great depth. The first article, regarding Pablo Honey, is up here.