The Re-Branding of ESTROGENIUS

ESTROGENIUS Internet Radio went on the air in June 2001 with one mission: To provide exposure to under-played and under-appreciated female artists and vocalists. Not to get sappy or anything, but it has been my incredible honor to have dealt with so many talented artists, and even the occasional listener. (Kidding! It's, er, always this slow during the summer.)

Five years on, I felt like it was time for a bit of a shake-up. The music has been stronger than ever, but I thought that I could somehow be serving it better. Thus, I decided to re-brand and re-launch the station with a new identity: FEMALE FRONT.

What is Female Front? As I describe on my homepage (also re-branded, but still available at the same old links you always had, and now also at the convenient www.femalefront.com), it's a pun so bad, I had to share it with everybody on earth. I mean, a triple-entendre? How could I pass that up?!

Since I couldn't very well change all of that without also changing the blog, here's the important news as far as this space is concerned: It is moving to a new Blogger address.

Please bookmark www.femalefront.blogspot.com, as that is where this blog will be continuing. This space will remain up as an archive, and as a handy way to redirect everyone who keeps forgetting to bookmark the new address. This post will also be duplicated to mark the inaugural post at the new blog.

To all of the artists and repeat listeners, thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are two of the reasons why I do this (the third being myself, because I really need something other than corporate radio to listen to). And if you're a first-time visitor, thank you for stopping by; I hope you check out the station and enjoy it.

Oh, and the blog will still be called "Minor Notes", because that's another annoyingly cute play on words that I've come to like, and because all of this shit is confusing enough as it is.

Emilie Autumn Studio Robbed & Ransacked; Tea Unharmed

On June 4th, longtime ESTROGENIUS favorite Emilie Autumn revealed on her web forum that her home/studio/world headquarters had been robbed in late May, and that all of the studio equipment and computers were taken. As if that were not chilling enough, it turns out that Ms Autumn and a few of her band members were present (in other rooms of the building) when the robbery took place. If there is any consolation to be taken from this horror, it's that nobody was physically harmed.

Adding insult to injury was the timing of the violation: The robbery took place right when Traitor Records, Emilie Autumn's self-published label, was preparing to ship pre-orders of the brand-new EP Opheliac (a preview of the upcoming full-length album of the same name). The result, as Ms Autumn described in her forum, was devastating:

All computers, all ability to get online, all ability to record, gone. But the worst of it is the priceless databases containing the orders yet to be shipped, and the fan contacts for all of you...Not to mention the gigs of music and personal files lost forever. An absolute tragedy.

Emilie Autumn and the Traitor Records staff are working to rebuild the database and piece together which orders were shipped and which were not. In the meantime, they have requested that members of the mailing list re-sign up for it. Because my own order was one of those affected, I posted in the forum my offer to re-purchase the EP, whether because they are unable to find a record of my purchase, or if they just need the infusion of cash.

If you're in the Chicagoland area and have any information about the commission of this crime, please do the right thing and contact Traitor Records about it.

On the bright side, I believe that Emilie Autumn's considerable inventory of tea was not affected by this dastardly deed.

Go Betty Go Announce New Vocalist

After months of searching and auditioning, Go Betty Go have announced the hiring of a new lead vocalist: Emily Wynne-Hughes.

To recap the story: Go Betty Go's founding vocalist, Nicolette Vilar, announced that she was leaving the band last February (as reported in this blog). Remaining band members Betty, Aixa and Michelle vowed to carry on with a new vocalist -- as soon as they could find one.

Then the announcement came three days ago that the search was over, and that Go Betty Go had a new lead vocalist. Here's a snippet from the official press release:

We met Emily at the auditions held back in March. Five seconds into her performance we knew there was a future with Emily and GBG. Her strong voice and personality immediately got us wanting to hear and see more. We can’t begin to tell you how extremely excited we are! We have nothing but good news from here on out.

And here's part of a message from the new girl herself, Emily Wynne-Hughes:

I can't tell you how excited I am to join the GBG team! It's been more than a dream come true. Nicolette left big shoes to fill and I hope I can squeeze my feet into them! I have heard such wonderful things about the fans of this band. You guys are what make this all possible. I hope you like what I bring to the table and enjoy the new GBG with me as the singer.

For the whole story, check out the official press release at the GBG website. I would've been happy to post a picture of "the new girl", but apparently Emily is so new that there aren't any pictures of her available anywhere!

Here's to Go Betty Go and Emily Wynne-Hughes, wishing them continued (and newfound) success in the future.