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Stopping the Radio Monopoly 

Dear Editor,

I am writing to inform you of the grave threat to independent radio as we know it. The wealthy special interests at the National Association of Broadcasters are very upset at the recent FCC decision to allow low power FM stations to be on the dial, and sued the FCC. The comment period will end soon, now is the time to speak! Without massive citizen effort, the digital format will be forced on to the American public, existing bands will expand from 200khz to 400khz, wiping out little stations that are near the big ones. In addition, the tried and true analog FM radio will be obsolete, taking out thousands of little stations nationwide that cannot afford the digital equipment. The irony of this situation is that you will rarely hear of this issue in the mainstream papers, as they often are owned by companies that own radio stations - they are all tied together. Please go to the website below and research this important issue, and write your congressman, do articles, pass this on. For more info on the LPFM go to: http://wrfr.pibc.com/indexdab.html  In the 1930's, Adolph Hitler gave away 9 million radios tuned to the Nazi propaganda station only; it would not receive anything else. In addition, anyone caught listening to Radio Free Europe or BBC was sent to a concentration camp. It is not quite that bad yet, but do your homework and find out why there are eerie similarities with some laws being proposed. Brooke Saunders President Floating Folk Festival Richmond Virginia 1-804-323-6444 floatingfolk.com A Letter from 'The Verve Pipe' Editor's Note: Last week I received the official word from 'The Verve Pipe' concerning their current 'stagnant' status, and thought it important to publish in order to dispel any false rumors making the rounds. Dear Review; We wanted to let everyone know the latest information regarding 'The Verve Pipe'. Rather than giving you ever-changing information, we have waited till all plans became solidified before letting you know what's in store for the band. If things have seemed strangely quiet - that's why. First of all, the 'good news' - in spite of rumors to the contrary, the band is not breaking up and RCA is not dropping them. We'd like to briefly walk through the past year and then get more into the plan that has been laid out. In spite of extensive airplay for Hero, six months of touring, numerous reviews (most overwhelmingly positive), webcasts and other online promotions, the band's appearance on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno, the Hero video, in-store performances, on-air interviews and numerous other promotional activities, both concert attendance and record sales were disappointing. Everyoneinvolved(RCA/band/management/publisher/consultants) recognized that we needed a major hit to renew interest in this album. As you know, we looked at releasing Television to be more in line with the current climate of radio. But, between the fact that it is not a multi-format track and not everyone was convinced it was the hit we were looking for, the decision was made to move on to the multi-format track La La. There was a lot of support for this track from the dozens of people involved in the decision of which song to release as a single, but radio research was not as positive as we had hoped. As a result (and the ensuing bad news), there will be no more singles released from the album, The Verve Pipe. We ask for your understanding of the fact that this decision is not just about this album, but is more about a long-term interest in the band's career as recording artists. You can stumble in sales with one track, but if the second track from this album didn't do well, we would have run the risk of closing too many doors for the next album. As a result (and more good news), the band is now preparing for their next album, which they hope to begin recording as soon as this summer. Early plans are for a 1st Quarter 2001 release. In addition Colorful will be recorded for the Metal God soundtrack in late April or early May. Although there are no assurances that it will be included in the movie soundtrack or released as a single, there is a possibility of this new track being released in the fall. Further on Metal God - everyone involved sees Brian VanderArk's participation in the film as a positive for the band. The side projects of each band member not only provide them with a creative outlet, but also afford the opportunity to make the band more visible and showcase their diverse talents. We are proud that Brian has such an opportunity, but the band is, and will continue to be, his main focus. In fact, there is quite a bit of downtime during filming, which is allowing Brian to write extensively. In addition to working on new music for The Verve Pipe, Donny Brown and Doug Corella continue to work on their side project, The K Hyde Project, and hope to have music for the website in a few weeks. Donny has also been working with the band 19 Wheels, co-writing and producing songs for their upcoming EP. Doug recently performed with the band Stir for their CD release show at the Metro in Chicago. AJ Dunning and Brad VanderArk are also hard at work writing new songs and coming up with music for the new album. Now that the plan has been laid out, everyone's sights are focused on the new album.As far as touring plans, schedule permitting, there's a possibility the band will be doing a few shows in May or June, following the recording of Colorful. We have shared many of your frustrations over the past year, but most importantly, we share your continued passion for the band's music. The commitment from the band, management, RCA, and publisher are as strong as ever. Nothing in life ever comes easy - even the tremendous success of 'Villains' was the result of years of hard work, as you all know. We hope to look back on this year as a bump in the road for the band commercially, but more as a growth period creatively - allowing the band to take their music to a higher level. We (band/management) continue to welcome and appreciate your comments and discussions. Hopefully this message has helped answer some of your questions and put any worries to rest. Best, The Verve Pipe, LMNO Pop & DBMI 

The Review welcomes your letters and comments. Please send all correspondence to: Letters to the Editor o Review Magazine o 318 S. Hamilton St., Saginaw, MI 48602