Men in Work told to pay up for plagiarism

The composers of the Australian produced smash hit Down Under have been asked to pony up royalties for their song, which infringes on the copyright with regard to a flute riff that the composers, Men at Work, blatantly ripped off a classic Australian children's song.

However, despite the controversy within the local recording industry in Australia, it has been revealed that the amount the group will have to pay is looking to be much less than originally thought.

According to the Sydney Morning Herald:

Federal Court Justice Peter Jacobson in February ruled that the famous flute riff from Men at Work's 1980s song was the same as the children's tune, Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree.

Music publisher Larrikin Music holds the copyright for the original melody, which was penned more than 75 years ago by Toorak teacher Marion Sinclair for a Girl Guides competition.

In a judgment released in the Federal Court in Sydney today, Justice Jacobson ordered music group EMI and Down Undersongwriters Colin Hay and Ron Strykert to pay Larrikin 5 percent of royalties from the song dating back to 2002 and on royalties from future earnings.

The total amount the group must pay, however, is yet to be fully calculated.  Watch the actual music video after the jump.

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Paul McCartney says that global warming skeptics are like Holocaust deniers

Former Beatles superstar and musician Paul McCartney has set his aim at skeptics of a climate crisis in an interview with Britain's Sun tabloid, where he compared global warming skeptics to 'Holocaust deniers".

Speaking on the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the Beatles legend said: "Sadly we need disasters like this to show people. Some people don't believe in climate warming - like those who don't believe there was a Holocaust.

"But the facts indicate that there's something going on and we've got to be aware of it if we want our kids to inherit a decent world, not a complete nightmare of a planet - clean, renewable energy is for starters."

The singer also defended the US President, Barack Obama, over the criticism that he has received regarding the spill. [Via The Sun]

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Lady Gaga falls flat on her face in impractical footwear

Lady Gaga has always been known for her innate sense of style. Now, it appears her love of impractical footwear has caught up with her, as the photo shows above. [Image via INF]

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Late king of pop still $300 million in debt

The post-death record sales of Michael Jackson may have been enough to silence some creditors, and keep debt collectors at bay...but the late "King of Pop" is still $300 million in debt.

The estate has reportedly generated some $200 million and paid off all his loans except one - worth around $300 million.

As Brian Moylan rightly put it, even while dead, Jackson still makes way more than you.

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Rolling Stone decided Sgt. Pepper's was the best album of all time, now Wired thinks the same of its cover art

When Rolling Stone published its list of the best albums in history, Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band was sitting pretty in first place. Now Wired magazine has bestowed the same "No 1" spot to its cover art.

The Beatles also had, like they did in Rolling Stone's list, a number of other placings in the select few.

Abbey Road and Revolver among them.

See the full Wired article.

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Watch Christopher Walken's spoken rendition of Lady Gaga's Poker Face

Seldom do we hear the words "I'll get him hot...show him what I've got" uttered in the sweet drawl of Christopher Walken. Well, our dreams came true on the Jonathan Ross show on the BBC. We assume that this is a segment of the show whereby the guest reads the lyrics of a song or words of a poem, but do not know who says them. 

The aim of such a game, we assume, is to guess what person says those words. Regardless, Walken's segment on the show was anything but dull.

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Katy Perry's new "California Gurls" video is four minutes of confusing visual oddity

Perhaps the best review I've read so far of Katy Perry's new music video for "California Gurls" was one of the top rated comments on its YouTube video page. The amateur critic poignantly noted "I have lived in California for years and I have never seen anything like this".

Personally, I don't think anyone has. The video (which can be found here) contains every candy-related gimmick whatsoever - a visual eye candy wonderland filled with childlike (well, kind of) fantasies with adult themes.

What is so unusual about the video is the use and application of such a theme and general aesthetic appeal. This is true for so much of the video that one is left asking - just one and a half minutes in - what any of what you've just seen has to do with California.

Snoop Dog also features in the video - with the mandatory big ol' pimping cane to complete the image. [Watch the full video on YouTube]

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You haven't heard Louis Armstrong until you hear the death metal version

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That's not very nice, Gaga

I know Lady Gaga may not exactly foster a clean and untainted Catholic schoolgirl image, but this really is taking it a little too far. Also take note of what is happening in the far right of the photo. What exactly is happening there?

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Lady Gaga's "Alejandro" yet again has people asking "how did she get away with this?"

With "Telephone", we had all thought that Lady Gaga's onscreen eroticism would never reach the same level again. With the new music video of "Alejandro", Lady Gaga has proved us all wrong.



The video, which is embedded above, contains a number of never before seen Gaga fantasies, be that fetishes, including a number of gay men with hitleresque hair styles. Needless to say, Alejandro is perhaps one of the most theatrical, but certainly the most edgy video Gaga has created yet.

MTV appeared to be fairly pleased with Gaga's effort in this video:

Of course, in working with acclaimed fashion photographer (and proud outsider) Steven Klein, Gaga has created a world that, while oppressive, also looks great. There's art in nearly every frame, and Klein's eye brings to mind the work of Tarsem (R.E.M.'s "Losing My Religion," if you're keeping score), particularly in the way he photographs the still scenes: placing actors just so, moving an elbow here or a chin there, getting the angles and the lighting just right ... there are shots here that look as if they were ripped from the wall of a gallery.

The fashion runs the gamut from Steam Punk-lite (check Gaga's goggles), to S&M, not to mention a few scenes in which LG is dressed as a (sort of) nun. As she told Larry King last week, there's also a "homoerotic military theme" to the thing - though most of said military attire seems to have been influenced (again) by German soldiers, this time from the Nazi era. It's all fabulously decadent, yet in keeping with the feel of the clip, oddly restrained ... well, except for the part where she's wearing a bra with assault-rifle barrels attached to it. (She is, after all, still Lady Gaga.)

This wasn't the only good review, however - Pop culture blogger Jared Eng reportedly called the video 'epic' - I don't know of the context, which could mean anything.

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50 Cent loses a lot of weight for role as cancer patient (PHOTOS)

Rapper 50 Cent has lost an astounding quantity of weight as he prepares for a role as a cancer patient in an upcoming film, 'Things Fall Apart'. He dropped to 160 pounds from 214 pounds for the role, which sees him playing a football player who is struck down by cancer.

Before:

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