A Statement Re: Suburban Base
Due to ongoing legal procedures, I will stick to documented and verifiable facts.
The situation as it stands:
1. Suburban Base was asked informally, and then via a lawyer, to provide a contract or other legal evidence showing their right to sell music written by Austin Reynolds.
To date, they have not done so.
2. Suburban Base were then issued a cease and desist from the lawyer. They have refused to comply.
3. Suburban Base was aware of all of this before they released the recent vinyl containing Austin Reynolds work.
4. Suburban Base continues to sell Austin Reynolds work, and to license his music, without his consent, and without any legal right to do so.
Why are we making this public?
1. Suburban Base is currently selling, and clearly intends to continue to sell the music in question illegally, and against the wishes of the artist.
2. Suburban Base has not paid any recording royalties to either Austin or myself in over two decades despite numerous licensing deals and the music being sold on all the major digital sites and on vinyl.
3. Other artists will perhaps be in a similar situation and will benefit from this information. If they wish to contact me in confidence (as some already have), they are free to do so. They may join the legal proceedings if they wish.
4. Kniteforce Limited has both the consent and a legally binding contract with Austin Reynolds for his music, and we intend to proceed with releasing it.
What do we want to happen?
Suburban Base has had many months to provide legal proof they have the right to sell the music in question. They have not done so. But if they would like to do so now, they can do this through the open legal channels. Should they do so, Kniteforce will withdraw any claim to the works.
Failing that, we want Suburban Base to immediately stop licensing or selling the music in question in any format and to remove the music they do not own from its store and the various digital stores.
A full accounting of all sales is required.
Anything to add?
I want to underscore that we have documented evidence of all of the above, and more.
On a personal note, it is a shame that a record label with so many classic pieces of music on it does not seem to be able to act either ethically or legally. I have made my feelings clear in my book, and for a brief second, when Suburban Base returned, I thought they might contact me, apologise for past errors, and pay money due. It was a very brief thought, and an unlikely wish, that possibly all could be resolved amicably.
Obviously not, so on and on it goes.
Frankly, I would rather not have to deal with any of this. Had Suburban Base not returned, I would have been content to let it lie. But here we are. Again. Only it is not 1992, the world is a very different place, and the veterans of this scene such as myself are not the children we were back in the day.
The above list is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to terrible behaviour that I and other label owners and artists have witnessed behind the scenes. I would rather we all got along, or at least, all stayed in our lanes. But sometimes it is simply not possible, and this is one of those times. Let’s hope this is as far as it has to go because I certainly do not enjoy the drama, and very much do not wish to make any more of it public. I would simply like to see Suburban Base act legally and ethically, and behave correctly in relation to all of Austins, and my, music.
Legal matters are slow, but they will proceed as they do.
Kniteforce Limited will use every means at its disposal to protect the rights of its artists.
And I will keep you up to date on all the events as they happen.
Nice one,
Chris