News & UK Play Chart

With only 78 days to go until the start of the London 2012 Olympics, we've been eagerly anticipating news on which British acts will be taking part in the opening ceremony for the event on July 27. But, while details on the performances during the event itself are still a closely guarded secret, information has been released regarding a special concert, due to take place on the same day of the beginning of the Olympics.

The special Olympics concert, which will be hosted in Hyde Park, will feature a number of bands, each designed to represent a country within the United Kingdom. Duran Duran, Snow Patrol, Paolo Nutini and Sterephonics are playing on behalf of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, respectively.

"Performing to so many people on the most exciting day in sport will be one of the highlights of the last decade for us," said Simon Le Bon, lead singer of Duran Duran. "We have been invited to represent England for this show, and we couldn't be more proud. Seeing the torch being lit on the big screens before hitting the stage in this iconic location will be a great experience."

Here at Soundnet, we believe that the Olympics concert should have featured both Coldplay and Adele; both are the biggest acts in the world right now. The news that Duran Duran are representing our country, particularly when the aforementioned acts are so popular, raised a few eyebrows in the Soundnet office.

In other Olympics-related music news, it has also been revealed that Blur, New Order and The Specials will be headlining a gig celebrating the end of the games on 12 August.

Although news of the acts performing at the actual opening ceremony have been kept under wraps, the background music team at Soundnet have a few ideas for Danny Boyle, creative organiser behind the event. Here are just three of our suggestions:

The Spice Girls

The iconic girl group are background music favourite in pubs across the country. Victoria Beckham's sporting ties and Gerri Halliwell's Union Jack dress make the band the perfect act for the ceremony.

Tom Jones

The legendary Welsh singer has been enjoying a comeback of late with BBC's The Voice. A spot at the Olympic ceremony wouldn't be too hard to imagine for this popular artist.

Van Morrison

Arguably Northern Ireland's finest act, Van Morrison would be the perfect representative for the Olympics ceremony. 'Brown Eyed Girl' and 'Moondance'; are still popular background music choices for customers in bars and pubs throughout the UK.

The background music team at Soundnet were very excited to hear that the record collection of John Peel, radio DJ and iconic music legend, is being made available to the general public in an interactive online museum.

Access to the record collection, which includes 25,000 LPs and 40,000 singles, has been granted by Peel's family and will appear alphabetical order on thespace.org over the following months. At present, music lovers can listen to tracks featured in the A-B section, including A.C.D.C, Adam and the Ants and the B-52s.

Over the course of the next six months, music lovers will be able to get a glimpse into the record collection of one of the pioneers of new music and we're very interested to see what other gems will be revealed.

Speaking about the release of the record collection, Feargal Sharkey, lead singer of The Undertones, commented:

"John Peel had the most complete, intricate, knowledgeable and experienced record collection anybody in this country has ever put together.

"I’m absolutely delighted it’s intact, preserved and now it’s going to be available to everybody around the world. I think John would be quietly pleased by this."

Of course, there are a number of songs which will be forever associated with John Peel. His love of The Undertones, Don French and The Quads was well-documented and Peel's reputation for making new bands famous was legendary. Here are just some of the tracks we expect to see in Peel's record collection over the next few months. For the record, our favourite track would be The Fall with 'This Nation's Saving Grace':

The Buzzcocks

'Ever Fallen in Love' is a favourite track for our background music customers in pubs and bars across the country. Peel was a renowned fan of the band, so we can be certain of seeing a few Buzzcocks tracks over the next few months.

The White Stripes

The documentary, John Peel's Record Box, discovered a number of tracks from The White Stripes in his collection of favourite music. Out of 130 singles, the Detroit rock band was featured on 11 separate occasions.

The Undertones

Peel's favourite single was widely known to be 'Teenage Kicks' by The Undertones. Indeed, Peel requested to have the lyrics inscribed on his gravestone.

The Beatles

A popular band with our background music customers, Peel included three Beatles' tracks in his favourite music collection, including 'Come Together' and 'Something'.

Status Quo

Peel's favourite record collection included two tracks from The Quo; 'Down Down' and 'Night Ride'. There's a good chance we'll be seeing an appearance from the long-running UK group over the next few months.

The hologram of Tupac Shakur rapping on stage at Coachella was a landmark occasion in the history of live music. The incredible five minute performance saw the iconic rapper, who was killed in Las Vegas in 1996, on stage with Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre in front of a fanatical Coachella audience. The 'appearance', which we have embedded below, offers a tantalising glimpse into the future of live music and raises a lot of questions about the potential of bringing more artists back on stage.

Speaking about the performance and the potential chance to see more of music's biggest icons, Sanj Surati, head of music at the firm behind the Tupac performance, said:

"This is obviously a historic and exciting initiative that we're all witnessing currently, and it would make sense to bring it to Europe and maybe take it to the rest of the world."

Commenting on any future performances, Surati also mooted the possibility of seeing Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain and Michael Jackson in the near future.

The three-minute performance of the revered rapper has got the Soundnet team ruminating on the future of digital jukeboxes. Indeed, will it soon be possible to see your favourite act beamed out of jukeboxes in your local bar or pub?

Here at Soundnet, we're constantly pushing the boundaries of what we can achieve through our digital jukeboxes. Our recent partnership with Last.fm highlights our commitment to technological advancements and we're always working on new ways for bars and pubs to offer innovative digital jukebox solutions for their customers. And while we probably won't be seeing a hologram of Elvis or Amy Winehouse beaming out from the Soundnet digital jukebox in your local anytime soon, it's still a very exciting prospect and one we'll be keeping a close eye on.

A pub in Greater Manchester, more commonly known as "Britain's toughest pub", is on the market after the owners took the decision to close the venue. The pub, The Flying Shuttle in Bolton, gained its hard reputation after reports from local police regarding 'regular excessive drunkenness'. In a testament to the reputation of the outlet, regulars set fire to the pub in protest against the venue's closure. A new owner has yet to be found.

The challenge facing the new landlord of The Flying Shuttle will be great. Indeed, turning around the venue's reputation will be an intimidating task and any owner will have trouble convincing customers that the pub's darkest days are behind it.

But, it's often not difficult to transform the atmosphere of a venue. A bar or pub background music system can easily alter the ambiance of even the roughest of outlets.

The effects of music on human behaviour and psychology have been well-documented; the background music in a bar, pub or restaurant has the ability to dramatically influence the mood of the clientele, drastically changing the tone and atmosphere of a pub to suit the desired atmosphere.

That's why, at Soundnet, we offer a variety of background music packages designed to appeal to a specific demographic. We tailor our background music solutions to suit a range of audiences and venues, ranging from luxurious, high-end restaurants to salt-of-the-earth pubs. Perhaps the new owner of The Flying Shuttle would like to give us a call in the future.

To find more information regarding our background music packages, please get in touch with the team at Soundnet.

At Soundnet, we consistently stress the importance of having the right music. The appropriate background system music can shape the atmosphere of a pub, restaurant or spa. Songs have the power to influence the mood of clientele, while also creating the perfect ambiance for your drinkers or diners.

But a new study from an American institution has found that music also has the power to slow the progress of Alzheimer's. The research, from the University of California, demonstrated that Alzheimer's sufferers could improve their memory by listening to their favourite music. The study, which scanned the brain activity of 13 students while they listened to background music, discovered that the section of the brain associated with listening to music is also associated with memories. The research hypothesises that playing familiar songs to those suffering from the disease could help the brain form some degree of resistance to the condition.

Speaking about the research, Professor Petr Janata from the University of California commented:

"What seems to happen is that a piece of familiar music serves as a soundtrack for a mental movie that starts playing in our head.

"It calls back memories of a particular person or place, and you might all of a sudden see that person's face in your mind's eye. Now we can see the association between those two things – the music and the memories."

The track listings on our background music systems regularly demonstrate the connection between music and memories. We've seen favourite festival tracks re-enter the chart after the Glastonbury and Reading weekends, while classic hits jump up the rankings after episodes of Life on Mars or This is England. Songs have the ability to transport customers back to another time in their life; a background music system needs to have a comprehensive collection of tracks just in case your customers ever want to take a trip down memory lane.

Contact us today to find out more information about how we can help with your background music system requirements.

A new act of Parliament will soon allow pubs to hold small live music gigs without a license. The new ruling, passed in the Live Music Act, will give pubs the opportunity to hold performances of live music if the audience is fewer than 200 people. The legislation is set to come into force around autumn.

The act allows pubs to hold live music performances, if held between 9am and 11pm, without having to apply for a live music license. Previously, only 26 per cent of licensed premises in the UK could stage any form of live music.

The news of the Live Music Act will be welcomed by the pub industry, many of whom felt the previous regulations for hosting live music were too complicated. A petition for the government to relax the law was signed by 4,121 venue owners, while industry publication 'The Publican' campaigned for the issue with its 'Listen Up!' Facebook group.

Writing at the time, James Wilmore from The Publican, commented:

"The Publican's Listen Up! campaign really seems to have struck a chord with the trade and many outside the industry.

"Under the previous licensing regime, pubs and bars were allowed to host two or less amplified musicians without needing a licence. But this rule was scrapped from the 2003 Licensing Act. Giving an exemption of this kind would hopefully allow more pubs that wanted to, to host live music, helping sustain them on quiet nights."

Music is incredibly important for creating the ambiance of a venue. A background music system for a bar or restaurant can ensure that patrons can enjoy music especially chosen for them. The same principal applies to live music and the new legislation will allow venues to hold intimate gigs suitable for their clientele.

Here at Soundnet, we specialise in providing venues with a background music system suited to the tastes of their customers. Our pub and restaurant background music options ensure that publicans and restaurant owners across the country have the opportunity to provide the latest (and most relevant) tracks for their customers without having to concern themselves with management or maintenance of the system.

Contact one of the Soundnet team today to discover more about our restaurant and pub background music systems.