Guitarist Thomas Fekete, a founding member of indie-rock band Surfer Blood, has died at age 27 of a rare form of cancer. Fekete shared his diagnosis with fans a year ago, dropping out of a tour with Surfer Blood and releasing a solo cassette; artists including Yo La Tengo and Guided By Voices pitched in to help raise funds for Fekete's treatment. (Rolling Stone)

Kraftwerk lose sampling battle

Kraftwerk have lost a long-running court battle in which the electronic music pioneers argued that their intellectual property rights were violated when a two-second sample of their song "Metall auf Metall" was used in the 1997 song "Nur Mir" by Sabrina Setlur. The German Constitutional Court has now decided that the sampling's impact on Kraftwerk was negligible, so the artistic freedom of Setlur and producer Moses Pelham is paramount. (Billboard)

Jack White writes TV theme

Jack White has written an instrumental theme song for Maya and Marty, a new variety show featuring Maya Rudolph and Martin Short. The show premieres Tuesday night on NBC. (Rolling Stone)

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Manhattan club shuts down after hosting controversial event

Manhattan venue Santos Party House — a club partially owned by Andrew W.K. — has been shut down without explanation after hosting a Sunday night punk event called Oi Fest. The venue was sharply criticized for hosting Oi Fest, which "has been accused of promoting Nazism and racism," reports Billboard.

Two storks visit Ronnie

Ronnie Wood of the Rolling Stones has welcomed a pair of twins with his wife Sally Humphreys. The twin daughters were born on Monday, two days before Wood's 69th birthday. They're the guitarist's fifth and sixth children. (NME)

Mary Poppins sequel to star Hamilton mastermind

Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of Hamilton, will co-star in Mary Poppins Returns — a Disney sequel that will open in theaters on Christmas Day 2018. Stepping in for Julie Andrews in the title role is Emily Blunt. (Billboard)

Sarajevo honors Bowie

The city of Sarajevo has honored David Bowie with a giant mural to honor the musician's charity work during the 1992-95 Bosnian War. (Billboard)

Snoop joins De La Soul for new track

Snoop Dogg appears on "Pain," a new track from De La Soul. The song appears on and the Anonymous Nobody..., a De La Soul album set to be released on Aug. 26. (Pitchfork)

Madonna shades BET

After the BET Awards dismissed Madonna’s Prince tribute at the Billboard Music Awards, the Material Girl has fired back with an Instagram post showing her wearing "the jacket Prince gave me back in the day without permission from BET." (Billboard)

Hodor drops a single about holding the door

Sam Coleman, an actor who plays a young version of the character Hodor on Game of Thrones, has shared a ballad called "Hold the Door." You probably don't want to listen unless you're caught up with the latest episodes of the fantasy series. (Rolling Stone)

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