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Author: umami on March 15 2007 Viewed 4005 times. 24 people liked this blog. You can rate it below if you haven't already.
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I've noticed two new artists out there using the "umami" moniker--a rock band out of NY and an electropop band out of Sweden. The NY rock band seems to be somewhat aggressively staking out their territory with the name, especially on lastfm.com, where they've made it clear that there are two artists with the name. The Swedish band claims to be releasing an album in April, which should be a surprise if they try to sell through iTunes... So, I'm wondering if anyone has any advice on how to deal with these folks, or if I should worry at all? Should I contact them, or, particularly, the label for the Swedes? I'm reluctant to join an organization like BMI or ASCAP because of their close ties to the RIAA, but might it be a good way to establish a precendent for the name? I'll be buggered if I'm going to give up umami, especially since I've already released an album under the name...
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03/15/07
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11t1
sue 'em all - that's the american way
edited: Mar 15 2007
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umami
yikes, i'm not sure i fall into the category of litigious americans. frankly, if it comes down to that i'd rather be making music than fighting over a name. but i'll give them a run for their money, at least.
here's something you can do to help. if you are a last.fm member, vote on my artist image to make it official. here
03/15/07
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bodo
lastfm said: "There are currently no pending proposed images for umami."
must be a drag, can't get myself to listen to the other umami
ALL HAIL THE REAL UMAMI!!
I'm not this either 
03/15/07
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pierlu001
mmm a friend of mine had to change the name of its band cos he was contacted by another guy who had the same name for his band and was about to release a cd. in the end the friend of mine added an "h" to the name somewhere... everything was set very quietly.
so the best thing is probably to get in touch with them politely, precising that you have been releasing with the moniker umami in the past, and see what the reactions are... but i guess that without having contacts with a publisher it's difficult to get something out of your claim.
i'm no lawyer tho.
good luck!
Recent blogs: first blog!
edited: Mar 15 2007
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Jetsom
. (or maybe not :-))
edited: Mar 15 2007
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cbit
link
did you already register it with bandname.com?
edit: i guess not link
(i don't know exactly how much benefit you get from being listed here first though, but i guess it helps)
03/15/07
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room
bandname com helps > read the info there
you might need to argue it out with the last fm people
its all down to who has proof of the first use > in terms of official releases etc...
03/15/07
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room
i've got the same issue with RooM - a metal band
link
working on it....
03/15/07
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11t1
i was actually joking about the litigation
you've got a foot up by getting a record out first. you get to wave that in the faces of any other umami's who might come after you
just curious where the name comes from - do enlighten me (an exotic sashimi dish, perhaps?)
oddly enough, i've started something with my name on it - steve chatterton. my real first name is stephen. just the other day i was contacted by one stephen chadderton (2 d's instead of 2 t's), a singer-songwriter from my town (Toronto) who discovered my profile on mySpace when he searched for his own name. he doesn't want to sue me, though, just wants to get together for a few beers, so i guess that can't be a bad thing (can it?).
03/15/07
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tonearm
there's a guy in New York called Tonearm. #1 hit on googs. I'm considering changing it, but as yet I haven't heard from anyone. I'm a bit too obscure & haven't relased much anyway
03/15/07
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jdg
me 2 and "fell" fuck the world.
maybe you should just sell "umami" rights to them.
"give me 100,000 and i'll give up umami name"
that an easy choice.
03/15/07
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jdg
link
ahhhh. much better now
03/15/07
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mapmap
don't worry. the real umami will come out on top.
(that's you by the way)
03/15/07
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mlbot
Yeah, if you aren't prepared to shell out $$$$$$ and time and lots of annoyance for lawyers and court time and stress...
you might just have to learn to live with it.
Maybe be proactive and distinguish yourself now... like Umami UK, or Umami ICL, Umami WA, or somesuch.
There are 4 bands called ml on lastfm... one of them is an IDM band, even. Astroid was on a compilation with that other ml and thought it was us.
It all boils down to: you can call the other umami's nasty names, you can squat every site, store and magazine before they get there, you can stress out about it or be an asshole, but if you don't have lots of cash lying around and time ready to devote to litigation... just live with it. Let them worry.
I've seen someone spend $40,000 she didn't have and won her court case, but the other band just ignored the court order. guess what, she ran out of money to go after them further, so it all amounted to squat.
03/15/07
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mlbot
PS, this _is_ the theme for travel Umami's blog, right?
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