Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Citizen Fish Inc.

       In 1996 the "ska" band from Britain known as Citizen Fish came to Las Vegas, Nevada and played a show out in the desert.  I had a Hi8 camcorder at the time and I was more than happy to record portions of the event for posterity.  They played with a shitload of great bands including the Lizards, the Automatics, Tedio Boys, and the Independents.  I shared these video as a free download on this blog.  

          Last month I got an email from someone who claims to represent Citizen Fish.  They claimed that they were the creators of said video and since it was their property it was my responsibility to cease and desist the sharing of their property.    

         Look, I got no qualms with people trying to make a living doing what they love.  But this is pure comedy.  I created this video and none of the other bands videotaped on that night have had their lawyers get in touch with me for allowing people to download the clips free of charge.  I won't talk shit about Citizen Fish.  Their mediocre music says more about who they are as opposed to any opinion I might have against the limey bastards.  

       I filed a counter complaint with Mediafire but since I don't have the time or inclination to fight Citizen Fish Inc. I will no longer be providing the clip of this band playing live in the deserts of Las Vegas to their adoring "fans."  

         Personally I never cared for Citizen Fish.  I thought it was cute that they would jump on the "Ska" or at the very least "Ska-inflected" band wagon back in the 90's.  More than anything they added to the shame of the 3rd wave of Ska revivalists which watered down ska to the point where you couldn't even hear the Jamaican roots anymore.  Just a bunch of white boys yanking their wanking.  

        I won't be posting this video clip to download ever again.  So don't ask.  For whatever reason they didn't ask me to take down the short interview I did with their singer Dick Cheese.  Or whatever the chaps name is.  Pip, pip spot of tea and all that sort of duff.  Although I will add that they didn't seem to fight youtube about the clip.  If you are interested in viewing these shit heels go check it out here.  Otherwise please spit on these douche bags if they come through your town to pick up a paycheck.  Punk fuckos.  

        If you see this clip released by Citizen Fish in a future DVD please note that you will not see my name in the credits as the cameraman for this clip.  I guess I'm the idiot for sharing this video for free to anyone interested in these goons.  I could have copyrighted the material to protect myself but why would I spend the money to copyright a video from a band I could care less about.  Perhaps more of my video content provided here will be pilfered and sold to unsuspecting music lovers?  Let's hope the other band videos seen here will not be marketed to you dear reader in the near future.  I highly doubt the other bands are of this ilk, you would think no one could be that stupid but just in case perhaps you should download as much as you can before anymore of these videos goes away?

        Here's a copy of the email sent to me:


Dear MediaFire User: 
MediaFire has received notification under the provisions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA") that your usage of a file is allegedly infringing on the file creator's copyright protection.
The file named Citizen Fish live Las Vegas,NV 1997 PART 1.mov is identified by the key (j0wydj3tntv).
As a result of this notice, pursuant to Section 512(c)(1)(C) of the DMCA, we have suspended access to the file.
The reason for suspension was:
I have a good faith belief that the items or materials listed below are not authorized by the above IP Owners, their agents, or the law and therefore infringe the IP Owner's rights.
Information about the party that filed the report:
Company Name: Remove Your Media LLC
Contact Address: 4760 Preston Rd Ste 244-227 Frisco, TX 75034
Contact Name: Eric Green
Contact Phone: 8665415173
Contact Email: infringement@removeyourmedia.com
Copyright infringement violates MediaFire's Terms of Service. MediaFire accounts that experience multiple incidents of alleged copyright infringement without viable counterclaims may be terminated.
If you feel this suspension was in error, please submit a counterclaim by following the process below.

        

6 comments:

  1. This is most definitely not related to the band. Eric Green was never a member of the band and even if it were Lookout records (who pressed some of Citizen Fish's work in the US) they went out of business. It's a frivolous cease and desist.

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  2. I have to assume Eric Green was hired by Citizen Fish to go after people providing free downloads relating to their music and if possible videos of their image. My point is I was the creator of this shitty video.

    If they turn around and make money off the video I allowed them to download from me for free then they're really full of shit.

    This video has in fact been taken down from my file sharing provider Mediafire by the power of Mr. Green's company stated here as Remove Your Media LLC.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sent to me today. Don't understand what it means nor do I care:

    The file Citizen Fish live Las Vegas,NV 1997 PART 1.mov identified by the key (j0wydj3tntv) has been deleted for a violation of the MediaFire Terms of Service Agreement. The user has contacted MediaFire and believes he/she is not in violation of any Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DMCA) copyright laws.

    As a result, the MediaFire Staff and the Copyright Owner are attempting to resolve the disputed usage of the file. The note below was added and says:

    We wish to retract the following file as the notice was sent in error: http://www.mediafire.com/file/j0wydj3tntv/CitizenFishliveLasVegas Please restore tha user's account back to good standing as well. Thanks, Eric Green
    Please continue to check your email for further updates on the status of your counterclaim. If your use of the file is found not to be in violation of the Digital Millenium Copyright Act, the file will immediately be returned to your account. Until then, in compliance with DMCA laws, we have suspended downloads on the file in question.

    ReplyDelete
  4. So I think the hold was released on this clip and once again everyone is able to download the clip if they like. I don''t wanna make a big stink over this issue but I'm gonna leave this post up just because I don't like Citizen Fish in general. If you are a fan I give my condolences.

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  5. Citizen Fish was Culture Shock...an early punk ska band fronted by Dick Lucas from the Subhumans....hardly on the ska bandwagon as the were doing it before opiv or the mighty bosstones

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  6. I should delete this stupid shit. But hey, what's more punk rock than bickering over petty bullshit that misses the bigger issue entirely.

    ReplyDelete