Odds & Ends: Sinead O’ Connor, Morrissey & More

Morrissey has a sense of humor after all. The fan site True To You has a message from the British singer, clarifying that he never asked for posts to be removed from the Tumblr blog “This Charming Charlie.”

The blog, which combines Peanuts cartoons with lyrics from Moz and The Smiths, announced last month that Universal Music Publishing Group had contacted “This Charming Charlie” with takedown notices. After a handful of posts were removed, the Tumblr’s creator then continued updating with new cartoons along with a letter from her attorney saying “This Charming Charlie” didn’t infringe on copyright because it constituted fair use.

Now we know Morrissey approves. True To You reports that the former Smiths frontman “would like to stress that he has not been consulted over any takedown request … Morrissey is delighted and flattered by the Peanuts comic strip with its use of Morrissey-Smiths lyrics, and he hopes that the strips remain.” And for the record, he’s represented by Warner-Chappell Publishing, and not Universal Music Publishing.

Oh, and one more thing. His autobiography – Autobiography – has an official release date. Morrissey’s tales will be published by Penguin Classics Oct. 17 in the U.K. and Europe. Autobiography will also be available as an ebook.

Sky Ferreira’s illness affecting her vocal chords is apparently more serious than she initially let on. Last week she nixed a few support dates with Vampire Weekend but promised she would be back on stage Oct. 7.

Fans can forget about seeing her at tonight’s show in Nashville. She’s announced her doctor has “prescribed complete vocal rest for the forthcoming 2 weeks.” That means that along with the Nashville gig, the snythpop singer is canceling her remaining support dates with Vampire Weekend, including Tuesday’s show in Kansas City and Thursday’s appearance in Grand Prairie, Texas. 

Ferreira says she hopes to be back on the road for her Oct. 27 show at Los Angeles’ El Rey Theatre.

Sinead O’Connor followed up her multiple open letters to Miley Cyrus by blaming Simon Cowell and British “X Factor” judge Louis Walsh for murdering music.

O’Connor recently appeared on Ireland’s “Late Late Show” to address her tiff with Cyrus. What started with an open letter to Cyrus “in the spirit of motherliness and with love” about the dangers of the music industry exploiting young stars turned into multiple letters, including the threat of a lawsuit, after Cyrus compared O’Connor to Amanda Bynes on Twitter.

The Irish singer said was upset at how Cyrus treated Bynes, rather than herself – but emphasized she wanted to discuss the bigger picture of the problems with the music industry.  

“The industry has taken over so much, the money-making side of it … all the sexualizing of extremely young people making records, and all the kind of worship with money and bling and diamonds, all the ‘Pop Idol’ stuff, Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh – it all amounts to the murder of music and that’s what concerns me. That all these things are a distraction to music.”

Later in the interview O’Connor once again called out the talent show judges, saying, “I feel sorry for the murder of music, for the murder of rock ‘n’ roll, which has happened because of the industry, because of Simon Cowell, Louis Walsh … They are murderers of music and I stand to say it on behalf of every musician in the world and they will all agree with me.”

A communion wafer is one topping you don’t see every day on burgers. The wafer is featured on a Chicago restaurant’s new burger named after the Swedish heavy metal band Ghost. The group performs in hooded robes with the frontman decked out in skull makeup and the garb of a Roman Catholic Cardinal.

Although the eatery, Kuma’s Corner, has received some negative reactions, the director of operations told the Associated Press that the burger, which also includes a red wine reduction sauce, is selling well and feedback has been more positive than not.

The menu for Kuma’s Corner also offers burgers inspired by Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden and Metallica.