Pitchfork

His name is Prince, and he is litigious as all get out. All Norwegian label C+C Records wanted to do was release a 5CD box set of Norwegian artists covering the songs of Prince. And so they did: the 81-track Shockadelica compilation, featuring the likes of Susanna & the Magical Orchestra, Maja Ratkje, Ulver, Kenneth Ishak, Don Juan Dracula, Dylan Mondegreen, Loch Ness Mouse, Jens Carelius, and many, many others, was released in an edition of 5,000 earlier this month.

According to the Daily Swarm, C+C label head Christer Falck thought he'd shoot Shockadelica over to Prince's pad as a benevolent gesture. But, as it is with just about anybody doing just about anything involving Prince, C+C reportedly got themselves good and sued. Once Prince took notice of the set-- for which no artists involved received any money, it should be noted-- his crack team of lawyers swooped down on C+C, asking that all copies of Shockadelica be destroyed. Lame, lame, lame.

For the moment, Shockadelica is still available for purchase via various e-outlets, and portions of comp tracks can be heard at the comp's MySpace. What's more, at least one comp artist has already responded to Prince's F-you with one of their own: electro-pop duo Frost have made their cover of "Sex Shooter" (originally performed by Prince protégés Apollonia 6) available for free download via their website. Grab that one while it lasts.

Also hot on the Prince Burns Scandinavians newswire: recall that cover of Prince's "Darling Nikki" that appears on Love Is All's recent tour EP? Turns out Love Is All's attempts to get the proper licensing to release the song digitally were in vain. So, when the covers EP hits eMusic next week, downloaders will instead get a Love Is All cover of the Pastels' "Nothing to Be Done" (which previously appeared on a 2007 single). A rather appropriate choice of cover given the circumstances, but still!