Jun 19
I’ve been casually following the lawsuit of the woman in MN who was accused of file sharing on Kazaa some 50 billion years ago. Low and behold the labels win. Massively. In MN?! I thought y’all were nice. Anywho, it’s now game on for the record industry. With precedent, who knows who or where they can target next (college campuses seem like a ripe playground for picking off innocent freeloaders…).
Kazaa! You now owe $2 million.
May 27
And they did. The major labels are finally learning. The internet is not your enemy. You just have to find a way to harness it. Even if you kill a few start ups in the process of learning this tale, it’s nice to know that someone somewhere is listening. A whole heap of start ups are renegotiating their licensing terms with the major labels to positive effects. Even though I left Imeem in the wake of LastFM (and will be moving again soon…wait and see on the right nav), it’s good to see that they are not dissolving. And it’s good to see that record labels are trusting start ups to secure a longer term vision of the music landscape and the way we all will interact.
Here’s to new best friends. May they learn to love one another, even if they have occassional cat fights (oh Napster…).
Mar 11
Could it be that there is actually some thought and order being placed on the ever chaotic Myspace? Well, not the entire site. But the most important part of it – MySpace Music – is trying it’s hardest to clean up the junkyard image of it’s parent and to actually provide lots of content that is worthwhile. Like all music, not just the new stuff, from the big 4 labels. Quite an undertaking. Plus adding in album pages (I thought those things were dead…) for those iconic releases that predate ringtone rap.
OK, so the site is still hard to navigate and full of blaring ads (predominantly from the “I have so much cash to burn I’m inviting everyone to the bonfire” Apple). But underneath it all, the service is getting better. Not great, but better. And I am thoroughly impressed with CEO Courtney Holt’s thought process in regards to the ever expanding linking of music online. As much as I want music to be democratized from the current label down attitude, people still have to make money in the process.
The Junkyard Dog ain’t so nasty anymore
The moment we all were waiting for actually happened. Digital music sales at a record label finally surpassed it’s analog older brother. Better yet, baby boomer father. Who says ringtone rappers are not worth it? Certainly not Atlantic.
I will be very curious to see if this trend spreads to other labels and even tips the balance for the Big 4. I can’t say whether I am enthused or not. On one hand, it’s great to see that the viral impact of technology is allowing more artists to get more fans, feedback, and sales at a lower cost. However, is the death of the record label really a blessing for all artists? Are we really supposed to get all of our information from Myspace, friends, commercials, tv placements and blogs? Do we want to spend all of our time this way?
The only time you will see T.I. hanging with white folk.
Nov 10
The almighty (self appointed) deities at Pitchfork have released the next 500 commandments to your local Mt. Sinai/Barnes & Nobles. At least the condescension is limited to just modern music (1977 – 2006) so the list of obscure references mixed in with the most overplayed hip hop won’t be as draining. Still, it is admirable that Pitchfork is attempting to boil down greatness into 500 songs. And that Pitchfork has changed the way that music is being appreciated, sold, found, and distributed. So why not go out and get the mother of all coffee table books. You’ll need something to replace that old Madonna Sex book that’s been lying around conspicuously.
Pitch Perfect Literature and Where to Find It.
Nov 2
Is it just me, or are the big industry, buzz worthy bands just not as good as they used to be. As CMJ drew to a close a week ago, I was saddened by how unenthused and inspired I was by this year’s crop of sometimes but not so unfound up-and-coming stars. This year also seemed heavily burdened by “those who already have a lot of buzz about them” – Lykke Li, Janelle Monae, Jens Lekman, Deerhoof, etc. Now, I can’t pretend that all of these acts are well known to the masses. But I do like to pretend that New York is still a lot closer to the action of new music than I will ever be. Plus, I am not actually in the industry. I’m just an avid observer who will listen to anything. So I was surprised (in the negative way) to see so many names that I had already seen.
In all fairness, this may be a projected reaction from a recent concert. Two heavily buzzed bands from CMJ – the UK’s next Franz Ferdinand, Friendly Fires and Lykke Li – were featured and I couldn’t resist seeing if they were worth it. First, the Friendly Fires actually used their CMJ noteriaty to promote themselves during the show (read – some random girl and her friend with a book bag totally got in front of me while I was watching and forced a promo flyer in my hand with a button attached that stated the Friendly Fires did 4 shows at CMJ. Not a good way to sell yourself. Keep it all at the merch table please). While they did have the exuberance mentioned in all of the post-CMJ rehashes, it looked terribly forced. OK, I get it, when a white boy does pelvis thrusts and shakes his booty uncontrollably, it’s supposed to show that he is really excited and I should be too. But I wasn’t. And while the music was fun it wasn’t anything special. Lykke Li, however, did deliver the goods with an unforced mystical stage presence similar to Stevie Nicks, but, you know, for hipsters. And while her 12 song set was stellar, I still came away with a nagging feeling that these weren’t going to change the world. Or even make me interested enough to crave a second album. So, what gives? Is it me or has “underground” music lost a lot of it’s appeal? Am I finally getting too old – music nowadays just ain’t what it used to be? Let’s hope I am wrong.
You make the call – The NYT Review of CMJ
That big yellow smile is just not as naive as it used to be. More cunning than usual.
So bands are fed up with record labels. One approach is to just screw the system and give you goods away for free online (The Radio-NIN approach). Another emerging approach is to make deals directly with the retailer. And if this retailer happens to be the largest one in the world, you might reach a few people in the process. Wal-Mart has always given the squeeze on the middle man to “pass on the savings to the consumer”. Their latest target is now the record industry as artists are going direct to Bentonville for marketing and distribution.
I can’t say I blame the artist or Wal-Mart on this one. If you want better distribution, why not head to the world’s best logistics expert? You want good marketing without the bloated overhead? Head on down to your local Wal-Mart and see how well they get behind selling a product. It all makes sense. Except it only works if your wares work for the Wal-Mart consumer. I have a tough time seeing Vampire Weekend or Panda Bear finding a new audience in Transylvania County, NC (yep, there really is a Transylvania County). Or any up and coming artist that doesn’t already have a following. We shall see how widespread this selling direct to the retailer goes. This may be good news for my favorite CD store in the world!
The High Cost of a Cheap Journey CD
All the Major Labels (ex artist hemorrhaging EMI) have signed a deal with Myspace to elevate MySpace Music into a joint platform to share their entire catalogs online. Yet again, another attack against Apple’s dominance in the digital music realm (they just surpassed WalMart in total music sales).
Read about MySpace still holding the music discovery title
Feb 20
Can it be that my dreams have come true? A whole day for celebrating the relevance and importance of independent record stores? Why yes, yes it has!
Not everyone is happy with Itunes. Worse, not everyone is happy with Steve Jobs. And so begins the slow but inevitable backlash against the market leader. Personally, I think competition is good. But tell that to Steve Jobs after years of getting his butt kicked by his old pal Gates. Pepsi is now partnering with Amazon’s new music service in the run up to the Superbowl. Free downloads galore, but none of them on Itunes – a direct reversal from last year. Sony also just announced the addition of their library onto Amazon music DRM free. There goes the neighborhood – all of the major labels are now DRM free on Amazon and only EMI can hold that status at Apple. The price fixing and rights management have long been a grievance for the big 5, but now they have a viable option to let “natural” market forces dictate where music should be bought.
As an avid non-downloader of music, I’m still not moved by any of these moves. Still shifting the ever shrinking dollar from one shell to the next. For me, the live show and word of mouth will always be a larger motivator than any marketing push from the omniscient label. But someone has to push Ashley Simpson on to stardom. Oooh, I almost forgot. JT is performing at the Superbowl. But no Janet Jackson this time. Where will the scandal be?
Pepsi’s Picks Amazon For the Superbowl
Get Me Bodied by Beyoncé