Feb 22, 2012
...But if they get lucky and stick around they get to be part of something enduring. Not revolutionary. Not even serious, necessarily. Just lasting and interconnected. Which matters to me a lot more than how good Sleigh Bells were on SNL.
The musical guest isn't what's important, but their [SNL] ability to make bands like Blue Oyster Cult relevant even now to kids is why SNL is important to the music industry.
[Via The Record NPR]
Toronto quartet Metric has recorded a new studio LP, and the band announced today that Synthetica, the band's fifth full-length album, will be released June 12. Like 2009’s Fantasies, Synthetica will be released via the band’s own label, Metric Music International.
Independent music at its finest.
[Via AV Club]
For the insiders, you'll start noticing an asterisk (*) next to a song each week. This is typically my favorite track, or at least the one I think you should start with. If you only listen to one song, pick this one.
Feb 21, 2012
Good song, good video, good band.
Listeners who come for the trio's Glee-approved breakout ''We Are Young'' will be happy withSome Nights' superior first half, which doubles down on the Queen-esque indie pomp the band toyed with on their 2009 debut.
Fair assessment.
[Via EW]
Reign Of Terror takes a step back from Treats’ sheer assault, dialing down the red-lining guitar volume to vintage Metallica levels and leaving more room for Krauss’ crystalline cooing.
They give the album a C+. For the life of me, I just can't get into this band.
[Via AV Club]
Feb 17, 2012
The tour, actually themed under the moniker, "We're All In This Together", is a great idea. The tour poster features iPhones and the word "participate", but not much more so I asked Zipf to elaborate on what people can expect when they come to a show this time around.
Without giving too much away, I'll tell you about the concept...
I wanted to find a new way to involve people. Something I hadn't done before. So I created a kind of "choose your own adventure" instrument that people can play on their smartphone via a music streaming service. There a few options and they all work together to accompany me.
In addition, I've created a visual element that will be displayed on each participants mobile device.
I'm also planning to bring items to hand out and pass around that relate to certain songs.
The whole point of this is to bring the room together. Create a community of music for the duration of my set, instead of showing up, singing at people with little or no interaction and leaving for the next town.
I'm just trying to make a compelling, immersive, engaging show that includes everyone that is there to listen.
[Update]: I would also like to add that the musical project of brothers Hays Holladay & Ryan Holladay inspired me to think outside the box. They are doing things a lot more involved than I am.
Feb 16, 2012
SESAC, the for-profit alternative to non-profit performing rights collection organizations ASCAP & BMI, is for sale.
Only $500 Million.
[Via Hyperbot]
Does this have anything to do with music? Nope, not really, but AirPlay mirroring from a mac, text messages (iMessage) and a bunch of other features is just a good way to start the day. Should be out in the summer.
You can now try out Messages though, the new unified messaging program.
[Via Apple]
Feb 15, 2012
“Whitney Houston product was mistakenly mispriced on the U.K. iTunes store on Sunday,” the company said in a statement. “When discovered, the mistake was immediately corrected. We apologize for any offense caused.”
It's always a mistake. You can pretty much set your watch by it.
[Via New York times]
Feb 14, 2012
Tumbledown is best described as a Rockabilly, Alt-Country band, but that's just because there's not really a good name for what they play. You might recognize the frontman's voice, but I'm not sure from where. Point is, their unique blend of styles ranging from punk to Johnny Cash influences, makes for an interesting crowd.
The current tour the band is on is almost up, but the stop in San Diego was an impressive one. Mostly sober, but tight as ever, Tumbledown really was the best act. Having the amount of twang in their song's as they do, it'll take the right person to be a huge fan, but after seeing them live, petty much anyone should be able to appreciate the band's live show.
The Denver quartet’s third album, Scars & Stories, includes more of the same sincere piano-led anthems, but the real surprise is just how bland The Fray’s music has truly become. Gone are the memorable, sing-along choruses, and in their place are tedious melodies presented in the most predictable way imaginable.
Seems about right.
[Via AV Club]
With so many music services out there, searching for what you want to listen to can be an annoying task, especially if your musical taste is on the obscure side. Music Smasher attempts to make things just a bit easier by letting you search multiple services at once. Currently the site supports six different services — including Rdio, Spotify, Grooveshark, SoundCloud, MOG, and Bandcamp
[Via The Verge]
[Image via Liisten]
Sony Music sparked a major controversy after the company raised prices of a Whitney Houston album on iTunes within hours of the singer’s death being announced.
[Via Hyperbot]
Feb 13, 2012
the RIAA has named the countries that it says "fail to provide adequate and effective protection for U.S. intellectual property".
Is the US not on the list because we're not copying content by the warehouse or because it wouldn't look good.
[Via Hyperbot]
Liisten.com's interview with The Panic Division singer, Colton Holliday.
Liisten: How are you grading 'Eternalism', what would make this album a success for you?
Colton: Eternalism is a massive achievement to me because it is the first full length record I have put out for TPD that was done entirely by myself. Now, most of our fans know I have always been the sole writer for the band even on our first 2 albums, but this time around was a very big challenge being on my own. About 3 years of writing and bringing new life to old songs that never got a chance. Also, funding the entire record myself took a lot of patience. I also do all of our design work, so when you get a copy of Eternalism, you are getting a product 100% from the writer. I'm very proud.
Liisten: What's the meaning behind the album's title, does it also represent the album's theme?
Colton: I've been reluctant to share the meaning of the album name, but surprisingly because no magazines or music sites have asked yet. Originally, when I decided to record another TPD album, I planned on it being our last. I chose the name Eternalism as a way of saying our music would live on forever. Is this the final TPD album? It could be, but I cant say for sure. I do know that I plan on releasing an instrumental electronic album next, which may or may not be under The Panic Division name.
Liisten: What are you thoughts on owning music, buying everything versus renting it by streaming it via Spotify?
Colton: I am COMPLETELY against Spotify and made sure to ban their services for our new album. I am still amazed at how companies like this are still popping up. I read that Lady Gaga had a legal battle with them because they paid her something around 150 dollars for a million plays on Spotify. I can only hope record labels will come together like they did against Grooveshark and put these companies under. I understand the exposure argument, but I still view an album as a product of worth, and not something that should be streamed basically for free.
Liisten: Which song from the new album means the most to you personally, most proud of?
Colton: Well, lyrically I would have to say Lifeline, because I wrote a fictional love story about 2 people in the real world, dreaming every night about each other in the same dream for most of their lifes and wondering if they would ever cross paths in the real world. I think it really inspires creative thought in the listener, especially when they understand what the story is about the songs that used to mean the most to me personally were The Labor of Love and Too Young To Fall because they were true stories in my personal life.
Liisten: Who's the newest band you've discovered in the last few weeks that you really enjoy?
Colton: You know, I dont buy many records lately because Im not impressed by much music now days. I usually tend to go backwards and listen to great music from the past. However a few artists I have been listening to a lot in the last few years to now would be: M83 - Hurry up, were dreaming, Paper Route, Olivia Broadfield, Brandon Flowers, and recently Ive really liked what Gotye is doing.
Liisten: Any tips/tricks or general recommendations for other independent bands dealing with the current industry climate?
Colton: Well, thats a tough one. Even I am still adapting to the new industry. I would take all dreams of " Getting signed " and trade them for a DIY attitude. Sure labels do help advertise you and gain you a nice fanbase quickly, but in the end you will owe them more than they owe you. There are more bands than ever now, that are doing very well by doing everything themselves. Anyone can sell music on iTunes or Amazon now because of companies like Tunecore and CdBaby, when in the past you had to have a label to get distro from them. Play as much as possible. Fund everything yourself. Also, there is a great blog I read about having " The 5th Beatle " in your band. Its a great article to read for start up groups. It states that every member in the group should have his own job. Someone does tour / show booking, another does promotions, another handles the writing, and another could handle the marketing. Find out what strengths your members already have and assign them these jobs. If your guitarist is a chatty social person, he should be doing all your promotions online and building up your fanbase as well as reaching out to people who may be able to help you. You must view your band as more than a fun past time, and treat it like a business, because thats exactly what it is.
But the biggest rule in my book, is never make music for money. Never expect to make a fortune off of it. Make music because you love to, and cannot imagine doing anything else. If you view it that way, then any money you make off of it feels like a gift.
First impressions: The band's break out album is good.
[Via Hypable]
Feb 9, 2012
Billboard's New Pricing Policy, Effective November 21, 2011
Unit sales for Albums priced below $3.49 during their first four weeks of release will not be eligible for inclusion on the Billboard album charts and will not count towards sales data presented by Nielsen SoundScan.
Here are the rest of the requirements:
- The rule also applies to reissued titles.
- New Holiday/Seasonal titles must meet the minimum threshold through the final week of the calendar year.
- Unit sales for albums or EPs with 8 or less tracks will not be eligible for charting if the retail price is less than the sum of the tracks on the release, multiplied by $0.39.
- Minimum pricing for a multi-disc album (not a single disc with extra tracks), where the extra disc is audio content, will be $3.49 times the amount of discs being made available.
- For digital-only deluxe editions, any extra content exceeding nine tracks would be considered the equivalent of an extra disc. Each additional 10 tracks thereafter would be the equivalent of an additional disc.
Unit sales for Digital Tracks priced below $0.39 during their first three months of release will not be eligible for inclusion on Billboard's digital songs charts.
If a retailer offering a title for less than the above stated prices is a daily reporter to Nielsen SoundScan, units will be removed for charting purposes solely for the dates in which the title was priced less than the minimum.
- If a title was priced under the minimum during a portion of the day, all sales for that title on that day will not count towards the Billboard charts unless accurate transaction data for that title during the specific sales hours can be provided to Nielsen SoundScan for verification.
If a retailer offering a title for less than the above stated prices is a weekly reporter to Nielsen SoundScan, all units for that title sold by the retailer in the week will be removed for charting purposes unless accurate transaction data for that title on the sale date(s) can be provided to Nielsen SoundScan for verification .
Obviously this is back from November, but interesting nevertheless.
[Via HyperBot]
Simply put, an audiophile is a person obsessed with sound. Most often, they're people interested in a stereo system that sounds as close to a live performance as possible. Audiophile's are a picky bunch, and while a number of the tweaks we look at here will increase the sound quality and listening experience on your system
This article has a lot of interesting things about music, even if you don't care about being an "audiophile".
[Via Lifehacker]
Feb 8, 2012
An on going list of artists that have removed themselves [one or more albums] from one or more of the streaming services such as Rdio, Rhapsody or Spotify.
Jeff Price [Tunecore] tells MacRumors that Apple keeps 30% of iTunes Match revenues [of $25/yr] for itself -- the same percentage the company keeps from the iTunes and App Stores. The remaining 70% is divided, with 88% going to record labels and 12% going to songwriters. The royalties are split amongst artists based on "how many times someone accesses your song" via iTunes Match and it doesn't matter if a song is matched or uploaded -- the royalty is paid either way.
This thing that Apple does, where they take something that is out of date, like the music industry and they tweak it enough to continue to function is, at this point, no fluke. Why Television, or any content, producers wouldn't want to makes deals with one of the most profitable companies in the world is beyond me.
[Via MacRumors]
Her new album, Born To Die, debuts this week at No. 2 on the Billboard albums chart, with 77,000 copies sold
Any predictions if the album rises or if this is the peak?
[Via AV Club]
Feb 7, 2012
