F.U. & The Blog You Rode In On

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Thu, 04 Sep 2008 09:10:54 -0400

Hey has anyone made the joke about Palin’s daughter and the Republican campaign just...

Wed, 03 Sep 2008 11:41:11 -0400

Hey has anyone made the joke about Palin’s daughter and the Republican campaign just “trying REALLY hard to reach the Juno demographic?”

Ha ha ha— What?

Oh really?

Never mind.

"Why do people continue to take news from a person who fundamentally does not understand how..."

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 09:13:00 -0400

“Why do people continue to take news from a person who fundamentally does not understand how computers work? Because he has new content for people to read, every day. People will read what you tell them to read, as long as you keep telling them to read it.”

- Ted Dziuba (via marco)

AKA “It doesn’t matter what you say, just publish it twelve times per day.”

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Mon, 01 Sep 2008 21:33:20 -0400

woodswoodswoods: Running Amok #26 - Sing Statistics Run Amok...

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 16:57:36 -0400

woodswoodswoods:

Running Amok #26 - Sing Statistics Run Amok in Town and Country. Now available, yo!

"I hate commentless blogs. You’d never put up with that shit in person: “Don’t reply, just listen to..."

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 15:40:04 -0400

“I hate commentless blogs. You’d never put up with that shit in person: “Don’t reply, just listen to me speak.””

- Twitter / Charlie O’Donnell (via fred-wilson)

Only problem is, commenting is not like having a dialogue with someone, it’s like shouting at the top of your lungs in a room filled with other people shouting at the top of their lungs.

Don’t misunderstand me, I’m not anti-comment, but keep in mind that while there’s plenty of good that can come from it (actual, interesting discussion), there’s also a HELLUVA whole lot of bad that can come from it (trolling, anonymous dickheadedness).

I just suggest that rather than assuming that a commentless blogger is simply throwing up a hand and saying, “don’t reply, just listen to me speak,” I suggest you instead do what seems very obvious to me: respond to the author via email.

Audio

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 10:46:40 -0400

Sukiyaki Western Django VS. Tears Of The Black Tiger

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 09:19:27 -0400

Video

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 09:08:59 -0400

The Top 1 Most Annoying Internet Writing Tactics

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 09:03:00 -0400

1. FUCKING LISTICLES. Enough already.

Exclaim News: Are Black Kids Done Making Music?

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 13:49:58 -0400

Exclaim News: Are Black Kids Done Making Music? : Wow, calling it quits? Sheesh, the online music press machine now uses up, chews up, and spits out bright-eyed young people so fast, it’s going to give the New York Media scene a real run for its money.

My wish for today (journalism edition).

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 12:46:35 -0400

maura:

Stop using the phrase “has learned exclusively.” All it means is that you’re better friends with a PR rep than “reporters” at other rags.

"In the unlikely event of anyone wanting my advice, it would be to stop worrying about selling..."

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 09:36:50 -0400

“In the unlikely event of anyone wanting my advice, it would be to stop worrying about selling recordings. Just give them away. Let them go. Put them online for free, and tell people that they’re there. And if, against the odds, you’ve been given some cash, you’ve managed to release an album commercially, and you see that someone has posted it on a blog for readers to download – for god’s sake don’t get angry. Don’t see it as being down £20. See it as being up 20 listeners. Yes, your music might conceivably have been stolen, but there are no police. So get used to it. And now you’re freed of this burden, pursue all the other things that you want from being in a band – writing songs, rehearsing, doing gigs, building relationships with other bands, going on wallet-busting tours, receiving unmemorable blowjobs. Because seriously, you’re almost more likely to get a blowjob after a gig than sell an MP3. And remember – just because music doesn’t make you money, certainly does NOT mean that it’s worth nothing.”

- Please Buy My Record: The Futility Of Flogging Music - Music Think Tank

The Difference Between White And Black People

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 18:01:00 -0400

The Difference Between White And Black People:

via deleteyourself

I’m reblogging this now while the reblog count is still in the single digits.

I can't decide which is the weirder concept; the PR emails came in consecutively

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 13:58:48 -0400

Taco Bell’s Feed the Beat program returns this year with its third installment. The foundation of Feed the Beat is giving free Fourthmeals – the late night meal between dinner and breakfast – to fuel indie rock bands on tour. Stay tuned next week, as Taco Bell will be officially announcing the third year of the program with even more plans to help up-and-coming bands.
Play Rainbow Six Vegas 2 with We Are Scientists! Fun and quirky pop sensation We Are Scientists will show their gaming side as they play Xbox LIVE® members in Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six® Vegas 2 on September 1, 2008.

Meursault - The Furnace

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 13:41:04 -0400

Meursault - The Furnace

"There are millions of singers and songwriters and bands, and when there is too much choice my..."

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 13:18:28 -0400

“There are millions of singers and songwriters and bands, and when there is too much choice my reaction is I don’t know what to listen to. So my choice is not to listen to anything.”

- Aimee Mann in the Chicago Tribune

…and speaking of Jakob Lodwick, did anyone realize that...

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 13:02:00 -0400

…and speaking of Jakob Lodwick, did anyone realize that his Normative Music Company ALREADY has its second release out? Quiestest. Release strategy. Ever. This one is from Vulture Realty, the musical endeavor of Jakob’s brother, Eric Lodwick.

You know, I was listening to this preview track, “The Joke,” and thought, “wow, that’s weird… this one little bit of the song reminds me a bit of Sigur Ros’ “Gobbledigook”, which is weird because there’s a guy in the Gobbledigook video that that I thought looks a hell of a lot like Eric Lodwick…”

What’s funny is: turns out that actually IS a naked Eric Lodwick running through that Sigur Ros video. I assumed it was filmed in Iceland. But I guess it was actually filmed in Long Iceland.

"If you argue for legal royalty payments, you have to accept the reality of that argument: no online..."

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 10:54:00 -0400

“If you argue for legal royalty payments, you have to accept the reality of that argument: no online music startups.”

- Marco.org: Online music economics

The biggest problem with the new media landscape and music is that this question is seldom answered properly:

Is the [new media music service X] giving you “The Product” or is it merely giving you “The Commercial For The Product?”

Under current standards, venues like radio~~, bars, restaurants, and stores~~ don’t have to pay any royalties, because they are acting as “promotion” — they’re giving you “The Commercial For The Product,” with the assumption that after hearing it, you’ll go buy “The Product.” But everyone else, including web-based entities such as internet radio, DO have to pay those Soundexchange royalty charges (and if you’re not familiar with the problems created by their recent rate increases, you should Google ‘soundexchange rates’ now).

So right now, entities can broadcast copyrighted material over the airwaves, pay no royalties, AND make advertising money from that material. But if you want to do that on the web, forget about it— the rates are such that even the most successful Music 2.0 sites are put in an unsustainable position. And yes, this is totally crippling to anyone wishing to start a new music-based online venture. It leaves only two options: try to get yourself up and running while dragging the 10-ton chains of the Major Labels/RIAA/Soundexchange, or disregard them and try to go the Youtube route, hoping you can grow rapidly enough to have some leverage to deal later. Neither of these options is good for innovation.

Understand: I want the artists (AND, unlike most people, the labels) to be supported, but obviously, the whole Soundexchange royalty plan is totally untenable, and just another example of trying to clumsily wrap a old-model system around a new-model where it simply will not fit. I don’t know what the answer to all this is— although it does seem like the logical answer to the “The Commecial Or The Product” question is that, with most online music ventures, it’s often somewhere in-between. As long as it’s not a flagrant misuse (RAR blogs), it’s very likely a nice little quid pro quo. Rights-holders, don’t charge the webcasters for the “right to advertise” your music, and webcasters, don’t expect to make your living off the backs of musicians without giving something back in return.

One last note: I think we (“insidery” music people) tend to put TOO much emphasis on the whole “how will the artist support themselves with their music?” issue… because the clear answer is: they won’t. That’s how it’s always been, and the advent of the internet shouldn’t have been expected to change that.

F.U. & The Blog You Rode In On

Photo

Hey has anyone made the joke about Palin’s daughter and the Republican campaign just...

"Why do people continue to take news from a person who fundamentally does not understand how..."

Photo

woodswoodswoods: Running Amok #26 - Sing Statistics Run Amok...

"I hate commentless blogs. You’d never put up with that shit in person: “Don’t reply, just listen to..."

Audio

Sukiyaki Western Django VS. Tears Of The Black Tiger

Video

The Top 1 Most Annoying Internet Writing Tactics

Exclaim News: Are Black Kids Done Making Music?

My wish for today (journalism edition).

"In the unlikely event of anyone wanting my advice, it would be to stop worrying about selling..."

The Difference Between White And Black People

I can't decide which is the weirder concept; the PR emails came in consecutively

Meursault - The Furnace

"There are millions of singers and songwriters and bands, and when there is too much choice my..."

…and speaking of Jakob Lodwick, did anyone realize that...

Related to that last post...

"If you argue for legal royalty payments, you have to accept the reality of that argument: no online..."