The Genius of Andrew Hoepfner

Andrew Hoepfner (mastermind behind anti-folk love band Creaky Boards) is a new friend and hero of mine. Do treat youself to his great Essay: Medium Pain

his myspace

his "orgy" photo shoot

and our show together saturday:

I Feel Hamp

My friend Luke Winslow King found this on the street and gave it to me.
please go listen to his music.

Isn't it great that music is free now?

[paid] Music downloads in downward trend

If the troubled music industry has been looking to Steve Jobs as its saviour, it might be time to look somewhere else. [via the globe and mail]

Karen O upclose (very close)

2 lo-fi Karen O tracks were leaked today. It's so nice to hear her with out all the production.

I'm too lazy right now to upload them
but they are over at Dreams of Horses

Mp3 Blogs Sell Out!

This is a wonderful essay from The Torture garden.

It's really true that bloggers are going to have to start thinking about ethics. And it's really true that there is a big incentive structure within hype machine to blog about whatever is being buzzed instead of what you actually want to write about.

Can the RIAA get any more evil????

RIAA Petitions Judges to Lower Artist Royalties

"Aggressively litigious group has claimed to protect musicians in the past. Now believes musicians deserve less for 'innovative' music distribution."

It's true, musicians do deserve less. Those greedy musicians with all their greedy websites and greedy online distribution. They are so greedy. They think they should just get money when people by their dumb music. No christmas spirit.

For more on how evil the RIAA is check out the Future of Music Coalition's online Manifesto.

Cry Me a River - Record labels still sniffing around for the profits of yore.

Squeezing Money From the Music

By JEFF LEEDS

Published: December 11, 2006 in the New York Times

"Major labels have begun demanding a cut of concert earnings or T-shirt, ring tone and merchandise revenue from new artists seeking record contracts."

This article gives a nice look into the dissolving of the old record industry and the death of the blockbuster.

“Consumer fickleness has become evident on the Billboard charts, where the old blockbuster album appears to be a dying breed. More titles have come and gone from the No. 1 place on the magazine’s national album sales chart this year than in any other year since the industry began computerized tracking of sales in 1991. Analysts say that reflects the lackluster staying power even among songs in demand.”

I don't read it as lackluster staying power but as a turbo-charged consumers, listening to so much more music from so many different sources: smarter consumers. Record labels are so upset that it's so hard to get millions of people to all want the same thing now that they have more access, but that seems like good news to me. It's a slow decline of conformity in a way. I'm going to try and flesh this out later in my article for the APAP blog

A few music is free now moments:

Tower records selling their music for pennies on the song (idolator)

Profit starved music industry going after "guitar nerd" tablature websites (idolator)

Just go to freeindie.com and be in awe of all the free music

and then go hug mp3 hugger

Major labels start to offer Mp3s (brooklyn vegan)

Saturday December 16th, Lisps at 11pm please come:

What is it about Stickers?


















So there's this band called Stickerbook. Which I haven't seen live, but their websites and musics are excruciatingly charming. My friend Chad speaks highly of them. They do "experimental" covers of very popular songs from the 80s and 90s i guess. Their experimental sounds a little more like lo-fi irony, but I'll take it. The band reminds me of my favorite Chris Cutler quote:

"For now I'm really interested in the way pop really starts to eat itself. Here together are cannibalism, laziness and the feeling that everthing has already beed originated, so that it is enough now endlessly to reinterperet and rearrange it all. The old idea of originality in production gives way to another (if to one at all) of originality in consumption."
from Plunderphonia

If you chose a random city and stroll through the rock bands in that city on myspace. It's terrifying how similar the bands do start to sound. Yet a band like stickerbook which is audaciously "unoriginal" seems delightfully original compared to their myspace neighbors.

stickerbook on myspace
[mp3] Stickerbook - Don't Stop Believin'

I put in my ASCAP application yesterday...
for better or for worse. And the next day they sue Black Betty.

ASCAP Initiates Infringement Actions Against Establishments in Breach of License Agreements
[yahoo]

huh?

YouTube vs. BoobTube in Wired Magazine

This is a great article in Wired about the way that media is changing. I freaking love it. I love how the corporations feel so out of control of the future of entertainment.

read the article....

I Started a MOG

here's wikipedia on Mog

here's my MOG