A few days ago I received a message on Flickr about one of my pictures. It was from an aspiring artist showing me some of his work inspired by one of my photographs. It’s great to see my work influencing other artists!
Every Thursday I will be post 2 videos of opposite genres. These are songs and artists I really enjoy and think everyone should be exposed. Peace.
The first one is by Death from Above 1979, the new defunct duo from Canada. Seriously these guys should have never broken up, after several EPs, LPs and one studio album these guys were destined for much more. They had an amazing sound, even though they only used bass and drums on most of their songs. Come back from the dead Death!
Death from Above 1979 – Romantic Rights
(Watch it in higher resolution at Pitchfork.tv)
The second one is by M83 the electronic/shoegaze band from France. This track is off their new album “Saturdays=Youth”. I’ve never heard of M83 until I came across this video on Pitchfork.tv a few days ago, since then I’ve been hooked like it was crack.
M83 – Graveyard Girl
(Watch it in higher resolution at Pitchfork.tv)
We are truly living in an exciting period. We are about to experience a major transition that will shake the very foundation of all music labels, music consumers and sharers around the globe. I am talking about the dawn of Music 2.0 as coined by Forrester Research analyst James McQuivey. Music 2.0 refers to the transition from conventional business models to new not yet proven models based revolving around the internet and most importantly file sharing. Only until now have music executives started to realize that file sharing is actually beneficial to the industry. They have yet to implement a working model where sharing of files is possible while still making a revenue.
That is exactly where Sony BMG, Warner Music and Universal have stepped in to make it possible. They have partnered with MySpace to create the MySpace Music service, yet another iTunes killer. It will offer DRM-free downloads, paid for videos, free music streaming and a host of music-related activities like tickets sales and music merchandise. Shaaaweet!
The internet is where the future lies for the music industry. Guess who the biggest dealer of music in the nation is? It’s not Tower Records or Sam Goody (both defunct). It’s not Target, Amazon, or Wal-Mart. Not anymore. The number one is Apple’s own online store, iTunes.
EMI, one of the top music labels took a bold step on Thursday and hired Douglas Merrill, Google’s former Chief of Information, to run the label’s digital unit. Mr. Merrill has no prior experience with the music industry but he understands the internet and the role it will play in the upcoming years.
According to CNet “record companies are going to have to morph into smaller entities that represent fewer acts and then oversee their total output: music, video, concerts, and merchandise.”
Record companies will still play a big role in the game but only if they play their cards right. We have seen several artists breaking away from their labels and embrace the power of the internet to distribute their music.
In the words of Greg Sandoval from CNet: Long live Music 2.0!
Thursdays are the new fridays did you know?! Geez where have you been? living under a rock?! Well here are some pictures from last night’s excursion.
Stereogum has put together an amazing compilation in tribute to Björk’s album Post. They have asked the bands Liars, Dirty Projectors, No Age, High Places, Atlas Sound, El Guincho, Final Fantasy & Ed Droste, Evangelicals, Xiu Xiu, Pattern Is Movement, Bell, White Hinterland to create their own renditions of Björk’s tracks. These are all original covers by the bands which have taken time off their tours and personal schedules to participate in the project. The album is available for free download at Stereogum’s Björk page, make sure to check out the track notes and interview with Björk!
The odds seem to be in our favor when it comes to meeting girls here in the East Coast. According to this map by Richard Florida, there are 210,820 more single women than men in the New York and northern New Jersey area. Single women seem to be concentrated in large metropolitan cities around the world, always outnumbering men. Very important information which will help you decide where to move next ;)