May62008
"Fifth major" Merlin signs 12,000 indie labels, eyes MySpace »
From ars technica:
In the last month, 12,000 of the world’s independent record labels have joined forces to create a “virtual fifth major” meant to earn respect at the bargaining table in a world dominated by EMI, Warner, Universal, and Sony BMG.
80 percent of the world’s music releases come not from the majors but from independent labels. Getting access to this music is a hassle for stores like iTunes and webcasters like Last.fm, since it takes an incredible amount of effort to do thousands of different (and small) deals. It’s not a great situation for the indies, either, which individually don’t possess the clout needed to get the best deals.
To solve the problem, the indies decided last year to launch Merlin, a “virtual” major that functions as a one-stop rights clearinghouse for indie artists.
…Already, Merlin has over 12,000 labels on board, including some of the biggest names in indie world. Koch, Concord, Razor and Tie, Beggars Group, Rough Trade, and Nettwerk are now on board with the new project, which gives the indies far more negotiating power than each ever had by itself. While most indie albums sell in small numbers, indie labels collectively account for 27.5 percent of total music sales worldwide; when banded together, they represent one of the largest labels on the planet.
Nine Inch Nails released a new record today. It is free (as in beer and speech) and is licensed under a Creative Commons license, according to the liner notes.
Trent is answering all those questions we’ve had for years with his actions. What if artists released their work directly and retained their rights? What if their releases were free and remixable? Would it matter? We will find out shortly, thank you Trent.
I still think the more important question is: “What if an artist that hasn’t already built a career on the label system released their work directly, gave it away for free, retained their rights, etc. Would it matter?”
The answer, sadly, to that one is “no, it doesn’t matter.” Myriad small unheard-of bands are out there posting their albums for free every day, but there’s still no good way for them to get heard.
For all the chatter about how new technology/Music 2.0/viral marketing etc. has the power to “break” new artists, there are precious few examples of this actually occurring.
This is true, there are precious few examples. Kind of sad — yet I’m optimistic, because I cannot believe that art relies on mainstream media.
I am working on this problem. If nothing else, I will give you a valiant attempt in the coming months as I begin releasing great music from (mostly) unknown artists.
Reblogged from Untitled.
Interview with Neil Young on Music Piracy, MP3 Hell and Finding Freaks on the Web - ReadWriteWeb »
(via yvynyl)
MP3s Sound Like Shit
Wonder how Young feels about the ongoing debate over the impact of the MP3 format on sound quality? He’s pretty clear on it.
[When it first came out] “digital music sounded like shit,” he said in the interview. “It was no fun to listen to turned up. Instead of water poured on you it was like being attacked with ice picks. [His recordings on Blu-ray] are like snowflakes.”
“I don’t listen to music, it’s in my head. Putting on headphones is like hell for me. I can hear an mp3 from a half mile away because the air has a chance to make it sound natural.”
Young said that MP3 was convenient - but that it’s like a vision of paradise that’s only inches deep and slams you in the face when you try to walk into it. “I’m a music guy, a sound guy - I went through hell in the 80’s,” he said. “Now we’re coming close, climbing up the quality wall. I make all my music analog, when a new format comes along I will dump all my music to it.” Would he advise other musicians to do the same? He said that wasn’t realistic. “I’m too rich and elitist, most people can’t afford the machines [for analog recording] and the people to take care of them.” Young says he’s been hoarding tape for a long time, sometimes recording over content that didn’t work out.
Reblogged from yvynyl.
"I wouldn’t call what they do as writing,” Brackett said. “The blogs do the really quick 50-word update on what a band’s doing. They’ll write about (singer) Lilly Allen releasing a new EP or (that the band) Man Man is preparing an album. The way Rolling Stone competes is we pick up the phone and bring original reporting. We take advantage of our access. Most blogs don’t have the staffs to pick up the phone."
— Music blogs: The new wall of sound | Tech news blog - CNET News.com (via yvynyl)
Reblogged from yvynyl.
soundamus - new and upcoming music releases from the artists you listen to »
Enter your last.fm username to create a feed of new and upcoming music releases from the artists you scrobble.
Reblogged from yvynyl.
RIAA: Piracy fight more important than net neutrality bill »
The Telecommunications and Internet subcommittee of the the House Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing today on H.R. 5353, the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2008. The bill would establish an official national broadband policy, one that prevents service providers from subjecting lawful content to “unreasonable interference” or “discrimination.” It also calls on the Federal Communications Commission to assess competition in and consumer access to broadband Internet access in light of this policy. The testimony at the hearing, however, suggested that these provisions, and net neutrality in general, means very different things to different groups. And, as far as the RIAA is concerned, net neutrality legislation could hamstring the fight against piracy.