#music (595 links)
- Last.fm’s Free Music ‘Boosts Sales’; Unlimited Services ‘To Kick In By 2012’ | paidContent.org paidcontent.org
Last.fm claims its 12-week-old free, full-track music streams have resulted in 119 percent more CD and download sales through its Amazon.com click-through partnership.
- Press Release: Lodwick joins Muxtape jakoblodwick.com
Best. Press release. Ever.
- YMCK Official Web Site ymck.net
A plug-in style software-synthesizer for producing primitive electronic sounds like the old 8bit game consoles.
"By now, you know all about Nine Inch Nails and Radiohead selling their latest albums at various prices, depending on the format. London-based indie electronica label Highpoint Lowlife is experimenting with a similar model for its new quadruple EP compila
While artists and their handlers devote massive attention to the Web site and MySpace, the Wikipedia page is often overlooked. Recent data suggests they may want to reconsider their priorities.
- Slashdot | NIN's Music Experiment Sells Big Numbers slashdot.org
Among the various options [Trent Reznor] gave fans, the most expensive was the $300 Limited Edition Ultra Deluxe Package. It took just over a day for that package to completely sell out, earning Reznor $750,000 in revenue from just that option alone.
- Guardian Unlimited | Comment is free | Charlie Brooker: Supposing ... Sandi Thom is the musical antichrist guardian.co.uk
"There's a word for this sort of thing. It's not "art", it's "content". And it's everywhere, measured out by unseen hands, mechanically dangled over the replicants' flapping gobholes; flavourless worms for android hatchlings."
- Sometimes it works at New Music Strategies newmusicstrategies.com
It’s a clever way of using the available technology to get this music into the hands of people who might not otherwise have found it - and to promote it more strongly.
Imogen Heap talks about Barbara Morgen, Cursor Miner and others.
- 'Vinyl has been eliminated' | | Guardian Unlimited Arts arts.guardian.co.uk
Should any music be able to weather such a storm, it's reggae. If nothing else, its largely informal economy allows it to adapt much faster than the major labels in the US or Europe.
- Yahoo! Media Player developer.yahoo.com
Enhances your web site or blog by creating an embedded player for each audio link. All the links can be played with one click, turning the page into a playlist.
- Hohoho - Merry Christmas Earthlings! files.doubledotdash.org
Free (mildly festive in places) album from the doubledotdash!? people. Good stuff.
"Wired asked David Byrne — a legendary innovator himself and the man who wrote the Talking Heads song "Radio Head" from which the group takes its name — to talk with Yorke about the In Rainbows distribution strategy and what others can learn from the
- /////MONTAG///// montag.ca
"The idea was to collect sounds that came from all over the world to later integrate them to the song called "Going Places". So I posted a little loop taken from the song [and] 6 weeks after the post, I had received about 70 sounds." Good idea.
"Many Chinese labels, nimble and unencumbered by tradition, have adapted to the contaminated marketplace in ways that Western companies are struggling with. Viewing CDs as a loss leader they routinely sign groups to all-encompassing contracts that allow t
- thesixtyone - a music adventure thesixtyone.com
Musicians upload music and listeners decide which songs go on the homepage.
- "The music industry is NOT in trouble" · Now Form A Band nowformaband.last.fm
90% of everything is always crap. The more stuff there is, the greater the 10% pile becomes. All we need are effective filtering systems to sort what we consider to be wheat from what we consider to be chaff.
- Free Music Zilla: Free Pandora, IMEEM, Last.fm, Myspace, eSnips... Downloader - Download Pandora, IMEEM, Last.fm, Myspace, eSnips... Free! freemusiczilla.com
"Free music zilla, the first tool specialized for social music downloading, enables you download free music from [..] almost all social music services." Hmmm.
- Dance music needs your help: Amato crisis - Beatportal beatportal.com
Some of you may have heard about Amato distribution going bust, but unless you understand the music industry you may have not quite understood the negative affect that this will have on dance music.
- Slashdot | The Pirate Bay Facing "Old Fashioned" Pressure yro.slashdot.org
The story itself is pretty tedious but leads on to some great comments on the music industry.
- How's this for a new model? at New Music Strategies newmusicstrategies.com
Suburban Home Records, when faced with the complexity and unpredictability of online consumer behaviour, have thrown their hands up and said ‘Oh go on… just download the album already’.
His fans do not want merely to buy his music. They want to be his friend. And that means they want to interact with him all day long online.
The Canadian folk-pop singer Jane Siberry has a clever system: she has a “pay what you can” policy with her downloadable songs, so fans can download them free — but her site also shows the average price her customers have paid for each track.
- Pitchfork: Sufjan Announces Christmas Song Exchange Contest pitchforkmedia.com
Here's how it works: write an original Christmas song, record it, and email the song to us. Asthmatic Kitty will pick a winner, and that person will trade rights to their song for rights to Sufjan's song.
- New Music Ideas newmusicideas.com
New and interesting websites from around the internet that may be of use to independent musicians and the music business.
- UNCHARTED AUDIO: Fact Magazine factmagazine.co.uk
"Ploughing a uniquely British furrow through the woozy outer limits of electronic music, the London-based imprint is now six years old; this year, it gave birth to Signals - a subscription-only series of 7"s by artists including Cursor Miner and Si Begg."
Great Sherburne article on the past, present and future of electronic music. "Scenes and sounds that were once strictly local affairs now have no problem connecting with niche publics anywhere on earth."
- Last.FM Music Manager for Labels and Artists FAQ musicmanager.last.fm
- Hooray for the music biz! at New Music Strategies newmusicstrategies.com
"[A] controversial session in which six teenage girls [...] discussed their music consumption practices." Fascinating stuff, especially the question from the former BPI Executive Chairman.
Not a particular fan of Reznor but there's some smart opinions in this piece.
- Vinyl May Be Final Nail in CD's Coffin wired.com
As counterintuitive as it may seem in this age of iPods and digital downloads, vinyl -- the favorite physical format of indie music collectors and audiophiles -- is poised to re-enter the mainstream, or at least become a major tributary.
- Get Heard: The Major Label Perspective · Now Form A Band nowformaband.last.fm
The music industry is evolving, and major labels are starting to develop new strategies to help adapt to the current DIY climate.
- Step 1: Unyoke the Artists | MetaFilter metafilter.com
Useful comments on the last100 "Five ways the music industry can prevent its own demise." article
- Who's doing DIY music download sales? | Ask MetaFilter ask.metafilter.com
I'm looking for music artists (individuals or bands) who are selling their own music via digital downloads (with some specific qualifications)
- Stats – Groups at Last.fm last.fm
The main objective of this group is to collect all the interesting tools related to music stats that are scattered around last.fm
- Bits and Pieces of Radiohead at New Music Strategies newmusicstrategies.com
"The way in which you make a desirable item of quality in the world of bits is not the same way in which you make a desirable item of quality in the world of atoms. One cannot seek to replace the other. It simply jostles it about a bit in the mix of avail
- Radiohead 'In Rainbows' - What price did you choose? | What price did you choose? whatpricedidyouchoose.com
If you have pre-ordered or intend to order the download version of Radiohead's new album In Rainbows and are curious to know what price others chose, take part in the survey.
- Jamendo: your take? at New Music Strategies newmusicstrategies.com
- russell davies: block ice and propane russelldavies.typepad.com
"What's more encouraging about the internet and music are the ways that the smaller bands and less well known musicians can find new ways to have careers and offer their music. One lovely example is this site from Erik Friedlander, promoting his Block Ice
- Convenience Wins, Hubris Loses and Content vs. Context, a Presentation for Some Music Industry Friends at FISTFULAYEN fistfulayen.com
A brief, twenty minute presentation to some friends in the music industry about why it’s time we pay closer attention to consumer needs when it comes to digital music.
- Design Observer: writings about design & culture designobserver.com
I’ve discovered a grim-faced resistance movement amongst dozens of tiny record labels determined to hang onto physical packaging and expressive cover art, no matter what.