The Money And The Future

So maybe you've heard of this Internet thing, where a lot of people get their music for free and only sometimes get busted by the RIAA - big time. Anyway, the bottom line is that less money is being spent on music - and that means musicians aren't making as much as they used to. So how are they getting by?

According to this BBC News article, they're doing something that's unthinkable for people creative enough to carve out a music career - they're being inventive.

I know, I could hardly believe it either.

Yes, be it signed EPs and thank-you letters from Allison Weiss (for a price) or a meet-and-greet with KISS (for even more of a price), musical artists are finding ways to connect with their fans. And their money, I suppose, but let's allow ourselves to romanticize this a bit. Artists are getting to attach personal meaning to their work for their fans. Can you imagine buying a digital version of the concert you were just at? Or better yet, getting a song sung about you? We could ALL be Lucy! In the sky! WITH DIAMONDS!!!

Anyway, here's an interesting idea from French tech company MXP4's Albin Serviant: In the next 10 years, the music experience will be revitalised in the same way that 3D has revitalised movies and innovations like the Wii and Rock Band have revitalised gaming.

Just think about it for now. And feel free to pay artists a little extra for that extra touch. It's not like they don't want to let you know you matter to them.

Out Of Hibernation

Blowin' the dust off. So much, SO much, I have noted in the music world in the last 5 months, and none of it have I posted here. Most of it, I have forgotten. But I will stretch these creaky old joints and drum up what I can.

FLASH: In a table-turn so ill it would make DJ AM (R.I.P.) proud, the big-four record labels are being sued for piracy! Turns out they haven't been paying artists for using their songs in compilations. Ah, the sweet smell of hypocrisy.

Alsowise, Rolling Stone magazine just released its list of the 100 Best Albums of the Decade. I'll ruin the suspense for you now and tell you that Radiohead took top spot, with their 2000 album, Kid A. While I am currently phasing in and out of a Radiohead kick, and this album has grown on me this year in a way that if Loretta grew on me that way, I'd say, "Yeah. That's nice,"* I'm more interested in the comment section of the article.
Scroll to the bottom and you'll find a ton of comments going somewhere along the lines of this: "You forgot [album]! Where's the love for [artist]?! This list is a sell-out, too mainstream, etc."

And they're definitely onto something.

I, too, found this list to be populated not with the innovative albums, not the music that's evolving what we hear, but more mainstream, mass-audience stuff. And yes, I am aware that "best" in the music business must take into account whether or not people actually bought the album. But there also seems to be an air of the panelists going through the motions. For example, Bob Dylan's Modern Times got 8th spot. The album is solid, but the honour feels like an obligation; as if to say, Dylan's a living legend, so how could his music not still be the absolute (8th) best of the last 10 years? Never mind that his creative peak was more than 30 years ago.

Anyway, it is a symptom of best-of lists that almost every reaction will run along the same lines. We all have music that's touched us more deeply than the music on this list, and it's hard to get ourselves out of that subjectivity and define winners. Then again, the only real winners are us, the people who get to listen to it all.

If I don't post again, happy holidays! Though I sincerely hope I do.

*Family Guy quote. Sorry it's so non sequitur.

Polaris Prize: The Opposite of Downdate

The shortlist is in!

The shortlist is short!

Like this post!

It's in!

Read it!

Here!

The shortlist is in!

Surgery and Polaris Prizes, Oh My!

Where have I been for the last few weeks? Well, sometimes I be working, sometimes I be partying, and sometimes I be getting my wisdom teeth out last Friday. I am currently in recovery for that particular bit of surgery, and am moving further away from looking like this

with time. But either way you slice it, I'm not as often here and in the mindset to write a blog post in the summer. But I shall try, and this shall be a blog post. Starting... NOW.

My friend Paul basically wrote this post for me, because all I'm gonna do is let you know that the Polaris Music Prize has announced its longlist of contenders for this year's competition. What's a longlist? Well, it's the list from which the jury will choose a shortlist. And if you don't know what a shortlist is... it's a shortened version of the... never mind. Let's just say the first round of narrowing down potential winners has begun.

I believe I've already mentioned the Polaris Music Prize in a post about the Juno Awards, but just as a quick re-cap, I see it as more of an artistically-earned award than commercially. In other words, the biggest-selling artist in Canada doesn't automatically shoot to the top of the Polaris list - in fact, the jury often steers away from the big shiny acts in favour of what you might call indie groups. For example, Patrick Watson won 2 years ago, and he's never been what you would consider a superstar in the music world. If you've heard more of him - and many of us have - in the last couple years, well... you may very well have the Polaris Prize to thank, for generating the buzz around him.

Anyway, check out the Polaris website, have a look and a listen to the artists, and then sit tight in anticipation of the shortlist, being announced on July 7th. And if you're getting your wisdom teeth out this summer, as it seems a lot of people I know are, remember to take your meds, freeze your face, sleep all the time, and don't try to eat rocks right away.

Or... you know, at all.

Here's last year's Polaris winner. Enjoy!