Harley-Davidson Puts An iPod On Your Blog: “
Renowned motorbike manufacturer Harley-Davidson has added an iPod connector as standard to some of its newest models. By Macworld UK
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Category: Music
Payola is Pervasive
“This is not a pretty picture; what we see is that payola is pervasive,” Mr. Spitzer said, using a term from the radio scandals of the 1950’s in describing e-mail messages and corporate documents that his office obtained during a yearlong investigation. “It is omnipresent. It is driving the industry and it is wrong.”The Attorney General’s findings alleges that the illegal payoffs for airplay were designed to manipulate record charts, generate consumer interest in records and increase sales:
“Instead of airing music based on the quality, artistic competition, aesthetic judgments or other judgments, radio stations are airing music because they are paid to do so in a way that hasn’t been disclosed to the public,” Spitzer said at a press briefing.
An alternative? I think we’ll see more of this.
KCRW’s Live Morning Sessions Now Available via Podcasts
KCRW, one of the best internet radio stations is now providing their excellent Morning Becomes Eclectic via a podcast. Subscribe here. Learn more about Morning Becomes Eclectic.
Morning Becomes Eclectic is committed to a music experience that celebrates innovation, creativity and diversity by combining progressive pop, world beat, jazz, African, reggae, classical and new music. Recognized nationally as a forum for promoting a wide range of music ahead of the curve, the show has become a very attractive whistle stop for both established and emerging artists from around the world.
KCRW now offers podcasts of some of the live sessions performed by unsigned and independent artists on Morning Becomes Eclectic.
An Interview with Mark Knopfler
The album’s first single, “Boom, Like That,” is a wry chronicle of the renegade business tactics of McDonald’s mogul Ray Kroc. Kroc started out selling milkshake mixers to the McDonald brothers, eventually buying them out and aggressively expanding the franchise. Before composing the song, Knopfler read books about Kroc’s life and business philosophy. The singer found inspiration in some quotes that were attributed to Kroc. He says, “I remember coming across a quote in a book. It was something like, ‘If the opposition is going to drown, put a hose in their mouth.'”
Live8 Music Videos Online
Bob Geldof’s Live8 music is now online:
Explore the 50 States in Song
Singer-songwriter Sufjan Stevens has a lofty goal: exploring each of the 50 states in song. He’s already released a critically acclaimed full-length CD simply called Michigan. His latest honors the people, places and history of Illinois.
Independent radio producers Dan Collison and Elizabeth Meister were curious about how Stevens writes his songs, which, much like their own work, are filled with stories of places and people. So, they introduced Stevens to the Arkansas town of Brinkley.
MP3: The Lord God Bird
Pink Floyd Live8 Video Clip
The Classic Rockers Pink Floyd can be seen performing “Comfortably Numb” in this Quicktime Video.
Springsteen’s Pre-Concert Playlist
Bruce Springsteen published his pre-concert playlist. Great music.
KCRW’s Excellent Internet Radio Service
Santa Monica based KCRW continues to do great things with internet music. Listening to Broadband today, I heard some great music and emailed the host, Debbie Adler to discover who she was playing. Within minutes she emailed back a few names and pointed me to this Rachel Yamagata Live, in studio performance. Watch the video here.
Parales: The Case Against Coldplay
Jon Pareles takes it to Coldplay:
HERE’S nothing wrong with self-pity. As a spur to songwriting, it’s right up there with lust, anger and greed, and probably better than the remaining deadly sins. There’s nothing wrong, either, with striving for musical grandeur, using every bit of skill and studio illusion to create a sound large enough to get lost in. Male sensitivity, a quality that’s under siege in a pop culture full of unrepentant bullying and machismo, shouldn’t be dismissed out of hand, no matter how risible it can be in practice. And building a sound on the lessons of past bands is virtually unavoidable.