Mon - November 7, 2005
AOL buys MusicNow
Playing both sides of the fence, AOL just announced it has purchased Circuit City's music subscription service MusicNow and will use it to sell both individual downloads and monthly subscriptions.
That puts it into direct competition with RealNetworks, Napster, and Yahoo! as well as Apple's iTunes Music Store, the only one of the big music services to offer a la carte downloads.
MusicNow will offer a la carte downloads at 99 cents each, just like the iTMS, or music fans can opt for a $9.95 unlimited monthly subscription that allows music to be downloaded or streamed to any Internet-connected PC, without requiring a separate media player. The ability to download songs to a compatible portable music player costs an additional $5 a month. The service currently offers around one million songs from the four major labels and a handful of independents. Personalization features such as daily custom playlists and the ability to view and share music profiles round out the offering.
AOL has been careful to stress that they aren't
abandoning their partnership with Apple. AOL members can currently purchase
music from the iTMS store while connected to AOL. MusicNow will be made
available to any Internet user through AOL's Web site. In addition, MusicNow
supports portable music players other than Apple's iPod.
"The MusicNow transaction allows us to superserve
our AOL members and expanding web audience with a truly best-in-class,
full-service, digital music platform - giving us the opportunity to offer an
unparalleled music service," says Ed Fish, Senior VP and General Manager, AOL
Premium & Subscription Services.
To me superserve sounds suspiciously like supersize but I'll resist the temptation to compare AOL to McDonalds.
To me superserve sounds suspiciously like supersize but I'll resist the temptation to compare AOL to McDonalds.
Posted at 06:22 PM Read More
Mon - October 31, 2005
Over-the-air music
Apple caused quite a buzz when it introduced the
ROKR iTunes phone earlier this year in a joint venture with Motorola and
Cingular. But the buzz mellowed when people realized that the ROKR must be
connected to a computer in order to receive music and that there was a
self-imposed limit of 100 songs.
Today Sprint introduced what it is billing as the first music service to support over-the-air downloads to compatible mobile phones from Samsung and Sanyo. Individual tracks can be purchased for a jaw-dropping $2.50 and will be sold as "dual downloads," meaning they are downloaded directly to a mobile phone while simultaneously being made available in an online account that lets you move them to any personal computer.
Sprint's service will launch with an initial catalog of about 300,000 songs from the four major music labels: EMI Group PLC, Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group, and Sony BMG. It's a decent start but a far cry from the 2 million+ songs available on the iTunes Music Store
This is exactly how such a service should work, giving music fans the convenience of direct downloads along with the security of knowing that their songs will also be available should anything go wrong with the transmission. But the service is incompatible with Apple's iPod, the leading portable music player, which according to NPD Group now commands 82 percent of the market. That, even more than the ridiculously high pricing, could be its downfall.
Today Sprint introduced what it is billing as the first music service to support over-the-air downloads to compatible mobile phones from Samsung and Sanyo. Individual tracks can be purchased for a jaw-dropping $2.50 and will be sold as "dual downloads," meaning they are downloaded directly to a mobile phone while simultaneously being made available in an online account that lets you move them to any personal computer.
Sprint's service will launch with an initial catalog of about 300,000 songs from the four major music labels: EMI Group PLC, Warner Music Group, Universal Music Group, and Sony BMG. It's a decent start but a far cry from the 2 million+ songs available on the iTunes Music Store
This is exactly how such a service should work, giving music fans the convenience of direct downloads along with the security of knowing that their songs will also be available should anything go wrong with the transmission. But the service is incompatible with Apple's iPod, the leading portable music player, which according to NPD Group now commands 82 percent of the market. That, even more than the ridiculously high pricing, could be its downfall.
Posted at 05:41 PM
Mon - October 24, 2005
Look up in the sky, it's SuperDIsc
Hoping to entice the last holdouts in the digital
music revolution, golden eared audiophiles, Monster
Music (a division of Monster Cable) has introduced
SuperDisc.
MP3s and other digital music formats actually represent a step backwards in quality because they must be compressed before being downloaded. Now that more people are enjoying their music away from home; in their cars or just about anywhere using portable music players like the iPod, any improvement in quality is welcome.
SuperDisc uses several approaches to improve quality. First, it plays music in High Definition Surround (HDS), a format that works with any DVD player. Secondly, Monster Music has remixed and remastered the recordings from the original source material with digital music playback in mind. Right on the DVD you'll find digital music files in high resolution AAC and WMA format that have been ripped directly from the source material, ready to be dragged and dropped to your portable music player. These are available in both stereo and Dolby Headphone Surround, a new format from the sound wizards at Dolby Labs, that claims to deliver a surround-sound experience on ordinary headphones.
SuperDisc reminds me a bit of the Mobile Fidelity Labs editions of classic albums. It promises fantastic sound but with such a limited selection of material that it will probably remain outside the mainstream of music listeners. Right now, the handful of SuperDiscs available includes Ray Charles's "Genius Loves Company," and 3 Doors Down's "Away From The Sun-Live From Houston." Monster probably intend SuperDisc as a loss leader for their expensive cable. But, I'm hoping that the format takes off and they manage to attract some of the classic artists that put out records on Mobile Fidelity.
MP3s and other digital music formats actually represent a step backwards in quality because they must be compressed before being downloaded. Now that more people are enjoying their music away from home; in their cars or just about anywhere using portable music players like the iPod, any improvement in quality is welcome.
SuperDisc uses several approaches to improve quality. First, it plays music in High Definition Surround (HDS), a format that works with any DVD player. Secondly, Monster Music has remixed and remastered the recordings from the original source material with digital music playback in mind. Right on the DVD you'll find digital music files in high resolution AAC and WMA format that have been ripped directly from the source material, ready to be dragged and dropped to your portable music player. These are available in both stereo and Dolby Headphone Surround, a new format from the sound wizards at Dolby Labs, that claims to deliver a surround-sound experience on ordinary headphones.
SuperDisc reminds me a bit of the Mobile Fidelity Labs editions of classic albums. It promises fantastic sound but with such a limited selection of material that it will probably remain outside the mainstream of music listeners. Right now, the handful of SuperDiscs available includes Ray Charles's "Genius Loves Company," and 3 Doors Down's "Away From The Sun-Live From Houston." Monster probably intend SuperDisc as a loss leader for their expensive cable. But, I'm hoping that the format takes off and they manage to attract some of the classic artists that put out records on Mobile Fidelity.
Posted at 06:17 PM
Wed - September 21, 2005
Afraid of the Darkness?
Novelty acts don't release follow-up albums do they? Well despite its tongue held firmly in cheek revival of 80's hair metal, the Darkness ain't no novelty act and its new album, "One Way Ticket To Hell...and Back." is no joke. The follow-up to the band's 2003 debut "Permission to Land," on Atlantic Records hits the streets on November 29. While its first album fell shy of the band's platinum ambitions, selling 680,000, the Darkness has achieved both critical acclaim and a wide following largely on the strength of its unbelievably catchy tunes.
Alas, Spinal Tap syndrome has afflicted the band. Original bassist Frankie Poullain has left, to be replaced by the band's guitar tech Richie Edwards. The bass on the album was played by guitarist Dan Hawkins. The band is expected to tour to promote the album and I'm hoping to get a chance to experience Justin Hawkins' air guitar playing in the flesh. Be afraid. Be very, very afraid.
Posted at 08:49 AM
Mon - September 12, 2005
Achieving critical mass
How many songs do you have on your iPod? With
storage costs plummeting, manufacturers of digital music players will no doubt
continue to increase the capacity of these devices. More is better
right?
Not necessarily, according to a new study released this week by Solutions Research Group. It says the average number of songs on these players is only 375, and half of all players have fewer than 100 songs loaded into them. Apple iPod owners are bigger collectors than other digital music fans, having 504 songs in their collections as opposed to the average number of 246.
Ever since I began collecting music, I've dreamed of carrying around a single device that contained my entire collection but, while we've come a long way, for me at least, this remains an elusive goal. I was an early adopter of the first iPod (which held 5GB) and I now own both a 30GB iPod and a 2GB iPod nano. Combined they hold about half of what's in my iTunes library, and that's only a percentage of the music in my collection.
I've discovered that a certain number of songs is necessary to achieve critical mass since you never know what you're going to be in the mood to listen to but that number varies greatly from person to person. If this study is to be believed, there are a number of conclusions that can be drawn from it. Apple's decision to release lower capacity, lower priced iPods like the iPod shuffle and the just released iPod nano may be more savvy than it seems. And there may be a market for "limited capacity mobile phone/digital music player hybrids," like Motorola's iTunes-enabled ROKR phones after all.
Not necessarily, according to a new study released this week by Solutions Research Group. It says the average number of songs on these players is only 375, and half of all players have fewer than 100 songs loaded into them. Apple iPod owners are bigger collectors than other digital music fans, having 504 songs in their collections as opposed to the average number of 246.
Ever since I began collecting music, I've dreamed of carrying around a single device that contained my entire collection but, while we've come a long way, for me at least, this remains an elusive goal. I was an early adopter of the first iPod (which held 5GB) and I now own both a 30GB iPod and a 2GB iPod nano. Combined they hold about half of what's in my iTunes library, and that's only a percentage of the music in my collection.
I've discovered that a certain number of songs is necessary to achieve critical mass since you never know what you're going to be in the mood to listen to but that number varies greatly from person to person. If this study is to be believed, there are a number of conclusions that can be drawn from it. Apple's decision to release lower capacity, lower priced iPods like the iPod shuffle and the just released iPod nano may be more savvy than it seems. And there may be a market for "limited capacity mobile phone/digital music player hybrids," like Motorola's iTunes-enabled ROKR phones after all.
Posted at 02:05 PM
Fri - September 9, 2005
Remix Standards
Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor, Lemon Jelly, Moby and others have experimented with the idea of letting fans remix their songs but what's kept this from really taking off is the lack of a standard.
Attempting to change this, Brian Transeau , known as BT to electronic music fans, has hooked up with The Producers & Engineers Wing of The Recording Academy to work on a standard for a multitrack remix format that can be opened with any recording software. "This could be a great source of revenue for both artists and labels that is completely unexplored," says BT, "There is an entire new demographic of music-savvy fans that would love nothing more than the prospect of taking Jay-Z's vocal and putting it over the Killers. If we have a standardized remix format, online download services like iTunes can sell a 'bundle' of loops, stems, and MIDI files that open directly in GarageBand or Live -- and for a buck or two, any 14-year old kid can dissect, remix, mix, and match tracks by his or her favorite artists."
BT's idea is a good one. While there will always be those who prefer merely to consume their music rather than recreate it, the rise of DJ culture means that there is a definite market of those just dying to get their hands on these bits and pieces. A standard format can only help to facilitate an ongoing exchange of ideas.
Posted at 07:24 PM
Wed - September 7, 2005
Honey they shrunk the iPod
With the introduction of the Motorola ROKR phone, Apple, Cingular, and Motorola would have you believe they invented the idea of putting digital music on phones. In fact, there are already several phones on the market that do what the ROKR does (transfer music from a computer). And Napster To Go is already available from a number of carriers including Cingular, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon.
But none of that matters since the ROKR is the only phone that works with Apple's iTunes and even features an on-board iTunes client. “The ROKR brings music to the mobile phone in a way unlike any other, with the unrivaled ease of use that has become the signature of iTunes,” says Ed Zander, chairman and CEO of Motorola.
The ROKR, which holds up to 100, songs works similarly to the iPod Shuffle, filling to capacity with a random selection of songs from your music library. Unfortunately the actual experience of using a ROKR isn't going to rock your world, according to iLounge who had some hands-on time with the product at the introduction.
More impressive by far is the iPod nano, a
redesigned miniature version of the iPod that's thinner than a #2 pencil and
weighs a mere 1.5 ounces while maintaining the color screen and styling of the
full-size iPod. The iPod nano is available in 2GB ($199) and 4GB ($249)
capacities in your choice of white or black. When I think about the brick that
was the original 5GB iPod, it's astounding how far we've come in such a short
time.
In other iTunes news, Madonna finally gave in and
made her music available as digital downloads.
Posted at 03:20 PM
Fri - September 2, 2005
Pearl Jam Bootlegs
Taking its music directly to the people, Pearl Jam has launched its own digital download store on its official Web site. Recordings of live Pearl Jam concerts will be available a mere hours after their completion. Pricing is reasonable at $9.99 per concert, especially given that they are being made available as high quality 192K MP3s. The files will be free of any DRM (digital rights management) restrictions, allowing them to be burned to CD and copied to any MP3 player.
Pearl Jam has made "live bootlegs" of its shows available since its 2000 world tour. By cutting out the middleman, Pearl Jam is making it possible for fans to acquire performances that are either never released or take years to appear. The band says it has sold more than 3 million copies of shows from the bootleg series. Now, fans can get even more immediate gratification. "The concept for the bootlegs has always been about providing high quality recordings of our shows at an affordable price for the fans who collect them. A lot of the band's fans want to own a copy of the live show they saw in their hometown, or a particularly standout show they hear about from other fans. Making the bootlegs available in digital form is just a natural evolution for the bootleg CD program, and a response to more and more fans turning to the web to buy their music," says the band's manager, Kelly Curtis.
Pearl Jam's efforts are in the tradition of jam bands like The Grateful Dead, whose fans know that every concert is going to be different and worthy of preservation.
Posted at 10:24 AM
Wed - August 31, 2005
Kate Bush Returns
It's been 12 long years since we last heard from the talented and enigmatic songwriter Kate Bush, who dropped out of sight following her 1993 album,"The Red Shoes." While its not uncommon for an artist to get cold feet after a failure, this was odd since that album was a hit, debuting at #2 in her native United Kingdom and #28 in the US.
The wait is finally over. The double album "Aerial" will be released in the US on November 8. The first single, "KIng Of The Mountain," precedes the album on October 24. The album has been produced by Kate herself. Details are sketchy but we do know that her collaborators include former Japan bassist Mick Karn, drummer Stuart Elliott, and jazz percussionist Peter Erskin. String arrangements were done by the late Michael Kamen and recorded by the London Metropolitan Orchestra.
I first discovered Kate Bush on a trip to London shortly after the release of her first album, "The Kick Inside," and have been a huge fan ever since. There'd be no Tori Amos or Bjork without the influence of Kate Bush and both are enjoying popularity and critical acclaim so the timing couldn't be better for Kate's long-overdue return to the music scene.
Posted at 04:49 PM
Fri - August 26, 2005
The Beatles.com
For a group that once relied on state-of-the-art digital technology to produce a new song with its long dead singer, the Beatles have been oddly missing from the digital music revolution. You still can't buy their music on any online music service and, until now, they've lacked a little place of their own in cyberspace.
Apple Corps have remedied that with a brand new website for the Beatles, featuring an online history of the band, official discography, filmography, and the first issue of an online Beatles magazine called Words. The site has something to delight Beatles fans of all ages, with interactive games, photo galleries, video clips from the original Beatles cartoon series, and a tour of Abbey Road's famous Studio 2 where the Beatles recorded.
Posted at 05:09 PM
Mon - August 22, 2005
Remembering Bob Moog
Bob Moog passed away on Sunday afternoon and the tributes are already pouring forth.
CaringBridge website
Moog Music
Associated Press
Harmony Central
NPR
Reuters
Theremin World
Posted at 07:16 PM
Fri - August 19, 2005
Bob Moog Update
Word came about a month ago that Dr. Bob Moog, electronic music pioneer, builder of Theremins, and inventor of the Moog synthesizer has been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor.
Today, my thoughts are with his family and friends after the latest update on the CaringBridge website reports that his condition has worsened. "There has been a real change today, and it is clear that he will not be with us for much longer... We tried an anti-cancer tea that a loving customer/friend brought from Europe last week, and got what seemed to be a real response for three and a half days. But ...you have to be able to swallow, and now that's becoming really difficult. I feel that the tumor is outwitting us. The next few days will be hard. Please keep us all in your thoughts and prayer."
I had the good fortune to meet Dr. Moog at this year's NAMM conference and found him to be an incredibly gracious and gentle soul with a true love of music and musicians. I take comfort in knowing that Moog is an intensely spiritual man and is probably facing this better than most but it's still hard to imagine a world without him and his ongoing contributions to both popular and experimental music.
Posted at 10:00 AM
Fri - August 12, 2005
The $2 Million Beat
How much is a good beat worth? Well, if it comes from the Neptunes, apparently a cool $2 Million!
Rapper Nas came across the beat while working on his
new album, reportedly titled "Nasdaq Dow Jones," and quickly found himself
immersed in a heated bidding war with hip-hop superstar Sean 'P-Diddy" Combs.
The Neptunes are the hottest team in hip-hop production, perhaps even in all of
pop music and nearly everything they touch turns to platinum so its probably
money well spent. Not many have heard the beat but Busta Rhyms has been quoted
as saying, "Ah sh*t, thats the craziest beat, I ever heard! Those drums man,
Those drums are fire! If Nas is gonna rap to this beat, its going to be over.
This will be the biggest hit in the history of
hiphop!"
If you'll excuse me, I have to go and fire up my Korg Electribe ER-1 drum machine now.
If you'll excuse me, I have to go and fire up my Korg Electribe ER-1 drum machine now.
Posted at 12:48 PM
Wed - August 10, 2005
Japanese Musicians want their iTMS
I love to watch the battle unfold between Apple and Sony, two companies that are more similar than they are different when it comes to both a culture of innovation and a stubborn adherence to proprietary technology.
So it was with some amusement that I read today's news about how Japanese artists signed to Sony are defying their record label in order to get their songs onto the iTunes Music Store , the hottest thing to hit Japan since Pokemon. Apple and Sony are said to be in talks but it's easy to speculate that Sony, which offers its own competing online music service and music players, may not be too thrilled with the idea of competing with Apple on its home turf.
Typical is rock musician Motoharu Sano, who says he will begin making some of his songs available on the iTunes Music Store. "It is an individual's freedom where that person chooses to listen to music. I want to deliver my music wherever my listeners are," is how he put it in Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Japan's top business daily. Sony promptly responded by saying Sano is no longer contracted to the label.
The iTunes Japan launch was the biggest yet, with 1 million songs downloaded in a mere four days! That figure is even more remarkable when you take into account the price of the songs, most of which cost 150 yen, or $1.35 cents, with some going for 200 yen, or $1.80, nearly twice as much as what they cost in the US. The Japanese store features a million songs from 15 Japanese record labels not including Sony.
Posted at 08:09 PM
Mon - August 8, 2005
Yahoo! Audio Search
Finding the music you like online just got a
whole lot easer with the arrival of Yahoo! Audio Search. The dedicated audio search
engine claims to have indexed over 50 million audio files, including songs
offered by online music services such as eMusic, the iTunes Music Store,
Napster, and Rhapsody. It can also be used to find newscasts, speeches, online
interviews and podcasts.
To make this possible, the online services had to give Yahoo! permission to index their material but since search results link to song purchases there was definitely an incentive to allow it.
Yahoo! Audio Search includes a number of features that make it a better choice than Google for audio searches. Searches can be restricted to audio available on the Web, through a subscription service, or a combination of both. You can also specify your favorite online music service and download songs with a single click. "Related Audio" suggests audio that is similar to what you're listening to. In many, but not all cases, search results include audio previews in Microsoft's Windows Media format. You can also find albums you are looking for by browsing through their covers.
Finally, its possible to save your favorite searches and access them through Yahoo!'s MyWeb feature.
Still in beta, I found it a bit buggy but the idea is a good one and I've already got it bookmarked.
To make this possible, the online services had to give Yahoo! permission to index their material but since search results link to song purchases there was definitely an incentive to allow it.
Yahoo! Audio Search includes a number of features that make it a better choice than Google for audio searches. Searches can be restricted to audio available on the Web, through a subscription service, or a combination of both. You can also specify your favorite online music service and download songs with a single click. "Related Audio" suggests audio that is similar to what you're listening to. In many, but not all cases, search results include audio previews in Microsoft's Windows Media format. You can also find albums you are looking for by browsing through their covers.
Finally, its possible to save your favorite searches and access them through Yahoo!'s MyWeb feature.
Still in beta, I found it a bit buggy but the idea is a good one and I've already got it bookmarked.
Posted at 08:09 AM
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Published On: Nov 07, 2005 08:07 PM
Published On: Nov 07, 2005 08:07 PM