Well, Wammo sent out an e-mail, letting us know the score about his decision to leave the Spankers. I guess I must’ve signed up for updates on his old website (his new one is wammobaby.com). It came down to him having a new baby and “irreconcilable differences” with the band. Also, Christina said in a recent interview that the band was exhausted from the road and still wasn’t making money. I’m sure that was part of it as well. Wammo is going to go solo under the moniker “Road Dog” and will be promoting his paintings. Below is the e-mail blast message I got this morning. Read for yourself:
I’ve gotten a lot of enjoyment from the Spankers over the years and Wammo was a big part of that. I wish him and all the other Spankers success in whatever they do next. Hope they find a way to squeeze some money out of this terrible economy.
I’ve been seeing this video on ME Television and I had to pass it along. Very simple, yet beautiful. Singer Christopher Chu says it was his attempt to emulate the Phil Spector “Wall of Sound” recording method, by filling the studio with musicians for a big echo effect. Worked pretty well I would say.
I’ve been spellbound. It’s just a similar artists mish mash based on Crocodiles, the band that made the awesome cover of “Groove is in the Heart,” mentioned in a previous entry.
The Legendary Pink Dots — my favorite band — will launch a new album on Oct. 5 called Seconds Late for the Brighton Line. They are also about to tour North America to celebrate their 30th anniversary. The tour was postponed temporarily due to a lineup change and some health issues with lead singer/songwriter Ed Ka-Spel’s mother. I’ve heard a little bit from the new album and I’m pretty excited. Lord willin’ and the creek don’t rise, I will be there when the band turns up in Austin in November. If they come to your town, you should check them out. You won’t hear anything else like them.
NORTH AMERICAN TOUR DATES
Fri Oct 15 – Biltmore, Vancouver, BC
Sat Oct 16 – El Corazon, Seattle, WA
Mon Oct 18 – Club Sound, Salt Lake City, UT
Tue Oct 19 – Gothic Theater, Englewood, CO
Thur Oct 21 – Triple Rock, Minneapolis, MN
Fri Oct 22 – Double Door, Chicago, IL
Sat Oct 23 – Rumba Café, Columbus, OH
Sun Oct 24 – Grog Shop, Cleveland, OH
Mon Oct 25 – Magic Stick, Detroit, MI
Tue Oct 26 – The Mod Club, Toronto, ON
Thur Oct 28 – Middle East Upstairs, Cambridge, MA
Fri Oct 29 – Le Poisson Rouge, New York, NY
Sat Oct 30 – DC9, Washington, DC
Mon Nov 1 – M Room, Philadelphia, PA
Tue Nov 2 – Thunderbird Café, Pittsburgh, PA
Wed Nov 3 – Local 506, Chapel Hill, NC
Thur Nov 4 – The Masquerade, Atlanta, GA
Fri Nov 5 – The Plaza Theatre, Orlando, FL
Sat Nov 6 – Orpheum, Tampa, FL
Tue Nov 9 – House of Blues Dallas, Dallas, TX
Wed Nov 10 – Elyslum, Austin, TX
Sun Nov 14 – The Rhythm Room, Scottsdale, AZ
Mon Nov 15 – The Casbah, San Diego, CA
Tue Nov 16 – Echoplex, Echo Park, CA
Wed Nov 17 – Sainte Rocke, Hermosa Beach, CA
Thur Nov 18 – The Detroit Bar, Costa Mesa, CA
Fri Nov 19 – Café Du Nord, San Francisco, CA
Sat Nov 20 – Café Du Nord, San Francisco, CA
Mon Nov 22 – Doug Fir Lounge, Portland, OR
Looks like another installment in the continuing story of “No Free Lunch” on the Internet. I don’t think it affects listeners, but Bandcamp is trying to get musicians who give away all their music for free to start selling. Evidently, the site wasn’t getting enough money from its cut of purchased music to pay for the streaming and upkeep of the site, since most of the downloads turned out to be from artists who were giving everything away. Nothing to take a cut from. Now musicians have a limited amount of songs they can give away. After that they have to pay.
300 downloads for $9 USD (3¢ each)
1000 downloads for $20 USD (2¢ each)
5000 downloads for $75 USD (1.5¢ each)
If they sell $500 worth of songs, they get 1,000 added to their free download allotment.
As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t change anything. I still like Bandcamp because it’s easy to embed in places like this blog, which in turn gives a lot of value to the musician because it’s easier to get spread around and potentially go viral. I can see where it might cause problems for a struggling musician though. How do you sell music when no one knows who you are yet?
I’ve heard from a couple of indie artists about it and one, The Venopian Solitude, whose music I reviewed in March, is unhappy (Here’s her take on it). She wants to give her songs away and not have to bother about money. Although in my opinion, her songs are already beyond the point where she ought to be selling them. She just keeps getting better and better. She’s looking for a free place to host her songs though, other than Reverbnation, which her school blocks, so if anyone’s got ideas, send ‘em her way.
Aviv Cohn aka The Widest Smiling Faces basically took it in stride. He gets good value out of Bandcamp and said, “Yeah, it sucks, but it seems fair.” Obviously the service has to be paid somehow.
That’s the reality of the Internet that we keep having to face. Startup services might do cool things that attract a lot of users, but don’t actually pay for themselves. Maybe they have to do so to satisfy investors, or they at least have to break even. They might make drastic changes and basically sell out, the way TheSixtyOne did in my opinion. Or they can do like Pandora and basically pull a bait & switch on us, pretend to be free till they get us hooked, and then spring a surprise cost on us. I don’t think Bandcamp has done either of those things yet. Hopefully they won’t have to.
It’s a huge dilemma for us users and for the startups. There’s a ton of free content on the Internet, some of it amazing and very useful. But when the bills come due, they tend to go away. Either they make changes like I mentioned, or they just get exhausted and let their sites go dead. On the other hand, when they try to start charging for things, some other site is liable to spring up and start giving the same stuff away again.
It’ll be interesting to see how things shake out. Despite the piss poor economy, people still want to make and listen to music. The demand is there. If only we could figure out how all our broke asses can still eat and pay the rent. No answers here, unfortunately. Only questions.
P.S. I recently did an exensive interview with the Widest Smiling Faces which I will put on this blog as soon as I get a chance to edit. Stay tuned…
Note: Jennifer from Bandcamp just replied to this post, saying, “Just wanted to be sure you saw the update on our site – we took the suggestion from several artists to refresh free download credits every month, which seems to work for most bands who give their music for free on Bandcamp.” She also left a link explaining the policy in detail. (see below in comments)
A while back I got a note from Eric Kesner of True Colour Of Blood, who wanted me to check out a 15-year retrospective of his work. I don’t normally do unsolicited stuff, but I finally got around to downloading the album and it’s good drone ambient, kind of in the same vein as Voice of Eye, a group I blogged about back in February. Also reminds me of some of the more understated works by artists like Caul and Ure Thrall.
He produces his droning ambient using a guitar and bow. Darkly atmospheric, it has a nice texture if you want to listen to it and chill out, but it also works well as background if you’re trying to get things done. Download his album from Rapidshare if you get the chance. Why not? It’s free….
Here’s a link to his MySpace page if you want to stream a bit first and see what you think.
And a cool video someone made for one of his songs:
I just realized that two of my favorite songs have close to the same name and are performed by groups with VERY similar names. The most recent one is “Take me to the Riot” by Stars, a group from Canada that contains members of Broken Social Scene. It comes from the 2007 album, In Our Bedroom After the War. Great song with a great video.
The other song is “It’s a Riot” by the New Jersey-based ’70s early metal group Starz (with a z). The song comes from the 1978 album, Coliseum Rock. The instrumental track, “Coliseum Rock” is basically an intro to “It’s a Riot,” which starts at 3.33. A friend once told me the motorcycle engine sound at the beginning is a Motoguzzi rather than a Harley, but I can’t vouch for that.
Kind of an ’80s New Wave sound…
Starz influenced a lot of metal groups, but I can’t hear that influence in the indie rock band Stars. I think it’s just a really cool coincidence.
Daniel Knox in the shadows next to a carousel. Captures something about his music I think.... (John Atwood photo)
The first time I heard Daniel Knox’s “Ghostsong” I was stunned. It was like nothing I had ever heard, but at the same time it sounded so classic, full of beauty, sadness and mean-spirited humor.
I streamed it over the Internet for a few days, growing more and more addicted and finally I couldn’t take it any more. I went to his website and ordered his whole discography.
That’s something I rarely do — I’m not made out of money. But I could tell right away that I had to get my hands on this man’s music and keep it close, on the off chance it could turn out to be a dream, or something the Internet washed onto my shore that it might sweep away again.
There was more where “Ghostsong” came from. Much more. I now think of Knox as an American treasure, right up there with Tom Waits.
Knox taught himself to play the piano by regularly sneaking into the Hilton Tower’s Grand Ballroom; he took a job as a projectionist at the historic Music Box Theater just so he could play its massive pipe organ. He accompanied director David Lynch in that theater for the 2007 Chicago premiere of Inland Empire.
Much of the time he sings in a deep, masculine voice. Then he breaks into a beautiful, sweet falsetto. His songs range from heartbreaking ballads (often with wicked twists), to brash, New Orleans-influenced pieces that put me in mind of Dr. John.
His songs don’t really sound like anything else. And yet i get the distinct feeling they might’ve been around forever — American standards.
Here’s a taste of what Daniel Knox can do:
I currently have the albums Disaster, Evryman for Himself (technically not released yet, but I was able to get hold of it – send DK a message and he will probably hook you up) and two E.P.s: A Poison Tree and Window Music (Instrumentals 2001-2007).
At this point I have a hard time deciding which I like better, Disaster or Evryman. Disaster is a bit more minimalistic, with those lovely dark ballads, often just Knox and a piano or organ. Those songs really get to me — “What Have They Done to You Now” and “Be Afraid” being particular favorites.
Evryman has some of those — “Ghostsong” being a huge standout — but it also features more New Orleans style songs, with bandmates Paul Parts (bass), Jason Toth (drums), Ralph Carney (horns) and Chris Hefner (auxiliary instruments). “I Make Enemies” and “Debt Collector” are excellent as is “Armageddonsong.” I got to love those too. They might be the ones with the biggest hit potential after all.
The E.P. A Poison Tree is also definitely worth having for the two very different treatments of John Donne’s famous poem.
It’s not all about the music either. Knox’s lyrics have a big impact — sad and misanthropic, resigned and fatalistic, wry and witty, vulnerable to warm feelings — which are seen as a distraction and an imposition…
They might not work for everyone, but I find them brilliant and moving.
Just check out some of the lines:
From “Armageddonsong”: “Armageddon’s comin’ soon. The sun will crash into the moon, but we will still have breakfast…”
From “Lovescene”: “Groping for more than I can hold, sulking like a 12-year-old, and suddenly I find myself dancing. Oh how I hate dancing…”
From “Ghostsong”: “If you die tomorrow or a hundred years from now, there won’t be an article or a furrowed brow. Yours is like the spirit of a breeze that blows through town. No one remembers unless it knocks something down…”
Truly brilliant. I think this guy is going places. If I have anything to do with he will. I haven’t been so excited about a newly discovered artist in a long time. He’s already made it to the top of my own musical Olympus.
If you’re anywhere close to as impressed as I am, check out his website and buy some of his albums. Then find him on Facebook. He just might go on tour one of these days and you’ll want to be ready in case he comes to your town.
Just found a great place to stream music: www.radiofreeneworleans.com It’s a feature of NewOrleansOnline.com, which is the official tourism website for the city of New Orleans. I’ve heard so much great music: people I knew already like Professor Longhair, Dr. John, Neville Brothers and Fats Domino; plus great acts that were new to me like the Rebirth Brass Band and the Soul Rebels.
The little player that pops up has several player options: vintage jazz, pop & rock, eclectic mix, contemporary jazz, rhythm & blues and gospel brunch. I usually leave it on R&B or eclectic mix.
If you don’t pay close enough attention, you might be tempted to place Bomani Armah (Darel Hancock, aka D’mite or G-Mike) in the “profane” category, but you would be mistaken. This guy is truly a principled hip hop artist. He’s not afraid to use strong language, but it’s always for a point.
D’mite insists that he is not a rapper at all, but a poet with a hip hop sensibility. In fact, he’s so insistent that he also sometimes goes by “Notarapper.” (Although when you get down to it, what is rap but a form of poetry?) Unquestionably though, he’s not your average hip hop artist. He’s an intellectual who wants to change the world for the better – one who also has a wonderful sense of humor and knows how to get his point across.
I discovered him on TheSixtyOne thanks to “Read a Book.” The song came out in 2007 and was featured in a video on BET, but it was new to me. I found it hilarious and still do. He uses the words “nigga” and “mothafuckah” plenty of times, but it’s all for a good purpose – a litany of good habits anyone should be smart enough to be doing already – but you know plenty of people aren’t.
Check out his music and see if you don’t agree. D’mite’s music is available for purchase, streaming and freed download on Bandcamp (which is great for me, since it’s easy to embed the songs). Lots of good material there that should convince you that hip hop can indeed operate on a higher plane than the gangsta rap of Dr. Dre or even the party music of The Pharcyde.
Last time I checked I couldn’t find the original edit of “Read a Book” available for download. The Bandcamp version is a “clean” radio-friendly edit (which defeats the purpose in my opinion). Fortunately, you can hear the song on YouTube via the video that ran on BET.
Bandcamp begins charging artists for free downloads
300 downloads for $9 USD (3¢ each)
1000 downloads for $20 USD (2¢ each)
5000 downloads for $75 USD (1.5¢ each)
If they sell $500 worth of songs, they get 1,000 added to their free download allotment.
Here’s Bandcamp’s explanation.
As far as I’m concerned, it doesn’t change anything. I still like Bandcamp because it’s easy to embed in places like this blog, which in turn gives a lot of value to the musician because it’s easier to get spread around and potentially go viral. I can see where it might cause problems for a struggling musician though. How do you sell music when no one knows who you are yet?
I’ve heard from a couple of indie artists about it and one, The Venopian Solitude, whose music I reviewed in March, is unhappy (Here’s her take on it). She wants to give her songs away and not have to bother about money. Although in my opinion, her songs are already beyond the point where she ought to be selling them. She just keeps getting better and better. She’s looking for a free place to host her songs though, other than Reverbnation, which her school blocks, so if anyone’s got ideas, send ‘em her way.
Aviv Cohn aka The Widest Smiling Faces basically took it in stride. He gets good value out of Bandcamp and said, “Yeah, it sucks, but it seems fair.” Obviously the service has to be paid somehow.
That’s the reality of the Internet that we keep having to face. Startup services might do cool things that attract a lot of users, but don’t actually pay for themselves. Maybe they have to do so to satisfy investors, or they at least have to break even. They might make drastic changes and basically sell out, the way TheSixtyOne did in my opinion. Or they can do like Pandora and basically pull a bait & switch on us, pretend to be free till they get us hooked, and then spring a surprise cost on us. I don’t think Bandcamp has done either of those things yet. Hopefully they won’t have to.
It’s a huge dilemma for us users and for the startups. There’s a ton of free content on the Internet, some of it amazing and very useful. But when the bills come due, they tend to go away. Either they make changes like I mentioned, or they just get exhausted and let their sites go dead. On the other hand, when they try to start charging for things, some other site is liable to spring up and start giving the same stuff away again.
It’ll be interesting to see how things shake out. Despite the piss poor economy, people still want to make and listen to music. The demand is there. If only we could figure out how all our broke asses can still eat and pay the rent. No answers here, unfortunately. Only questions.
P.S. I recently did an exensive interview with the Widest Smiling Faces which I will put on this blog as soon as I get a chance to edit. Stay tuned…
Note: Jennifer from Bandcamp just replied to this post, saying, “Just wanted to be sure you saw the update on our site – we took the suggestion from several artists to refresh free download credits every month, which seems to work for most bands who give their music for free on Bandcamp.” She also left a link explaining the policy in detail. (see below in comments)
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Tagged as Bandcamp, Pandora, The Venopian Solitude, thesixtyone, Widest Smiling Faces