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CD sales rocket after Live 8 |
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 The Live 8 concerts held at the weekend were remarkable for many things: Pink Floyd appeared on stage and didn't stab each other in the eyes; Paul McCartney was wheeled out of retirement yet again to deliver a cheery scouse grin and hoist his thumbs aloft; and, for the first time in living memory, Bob Geldof completely forgot to say "fook" live on TV.
But most remarkable of all was the phenomenal increase in album sales of the acts that appeared – apart from basket case Pete Docherty, whose old band actually saw sales drop. UK music retailer HMV reports that newly-reunited Pink Floyd's 'Best of' album was flying off the shelves with sales up an astonishing 1,343% and veteran rockers The Who, or at least the half still living, were rewarded with a more modest leap in sales of 863%. Those sales volumes for Live 8 acts in full: 1 Pink Floyd - Echoes: The Best of Pink Floyd - 1343%
2 The Who - Then and Now - 863%
3 Annie Lennox - Eurythmics Greatest Hits - 500%
4 Dido - Life For Rent - 412%
5 Razorlight - Up All Night - 335%
6 Robbie Williams - Greatest Hits - 320%
7 Joss Stone - Mind, Body and Soul - 309%
8 Sting - The Very Best of Sting & The Police - 300%
9 Travis - Singles - 268%
10 Madonna - Immaculate Collection - 200% Full Article |
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Bursting the Eighties-Nostalgia Bubble! |
 The hugely successful website RememberTheEighties.com - dedicated to reporting on the ongoing careers of the artists who shaped the eighties - has launched its own record label, THIS IS NOT RETRO. The label will echo the aims of the website and specialise in releasing NEW material from the bands and artists who helped define the eighties-era.
The first album release, entitled 'This Is Not Retro - The 80s Up To Date', is a nineteen-track compilation of new and recent material - including SEVEN tracks commercially available for the first time - from nineteen of the eighties’ most enduring acts, and will be released on 4th July 2005.
As a special thank you to visitors to RememberTheEighties.com THIS IS NOT RETRO will be producing a limited edition of the album which will feature uniquely personalised album artwork for anyone pre-ordering a copy of the CD. Personalised copies will be available for pre-order for a 2 week period from 15th June 2005 - full details will be on the website at www.remembertheeighties.com.
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More music consumers using legal downloads |
 Around 35% of music consumers now download tracks legally via the Internet and the percentage will soon pass the 40% who have pirated music, according to a new survey released Monday by Entertainment Media Research.
The online research company used data collected from 4000 music consumers to compile the 2006 Digital Music Survey in association with media law firm Olswang.
Fear of prosecution, Internet viruses, and inferior quality were cited as the main deterrents against illegal downloading, the report said. Nearly two-thirds of music consumers said immediate availability was the key reason for buying tracks online.
"The findings indicate that the music industry is approaching a strategic milestone with the population of legal downloaders close to exceeding that of pirates," Entertainment Media Research chief executive Russell Hart said.
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The War Against Silence: Warnings and Promises |
Just had to share this brilliant letter to the major labels:
"I write today in what began, at least, as a conflicted mixture of resignation and alarm. Probably you do not recognize my name, but it's both embossed and encoded on my credit card, so possibly you should. I have been one of the staunchest defenders of your copyrights ever since the virtualization of music distribution began to challenge them, and I've been one of your most dedicated personal patrons since I was old enough to spend my own money. Originally I was a customer of necessity, of course, but I'm a computer and internet professional for a living, and have been fully aware of every iteration of the technical possibilities for acquiring music without paying for it. And yet, I have continued to pay. In a single year, not too long ago, I bought 1000 CDs, and most of them were yours. I continue to pay still. I bought two CDs this week, and will almost certainly buy more than 100 over the course of this calendar year. I have paid for legal downloads, as well. I have stubbornly forgiven you your trespasses against everyone you nominally serve, and kept supporting the idea of music as a Big Business.
But I have also now started stealing your music. I haven't stolen much, but I'm sure you will agree that the moral issue is not merely one of quantity. I have been one of the last independent apologists for a moral kernel, elusive now to perhaps the point of imagination, in your corrupt and desperate retreat, but now even I have given up. I still buy, but now I also steal. You have forfeited your right to my loyalty."
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Come On Music Biz, Embrace P2P |
The report said a "re-evaluation" of music distribution needs to happen to achieve a balance between consumers' desire to access digital music and the industry's copyright protection concerns. "Online technologies could evolve in a manner in which unauthorized use of copyright works are finally transformed into legitimate businesses," said Sacha Wunsch-Vincent, an OECD economist and one of the report's authors. The report said it is difficult to establish a causal connection between the rise of file sharing and a drop in music sales. While the music industry's revenues fell 20 percent from 1999 to 2003, other factors, such as illegal CD copying, might have played a role in the decline, the OECD said."
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Ian McNabb's Before All of This Reviewed! |
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 "Ian McNabb, one time front man of the Icicle Works, has just celebrated the second top 40 hit of a career of over 20 years, with 'Let The Young Girl Do What She Wants'. While the single’s success is down more to fan power than a sudden connection with the record buying public, it does provide Ian with a rare opportunity – airplay, and possibly a bit of press that has been sadly lacking of late. And so we have the new album 'Before All Of This', hoping to capitalise on this new found success. But can it hope to complete in an arena where Crazy Frog can get to number one?
I’ve been a fan of Ian McNabb’s work since the eighties, and while I admit to being somewhat biased, this is some of his best work. Much of his output has taken a while to love, and the intricate solos and self-indulgent lyrics of much of the previous work were never likely to expand his fan-base. This, however, is clearly a compromise, an effort to widen the audience beyond the die-hard fans who are looking for Neil Young with a Scouse accent. The songs are immediate, and they’re very radio-friendly. There are a good 5 or 6 songs on here which, if I’d heard them on the radio, I’d have listened intently for the artist details in an effort to find out more, and that’s always a good sign. Whether the radio stations in the UK give the audience the chance to hear these tracks is yet to be seen – if not, it’s their loss, as this is a fantastic album. Reviewed By Sandy Matthews
Remember the Eighties |
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DualDisc has glitches and converts! |
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 DualDisc, the hot-selling new music product that combines a CD and a DVD on one disc, carries some ominous fine print. On each DualDisc package comes the disclaimer that the audio side of the disc does not conform to CD specifications and may not play on all DVD and CD players.
Even more troubling are the disclaimers from the manufacturers of CD and DVD playback devices. Most warn that DualDiscs may not play on their equipment, particularly slot-in devices where you insert a disc and the machine grabs and pulls it in. Some warn that the DualDiscs could get stuck or scratched. JVC and Onkyo flatly tell their customers not to use DualDisc products until further testing can be done.
Yet consumers appear to be ignoring the dire warnings and to date have reported relatively few problems to retailers and DualDisc manufacturers. Music industry officials say more than 2 million DualDiscs have already been purchased, and predict sales will accelerate in the wake of successful DualDisc-only releases by such big-name artists as Bruce Springsteen and Rob Thomas. Full Story |
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Project Pitchfork: Kaskade |
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 Project Pitchfork have released the title of their new album: KASKADE. The 10th studio album by Project Pitchfork will be released on May 30, 2005 (CD Version). A week prior to the official release, the album is planned to be available through the label owned MP3 downloadshop. On June 6, 2005, the limited vinyl-edition will be released.
The cult American label Metropolis records has licenced the release of the new Project Pitchfork album "Kaskade" in North America (including Canada). The release in North America will be on July 12, 2005.
Beside the studio album, the band will also be doing a film score for a documentary film by the outstanding Russian producer Mikael Ignashov. Mikael Ignashov met the band at the December show in Moscow, and was very impressed with them.
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