flash vid sweetness

one way sweet flash video! the load time's a bit long but its worth the wait. oh, and good news: my spacebar has fixed itself and is no longer sticking like mad crazy. yay.

Videoing the Music

best music vid ever. done by an old acquintance of mine - Isaac Rentz. check it out. among other things, my stupid spacebar is about to make my head explode seeing as it has been sticking really badly lately. argh. I guess that what I get for drinking soda at my desk and then spilling it. what bugs me is that that happened like 2 months ago and has been fine until the other day. double argh. oh well.

An MTV Africa

hearing MTV's plan for the new channel they're creating to broadcast in Africa makes me sick. MTV and all its blatant hedonism and worship of luxury, is the last thing that continent needs.

Relevant Magazine has a great online article on it.

Follow-up

Letter to ‘Frontline’ in response to episode on the music industry. I think it pretty well spells out what we’ve talked about as a band about our philosophy of business.

Dear FRONTLINE,

'I felt that your program "The Way the Music Died" was a very good look at the way that major record labels do business today. However, I take issue at the scope of your broadcast. By focusing on the elements of the music industry that are in decline, you paint a picture which is not entirely indicative of the industry itself.

As a fan of what some term "jam" music, I follow bands such as Phish and Widespread Panic, who have developed large touring bases. From this, I have discovered dozens of bands who make their living under the radar of major labels and corporate radio. These are bands not supported by MTV, and yet through hard work, determination, and talent have managed to pack clubs and arenas and make quite a killing.

I feel that this sort of existence will become the norm for musicians, with touring revenues quickly outpacing record sales, until eventually CDs will become loss leaders, selling at a few bucks apiece. Recordings themselves will become mere advertising for bands outside the corporate system. When an artist comes to town, there will be several thousand people, who picked up the recordings for a dollar or two or even stole them off of the Internet, lined up to pay 30 dollars for a concert ticket, with most of that money going into the hands of the musicians who make the music rather than the stuffed shirts who sell it. In fact, Dave Matthews Band is already following this model, making much more on touring than they are making in recording royalties.'

John Emery
Memphis, Tennessee

music review

here's a link to one of the best explanations of why the music industry has killed good music and is pretty much overall evil. This was an episode of 'Frontline' a PBS supported show. They take an in depth look at the music industry and how it has made commercial music into a formula where as long as you input the right ingredients you'll always get a top-selling artist. argh. yeah, the music industry has just about killed good music, in my opinion.

one more thing...

check Jack's new vid too. its pretty tight. though very similar to Coldplay's 'the Scientist' (you know that one where it all plays backwards)

In Between Dreams

yeah, I've been having some weird ones lately...like rooming with 50 cent. that was interesting. weird. and just plain freaky. really, it was. but anyways, I digress...

if you haven't seen it, heard it, bought it, or smelled it you MUST go pick up a copy of Jack Johnson's new album, 'In Between Dreams!' it kicks some serious butt and is by far his best album to date. get it. now. RIGHT NOW. I don't care if its 1:30 in the morning. get it.

uh huh, yeah

some sweet sites:

typorganism.com - a cool site showcasing the usage of type with some cool flash applications

neat site giving a great, enjoyable tutorial on color and its usage in art and design

can't remember if I linked this one already or not, but I'll do it again anyway! its a great tech news site, with daily listing of links to anything and everything tech related, from articles on Microsoft's continuing take-over of the world to great deals on hardware and other great picks from sites across the web. digg.com

article on how Microsoft is going to "checkmate" its competitors by invading the consumer electronics market.

that's it for tonight.

oh, reminder that we're playing @ Cooper'stown this Friday. Whole show kicks off at 7pm, we're on at like 9-10ish. I'll be seeing you there.