As regular readers know, The Digital Music Weblog is retiring as of today. The blog will continue to exist as a searchable archive. Grant and Gordon, who have written so splendidly in this space, are staying in the network.

Whenever we make a change, there is some disappointment among readers, and sadness for everyone -- including those of us involved in decision-making. We take it all seriously; nothing about this is capricious. TDMW has lived close to our hearts, and especially close to mine.

This blog was my starting point at WIN (read this if you're interested). It was a little tough to let it go when I was hired by AOL, but Grant, Gordon (Tommy Perkins and Sharky Laguna before them) have done an amazing job carrying onward the blog's relentless examinations of the RIAA's colossal machinations and the opportunistic maneuvers of the indie music scene. And it's tough now to move the blog into retirement.

It's important to point out that a blog retirement is not a blog failure. Here at Weblogs, Inc. we are continually honing our network to be the best content engine for readers and bloggers both. In part, that means figuring out how to divide our resources that, sadly, are not infinite. We have changed tremendously in the last three years, expanding wildly at the start into a sort of bulk publishing model, then refining and contracting somewhat into a leaner machine. We have more bloggers than ever before, and fewer blogs than a year ago. That means a dazzling concentration of minds and voices in our chosen fields of publication. A good example is Grant Robertson's ferocious blogging at Download Squad, his new home.

I speak for everyone on the Weblogs, Inc. team when I give the greatest appreciation to our amazing bloggers, who wake up every single day thinking, "What will I dig up today?" Professional blogging is unlike any other freelance writing gig, in both its relentless schedule and editorial freedom. I am always proud of our team, and frequently awed.

Finally, thanks to everyone who took an interest in The Digital Music Weblog, both casual visitors and dedicated readers.

The Digital Music Weblog is retiring from active duty as of today. I'd like to say a huge note of thanks to everyone who has helped or contributed to this fantastic blog since its launch in 2004. TDMW has seen some brilliant bloggers and has been a launching pad for many among the ranks of Weblogs, Inc; I will always be proud to say I'm one of them.

TDMW may be retiring but, I will continue to write for other Weblogs, Inc sites. You can still read my work, along with a stable of other great bloggers, on Download Squad.

Thanks to everyone who made TDMW a great place to be! Some high-points on TDMW from our last year.

The Math Behind Weird Al's Raw iTunes Deal

Hands-off my Slingbox, my podcasts and my Tivo; The EFF's Gwen Hinze

Minor alternatives to major labels; a crash course in free music on-line

Debbie Foster to RIAA : Dude, where's my legal fees?

Watch out Mariah Carey, the diva days are coming to an end. According to an article in The Daily Express, cost conscious labels are starting to cut the cord on bratty divas and their expensive entourages. No surprise given the overall tightening of the purse strings, and its certainly encouraging to see labels wising up to the idea of running like a real business.

Glenn Coolfer points out the funniest bit or, if you're a shareholder, perhaps the saddest, "One of Warner Music's biggest mistakes last year was an album released by socialite Paris Hilton. It sold just 13,000 copies, a disaster made worse by the money spent on the heiress and her entourage. [...] she brought 14 people with her to the UK [...] A week's accommodation at the exclusive Metropolitan hotel on London's Park Lane came to around £160,000."

That's $24.28 per album sold for the hotel bill alone. Bombs like Paris get the royal treatment while hard-working bands on the lower rungs get the shaft. Something's gotta give; If you're making your living teasing Paris Hilton's hair on the rare occasion she appears live to do some off-key caterwauling, you might should polish your resume.

Right - even though I can't sing along to any of the lyrics, Sigur Ros tunes regularly feature on my iPod with their wonderfully atmospheric quality. Over the past year one track from Sigur Ros' 1999 has had a revival thanks to film making student Liron Damir who created this dark brooding video clip that has attracted a lot of attention on YouTube and throughout the blogosphere.

Sellaband, a unique crowd sourcing site which allows emerging independent artists to take seed money from fans until they amass enough capital to record a full professional studio album, has announced its second fan funded breakthrough.

Less than four months ago Jacob Kongaika, performing under the artist name Cubworld, decided to take a chance and upload his music on SellaBand. "I saw this as a long term plan, I was thinking more in the lines of 5 or 10 years, before I would have reached my recording budget", comments the artist. But soon after the first fans (Sellaband terms them, "Believers") bought Parts in his future recordings, things took a different turn for Cubworld. He became one of the leading artists on SellaBand and a mere 150 days after signing up, he had acquired the full $50,000. "The last 24 hours have been really mad", comments SellaBand Managing Director Johan Vosmeijer. "There were still 1,000 Parts left for Cubworld, which is a healthy $10,000, but they sold in less than 24 hours."

Check out music from Cubworld, and congratulations to Jacob!

See Also:
Musical IPO's? Sellaband offers fan financing a new twist

Indie rockers Silverchair achieved a fair bit of notoriety for themselves tagging along with the tail end of the grunge movement when still only in high school. These days things the lads are a little more melodic with Luv Your Life being one of their more mellow tracks. This video was directed by top animator and director Steven Scott and has a really wistful quality about it that's nicely in tune with the music and even though it's a few years old now is still a top clip.

Nope, it's not Tommy Lee vs. Neil Peart. It's not John Bonham vs Keith Moon. It's Buddy Rich vs. Animal. That's right. Animal. Elmo's whacked out black sheep uncle.


Buddy Rich is the obvious winner here. He's the greatest Jazz drummer who ever lived, able to bang out monster beats at a speed and precision that would tax even the most exacting of robot drummers from a creepy musical future. That being said and all things being equal (as equal as can be when one opponent is a Muppet), Animal gives it his best shot. Watch the video here.

Rumours are circulating that the Beatles and Apple have finally settled their long running feud and as a result that Beatles tracks will finally be available on iTunes. The members of the legendary 60s pop group had a long running trade mark dispute with Apple over the Apple trade mark - which the Beatles controlled in terms of the music industry - as a result of their Apple Recordings label.

Although the two companies had a agreement to allow their trade marks to co-exist, the issue came to a head as a result of Apple's enormous success with the iPod and iTunes, which reinvented the technology company as a heavyweight in the music world. As a result of the tensions the remaining members of the Beatles and Yoko Ono took Apple to court in London during 2006 but lost their case to challenge Apple's use of the trade mark in the music industry.

There were hints of a reconciliation at the iPhone launch last week which featured at least two references to the Beatles - so it would appear that the remaining members of the Beatles have now licked their wounds and bowed to the inevitable - giving permission for Beatles tracks to be sold on iTunes. I'm sure it won't hurt their already swollen hip pockets much either.

What happens when your label's advertising budget runs thin? Well, you can't purchase ads in major music magazines. What happens when you stop purchasing ads in major music magazines? They stop covering your releases*.

*if the magazine is Amplifier and the label is The Birdman Recording Group and, if this email exchange over at Idolator is the real deal.

When told that Birdman's ad budget was closer to what I'd find in my pocket than to what an ad exec would use to buy a new Porsche, Amplifier's director of advertising wrote back, " Bummer.....wish we could continue to support your artists, but I guess we can't. Best of luck."

When pressed further, he reportedly quipped, "Hey Sorry man.....my kids have to eat....if you're never going to advertise with us I can't justify the cost of covering your releases"

This is why music blogs will rule the world one day. Our publishing costs are miniscule, our circulation is great and, we'll still cover your artists even when times are thin (as long as they make us bob our heads.. and don't make our ears bleed).

See Also:
Music blogs a future payola target? No way!

Ok, we admit it, we were glued to the TV just like you last night, watching the part of American Idol which pays entertainment dividends like no other; The auditions.

Seattle didn't fail to bring memorable characters to light. There's the Taylor-Hicks-haired hair dresser, who freaked out the security guards by trying to give Simon a little pomade. The bleach blond, gold wrapped, mother accompanied novella writer who butchered "Don't Cha" just as much as anyone else. That girl who removed the gum from her mouth just long enough to prove she couldn't sing. And, who could forget the God Bless America singing Costello to that tiny little Abbot who said he's often compared to The Backstreet Boys and N'Sync?

Thanks to DeathbyCamera for their incredible work on a frighteningly thorough Myspace hunt for all your favorite also-rans, didn't make its and creepy nutjobs.

Next week, Idol hits the south and we can only assume I'll be reminded of exactly why I moved very, very far away.

We're two weeks into the new year and, as of yet, the major label system hasn't collapsed under the weight of overwhelming demand for DRM free mp3 distribution.

Pity, that. But we still have 50 weeks to go, and a pretty good collection of Mp3 positive signs. Here's a roundup of the Death to DRM press we've been reading.

• Our favorite major label bully is talking tough about his Apple re-negotiation. He must realize his biggest ace in the hole is telling Jobs that Universal is ready to drop DRM?
• PlaysForSure isn't dead, but I'd hate to be on the hook for its medical bills
• "For the past 5 years, INgrooves has been distributing content from our independent clients to MP3 download stores because we, and our clients, know that DRM only frustrates the end consumer. If a music buyer wants to steal music they simply will, DRM or not."
• "Under a new deal with SnoCap, ReverbNation.com users can now sell downloads through the site's DistroNow module. Under the arrangement, SNOCAP will handle the transaction with the consumer and the royalty payments to the digital rights holders."
• eMusic is the number 2 digital music retailer, directly behind Apple's iTunes Store

So, don't worry Mp3. Just like mom told us in high-school; When you grow up, they'll all realize just how cool you've always been, and then they'll want to hang out with you, really. Now, who's mommy's carrot muffin cutie pie? That's right mp3.. you are.

Amidst all the hype about the iPhone there have been a lot of articles written about the potential benefits of the iPhone and bucketloads of Apple hype being thrown into the ether. However, there are a stack of questions that remain to be answered about Steve Jobs' supposedly revolutionary new mobile device.

I read an excellent article today that doesn't actually provide any answers, but does have all of the questions - twenty of them in fact. UK Web site Digit just published a great article titled 'iPhone: 20 Things We Don't Know' which asks twenty big questions that are yet to be answered, including: 'How much will it cost to own an iPhone?', 'Will the iPhone scratch or peel?', 'Can you use the iPhone to make VOIP calls?' and 'Why is the iPhone Being Launched Without 3G Capability'?

It's an excellent article that cuts through the Apple hype and gets a lot of the key issues out into the open about this very expensive new product from the folks at Apple.

[Via Digit]

Two well known mixtape producers have been raided in Atlanta by police accompanied by RIAA jacketed quasi-agents. The agents confiscated boxes of CDs, production equipment and cars from the location, and scored a lead story on local news for themselves where they were quick to remind the public that raids on pirate mixtape producers often yield drug and gun arrests in addition to stopping piracy, just not this raid.

DJ produced mixtapes are a strange animal. Record companies often welcome and profit from the hype generated by mixtapes for upcoming artists, but are bothered by the competition mixtapes can provide once an artist is well established. Wikipedia explains, "The mixtape format is increasingly popular as a way of generating hype for hip hop artists. [...] Hip hop mixtapes are usually sold on the street or through independent record dealers or mail order, mainly relying on word of mouth to increase the artist's street credibility. An unsigned artist might release several mixtapes to generate buzz, leading to interest from record labels, while a signed artist may release a mixtape to promote a future studio album."

The two arrested suspects, DJ Drama and Don Canon have yet to be officially charged, but it looks like their successful production house is out of commission. Drama and Canon claim to be responsible for breakaway success by Hip-Hop artists such as T.I.

You can watch the (heavily biased and misleading) news footage from Atlanta's Fox 5 here. If you're looking for an informed look at the balance between piracy and promotion that exists in the mixtape culture, the documentary Mixtape, Inc. is worth the watch.

[via Nah Right]

The IFPI has released figures showing that digital music sales worldwide doubled in 2006, climbing to 10 per cent of the entire market for music worldwide, with a value of around US$2 million. The figures were released by the industry trade body in its 2007 Digital Music Report, which presents a rosy outlook for digital sales in the coming three years, such that digital music sales will reach a quarter of total earnings by 2010.

Despite the good news for the industry the IFPI still isn't satisfied though - they're still looking for the so-called 'holy grail' an increase in digital music sales equivalent to the reduction in CD sales. IFPI Chairman John Kennedy had a bad case of sour grapes when he said that he wouldn't be happy until the digital music sales exceeded the drop in CD sales.

Given that the music industry has been suffering from declining CD sales for most of this decade and the industry has been ruthlessly cutting costs as a result so to me Kennedy's statements sound a bit cynical. The majors have been rationalizing their businesses for many years now in response to competition from DVDs, video games and pirated music so I'd expect that increases in digital revenues should be a boon. Maybe it's time to for the IFPI to stop crying wolf and start thinking about better methods of delivering music that consumers will actually want to use.

According to the IFPI's "Digital Music Report 2007", your residential ISP is the their next front in the war on piracy.

The report spells out in pretty stark language exactly what the IFPI expects from the ISP who's services you pay for, "We should not be doing this job alone. With cooperation from ISPs we could make huge strides in tackling internet piracy globally. It is very unfortunate that it seems to need pressure from governments or even action in the courts to achieve this, but as an industry we are determined to see this campaign through to the end." (emphasis added)

It's unclear exactly what the IFPI wants ISPs to do but, it is pretty clear that they want it done now. With Bittorrent carrying more and more legal content every day, blocking a specific protocol or port is a non-starter. The next logical request would be that ISPs take up the business of data monitoring, inspecting what traverses their network and playing Big Brother by informing the IFPI, RIAA or law enforcement of what you're downloading at any given time.

Will 2007 be the year of the ISP nanny-state?