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Tag: Record Labels

  • Counting Crows Releases Album Sampler On BitTorrent

    I don’t really listen to a lot of rock music anymore these days. I’m more of an electronic fan, but I do remember Counting Crows from back in the day with that crazy CG rabbit dancing around a lady in her skivvies. It turns out that the band has put out a new album and they’re turning towards a radical promotion tool to get the word out – BitTorrent.

    If the band was still with a traditional label, they wouldn’t be allowed to do such a thing. The RIAA still thinks that BitTorrent does nothing but facilitate piracy. Counting Crows frontman Adam Duritz told TorrentFreak that BitTorrent is the new radio. In that spirit, the band has teamed up with BitTorrent Inc to release a sampler with four songs for free to their fans.

    It isn’t a weak release either. The download comes with high-resolution album artwork and liner notes from Duritz himself. It’s the kind of digital release that you see from the likes of iTunes Special Edition albums that usually cost $5 to $10 more than the regular album.

    Duritz didn’t just stumble upon the idea of giving away music for free to drum up support for an album. He told TorrentFreak that he has been a longtime proponent of giving away music. He says that you just can’t ignore the 150 million people who actively use BitTorrent. He explains his thinking while taking a shot at the recording industry:

    “I can dwell on the negatives, but I don’t want to miss out on the fact that there’s 150 million people who I can give songs to. You either treat it as just a money drain, like the record companies do. Or you can treat it as it actually is, which is a conduit, meaning it runs both ways. You can either cry about it or make use of it. File-sharing is no different from the rest of the Internet, it is a tool that connects the entire world.”

    He goes on to say that the Internet has liberalized music. According to Duritz, the record labels have never been good for bands. Only the big stars got a contract, and even then, they only saw 20 percent of the revenue after the labels took their cut.

    BitTorrent may be the new radio, but it’s more than just that according to Duritz. Radio implies that the consumer has no control over the content they listen to. It’s all up to what the record industry wants you to hear. With BitTorrent, the consumer has control over what they like and don’t like.

    He finished up by saying that giving away the songs for free will draw people to the record, which will then draw people to the concerts. That’s all they can ask for. He says that it’s no small thing when the Internet has enabled him to give something to so many people.

    This isn’t the first time that a major artist has come out in support of BitTorrent and file-sharing as the new form of radio. Music legend Neil Young came out in January saying that piracy was just the new way for music to be shared among the masses. Unlike Young, however, Duritz doesn’t see a future for record labels.

    Regardless, it’s nice to see artists being proactive in regards to the Internet and what it can do for artists. I’m not afraid to admit that I have downloaded music before to try it out. If I liked it, I went out and bought it. My CD collection is a testament to that. If I didn’t like it, I just deleted it. Bad music isn’t even worth keeping on your hard drive.

    To download the new Counting Crows sampler, you can do so here.

  • Elvis Costello Thinks His New Box Set Costs Too Much, Would Rather You Download It

    The Return of the Spectacular Spinning Songbook is a limited edition, 3-disc box set that comes complete with autographed memorabilia, rare photos, posters and more. The content was recorded during a two-night show in 2011 and includes some of the great tracks “Everyday I Write The Book” and “Watching The Detectives.” It will be released on December 6th and would make a wonderful present for your music-loving family member this holiday season.

    But Elvis Costello doesn’t want you to buy it.

    A post has appeared on the legendary artist’s official site entitled “Steal This Record.” The basic message of the plea to fans is a.) our record label priced the box set way too high, b.) you should spend your money on Louis Armstrong instead, and c.) you should probably just download it anyways.

    It’s being priced at $262.46, although you can pre-order it from Amazon for a slightly less expensive $202.64.

    From the post:

    The live recording finds the Imposters in rare form, while the accompanying motion picture blueprints the wilder possibilities of the show, as it made its acclaimed progress across the United States throughout the year.

    Unfortunately, we at www.elviscostello.com find ourselves unable to recommend this lovely item to you as the price appears to be either a misprint or a satire.

    All our attempts to have this number revised have been fruitless but rather than detain you with tedious arguments about morality, panache and book-keeping – when there are really bigger fish to filet these days – we are taking the following unusual step.

    What do they suggest? First, they say that if you’re going to spend money, you should probably do it on the ten-disc box set “Ambassador to Jazz,” from the great Louis Armstrong.

    They also suggest that you could wait until they release the separate parts of the box set – the CD, DVD and vinyl – for a more reasonable price next year. And then there’s the other option, the one referenced in the post’s title:

    If on the other hand you should still want to hear and view the component parts of the above mentioned elaborate hoax, then those items will be available separately at a more affordable price in the New Year, assuming that you have not already obtained them by more unconventional means.

    So there you have it. Elvis Costello and the Imposters think that you are being overcharged for their stuff and would prefer that you download it.

    With all of the talk about the pending SOPA and PIPA legislation, and how it relates to piracy and internet freedoms, this little anecdote it just something to remember when you hear the RIAA push their support for the bills.

    On that note, let’s check out Mr. Costello in the early ’80s:

    [Hat Tip to Boing Boing]
    [Image Courtesy elviscostello.com]

  • Google Music Store To Snag Universal Tracks

    With the launch of the new Google Music Store fast approaching, it looks like Google is close to inking another record label deal to populate the new service.

    According to a Bloomberg report, Google is very close to an agreement with Universal Music Group that would allow Google to sell their artists’ music in their new download store. When the Google Music Store was hinted at back in October, the sources said that 4th-largest record label EMI had already signed on. That secured artists like Coldplay, Pink Floyd, Katy Perry and (most of) Radiohead for the Google Music Store.

    Making a deal with Universal would be a much bigger content grab than EMI – since they are the largest record label in the American music industry. Coming along with Universal would be artists like Lady Gaga, Lil Wayne, Eminem, Rihanna, and Taylor Swift.

    The report says that the Google/Universal deal could be finalized as early as Wednesday, November 16th. That date coincides with a Google event in Los Angeles where it’s highly speculated that Google will unveil the new Music Store. Invitations to the event were sent out last Friday on 11/11/11 by “Nigel Tufnel.” The invitations simply said “These Go To Eleven.”

    The Google Music Store will work hand in hand with Google Music Beta, allowing for purchased songs to be stored in the cloud and accessed from any enabled device. There have been rumors that the Music Store will be integrated into Google+, allowing users to share songs with friends and preview tracks before purchasing – rumors that this Bloomberg report corroborates.

    Google Music Beta launched as a simple cloud storage service without any sort of music downloading functionality due to the inability of Google and the record labels to work out deals. Since Beta’s launch, the launch of a Music Store seemed inevitable, but the specific “when” and “with what music” questions are finally being answered.

    Apparently, Google is still unable to work things out with Sony and Warner Music Group, the second and third largest labels.

    Last week, deals were reached to break EMI Group in two, and those separate parts be sold to Universal and Sony. According to the WSJ, EMI’s record-music unit will go to Universal and its Music Publishing will so to Sony.

    Hopefully we get more details at the Google event tomorrow. If you’re impatient, however, you can check out these supposed leaked images of the Music Store via the Android Market.