| The music business is like a school where big boys come and take your candy away. No other business in the world gets away with stealing like the music business—apart from banking. |
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Afghan pop singer Aryana Sayeed in Kabul, July 7, 2013.
(Massoud Hossaini/AFP/Getty Images)
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“The music business is like a school where big boys come and take your candy away. No other business in the world gets away with stealing like the music business—apart from banking.”
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'Moon' Shot
Indie rock Twitter setting itself on fire over a 6.0 record review in PITCHFORK isn't a new phenomenon—critics will critic and stans will stan—but Wednesday's three-alarm blaze over the CONDÉ NAST site's review of FOXING's fourth album, DRAW DOWN THE MOON, was of special interest because of the involvement of the St. Louis band's manager, who Tuesday night was publicly begging Pitchfork for a review of the two-week-old album and Wednesday morning was declaring himself "done with virtually all music press" after reading "the most idiotic and objectively wrong review I've read in years." Careful what you wish for, JOSEPH MARRO. The manager, who deleted that second tweet after it started attracting subtweets and shade from all corners of indie rock social media, was joined in his anger by a small army of emo fans, who accused Pitchfork's SHAAD D'SOUZA of writing about the album he wished Foxing had made instead of the one it did make, which D'Souza described as an errant attempt to revive "early-to-mid-2010s" "earnest, urbane" indie rock festival music. (If you need time to process what this particular revival will mean for you, dear reader, go ahead. I can wait.) This is a not uncommon criticism of music criticism, and it often has merit. But D'Souza's review isn't deserving of it. It's thoughtful and well written, it puts the album in the context of the band's career and the current rock universe, and it has a clear point of view. It's the notes of a disappointed fan. You can acknowledge all of that whether you agree or disagree with it. (It also has the decimal-pointed numerical score that Pitchfork is famous for and that you can't blame the writer for and which has been debated ad nauseam over the decades; I'll spare you any more of that.)
Reviews matter, and have always mattered, to serious music fans. On a superficial level, they can provide a quick guide to what might, and might not, be worth your listening time. On a deeper level, a smart review can sharpen your ears and help you hear a piece of music in a way you might not otherwise hear it, give you new ways to think about it, add context and details, or provide an almost unrelated, self-contained entertainment of its own, in the way any piece of good writing can. Criticism is an essential part of the music ecosystem. There's a tremendous amount of dreck out there, and some meanness too, but the good stuff is worth fighting for. The artform has been under assault for several years by forces including shrinking editorial budgets, the distractions of YOUTUBE and SPOTIFY, and the devaluing of music itself. There will always be angry or frustrated artists, managers and publicists; that's part of the ecosystem, too. But I'd like to think they, even in their most frustrated moments, are readers, too. I know Foxing lead singer CONOR MURPHY is, because he helped shut down the debate with a note on the band's official Twitter account that started, "Okay so a bad review. This happens." Murphy went on: "At the end of the day, pitchfork didn't love the album and that's okay... I for one am going to enjoy the fact that people cared enough to write a review of a thing I was a part of making." Win-win. Or, if you will, win-lose-win.
And now you're going to go check out the album yourself, aren't you?
Plus Also Too
Add LANA DEL REY to the list of artists just saying no to future posthumous album releases. A day after ANDERSON .PAAK posted a photo of an arm tattoo requesting no "posthumous albums or songs with my names attached," Del Rey re-posted .Paak's arm on her Instagram with the note "it's in my will but it's also on his tattoo"... Add UNITEDMASTERS to the list of record company alternatives that are offering advances to some artists—up to $1 million—and that have hit on the novel idea of paying artists royalties almost immediately instead of making them wait months. The latter program, part of a partnership with a company called PAPERCHAIN, is in essence an advance too, as Paperchain is using algorithms to calculate what it *thinks* an artist's royalties will be and paying that amount in real time, which, if I'm reading this correctly, is basically using the predicted royalties as an advance against the actual royalties. Which seems like a damn good use of both advances and algorithms... SPOTIFY expands access to its "Music + Talk" format.
Rest in Peace
Singer/songwriter (and Disney voice actor) CAROLINE PEYTON.
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| Matty Karas (@troubledoll), curator |
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WHYY |
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| The history of electronic music is inside a warehouse in Harleysville, Pa |
| by Peter Crimmins |
| A collector of a massive collection of synthesizers and vintage rock gear in Harleysville, Pa., wants to tell the story of rock and roll, one Moog at a time. |
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Billboard |
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| How Risky Are Concerts? We Asked an Infectious Disease Expert |
| by Steve Knopper |
| Are concerts safe for vaccinated people, or not? Infectious disease expert Dr. Amesh A. Adalja provides context on a complex situation gripping the live music industry. |
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Vulture |
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| R. Kelly Used ‘Every Trick in the Predator’s Handbook,’ Prosecutors Say at Trial |
| by Victoria Bekiempis |
| Opening arguments have begun. |
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The New York Times |
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| With R. Kelly on Trial, What Has Become of His Music? |
| by Joe Coscarelli and Ben Sisario |
| The R&B superstar may have experienced a “social death,” with his music largely disappearing in public. But streaming data tells a more complicated story. |
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The New Yorker |
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| The Spaced-Out Jazz of Sam Gendel and Sam Wilkes |
| by Kelefa Sanneh |
| Halfway through "Malcolm & Marie," a black-and-white Netflix drama that was shot during the pandemic, the dialogue pauses-the film consists of almost nothing but dialogue-so that viewers can listen to some music. |
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The Guardian |
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| ‘Rawness, freedom, experimentation’: the Brit jazz boom of the 60s and 70s |
| by Andrew Male |
| Swinging London’s cultural melting pot was channelled into vibrant jazz by John Surman, Alan Skidmore and others - and it has inspired the resurgent scene of today. |
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Money 4 Nothing |
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| How MTV Changed the World |
| by Saxon Baird and Sam Backer |
| MTV had a remarkably unheralded 40th anniversary this month. While Music Television (still the channel’s official name) has been out of music videos for decades, it was a truly transformative force for a long struggling record industry back in the early 80s. |
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SPIN |
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| Meet Jennifer Decilveo, the Secret Weapon Behind Miley Cyrus, Demi Lovato and MARINA |
| by Ilana Kaplan |
| The ex-finance wizard is responsible for some of your favorite pop stars’ hits. |
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Billboard |
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| Can Holly+ Solve the Problem of Deepfake Vocals? |
| by Kristin Robinson |
| Experimental musician Holly Herndon has created a cloud-based AI voice instrument called Holly+ that addresses deepfake issues with ownership and monetization. |
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The New York Times |
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| RETRO READ: Aryana Saeed, Afghan Pop Star, Won’t Let Mullahs Stop the Show |
| by Rod Nordland and Fatima Faizi |
| The Afghan singer and pop star Aryana Saeed, as famous here for her curve-hugging costumes as she is for her feminist lyrics, can sell out any stadium in Afghanistan, and in many other countries as well. When it comes to her home country, though, that does not necessarily mean she can perform in them. |
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Literary Hub |
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| One in a Million: Where Were You When You Heard that Aaliyah Died? |
| by Kathy Iandoli |
| Kathy Iandoli on the impact of generational celebrity deaths. |
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Los Angeles Times |
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| Chris and Rich Robinson swore never to speak again. But for the Black Crowes, rock heals all wounds |
| by Mikael Wood |
| A tour celebrating the 30th anniversary of "Shake Your Money Maker" marks Chris Robinson’s reconciliation with his younger brother, guitarist Rich Robinson, with whom Chris formed the band near Atlanta in the mid-1980s — and with whom he fought explosively over money and creative control. |
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The Guardian |
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| ‘It’s a tastemaker’: how 'Love Island' launches musicians’ careers |
| by Rachel Hall |
| With its millions of emotionally charged young viewers, the reality show’s playlists are highly influential. |
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Music Business Worldwide |
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| UnitedMasters is now offering $1m advances to indie artists, plus real-time streaming royalty pay-outs |
| by Tim Ingham |
| Steve Stoute's company teams with beatBread and Paperchain to up its game in the world of financial tools. |
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Complex |
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| How Boldy James and the Alchemist Became a Dream Team |
| by Will Schube |
| Together, Boldy James and the Alchemist are an ultimate rap duo. After dropping their ‘Bo Jackson,’ they sit for an interview full of sports references. |
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Loud: The History of Reggaeton |
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| Loud: 3. The Noise |
| by Ivy Queen |
| On the edge of Viejo San Juan, PR in 1991 there was a tiny night club. The Noise was DJ Negro's place, where the "underground "movement was born, and where Ivy Queen got her big break. The Noise was a sweaty rap battle mixed with a rave - to the kids from the hood who flocked there every weekend, it was the coolest party in the world. |
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NPR Music |
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| The Isley Brothers: Tiny Desk (Home) Concert |
| by Bobby Carter and The Isley Brothers |
| Ronald and Ernie Isley broadcast from their St. Louis, Mo. studio to share four classics from the Isley Brothers' legendary catalog. |
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i-D Magazine |
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| People thought these 90s and 00s virtual idols would take over the world |
| by Frankie Dunn |
| Before Hatsune Miku and aespa, a slew of cyber creations like Kyoko Date, E-Cyas and T-Babe came for the crowns of IRL stars. |
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Austin Chronicle |
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| Delta Variant Leaves Venues Between a Rock and the Governor's Orders |
| by Rachel Rascoe |
| "As far as any specific advice, venues should consult with their individual legal reps to interpret how the above orders may or may not affect their businesses." |
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Twenty Thousand Hertz |
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| Twenty Thousand Hertz: Domestic Symphony |
| by Dallas Taylor, Audrey Arbeeny and Poppy Szkiler |
| Not long ago, our home appliances made nothing but abrasive beeps and harsh buzzes. In recent years though, these devices have started to chirp and sing with carefully designed tones and melodies. But crafting the "perfect" device sound takes skill, patience, and a lot of trial and error. |
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| Music of the day |
| "Dar Qalb-e Kabul" |
| Aryana Sayeed |
| From the Afghan TV show "Superstar," 2021. |
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YouTube |
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From the Afghan TV show "Superstar," 2021.
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| Music | Media | Sports | Fashion | Tech |
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“REDEF is dedicated to my mother, who nurtured and encouraged my interest in
everything and slightly regrets the day she taught me to always ask ‘why?’” |
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| Jason Hirschhorn |
| CEO & Chief Curator |
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