You Know, Even Michael Hutchence (R.I.P) Might Have Approved...

Maybe.

I'm talking about the recent re-launching of a corporate "brand name" (INXS), via a reality/talent search show, relentless promotion and a much-hyped, radio-friendly new CD release. Even the name is clever - "Switch" - apparently, either the lead singer, or your allegience to the old one.

I confess, when I first heard about "RockStar/INXS", I dismissed the program as yet another blatant cash-grab not worthy of my attention. Imagine my surprise then, to discover months later that the "winner" of that particular talent search was actually an accomplished singer/songwriter by the name of J.D. Fortune.

Good name, too. The initals "J.D." conjure up the spectre of juvenile delinquent (made all the more poignant if his story of sleeping on the streets has any validity), while "Fortune" sums up his fortunate life until this point. The fact he actually possesses a voice worth hearing, not to mention being able to completely charm on his own mertits, elevates him beyond those that have one but not the other. He is thoroughly engaging, make no mistake.

I have long-admired INXS, and was saddened (although I understood) the suicide of Michael Hutchence, but I always felt the group should have "died" when he did. Just as I felt when Jim Morrison was no longer a part of The Doors, or Jerry Garcia exited the Grateful Dead. Although... sometimes the remaining musicians demand to be heard.

< ... this part could be an open letter to the Music Industry... >

Thanks to MuchMusic (the Canadian equivalent, although it surpasses the original, of MTV), I was able to watch Michael Hutchence/INXS-mkII - a.k.a. J.D. Fortune - in action. He's good. His live rendition of "Pretty Vegas" made me want to hear more - before I committed cash to a purchase based on one song - which I did (hear), thanks to the internet. The *copy* I heard convinced me to pay more than just attention to these artists, and maybe obtain the original recording.

Gee - isn't this the way things are supposed to work?
I am a consumer - woo me.
Don't coerce me.

Sure, I'm jaded. You've exploited my fan-devotion shamelessly in the past, and sold me the same product in many different multi-coloured format packages continuously over the years... and I never complained. At least not out loud. Did you mistake my silence for quiet acquiesence to your business practices? Hey, when you're the only game in town... you can pick the players, right?

I like the "new" INXS cd ("Switch") - from what I've heard... maybe even enough to buy it. That, really, should be the best you could hope for. Branding me a criminal because I was interested in hearing more before I become a potential customer surely runs contrary to effective marketing techniques.
< ... end... >

Does the Music Industry "get it"?
No, they never have.
Yet... they've managed to survive despite all logic to the contrary.

- Loco -
(Now Playing: Like It Or Not - INXS)

Incense & Peppermints... and Green Tambourines

With the continuing onslaught of the Copyright Cartel intent upon suing or harassing their customer base into oblivion, it occurs to me that, once again they are completely missing the larger, long-range picture. As I said during the height of the original (free) Napster, file-sharing could be the greatest promotional tool ever devised if the RIAA would just embrace it and learn to benefit from the burgeoning fan base being created.

In light of the recent radio payola scandals wherein promotion cost them money, it's a mystery why the record labels would shun the free publicity afforded by P2P networks. For every perceived loss of revenue from a download, I would suggest that there are an equal or greater number of downloads that result in actual sales - either on-line or at street level. Many people have become life-long fans (and customers) of an artist they "heard somewhere" - radio, television, at a friends, from the public library, a mix tape or a custom burned cd. If they're interested enough to want to "own" the music, they will buy. Forcing them to do so at virtual gunpoint has never been an acceptable tactic.

It also appears that the concept of "art" as a luxury - albeit a desirable one - no one ever really needs to purchase (as it's widely available for free), has been perverted by the greed-fuelled copyright frenzy currently underway. At this rate, it shouldn't be long before Public Domain is completely erased from our lexicon. One need look no further than the Sonny Bono Copyright Extension Act, and similar Mickey Mouse legislation to understand where all this is headed.

I can recall the first music I heard on the radio which I just had to purchase the 45 RPM of - which later led to my buying the album, then cassette and finally the compact disc versions. Some of the material that I would buy if it were available, I'm only able to hear via peer-to-peer networks. It's a bit presumptuous of the recording industry to claim a "lost sale" when the product they control is out-of-print and locked away in a vault somewhere. The alternative - DRM-crippled digital facsimiles of the more desirable, tangible goods - is a forced compromise I refuse to agree to.

There are also plenty of songs I've heard in my lifetime that I would never pay for under any circumstances, and just as many that have resulted in the expenditure of my discretionary income. Along the way, I became an avid collector and have spent a considerable sum over the years and through numerous media format changes. Penalizing me for my love of music is rather like throwing the junkie in jail while the pusher goes free.

True, large scale for-profit "piracy", as in counterfeit operations that take advantage of the consumer, does present a serious threat to the bottom line of any manufacturing concern. However, to equate music fans who do not profit from sharing tunes with those who actually break existing copyright infringement laws - key words being for profit - is quite simply wrong.

It seems the Culture Industry has lost sight of the importance of customer goodwill in the overall scheme of successful marketing. Threats, intimidation, barely disguised extortion (as in the price fixing scandal) and this assault on "fair use" is anything but endearing.

I still buy music, and movies, but only on the secondary market since I refuse to support any business that treats me with such disdain. I could just as easily accuse them of being pirates by the manner in which they take advantage of those artists under contract (read: indentured servitude), but really, what does name-calling achieve? Let's just say any distrust between us is mutual.

Where will this all end? Short of a complete reversal of tact on the part of the Copyright Cartel, expect the consumer to be the ultimate loser in this power struggle. So far, the odds appear stacked against us.

Incense & Peppermints
lyrics - Strawberry Alarm Clock

Good sense, innocence, cripplin' and kind
Dead kings, many things I can't define
Oh Cajun spice, sweats and blushers your mind
Incense and peppermints, the colour of thyme

Who cares what games we choose?
Little to win, but nothing to lose

Incense and peppermints, meaningless nouns
Turn on, tune in, turn your eyes around
Look at yourself, look at yourself
Yeah yeah
Look at yourself, look at yourself
Yeah, yeah
Yeah, yeah

Tune-a by the cockeyed world in two
Throw your pride to one side, it's the least you can do
Beatniks and politics, nothing is new
A yardstick for lunatics, one point of view

Who cares what games we choose
Little to win, but nothing to lose

Incense, peppermints, incense, peppermints

Sha la la, Sha la la...
(copyrighted)

- Loco -
(Now Playing: Tomorrow - Strawberry Alarm Clock)

Now Playing: Where Did Our Love Go - The Supremes

Of late, my Inbox has been full to overflowing with the usual newsletters (tech and entertainment), google-alerts (concerning P2P), blogs (they're everywhere!) and music-related publications (what is the Industry up to now - besides no good?) but a single recurring theme runs through the gamut of information that flickers briefly on my screen before disappearing in a flash of pixels.
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The "big story", as you may already know, is the nefarious under-handling dealing by The Sony Corporation with the inclusion of a Root Kit on COPY/CONTENT PROTECTED crippled Compact Discs (although I'm sure Philips, the co-creator of the format, would maintain their argument from as far back as 2002 that legally these cannot be called a "CD".)

As has been pointed out elsewhere , this Grand Inquisition by the RIAA against legitimate customers/consumers of the "product" penalizes the wrong party. Those who should be rightfully prosecuted under existing laws for large scale, for-profit piracy will always find a way to defeat any DRM restrictions and continue to counterfeit in a manner that measurably affects the bottom line of the copyright holder. Fans swapping tunes for free are very likely to actually buy the real deal when it comes to music they love enough to want to own, and thus affect the bottom line in a measurably positive manner.

For the hapless home user (and I'm sure you know the type) for whom e-mail is a challenge, the severity of the damage done to their computer simply because they wanted to listen to the latest Sony CCP disc - purchased! - is unforgiveable. If your treat your suc... err, customers as pirates before they've even entertained the idea, it should come as no surprise that's exactly what they will become.

You can follow along at home by visiting the sysinternals blogsite, where Mark Russinovich first broke the story on what's becoming known (in LocoWorld) as The SONY Rootkit Debacle, in case there is some question as to the appallingly sloppy - and dangerous - code supplied by the First 4 Internet company. Those unfortunate enough to have (unwittingly) allowed this malicious bit of software to invade their machines are forced to jump through an amazing number of hoops in order to rid themselves of the infection.

The response from Sony, from a Public Relations standpoint, has been disastrous to say the least. Fans, at least the tech-savvy ones, are fuming... and I'd suggest they'll think twice about buying anything with the new four-letter word masquerading as a "brand name". That will be deleterious to all divisions of the Sony Conglomerate. I'm reminded of the Black Knight sketch in Monty Python's Holy Grail (terrific movie, and freely available to preview courtesy of the net.)

Once you've abused the trust of a customer, it's virtually impossible to get it back. When it comes to the proprietary holy grail, you'd think some lessons had been learned from the betamax, MiniDisc, ATRAC fiascos... but apparently, no.

Thomas Hesse (President of Sony’s Global Digital Business) had to say on the topic: “Most people, I think, don’t even know what a rootkit is, so why should they care about it?”

Right.
It would be startling to hear the sheep bleating while being shorn.

So, while I try to mentally digest all the convoluted machinations of an Industry seemingly intent upon hoisting themselves on their own petard, I started to wonder where it all went wrong... when did loving music (surely the most non-essential product ever sold, as it's always been widely available for free) and sharing that music with others, become a crime?

That led me to pondering where it all began... for me, when I first heard something I knew I had to own and thus began my journey as fan and collector. It's a journey that has spanned several decades... starting with my first purchase of a coveted 45 r.p.m record - in the picture sleeve.

Alas, by the shadows falling across the face of the clock, t'is late and I will have to resume this at a later date. In the meantime...

- Loco -
(Now Playing: How Do You Keep The Music Playing? - Johnny Mathis)

Why A Blog?

Why a blog, indeed.

I know... "everybody's doing it" is not an acceptable reason.

In fact, I think I just heard the echo of a voice from my formative years grilling me about "all my friends" and "jumping off a cliff"... or something to that effect.

So, that's not it... really.

Oh sure, I have some very good web-buddies who beat me to the blogosphere, and I thoroughly enjoy a virtual glimpse into their lives via this medium, so you might say there was some subversive coercion going on (but far be it from me to point the accusing finger.)

As someone who used to keep journals, scrapbooks, photo albums and transcripts as well as tapes of my work on radio, I understand the desire to collect thoughts and "memory triggers" (audio and visual.)

What was once intensely personal takes on a different dimension in the ether... and a blog seems to be the preferrable alternative to chatting with your monitor (especially disconcerting if you don't have voice-recognition software installed.)

So, we come to LocoWorld.

It's like an abandoned Amusement Park crouched under the outskirts of town.

Shrouded in darkness like a mysterious whisper, it beckons with the promise of both terror and delight. Admission only is free. You have been warned.

(Sometimes, late at night, when the air is electric, you can hear the ancient calliope sluggishly awaken... riding a surge of mournful music that gradually becomes a deleriously rollicking, mocking refrain. The siren call of Now Playing: ... )
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Music is the one constant in my life.
It may be the only thing that has consistently given me pleasure, as well as provided common ground upon which to meet people, and share an interest. Enjoying it freely never used to be a crime. Times change. I suppose.
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Now that I'm (more or less) committed to this blog (or "Bleaggh!" depending on your perception/pronounciation of same)... I thought I would use it as I did my old Music Matters column published.... oh, so many years ago. Basically - news, views, reviews and opinion on current events in "the Industry"... as I understand them.

Since I could talk about music until my tongue atrophied, the thrust of this blog will be primarily concerned with "what's happening", musically speaking.

I grew up poring over every word and photograph in Rolling Stone, Creem, Circus magazines etc. - as well as a number of "underground" newspapers smuggled into Canada via the States. I believe it was The East Village Other that granted me semi-celebrity status amongst my fellow "heads", for a time, when I brought that scurrilous publication to high school.

Then there was my own creation - a mimeographed "newsletter" (precursor to the 'zine movement, in my humble estimation), heavily modelled after the free-wheeling zaniness and barely disguised obscenity of the early drug-fuelled underground movement.

It was the Psychedelic Sixties, baby!
We had red, green, purple, blue, and I think (I may have been hallucinating), some serious magenta mimeograph 'master sheets' - no wonder we gave full expression to our artistic abandon. This was cutting edge technology at the time, after all! It was also something we didn't want the parents to see.

But of course, they did. Eventually. Predictably.
(If I recall correctly, I managed to convincingly lie my way out of that one. Most likely I attributed it to a "school project" of some sort - while I was good at casting aspertions, I excelled at laying blame. Yeah, I never did figure out how to be corrigible.)

Since that time, I have indulged my passion for music and writing in many different venues - the internet being but the latest in that long line. Although, I have to say... I have never enjoyed it more than I do right now.

Now... if that horrid, HORRID Sony Corporation would restore Rock'n'Roll Jeopardy Online, I would be momentarily placated - and might even forget (for a while) their Rootkit Debacle.

Nahhh... NOT going to happen.

- Loco -
(Now Playing: Why? - Bronski Beat)

Coffee, Ham & Egos