New Find: Beat Connection

Beat Connection is a new band out of Seattle, signed to the venerable Moshi Moshi Records (Hot Chip, Lykke Li, Hercules & Love Affair and Casiokids).

This video is for a new single coming out soon.

"Beat Connection, a dreamy duo from the Pacific Northwest and mpFree alums, recently released a video for their smooth single ‘Silver Screen’. Directed by the guys at Dumb Eyes, it’s one part psychedelic dance party and one part psilocybin adventure through the forest. Beat Connection’s debut EP Surf Noir continues to gather steam as it’s going to be officially released by Moshi Moshi, not a bad decision considering these guys are getting airplay on BBC1 across the pond. I really love this track, it’s like a super mellow Sting and Phil Collins collaborating in their youth to form blissful duo Chill Collins."

(Continued... [Video] Beat Connection: “Silver Screen”) / (via the needle drop)

Special Pre-Order: New Ben Sollee! Out 5/10/11

I just did... From the Ben Camp:

"We have CD and Vinyl pre-order packages forInclusions available at Ben's Bandcamp Site that includes a limted edition pre-order only LandLand 18x24 screen print inspired by the cover image of Inclusions, the unreleased studio recording of the live performance favorite, Cat Stevens'Wild World, and a digital download of Inclusions in your preferred digital format on release day."

The new video for Hurting, featuring Ben's son

Ben will be touring, but will only be hitting Pittsburgh & Detroit.  Check out the Concert Calendar for dates!

Tomorrow: Over the Rhine in Akron

Over the Rhine will be performing tomorrow night at Musica in Akron.  I was really really hoping Lucy Wainwright Roche would be opening, but she's not making this particular show.

BTW, the new Joe Henry produced abum, The Long Surrender is amazing:

PressPausePlay Movie @ CIFF

Hopefully you're catching some movies at the Cleveland International Film Festival, going on now!  If you need any help picking a movie, how about this interesting documentary called PressPausePlay.  Airing:

• Saturday, April 2 9:15 AM
• Sunday, April 3 4:15 PM

And as part of their YouTube channel, an amazing piece on vinyl and it's future:

MGK @ SXSW

The story of a Cleveland rapper making it.  Lace up.

Out This Week: The Pains of Being Pure at Heart

The Pains of Being Pure At Heart release their second full album this week.  Listen to it in the entirety below... maybe you'll love it as much as the Internet's biggest music nerd (review below) - who I would tend to agree with.  btw... they're touring, with the closest stop being at the Basement in Columbus on Saturday, April 30th.

Video Tuesday

Alright, enough of the Tech / Industry talk... back to the music!  First is a gorgeous new video from Akron/Family (who was just here).  Second is a new video from the Dodos (who is coming - June 7th @ Grog Shop).  Finally, a band that everyone is talking about, that I would like to come here soon, The Head and the Heart.

Let the Games Begin! Amazon Drops the Cloud Bomb

How interesting... (not playable via iOS, and it's not a Flash thing)

Amazon Cloud Player goes live, streams music on your computer and Android -- Engadget

"Oh snap! Look who just ate Apple and Google's lunch here? Minutes ago, Amazon rolled out its very own music streaming service which is conveniently dubbed the Amazon Cloud Player. Existing Amazon customers in the US can now upload their MP3 purchases to their 5GB cloud space -- upgradable to a one-year 20GB plan for free upon purchasing an MP3 album, with additional plans starting at $20 a year -- and then start streaming on their computers or Android devices. Oh, and did we mention that this service is free of charge as well? Meanwhile, someone will have some catching up to do, but we have a feeling it won't take them too long."

(Continued... Amazon Cloud Player goes live, streams music on your computer and Android -- Engadget)

Free Downloads: Beehive Recording Company

Interesting idea... If you following the link to the video, you'll need to have plenty of time to watch a guy ramble on for way too long -- but he is doing something cool.  I understand the necessity of an all digital distribution vehicle, but not releasing any supporting vinyl is a bummer.

 

Pay-What-You-Want Music Label Opens In Detroit - hypebot

This Detroit music label is a great example of disruptive thinking. When thinking disruptively, the goal is to flip assumptions on their head. Case in point: Beehive Recording. All the music is free. All the recording and art services are free. Just donate what you can. The new album won't be released in three months; it will be released in three days. Fans create an account on the site and download all the music they want. Just pay what you can. Popularity is measured by downloads, not sales. Founder Stephen Nawara wants to put his city's music on the map and ignite a tribe around the music he loves. So he started a music label, thought disruptively, and flipped industry clichés around. Nawara releases one single a every week, twenty-five singles so far. The site has 600 site members. 3,500 - 4,000 downloads have occured to date. Artists get free distribution, recording, photography, and recognition, among other things. We realize this isn't a new idea, but the interview below is interesting.

(Continued... Pay-What-You-Want Music Label Opens In Detroit - hypebot)

Article: The Hidden Challenges of Subscription Music

An article on why subscription music may not be all it's cracked up to be, despite the incessant push by the industry for us to pay monthly fees for our music.  I struggle with this model and would have a real hard time going this route.  The deals may be nice starting out, but once you've moved from owning to renting, then you've lost price control.

The Hidden Challenges of Subscription Music

As I argued previously, subscription music remains a niche product and in company efforts to appeal to casual music fans, they may grow alienated and be turned away.

Logic tells us that casual fans do not want to use apps that ask too much of them. Yet in lowering the amount of effort that users must exert in order to build collections companies run the risk of taking away the opportunities for personalization and customization that are essential to users forming a lasting connection to their music. In this essay, we are going to expand on this theory and explore why free-trials are too short, what service features are essential to converting free users into subscribers, and the importance of preserving the cognitive benefits of music ownership."

(Continued... The Hidden Challenges of Subscription Music - MTT - Music Think Tank)