The Constant Evolution Of The Internet.

A podcast is a broadcast that can be downloaded and saved on a portable media player. Ipod was the first to develop this concept and therefore was able to coin the phrase to their particular product. If you visit sites such as MSNBC, you will see the true power of podcasts hard at work with multiple categories for the viewer to choose and download.The categories are limitless but an example of how it works would be a news podcast from MSNBC automatically downloading into your ipod with each breaking story.

That leaves music podcasts as one of the truest forms of marketing imaginable. Although the world has not completely consumed themselves with podcasts, they have taken ipods into their lives wholeheartedly. Ipods have been attached to the consumers arms, cars, phones and any other way that can be sold for constant nonstop maximum usage. 

If bands begin with a simple advertisement of their upcoming album and create an interest, a podcast subscription for a small fee can quickly turn into a billion dollar enterprise. 

Do It Yourself.

In addition to the decline in album sales the music industry is also suffering due to programs such as Pro Tools and Garage Band. Now as long as you have the right plugs, microphones and a simple computer your band can produced a demo or full length album with the click of a button. 

For many bands this is a great opportunity. Most studios, big or small, cost at least a few hundred dollars for a couple hours. Pro Tools and Garage band are essential for struggling bands that can't afford real studio time with producers and engineers. 

The increasing popularity of these programs does however affect the job of many others. Studios are becoming few and far between and the employees that make great albums possible are suffering due to a decrease in their work load. As the art of analog recording has been lost, is this a sign that digital in house recordings become obsolete as well?

Another One Bites The Dust.

Despite technology and the Internet completely changing the record industry, touring and live performances has always withstood the test of time. Since name recognition and fan loyalty is best created with live concerts, the need for managers and booking agents has never left the music industry. 

There has been a definitive shift in major celebrity musician involvement with record labels in recent months. Madonna, U2 and soon Jay Z, have all left their previous labels and signed on with Live Nation ( a promotional company, record label and soon to be ticket distribution company) to benefit in merchandise and ticket sales, over traditional record revenue. 

"While Live Nation may be a great place to go for artists who want to promote a tour, their services won't do much good to an unknown artist." http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/Music/Story?id=4584564&page=1

The impact of the internet on record sales is directly and obviously affecting decisions for artists on the level of Madonna, Jay Z and U2. For example, Jay Z leaving Def Jam is directly related to the lack of income being generated by Def Jam's owner Universal. Once Universal was unable to meet Jay Z's financial needs, he must go down other avenues in order to maintain the enterprises he has built.

Down But Not Out.

Most, if not all, record labels have physical and digital outlets for their music. The internet provides most record labels with a means to electronically distribute music via napster, emusic, i-tunes and the label websites.  

Some say the record label industry is declining and will eventually fail because the internet and technology has lessoned the importance of a label's services. The number of "internet or digital" record labels is on the rise. These electronic labels only provide a means of distribution via the Internet. 

The accessibility to the potential millions of people the internet provides for musicians with the click of a button is unmatched, but the exposure and spread of name recognition is still just as challenging, if not more than it was back in the days of Motown.

"The labels have to earn back trust from the bands," said Spin Magazine's Interactive Director Peter Gaston. "And they're finally making a pretty big move in this instance by getting involved digitally in a way that seems geared toward earning back some fans and having a quicker pathway to get to them."

http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/Music/Story?id=4584564&page=1

How Indie Record Labels Work.

Syd Butler, is the founder and President of French Kiss Records based in New York City. Gives an insightful view on the importance of independent record labels in today's music industry. He also briefly touches on the differences between major and independent record labels.

A Band In The Trenches.

 A prime example of the multiple ways the internet affects the music industry is the work ethic that is becoming ever present among unknown bands such as B-Liminal.

B-Liminal is a local south Florida band. The lead singer Bryce Allen was once the lead singer of a band called Boxelder for over ten years. The bass player Max Fraser, had played bass for another well known band called Doorway 27 for close to ten years as well. Their guitar player Mike Lyons had also had a few years experience with another Florida band called Black River Circus, while their drummer Kyle “The Intern” is a newcomer to band life.

In their previous bands Bryce and Max had developed relationships with club owners, booking agents, and national bands in order to play and tour with other national bands. As they returned to the music scene with their new band, they have been experiencing the difficulties and benefits created by the Internet.

Some of the difficulties include:

• Inability to book shows with national acts due to the need for a crowd guarantee.(Details of this explained in:The Trickle-Down Affect of Illegal Downloads.)
• Playing smaller unknown clubs/bars that will allow local bands to play.
• Due to illegal downloads revenue from CD sales has drastically declined.

Some of the benefits include:

• Fans can buy CD’s online if they come to a show without money.
• Bands have a free and easy promotional tool, through websites such as MySpace and MetroMix.
• Fans can also have direct contact with the bands on music showcasing sites like MySpace, Pure Volume and YouTube.

 As the band continues their hard work and finalizes plans for anew album to come out this summer, here is an "unplugged" look at one of their latest songs! Enjoy!

A Quick Look at the Digital World

There was a time when the ultimate dream was for a band to get their cd onto the racks at the local record store. Today, with the click of a virtual signature on a virtual contract for company's such as Orchard distribution. 

Orchard makes it possible for any band can get their music approved and posted across the world on the leading distribution store outlets such as i-tunes,napster or rhapsody. 

The statistics on digital sales and the effect on physical distribution are staggering as pointed out in this study;

This quarter, 81.5 million CDs will be sold. While that's down 20 percent from the same period last year, digital singles sold by the likes of Apple's iTunes store grew 54 percent, to account for 175 million songs sold. In other words, the quantity of downloaded songs far outweighs the quantity of CDs sold as a whole. How many of those purchases are "singles," as opposed to digital album sales conducted online or subscription downloads? Last year the industry saw about $2 billion in revenues from online music sales, and nearly $800 million of that stemmed from single-track sales, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry's report. That leads me to estimate that at least 40 percent of sales are singles, which means that this quarter we could see something in the range of 70 million "singles" sold digitally.http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070321