David Geffen is one of the most influential figures in the music and movie industries over the past 50+ years. In 2012, PBS released “Inventing David Geffen,” a documentary about his life and career, as part of the American Masters series. The documentary spans his entire career and features interviews with Geffen and a series of musicians and other influential people from the entertainment business.

Geffen is a very ambitious man. And he’s ruthless. Those qualities served him well as he built his fortune, first in the music business and then in Hollywood. He certainly rubbed many people the wrong way throughout his life and career, but he became a billionaire who could leverage his influence in business, philanthropy and politics.

Read the rest of this entry »

Dear Future is one of those bands that right now is garnering a lot of record label attention, and for good reason. It might seem that there are a lot of Radiohead clones out there, and while that’s a comparison that borders on copping out for lack of a better one, the fact remains that Bends-era Radiohead coarses through the collective vein of Dear Future. And that’s not a bad thing at all. These guys from Illinois are back with their sophomore release, Can’t Wait Any Longer, and it’s likely that some label will do just that. Sure, the brooding tenor and moody arrangements are something you’ve heard before, but these guys get that the songs have to be there too, giving them a nice accessibility factor. And there is a nice little roller coaster ride, from the poppy title track to the darker but melodic “Eden” or “You Are Loved” to the bonus piano track, “Twenty.” Hopefully the slopes of the coaster will continue to be fun for these guys and that tons of adoring fans will continue to find them, because in a somewhat crowded genre, Dear Future is a band to keep on your radar. (self-released)

Dear Future MySpace Page

Nothing is official, but it appears that the RIAA has enlisted the group that can best help them fight music piracy — the internet service providers (ISP).

It’s important to note that none of the half dozen or so ISPs involved has signed agreements. The companies are “skittish” about negative press and could still back out, said the sources. But as it stands, AT&T and Comcast are among the companies that have indicated they wish to participate in what the RIAA calls a “graduated response program.”

Typically, ISPs have stayed away from getting involved in copyright enforcement. The ISPs working with the RIAA will forward take-down notices to network users accused of illegal file sharing and in an unprecedented move, will establish a series of responses for chronic copyright violators.These responses will gradually grow in severity as the number of violations go up and may include suspension of service or even service termination. Each ISP will decide its own response.

There are still plenty of details left to work out, the sources said. The RIAA has yet to address how it would help ISPs make up for the revenue they would lose by kicking people off their networks or who would pay the costs of sending take-down notices. The RIAA may disclose participating ISPs as soon as next month, according to a music industry source, adding that AT&T and Comcast are expected to be part of the group.

If AT&T and Comcast do join, the RIAA will have plenty of muscle to wage a new assault on piracy. The music industry said last month that it would no longer battle piracy by filing lawsuits against individuals. Instead, the big recording companies seek to create a new line of defense at the network level. And at least on paper, the plan is a potent one.

This move has always made sense for the RIAA, but it’s ironic how the ISPs built their broadband business on the backs of music and movie downloaders and now they’re going to turn around and punish their customers for doing just that. There is likely some very negative press once the full list of cooperating ISPs is revealed. And I wouldn’t be surprised if there are a few ISP holdouts that use their status of non-cooperation as a marketing tool to attract downloaders (or customers that just want as much privacy as possible).

I’m still confused about the digital music business model. I can buy a hard copy of a CD for around $10 if I go to a discount seller. I can buy a digital copy of the same album at iTunes for the same price. The difference is that the hard copy of the CD still holds value. I can resell it for $3 or $4 if I stop listening to it. That’s not possible with the digital copy. So, to me, the digital copy should be discounted ahead of time to account for that loss in value. Digital albums should be $5 or $6, not $10. There are no CDs to be burned or shipped, jewel cases to be bought or assembled, or artwork to be printed, so the digital copy should be far cheaper to produce and distribute.

Unfortunately, it appears iTunes is actually raising the price of (some) songs to $1.29.

Toth’s psychedelic combo Wooden Wand provided a promising template for this, his solo debut, but despite his persistent croon and a decidedly dark ambiance, it’s far less cryptic than that previous project. Toth enlists a back-up band with considerable credentials – among them, members of Wilco, Deerhoof, Vetiver and Geraldine Fibers, as well as his wife and foil, Jexie Lynn. – giving him plenty of room to maneuver within their fluid arrangements. “Nothing Hides,” “Do What You Can” and “Midnight Watchman” seem somewhat innocuous on first glance, but there’s a sinister subtext in Toth’s tales, with shady characters, worrisome encounters and a general air of pervading doom tainting the atmosphere. Indeed, lyrics like “Cocaine and bourbon, pinball and pool – look in on me/Don’t leave me to face the slow death of a fool” and an inside cover photo of Toth cradling a revolver confirm his shaded intents. Swagger turns to stagger on the woozy ballad “Poison Oak” and the aforementioned ode to decadence, “Look in on Me,” but overall, this is a most assured collection and a distinctive one at that. (Rykodisc)

James Jackson Toth MySpace page

Toth’s psychedelic combo Wooden Wand provided a promising template for this, his solo debut, but despite his persistent croon and a decidedly dark ambiance, it’s far less cryptic than that previous project. Toth enlists a back-up band with considerable credentials – among them, members of Wilco, Deerhoof, Vetiver and Geraldine Fibers, as well as his wife and foil, Jexie Lynn. – giving him plenty of room to maneuver within their fluid arrangements. “Nothing Hides,” “Do What You Can” and “Midnight Watchman” seem somewhat innocuous on first glance, but there’s a sinister subtext in Toth’s tales, with shady characters, worrisome encounters and a general air of pervading doom tainting the atmosphere. Indeed, lyrics like “Cocaine and bourbon, pinball and pool – look in on me/Don’t leave me to face the slow death of a fool” and an inside cover photo of Toth cradling a revolver confirm his shaded intents. Swagger turns to stagger on the woozy ballad “Poison Oak” and the aforementioned ode to decadence, “Look in on Me,” but overall, this is a most assured collection and a distinctive one at that. (Rykodisc)

Ryokdisc website