Tuesday are often the worst days of the week.  As the Kings once sang “Nothing matters but the weekend/From a Tuesday point of view.”  

Take a break and get caught up on what’s happening in music this morning.

When I first posted about Denise, an AI assistant that’s been adapted to perform as a DJ at a community station in Texas, the traffic almost broke this part of the Internet. 

My contention is that this is the kind of thing that’s killing radio, not helping or enhancing it.  Although programs like Denise still need someone to tell her what to do, the one-time $200 cost will no doubt have station owners and managers thinking seriously about replacing flesh-and-blood radio announcers with a cheap and compliant avatar.

Radio consultant Mark Ramsey wrote about Denise in today’s newsletter.

Amy Lee is awfully sweet.  At a private listening session featuring tracks from the new album (it’s self-titled, as far as I can tell) that came after a long day of press, she was bubbly and friendly, happy to chat with everyone in the studio about the new project.  

A few minutes later, she and I were in the control room, listening to five tracks from the new record at the volume of a 747 on its take-off roll.  I was sitting behind a desk.  Amy was prowling around the room, singing along, punching fists in the air.  She’s definitely proud of this work.  After it was all over, we had a chat.

So you’ve met someone.  The chemisty seems to be there and things are going very, very well.  There’s just one more test you gotta do before you commit.  Does your potential mate have good taste in music?  How can you find out?  Well, there’s an app for that.

As I’ve written in this space before, I’ve become a convert to streaming music services.  If you want access to millions of songs without having to pay millions of dollars, a $10/month investment seems like a pretty reasonable thing.

My current supplier of choice is Rdio.  I’m a regular subscriber who has the same service as anyone else–and I’m rather hooked on it.  And their move today to introduce a family plan should make Rdio more attractive.

It’s been a busy news day, what with the sad passing of Jack Layton and the stories coming out of Libya.  Here’s what’s been happening in the world of music.

More than five years after the release of Stadium Arcadium and the first with new guitarist Josh Klinghoffer, the Red Hot Chili Peppers return next week with their tenth studio album, I’m With You.

What will fans think?  Can Josh adequately replace John Frusciante?  After all, John was much more than a guitarist; he was the guy who stayed in the studio working on arrangements and sounds long after everyone went home.

Let’s find out.  What follows are first impressions on an intial listen.  More nuanced criticism will come with repeated listening.

It’s Monday.  You really don’t want to work that hard, do you?  Take a break and get caught up with what’s happening in music today.