Music News

Random music news for Tuesday, April 17, 2018

It’s tax day for Americans. Canadians have until the end of the month to do all the tax accounting for the government. Meanwhile, there’s music news for April 17, 2018.

  1. Canadian music sales last week vs. a year ago: Total albums – 25.5%; digital albums, -23.6%; digital tracks, -19.8%; CDs, -31%, physical albums, -26.7%, vinyl, +51.6%; streaming, +51.6%.
  2. Kendrick Lamar has won a Pulitzer Prize for his DAMN album.
  3. Best headline of the day: “I Saw a McDonald’s-Themed Black Sabbath Cover Band on Mushrooms and Understood True Creativity.”
  4. You know who’s making money from Prince’s estate? The lawyers.
  5. This is a solution to a problem I didn’t know we had: A ukulele that folds down into something pocket-sized.
  6. Got an Apple Watch? You might soon be able to get third-party faces for the thing.
  7. Here’s an interesting debate on the future of (or even need for) AM radio.
  8. And here’s a good look at the future of radio in general.
  9. Still with broadcasting, I’m glad that I don’t have to work under the guidelines set out by the Turkish government.
  10. One more: the state of radio station swag. There are some very clever ideas here.
  11. How sound quality affects our perception of facts. Fascinating.
  12. Guitar makers are getting killed by new regulations surrounding the use of rosewood.
  13. YouTube is collapsing multiple artists channels into one to make it easier for everyone.
  14. If you’re going to tour the former Soviet republic of Georgia, make sure your band name isn’t Rotting Christ–or else. (Via Tom)
  15. Another reflection on the slow death of the album.
  16. If you’re a Black Sabbath fan, you’ve GOT to get this collection.
  17. Dude: Stealing guitars from other bands? Not cool.
  18. Gigroad is a service that’s best described as Airbnb for booking gigs.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 37945 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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