Random Music News for Tuesday, January 16, 2018

Now that Blue Monday is behind us, we can concentrate on getting through the second half of what’s been (generally) a brutal month. Here’s your music news for January 16, 2018.

1. Please don’t ask Dave Grohl if rock is dead. He’s tired of that question.
2. Canadian album sales vs. this time last year: Total albums, -21.9%; digital albums, -18.1%; digital tracks, -19.5%; physical albums, -24.9%; CDs, -28.3%; vinyl, +19.6%; streams, +61.5%.
3. Interesting: 30 American AM radio stations have disappeared in the last 12 months. The band is slowly dying.
4. Is tech becoming too complicated? A lot of people seem to think so.
5. Having trouble selecting songs for a playlist? This app helps by using colours.
6. Here’s another musical plagiarism issue. This one involves Air France.
7. The New York City subway can be rough. This is what can happen if you play your music too loud.
8. A North Korean orchestra is going to perform at the Winter Olympics next month. That should cut down on the chances of an attack from the DPRK.
9. North Korea is also sending a pop singer.
10. Another look at how Facebook has deprioritized publishers, a move that will hurt musicians.
11. Last week, it was possible make the Billboard Top 200 SoundScan charts by selling just 589 records.
12. Also worth noting about SoundScan last week: Only one David Bowie album is listed even though last week was the second anniversary of its death.
13. How is the Pogues’ Shane McGowan still alive? He must have the same genes as Keith Richards.