DJ Frank is a New York-based DJ and like any good DJ, he is on a constant quest to discover new sounds. The difference is that he's not content with digging in old record stores and flea markets in the US, instead he travels to West Africa to find records, before they get destroyed. This new...
More here.. Posted by Ed Cotton
Researchers at UCLA appear to have come up with an interesting cure to the problem iPod created by turning everyone a DJ. It’s a become a common issue at parties, the musical taste of the host is not shared by the party goers, this leads to angst and ends up with guests connecting their own...
There seem to be no limits to Radiohead's cultural impact; all the headlines for the name your own price album, the upcoming New Year's concert on Current TV and Johnny Greenwood getting critical aclaim for his soundtrack to the movie of the moment, PT Anderson's "There Will Be Blood". In additon,...
One of the most important trends to look for in 08 is the continuing battle between nationalization and globalization. It will impact everything from politics to branding. The power and importance of national tradition is nicely represented in a new film by the Icelandic band Sigur Ros. Sigur Ros...
Record companies helped establish and grow bands, they help build them into brands big enough to do away with the middleman and connect directly to their audience.Posted by Ed Cotton
Radiohead's new album release is a few days away and for a band without a record label, they are out of contract with EMI, so they have to take matters into their own hands. Firstly, there's been no pre-publicity for the album, most fans were expecting it to be released next year and secondly the...
The rise of social networks has now become important enough for companies to create positions for people to manage them. Warner Brothers is looking to hire someone to do this for its bands. Someone who has a strong understanding of running or fostering community. Here are the job specs.
Main goals...
Brian Eno talks about what inspired him to create Music for Airports, the album that gave birth to the ambient movementPosted by Ed Cotton
Sometimes you need to go to eleven. Posted by Ed Cotton
There’s no doubting the functional power of iTunes software, but it plays second fiddle to the more powerful and dominant iPod. Now it looks as if Apple would like to beef up the iTunes brand a little more. No 9 on Influx's prediction list for 2007 is happeningIn the UK, Apple...
The Beatles are inescapable; Paul McCartney just released a new album almost to the day of the 40th Anniversary of the release of Sgt Pepper’s and in Las Vegas, Nevada, Cirque du Soleil’s “Love”; an interpretation of The Beatles music, has been playing to sell out crowds....
Ambition and humbleness sound like opposites, but in this new world of brand 2.0, anything is possible. Last FM just got taken over by CBS and they wrote about it on their blog last week. Here's the last paragraph of the post that shows, or is designed to show (?), that despite being taken over by...
Dr. Alex Bentley is a lecturer at Durham University’s Department of Anthropology. Alex’s recent research has explored what drives change in children’s names and in the Top 100 music charts. His research shows that people “randomly copying” one another is one the key...
It’s sometimes just as important to follow and act on counter-trends, as it is to follow trends. One great example is the decision by Rough Trade to open a 5,000 sq ft record store in London, just months’ after Tower Records went out of business and the music industry is in a downward...